I feel warm on the inside just hearing that she would’ve liked to have taken me out. “Like I told you the other night, it’s really not that big of a deal.” I want to put the necklace on, but I’m scared to. God, what if I lose it or it gets stolen? And I thought that was a lot of money I’d put in the bank. Hunter probably has that much stuck in the cushions of his couch.
“Want me to hook it?” Sadie offers.
No, I want Hunter to hook it. I want to feel his breath on the back of my neck, to feel his fingers graze my skin.
But he’s not offering. So I say, “Sure,” and she steps behind me to hook the necklace.
Then, Hunter says something I don’t understand. “Carter, call in the backup crew.”
“What?” Sadie asks as she finishes hooking my necklace so I can put my hair down. I can’t help but hold the diamond between my finger and thumb and admire it. I’ve never seen a diamond this big before that I can recall. I catch my reflection in the mirror and can’t help but smile.
Tuning back into the conversation, I hear Hunter say, “You only turn twenty-one once, right? You need to enjoy it. Even if we are a couple of days late.”
“I’ll go phone them right now,” Carter says. Then he puts his hand on my shoulder. “Too bad I can’t come, but there’s really no backup for me.”
“Wait—what’s happening?” I ask as Carter heads off to do…whatever he just said he’s going to do.
“We’re going out to celebrate!” Sadie exclaims. She hugs Hunter quickly and thanks him before grabbing me by the arm to pull me into the employee lounge. I turn and look at him, catching his eye, still too stunned to know what to say.
“Guess what, ladies?” Sadie declares the moment we walk into the lounge. “We are going to paaartaay!”
“Say what now?” Mia asks, perking up immediately.
“That’s right! In honor of Miss Meghan’s birthday, we are going to party! The bossman has called in the backup crew!” Sadie is practically jumping up and down.
And then, Mia and Allie hop up, and the three of them are jumping up and down. They pull me into the huddle, and I can’t help but hop with them, though, I’m not screaming like they are.
“We are going to have the fucking best time ever!” Allie declares, hugging me. “Thanks for getting older.”
I laugh, not sure what to say to that other than, “Any time.”
“It’s too bad Lexi called in tonight, though,” Mia says, sticking out her bottom lip. “She is so much fun at parties.”
“She’s the queen of parties,” Allie agrees.
“Well, maybe it’s time to make a new queen of parties,” Sadie says, and when she turns to wink at me, I know we’re going to have a fucking good time.
CHAPTER15
HUNTER
That was embarrassing.
I have never felt so awkward around a woman in my whole life. I’m not sure exactly what it is about Meg, but whenever I see her, I get all tongue-tied.
Probably because I want to tie my tongue around her…
As soon as the girls head off to make their plans, I go back to the office where Carter is calling in the backup crew. I signal at him to let him know I’m going, too, and he nods, giving me a devilish grin. I shake my head at him, wanting to make fun of him for always spending so much time on his hair, but I leave it be and walk back into the lounge just in time to hear one of the girls say, “All right, McDuff’s it is!”
McDuff’s. That’s not a bad place to go party, but it’s no Club Limelight. The joint is just a few blocks down from here, and I think maybe they will walk at first, but when I go outside, I see Allie’s car is gone. Perhaps she is the designated driver. Or perhaps they will call an Uber.
Or perhaps they will notice I have followed them, and I will bring them all home…
I will not be drinking tonight as my only concern is making sure my girls aren’t harassed. I know Greg McDuff. He runs a decent enough joint. The chances of anything happening to the girls while they’re there is slim, but Greg McDuff also knows me, so if something does happen, and I have to get involved, well, there’s a good chance that the cops will not be called. Not if Greg McDuff values his operation.
I decide to drive, too, in case I really do have to drop all four of them off at their various apartments after this is over. This parking lot isn’t nearly as full as my own, so I find a spot and head inside.
A popular techno track plays over the loudspeakers as the clubgoers bounce up and down. The speakers sound shitty compared to ours. The lighting is all wrong. It’s too dark on the dance floor to even see who a person’s dancing with. The booths and tables are all worn. I don’t know why anyone would rather come here than Club Limelight. But then, this isn’t my regular clientele either. These people probably can’t afford more than a drink or two from my menu, and Ethan likely wouldn’t let half of them in. Some of them look pretty damn shady, especially the men.