Scarlet POV
Vegas was so much fun, and it really brought all of us together even more. Including Riley and me. Obviously, we had a little hiccup, but in the end, it was what we needed. Now we were in mutual agreement of what we were.
Which was nothing... friends and coworkers only.
And I'm totally, 100% fine with that. Riley is really lovely to talk to. If we got in a relationship, it would probably throw the whole vibe of the club off.
Literally business 101: don't mess around with coworkers. I fucked that up pretty quickly.
We got back home today, and Violet and I were exhausted. Vegas takes a toll on the body. Once we got home, I immediately went to the couch because I was super tired and wanted to catch up on my new favorite show, This Is Us.
Violet went into her room to unpack her stuff. I always say I'm going to unpack the day I get home, but that never ends up happening. So, my bag will have to wait a day... or a week.
My mind had been on the mysterious text message all day. I honestly thought someone had somehow found my number online somewhere, and they were trying to mess with me. Or maybe it was one of the guys pranking me. I'm not sure.
Violet was convinced Anderson was the one who had texted me. She's on some shit because there is absolutely no way. I mean a guy like that, liking a girl like me. Not possible. He's so out of my league.
"Wait, Scar, did you ever text Anderson back?" I heard Vi yell from her room. This girl is relentless; there's no way it's him.
"No. And it's not Anderson! What am I supposed to say, 'Oh hey, hopefully, I see you too, whoever you are'?" I sarcastically responded to her, pausing my show when I heard Vi running to the living room.
The sneaky bitch took my phone out of my hand. I jumped on her, trying to get it back when I saw her hands typing away. "What are you doing?," I yelled at Violet, jumping on her again trying to get my phone out of her hands. They were literally death gripping the phone.
Finally, I got the stupid thing to see what she texted.
Me: Sorry, I didn't go on my phone much during the trip. I'm back now, hope to see you soon also. Anderson, I'm guessing?
My jaw draw dropped open. Is she crazy, "the fuck Vi! I'm not texting him, and that's way too bold to assume it's him! I would be better off asking who it was." I'm not that bold of a person; I've never been one to walk up to a guy and ask for his number or anything like that. I twirled my hair around my fingertips, growing nervous.
Violet told me that it was the best thing to say, and she's said stuff like that to guys before, so it would be fine. She was right; it would actually be pretty rude if I don't respond. What if it was Anderson, chances are I will see him again, and I'd rather him have a good impression of me.
I closed my eyes, pressed send, and immediately threw the phone away from me. Violet threw her hands up in victory and patted me on the back, "good job, I'm proud." I just closed my eyes and shook my head, the immediate after regret eating my alive. I'm so embarrassed fuck.
Violet went to her room to start getting ready for work tonight. I decided to finish my episode then get ready.
Once in my room, I started doing my makeup. Tonight I would do a simple natural look; I really didn't feel like having a bunch of shit caked on my face right now. I did heavy makeup every night while we were in Vegas, and my skin was not happy about it. So, tonight I decided to let it breathe. I was finishing up my blush when my phone buzzed.
I instantly went stiff and whispered some curse words under my breath. This could go one of two ways. Good or bad. I opened my eyes and peeked down at my phone, too scared to look.
Unknown: Good guess, yep, it's me. Maybe I'll see you tonight.
Instantly a scream came out my mouth. Violet was right! "Shut up! Oh. My. GOD."
Vi came running into my room so fast; she almost slipped and fell. I threw my phone at her, and as she read it, her eyes widened. She ran up to me, and we both started screaming and jumping up and down like we were In junior high, and our crush just looked at us.
How the fuck did this god of a man actually want to talk to me. I really hoped he would come to the club tonight. Now, I definitely needed Violet to help pick out an outfit for me. After searching through my whole closet, we found the most beautiful dark green, silk backless dress. It was simple yet sexy. Green was one of my favorite colors on me; it really complimented my hair and skin.
"Scar, you look great in green. Anderson's not gonna know what hit him!" Vi said, smiling, clapping her hands together. I said a quick thank you and went over and curled my hair and some more eyeshadow, creating a Smokey eye look.
We still had a little while before Star World opened, so Violet and I decided we would kill time by getting food. I was really craving a good smoothie right now and maybe some Mac and cheese. "How about Urth Cafe?" I asked once we were situated in my car. They had the best mocha blended drink, and I definitely needed some caffeine to stop me from falling asleep at the club tonight.
"Hell ya, we should probably eat healthy anyway considering how bad we ate in Vegas," Violet said to me with a grimace. Both of us going silent for a moment, reminiscing over all the greasy food we ate this past week.
"Fuck, why is the best food so bad for you anyway," we both always had this conversation, but it's true. If a burger was as nutritious as a salad, I would never complain about a thing in my life.
Instead of getting Mac, like we wanted to, Violet and I just got some good salads and headed over to Star World.
We arrived a little before the guys were set to get here to prep the bar for tonight. So we just sat at the bar and ate and talked.
"Really? No food for us!" Rocky said, holding his hand on his heart with a fake hurt expression. Easton just looked at the salads and let out a sigh of relief, "yikes, I'm glad you guys didn't get us food. Eating healthy is so not my thing." Everyone laughed at that.
