See Jayne Play (8 page)

I looked up as casually as possible, noticing the blonde from earlier was still at his side. Any other time, it wouldn’t have bothered me in the least, but with him, and after what he’d done, I felt cheap and used, and I was livid.

“
Ready to lose some money, gentlemen?”

His smile was as smug as ever, the empty eyes I found the first night I met him clear and full of purpose. This was his show, that was evident, but he was mistaken if he thought he could manipulate me.
I
was the pro at that table. I’d tricked and pried things out of men ten times as rich and powerful as he was, and so I gave him a triumphant smirk of my own.

“
I’ve got my lucky charm with me tonight, fellas. I hope you’re all ready to watch me take the table.”

There were chuckles all around, both good-hearted and half-assed. They were all liars, each and every one of them. The cheaters, philanderers, and wannabes. They were all disgusting, but the truly disgusting thing was that I was one of the same. I was them, and it hit me like a nail in the heart.

Tony nudged my side with his elbow, and I gave him a weak smile in return. I forced myself to stop daydreaming. I had a feeling he was going to talk to Vince about my behavior, and I didn’t want to deal with that on top of everything else. Letting Vince down was out of the question. At that point, he was the only real thing I had left.

I felt like I was kidding myself about my dad. Watching the men in front of me, knowing that he’d robbed them—probably numerous times—I began to wonder just how close to the enemy I was.

So I watched them. I looked at the marks, the tell-tale calls every criminal had—their faces, the ticks, the fumbling hands, and the shaky legs. I watched and recorded all of it, hoping by registering it in the back of my head that something would begin to make sense.

“
So, Miss. King, would you care to join the game?”

Slowly, I looked over at Flynn. He was smiling, malicious and vengeful. I wanted to hit him—right in the smug grin he wore. Whatever game he was playing, I was ready to jump in and knock his swagger right on its ass. The fact was, I could beat them all, and he knew it. I wasn’t sure how, but somehow he knew I had the upper edge. It wasn’t in my best interest to throw that out into the arena I was in. It was my sure shot, the last resort. Inside, I was shaking, but I wasn’t going to let him see one bead of sweat on my pretty face.

“
A poker table is no place for a lady, Mr. Maguire.”

His eyes danced.

“
Unless they’re bent over the table… maybe I can bend you over this table after I take all their money.”

As soon as the words were out of Tony’s mouth, Flynn was out of his seat and leering over him, fisting his shirt at the throat and growling in his face.

“
You’re out. Pick up your shit, and leave.”

The chair tipped and Tony fell backward, clinging to his neck and trying to catch his breath. It all happened so fast that I wasn’t even sure what was going on. There were angry words, chairs scraping, and overall pandemonium as the entire room fell into an uproar.

I could do nothing but sit there, shocked and completely turned on. There was something about a man standing up for a lady’s honor, especially when it was mine. Coming from Flynn, it may as well have been an offer of marriage because my heart had leaped from my chest and fell at his feet, begging him to take it.

“
Get up!”

My head snapped to the side to find Tony standing beside me, shaking and furious. “Get up. We’re fucking leaving!”

Frantically, I stood, grabbed my clutch from the table, and tried to follow his orders. I had no idea what the hell to do. Technically, he owned me, as sick as it was to think about, so I had no choice but to go with him.

His hand shot out, grabbing my upper arm painfully. I flinched, and the look on Flynn’s face was murderous. He’d always been so composed, almost emotionless when he wasn’t aroused, and it frightened me.

“
Get your fucking hands off her!” he roared, launching himself out of the arms of the men holding him back. “She stays. You get the hell out!”

Tony laughed, the fool that he was. “I don’t give a shit who you are. I paid for the bitch, and I’m getting my money’s worth.”

Flynn’s nostrils flared. He shot me the most deadly look, and my entire body coiled tight. It was irrational for him to be angry with me. I hated it, hated the way he looked at me like he was judging me and my decisions. It wasn’t his place, and for that matter, who was he to judge me at all?

He reached into his pocket, his eyes locked with mine, and pulled out a wad of cash, tossing it at Tony with a furious snap of his hand.

“
Take the money, and leave. You have ten seconds before I end your life.” His voice was deathly calm on the surface, but there was a gritty undertone that meant he was not giving Tony a chance to argue.

Everyone else in the room seemed to fall back, letting him handle the situation. They were obviously as shocked as I was, and that worried me more. If this wasn’t his usual behavior, I was afraid to find out what brought the rage on. A momentary burst of pleasure rushed through me, satisfaction that he’d fought for my reputation and honor, but why?

He’d treated me the same as Tony, like the whore I was. Why he felt the need to counteract that was beyond me. The allusive bullshit was more than my exhausted mind could handle. I was crumbling. I could feel it in every cell of my body. Emotions were getting the better of me, and the adrenaline was beginning to fade. I had no mask at that point. I was only a girl in a room full of bastards, and I just wanted to go home.

I finally broke the spell between Flynn and me, and with a shaky hand, I dug through my purse for my phone. The night had erupted into a complete clusterfuck. There was no saving it, and I wasn’t interested in hanging around for the aftermath.

I turned, moving to a quiet corner of the room, and dialed Vince. Tears bit at my eyes, and I said a silent prayer, thanking God for Vince’s place in my life. He was the only man, only person, I’d ever been able to really count on.

“
Jesus,” he spat. “Are you okay? I just got a text from Tony, and it didn’t make any sense.”

My breath shuddered. “Come get me. I’m stranded here, and the whole thing is making me nervous as hell. Hurry.”

“
I’m already on my way. Hang tight, Janie. I’m coming.”

