Come As You Are (Twisted Bard)

12. Sebastian

Sebastian

Up until the moment the customer put his hands on Vee, I’d thought the expression “seeing red” was just that: an expression. What I learned at that moment was it was a literal state of mind brought on by a surge of possessiveness and need to protect I’d never experienced before. I didn’t remember going over the bar top to get to Vee, but Toby assured me that’s exactly what I’d done.

“Hurdled it like an Olympian,” he said after I returned from putting Vee in Olivia’s car. “Never seen anything like it.” And then he sent me to decompress in the break room for ten minutes because I was still keyed up and completely botched the first three drinks I tried to make.

In the break room, I stared at my phone the whole time wanting to text Vee and find out how he was doing. Only the knowledge that I was being ridiculous, that Vee was in Olivia’s very capable hands, and that there was no way they could have gotten to my place and inside kept me from sending anything.

It took me longer than ten minutes to finally get myself under control, but my reward was a text from Vee letting me know he’d made it home and Olivia was staying with him for a bit. Then I had the distraction of thinking about him and Olivia together and wondering what they were talking about, what they were doing. Vee had said she was ordering supplies, which automatically made my mind go…well, there , even though I knew nothing would happen between the two of them. And that launched me into a whole other spiral because I’d felt the spark between all three of us while we were in Olivia’s office. The same as it had been when we’d comforted Vee before.

All these thoughts kept rabbiting about in my head, which meant my bartending was total shit for the rest of the night. I gave anything complicated to Toby along with a good portion of my tips at the end of the evening to make up for being so out of it. At the end of the evening, I was completely worn out and had never been so grateful to see the house lights come up. Despite how desperate I was to get home, I still closed up the bar and carefully took note of the various liquors that seemed to be the object of our thief’s shopping list.

I finished the inventory and loaded the final glasses into the dishwasher, making sure everything was set up for tomorrow since I’d be off, then made my way to the staff room to collect my jacket and keys. Mal was right behind me, and I braced myself for an unkind comment about Vee or criticism about my performance behind the bar. Instead, Mal asked me to tell Vee he hoped Vee was doing better and would be back at work soon. I told him I would, too shocked to say anything else.

Vee was dozing on the couch when I got home, his foot wrapped in an ACE bandage and elevated on a pillow. I found the remnants of a Chinese dinner in the refrigerator and fell on it gratefully, eating it right out of the containers rather than bothering with a plate. Both plates were in the drainboard, I noticed, which meant that Olivia had probably stayed long enough to order the food and eat with Vee. I wondered what they’d talked about and felt a prick of jealousy that they’d been here without me.

“Bast?” Vee called from the living room.

“Hey,” I said as I exited the kitchen. “I was trying not to wake you.” I sat down as gently as I could on the couch and nodded at his foot. “How does that feel?”

“Not too bad. I’ve had worse. Olivia is going to take me to a doctor to get it checked out.” He shrugged. “At least it doesn’t seem like she’ll let me go if I can’t work.”

“That’s not how Olivia operates.”

“Yeah. I get that.”

Vee looked down at his hands, rubbing at his cuticles, and I got the feeling there was something he wanted to talk about. Truth be told, I was dead tired, and all I could think about was brushing my teeth and crawling into bed. Right on cue, a yawn cracked my jaw, and I knew a conversation about anything other than the most mundane of topics was not going to be possible.

“I need sleep,” I said. “Do you want help getting down the hall or are you okay?”

In answer, Vee put his hands out, and I steadied him as he stood, then helped him to the bedrooms. I hesitated at the door to my room unsure about whether Vee expected to sleep in my bed again, then surprised myself by realizing I wanted him to be there.

“Join me?” I asked and watched Vee’s eyes go wide. “Just to sleep.” Another yawn. “I’m in no shape for anything else, and with your foot, it’s probably not a good idea, but…? Do you?”

Vee smiled. “You’re very cute when you’re unsure of yourself,” he said. “And yes. I do.”

