say, or do, seeing as she’s not on my clock at the moment.
“Not that it would matter, either way. So, what brings you to this fine establishment tonight?”
“Business, as always.”
“Well, it’s my business to know your business.”
It’s only for the sake of the many negotiations it took to get this fucker on board that I play along. “I’m here to check out the amenities for a rather important guest.”
“And who might that be?”
“Business mogul from Dubai. He’s at the club now, dropping thousands of dollars on drinks.” I don’t need to spell it out for him. The better the club does, the better his odds of getting paid.
“Good man. The world needs ass-kissers. Say, while you’re at it, how about you check my amenities, as well?”
“Go fuck yourself, Aric.”
“Careful now. You wouldn’t want to single-handedly ruin a beautiful friendship like ours. Such a thing would be tragic.”
It might also come to pass, if my blood pressure doesn’t level out in the next couple of minutes. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to the club.”
“Excused. I need to get to my room before I paint the walls of the elevator with my spunk.” The obnoxious laugh that flies out of him strikes a homicidal chord.
Pigs are cleaner and far more gracious than this asshole.
We part ways, but the moment he steps onto the elevator and the doors close, I spin around and head for the stairwell. Three flights up, I push through the door, keeping a good bit of distance behind Aric and Marcelle who turn the corner. The same corner leading toward the same corridor as Carly’s room.
It’s amazing how a simple evening can become so fucking complicated.
Once they’re out of view, I kick up my stride, and a figure comes sweeping around the corner. The sight of her has my muscles both tense with fury and stunned with lust. In her hand is an ice bucket, and the unwitting little distraction smiles sheepishly, holding it up as she approaches. “Any idea where a girl can get some ice?”
“What are you doing out of your room?”
“What are you still doing here? I thought you left?”
Gripping her by the arm, I guide her back toward the room.
“Hey! Let go of me!”
“Quiet.”
“No, I will not be quiet.”
We turn the corner to find Aric pinned against Marcelle, where the two of them make out just outside of what I’m guessing is their room.
Two doors down from Carly’s.
Slapping a hand over her mouth, I yank her back to me and flatten myself to the wall, out of Aric’s sight. As she wriggles against me, I try to ignore the rubbing of her ass against my groin, or the fact that shutting her up is more of a turn on than I care to admit.
At the beep of a card reader, I peer around the corner, and seeing the two stumbling inside their room, I release the feisty little animal in my grip.
“Don’t you ever--”
I press my hand over her mouth again. “We’re leaving. Now. Grab your things.”
Finally catching on, her rebellious glint softens to something more serious. “What’s going on?”
“Those bad men I told you about? One of them is here.”
“The guy from the card game?”
“Did he see you?”
“I don’t know. He had his head tipped back and some girl’s hand stuffed down his pants at the time. Didn’t see her face, but I sure as hell saw his. I suppose he could’ve caught a glimpse through all of that.”
“C’mon.” With more force than I intend, I drag her back down the hallway and wait for her to fish for the room card. Once inside, I draw the gun at my hip and perform a quick sweep.
“Pack up. I’m taking you somewhere else.”
“You just paid four hundred dollars for the room. And another fifty for the macarons that are on their way up.”
“I paid fifty dollars for macarons?”
“They’re French. What do you expect? And I love them. You told me to get what I wanted.”
“I don’t give a damn about the money right now. Grab your things.”
“Where are you going to take me now?”
“I don’t know yet.”
20
Céleste
Cool air conditioning fans over my legs, while I sit in the passenger seat of Thierry’s truck, parked in the lot of the third hotel we’ve tried this evening. Apparently, the upcoming carnival, along with some convention going on, has every hotel and motel booked for miles--excluding the most expensive one, of course. And I apparently can’t go back there.