Page 70 of Nothing to Tell
“All we’re doing tonight is putting on our pretty dresses and dancing our troubles away.There’s no rest of the world at Crimson.”
“It’s late.It’s a weeknight, my family will ask questions.”
“When we’re done, you can come back home with Z and I.We have plenty of space.We’ll have a sleepover.”
“You have a house in California?”
“Well our house is… uh…”
Roxie wasn’t the type to hesitate.
Suspicion prickled.“What is it?”
“The house isn’t exactly ready.We’re staying in a hotel…”
Right.Now she got it.“The Grand?”
“We can stay anywhere.It doesn’t have to be the hotel.We have a bunch of friends here.Or, hey, we can fly to Vegas.”
The thrill of that unexpected suggestion bubbled laughter from her gut.“Vegas?No notice?Just go?”
“Honey…” Roxie said, cocking a hip to land her hand on it.“There ain’t nowhere in the world I can’t go with no notice.”
The beauty’s bold attitude was infectious.Already her cells were awakening, enlivened by the boundless possibilities.Even living them vicariously was a thrill.Her potential may not be limitless, but Roxie held the universe in the palm of her hand.And she was offering to share it, for a while, at least.
“Zairn wouldn’t worry?”
“Nah, we’re pretty good at phone sex.”Roxie linked their arms and started for the door.“We’ll start in LA and see where the night takes us.We can always send someone over to your place for your passport.”
Her passport?Yeah, Roxie was used to no constraints.Nothing could go wrong… could it?
TWENTY-SIX
ANOTHER SMILE, another handshake.She made it all the way to her product launch that weekend.In spite of Roxie or because of her?Minute to minute, it wasn’t always clear, but at least she was still in LA.No passport required… yet.
Any event that went off without a hitch was a win.The launch wasn’t big or flashy, but it was functions like this that paid her bills.With everything in full swing, she could relax.Not completely, but enough.
Attendees mulled around, networking before the launch presentation.Music played.Canapes were distributed.Every cog moved as planned.
The product was some kind of smart device.Everything was smart these days.So much so that the “smart” part was almost redundant.If it didn’t plug in and sync with everything in a person’s house, they didn’t want it.God forbid anything ever went wrong with the electricity powering their lives.
The young geniuses who created these products wanted nightclubs and light shows to complement their launches.Flash and pizzaz were ubiquitous these days.
She didn’t have to stay all night but probably would in case of hitches.And, who knew?Maybe she’d drum up more business for herself… if she was in the mood to schmooze.Which she wasn’t.
Numb sickness still plagued her whenever Bastian came to mind, which was a lot.Though with Roxie taking her for dinner and drinks and dancing every night, all week, she at least didn’t have time to dwell on it.
Her father hadn’t taken the news of her breakup well.Adara offered sympathy, while Damon enjoyed her misfortune.Him, always him, being him.Honestly?She couldn’t get far enough away.No big surprise.God love Roxie for providing the perfect excuse to avoid the family home, or any building that might contain Damon.
Her family didn’t attend her functions.There was no need to.This was business.Her job.It didn’t require an audience, her part didn’t anyway.That would just complicate things and she’d never get a pat on the back, so what would be the point?
Every once in a while, like that night, she brought a date.Men liked the glitz of these situations.It was LA.Glamor was required.Typically, her dates would get bored with her working.More often than not, they left early or with someone, anyone, other than her.
Michael, that night’s date, had disappeared a while ago.Maybe about twenty minutes ago.Might’ve been half an hour… ish.It was anyone’s guess if he was still there or not.No, it wasn’t exactly nice, but she was in no rush to locate him.
The presentation would start in around fifteen minutes.And where would she rather be…?Home alone?With Bastian?Lost in the mists of Crimson hedonism?The middle one.Always the middle one, and the one she’d never be again.Damnit.Why did he still occupy so much room in her head?
Hubbub near an internal doorway drew her attention.A distraction.Good.Given it was her job to maintain the integrity of the guest list, and defuse problems, she started over there to do her job.Any incident should be taken care of before it affected the client’s guests.
