“But you weren’t my friend at the time,” she says, her green eyes meeting mine once again. “Come to New York with Bones and me. Visit Kink with us. If you’re not one-hundred-and-fifty-percent sold after that, then we don’t do it.”
“Why my bar?” She has the money to buy any space on the Strip. I mean, sure it’s not like real estate is available everywhere here, but she’s got to find something better with all the connections she has in this city. Why mine?
She gives me a warm smile. “I already told you. This isn’t about the space or the location. It’s about you. This is about someone once helping me and me returning the favor.” She steps into me. “Let me do this for you, Lex. For us.”
With a sigh, my mind wanders to the possibility of us doing this. “I don’t know anything about a sex club.” That’s my only argument.
She laughs softly. “You think I do?” Shaking her head, she adds, “But I do know that I won’t let you down, Lex. I’ve got this. Please trust me.”
“And Bones?” I ask, trying to think of any excuse to get out of it. I hate to admit that it sounds like a great opportunity, but things are never as they seem. “What if he fucks us?” If the man is in with the Mafia, then he has some serious fucking pull in this town.
“Bones is not that type of guy. I swear on it. He will not fuck us over in any way with this deal. He’s a best friend, and he just wants to help us as much as I want to help us. I trust him.”
I’ve always wanted something more for myself. What if this is it? I’m not a religious person, but what if this is my chance? God throwing me a bone, saying let this woman help you? I never thought it’d be a sex club, but prayers never come how you asked for them. “I’ll go to New York,” I say, letting out a breath. What could it hurt?
She squeals, jumps up and down, and then wraps her arms around me.
“But I can’t promise anything,” I add quickly.
“I understand.” She takes a step back and nods once, a huge smile on her face. And I can’t help but do the same.
CHAPTER NINE
CROSS
I OPEN THE door to our Royal suite to see Alexa standing at the door. She’s got her purse in one hand and her cell in the other. “Come in.”
She steps inside and looks around. The guys and I have lived here since we took over Kingdom four years ago. We have a family compound outside of the city but living here is just easier. A casino never sleeps, so neither do we. We’re always on call and need to be here in case something happens. But Bones and I are the only ones left who ever stay here anymore.
“Would you like a drink?” I offer.
“Please. Vodka.” She sits down at the bar and sighs heavily.
“Everything okay?” I ask, knowing April is heavy on her mind.
Running a hand through her blond hair, she answers, “Not really.”
I set the drink down in front of her. “What happened?”
She picks it up and just holds it. “Jasmine and Bones showed up at the bar tonight after I spoke to you.”
I frown. “Together?”
“Yeah. She … well, they had a business opportunity for me.”
“What kind?” I’m not really all that surprised. Bones owns multiple businesses. He tries to keep them under wraps, but we all pretend we don’t know.
She sets the drink down and pulls out some papers, placing them on the bar. I pick them up and read over them. “So, she’s doing it.”
“You knew she wanted to do this?” she asks, arching a dark brow.
“Well, I’ve heard talk. Titan and Bones went to New York a while back with the girls. Jasmine was upset when she didn’t get to go to Kink with them. What’s so bad about this?”
“I’ve always wanted something more, but I feel like now is the worst time.” She sighs.
“Why is that?”
She drops her eyes to the bar top. “April.”
I let out a breath.
“She’s going through so much right now. I shouldn’t be going to New York and starting up a new business. I should be here for her.”
I place the papers down and walk around the bar. Touching her face, I force her to look up at me. Her pretty green eyes look tired. “You can’t make someone open up to you, Alexa. All you can do is tell them that you’re there for them. It’s up to them when they choose to do so.”
“I know.” She pulls away. “But what if she doesn’t know I’m here for her?”
“She does.” Just like Grave knows we’re here for him as well. He’s just choosing to push us all away. That’s Grave. I’m not going to force him to talk to me, but he knows we’re here when he’s ready.