There was no point in driving myself crazy wondering about Xavier’s motives. They were none of my business anyway.

Xavier O’Brien walked out into the main room of The Den, his head throbbing after spending way too much time trying to figure out what Lucien Spinelli was up to.

He knew from experience that enemies were everywhere and how exceptionally critical it was to stay one step ahead of them.

In this industry, knowledge was power.

Which was why his coming up short with information had his mood darker than usual. All he wanted was to get the fuck out of there and take a drive up the coast to clear his head.

The sight of Aurora sitting at the bar with her one hand propping her chin up and a fruity looking drink in the other had him stopping without even realizing he had done so. Something about her made it hard to stay away. Nearly every day he found himself hanging out in the barroom watching her. Craving her. He loved the way her body looked under the lights and wished he could paint her silhouette and hang it where he could see it every day.

Foolish musings, he thought.

At thirty-seven years old he had nothing to give to the twenty-four-year-old girl. Even if she weren't so much younger, he’d have nothing to give her. Nothing that she’d want anyway.

The sad look on her face had unwanted emotions bubbling up inside him. Emotions he hadn’t allowed himself to feel in nearly fifteen years. He couldn’t let himself give into his weaknesses with her. It would only end badly… for the both of them.

As if they had a mind of their own, his feet took him to her, all the while Ghost’s silent disapproval mocking him from across the room.

Leaning on the bar next to her stool, Xavier was close enough to smell the perfume that she had started wearing two weeks ago. Lilacs. The scent reminded him of his childhood—conjuring memories of love and earth-shattering heartache all at the same time.

“What are you doing?” he found himself asking even though he knew he was being foolish by caring at all about what had her looking so depressed. His curiosity was apparently getting the better of him.

“Wallowing.” Her bottom lip plumped out into a little pout and he had to stop himself from leaning over and sucking it into his mouth. The need to know how she tasted seemed to override reason more times than he could count. One day he feared common sense would fail him.

“Why?”

“My client pulled a no-show.” She sighed and slumped back in her stool. “Figured I’d stick around and try to pick up some walk-ins, but they aren’t picking me.”

She looked so dejected that an uncharacteristic pang of guilt hit his chest. It was such a foreign emotion, he pushed it aside, unsure what to do with it.

No way was he going to tell her it was his fault the client canceled. Or the fact that no man walking through those doors would ever get anything more than a few fantasies from her—no matter how hard she tried to sell more. And she tried. Boy did she try.

Watching her seduce men left and right had him ranging from amused to deadly, depending on the day. The thought of any man defiling her had him wanting to snap someone’s neck with his bare hands.

Big J was lucky he was still breathing after allowing her to go off with not one but two men—of course Big J wasn’t breathing easily after the visit Xavier had paid to his house. The beat down had been a message for anyone thinking to cross Xavier. Every single man he had working for him knew Aurora was off limits. She was to be looked at but never touched. Big J was the example of what would happen to them if they didn’t protect her.

Aurora exuded everything Xavier didn’t—innocence and light. It would be over his dead body before he let this life consume her, making her a cold and jaded shell of who she’s meant to be. She was better than this world. Better than him.

He’d just keep giving her a bigger take of the nightly pot, subsidizing it with money from his own pocket, and hope none of his people ever caught on.

“Come on,” he told her against his better judgment. His hand gripped her elbow and pulled her from the stool. Just that small amount of contact had him thirsty for more. So much more.

“Where are we going?” she asked a bit breathlessly. One of the things that intrigued him about Aurora was the fact that she didn’t hide her emotions. Her attraction to him was written all over her face as if his touch brought to life the same feelings for her as it did him.

“For a ride,” he answered, fully knowing it was the worst idea he had had in a long time.

Knowing it and doing something about it were two completely different things, though. Because even if his time with her ended as poorly as he feared it would, he knew he’d take her with him again in a heartbeat.

The wind whipped my hair around my face as Xavier’s sleek black Aston Martin raced down the highway. My arms flew up in the air and a squeal of sheer delight tore from my throat.

Xavier laughed from his seat next to me, a lighthearted grin aimed my way as he shifted the car, taking our speed even higher while simultaneously making my heart beat faster.

I wasn’t sure how he knew this was what I needed, and I didn’t care. I was so in the moment that nothing mattered to me except the fact that I felt free, every one of my cares remaining back at The Den.

The night had been another failure for me. When I showed up and discovered that one of the men from the party the weekend before had requested my services, I was both nervous and elated. Nervous that I was finally going to go all the way with a client and elated that a client finally wanted me for more than a quick dance or two.

By the time nine o’clock rolled around, my stomach was in knots despite the encouraging pep talks Candy had given me. Every time the door opened, I practically jumped, looking to see if it was the man I was waiting for. After forty-five minutes of waiting, I knew he wasn’t coming. When I asked Ghost about it, he coolly informed me that my client had canceled but didn’t elaborate.

Too disappointed to keep up my charade of being a happy-go-lucky stripper slash prostitute, I told him I was calling it a night. After dressing in a pair of cotton booty shorts and a tank top, I found myself sitting at the bar, wallowing in my own self-pity. Cheech was kind enough to give me a cocktail on the house. It was a gesture of pity seeing as no one at The Den missed my continuous humiliating rejection, but I couldn’t find it in me to be embarrassed over it, considering the drink was so strong it almost instantly numbed my senses.

Feeling like a loser as I downed the drink and paid for a second, I decided I wasn’t cut out for this life. I had never had a problem with my self-confidence until accepting a job at The Den. Knowing men didn’t want me was a huge blow to my ego. Every day that came and went where I was continually cast aside for another woman made it that much harder to cling to my fleeting optimism.

I had money set aside for an eventual down payment on a small house, which would hold us over until I was able to find a new job.

I had never planned to work at The Den forever. Only until I made enough for a better a life. Once we were living comfortably in a nice house, I would find a new job. Maybe even go to school online and get a degree. Something I’d never thought was possible. Not even when I lived with Kevin and he had a good paying job at a bank.

After suffering another embarrassment, I knew it was time to cut my losses and move on. At least I was in a better spot financially than I had been the first day I walked into the warehouse.