Wicked Destiny (2 page)

He thought I was a stripper. How typical of him. B
efore he ruined any possible chance for the future, it was better to set him straight.

“Wow, before you say anything or insinuate something else
, I am a bartender at the Xchange around the block. Maybe when you’re done sweating off those boxes you could stop by. I’ll leave your name at the door.” I quickly began to walk away, letting him appreciate the view.  I heard him yell out one more time.

“Who do I ask for?”

Not turning around, I yelled, “Sloane!”

Smiling to myself
, I could hardly wait to tell Shay about my new friend. She would be eager to see what he looked like as well and only because her approval was most important. Right as I got to the Cannon and pulled the door open, realization washed over me. He was living in the same building as me and that meant that there was no escape. At that moment, there was no use in telling Shay anything, because it was already a dead end road. 

Walking through the crowd
, I found Shay and took my seat across from her. She was with her new flavor and I was polite. I gave a smile and shook his hand and introduced myself.

“Hi, I’m Sloane
. I’m practically Shay’s sister.”

“Rick.
Nice to meet you.”

Smiling at Shay, I
silently gave my approval. He looked the part, but something about him shouted he was a bigger diva than Shay. He wore more gel in his hair than Pauly D and looked as if he stayed in the tanning bed just as long. His shirt was a smedium, too, meaning he wore it too small to give the illusion of having a bigger body. It wasn’t bad, but his choice of clothing made me think not only was he a diva but he also had a little man syndrome. Not to mention he wore tight fitted jeans. I mean, really, what was Shay thinking? Oh, I was certainly going to have to speak with her about this later once our shift started. 

“So
, did you get any sleep last night?  I tried calling you all day, but you never called back.”

Looking at the menu
, I answered, “Yeah, surprisingly I did.”

“
Are you having issues sleeping? I’m sure there’s something that can help with that.” Rick was smiling as if there was a hidden meaning behind his comment. Was that an invite? Well, I guess I needed to assure him where he stood with me.

“Well
, I’m sure if I needed assistance with sleeping, I could well accommodate for anything lacking.” As I began to smile, his began to fade. At this point I’d lost all interest in eating. If he was going to hang around, then it was going to be a long night tonight.

We got through dinner without
anymore snide comments and I made sure to behave myself until I could get Shay alone. This guy just didn’t know it yet, but he was done for.
First off, what guy just comes onto his girlfriend’s best friend in front of her like that? I mean, really, the nerve.  Why hadn’t she noticed? Please, tell me she’s not head over heels already?

It was settled, and I’d tell her a
s soon as we got into the club and to the closet. The closet was a room at the end of the bar where we put our jackets and purses. Anything that we needed to keep an eye on was kept in there, and since it was behind the bar, no one else could get to it.  This meant girlfriends, too.

I ha
dn’t been too talkative and I’d mostly been thinking about what I wanted to tell Shay. When the check finally came, I picked it up. Shay tried to protest and, to my disbelief, Rick made no effort. Something told me he was a mooch. Maybe I’d hold off on the talk to Shay just so I could get a better look at this guy. If I had more to go on, she might actually believe me. I didn’t want her to think I was just against her having a boyfriend.

“I can’t wait to make some money
, and momma, if I may say; I think we might clean out the house tonight.” Shay casually slapped me on the backside, smiling while Rick trailed beside her with a too big of a grin.
Ew
, was all that ran through my mind. 

“With those outfits
, I think you might need to keep security close by.” He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek and she smiled, glancing up at him as if she had tunnel vision. This wasn’t going to end well; I could already see it.

“So
, Rick. What is it that you do, like for a job?” I couldn’t help myself. I caught him off guard as he went to open the door of the restaurant.

“Well
, as of right now I’m taking some time off. I, uh, well, let’s just say my last boss and I had somewhat of a disagreement the last time I saw him.”
Great.
I knew it—he was unemployed.

“He’s going to start his own business and during the
day I’m going to help manage it,” Shay added.

Ohmygosh!
She had their lives planned out already. What the hell was Shay thinking?

“Really
? That’s, well, interesting. What kind of business are you starting?” Thinking to myself, I bet it was a lawn service and Shay’s money was the backer. Shay didn’t have as much as I did, but she did well invest the couple thousands she got from graduation and college. Not to mention if there was anything that she lacked, her dad always made sure she had it.

Walking across the street
, avoiding traffic, Shay immediately went on defense. “Well, he’s had some problems with the bank, so I offered to get a business loan in my name.” 

I couldn’t help it any longer.
As soon as we reached the door to the Xchange, I stopped in my tracks. The mere thought of her doing all of this for him so soon, and the fact that he was letting her, just pissed me off.  There was no way this was going to happen.

“I’m sorry, what? You’r
e taking a business loan out in your name for
him
? So when is the big day? I mean, you have everything planned out, or has that already happened and you just haven’t told me yet?” I couldn’t take it anymore.  I yanked the door open and left them outside.

Walking into the actual club, I stormed behind the bar. Signing into the computer, I
pulled off my jacket and stored it in the room behind the bar with my purse. Walking back out, I bumped into Jared. Jared didn’t know when to stop harassing me about giving him the time of day. I only really needed him to keep this club going, otherwise today would’ve certainly been his last night. 

“Whoops
. Sorry, didn’t see you there.” He wrapped an arm around me, acting as if I needed to be steadied. “I always knew you wanted to get in this closet.”

