Zeke didn't answer that one. The truth was, the dumb bastards probably didn't know how rare it was for anyone to get an invitation. They probably thought they'd earned it or, more likely, deserved it. The assholes always did. No, the people who truly appreciated the invites were the ones who knew there was no reason on God's green earth they should have been allowed through the door. They were the ones who entered The Club in a state of awe, wide-eyed and inspired by every sight they took in. The ones he never saw again because they didn’t make the final cut.
Zeke liked them infinitely better.
"I'm going to update Preston," Zeke told Jackson. The man nodded and continued scanning the floor, already back to work.
Preston Stevens, The Club's head of security, was waiting in the control room. The bank of monitors around him played out lurid fantasies, but he never seemed to notice.
"You take care of it?" Preston asked him, Texas drawl and deep voice adding a weight to the question Zeke knew wasn't really there. If it was, Preston would have sent another Suit out to join him in the alley.
"Yessir." Zeke handed over his phone, the man's picture already up. "In case you needed a better copy than the camera footage."
"Nicely done, Irish."
Zeke hated the nickname. It was a constant reminder of his greatest failure, not that he'd ever share that with any of the men he worked with. Professional and personal were kept miles apart; he'd learned his lesson the last time, and there was no way he wa
s diving back down into that particular hell.
Preston grinned at Zeke's scowl. "You're gonna get used to it someday."
"Not if I can help it, sir."
"Still planning on escaping?"
On one of the screens, a slim young woman with tastefully done make-up and a barely-there dress walked past the bar. A few of the men turned in their seats, eagerly watching the sway of her ass. Too bad Zeke knew her.
Knew she was a single mom who was working at The Club while she paid her way through her first year of community college. Knew she stayed because working at a ritzy place like The Club would give her the skills she needed to make it as a business associate somewhere outside Karim. Knew that the men sitting at the bar who were there on the guest pass tonight didn't give a shit about any of that, unlike their regulars.
He dropped his eyes from the monitor, felt the ice creep back to claim another little piece of him. "I'm out as soon as I can afford it."
"Irish, if you really wanted to be gone, you could afford it right now." Preston chuckled when Zeke didn't argue. "I thought so. You're one of the only men who hasn't gone out to buy a flashy car or purchase a few diamonds for his gal. You've got money. Which means you're staying for another reason."
Yeah. I owe Mr. Mak big time.
"Can I have my phone back, sir?"
Preston dangled it above Zeke's head. At six-one, Zeke was several inches shorter. He wouldn't demean himself by jumping. Instead, he glared at his boss.
"Come on, Irish, let's see a little of that fight you're so famous for." When he got no response, Preston raised an eyebrow. "What, did I hit a little too close to home?"
Zeke turned and walked away. "Keep the fecking thing, sir. I can always get a new one."
"Harding–"
He caught his phone in mid-air. Preston stood across the room from him, arms crossed over his chest, his all-black suit doing nothing to hide the fact that he was a good, wholesome, God-fearing, mama-loving Texas boy who would never be able to understand the skeletons that hung out in Zeke's closet.
"You know you're not alone, right?"
There was no way in hell he'd ever be able to explain that today, of all days, he was more alone than ever. "I've got to get back to work, sir."
Preston gave a curt nod, clearly choosing not to push the issue further. It took all of Zeke's control to not run from the damn room.
***
Vivian Bennet pulled a tray of fresh bread from the oven as the back door of Divine Twins Bakery opened. "I'm back here, Lisa," she called over her shoulder.
Lisa, her right-hand baker, smiled as she entered the kitchen. "You're up early."
"Everyone's going to be looking for their post-Halloween hangover cure. I think baked goods are a great solution."