“Where did Jesse come from?”
“Some gross place in the middle of the desert. I heard there’s only trailers because the ground can’t support actual houses and there’s one strip mall type thing that has a few small stores. They say where he comes from doesn’t even exist on a map. Like, it’s not even real and may not even be there anymore.” Hensley sips her drink. I do too. I wonder if Jesse burned the place down. It would make sense, given his proclivities to pyrotechnics. “They still hold fights at The Grot down there, every so often. At this point, I think it’s for old time’s sake because it’s not about money anymore. They have more of that than they can ever spend.It’s about proving that they can still be bad, evil, and control things even when they aren’t in their sights. So, who is Jesse Astor? He is whoever he wants to be. Where did he come from? It doesn’t matter.”
“But he is not dangerous? Just to be clear.”
“Yes. He is a hundred percent dangerous. That’s his job. I can also add that he’s dangerous in all areas of his life. In the bedroom? He is something else entirely. It’s as if he is not part of this world. I think it’s because there’s so much mystery surrounding him that I’m never sure if I’m going to leave his bedroom walking, or even alive.” Hensley laughs, a gilded glittery sound that makes me green with envy. But did I not just have that opportunity, and I passed it up to come out here with them? Hensley adds, “Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure that Riley is an animal in the sack but Jesse, well who doesn’t love rolling in the hay with the felon?”
I sigh, and then sip my drink. I’m unsure how to proceed with this conversation. It’s obvious that Hensley knows Jesse in a very intimate way. Destiny, from my old life would want to scrap and fight her to the death. Tonight, I am in true Astor form, I own property, and I carry the last name. Even if nobody told me I had to, I know that I represent the family name with the utmost dignity and respect. Well, as much respect as being in a high-class gang lends to any situation. I push the jealousy to the side because this is my chance to know more about the life I’m entwined with. “So, I heard that he has a black bench in his bedroom? Do you have any idea what that’s about?” Swallowing, I ready myself for an onslaught of jealousy I have no right to have.
“Oh yeah! That’s exactly what I’m talking about. He knows exactly what to do with that. Don’t get me wrong, I was scared at first, but he made it quite clear straightaway that I really had nothing to be frightened of. Jesse Astor gets off on pain. Giving it and receiving it. I don’t think he was loved as a baby,” Hensley says, smirking. I know she’s joking but her comment still makes me shudder. Because she’s right. “Why do you ask?” She cocks her head, pretty long hair glistening in the low light. I can’t help but envision her on Jesse’s bench. I close my eyes.
“Curiosity. There are so many secrets. Being new here, I feel like I have a lot to catch up on.” All these people who surround the brothers give me bits and pieces of insight into their personalities. Hensley seems the least guarded. Definitely less guarded than Reggie. I finish my drink and one of the other girls orders another round for the entire table. Pirelle is still dancing but she’s caught the eye of a man from across the room. I watch in awe as she beckons him over with her gaze. She does nothing else. She doesn’t wave a finger or snap, she doesn’t even move, the woman has power with her eyes. I wonder again where our security is. How do they react if a man is coming up to one of their principles? Are these women allowed to take home a guy from a bar? What is the protocol?
Hensley is in conversation with Amy, and I’m left to my own devices to drink my new drink and watch the night unfold before me. Money makes people act crazy; I decide. Or just vastly different from the people I’m used to interacting with. The guy Pirelle is talking to slits his eyes toward me. Oh, I think, doing my best to look uninterested in everything around me. His look tells me more than I want to know.
He walks over and slides in next to me. I can’t help the cursory flick of my gaze, scanning the room for Reggie. They don’t come. “Hey there, you’re new here. I’m Cyrus. Riley’s cousin.” I try to do the math in my head. I know one cousin is the mayor, but I don’t remember seeing this man anywhere, but at least I know he’s safe. Right? That’s why security isn’t swarming. Cyrus can’t be a threat. Heart pounding, I go through the motions of meeting someone new. I shake his hand, smile pleasantly, and introduce myself.
“Drew is Riley’s girlfriend,” Hensley says, grinning. She emphasized the last word. “He gave us her for the night.”
