Page 6 of A Ballad of Betrayal and Beauty

He drops his hands onto the bench, his head falling back with his eyes closed, and sighs. I open my mouth, wondering if I’ve done something wrong. Do I keep moving? Finally, he opens his eyes and looks at me for a long moment. A shiver races up my scalp as he wraps a red curl around his finger, staring at it intently. Then with a smirk, he says, “How about we get out of here and have some real fun?”

“What? I’m—Joel, I’m working.”

“Oh, right.” He frowns. “Well, what time are you off?”

* * *

Life really is unpredictable sometimes.After a shitty start to my night, I’ve had the most fun since moving to Vegas. Joel handed me two hundred dollars for my time—an amount that was way overboard for the time we shared in the backrooms and had me melting into the floor, speechless—and said he’d come back when my shift ended. Imagine my surprise when, even after I stressed how that fun wouldn’t include sex, he still seemed keen.

Walking down the Vegas strip this morning, with my arm tucked into his, I feel on top of the world. It’s nice to be out. It feels like a date. Maybe that’s what he wants. The girlfriend experience. And I make sure to lay it on thick. Agree with wherever he wants to go, accept what he wants to give me—which includes a snazzy new pair of shoes—and laugh at his jokes . . . Okay, this part’s been easy because he’s actually funny. I can’t remember the last time I smiled so much.

But as the sun begins to rise over the tops of the buildings, the light chasing the stars away, this happy little balloon begins to deflate. Reality hits me when I remember that this is a guy who got lucky with some cash and wanted to have a great night out. After I leave, he’ll go back to wherever he came from and years from now have a story to tell his buddies about that one time he went to Vegas.

My feet ache, and I’m exhausted and hungry as we walk toward a motel next to a wedding chapel. What I would give to simply fall into one of those beds and sleep the day away. Stomach twisting, we slow down our pace as we approach.

“This is . . . well,” he stammers, “this is me.”

I glance between him and the motel. “Oh, right.”

He looks down and shuffles his feet. “You could . . .” He pauses, then sighs. “If you’ve changed your mind, you could come in with me.”

The offer is so tempting, despite it being a cheap motel. Joel has been nothing but generous and fun, and the way he makes me feel . . . I haven’t had sex in a long time, and I know based on the intimacy we’ve already shared that he could rock my world. But then he’d be gone, and the part of my heart that’s already been captivated by him in a few short hours would shatter.

I glance down. “It’s very tempting, Joel, but I’m going to have to say no.”

He runs a hand down the back of his head. “Yeah, I figured.” When he glances back up, his cheeks are pink. “Thought I’d ask again. Just in case.”

“I really had a lot of fun tonight,” I say softly. “More fun than I’ve had in a while. So, thank you for that.”

He grins. “I don’t think I’ll ever forget it. Last night was insane. Here.”

Holding out another small stack of bills, he pushes them toward me.

“What’s this for?”

“For indulging me.”

Part of me doesn’t want to take it. I was happy enough to be around him. But then he’d wonder why a stripper didn’t take cash from a paying customer. And if he starts poking holes in my refusal to join him in his motel room, I don’t think I’ll have the strength not to end up on my back.

“Well, I guess I’ll be going then.”

His lips press together in a hard line. “You, uh, should I call you a cab?”

“No, I’m . . . the bus is more my speed,” I say, gesturing past him to the bus stop.

“Oh.”

“Thank you.” Shit, why am I getting so emotional? I step toward him and press up to my tiptoes, kissing him on the cheek. My lips linger a moment too long before I pull back, my hand instinctively brushing my mouth where that small, sweet touch tingles, and I avoid looking into that beautiful gaze.

“You know, I think my mom was right,” he calls, taking a step forward like he’s about to come after me. But he stops.

“What?”

“She was right. This gorgeous redhead,” he says, placing a hand over his heart dramatically. “Think she stole a piece of my heart.”

I shake my head, fighting a smile. “Goodbye, Joel.”

I steel myself and walk away, heels clicking against the pavement of the parking lot. When I look over my shoulder, he’s already walking toward the motel, and I let out a long breath. I see the bus stop and pause, changing course to grab something to eat at that diner first. As I head toward it and further from Joel, my fingers clutch at my chest and I blink up at the pastel morning sky. Everything looks different today.

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