It was strange climbing into bed with someone without lust and desire driving our interaction. There was no frantic removal of clothing, no desperate need to get off, or concern about what the other person needed, only turning off the lights, lifting the covers, and lying down. And then the awareness that another person was next to me and not knowing if I should touch him or hold him.

It seemed as if all my brain had done this evening was spin and spiral, but at least this time it ended when I fell asleep.

I woke the next day with Vee curled in my arms and no idea when we’d come together during the night. It was lovely feeling his weight and warmth against my chest, and I took a moment to stare at his sleeping face before sliding from the bed as carefully as I could. It was early for me to get going on a day off, but we both had things to do today.

Olivia arrived around nine to take Vee to get his ankle checked out, and then Maria arrived a half hour later to help me get ready for round two of auditions at the Grotto. I fully expected to be eliminated after this round, and honestly, I was hoping for it. Even though the first round had gone well, I wasn’t interested in being a part of the pageant. My purpose was to scope out the Grotto, watch Orsino, and see if I recognized anyone who might be sabotaging Illyria. Maria had been correct that no one seemed to recognize me, which was great. But I also hadn’t seen anything that would help Olivia figure out who the saboteur was, and that was why I needed to get back into costume for another try. Yay, me.

Suffice it to say, I wasn’t cut out to be a spy, and I definitely wasn’t meant to be a drag queen. I had no idea how Maria and the other queens dealt with the makeup, the hair, the heels, all the corsetry, and the fucking duct tape without going nuts, but I hated it. Add in the fact that I couldn’t get ready on my own so Maria had to come over and help me, and then I needed to take a Lyft over to the Grotto because it was impossible for me to walk the few blocks without breaking my neck or crippling my feet, and I was not the happiest of performers. Everything was too tight or itched or made my body hurt. More power to Maria and her girls, but I was not made for this kind of work, and would be happy when my time undercover came to an end.

I arrived at the Grotto in my red evening dress, and made my way to the upstairs theater clutching my heels so I didn’t break my neck on the stairs. I had no idea how Olivia managed to make it look so easy, and couldn’t imagine how she’d made it up the stairs to my apartment the previous night while supporting Vee. And like that, I was thinking about the two of them, and wondering if I’d ever get a chance to wake up with Olivia in my arms the way I had with Vee just a few hours before.

The second round of auditions had already started by the time I made it to the theater. Orsino and Stormy Cs were sitting at a small table watching one of the pageant hopefuls go through her routine. I got my number, then found an out-of-the-way spot where I could lean against the wall—I’d split the seams in my dress if I tried to sit down—and observe the people who came and went.

I couldn’t get a great handle on Orsino and Stormy and whether they were really interested in this pageant. It had definitely been thrown together last minute, and I got the feeling the Grotto’s regular performers were not happy about it by the way a few of them clustered in the back making sarcastic comments about the quality of the contestants. The Grotto showcased both fem and masc trans strippers in a way I thought was exploitative, almost presenting them like they were a circus sideshow for the curious to gawk at. The idea that Orsino might see Olivia in the same way he saw his performers made my blood boil.

I wasn’t one to criticize someone’s choice of work as long as they’d freely chosen what they were doing, but I also knew that the definition of “freely chosen” was often a matter of privilege. Not every trans person had a safe place to live or someone to care for them, and so many of them ended up doing sex work because they didn’t have any other alternatives. Olivia was fortunate, but I also knew this vendetta Orsino seemed to have against her was personal for more reasons than just the future of Illyria.

Carefully easing my way closer to the small group of performers so I could overhear their conversation, I was distracted by a familiar figure entering the space and making their way over to Orsino. I honestly couldn’t believe my eyes as I watched Andrew sit down at the table next to Stormy. Illyria’s lead dancer? He was our spy? Our saboteur? As surreptitiously as I could, I got my phone out and took a pic of him. It wasn’t a great shot since Andrew was turned three-quarters of the way away from me, but I thought it looked good enough to show Olivia. Then I sidled up to the Grotto performers and did my best to ask who the newcomer was as nonchalantly as I could.

