Emilee waves her off. “We just had a couples massage. Dear Lord, it was amazing!” She sighs, rubbing her neck.
Titan walks up to the counter and pulls an envelope out of his back pocket, sliding it toward me.
“What’s this?” I ask, picking it up.
“That is your deposit for our wedding,” he answers.
I open it up. “Deposit ….?” I trail off as I pull the check out. It’s written out to me for twenty-five thousand dollars. “What?” I breathe.
“I figured that would be enough to get started.” He knocks his knuckles on the counter, then turns, giving Emilee a kiss. “You ladies have fun today,” he calls out before he leaves.
“Emilee?” I cough out her name. “This is …”
“Not enough?” she asks, tilting her head. “I can write you another one for the difference.”
Is she joking? “…insane.”
She waves me off as though she just bought me a five dollar lunch.
“No. Seriously.” I put it down and walk over to her. “I don’t even have the ability to produce that much. It’s just me …”
“You have us.” Jasmine throws her arm over my shoulders, pulling me into her side. “We will help make it happen.”
“What?” I look up at her in a daze. The shop has been down for a week, so I’m already behind. I would love nothing more than to do this for Emilee and Titan, but it’s just not possible.
“We’re the kind of girls who have your back. No matter what,” Jasmine adds with a wink.
Haven nods. “We got it.”
Emilee smiles. “Just let me know when and where you need me.”
Jasmine pulls away from me and places her eyes back on the guy who is now on his knees, back to setting the tile. “I know where I wanna be.” She whistles.
_______________
I sit at the table eating lunch with the girls. They talked me into walking down the street to a sub shop. My mind is still reeling from the check Titan wrote out to me and trying to figure out how I can give Emilee what she wants. My biggest fear has always been failure. Having to close the shop that my mother loved so much. And if it wasn’t for Grave, I would have had to do that a week ago when it got destroyed.
Jasmine starts digging through her Saint Laurent purse next to me. Emilee and Haven sit across from us in our booth next to the window.
“What are you girls doing tonight?” I ask, trying to get my mind off it.
“Titan is getting off early today and we’re leaving town. Flying to New York for the weekend.” Emilee answers first.
“What are you doing there?” Haven asks, taking a sip of her water.
“Are you going to that sex club?” Jasmine asks excitedly. “If so, I want to come.”
“No.” Emilee laughs. “One of Titan’s friends is opening his restaurant tonight, and he invited us.”
“Sex club?” I ask Jasmine.
She nods quickly, pulling a lip balm container out of her purse. “It is cool as fuck. Membership only. Like a secret society, BDSM style.”
Haven rolls her eyes, and Emilee chuckles.
“Interesting,” I mumble, taking a sip of my diet Coke.
“I so want to open one here,” Jasmine goes on.
“Grave said he was going to the Airport tonight. I wanted to go,” I say. Obviously, it’s not McCarran or he would have said that. I can’t see the guy having a second job. Kingdom already takes up too much of his time. But what the fuck else would he be doing there? He didn’t say hey I’m going out of town for the night, be back tomorrow. So he can’t be flying somewhere.
“Oh, there’s no way Luca would let me go there.” Haven shakes her head. “I’m not even going to ask.”
“I would if we were in town.” Emilee frowns. “I can go with you girls next weekend for sure, though.”
“I’ll go with you,” Jasmine says, unscrewing the lid. “What about Alexa?”
“She can’t. She has to work the bar at night until she can hire more help.” I don’t get to see her all that much unless I go up there to hang out. The woman is a hustler. Owning two businesses doesn’t allow much time to play.
Jasmine runs her fingers through the lip balm and goes to put the lid back on. “Anyone want some?”
“Sure.” I reach out and dig my finger into it before smearing it across my lips. Then I rub them together. “Mmm, tastes like watermelon.”
“So good.” She agrees.
My lips start to tingle immediately. “What is this?” I lick them. The tingle intensifies to a burning sensation. “My lips are stinging.”
She looks at the container. “It’s actually nipple enhancer.”
“What?” I squeak, dipping my napkin in Emilee’s water and placing it on my lips.
“It makes them tingle,” she explains as if I don’t understand. “Enhances them for nipple play.”