“Jake,” the white-haired man says, clasping a firm hand on my shoulder. Over the past month, we’ve had meetings, as he’s preparing for his retirement and the handing over of Franklin to me. “I’ve never witnessed such fire and passion.”
Falling in love will do that to you, I think to myself. I’m not ashamed to admit it now. I’m in love with Roxy. I don’t think I’ve ever felt this way about another human being. “Thank you, Tom. I’ll do my best to fill your shoes.”
“I wouldn’t worry about that,” he says, smiling. “You’ve done a phenomenal job with the division since starting here. But I have to say, I was getting a little bit worried for a second. You stumbled there for a week, and I had doubts, especially with your . . . other business. But you’ve pulled it out remarkably.”
I smile, relieved. “Thank you, sir.”
He grins. “I’m leaving this place in good hands. Thank you, it’s an honor.”
He offers his hand, and I shake it. “It’s an honor for me as well, sir. So I guess I’m still invited to your retirement party on Friday?”
Tom laughs, nodding. The party’s been Elena’s big project this past week other than helping me with this presentation, and she’s even roped herself an assistant, Hannah. “Of course. Just don’t let me see your back while I’ve got the knife for my cake.”
I laugh and head down the hall back to my office. It’s a little after quitting time, and I feel a slight pang in my chest when I don’t see Roxy, but I understand. She’s busy, and she’s gone home. No reason for me to stay either.
I head downstairs and get in my car. It’s early, but I figure I can stop by Club Jasmine on my way home and see how things are going. Nathan’s really enjoyed being hands-on with it, although Andre’s doing a great job as our assistant manager. And of course, Nathan will want to show me the new numbers after Roxy’s most recent performance.
I don’t even get in the door before Nathan’s coming across, grinning ear to ear. “Yo, man, what did I tell you? The exec called. He wants to see Roxy’s show live.”
I stop, a stupid grin on my face. “You serious?”
Nathan nods, laughing. “Hell yeah, man! Looks like we’re gonna have a star on our hands.”
I shake my head and head toward the bar. “That’s amazing. When’s he coming?”
“Two weeks from Saturday,” Nathan says. “Just think about it, Jake. Roxy performing at our club, it’s so going to raise our status to have our own in-house pop star. We gotta get her signed to something ASAP. My God, the money’s going to roll in!”
I’m not sure if I like Nathan’s idea. I get it, he’s thinking about the business, and he doesn’t realize the feelings I’m having for her. If Roxy gets her big chance, I want her to be free to do what she wants. If she’s content with performing on the weekends, even better. “Two weeks? That’s great, man. We’ll have plenty of time to promote it and Roxy will have time to rehearse. She’ll be amazing.”
“Hell, she always is. By the way, is everything going okay with Sophie? I know you were stressing when you two left Saturday night. I still feel like shit that it happened. John and Andre are already going through the door staff, making damn sure we don’t fuck up like that again.”
“She’s better. She’s still sort of pissed at me, but she’s coming around I think. We’re talking some more, and I’m gonna make sure I have some more one on one time with her.”
“Yeah, well, if you need to back off here to do time with her, you do it, okay? I’ll keep the Club on lock for you, Jake.”
I nod, making up my mind. “You know, I think I might do just that. Email me the numbers if you want, but I’m gonna skip tonight.”
Roxy
“Jake seemed happy today,” Hannah says as I use my hip to bump open the door of our apartment. I stroll in and kick off my heels, immediately stretching my toes out to their widest, unsexiest stretch and padding around in what I call “Hobbit Style.”
“That’s because we’ve decided to not hide our relationship,” I announce cheerfully, walking to the kitchen, rooting around for that bottle of herbal tea I put in the fridge this morning. It always helps before I start my vocal exercises.
“What?” Hannah says, kicking off her shoes. She must have really put some oomph into her left leg, because I turn to watch as her heel lands dangerously close to Mr. Felix, but an instant later, he’s safely under the couch with his tail hanging out under the end. Hannah, however, is staring at me in shock. “What the fuck?” she asks, placing her hands on hips. “You have a lot of ‘splainin’ to do.”
I flip the cap on my tea, taking a deep swig and swirling it around my mouth before answering. “What? You had to know that I was still seeing him. After all this time, the number of times I was at the club late, all that.”
Hannah rolls her eyes. “I figured. I just didn’t want to argue with you over it. I hope it doesn’t cause a problem at the office.”
“Whatever happens, happens. It’s not like we’re gonna start screwing on his desk in his office during work hours,” I say, though thinking about it, that would be fucking hot.
“Mmmhmmm,” Hannah says, unconvinced. “I notice you added in ‘during work hours’.”
“Seriously. I just mean we’re not going to deny it if anyone asks. We don’t care who sees us.”
Hannah gives me a look. “I can smell the hormones from here. You‘d better get a grip on them.”
“Look, it’s more than just great sex. I really care about him. He’s the first guy in a long time who’s made me feel this way. He’s more than just a big wallet with a big dick. I give zero fucks that he’s my boss.”
She gives me a neutral look. “You don’t have to convince me. I have your back no matter what. I’m just looking out for—” she says before she suddenly jumps up, looking panicked when her phone buzzes. “Oh, shit! I’ve gotta go.”
I frown, confused. “Huh?”
Hannah doesn't respond, snatching up her purse and jamming her feet into the Nikes she keeps next to the front door. She yanks open the door, and I’m still confused. “Hannah!”
Before I can move, she rushes out of the apartment, slamming the door behind her. “The fuck was wrong with her?” I mutter in puzzlement. The way she looked at her phone and rushed off was bizarre. I look over at Mr. Felix, who’s just starting to emerge from under the couch. “You got any ideas?”
He gives me a look. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. Face it, Felix, be glad you’re a cat because bitches be crazy.”
I finish off my tea and rinse out the bottle. I’m just putting it in the rack when there’s a pounding on the door. I wipe my hands off. It must be Hannah. She must have forgotten something.
“What did you forget, your pocket rocket?” I ask, about to grill her on her odd behavior, swinging open the door. It’s not Hannah, and my breath catches in my throat. There, standing in his suit, looking hot as hell with a happy smirk on his face, is Jake.
“What are you doing here?” I rasp. Never mind the fact that I was thinking about dropping by the club to see him so we could roll around a little bit in the back. It’s the first time he’s come to my place unannounced. I guess I should expect more things like this since we’re officially ‘out’, but I just wasn’t expecting it after Hannah’s weirdness.
“I brought this for you,” he says, “Caymus Special Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s a very special wine for a very special person.”
I take the bottle from his hand, looking at it. I know the winery. My stepfather has some, and I’m shocked that Jake just dropped a few hundred dollars for a bottle of wine. “Thank you, but what’s the occasion?”
Jake grins silently for a moment, drawing it out. Just when he’s starting to really get me anxious, his handsome face breaks off into a huge grin. He steps in and grabs me in a big hug, swinging me around before setting me down. “That record executive is coming to see your show in two weeks. How’s that for an occasion?”
I gawk, nearly dropping the bottle of wine between my shock and the huge hug. “You’re shitting me!”