“I don’t remember seeing him during the first round,” I said.

“Him?” one of the dancers said. “That’s Aaron. He’s our choreographer.”

“How often is he here?” I asked.

The person I’d been talking to looked at the other performers, and they all shrugged. “A couple of times a week maybe. We don’t really change things up that much, so we don’t always see him.”

I thanked them and stepped away again. Was it possible Andrew was working at both Illyria and the Grotto? And if so, could he really be innocent? Vee’s quick hiring made sense if Andrew were our culprit, but him undermining Olivia didn’t because I couldn’t figure out a motive. I wasn’t going to figure it out if I stayed there, but I did run the risk of being found out if I went through with the audition, so I got out of there as quickly as I could without attracting attention.

When I was back on the main level, I paused for a moment to slip my heels back on, then steadied myself against the wall until I regained my balance. I pulled my phone out and called for a Lyft to take me home. As I stood just inside the front door to wait for my driver, I turned to watch two of the Grotto’s employees walk across the dance floor and down a hall where one of them tapped in a code to open a locked door.

For a moment, I felt as if I’d dropped into an alternative universe where the Grotto had become Illyria. The two men had passed through my field of vision so quickly, and I’d been completely preoccupied with thoughts about Andrew, that I thought my brain was playing tricks on me. I’d have sworn one of those guys had been Festus, but it couldn’t have been. It must have been someone who looked enough like him that my brain took the incomplete image and filled in the missing pieces with what I knew of Festus. It made sense especially when coupled with the shock of seeing Andrew upstairs, but I still felt like I was Alice tumbling down the rabbit hole as I left the Grotto.

As my Lyft arrived, my phone buzzed with a message from Vee. He and Olivia had finished up at the doctor and were heading back home.

How’s your ankle? I texted to him.

Only a sprain. I’m on crutches for the next week tho. ?

Sorry.

It could be worse.

There was a pause, and then the three dots as Vee typed. Olivia’s gonna order pizza. Do you want?

Did I want pizza? Sure, but more than that, I’d get to spend time with Olivia. I couldn’t type my agreement quickly enough.

By the time I got home, Vee had already texted me that he and Olivia had arrived, and the pizza would be there in about twenty minutes.

Awesome , I typed as I climbed the stairs to my place.

A burst of laughter greeted me just before I opened the door and stepped inside my home, and a sudden bout of nerves made me pause. I could hear the sound of their voices but not what they were saying. By their tone, they seemed to be having a good time, and I felt a sudden stab of jealousy.

The jealousy turned to stunned shock when I opened the door. Olivia and Vee sat on the couch with Vee’s injured foot resting on a pillow to elevate it, but that wasn’t what surprised me. Both of Olivia’s feet rested on Vee’s lap, and he was in the process of giving her a foot massage. As if that weren’t enough, Olivia was dressed more casually than I’d ever seen her in leggings and an oversized, chunky sweater that had slid off one of her shoulders to reveal a tattoo I never knew she had. She was still styled to the nines with a necklace made of heavy, gold links around her neck and lots of chunky rings on her fingers, and her makeup, though a bit more subdued than what she wore at Illyria, was flawless.

I’d always thought Olivia was beautiful, almost goddess-like. The way she presented herself was statuesque, formal, reserved, but she could also come off as somewhat cold and rigid in the way she held herself apart from other people. That had become even truer since Antonio’s death as she’d taken on the responsibility for the club and everyone’s livelihood.

The version of Olivia in front of me, the one who was relaxed and laughing with Vee was something else entirely; something free and gorgeous, and I couldn’t get enough of seeing her in my apartment, sitting on my couch as if she belonged here. My heart beat quicker with longing for that to be our reality.

“You look amazing,” I blurted out at the same time Olivia said the same thing. We stared at each other in surprise, and then laughed. My heart literally soared.

