Chapter 3

"What the hell was that?" Diamond asks as she comes up beside me at the cocktail bar.

He's still talking to Neil, but they're too far away for me to hear what they're saying. What in the world is he doing? I pray he's not getting me in trouble, because he backed off when I told him I needed this job.

"I don't know." I'm not sure what the hell our encounter was.

He all but chased me out of the poker room. One second he looked like he wanted to throttle me and the next like he wanted to have his way with me. It's confusing and maybe a little exciting too. I bite the inside of my lip so I don't fidget.

"He keeps looking over here." I knock her with my elbow, not wanting him to hear what we're talking about.

Scott places the next round of drinks on my tray. "Thanks," I tell him as he stares at my boobs then winks at me.

I reach down and try to pull my corset up some more, but it's no use. Scott's been flirting with me since I got here today even though last week when I was in training he didn"t even notice me. As sexy as this outfit is, it's also a little annoying that no one noticed me before.

"We'll talk about it tonight," I tell Diamond, not wanting anyone to overhear us.

"Fine, but don't go home with a customer." She points one of her spiky blue fingernails at me.

"Dia!" I hiss under my breath. "When have I ever gone home with someone?"

"Well, that's kind of my point. We've lived together for over six months now, and you haven"t gotten any action. So I'm guessing that hot man over there is looking extra juicy." I don't follow her gaze to him even though I want to.

"I'm not going home with anyone," I hiss as I pick up my tray. "We'll talk later."

"Now he's glaring. Wait a second, is he pissed at you?"

This time I can't help myself, and I glance over my shoulder to look at him. Yep, he's glaring, but he still looks so hot. He towered over me even with my heels on. I only came up to his chest and I wondered if he was a football player. Standing in front of him, I felt dainty and small.

"I have no idea what I did to him." I take my tray and go out on the floor to drop off the round of drinks. When I make it back to the poker room, the bachelor party is still in full swing. Except one person is missing. Could he still be talking to my manager? What could they have to talk about this long? My mind swirls with how he's throwing me off. I should stay away from him.

I put his Scotch down in his spot so he'll have it when he gets back.

"Where the fuck did Rogue go? It doesn"t take this long to take a piss," one of the guys says as he reaches over to Rogue's chips and tosses in the ante for him.

"Can I get you boys anything else?" The bachelor at the center of the table looks like he's had enough, and the night is young.

"I think we're good," the one who was sitting next to Rogue says and then smirks. He has the same dark hair and deep blue eyes as Rogue, making me think they're related.

"Y'all have fun." I smile brightly before I go check on my other poker table.

I already know they don't want anything to drink. This one is all older men who are taking their game seriously and sipping on water. This table is going to be a bust tonight. At least the bachelor party is making up for it. They all dropped tips onto my tray as I served the last round.

I organize the money as I walk onto the main floor. It's then I see a phone number on one of the twenties. I glance back to the tables and see the guy at the opposite end from where Rogue was sitting smiling at me, letting me know it's his. This outfit must be some kind of weapon because I've never been hit on so much in my life.

"Cherry." Neil waves for me to come over to him, and I don't see Rogue nearby.

I feel a little disappointed about it, although if he went back to the poker room we would have crossed paths. I shouldn"t be disappointed because he was kind of a dick. The last thing I need is to get fired over a man.

Neil"s face looks pissed. His thin lips are pursed and a knot forms deep in my stomach. Oh god, did Rogue say something bad about me? Why else would Neil be mad?

"You're off the floor tonight." My heart drops. What the hell does that mean?

"What? Why? I didn"t do anything," I rush to defend myself. I can't control what other people do. Especially if they're two times bigger than me.

"Your area is slow. I'm going to have the other girls shift over to cover it. You're taking a private room."

"A private room?" I ask in shock.

Private rooms are prepaid, and when you walk in the door you already know you'll be getting at least five hundred dollars. People always tip extra, and it's good money to get one. Cocktail waitresses have to have been here a long time to get the private rooms. Diamond has only gotten to do it a handful of times, and she's been here for years.

"Yes," he says in a clipped tone.

"Did I do something wrong?" He's giving me a private room but looks pissed about it. People say women have hormonal mood swings, but I swear men are just as bad.

"Don't flirt with the customers," he orders, his tone hard.

I think flirting is part of my job. This uniform screams look at me, and it's also how I get more tips. I've never been much of a flirt, but here it's easy. It's been surprisingly easy, and it's helped me come out of my shell. I think because it's expected, or at least I thought it was.

"Okay," is all I can really say because he's my manager. I'll have to ask Diamond about it later since Neil is acting weird.

"Put your tray up and report to private room three."

"Thanks." I start to walk away, but he snags me by my wrist to stop me.

"Remember what I told you. I'd really hate to have to fire you." His eyes drop to my boobs and I hate the way he leers at me.

"Got it." What a creep.

I pull my hand away from his and he lets go while still glaring at me. Did someone forget to tell me it's Glare At Ember Day?

I drop off my tray at the bar before I pop into the bathroom to make sure I still look all right. I fluff my hair and put on more lip gloss as I try unsuccessfully to pull my corset up any higher. Still in the back of my mind, I can't shake the disappointment I feel about not seeing Rogue again.

It's definitely for the best because I know it would be hard not to flirt with his grumpy butt. As much as he acted like a jerk, I still felt this crazy-hot attraction to him. I enjoyed toying with him and had even gone as far as eating a cherry to draw his attention to my mouth.

Oh god. I'm one of those girls who likes assholes? Please no. It's just my luck that the first guy I'm attracted to after my high school boyfriend is a dick. I must have a type, although they don't look anything alike.

My ex was my first and last and soured me on dating. I'm not even sure I can call him an ex since we only went on three dates. It was a disaster, but instead of dwelling on it, I push the thought of him out of my mind. He never crosses my mind unless he gets drunk and blows up my phone. He left some scars on my ego that are still healing.

When I walk out of the bathroom, I glance into the poker room one last time but still don't see Rogue there. The guys are still having a good time, and I see Cara is now in my section.

Will Rogue hit on her too? Cara is the most popular cocktail server here. I learned that quickly in my short time, because she let me know every five minutes. I'm actually surprised she's not in a private room. Diamond told me she used to model or something like that.

I push open the door to the private room and step inside. I hear the snick of the door closing behind me as I see the only person in the room leaning back against a red velvet sofa.

And it's no surprise he looks angrier than ever.