♤
JOHN AND I were dressed to the nines for the fourth night in a row, hoping that this would be the night we finally got to speak to Leon Brockman.
We spent the previous night visiting the other clubs on the list, just to make sure Abe Stenson was telling the truth about Brockman owning them all, and we unfortunately found out that he was.
There was no way we could get these clubs to individually sign the contracts to buy our gin, so we had to go straight to the top. And here we stood, outside the biggest club I had ever seen in my life; seemingly hundreds of people piling in and close to zero people leaving.
This was the big daddy of the London nightclub scene: The Sapphire Casino and Bar.
The Sapphire was known all around London for being the most extravagant place for miles around, and I had managed to get John and myself on the guest list. Granted, it was mostly John's threats that got us on it, but I liked to think my sweet-talking is what bagged it for us.
"Ready?" John asked, holding out his arm as we stood on the street opposite The Sapphire. I could tell he was nervous as he wasn't used to speaking to businessmen; he usually surrounded himself with thugs and gangsters. I had told him to be on his best behaviour, and I knew how much he hated being told what to do.
"Yes." I linked my arm with his and we crossed the road, approaching the bouncer who was holding a book in his hand.
"Evening, Sir. Name?"
I had also told John to get used to doing most of the talking as women weren't taken as seriously in places like these.
"Shelby." John replied, his authoritative tone making me smile slightly. I always liked when he took charge, though I'd never admit it to him.
"Go right in, Sir. Ma'am." The bouncer nodded slightly as he let us enter the prestigious club.
It was loud, to say the least. Bright lights illuminated every corner, the smell of tobacco and alcohol consuming my senses.
"Should I bother trying to get a drink or are we just gonna go straight to the big guy?"
I rolled my eyes at John and gently linked my arm with his, looking around at all the strange faces. "Let's just speak to Brockman and get out of here as soon as possible."
"What; you don't like it here?" John asked as we walked through the dancefloor.
I shrugged, "It isn't really my cup of tea."
"Come on, you're allowed to have a bit of fun in life." John stopped walking and turned to me, placing his hands on my waist. "Let's dance."
I let out a laugh, my eyes darting to the side. "I-I don't know, John, Tommy sent us here on business."
"What's business without a little pleasure?" And with that, he placed my hands on his shoulder and put his on my hips, beginning to sway to the music. Although there were many other couples doing the exact same as us, I couldn't help but feel out of place and as though we were doing something ludicrous. John noticed my discomfort and placed a finger under my chin, raising my head so my eyes met his.
"Relax, darlin'. Nobody's looking at us; and if they are it's because they're jealous of how beautiful you are."
I couldn't help but give a small smile as he spoke, his voice being the one sound that could ever bring me comfort. But I could never admit that.
"Or maybe they're jealous because I'm dancing with the most handsome man here?" I countered, my heart swelling as he blushed slightly and laughed.
"I think you're right." John winked and pulled my body closer to his. "We should dance more often."
I didn't reply and instead lay my head on his chest for a few moments, the sound of his heart beating calmed me down and cleared my head of any stress. "Thank you for being nice to me, John."
He let out a confused laugh, but just continued to dance and didn't prod any further which I was glad of. He always seemed to know not to ask about my feelings.
"I think I see Brockman." His words brought me out of the bubble we had begun to float away in, and I immediately pulled away from him to look behind me.
The brunette man, who couldn't have been over forty, had a striking resemblance to the picture on the alcohol bottles at all the clubs we had visited thus far. "I think you're right, J."
We walked over to a quiet spot and I turned to John. "So, what's the plan?"
He frowned. "I was gonna ask you that."
Sighing, I glanced over to Brockman. "I think you're gonna have to do the talking in case he doesn't take me seriously. All you have to do is talk about the gin like I've been doing and convince him his club is missing out. He seems like a proud man; getting him to buy will be tough."
John nodded, and I noticed he puffed out his chest ever so slightly before we began to walk over.
It was daunting, to say the least. But we had to put on confident faces if we were to make him believe we were professionals in the business of alcohol production.