Olivia disentangled her feet from Vee’s hands and stood. “This outfit is incredible,” she said as she circled me to take in the full effect.

I loved being the center of her attention and focus. In a strange way, I felt as if she was truly seeing me for the first time even though I was in drag. Even stranger, my impression of her was the same. I was usually the one in casual clothing, usually in jeans and a T-shirt or button-up, and she was the one who wore dresses and heels. It was also a kick that with her in bare feet and me in heels, I was nearly a foot taller than her.

As she continued to circle me, I turned to watch her. I tried to jut out a hip in a sexy and provocative pose, but I lost my balance and started to fall. Olivia reached out, and caught me. For a blissful moment, I was held in her arms—her surprise at finding me there mirrored in my own expression as I stared into her eyes—and then we overbalanced and toppled onto the couch.

Vee yelped as we tumbled onto him, and I felt a seam let go on the side of the dress, but I was more concerned about reinjuring Vee. I struggled to sit up, the top of my head colliding with Olivia’s chin as she tried to do the same thing.

“Oh my God, guys.” Vee was laughing and shouting at the same time. “Stop.”

Olivia and I froze. “Are you okay?” I asked.

“I’m fine,” Vee answered. “I moved my foot in time.”

We were close enough, Vee’s breath skated over my cheek. I turned my head slightly and found that our mouths were perfectly aligned, so I leaned in and gave him a kiss. His mouth was sweet, and I couldn’t resist sliding my tongue between the seam of his lips.

Vee responded immediately, but the sigh I heard didn’t come from him. It was Olivia. Her abdomen was pressed against my arm, and I felt the deep breath she took as I lifted my head from Vee and focused on her. Her dark eyes were wide and those luscious lips slightly parted. The longing was there again—from me, from her, from Vee—a palpable thing connecting the three of us in some deep and elemental way.

Vee nudged me, urging me to close the distance between Olivia and myself, but all I could do was stare at her and wait for her to give me a sign that she wanted me as much as I wanted her. And then it happened. Olivia leaned into me, her gaze never leaving my face, her lips slowly connecting with mine in a kiss so gentle there was almost no pressure, but I felt it. There was warmth that spread from my mouth into my chest, my heart expanding until I feared it would burst.

Beside me, Vee had stopped breathing, which made me aware that I had as well. For the life of me, I couldn’t remember how to start again, not while Olivia was touching me. If the kiss went on for much longer, I was in danger of passing out, but I was quite willing to take that risk. Nothing would make me pull away from Olivia short of an earthquake or alien invasion.

As Olivia pulled back from me, I groaned, and felt the seam on my dress split even further.

“Maria is going to kill you,” Vee whispered with a smile.

“I think she’ll forgive me,” I said as I turned my head.

None of us had moved, and we still lay in a tangle of limbs, which meant Vee’s mouth was still close. All it took was the barest of movements to connect our mouths again. Olivia’s hand trailed up my neck, her fingertips tracing the tendon that was stretched tight as I moved slightly to get closer to Vee. I didn’t have to look to know she was watching us, the sound of her breath hitching told me everything I needed to know as I closed the distance once again and kissed Vee.

This time, Vee opened to me immediately and groaned as my tongue licked into his mouth, teasing at the sensitive skin just inside his lips, then going deeper to stroke the velvety softness within. I felt Olivia’s breath as she leaned in and withdrew from Vee to kiss her, then urged Vee to come closer as I pulled back slightly.

“Your turn,” I said softly.

Vee and Olivia stared at each other. The expression on her face could so easily have been mistaken for disdain in the way she lifted her chin, but I knew different from all the time I had spent studying her, learning her body language, deciphering the moods and emotions she tried so hard to keep under wraps. What I saw on her face now was longing and desire. She might look like she wanted to pull away, but that was born of fear and a need to protect herself from hurt.

