Page 88 of Cocky Prince
There’s a pause on the other line. “You two not talking?”
“We’re talking, we’re just having a slight disagreement.”
Tyler lets out a loud breath. “I can’t say anything or Mira will kill me.”
“Jesus Christ, Morgan. You’re afraid of a hundred-pound female?”
“She’s a buck twenty, and shit yes, I’m afraid. She holds my balls in her tiny little hands. And don’t even think to respond to that. I see the way you are with Hayden. You’re not one to talk.”
I squeeze my forehead. “I’m worried about Hayden. I think she’s getting involved in something that could make her a target for the wrong people. She’s pissed at me for keeping things from her, and I’m worried she’s going to do something reckless.” I press my fingers against my eyebrows, pushing back the pressure that’s building there. “The thought of anything happening to her is making me crazy.”
“I hate to say it, Cade, but you’re right. She is up to something.”
My voice lowers menacingly. “You fucking asshole. If anything happens to her—”
“Hold on. First of all, I can’t control Mira or Hayden. They’re a vicious force when combined, and if that makes me a wuss, so be it. Second, it’s my understanding that this—thing—Hayden is doing tonight is harmless. A bit of dress-up. Mira’s convinced it’s safe.”
“Will Mira be there too?”
“Well—no. We have dinner plans with my editor, who flew in for the weekend.”
“Then who will look after her? Jaeg? I haven’t been able to reach him.”
“Yeahhh, that’s because he’s out of town. Something about needing to talk to Cali’s mom.”
“What the fuck! Who is keeping an eye on Hayden?”
“Dude. That’s your job.”
“She won’t let me! Whatever she’s doing, it’s behind my back. She’s pissed as hell at me right now.”
“For starters, try simmering down, or you’re going to push that girl away.”
“Son of a bitch,” I mutter. “I’ve turned into my father.” I stalk across my living room, turn, and stalk the other way.
“So your girlfriend’s pissed at you, and you can’t control her?” At my grunt of assent, he chuckles. “In that case, welcome to the club, buddy. The women we’re with are smart and ruthless.”
“Too smart. Too headstrong.”
“Yep. That about sums it up. Wish I could help you, but Mira and I are about to walk out the door. Hayden left a while ago. I’ll have Mira check in with her, but like I said, my understanding is that whatever she’s doing, it’s safe.”
Why do I doubt that?
Chapter Thirty-Four
The goalof tonight’s auction isn’t completely philanthropic. The burlesque show seduces celebrities into the club, and the auction to raise funds for cancer gives them a legitimate excuse to be here. In the end, the casino rakes in an inordinate amount of money from wealthy patrons hitting the tables afterward, not to mention the profit earned once a select group of individuals visits the Bliss suites and signs on the dotted line.
I’m not sure how much longer I can take this. And I’m not referring to the club, though I am sick of the din of music and voices—the shuffle for attention. Hayden is the only one I want to spend time with. And if that’s not evidence some serious shit has gone down for me, I don’t know what is. Because I didn’t want anything serious, and here I am in the most serious relationship of my life that’s teetering on the edge of destruction because I can’t separate my old life from my new one.
Hayden was right. I should have told my father to screw himself when he asked me to take the job at Blue. But then I might not have run into Hayden, and being with her has changed me. I was changing before I showed up on Blue’s doorstep—sick of my old life—but she helped me round that corner.
Bliss wasn’t what I signed up for when I first started working at Blue. Now that I’ve risen to management and obtained the coveted Blue Star designation, I’d like to step down. Because this shit Blackwell is into is too much. Even for a jaded asshole like me.
I know what went down with Lewis’s girlfriend and Cali when they worked here a couple of summers ago. That was one guy, and I thought it ended with him. But it didn’t. Blackwell and Paul and William, and even Eve—they’re taking advantage of people, rich or not. They’re hiding the truth through subcontractors and escorts and encrypted clouds designed to destroy evidence. I’ve seen enough, and if Hayden weren’t still working at Blue Casino, I’d quit, my father be damned. But Hayden is still here. In fact…
I scan a pair of shapely legs over at the bar—one of the pinup lookalikes that came in for the evening. This one has black hair. But the curve of leg into ass that swells over a handful of generous hip, pulling in at a trim waist…
I can only see her from behind. But behind is all I need.
