Not Just Friends (Hot in the City #3) - T. Gephart Page 0,79

nodded, a small smile edging across my lips as I looked at her outfit. “Chief is riding with them tonight because Riley’s home being a daddy, and they got called out. Probably just as well you didn’t get here early, would have been harder for him to get into the truck after he’d seen you.”

“Well, thanks.” She blushed, like she wasn’t used to the attention. “I thought it might have been too much, but I just got this and wanted to wear it.”

I could tell she was nervous, her hands fidgeting with her dress as she tried to look confident. Without trying to sound condescending, it was actually adorable. She seemed so incredibly nice, Mack deserving someone decent after the nightmare that was his ex-wife. Maybe Jared and I weren’t the only ones destined for a happily ever after.

“Oh no, it’s not too much. And his eyes are going to launch out of his head, trust me.” I laughed, trying to reassure her. “If I didn’t have to go to work, I’d stick around just to see it.”

“You need to go?” she asked, looking a little nervous.

“Yeah, I like to be at the club early. Meet with my front of house and security before it gets busy. Once the doors open, I like to be on the floor.” I checked the time on my phone again. Shit. It was already well after six. “And I’d have already been there if my pain-in-the-ass brother hadn’t texted me to meet him here. Not sure why he couldn’t just have left me a message. Weekends are insane for me.”

“Is it as exciting as it sounds? Running a nightclub.” Her eyes warmed with kindness, but nervously flicked around the stationhouse like she wasn’t looking forward to being left alone. And to be honest, I hadn’t really found out anything interesting, so I wasn’t ready for the conversation to end either.

I laughed, already deciding to invite her to come with me. “It has its moments. You want to come hangout with me until they get back? It’s not far, and at least there I can buy you a drink.”

She couldn’t agree fast enough, the, “Yes, I’d love that,” flying out of her mouth the minute I’d asked.

“Then let’s get out of here. I’ll text Tibbs and let him know you’re with me. Mack can call you when he gets back.” I tossed the phone back into my handbag, motioning to the door as I smiled. “I should probably let you know I have ulterior motives. Chief hasn’t dated anyone seriously since he split up with his wife. Well, not anyone we’ve seen. And considering the amount of time he spends with my brother—who no shit couldn’t keep a secret if his life depended on it—we would’ve totally known if he had. There’s been no one. Well, not until you. So, naturally I want to know everything.”

She smiled too, a breath of relief escaping her lips as she nodded her head. “Hey, if you’re buying me drinks, I’ll tell you anything you want to know. I’m pretty much a lightweight these days.”

“Oh, we’re gonna have some fun tonight.” I pulled open the door and led us back out to the street.

It wasn’t far, Diablo only two blocks from the stationhouse which made it a really quick walk. Hayden still seemed a little tense, her gray eyes widening as we walked inside the club.

“The owner is an investor from Hong Kong. As long as I keep up profits, he doesn’t care what I do with it. It’s a rare thing, usually they want to interfere or assume I need my hand held because I’m a woman. Doesn’t matter I have a business degree and worked in clubs all through college. In this world, unless you have a penis, they want you either serving their drinks or dancing on a pole, and they can kiss my ass if I’m doing either of those things.”

I hoped by sharing a little information it would help her relax. Last thing I wanted to do was make her feel uncomfortable, and judging by her body language she was way out of her comfort zone.

“So what about you? What do you do?” I asked as we settled at the bar.

Staff had started to come in but were largely ignoring us. It wasn’t uncommon for me to take meetings just before opening, and they knew enough not to bother me unless it was urgent when I had company. Bennett looked over nodding his head