On Vee’s face, I read hope and yearning, and a similar fear of rejection that meant neither of them would make the first move.

“Can Vee kiss you?” I asked without taking my gaze off Olivia.

When she nodded, Vee smiled, and then they leaned toward each other, their lips touched, and it was my turn to sigh. There was something perfect about this moment, something that was so much more than I had thought possible in all my fantasies and daydreams about Olivia, or the time Vee and I had spent together. We’d barely scratched the surface of our attraction, but then I realized it was because we were waiting for Olivia.

We would have remained on the couch all day trading kisses back and forth, but a knock at the door interrupted us. The pizza Olivia had ordered was being delivered. As soon as we disentangled ourselves, I realized I had to get out of my dress and untuck myself. I needed to pee something fierce, and the dress was too confining. Olivia went to the door, and I disappeared into my room to change.

Back in my normal clothes, I went to the kitchen and rounded up some paper plates, grabbed the roll of paper towels, and headed back to the living room where I took a seat while Olivia started divvying up the slices. I didn’t realize how hungry I was until I took my first bite, and then I couldn’t stop until I’d devoured two slices.

“So, what happened at the Grotto?” Vee asked as I shifted from eating at the speed of a velociraptor to a more sedate pace.

“Did you learn anything?” Olivia put her slice down and turned her full attention on me.

“I did.” I nodded then put my plate on the coffee table and rested my elbows on my knees. There wasn’t any reason to sugar coat it or try to offer some kind of explanation since I didn’t have one. “I saw Andrew there,” I said. “He was sitting with Orsino and Stormy watching the auditions, which is why I didn’t stick around. I didn’t want him to recognize me.”

“You’re positive it was him?” Olivia asked.

Pulling my phone out, I opened the camera and showed her the photo I’d taken of Andrew. “Sure looks like it to me.”

Olivia pursed her lips and shook her head. “I can’t believe he’d do this, but even if he’s working with them, and brought them the idea of the pageant, would he be able to get into Illyria’s books? Or steal the alcohol?”

“He could be working with someone,” I said, and leaned forward to take her hands in mine. “When I was leaving, I thought I saw Festus heading to the back with one of the Grotto employees.” At Olivia’s look of distress, I tightened my grip on her. “It was real fast, and I’m not sure that’s who I saw. It could be that I was so shocked by Andrew that I saw someone who looked a little like Festus and only think that’s who it was.” I scooted forward to the edge of my seat and brought Olivia’s hands to my lips. “Liv, I’m so sorry. I wish I was bringing you different news.”

Olivia shook her head again, but she didn’t let go of my hands. “It’s not your fault,” she said, but she looked so dejected my heart ached for her.

Before I’d thought it through, I’d risen from my seat and pulled her into my arms to offer whatever comfort I could. Olivia came willingly, tucking herself into the shelter of my arms and resting her head on my shoulder while I gently rubbed her back. When her body started to relax and she sighed, I felt like I’d won the lottery. Then Vee got to his feet and wrapped his arms around both of us. We steadied him, while he steadied us, and for the first time in my life I understood what it meant to truly be there for another person.

Olivia sighed again. “I’ve been working so hard to keep Illyria just like Antonio left it, to handle everything like he would, and it feels like it’s falling apart. I can’t lose the club.”

“I know,” I said. “And you won’t. We won’t let it happen.”

“I’m so tired,” she said.

“Then let us take care of you,” Vee said. “Let us help.”

The shuddering breath Olivia drew hit me in my core, and I pulled her closer. “You are the strongest person I’ve ever known,” I said. “But sometimes, you’ve got to let people help.”

Vee wrapped his arms tighter around the both of us. “You know,” he said as his fingers traced slow circles on my back, something I assumed he was doing for Olivia as well, “a tripod is the steadiest and most resilient shape. Even on uneven ground, it adjusts and steadies rather than tipping over or wobbling.” His arms contracted in a hug, and I followed his lead, which made Olivia huff out a laugh. “Just think of us as the other legs of your tripod.”

