Trashy (Take It Off #10)(4)
Author: Cambria Hebert

“That thing has rung three times since I’ve been home,” Harlow said.

“Sorry.” I grabbed it, hit IGNORE, and switched it to vibrate.

“Is he bothering you again, Roxie?” she asked, propping her hip against the counter and turning her full gaze on me.

“He’s been trying.” I admitted.

I hated talking about Craig. It made me feel like such an idiot, an idiot for letting someone like him dupe me. An idiot for not being strong enough to resist his charm.

“But I’ve been ignoring him,” I added.

“Have you seen him?” Harlow asked, concerned.

“Not since that night at the club.”

Several months ago, Craig came into the Mad Hatter, pissed at me because the cops hauled him in for questioning after I was attacked here at home and thought he was responsible. Why he was surprised I would point my finger at him was beyond me. He wasn’t nice and he certainly wasn’t above using physical force.

‘Course, I don’t think he was surprised. I think he was just pissed I would actually get him in trouble. Too bad it hadn’t been him. I would have loved pressing charges against him and getting him out of my life for good.

The thought caused a funny feeling to erupt deep in my middle. I shoved it away. I knew what it was, and I hated it.

“Do you think he’s going to start coming around?” Harlow asked, cutting off my thoughts.

“I don’t think so.” I hedged. I knew it was only a matter of time. I’d been in this pattern with Craig before. What he didn’t know was that I was hell-bent on not repeating my past mistakes.

“Well, at least we know he won’t be coming into the Mad Hatter.” Harlow pushed away from the counter and walked out into the living room. “Adam will kick his ass.”

Adam was not a fan of Craig. A fact he made perfectly clear when Craig showed up at the Mad Hatter and Adam beat him up. The beatdown actually started an all-out brawl in the middle of the club.

I hadn’t seen Craig since.

But I knew he was there. Watching. Waiting. Stalking.

He always was.

It made it hard to breathe.

“I was going to stay at Cam’s tonight,” Harlow said, stepping toward her bedroom. “But I’ll call him and tell him to stay here instead.”

“No,” I said. “There’s no reason.”

Harlow spun and gave a pointed stare at my cell. I sighed. “He just keeps calling to try and get under my skin. It isn’t working. Not this time. It’s over. For good. Nothing he can say will change my mind.”

“I’m not worried about you going back to him, Rox,” Harlow said. “I’m worried what he’s going to do when he realizes it.”

My stomach turned queasy, but I swallowed down the bile threatening to come up. “He isn’t going to do anything. Go to Cam’s. Enjoy him. He’s one of the good ones. There aren’t many of them left.”

“If you change your mind, you’ll call me?” Harlow asked.

I loved that she didn’t press. She didn’t try to mother me. I had a mother. I didn’t need another one. “I’ll call.”

She nodded and disappeared into her room. I grabbed my duffle and headed for the door. My eyes instantly scanned the parking lot as soon as I stepped outside.

Paranoia was sticky, just like the storm-laden air. It clung to me with persistence, never allowing me any peace. When I saw nothing out of the ordinary, I made my way to my used Mazda MX-6 and locked the door as soon as I got inside.

He isn’t going to do anything. My own words haunted me.

Because deep down, I knew they weren’t true.

2

Adam

Dense, sun-warmed sand gave way under the pounding of my running shoes as I jogged along the beach. It was still early in the day, but it was already hot. The air was muggy, and judging by the dark clouds forming over the water, it was probably going to rain at some point today.

If it weren’t for the heavy wind blowing off the water, I’d be kicking myself for the punishing pace I had set for myself. But I wanted to get my run in before the rain started falling. The clouds were still far offshore, so I knew I had a while, but it was as good a reason as any to push it hard.

At least if I used this excuse, I wouldn’t have to think about the other.

I ran every morning, had been running for so many years it was second nature to me. I was naturally athletic, even if being that way was a lot more work than it used to be. I wasn’t going to let that part of myself go. A lot of other things had come and gone in my life, including some of that athleticism, but I was going to hold on to what I could.

My building came into view and I slowed, my body giving a sigh of relief. The familiar twinge of pain in my knee greeted me, but I ignored it. It would probably bother me the rest of the day, and I might even regret the hard workout.

No. Scratch that.

Regrets were for pansies. I was not a pansy. And regretting anything was a waste of time.

After I did some pull-ups and upper body work, I took a shower and got dressed in my usual button-up dress shirt and dark-colored dress pants. Even though I owned a strip club, I still dressed nice. Strip club or not, the Mad Hatter was my business and I was going to treat it as such. Wearing jeans and T-shirts to work (even if they were comfortable) didn’t give off the impression I wanted to.

I dealt with suppliers, delivery guys, dancers, customers, etc. on a daily basis. I wanted them all to know I was in charge. Sure, most of that was portrayed through attitude, work ethic, and drive, but I also needed to look the part.

I grinned ruefully at myself for my thoughts. Several years ago, I never would have dreamed this would be my life.

I glanced at the clock. It was still fairly early in the day, so I figured I’d have time to grab some coffee and food on the way into the club. I’d still make it in plenty of time for the phone call I was expecting.

The call was of a more personal nature, and one it seemed like I’d been waiting on for a while. Today was finally the day. The day I would officially be free.

Well, assuming there were no issues that popped up last minute.

God, I hoped not. I was ready to just move on.

And I knew exactly in what direction I wanted to go.

3

Roxie

As soon as I pulled out of the parking lot onto the main road, the sky opened up and rain began pelting my car. And then my gas light came on.

Of course I would need gas in the middle of this monsoon!

I took my chances and drove closer to the Mad Hatter, thinking maybe I would get lucky and the rain would slow down.