Page 111 of Injustice and Absolution

“Hey, ladies,” I greet Jade and Cherish who appear to be back to full health. “Feeling better?”

“Yes, but it was touch and go for a bit,” Jade laughs, and Cherish nods in agreement next to her. “We heard you made a surprise appearance last night.”

“Yes, it wascertainlya surprise.” Wanting to end the conversation there, I add, “Well, I’m glad you’re back.”

I smile as I put my bag down and fish out my server’s uniform.

“Why are you putting that on?” Jade nods to the black spandex in my hand, confusing me.

“What do you mean?” I hold up the top to make sure I have the correct one, and my brows furrow in confusion when I confirm it’s the right shirt.

“Um, you’re on the schedule as a dancer tonight,” Jade points her thumb to the clipboard on the wall behind her.

There must be some mistake. I walk to the wall and check today’s schedule of events. Sure enough, I’m on it.

“This … can’t be right,” I say to no one.

Shuffling through the pages behind it, I check the schedule for the next week. I’m on as a dancer every day but one, only because I’m off that day.

With the clipboard in hand, I walk out of the dressing room and across the hall into Drew’s office. Josie is in there with him. The office smells like disinfectant, and there is a high-powered fan sitting on the floor, drying the carpet.

My cheeks heat, knowing what caused the mess, and I swallow down my embarrassment.

Holding up the clipboard, I speak.

“Sorry to interrupt,” I look from Josie to Drew. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

“Sure,” Drew answers, and Josie excuses herself, closing the door behind her. “What’s up, pretty girl?”

Scared to rile things up between us when they’ve taken such a positive turn in the last day, I proceed with caution.

“I’m a little confused, and I’m hoping you can explain something.” I show him the clipboard, thinking it will speak for itself.

“Of course, what is it?” Taking it from me, he places it down on his desk, maintaining his eye contact.

I groan inwardly, realizing he’s going to make me spell it out for him. I want to demand he remove me from the schedule and tell me why he thinks he has the right to change my job title without consulting me first.

But I don’t.

Remaining calm, I simply say, “Well, um... I’m on the schedule as a dancer the rest of the week. Not as a server. I’m just not sure why.”

Drew smiles at me in a way that I’ve seen before, though it’s never been directed at me until now. It’s the smile he reserves for people who should already know the answer to their question. People who are wasting his time by even asking it in the first place.

“Yeah, I told you earlier, I moved a few things around on the schedule,” he explains, mildly irritated. “You didn’t have an issue with it then, what’s the problem now?”

I shift my weight from one foot to the other as an uncomfortable chill skitters up my spine. I swallow, recognizing the warning signs that I’ve missed—or didn’t want to see—in the past.

“I’m so sorry, Drew,” I put the blame on me, trying to diffuse the situation before it blows up. “I didn’t realize you meant you moved me from server to dancer.”

“Delilah, you’re the hottest fucking girl in this club. And I’m not just saying that because I'm biased. The numbers don’t lie. You pulled in the most money in a single night than I’ve seen in a very long time. Both in your own personal tips as well as in beer and liquor sales.”

His previously cheery demeanor is slipping. I don’t know what to say. How to tell him it was a one-night only performance. He’s the first to break the silence.

“It would be a stupid business decision tonotchange your role.”

Likening me to a business decision stings. And it causes my calm to crumble, even at the risk of losing the warm, compassionate Drew from last night. From this morning.

But he told me once that I have the power to say no. Look at what I’ve already done for him. And I love making him happy, but not in the way he’s been suggesting recently. And his happiness is so short-lived before he quickly comes up with something else to ask of me.

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