inviting. Gaslight sconces graced the walls, casting the restaurant in dim but romantic lighting. It was classic in a way that was not only for those on dates, and I had the sense that a lot of business deals were made over perfectly seasoned steaks and handshakes.
A cute, blond bartender approached and set down a Rex Hotel coaster in front of me. “May I get you something to drink?”
“Just sparkling water, please.”
I glanced at the menu again but didn’t register any of the dishes. I wasn’t really hungry. Not after that meeting.
My thoughts swirled in my head like smoke. The truth about The Fifteenth Floor hadn’t fully sunk in yet, but for some reason I was strangely intrigued by Gen’s offer, by the picture she had presented. I wasn’t immune to opulence and wealth. I couldn’t ignore the fact that The Rex world was seductive. They sold sex, clearly. But was there more to it than that?
“May I get you something to eat?” the blond bartender asked, jarring me out of my thoughts.
“No thanks,” I said. “I’m not really hungry.”
He inclined his head and then moved away, leaving me alone with my questions.
Two older men walked into the Bar and Restaurant, dressed in tailored suits. The host sat them at a table in the center of the room. They commanded the space around them and when the server came to take their order, neither of them looked at their menus before speaking.
They knew what they wanted and how they wanted it, and there was no hesitation in their choices.
Would these be the type of men I spent time with if I became a Rex girl?
The man who faced me moved his head and met my gaze. He arched an eyebrow and a slow smile spread across his face.
I hastily turned around, wanting to hide, wondering if I would learn to flirt and be comfortable being valued for my physical being.
I wasn’t a prude or a virgin. I’d had relationships. They’d been underwhelming and unsatisfying, fizzling out as quickly as they’d started. I’d often wondered if there was something inherently wrong with me, since I could never find a man that held my interest.
Swallowing, I thrust that idea away. If I thought about all the reasons I couldn’t or shouldn’t be a Rex girl, I’d chicken out. I’d walk out of the lobby and never look back, and then I’d have to take my chances on the run again from the Foscari.
But if I said yes? If I said yes, a whole new avenue would open up before me. I didn’t know nearly enough about The Rex world or what it meant to work on The Fifteenth Floor, but I knew that my back was to a wall. I’d lived on borrowed time the past year, and I was exposed and out of money. I wouldn’t survive, not on my own. If I walked away from the offer in front of me, I might never have another chance at starting a new life.
Genevieve wasn’t convinced I was cut out to be a Rex girl, and I agreed with her. I didn’t want to become a Rex girl. But if I wanted to survive, as my mother had told me to do, I didn’t see any other choice.
I was staring into my glass of sparkling water, watching the bubbles fizz and pop when I noticed a man approach the bar.
Even though I was distracted, I couldn’t help but spare a glance in his direction. He unbuttoned his black suit jacket before sliding his large body onto the stool right next to mine. There were a few other seats available at the bar, and I wished he’d used one of them.
His hair was blond with subtle hints of red.
A male strawberry blond. In the wild.
The thought made me smile.
My grin somehow pulled his attention because he looked at me head on. His stormy blue-gray eyes were mesmerizing, and when I was able to pull my gaze away from them, I was finally able to see the entire picture of his face. He had a bold, unapologetic nose which was the slightest bit crooked, no doubt from a fight. His jaw line was chiseled and cut.
He sat close enough that I could detect the faintest trace of expensive aftershave, and it made me wonder at the color of his beard. Would it be blond? Red? Darker auburn? I suddenly had to know.
I’d never seen a man like him in my entire life. Brawny and