“Yes
, that was my plan. Now if you could only decide whether to come out of the closet. I think you could save yourself and everyone else here a bunch of bullshit.” Jared knew at this point that it was going to be one of those nights. It wouldn’t matter, though, especially since he’d just keep coming.

“Ouch! That hurts
, Sloane.” He placed his hand over his heart. If he actually had one, because all he did was break every girl’s heart that came or worked here. “Do you want me to kiss it and make it better?” 

Jared was cute in his so-
called ‘seductive kind of way’.
He had brownish red hair that he liked to keep short so he could spike it however way he wanted. The clothes he wore were always designer and up to date. His eyes were brown but with green mixed in. He was gorgeous no doubt.
He reminded me of a cocky Ryan Reynolds. I know most girls would wonder what was wrong with that and, don’t get me wrong, he is sexy as hell. But I’d watched him use this club as some sort of breeding ground. It was disgusting and the worst part was that the girls never had a chance. I couldn’t say I’d never been tempted either, and in all honestly, he would’ve probably been the one that actually understood me and my lifestyle. Tonight just wasn’t the night for pillow-talk in the closet, and I could see Jared was in the mood to play. Like always.

“You have to have a heart
for it to hurt,” I said, smiling so brightly I couldn’t help but think how much I amused myself.

“Oh
, I have one, Sloane. You just won’t let me share it with you.” He had me backed up against the wall now and he was pressed against me, whispering just below my earlobe and caressing my shoulders. He gave me goosebumps and I knew he was happy with my reaction because he smiled. He kissed my neck and I shut my eyes, tilting my head to the side to give him a little more access.

And t
hen my eyes shot open and I quickly sidestepped away from him.

“I’m sure
that’s exactly what you wanted to share with me.” I turned away to get my station ready for the night.  I knew he would be mad, but he would also get over it.

Walking back to his office
, trying to hold his head up, Jared yelled at me, “I’d love to meet the guy that shattered your heart so I can kick his ass.”

I
thought about Declan. It’d been years and he still had some kind of affect or hold on me. I hated that. His leaving didn’t just shatter my heart; it downright destroyed me and what pieces that seemed to be mended. I just couldn’t take that chance of them falling apart all over again. I didn’t think I’d survive the second time.

“Oh
, come on, Jared. You know I love you. If I gave in so easily, we would never have our secret meetings,” I said, batting my eyelashes at him as he rounded the bar and walked to his office. But he stopped right in front of my station. 

“You
and I both know that all this—your hair, the tattoos, the clothes, and your attitude—is an act. It’s what you do to ensure that you don’t get attached. I’ve watched you for years and never have I actually seen you serious with anyone. I think our flirting is the longest relationship you have ever had, and frankly, I’m a little worried.” Wow, was he really playing the adult here? “Have you ever thought that we could be great together?” There it was. That awkward silent moment when you didn’t have anything to say or just couldn’t. “I don’t expect an answer or a reply. I’m just telling you to think about it. I totally get you and will probably be the only one that does. You deserve to be happy.” With that, he was gone.

What was wrong with me?
I knew his advance would only last as long as the first group of girls appeared into the club, and he would forget all about it until it was time to go home. But what if I did give him a chance? Jared was right; he did get me. He never knew about Declan, but I was sure it wasn’t rocket science. He could tell I was broken and scared. I watched him walk into his office and, just before he shut his office door, he looked at me and gave me a smile. Reluctantly, I smiled back. Thinking about Jared, I not only busied myself by stocking my station, but Shay’s as well. She was probably outside making excuses for me and my outburst, too. I didn’t need her to do that for me. If he was confused about anything I’d said, he could have easily come in and asked me himself.

I hated Shay being mad at me, though, and s
he was the only family that I had left. I’d make sure I apologized and was there for her no matter what. Even when he left her. I heard footsteps and looked up to see Shay walking in and looking straight ahead. She was mad, but I also knew that it wouldn’t be long before she forgave me.

After Shay put her stuff away in the closet
, she took a long look at her station and glanced over at me. “Thanks for stocking my station.”

“No problem.” I
t was too soon to say sorry, but I just blurted it out. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to crash all your plans. I just want to make sure you know what you are doing.”

“I’m not stupid
, Sloane. I know he has certain issues and things he has to work on about himself, but at this moment he’s what I want. You know what that means.” She looked at me with her blue eyes and smiled. “I always get what I want.” We both just started laughing.

The club was s
tarting to open. The other bartenders were showing up and the bar backs were stocking all the ice and alcohol for us. Looking up, I noticed how perfectly everything seemed to be coming together. Everyone who worked here knew their job; no one had to be told what to do.  As soon as the employees got here, they went right to work. I wondered if it would ever change, but knowing if it did, it’d be Jared that would deal with it. I couldn’t help but sit back and notice everything I had. I was a business owner that had a great crew, three lofts, land and houses, and I had my best friend at my side.

I glanced at Shay and somehow I still envied her.
She was living her life, and even though it pained me, I knew one day she would have to live with her own family. I sighed and glanced down, pretending I was wiping the glass for the tenth time.

“What’s wrong
, Sloane?” I heard her gasp.

“I was just thinking what will
happen a couple years from now. I mean, I know we can’t go on like this forever. I guess what I mean is that when we are done having fun, what else is there?” Gazing at her, I fought off all tears.

“OK,
first off, you need to take a couple of breaths, because your eyes are changing. And second, we will figure it out. It doesn’t have to be decided right now. We will work it out later.”  She smiled as she helped fan my eyes.