It was time to get ready to open in about 20 minutes, so everyone got to work, making sure Star World was in perfect condition.
My mind kept going back to the possibility that tonight, Anderson could be coming. It made me so nervous; there was something about him that put me on edge, in a good way.
I definitely was interested in getting to know him more, and the mysterious persona he had made me even more drawn to him. It would be a bummer if he didn't come tonight, but oh well, there's not much I can do about it.
Star World had opened about an hour ago, and Vi and I were dancing with a group of people we had met on the dance floor. We had done some paperwork up in the office, but it didn't take too long so, we decided to come down and make sure everyone was having a good time.
Violet decided to grab some water and make sure everything was running smoothly at the bar. I stayed at the dance floor, talking to the people we had been hanging out with.
"So, is this your guy's first time here?" I asked. The girls who's name was Rebecca spoke up, "This is actually my second time here, but I loved it so much I wanted to bring some more of my friends. This is our new go-to." She pointed at her red-head friend standing next to her who gave me a challenging look, "this place is amazing, kind of shocking to me two girls own this place but, whatever."
Did this guy just say that? And to think I thought these people were cool.
I crossed my arms and gave him a pointed look, "what the fuck is that supposed to mean, buddy." if this sexist asshole thinks he can say some shit like that and get away with it, he is dead wrong.
"I mean, do you think you and your friend are capable of owning and operating a huge club like this?" He said back to me, raising his brow as if he was challenging me. I may look small, but if this guy really wants to go, I could kick his ass.
"Actually, we are fully capable of owning and operating Star World. I don't need to explain myself to you, and I definitely don't need to prove myself to you, so, how about if you turn around and walk your sexist ass out of here before I get someone to come do it for me." I stayed in front of him, my arms crossed; I'm sure you could see the smoke coming out of my ears I was so pissed.
Suddenly I felt a tall presence behind me, my heart now beating extremely fast once I realized who it was.
"If the lady asks you to leave, you leave. Unless you want me to escort you outside, and I'm sure you can understand how that will go down." His deep voice sent a chill down my spine. The look on his face was calm, but you could see in his eyes he was not fucking around. This only made me more attracted to him.
Instantly, the redhead and Rebecca were gone, her muttering a sorry to me before scurrying out of the club, heading for the back door.
I turned around and looked up to Anderson, who was already looking at me with a smug smile, perched on his gorgeous face.
"I appreciate the gesture but, I was handling that perfectly fine, on my own," I said to him, lying right through my teeth. I'm actually happy he came over and scared the guy off.
Anderson let out a loud laugh, obviously seeing right through my life, "I'm sure you were Princess. C'mon lets go get a drink at the bar," he grabbed my hand and started walking over. Butterflies instantly erupting in my stomach from the small gesture.
"Two shots of vodka, please," he said to the bartender, then looking over at me and studying my face for a bit. Probably noticing how annoyed I was from the asshole a second earlier, he asked for two more.
"Thought you could use it," Anderson said, looking at me with a knowing look.
I laughed a little, letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding, leaning back in my chair, "Yea, totally, thanks."
"No problem. So, did that creep employee of yours; Shane, I believe, ever try contacting you guys again?" He asked me, taking the shot.
I took my shot also and then leaned forward to look at him, "Shay," I said back to him, giggling a little. "Same shit," Anderson said, rolling his eyes and looking away, tapping his rings on the bar top.
"No, he hasn't said a word to Violet or me, kinda strange actually. It seems like he just fell off the face of the planet. I'm glad, though, I never want to hear from him again," it's true, Shay's betrayal hurt our feelings. We thought we could count on all our boys so, one of them turning on us was a huge letdown.
We knew eventually they would have some deeper questions about the funding of Star World, but breaking in and then going through personal files. Not cool at all. I looked across the bar at Violet and gave her a wide grin, both of us giving each other knowing looks because we were with the guys we were interested in.
"Good, that guy was a prick. If he ever contacts you or threatens you again, call me, and I'll make him regret being born," Anderson replied, grabbing my hand, looking deep in my eyes, showing he meant his words.
"Okay, big guy," I looked away from him and back to the bartender, about to order another drink. Anderson grabbed my chin, bringing my face back over to his, so I was looking at him again, "I mean it, Scarlet, if anyone ever messes with you, call me, please."
Before I could respond, a phone started buzzing. Anderson muttered fuck under his breath and ran a hand through his blonde hair. "I'm sorry, Scarlet, I gotta take this. I'll be right back."
Before I could respond, he was already gone. I thought back to seeing Violet with Preston. She looked really happy with him and they were already adorable together, the two of them always grinning at each other.
Anderson returned from the bathroom but he seemed a little bit off, even irritable.
It was a big change from his previous playful mood.
The next morning, Violet told me about the details of the phone call Anderson was on. She's making it out to be a lot worse than it probably was and it is honestly really annoying of her to try and instantly take Preston's side. I get she likes him, but she doesn't even know him that well so how is she supposed to know if he is telling the truth.