Paradise Found

* * *

“Heads up, they’re here,” Jasper says, elbowing me in the side.

I look up from the table and see two beautiful women walking through the door. Jasper had told me that the brunette is my date for the evening, and her name is Lila, and the blonde, Vicky, is his.

“Sweetheart, how are you,” Jasper coos sweetly as he grabs Vicky’s face and kisses her softly. She smiles up at him, fluttering her long lashes and pushing out her over-inflated breasts for him to appreciate.

Yeah, sonotmy thing.

“Hi, I’m Lila,” the brunette says, introducing herself. She looks the opposite of the Barbie she arrived with. She’s dressed in a skintight black dress and killer heels, her chest is in proportion with her body, and her dark eyes narrow on me as if assessing me to see if I’m worthy of her time. I watch as she looks over my suit, then down to my watch, before dipping to my shoes.

“I’m Alistair. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” I say, kissing her cheek before I pull out her chair for her.

“Ladies, the finest champagne for you both?” Jasper asks.

Vicky giggles beside him while Lila nods her head coolly. Jasper orders for the girls and then us before the waiter walks away.

“So, what is it you do, Alistair?” Lila asks, turning herself toward me, giving me her full attention.

“I work at a nightclub,” I reply to the question, gauging to see whether she is still interested when she thinks I’m a lowly employee, not the boss. That cool demeanor flinches for the barest of moments, and that’s when I know she’s after a rich guy and isn’t serious about meeting a man and forming arealconnection.

“Oh, how nice,” she says, looking away from me and over to where Jasper and Vicky are laughing together. Bet she’s thinking she got the short end of the stick on this date.

“How about you? What is it you do?” I ask her because now it’s awkward.

“I’m a model,” she states, flipping her hair over her shoulder as if I should know who she is.

“Oh, how nice,” I say, throwing her own words back at her. Her dark eyes narrow on me, trying to work out if I’m being sarcastic or not. “Would I have seen you in anything?” I ask as the waiter hands me my old-fashioned before popping the bottle of champagne for the ladies, to which Vicky squeals with delight.

“I’ve been inVogue,Harper’s Bazaar,Elle… all the major magazines. I currently have a billboard in Times Square,” she adds, then takes a dainty sip of her champagne.

“Sounds like a big deal. Congrats!” I hold up my glass to her.

She plasters on a fake smile and then tries to insert herself into Jasper and Vicky’s conversation.

The night continues in the same fashion—Lila ignoring me or giving me fake pleasantries while trying to capture Jasper’s attention away from her friend, who doesn’t appear too happy about Lila’s sudden interest in her date.

Me?I can’t wait for this shit to be over.

“Your shout, man.” Jasper chuckles. He’s had one too many whiskeys. “Ali here … he’s the richest amongst the group,” he says, mock whispering.

Lila’s eyes widen upon hearing Jasper's words.

Great.

I take out my black Amex and throw it down on the table for the staff. Lila’s eyes take in the card before looking up at me.Oh no, here it is.

“So, Ali, you ready to take this party somewhere private?” she purrs, running her nails up my arm.

“Not really, I have somewhere else I would rather be.” Her eyes widen at my rudeness, but the bitch has been an ice queen all night because she thought I wasn’t rich enough, and as soon as she realized I had money, her entire demeanor changed. I pick up my credit card and place it back in my wallet.

“Jasper … never invite me on a blind dateeveragain,” I tell my friend loudly.

Lila huffs and mumbles curses under her breath while Vicky bursts out laughing.

Jasper stares at me as if I’ve lost my mind.

“I’ve got to go. I’ve got anywhere else to be,” I tell them before turning and storming out of the restaurant. I grab my phone and call the number on the gold card and cross my fingers the person I would rather be spending my Friday night with is working.