Just One Thing (The Alexanders 6)

She was bored.

“A whisky. Neat.” An arm, lightly covered in dark hair, landed on the bar right next to her. King raised an eyebrow at her drink. “Please tell me there’s vodka in that?”

She raised her glass, eyeing him over the brim. “Hoping to get me drunk?”

“Of course. What kind of pervert would I be if I wasn’t trying to get you drunk?”

Olivia shook her head, charmed in spite of herself. She snuck a glance at him, taking in the custom tailored suit and the watch that she identified as an Audemars Piguet. Expensive but classy. He was definitely their typical member. Wealthy, entitled and demanding. However, she hadn’t been expecting him to have a sense of humor.

“So are you going to tell me about this personal matter now or do you want to ask for a background check first? Maybe take me to an underground bunker and interrogate me?”

He accepted his drink from the bartender and took a long sip. “I get the sense that you think those are overkill? But once you find out about the job, you’ll probably prefer the bunker.”

Intrigued, Olivia leaned toward him so she could hear better. “You want to offer me a job?” Then her common sense kicked in and she understood exactly what type of job a guy like him would offer to a girl like her.

She pushed her drink away and pulled a twenty-dollar bill out of her pocket, more than enough to cover her drinks and the tip.

“Wait, you’re leaving?” King put his hand on her arm but pulled it back when she glared at him.

“Yes. I’m going home. Despite what you probably think after meeting me at the club, I don’t fuck for money. I’m not interested in your job offer.” She made exaggerated quotation marks with her fingers.

His eyebrows shot up. “Whoa! That’s not what I was getting at. I swear. This is a legit job offer. Nothing … inappropriate.”

Olivia sat back down, feeling a little foolish. With her luck, he’d turn out to be a potential investor in the club or something else completely legitimate and she’d feel even worse. What was it about this guy? He tied her in knots and made her feel like a teenage girl with her first crush. It was mortifying.

“I’m sorry if I overreacted.”

“No apology is necessary. I should have realized how it would sound.”

Olivia laughed and then propped her head on her hand. “Regretting this yet? In case you can’t tell, I don’t get out much.”

King smiled. “Not at all. You’re perfect. A woman who isn’t afraid to state her mind.”

There was something in the way he said it that wasn’t exactly a compliment but Olivia was too tired to look for hidden meaning. This entire thing was likely a mistake. Her libido had always gotten her into trouble. That was how she’d ended up a pregnant, single, college dropout before she was even twenty years old.

She sat up straight and fixed a polite smile on her face. Whatever King wanted, she’d find a way to shut him down politely and then go on with her life. He was a VIP member so she couldn’t afford to alienate him but it was high time she stopped letting her panties lead her around.

Men had always been the root of all her troubles but Bennett was going to save her from all that. It was time to stop playing games and go for the right kind of man. Ben was her best friend and she already loved him.

The rest would come with time, right?

* * *

King couldn’t stop staring at her mouth.

He took another swig of whisky, relishing the smooth burn as it traveled down and settled in the pit of his stomach.

She sat up slightly and smiled at him, a wooden smile that didn’t reach her eyes. He’d seen that particular look plenty of times on his mother’s face when his father was droning on about something or other.

“You’ve already decided you’re going to say no.”

Surprise flickered in her eyes before she glanced away. Her fingers wrapped around her glass but there was nothing left but ice.

“Look … King. I don’t want to be rude but I have a feeling whatever you’re going to ask me probably isn’t something I want to do.”

“Oh really? You don’t like parties? Or eating exquisite cuisine? Or shopping for clothes and shoes that you don’t have to pay for? The job comes with a clothing allowance.”

She dipped her head. “Go on. Not that I’m interested or anything.”