A few more employees flashed their most delighted smiles, making sure me and every other Ashby knew how happy and grateful they were for their jobs. We paid our staff well. Better than any of the casinos in Vegas.
Some of it was simpering but it was also genuine because the Ashbys had saved this fucking town. We’d turned it from a fading old boom town into the tourist hot spot it was today. By the time I made it up the elevator to Bullets & Beer, my mind was clear and my hands were steady.
The steady thump of bass hit me about two floors before the elevator came to a stop, and the heat came the moment the doors slid open. Despite the cool desert air blowing over the rooftop club, it was no match for the number of hot, sweaty gyrating bodies on the floor.
I stepped off the elevator with a smile on my face, looking the part for anyone who was watching, like a guy on the prowl. Looking to score before the night was over, so I sidled up to the bar and ordered a Jameson neat. It was a damn fine whiskey and just cheap enough that it kept the gold diggers away, unless of course I was in the mood to fuck a gold digger, which I sometimes was. They were eager to please and willing to do a lot to please me, worth the pricy stuff I’d order as bait.
What man could resist?
With a drink in my hand, I did a circuit of the club until I spotted Savannah and her crew, just where Colby said they would be. He was behind the VIP bar where he was supposed to be and I slid a fifty across to him.
“Two bodyguards,” he said, sliding the bill deftly under the bar, “officially but two more lurking down below.” He nodded at the sore thumbs in black leather working hard to blend in with a bunch of twenty-something kids.
“Thanks. Anything else?”
“They pre-paid ten grand for the tab.”
Fucking assholes. “Close them out and keep what’s left for you and the VIP girls.”
“Thanks, boss.”
I stood at the end of the bar and watched Savannah and her friends, laughing and dancing and having a good time with thousand dollar tequila. They were all cute, in that rich college girl sort of way. Nice for a good fuck, maybe, but otherwise too squeamish about the real world. Unlike her friends, Savannah knew about the underworld, had been buried knee deep in that shit since she was a teenager.
Ma was right. She was more valuable for the moment, without a bullet in her head. So, I waited, bided my time until she broke off from the group to make out with a dude who wore a man bun. I slipped down the dark hall, watching them exchange sloppy kisses while his hands roamed and took advantage of her inebriated state, sliding his fingers under her top until she gasped and took a step back.
She said some words, and he shot a few words back at her with that annoying smirk guys thought passed for confidence these days. Man Bun walked away and, dammit, I was too far away to get to Savannah before she made her escape into the bathroom.
So I waited some more, staying in the shadows in case any women got the wrong idea. She stayed in there so long I wondered if she would ever come out, and how long before I could just go in after her.
But a few minutes later she bounced out at the tail end of a larger group of women, probably trying to blend in to avoid Man Bun. And that was my moment.
I stepped in behind her, glancing around to make sure no one was behind me. No one noticed me as I pulled the needle from my side pocket and popped off the protective cover. Seconds later the needle pierced her smooth white skin and her legs buckled. I caught her before she hit the floor, turning left when the VIP section veered to the right. We slipped out of the emergency exit, which Colby had disabled and left open at my request.
“Need some help, sir?” A security guard appeared out of nowhere and I shook my head.
“Thanks Ty, but I’ve got her. Promised I’d get her home safe, and this drunk, she gets handsy. I wouldn’t want to get you in any trouble.”
He arched a brow. “But she’s safe with you?” An amused bark of laughter escaped, but luckily it didn’t drown out the music.
I shrugged and leaned in, like it was a secret. “She believes in happy ever after.” His brows shot up to his hairline, and Ty took a step back, smiling. Same as me.
“Good luck with that Mr. Ashby. And good night.”