Page 11 of Cold Hard Cash

They all smirked at him but said nothing.

“Yes, I know how much Mr. Frost values punctuality, and I really tried to be here on time! I know he said to be here right at nine, but the kitchen—”

“Hey! It’s okay, really!” Jimmy wasn’t awake enough to handle this much excitement and he opened the door to allow her inside. He looked at her name tag, quickly reading it. “Lola? Hey. I’m Jimmy. I promise, it’s not a big deal.”

“Oh God! Thank you, thank you so much!” Lola was almost sobbing, hastily pushing the cart inside the room. She set up a folding tray by the edge of the bed and placed one of the smaller domes right in the center.

“Seriously, it’s really fine,” Jimmy said, comforting her. “Thank you so much.”

Lola wiped her eyes, smiling nervously as she gestured at the tray. “Here. Mr. Frost wanted you to have this first. You, you really need to look at this one first. If you don’t… Well, if he asks, I told you to. Thank you, so sorry again, thank you.”

Jimmy was stunned. They both knew who Mr. Frost really was, and Lola was obviously terrified of him. He watched her leave, tail tucked between her legs as the door slammed shut.

Plopping down on the bed, some of the glamour of last night faded away as reality slapped Jimmy right in the face. Roderick Legrand, Boss Cold, was a dangerous criminal. Jimmy had pledged his body to the most feared man in all of Strassen Springs.

What the hell had he been thinking?

With a sigh, Jimmy put his troubles aside in favor of exploring the giant cart of food, starting with the dome Lola had been so particular about. He quirked a curious brow when he didn’t find food but a small card instead.

Balance: $252,007.19

Tonight the real work begins.

-RL

Jimmy made a face and dropped the card with a groan. His ass ached and his cheeks were likely bruised. He didn’t want to know what Cold meant by real work, but he had a suspicion he wouldn’t be walking straight afterward.

Poking through the different domes of food on the cart, he found a wide variety of dishes. Pancakes, waffles, fresh fruit, and eggs cooked at least four different ways. He didn’t understand why Cold had ordered so much, especially since Jimmy was obviously going to be dining alone. He appreciated the gesture, but he decided not to read too much into it.

Jimmy made a valiant effort to eat every last bite until he was about to burst. He finally accepted defeat and waddled to the bathroom to change back into his clothes. He made sure to carefully tuck the cash into his wallet, unable to resist a big smile. He couldn’t wait to go grocery shopping or pay his rent or…

Oh fuck, the rent.

That had to come first.

Once he was finished getting ready, Jimmy was hesitant to leave so much food behind. He stacked the rest of the fruit and remaining pancakes under one of the domes to take with him. He’d be back tonight, so he could return the dish then.

Even before handling his rent situation, however, he had to see Maury.

“Maury! Hey! You’re never gonna freakin’ believe this!”

“You ain’t sellin’ me that, kid,” Maury warned as he peered over the counter upon Jimmy’s arrival at his pawn shop and saw the domed dish. “I know you’re desperate for moolah, but I gotta draw the line at you stealin’ shit.”

“What? Oh no!” Jimmy shook his head, laughing as he set the dish in front of him and popped the dome off. “I didn’t steal anything! These are leftovers from my breakfast.”

“Breakfast where?” Maury asked suspiciously as he inspected a strawberry.

“At the hotel.”

“What fuckin’ hotel?”

“The hotel where I stayed last night.” Jimmy waggled his eyebrows and hoped Maury would catch on.

Maury’s face was blank as he munched on the stolen strawberry.

“With Boss Cold!” Jimmy exclaimed.

“Oh fuck! Well, how did it go?” Maury studied Jimmy’s face carefully. “You had sex? Ya don’t smell like sex.”