Ever since Goldie’s departure and Lyla’s arrival, there had been a lot of questions running around, and it was time I settled them before things got too out of hand and rumors started to float around the club.
I straightened my tie and walked into the room, noticing all the girls in their uniforms. Lyla fit in perfectly with the other girls, wearing her shirt well. She was quite beautiful, gorgeous actually, but even though she was very pleasing to the eye, I felt nothing for her. I felt nothing for anyone except Goldie.
My soul ached for her. My body pleaded with me, begged me to go over to Rex’s house and take her away, but my brain stopped my body from acting on its needs.
My Little One was in danger; I could sense it. She was with an evil man, someone who would take what he wanted and would have no qualms about who he hurt in the process. Rex Titan was just like my father, maybe even worse, because he enjoyed gloating about his victories.
Needing to put on a strong façade, I pushed the thoughts of Goldie’s circumstances out of my mind and addressed the girls. I cleared my throat as a cue for them to direct their attention toward me. Kace was sitting on the stage with a somber expression on his face, while the girls looked slightly confused. I could tell he was hurting just as much as I was. Even though I hated the fact he had feelings for Goldie, I understood how he was feeling, because my heart was going through the same battle.
“Thank you for taking time out of your schedule to meet with me,” I said to all the girls.
“You know you don’t have to be so formal with us, right?” Babs asked with her legs swung over one of the arms of the chairs she was sitting in.
I ignored her and continued. “As you all know, Goldie has left the Lafayette Club, and we replaced her with Lyla…”
“Stop,” Francy said, while standing up, shocking me a bit. “Can you seriously just talk to us, Jett? I can tell you’re hurting; I can see it in your eyes, even though you’re trying your hardest to hide it from us. We know how much Goldie meant to you…we saw how she made you feel, how she lit up your room when she walked in. You love her, Jett.”
I pulled on my cufflinks and studied the floor as I listened to Francy. I love her, yes, that was an accurate statement, a feeling I never thought I would succumb to, but somehow Goldie made me feel, she made me fall for her; I had no choice in the matter.
Once again, ignoring Francy, I looked back up and continued. “Lyla will be staying with us in the meantime, making sure the members stay happy until we can find a permanent replacement. Lyla has made it quite clear she is just helping us out temporarily.”
As I spoke of Lyla, I watched as Kace scanned Lyla up and down. He might be hurting about Goldie, but he sure as hell wasn’t having a hard time making himself feel better. There was heat in his gaze when he eyed Lyla.
“What about Goldie? Aren’t you going to bring her back?” Pepper asked, looking a little angry.
“Goldie has made her choice,” I swallowed hard.
“Bullshit,” Pepper spat at me. “You’re such a coward, you know that, Jett? You’re just going to let her walk out of your life? What the hell is wrong with you? I thought you were the kind of man who took what he wanted and didn’t let anyone get in his way. Never did I think I would see the day when you would just roll over and play dead. Frankly, it’s disgusting.”
“What do you want me to do?” I cracked, as my voice roared. “She thinks she can save the world by going back to Rex. I can’t do anything about that.”
“Yes, you can,” Babs cut in. “You can walk up to Rex’s place and take back what’s yours.”
“It’s not that simple,” I said, as I ran my hand over my face. “If I’m not careful, they’ll harm her. I can’t have that, even though she left me, I can’t fathom the thought of her getting hurt.”
The room fell silent as there was a knock on the door. Jeremy, my assistant, popped his head in and said, “May I come in, sir?” I nodded my head and he entered, holding his iPad close to his chest.
He sidled up next to me and practically whispered, “I have some news you might be interested in.”
Looking at him with a raised eyebrow, I asked, “What kind of news?”
“I heard from one of my friends that Rex Titan is going to be at the gala this weekend. He plans on talking up some of the city council members about Lot 17 before the interviews start the following week.” He paused for a second and then spoke softer. “He RSVP’d for two.”
Instantly, my stomach fell to the floor at the thought of Goldie showing up to the gala latched on to Rex’s arm. Would she really attend an event with Rex, knowing there was a slim possibility I would be there? If she had any concern for me, she wouldn’t. She knew it would tear me apart.
“Is the other RSVP for my father?”
Shaking his head, Jeremy said, “No, he declined his individual invitation.”
Fuck.
“I’m sorry, sir,” Jeremy spoke. “Would you like me to cancel your invite?”
Seeing Goldie with Rex at the gala would be devastating, it would completely crush me, but on the other hand, getting a chance to see Goldie was an urge I couldn’t squash.
“No,” I responded. “I will still attend, and would you please invite Keylee to go with me? Apologize for my late notice, but I will need her there for appearance purposes.”
Jeremy nodded and took off. I turned back to the girls to find them all glaring at me.
“You’re kidding me, right?” Francy asked. “You’re going to take Keylee to that event. Are you trying to hurt Goldie?”
“No, I’m trying to make it seem like I’m not about to lose my fucking mind since she left me. I have to make it seem like I don’t care about her.”
“Why?” Pepper huffed out.
“Because my dad will harm her if I don’t. Until I have some kind of leverage over him, some kind of evidence that the man is the actual low life he is, then I have no choice but to act like Goldie means nothing to me, or else, he will harm her. He would do anything to hurt me, to crush me, and right now, he knows Goldie means something to me. He knows,” I broke off while rubbing my forehead.
“What can we do?” Babs asked. “How can we make this better?”
“You can’t. Leave it to me and Kace. You keep conducting business as usual and make sure Lyla knows the routines. We can’t show that there has been a ripple in the club, because if it gets back to Rex and my father, they will take full advantage of it.”
“How long is this going to go on for?” Babs asked.
“I’m not sure.”
It was the truth. I really had no clue how long this tug-of-war would go on. I was tired, though. I wanted it to all be over, and honestly, I was moments away from pulling the plug on Lot 17. It’s caused more hurt than good. I could build a park for the kids somewhere else; I would donate millions to update their facilities if I needed to, but the one thing that kept me from pulling the plug on the project was the fact that if I did, my father would see that as a sign of weakness and he would know that he had me by the balls, that Goldie was the key to what he wanted and I couldn’t have that. I couldn’t put her in that position, no matter how bad she hurt me.
Speaking with a gentle tone, I looked at the girls and said, “I appreciate your concern. I will try to make this better, somehow.”
“If she came back, you would take her, right?” Francy asked while Tootse sat in her lap, completely silent.
Would I take Goldie back? My heart would, my soul would reach out and grab her faster than I could tell her no, but if she slept with Rex, if she shared a bed with the man, I didn’t know if I could ever recover from that. I knew my heart wouldn’t be able to survive it, knowing the one person who was made for me, who was brought to me by my mom was with someone else; the thought was unforgettable, no matter her intentions.