Page 76 of Rum & Coke

“Let’s go check out the inside.” Melony started to walk up the stone walkway, past the lush landscape, and I followed.

The closer we got, the louder the bass of the music grew. Two men guarded the door, and when we approached, they opened the brown, French double doors. If I’d never gone to the fight with Sebastian and known he had a bodyguard, I’d think having security at the door would be weird. I still didn’t understand why he had security.

Melony and I walked into something out of a magazine when we entered the house. Marble floors spanned a massive space to a stone fireplace in the open living room that sat adjacent to an enormous kitchen with all the bells and whistles. Everything was brown and beige and the complete opposite of what I assumed Sebastian would live in. In my head, I’d pictured his house to be red like the club. Brown and beige weren’t anywhere close to red, but it was stunning.

There were a ton of people mingling, dancing, and—eating?I didn’t see anyone actually eating, but servers walked around, carrying trays of something. I couldn’t tell what, but I assumed it was appetizers.

“There’s food,” I stated to Melony.

“Yes!” she exclaimed. “Let’s get a drink and then grab some food.”

We found the bar that was located outside by the pool. In the distance, you could see the Strip as it glowed against the setting sun. The pool wasn’t an infinity pool like Mark had, but it still looked inviting. Thoughts of what Vinny had said the night before floated to my head, and while he said he hoped to have a house like Mark’s one day—the bathroom especially—I wanted to have a backyard like Sebastian’s.

“Let’s sit by the fire pit and wait for a server to come to us,” Melony suggested.

We took the drinks we’d ordered and made our way to the cushioned seats that circled the fire. I hadn’t recognized anyone who worked at Red Diamond, and I was glad that Melony came with me. I hadn’t even seen Sebastian yet.

As we sipped our cocktails, a server finally came toward us. Melony and I stood, ready to grab whatever they had on their tray, but I stopped when saw nothing except lines of white powder and rolls of bills. I snapped my head toward Melony, my mouth hanging open. She waved the server off and then turned to me.

“Did you know drugs would be here?” I whispered.

She shrugged and sat back down. I followed. “I assumed so, given that Sebastian’s a drug dealer.”

“Wait, what?”

“You didn’t know?”

“How would I know that?”

Melony took a sip of her vodka cranberry. “How do younotknow that?”

“Again, how would I know?”

“Tessa,” she turned and faced me. “Most of the girls sell for him.”

“Really?”

“How do you not know this?”

“Because I go in, do my shit, and leave. I don’t have time to know what shit goes on at the club.”

“You’ve never seen any of them selling on the floor?”

I thought for a moment. “When I’m on the floor, I pay attention to the clients. I need to make money, not gossip.”

“Wow,” she breathed. “I can’t believe you’ve never known.”

“Why do you still work there if you’ve known about the shady shit?” I asked. “You don’t sell for him, do you?”

“Of course not.”

I lowered my voice. “Then why not turn him in?”

“Because it’s none of my business, Tessa. I need the money for school and rent. I don’t care what other people do with their time or money, and as long as they pay me to dance and give them lap dances, I’m cool.”

I took a sip of the rum and Coke I’d ordered, and like always—and the reason I got it—it reminded me of Vinny. It reminded me that we were dating, and his friend was now married to an FBI agent, and Vinny was also friends with a cop. What would happen if they found out I danced in a club that was some sort of front for cocaine dealing? I felt stupid for not knowing, but honestly, what I’d said to Melony was true. I went in, did my shit, and went home. It was better that way—clearly. But then, if Vinny could be friends with an FBI agent and a cop, did that mean they didn’t care about him sleeping with his clients? Did they not know? Joss had to know since she was undercover for S&R. Maybe they only cared about the cases they worked? Should I tell Vinny? So many thoughts ran through my head as I sipped my drink, letting everything sink in.

I looked around at the vast backyard that was covered in pavers and lush greenery. Then I really looked. People were dancing and laughing and snorting from the trays that were being walked around. Was this what Sebastian meant the night of the fight about me talking about what went on at Red Diamond? Who were the guys who sat with us at the fight? Who were the women? Knowing what I just learned made me wish I would have helped the girls. I didn’t know what, but something wasn’t right. I should have listened to my instincts.