Chapter 7: SEVEN: HANDSOME DEVIL

It took exactly 4 hours, 23 minutes and 17 seconds of Juliet waiting before Xavier decided to show up.

The time went by very slowly, Juliet’s gaze fixed on the wall clock more than half the time. When she wasn’t staring at it, she was staring at her phone, watching the huge numbers on the screen signifying the time slowly change.

And after what felt like an eternity, the front door to the mansion swung open, revealing Xavier.

The whole air immediately felt charged with electricity, Juliet rising to her feet and fumbling her bag as she did. She swallowed then looked around for a couple of seconds before she finally allowed her gaze settle on him.

“Hello,” she breathed out. “You’re back.”

It was probably unnecessary but she couldn’t help but utter those words. After all she had been anticipating his arrival ever since Samuel drove her to the mansion and left without uttering more than ten sentences in total.

“Yes,” he walked over to her, checking her out as he did. She looked decent. Nothing exemplary yet but good enough. “Are you ready?”

“Ready?”

“To head to work,” he replied. “You wanted to work at my club, didn’t you?”

“Oh, right,” she glanced at the wall clock as she came up with suitable replies. It was almost 9pm. “This late? Right now?”

“Is it too early?” he looked amused. “Or is this you changing your mind?”

“No, no,” she shook her head then immediately grabbed her bag. “I’m ready. Right now. Maybe just give me a minute to change or-”

“You’ll change when you get there,” his tone hinted at the end of the conversation as he immediately turned around. “Let’s go.”

Taking a second to decide whether she was taking her bag with her or not, Juliet rushed behind him and got into the car, the passenger seat already open. She fastened her seatbelt and like he was watching her from the corner of his eyes, roared the engine to life the minute she was all tucked in.

The drive was silent, Juliet’s grip tightened on her bag the entire time. She tried to keep her mind steady, unsure of what to expect- where they were going, what she was actually going to be doing or what the entire night had in store for her.

She got the answers to all of her questions the second he pulled over and motioned for her to step out. She followed his lead and walked behind him, her mouth falling open as they took their first step into the club.

It was an actual club. Not a restaurant like she’d hoped or a bar like she’d imagined. And not just any club. A strip club.

Trying and failing at her attempt to act natural, her mouth remained hung open, the loud music blaring from every corner of the club with barely clothed women dancing to the rhythm not helping matters. Dozens of people lurked the club, some seated with cigar, drinks and women on their tables, some on their feet as they threw wads of cash into the air and plastered some on the bodies of the dancers.

She looked up at Xavier, trying to get any sort of explanation at the very least from his gaze. How was she to work at a strip club like that? Was she to serve drinks? Clean? Help cook?

“Sir De Luca,” a man that reminded her of her debtor walked up to Xavier and stretched his hands towards him, shaking it before bowing in addition. “You’re here. Is she the girl you spoke about?”

“Yes,” for the first time, Lorenzo wrapped his arms around Juliet, letting go almost immediately to shove her in his direction. For a second, she froze, unable to decipher if it came from his skin against hers or his actions.

“Ah, I see,” a wicked smile appeared on his lips as he tried to reach for her, Juliet immediately swerving. “She just needs a little touch and we’re good to go.”

“What?” Juliet couldn’t stay silent any longer, her eyes widened in desperation and confusion as she stared at Xavier. “What type of work do you- am I to work as a-”

“Stripper? Dancer? Yes,” the man replied before Lorenzo could. “Why? Got a problem with that?”

Juliet’s lips parted, but no words left. She wanted to protest, to scream at the absurdity of it all, yet the weight of Xavier’s eyes pressing down on her left her frozen in place. There was no humor in them, no warmth—only a quiet reminder of the deal she had agreed to.

Her pulse throbbed in her ears. “I-I thought maybe… I’d serve drinks or- I didn’t think I’d be- Can’t I do something else? Domestic work, maybe? I could-”

The man’s laugh was sharp and mocking, cutting her off mid-sentence. “Serve drinks? Darling, you’re far too pretty for that.”

He eyes circled her slowly, his gaze traveling down her body as though inspecting merchandise. “With a face like that, all you need to do is sit pretty, and trust me, the men will come.”

Juliet instinctively wrapped her arms around herself, shrinking back from his predatory stare. She turned to Xavier again, silently begging, but he only lifted his brow ever so slightly. No words, no rescue. Just expectation.

“I-”

Her words to Xavier was cut short by him looking away as if to inspect the room. His eyes darted around every corner of the club and then he nodded satisfactorily before returning his gaze to Juliet, still emotionless.

“Clothes. Change,” the man ordered, snapping his fingers toward one of the girls who had appeared from behind the curtains. She wore glittering lingerie and stilettos, chewing gum lazily as though this was routine. “She’s new so take her to the back. Get her dressed.”

Juliet felt her stomach twist. For a moment, she stood rooted to the floor, but then Xavier’s voice-low and final- brushed her ear.

“You said you’d do anything, remember?”

Her breath caught, her throat burning as she forced herself to nod. She wanted to argue. She wanted to complain. But she knew it was useless.

“Anything,” she whispered, the word tasting bitter. “Yes, I remember.”

Xavier nodded once again and then turned, this time to leave. Juliet felt her lips part again but no words came out as she watched Xavier leave, his figure becoming hard to focus on until he completely vanished from her sight.

Pulling her back to her reality, the girl tugged at her wrist and led the way towards the back rooms. Juliet allowed herself to be led, her mind a haze of panic and disbelief. Upon getting in, she girl checked her out again, the loud snapping sound of the gum she chewed a brutal reminder of the life that now awaited Juliet. She winced, closed her eyes but once again was forced to face her reality the moment the girl tossed a couple of clothes in her direction and instructed her to immediately get dressed.

Humiliation flushed her cheeks as she stepped out of the dressing room. The clothes clung to her like a second skin—too short, too tight, too revealing. Every step she took felt like a spotlight followed her.

“Ah, there you are,” the man from earlier had a wicked smile on his face as she checked her out. He rubbed his palms together, complimenting the girl from earlier for her choice of cloth and makeup she forced on Juliet’s face. “You look…delicious.”

“What?” Juliet could cry. “I-”

“Since you’re new and clearly still naïve,” he shook his head, checking her out again. “What shall I do with you?”

He took a couple of seconds to think and by the time he was done, approached Juliet one more time to announce his conclusion. She had thought she would be forced to dance, but instead, the manager’s instructions were surprisingly simple- she was given a bottle of tequila, told to sit across the bar, and to look enticing enough to draw in customers.

She slid onto the high bar stool, clutching the tequila bottle to steady her trembling hands. Her knees pressed together, her gaze glued to the surface of the counter as though it could shield her from the dozens of eyes roaming the room.

“Smile,” the manager called from across the bar. “Or at least don’t look like you’re about to cry. Don’t make it seem like I forced you to do this.”

Juliet tried. Her lips curved awkwardly, her heart hammering in her chest. She reminded herself of the debt, the money, the bargain she had walked into. Xavier had paid too much for her silence, her compliance—for her to refuse now would be foolish.

But as she remained in position, she couldn’t help but continue to wonder if she had not made biggest mistake by agreeing to the terms of the strange man. The strange man she still knew not much about but enough to now tag him as the handsome devil.