“Well, he is busy,” Cyrus says. “But rarely do we get to put our hands on things that belong to him.” Cyrus puts a hand on my thigh, and I swallow down a lump in my throat. The urge to shrug him off is strong, but I must think this through. My breathing speeds. “Especially things this pretty.”
“You flatter me,” I reply, keeping my tone even. “Tell me how you’re related to Riley.” I use his name purposefully.
This guy gives off a high-class creep vibe, with his slicked back hair and over-whitened teeth. The kind of guy that doesn’t take no for an answer and bends the truth to make himself the hero in every situation, no matter how nefarious. “Our moms are sisters. I’m the better-looking cousin though. Wouldn’t you agree?”
I bounce my leg up and down, nervous. “I’m not at liberty to make that kind of assessment.” Play it safe. Don’t piss him off. His grip tightens on my leg, and I can tell it’s making the whole group uncomfortable.
Amy leans over and across Hensley. “Get your damn mitts off Drew, Cyrus.” Her tone is clipped, like she’s pissed he’s forced her to speak. “You know damn well he’ll have your fucking hand framed on his wall if he sees you touching her.” Amy seems to have morphed into a different person. It’s illuminating, and also wonderful. A light switch of sorts.
Cyrus slowly moves his hand up my thigh and I grab his fingers to stop them from going up my dress. Amy raises one hand in the air and almost immediately we’re swarmed with guards. Ones I recognize and ones I don’t. Cyrus isn’t next to me anymore, but Jesse is. Standing at the end of the table, tortured gaze locked on mine.
“Jesse, what are you doing here?” Hensley says, moving in her seat next to me. Jesse doesn’t look at her.
“Drew, it’s time to go.”
I stand, brushing my dress down. I know better than to argue after what just happened. Remembering my manners, I turn and apologize. “Do not apologize,” Amy says, watching security remove a squirmy Cyrus. “He knew what he was asking for the second he touched you.”
“Touched you how?” Jesse growls.
“Nothing. I’m fine.” My gaze finds Hensley, but she’s focused on Jesse. The whole of PACHA is looking at him, and then me. Their eyes letting me know they’re aware this isn’t normal.
He clears his throat, leaning in closer. “Touched you how?”
Honesty. “His hand on my leg. My thigh. He was sliding it up my dress, but I stopped him. Then Amy called security over.”
His face, like always, is unreadable. “Follow me.”
I say goodbye to the group quickly, waving and offering a meek smile. They’ll want to know more later. Their faces say it all. My one hope is they’re confused enough that they’ll buy whatever lie I concoct tomorrow. Jesse leads me down a dark, cool hallway. A breeze hits my skin and I shiver. Another left turn and we’re in a back room. It has a bunch of stacked chairs, and extra booths and not much else.
“Why did you let him touch you to begin with?” Jesse snarls, spinning the second I’m in the room. He locks the door, reaching behind him without taking his eyes off me. “You could have told him to get lost.”
“I didn’t know how I was supposed to act, Jesse. He said he was Riley’s cousin, and I wasn’t sure if he was someone else you were going to share me with!”
That evokes emotion. He winces, and rubs his knuckles with the opposite thumb, but surges ahead, grabbing both of my wrists and pinning them on the wall behind me. The force takes me back for a second or two, but I recover quickly when he presses his mouth against mine. “I told you you’re mine.”
Biting my bottom lip, he drags his lips down my throat and stops at the collar of my dress. Spinning me, he presses my face against the wall as he unzips my dress. It all happens so quickly that I don’t have time to analyze anything. When he’s stripped me bare, he turns me so I’m facing him again. “I’m not sharing you, Drew. I’m only giving you what you deserve. One full relationship. It just happens that it takes place with two different men. Cyrus is a piece of shit.” He swallows hard. “I’ll make sure he stays in line.”
I nod. He kisses me again, unbuttoning and unzipping his pants. Jesse sucks my tongue and fingers me, dipping them into my cunt that’s still wet from him. “No one told me the rules. I’ve never done anything like this.” I whisper against his mouth. He’s holding both of my hands over my head so I can’t lace my hands around his neck.