Brockman was talking to another man when we approached him, and John shamelessly interrupted with his arm outstretched. "Good evening. I'm John Shelby, I take it you're Leon Brockman?"
The man looked a little surprised, but he shook John's hand nevertheless. "That's me. Can I help you?"
"I'd like to talk business with you, if you have somewhere private to talk." I was surprised John hadn't sworn or given out any threats yet.
Leon Brockman had a stern look on his face but he nodded, looking John up and down. "Leave the girl here. My associate, Harvey, will keep her company."
John looked back to me with uncertainty, but I gave him a subtle nod despite feeling ill at the thought of him being alone with one of the richest businessmen in London.
They walked away from us and towards the stairs, while I was left to talk to the elderly Harvey who looked just as displeased as I was to be left out of the meeting.
♡
I HAD resorted to sitting alone as no bartender would serve a single woman, so I was incredibly relieved when John finally re-emerged, an unreadable look on his face. Brockman was nowhere to be seen which made me afraid he was lying somewhere in a pool of his own blood.
"How did it go?" I asked.
John didn't give much away. "I'll tell you when we get home."
"Just tell me now," I frowned, "Is he buying the gin or not?"
"I'll explain it all later, let's go." John was being curt so I decided it was best to just do as he said.
◇
ONCE WE got back to the hotel room, John removed his coat and suit jacket and I noticed he seemed angry.
"What's wrong, John? Did Brockman say something?"
I took off my earrings and necklace while he kicked off his shoes and sat on the bed, looking at him through the mirror.
"He agreed to buy the gin. But he has a condition."
"That's amazing, well done!" I smiled before pressing on, "What's the condition?"
John clenched his jaw as he looked at the ground.
"John?" I turned around to face him. "What is it?"
He looked back up to me. "He wants- he said he'd buy it if you sleep with him."
I was slightly taken aback, but I couldn't let him know that. I snorted, "Really? That's what you're so upset about?"
John narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"
I rolled my eyes at him. "It's sex, John. What's the big deal? Sure, he's a little older than I'm used to but, whatever. It's business."
"Business?" He stood up, visibly angry. "It's your body, Alex."
"Yes. It is. And I can use my body to get what I want. In this instance, for Leon Brockman to sign a contract."
John obviously didn't like the idea of me sleeping with Brockman, but he had to bite the bullet because it was the only way to get what we needed.
"John, you sleep with women all the time and I never once complain. Tommy sleeps with a different woman to benefit the business every week! What makes it so unbearable when I'm the one sleeping with someone?"
He couldn't answer, which I expected.
"Listen to me," I walked over to him and held his face in my hands. "I'm not a delicate flower that will break apart when handled without care. I've been broken apart, John; I've been through just about anything that any man could put me through and I'm still standing. Using my body to get what the Shelby Company needs will hardly be the one thing that keeps me up at night."
John still failed to make eye contact with me, and I realised he truly thought of me as more innocent than I was.
"Okay." I sighed, sitting on the bed and pulling him to sit next to me. "J, do you remember about a year ago, when Arthur had that trouble with those Scottish brothers who attacked the factory?"
He frowned. "What about them?"
I held back a small smile, "Well, remember how the younger one completely changed his tune a few days later and they paid Arthur double the damage costs?"
John's eyes widened with realisation. "You mean you..."
"I did what I had to do, John."
He looked me in the eyes. "Did Tommy make you do it?"
I let out a laugh, "Do you really think that lowly of your brother? I told Tommy and Arthur I'd take care of it; so I did."
"I could've just cut their eyes out and got the same results."
"Not everything can be solved with violence, John." I stood up and unzipped the side of my dress. "You said it yourself, after all: what's business without a little pleasure?"
He scoffed and shook his head slightly. As my dress dropped to the floor, his eyes quickly shot to the side of the room and I saw his Adam's apple move as he swallowed.
I stepped out of the dress and bent over to pick it up, laying it over an armchair against the wall. My back was turned to John but I could feel his eyes on me as I put on my nightgown. I trailed back over to him, placing my hand on his left arm.
"You okay?"
John looked down at me, putting his right hand on top of mine and squeezing it slightly. "I'll be fine."
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