We remained standing in our tripod embrace until Vee confessed to being a slightly weak leg at the moment, and asked if we could continue to cuddle on the couch. I held my breath as I waited for Olivia to respond. A part of me could not believe I held both her and Vee in my arms and feared doing anything that would upset this delicate balance we’d established, but another part hoped this was a beginning for us.

I felt an overwhelming wave of gratitude to Vee for coming into our lives and pushing us forward, and leaned over to place a kiss on his temple, which seemed to be the thing Olivia was waiting for. She reached out and touched my face, traced her fingers along the line of my jaw, then teased at where my lips made contact with Vee, and trailed across Vee’s cheek until she found his mouth. I held my breath as she leaned forward and kissed Vee, and it was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen in my life.

We spent the rest of the afternoon on the couch, sometimes kissing, sometimes caressing, sometimes just talking or lying close to each other. For the first time in my life, I wasn’t in a rush to get into bed. While I definitely wanted to have sex with both Vee and Olivia, I also wanted to take my time and explore them both physically and emotionally because I knew, as much as it was in my power to do so, I wanted both of them in my life for a long time to come.

I’d wanted Olivia since the day I walked into Illyria, and now, somehow, I had her in my arms. I wasn’t going to rush this. Nor was I going to rush Vee into the physical side of things. For one thing, with his injury, it wasn’t going to be possible to do anything rigorous for a couple of weeks. For another, while he might not have been a virgin, he hadn’t been with a lot of guys, and I wanted to show him I wasn’t going to be one more jerk who fucked and ran. He was worth so much more than that, and I intended to cherish both of them as if they were the most precious things on earth because they were.

At one point in the late afternoon, Olivia let out a huge sigh. I’d been dozing off with her against my side and Vee’s feet on my lap, but was instantly alert to her sudden change in mood.

“What is it, Liv?” I asked.

She shook her head, then sat up and looked at both of us. “Do you really think it’s Andrew? I mean, I know it looks like him, and I’m not doubting what you saw, but why would he do this? It doesn’t make sense to me. I thought he was happy at Illyria.”

I was about to offer words of reassurance, but Vee spoke up first. “I don’t know,” he said. “Sometimes it seems like he’s not really interested.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

Vee shrugged. “I haven’t known him for that long, but sometimes he seems really intense and focused on us dancers, and other times he seems so checked out, I get the feeling he doesn’t know my name. Is that normal for him?”

“I haven’t noticed anything,” Olivia said. “But then I don’t see him as often as you do.” She looked at me. “Have you noticed anything?”

It was on the tip of my tongue to say that I hadn’t, but when I thought about it, I realized there were times when he seemed preoccupied or as if his mind was elsewhere. There were also times when he seemed to go out of his way to avoid me. So, I had to admit that, yeah, what Vee said was accurate. “But it’s only been in the past…maybe six months or so.”

“And Festus?” Vee asked. “Do you think they’re working together?”

“I’m still not convinced that was Festus,” I said. “I only saw him for a split second, and he was mostly turned away from me.”

“But it could have been,” Olivia said. “He had today off.” She shook her head. “But that makes even less sense than Andrew. Festus was one of Antonio’s best friends. Toby, Festus, and Antonio were thick as thieves when they were younger.”

“Maybe he expected Antonio to leave him something, and he got pissed off,” I said. “But, I agree, it doesn’t make sense for either of them.”

“And I don’t want to accuse either of them without proof,” Olivia said.

The three of us fell silent. My mind was still stuck on the idea that someone in our family was actively working against Illyria and Olivia. I couldn’t imagine how that felt to Olivia. She trusted her people implicitly, and in the three years I’d worked at the club, I hadn’t seen any reason for her not to. It felt unreal to me that someone I’d worked with almost every day could be behind Illyria’s problems. At the same time, I was overwhelmingly grateful that Olivia hadn’t once thought I could be responsible for those issues.

