Jessa barks out a derisive laugh right in my face. “Yeah, well, you can take that job offer, fold it ‘til it’s all corners, and shove it up your ass.”
With that, she turns towards the kitchen doors. For a moment, I consider reeling her back, pressing her up against the wall, and tasting the anger on her lips. She’d fight back, but that is all part of the foreplay when it comes to her and me. Stoking the flames.
But now is neither the time nor the place. I take a deep breath and let her go. Even though my cock is throbbing painfully in my pants.
Lev clears his throat behind me when she’s gone. “Like I said, playing with your food.”
I turn to him. “Excuse me?”
He gives me a skeptical look. What’s with everyone looking at me like I’m stupid tonight?
“You and I both know that if you really wanted that phone back, you could get it. You could have gotten it a week ago.”
“So?”
“So the only reason you’re prolonging this little game is because you like interacting with her.”
I glance towards the door she disappeared through and say nothing.
Lev sighs. “I’ll admit, she certainly is… intriguing,” he concedes. “Feisty. A bit like Marina in that way.”
That makes my jaw clench tight. “Marina was a spoiled brat who didn’t work a day in her life. Jessa knows about hard work. She’s not entitled the way Marina was,” I say. “She’s strong-willed.”
“So was Marina,” Lev points out.
“No, Marina was pig-headed.”
“Exactly. The two of you were too alike to ever really work.”
I throw Lev a glare. “Fuck you.”
He laughs. “I get it. You’ve found a pretty new toy to play with. And honestly, after all the shit you went through with Marina, you deserve it. But all I’ll say is… be careful.”
“I always am.”
“I know you are,” Lev says. “But this girl might be a handful. I can sense it.”
I raise my eyebrows, understanding his deeper meaning. “This is not like Marina, Lev.”
He shrugs. “If you say so.”
“I do say so,” I tell him. “Now, go get me the manager in charge of the catering staff. I want a quick word.”
Lev smirks. “As you wish, Don Stepanov.”
“And once you’ve spoken to the manager, head to hotel management and let them know that they can cut two of the waiters off the roster for tonight.”
He opens his mouth to ask why, then thinks better of it. “She was right,” Lev says instead. “You really are an asshole.”
He shakes his head and leaves, laughing the whole way out.
A few minutes later, a woman in a skirt suit walks into The Gilded Room. Her makeup is caked on thick and her hair falls around her shoulders in unnecessarily voluminous waves.
“Good evening, sir. I’m Eloise Manor, the manager for tonight,” she says. “I was told you wished to have a word with me?”
I nod. “I need a favor, Eloise. No questions asked.”
She looks instantly intrigued. “Of course, sir. Whatever you like.”