Gentleman Sinner(67)

‘I’d better go,’ Troy says, claiming a tray from the pile stacked at the end of the bar and heading over to Theo and his guest.

‘Yes,’ I mutter, returning my attention to my wine. ‘Because only the unwise refuse Theo Kane.’

An hour later, I’m still wallowing in my wine when Jess appears across the Playground. She looks amazed as she soaks up the atmosphere, Callum hovering behind her. A small smile curves his lips when he dips and whispers something in her ear, making her shudder, her eyes darting towards me at the bar. She gives me a pained face as she hurries over, yet why so pained is yet to be determined. Something tells me that it’s not my current state of affairs causing her aggrieved expression.

She lands on a stool next to me and drops her head into her hands. ‘He picked me up. He physically picked me up and carried me across a huge fucking puddle, and I swear, on the Lord Almighty above, I had an orgasm right there in his arms.’

Laughter rumbles up from my toes and bursts right out of my mouth. ‘You’re kidding?’

‘It’s not funny, Izzy. I was stiff as a board in his hold.’

‘Was he stiff?’ I titter, my wine shaking as I bring it to my lips. She looks traumatized, and my laughter increases, my reflux threatening to send my wine everywhere except down my throat. I struggle to swallow, flagging Troy when he appears behind the bar. ‘You’d better get my friend a drink. She’s having a bit of a meltdown here.’

‘Please,’ she squeaks, waggling a finger at the hard stuff on the top shelf. ‘Anything.’

Troy joins in my amusement and pours her a neat whisky. ‘Get that down you.’

‘Thanks.’ She gulps it, gasps, and then throws herself around on the chair, clearing her throat. ‘What the hell is going on?’

My eyes bug at her. ‘You recovered from your little moment rather quickly.’

She scoffs and moves in closer. ‘I’m sorry. I just needed to get that out. Callum said you’re not talking to Theo.’

‘So you’ve had a conversation with him, then?’

She shudders again. ‘I could listen to him talk forever.’ Looking past me, I follow her eyes, seeing that Callum has joined Theo and the other man. ‘Such a hunk.’

‘But quiet,’ I muse.

‘And moody,’ Jess adds. ‘It’s so fucking sexy. And cold. But I still quite fancy him. It’s annoying.’

I roll my eyes, just catching Theo looking up at me. He still appears troubled, his face tight with irritation as he nods mildly to the guy talking to him. It all looks very serious. Who is he? And what are they talking about?

‘So tell me.’ Jess breaks into my thoughts, pulling me back around on my stool. ‘Rumours are rife.’

‘What rumours?’

‘At work. So far, you’re fired, Theo kicked the ever—loving crap out of the security guard, and there’s a warrant out for your arrest. Oh, and Susan was blindfolded and locked in a closet while Theo performed Chinese torture tactics to get her talking.’

I gape at her. ‘What?’

Jess shrugs. ‘You know everyone likes to add their own little bit to enhance the drama.’

Fucking hell. As if the drama needs enhancing. ‘This is what happened,’ I say, moving in, as does Jess. I spend the next half-hour giving her a blow-by-blow account of everything, from the moment I arrived at Percy Sugden’s bed and first encountered his son, to a few hours ago, when Theo lost the plot in Susan’s office. ‘So suffice to say, I’m out of a job.’

Jess looks bamboozled as I draw to a close, my wine freshly topped up again, courtesy of a very attentive Troy. I smile and raise my glass to him at the end of the bar. ‘Shit,’ Jess says simply.

‘Yes,’ I agree. ‘And now I’m waiting for the police to track me down and question me.’

‘So if Theo or Callum didn’t kick Sugden’s arse, how did he wind up with broken bones?’

‘Damned if I know. Maybe he upset someone else. I imagine it happens daily. He’s a total arsehole.’

‘Well,’ she breathes, taking a casual swig of her drink as she gazes around the Playground. ‘I would say you could get a job here, but, you know, been there and done that.’

I gape at her, and she winks, continuing to rain humour on my overall diabolical situation. I guess if I didn’t laugh, I might cry. ‘You’re fucking hilarious.’ I smack her knee and she smiles a little, placing an upturned hand on the bar for me to take, which I do, squeezing. ‘Thanks for coming.’

‘No sweat.’ She looks down at her work uniform. ‘Though I would have preferred not to be sporting the juices of various vaginas.’

My nose wrinkles, clocking a few spots of faint blood on her front. ‘I’m sure Callum didn’t notice.’

Jess peeks up with a grin. ‘He did, actually. And he asked a bunch of questions like he was really interested in my day. At least he sounded it.’ She looks past me, pouting. ‘I can’t figure him out. I know I irritate him, but the man pushes my buttons. Part of me wants to take that gun he carries and hold it to his head, and the other half wants him to hold it to mine.’

‘While—’

‘He fucks my brain out.’

‘Jess!’ I laugh, and she shrugs, nonchalant.