“What if we told different people different things and waited to see which rumor got back to Orsino?” Vee asked. “Like we know someone told him about the pageant idea, but I suggested that in front of all the employees, so anyone could have been the source, but if we come up with two different things—”

“That would give me enough proof to ask,” Olivia said. She leaned over and wrapped Vee up in her arms. “That’s brilliant.”

Olivia kissed him, and for a moment, I watched the two of them get lost in each other. Would there ever come a time when the sight of them together wouldn’t make my heart beat faster and my cock take interest? Because it was definitely interested. Even though my brain was very aware that nothing beyond what we’d been doing was happening today, and that we still had a lot of talking to do about what each of us wanted, the idea of being with both Olivia and Vee, of getting to explore their bodies and tease them until they begged me to let them come…

“I’m sorry, what?” I asked. I’d completely missed the thread of Olivia and Vee’s conversation while I’d been fantasizing about having them both in my bed.

“I know where your mind was,” Vee teased, and Olivia’s cheeks pinked.

I rolled my eyes. “Okay. Yes. Of course, I was with the two of you kissing in front of me.”

Olivia leaned back into my space and kissed me. “I suggested that we tell both Andrew and Festus that we’ve got a special event. We’ll tell Andrew that it’s going to be a dance marathon, and Festus that it’s going to be a 1950s-style sock hop. If the Grotto copies either of those, we’ll know who’s been sabotaging Illyria.”

“Sounds like a plan,” I said.

With a nod, Olivia sank back against my chest. “I hope it works,” she said.

“If it doesn’t, we’ll try something different.”

“Thank you, Bast, and you too, Vee. This might be the first time in months I feel hopeful about Illyria’s future.”

Two nights later, I was back on shift at Illyria. Vee was still laid up with his injury, but that hadn’t stopped us from making out on the couch like teenagers. On the night I headed back into work, Olivia stopped by on her way to the club to check on Vee and make sure he was doing okay, and all three of us talked a bit about what we wanted and whether we were working toward a three-way relationship.

Vee had surprised me by bringing the subject up, and I had to give the kid props for having bigger balls than I did. Equally surprising, Olivia said she wanted to see where things went with both of us, but she was concerned about the whole employer/employee issue.

“No one gives a shit when people hook up,” I said. “I’d hope they’d be equally as okay if you found someone—or two someones—you wanted to be with.”

“Yes, but, we’ve also got someone who could be disgruntled enough to try to harm the club, so I don’t want to stir the pot too much before we figure out what’s going on.”

“So, we keep it under wraps until then,” I said, and Vee and Olivia both nodded in agreement. As difficult as I thought it was going to be, I’d also kept my feelings for Olivia hidden for the previous three years. “But everyone already knows about Vee and me. Are you going to be okay with that?”

Olivia gave me a smile like I’d never seen from her before as she sidled up to me. “The night you and Vee danced together, it turned me on so much I masturbated in my office.” She laughed when my jaw fell open in shock. “And you never had a clue, did you?” With a smug flick of her head, she gave me a wink. “I think I’ll be able to keep how much I want both of you to myself.”

And with that, she’d kissed both of us and swept out the door, leaving both Vee and me completely at a loss for words.

Of course, it meant that my brain wasn’t focused on making drinks at all that night. Nope. I was completely focused on the window that overlooked the club. Every flicker of shadow made me glance up hoping for a glimpse of Olivia like I was Romeo waiting for Juliet to appear on her balcony. It was even worse when she came downstairs and teased me by never quite getting to my station at the bar. She’d almost make it, and then get sidetracked by talking to one of our regulars or called away by Festus or Maria or one of the other employees. I didn’t doubt for one second that she was doing it on purpose, and I loved it.

For my part, I flipped the bottles higher, flirted outrageously with the customers, and, at one point, even took off my shirt after I accidently spilled a drink all over myself. By the time my shift ended, I had a serious case of blue balls, but it was totally worth it.