Page 67 of King of Clubs

“Pour the bottle and hand them around. My shout! Let’s get these people tasting our drop,” he spoke to the group of men to his left and they nodded appreciatively. I reached for the shelf that onlyGolden Spades Distillerybottles were shelved and grinned at him as I opened one of theRoyalSpade Reserve, which he bottled only last month. I poured us both a glass over ice, along with a few more, starting with the guys who Coop had offered.

Together, we clinked our glasses and took a sip.

“Niiiiiiiiccceee,” Cooper said as he licked his lips. His huge smile filled his face and he turned to the boys next to him.

“Not bad.”

“Yeh, bro, this is quality. We’ll take another round,” one of the patrons said and I moved to grab some more glasses but before I could they were handed to me. Clara came to stand a fraction too close, watching me pour the nips and I took a small step away.

Cooper, the observant fucker, watched her, darting his eyes back to me before greeting Clara.

“Hey, Coop. Been a long time,” she was pouring a couple of beers as she spoke and I took the opportunity to excuse myself from behind the bar, nodding to Coop to follow.

“Nice seeing you,” he called to her as he followed me. I noticed the way Clara watched us leave, causing her to spill the beer she was holding over her wrist, again reminding me that conversation needed to happen sooner rather than later.

“She's definitely still keen,” he said, the minute we closed the door to my office.

“I’m aware,” I huffed, still irritated with her overt attention. I wasn’t interested and it was pissing me off that she was attempting to blur the lines of professionalism when I was her boss and I’d told her I wasn’t single.

“Still easy on the eyes, though,” I rolled my eyes as I poured us another whiskey. Thank god I didn’t drive in tonight as this was going down smoother than anticipated. We chatted about the distillery and the unsuccessful interviews while I occasionally scoured the cameras. Coop always did tell a good story and I sat amused as he recounted each one in detail.

“I was just hoping one of them was going to be younger than eighty, competent and hot. Is that too much to ask?” I was laughing, still thinking about his impersonation of the woman who used her fingers to show him she could count without a calculator and thendancedthroughout her presentation.

“You need to get laid, Coop. Are you still seeing Amy?” I asked. He mentioned her name a few times over the past few months but it'd been a while. He didn’t do relationships so the fact he had been seeing the same woman for a couple of months was worth noting.

“Nah, she started seeing someone else and I'm not interested in destroying a relationship. What about you? You have two going at once? Pretty unlike you,” I knew he was only joking because this was what we did with each other, but the insinuation that I wouldn't respect Marlee enough to remain faithful, pissed me the fuck off. The thought that I hadn’t actually told him we were officially seeing each other vaguely crossed my mind as his next question fired.

“Come on, Seb. Who is it, Clara or Marlee?” Before I could retort, I heard the door click open, knowing only one person was invited to my office tonight. Any lingering annoyance evaporated instantly at the look of pain on her face.

“Yeah, Seb. I would also like the answer to that question seeing as Clara just told mesheis your girlfriend.”

Marlee

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Did Sebastian tell you we were dating? It’s just a little embarrassing that you're still here hoping otherwise.Fucking bitch.

My gut told me she was full of shit but I’d been shamed before and wasn’t going to be made the fool again. Especially after I’d been so open with Seb only last week.

Cooper and Sebastian both turned to look at me, Cooper looking like he had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar and Sebastian almost remorseful. I got the impression he wanted to move towards me but couldn’t be sure. I’d let her rattle me and now I was second guessing everything. Again.

Two steps forward, one step back.

Those hazels were boring into me and I wanted to run to him and breathe him in – use his scent to calm my racing heart. But Clara with her fake arse smile and disingenuous warmth was inside my head. After her smug little show I was seething, ready to scream at her, at him, at everyone.

I wanted to appear in control, nonchalant even, but jealousy flared in my stomach and my eyes flickered between them as I did my best to temper my thoughts behind a blank face.

“Coop, give us a minute, yeah? You can apologise to Marlee soon.” He didn’t take his eyes from mine as he spoke and I was slightly comforted that the first words out of his mouth were not an immediate denial. Cooper stood, whispering an apology to me as he passed but I didn’t respond. The only person I wanted to hear from right now was Sebastian. I heard the door close behind me but I didn’t move. My hands were clenched into fists at my sides and I was breathing heavily.

So much for remaining composed.

“Marlee,” he started gently as he took the seat at his desk, “there is nothing going on with Clara. I meant it before and I mean it now. I gave her a job as a favour to my mum. Yes, she did allude to still being interested in me and while I refused, I probably could have made it clearer. I planned on doing it tonight after her shift.”

“Well why did she tell me you were hers and not to bother coming here again?” Even repeating her fucking words and remembering that smug face pissed me off. This jealousy was no joke – I wanted to wreak havoc.

“What?” He snapped, and I could see the fire had taken light in his stomach now too. Good.

“I have never belonged to anyone,” he added and his face clouded when he spoke those words, the ice around my heart thawing a little at the vehemence in his response, “and the only person I would ever want to stake claim to is you. You, my sweet, beautiful, deceptively feisty girl.” He came to stand in front of me and grazed his finger down my cheek, wiping the tears that betrayed the emotions swirling within. “I know you’ve been hurt, babe, but not by me,” the reminder that he really hadn’t ever given me cause to question him was exactly what I needed to hear, “never by me.” He emphasised and I sighed, deflating like a balloon with a slow leak.

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