Cade’s eyes were slits and his words slurred a little. "I might not be, but my boy here has barely had a sip of anything." He rested his head on West's shoulder and it was the cutest thing I'd seen in a while.
"I'll think about it. Text me Axel's address just in case," I said before we hung up.
I went back to work and tried to concentrate on myjob, but it wasn't easy with everything swirling around in my head. I felt a migraine creeping on, and the obnoxious strobe lights from the dance floor didn't help.
"Ash, can you go find Chloe?" Max asked as he ducked behind the bar. "One of her tables is pissed. They said they've been waiting for their drink order for over ten minutes. I'm going to get them taken care of, but could you let her know?"
"Do you know where she went?"
"Bathroom maybe? I don't know. I looked around the floor but she's not here."
"Alright, could you take these to table three?" I slid a tray full of drinks over to him. He nodded and I headed toward the locker room to check there first.
No Chloe. I checked the public restroom and the private one used just by employees. Nothing. There was only one other place to check. A place I hadn't been since I first started.
I took a deep breath and parted the curtain. Rocco, one of our bouncers, stood with a tablet in his hands. "You're not working back here are you, Ash?"
"No, I'm looking for Chloe."
He hesitated. "She’s back here but...you probably shouldn't go lookin’ for her. Privacy reasons and all."
"I just need to talk to her real quick. She left us her tables and didn't say anything." I wanted to check on Chloe. It was weird that she hadn’t said anything to me or Max before disappearing. I had to know if she was okay. And if she wasentertainingin the back…
Rocco looked around like he was breaking a major rule by letting me pass. He clenched his fist around the stylus he was holding. "Room eight. Down the hallway and to the left.”
"Okay thanks," I said before continuing down the hall. The only sounds I heard came from the front of the house, so I assumed each room was soundproof. All the rooms in the back had windows, specifically for exhibitionist purposes I was told, but most guys chose to close the curtains. As I approached the room Chloe was in, I noticed the light shined through into the dim hallway. Both the curtains and the door were open, so whoever was occupying it didn’t give a shit who saw.
I inched closer to the window and looked in, noting the gurgling noises wafting from the room. A man was sitting on a couch. His long dark hair, which was sprinkled with gray strands, tied back in a ponytail.Hannigan. His head fell back against the couch cushion as he pressed his hand down on Chloe who was crouched in front of him.
"Take it you little bitch. You like that, don't you? Little slut," Hannigan growled as she choked on him. He held her down and thrust himself into her mouth as hard as he could. My stomach clenched as tears fell down her face, gasping for air. "I'm coming. You better fucking swallow it all, whore."
After he finished, Chloe sat back on her heels and wiped her mouth. She looked up at the window and saw me. I jumped back and flattened myself against the wall next to the window and held my breath as Hannigan left the room. He wore a cheap baby blue suit–something you’d see at a costume shop. As he walked past me, he winked and disappeared around the corner.
It was a small glimpse at what he had in store for me if I’d agreed to come back here with him. Bile rose in my throat at the thought.
Chloe walked out of the room shortly after, counting out some money and skirting around me, going down the hallway.
"Hey, are you okay?" I asked as I tried to keep up with her pace.
"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"
"That looked...rough."
"That's Hannigan for you. He can't come unless he's like that. You get used to it. Plus, he pays a lot for it." She waved the cash in my face.
"Uh, one of your tables was looking for you. Max is taking care of them," I informed her as we walked through the curtain back to the main area.
"Got it!" She shouted over her shoulder like it was just another day at Aces.
Although her words indicated she was fine, I saw the look of terror in her eyes in that room. She wanted to be anywhere but there with that disgusting human. How many other women were doing things they didn't want to do just to earn a few extra dollars? Some of them liked it. Some girls were like Delaney, who chomped at the bit to get in a private room with men like Hannigan. Then there were girls like Chloe, who might’ve felt like they didn't have a choice. Chloe was a single mom trying to put herself through college. She didn't have a lot of options in the workforce.
The whole thing made me sick.
As the night went on, I tried to keep my mind focused on making drinks and being nice to people. I watched Chloe and she seemed okay. She went around from table to table with a smile on her face like she hadn't been in the back room an hour prior. Maybe she was okay. I didn't know for sure. What I did know was that spectacle wasnot okay.
I didn't see Hannigan again. He probably bolted once he got what he wanted. Sick bastard.
I was beyond relieved as the clock struck midnight and I was able to punch out and go home. Cade texted me Axel's address, but I wasn't in the mood to party anymore. I just wanted to go home, shower, and hide under my covers. I hoped to sleep without seeing Chloe's haunting eyes staring back at me.