Page 19 of Ruthless Protector

“Not doing it for you,” he said. “This is my property, I meant to do it a long time ago.”

I snatched up my keys from the hall table and handed them to Cage. “Whatever, it’s your money.”

Jude made no move to leave, and I didn’t want to get stuck in the same room with him making small talk, especially after all he’d done for me with the rent and meds. I felt like a charity case, and I didn’t like that feeling one bit, so I gave Cage the codes and headed for the door. “I’ll be over at Fay’s,” I said, and rushed out before he could reply, hit the steps to her place, and knocked on the door.

She opened it with a grin. “Get your ass in here and I’ll make you some tea.”

I chuckled and followed her to her kitchen. Her house was almost identical to mine, only the first floor was still part of her house, not a separate apartment like at mine. It had a bar, dartboard, and a pool table down there. Her husband had used it as his “man cave” when he’d still been alive.

“I see you got visitors over there,” she said.

Fay was wearing Birkenstocks, black jeans, a Rolling Stones t-shirt, and a wide studded belt. Her long black and silver hair was down, and she had a thin braid down one side. She looked cool. She always looked cool. I plonked down at her kitchen table. “Yep, Jude’s upping the security.”

Fay smiled down at the mugs she was dropping tea bags into. “Is he now? Well, that’s awfully nice of him.”

I snorted. “Don’t even think about trying to match make. One: whatever you’re thinking, you’re wrong. The upgrade has nothing to do with me. And two: I have zero interest in a man, any man, in my life, permanent, casual, or otherwise.”

Fay stirred our drinks and put a mug in front of me. “If you say so.” She took a sip of her tea. “So, what’s bothering you, besides having a giant hunk of a man hanging around and making sure you’re safe?”

“Fay…”

She lifted a hand. “I know, no men.” She gave me a look that said I was nuts. “I won’t go on, but I know you’re not blind. Jude’s not exactly hard to look at. A man like that, big, strong…” she smirked. “The positions that boy could put you in, is all I’m saying.”

I choked on my drink. “Fay!”

“What? I’m just making sure you know what you’re passing up on.”

Oh, I knew, not that there’d been an offer. But yeah, I’d thought about…that. More than I should. “You’re wasting your time. He has not shown the least bit of interest in me.”

Fay rolled her eyes. “If you think what he’s doing over there has nothing to do with you and Tilly, you’re kidding yourself.” Her expression turned grave and she took my hand. “Take it from a woman who hasn’t gotten any for way longer than I’d like to think about.” At my obvious surprise, she grinned wickedly. “There’s only so much fun you can have with a vibrator, girl. Nothing beats the real thing from time to time.”

A laugh exploded past my lips. I didn’t think that was possible after the morning I had; God, the whole shitty week. “Look, I’ll agree with you there. But Jude barely knows us and I don’t think screwing your landlord is such an intelligent idea, do you? And like I said, I don’t…”

“You don’t need a man.” She waved a hand. “Bah, if you say so.” She took another sip of her tea. “Now, are you going to tell me what’s really bothering you, ’cause you’re doing a crappy job of hiding it. Talk to me.”

I slumped back in my seat. “Alf won’t give me my job back and I’m getting behind on…God, on everything. I’m worried I’ll lose that house. I can’t lose it, Fay.” There was no way I was telling her about Trent. She might tell Jude, thinking she was helping, and there was no way I was getting anyone else involved. I wouldn’t put Tilly at risk like that.

She tapped the side of her mug. “You need fast money?”

“Yes, I’m desperate.”

She stared at me for several long seconds. “Do you know how I met my husband?”

I shook my head. I knew he’d been “the one” for her, but I’d never asked too many questions, afraid bringing up those memories would upset her.

She took another sip of her drink, then put it back on the table. “I moved to the city when I was seventeen, a naive country girl, escaping a bad situation at home. I found myself in an even worse one here, no money, close to getting thrown out of the place I was renting. Then, while I sat crying at the bus stop, terrified to go home, but not sure what else I could do, a girl sat beside me and introduced herself. Her name was Jennifer, and she told me she could get me a job and I should meet her boss. Mr. Esposito—Samuel—was sitting behind a big desk when I walked into his office, wearing the most beautiful suit I’d ever seen.” She gave me a wicked grin. “Not surprising, since he ran the finest strip club in New York.”

My eyes widened.

Her grin stayed in place and she shrugged one shoulder. “He liked the way I looked, hired me on the spot. He was training his sons, Mateo and Raul, to take over the business one day, maybe expand. For Mateo and I, it was love at first sight. A few months later, he asked me to marry him, and the rest was history.”

I sat there, blinking over at her, shocked. “You were a dancer? A stripper?”

Fay smiled. “One of the best. I made great money. I only stopped dancing after I got married, but I still had a lot to do with the club, made costumes, helped the girls when they needed it. Jen and I stayed friends; in fact, she recently moved back to the city since her son still lives here.”

“I had no idea.” But then, Fay was always full of surprises. Did she really think I should, that I could…? “Are you suggesting I strip?”

Fay shrugged. “I’m not suggesting anything. Though, there’s nothing wrong with it, nothing to be ashamed of. You can make a lot of money, and fast.”