The call ended, and I clutched the phone tightly in my fist. Staring out the window at the lights of the night below, I let the tears fall. There had been very few times in my life that I’d felt so out of control.

I felt Flynn approach, and my entire body tensed up.

“
Jayne, look at me,” he demanded.

There was no way in hell I was turning around with tears in my eyes. Vulnerability was a defect in my profession. I was not human to these bastards; I was meat, flesh to be devoured and discarded, and I’d be damned to show him any part of me.

“
Vince is on his way to pick me up. I’ll be out of your way in just a few minutes. I apologize for the behavior of my companion tonight. I do hope you know that.”

He chuckled. “You call that cocksucker a companion? Turn around, Jayne. Look at me.”

I gave a hard, short shake of my head and bit down on the inside of my cheek, holding back the full-blown sobs.

His hand clamped down on my shoulder, and suddenly I was looking up into the deep, concerned eyes of a man I couldn’t understand.

“
That bastard didn’t deserve to be your companion, or anything else. Why do you do this to yourself? Tell me!”

I scowled. “That is none of your damn business. Not all of us are born with a silver spoon in their mouths, Mr. Maguire. I’d appreciate it if you’d refrain from the insults. I’ve been through enough tonight. Please. I’m on my way.”

He sighed, lifting his hand to cup my cheek. “I need to fucking know.”

Stepping back, I lifted my chin and glared. “Why? Why is it any of your business? You didn’t seem to give a shit about anything when you were parading me around your suite and jacking off on my back. You didn’t give a shit when you threw me out with an envelope full of cash! I’m an escort, not an idiot. I don’t owe you any explanations.”

I pushed past him, and without a second glance at any of the men meandering around, I stomped through the house toward the exit.

He didn’t follow, and I was glad. I had bigger things on my plate, like how the hell I was going to come up with enough money to pay the bastards off the next morning.

Vince was out front, and I’d never been happier to see him and his stupid flashy Dodge in my life.

I ran toward his car, tugged the door open, and flung myself inside.

“
Girl, what the fuck went on in there?”

I broke down. The sobs wracked my body, and I bowled over with my head between my legs. “Just get me out of here. I want to go home, Vince. Please. Just take me home.”

SEVEN

The distant hum of voices coming from the television barely registered in the back of my head. The room was dark except for the glare of the screen, and Vince’s lap was warm and safe. I didn’t even argue when he offered to stay with me. The townhouse was cold and unfamiliar to me, and I felt off. I was scared. It was as if everything was coming down on me at once. The huge reality was grim, and I’d done a good job of pretending I could fix things, but the truth was right there, like a ten-pound boulder on my forehead. I was out of luck. Shit had gotten out of hand.

I rolled over onto my back, my head still in Vince’s lap. He looked calm, as always, but I knew he was just staying mellow for me. He knew things had changed, and I could almost see the wheels in his brain cranking. We were in a mess, and there was no way I could get us out of it by turning tricks.

I looked up at him and sighed. He looked so worn out, and I wanted to kill my dad for putting us through all the crap he did. The old bastard had lived like a king, and dragged both of us down his dirty road. We were nothing but pawns. He had to have known that eventually his dirty deeds would hit me.

“
I have an idea,” I told him. “I’m not exactly sure if it’ll work, especially with the timetable we’re working with, but it’s worth a shot at this point.”

He gazed down at me, lifting his beer bottle to his lips and taking a slow drag before setting it down on the table next to him. “Jayne, I don’t know what else you can do. I’m not letting you put yourself in danger. Not anymore. I shouldn’t have let you hit the men as it is. Tonight could have been really fucking bad. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

I smiled. “I know that. This is easy, I think. I can sell my house in California. I’ve been thinking about it for a few days, and I don’t think I want to go back. I want to break clean all the way. No more girls, no more games. I want to be free. I don’t know how, or where, or what the fuck I’m going to do, but I can’t do this anymore.”

He pushed my hair out of my face and gave me a sad smile. “Kid, I don’t know what to say. This is all so fucked up.”

I shifted so that I could nuzzle him a little closer and smiled when his arm went around my waist. Safe. Vince was safety, calm.

“
So let’s do that. Can you help me make some calls tomorrow? I need to find someone to take over the business, too. I don’t care about it, but I do care about the girls. I don’t want them ending up in the hands of some jackass pimp. California is as shady as Vegas, if not worse. They deserve to be taken care of.”

“
I’ll figure it out, Jayne. I have some calls to make on this… I’ve heard a few things about your dad, and who has him. I need to dig a little more.”

“
Thank you, Vince. I don’t tell you I love you enough. I’m so freaking glad I have you.”

“
Always, kid. I love you, too, Janie girl. We’ll get through this, and I promise I won’t let anything happen to you.”

I basked in that for a while. I knew I could count on him. He’d never hurt me, and he’d never let me down. I was grateful every single day that I had him. There was no one I trusted more, no one I cared about as much. Vince was something special, and it pinched at me again how lucky I was that he was the big brother I never had.

And then, in perfect big-brother form, he dropped the bomb we’d both been tossing around, hoping it wouldn’t hit the floor.

“
What about Flynn, Janie?”

“
What about him?” I asked, defensive and angry.

“
Kid, this is me you’re talking to. What the hell is going on with you two?”

I clenched my jaw and slapped my eyes shut, turning over so I was facing the far wall. I didn’t want him to see my reaction. He’d read right through me.

“
Apparently, he likes to hang out with whores. He’s a freak. What do you want me to say?”

“
Janie…”

“
I don’t know, okay? He confuses me completely. He hires me, but he’s barely touched me. He treats me like shit mostly, but then tonight he totally came to my defense. I’ve never met someone so complicated in my life. I can’t read him at all.”