Club Endless Fantasy (Haremworld)

Joaquin

“Hold on, you’re going to need to start that story from the beginning, and I need a fucking drink.” I stared at Angelina with a blank look on my face.

“I thought you didn’t drink when you were working.” Amy walked by and giggled.

“I’m making an exception.” I poured a shot of whiskey and quickly downed it.

Gina was still fresh on my mind and I was looking forward to our second date when Angelina walked into my pub and dropped a bombshell on me. I listened to everything she had to say about her club in New York and her reasons for wanting to buy the pub, but when the conversation shifted to Gina, my mouth fell open. The woman that had me smitten the instant I stared into her emerald green eyes and set my world on fire with one kiss was more complicated than I realized. If Angelina was to be believed, Gina was my soulmate, but I wasn’t the only man that she was destined to be with. I couldn’t even wrap my head around that logic. It didn’t make sense. It sounded like some sort of ridiculous fairy tale where I was the jester that danced in the king’s court for everyone’s entertainment.

“Let’s move this conversation to one of the tables in the corner.” I motioned to Angelina. “It’s not very busy in here, but people love to eavesdrop.”

“Sure.” She nodded and stood.

I poured myself another drink, told Amy that I was taking a break, and made my way over to the table Angelina chose. Of course she had to pick the one where I saw Gina for the first time. She obviously wanted to torture me. Angelina went through a few more details as I listened, trying to keep my jaw from hitting the table as I quickly downed my second drink. Gina was on a journey and I was a critical part of that journey. Unfortunately, she had other stops before she could be mine forever—if that was even possible. I politely waited for her to finish relating all of the intimate details, but my decision had already been made.

“I’m just going to pass.” I shook my head back and forth. “I have a list of reasons why I don’t date people, and you just added a whole new page. You’re out of your fucking mind.”

/> “This is the relationship you’re meant to have. I know it seems like I’m hitting you in the head with a brick, but I promise that I put a lot of work into figuring out why you two are perfect for each other.” Angelina reached into her purse and pulled out a tablet.

“Save it.” I waved off her attempt to show me something on her tablet. “You walked in here and convinced me to ask Gina out. I did that. It was fun, and I really liked her, but this is too much complicated bullshit for me.”

“You’ve spent a lot of time getting over your last break-up.” Angelina continued to move her finger across the screen of her tablet, even though I wasn’t paying attention.

“Yeah, and I was perfectly fine managing my life on my own before you came along.” I scoffed and shook my head. “If this is about the pub, I don’t have an emotional attachment to it. If the company you’re working with wants to buy it, have them put together an offer.”

“I’m sure Gina will be delighted to hear that, but this isn’t just about your pub.” Angelina frowned and put down her tablet since I wasn’t paying attention to what she was trying to show me.

“Well, that’s another thing. If they want to buy it, I want someone else to work with me on the sale. I have no interest in working with Gina.” I leaned back in my chair. “You want to turn this place into some kind of brothel, be my guest. All the gentrification shit is headed my way as it is, so I might as well get out while someone’s willing to pay a premium price.”

“That’s not fair. Gina’s job has nothing to do with how she feels about you.” Angelina’s face turned from a frown to an ice cold stare. “This is her first account at Viking Developments.”

“None of this is fair.” I shrugged and sighed. “But those are the terms. You can run along now. You’re going to get what you want.”

“I want more than that, actually. I also came in here to offer you a job at Club Endless Fantasy once it’s open.” Angelina tilted her head to the side. “Although your current attitude is making me question that.”

“So, you want me to go from being the sucker getting fucked with to fucking with other people? No thanks.” I held up my hand and shook my head. “I doubt I’ll even stay in Chicago once I sell this place. Maybe I’ll go somewhere that it isn’t so fucking cold all the time.”

“You were working on a business degree before you dropped out of college, right?” Angelina kept talking, despite my attempts to get her to leave.

Am I going to have to literally throw her out of this place? Too bad I can’t afford a bouncer.

“I was.” I looked down and sighed.

“You’ve managed to keep this place open. A run down dive bar in the South Side of Chicago? That’s admirable. When I open Club Endless Fantasy, it’s going to cater to a different crowd, but it’ll bring a lot of jobs to this neighborhood for people that want them. I’ll need security, bartenders, and a club manager. I think you’d be an excellent choice since you know this area so well.” Angelina reached for her gin and tonic. “I’m offering you a chance to make real money. I’ll even let you invest what you get from selling in this place in my club if you want, and within a few years, you’ll double your money.”

“Or the cops will shut you down. Whorehouses don’t last long around here.” I rolled my eyes and drummed the table with my fingers.

“Club Endless Fantasy isn’t going to be a cheap brothel. It will cater to people from all walks of life, and some of them will pay very well to find the person they’re meant to be with. If you’d just look at the data I put together…” Angelina put down her glass and reached for her tablet again.

“If you won’t leave, sit here as long as you want, but I’ve got work to do.” I stood up and walked back behind the bar.

I need to find a nice South Side girl to bury my dick in tonight so I can forget all about Gina.

After Angelina left, I told Amy that I might be selling the pub. She was a little upset to find out she could lose her job, but understood where I was coming from. She saw the writing on the wall just like I did. Gentrification was going to put us out of business eventually. We still drew a nice crowd, but it was nothing like it used to be. The harder real estate development companies like Viking Developments pushed into the South Side, the less customers I had. Occasionally I got a hipster that wandered in, but they usually didn’t stay long. Real South Side culture wasn’t what they were looking for. They wanted the candy coated lie that the development companies fed them, and it seemed that Hal’s Pub was going to be the next victim of progress—or whatever the fuck they branded their destruction as.

Two days later

It seemed like I was off my game, because my ability to close the deal with a chick was failing hard. Even when I got close, the kiss I shared with Gina haunted my thoughts. None of the girls that wandered into the bar compared to her. The ones that came close didn’t want anything to do with me because my reputation was less than stellar. Even the ones that used to be good for a quick fuck had gotten tired of one night stands. Maybe it was me. I poured drinks, kept my customers happy, and waited for someone from Viking Developments to walk through the door with a contract. What I didn’t expect was to look up after pouring Charlie a drink to see a pair of haunting emerald eyes staring at me from the end of the bar.