I strolled over to Tanaka and withdrew an envelope from the inside pocket of my jacket. “Here’s two weeks’ pay. Now get out.”
Tanaka’s eyes widened. “You can’t do that.”
I smirked. “Check your contract. I think you’ll find I can. No one in my clubs treats any employee like a piece of meat to be abused, mishandled, assaulted, and raped. Now leave before I give in to my associate’s desire to beat you to death with a baseball bat.”
“You’ll regret this,” he spat.
I smirked, straightening my spine up to my full height of six feet two. “You sound like a bad seventies movie.” I jerked my head backward. “Exit’s that way.”
Shocked silence swept through the room, and then one person began to clap, followed by a second and a third. Tanaka sent me a hateful look. I stared at him coldly, my arms folded over my chest.
As Tanaka put his foot on the first step out of this place, the vast majority of the employees were cheering his departure.
Good.
That meant I wouldn’t have a riot on my hands. Over time, I’d introduce changes, but it helped if I could keep some stability until the new manager got his feet under the table.
I waited for the applause to abate. I pointed at one of the women I’d noticed had followed everything I said. “Can you speak English?”
She nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“Can you translate?“
Another nod. “Yes, I think so.”
I gave her an encouraging smile then swept my gaze around the gathered crowd. “One more piece of business, and then you can all go home.”
I spoke slowly, deliberately, to help the woman understand what I was saying.
“I need to make one thing very clear to you all if you wish to continue working here. I will ensure you are taken care of, paid fairly, and treated well. What I demand in return is honesty. I will not tolerate stealing. From me, my associates, other employees, our clientele.” With measured steps, I made my way over to the bartender as my new translator barked out rapid Japanese. I locked my gaze on to his and then smirked. “You’re fired.”
His head jerked back as if I’d punched him. I’d fucking like to punch him.
“Now hang on—”
“No, you hang on. You’re skimming,” I explained, even though he knew damned well the reason for his dismissal. “Every third customer.” He opened his mouth once more. I raised my hand. “Don’t insult my intelligence by trying to deny it. Leave. You’re done.”
“Where’s my two weeks’ pay?” he demanded.
I snorted. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
“Fine,” he snarled. “It’s a shitty joint anyway.”
He was right about that. Not for long, though.
On his way out, he petulantly knocked a few bottles of whiskey to the floor, the noise of smashing glass causing a few of the girls to flinch. I rolled my eyes. If he thought that would garner a reaction, draw me into a fight, he was sorely mistaken.
I waited until he’d gone then sent everyone home with a promise they’d receive regular updates over the next couple of weeks.
“That went well,” Elliot said when the last employee had left.
“Could have been worse,” I agreed.
“Do you think we’ll get any more trouble from Tanaka?”
I shrugged, unconcerned one way or the other. “Never can tell.” I yawned. “Let’s go. I’m wiped.”
I locked up—Yoshida had the keys delivered to me yesterday—and we wearily climbed into the back of my car. Hit by the quiet after all the drama, Athena crowded my mind once more. How the hell was I going to deal with her with Elliot around?
“Y’know,” I said, making shit up on the fly. “I might stick around for a few days. Do a little sightseeing.”
Elliot cocked a brow. “You don’t sightsee.”
“Only because I don’t have time. I’m due a few days off. Besides, if I’m here, I can make sure the work begins to my satisfaction.”
“That’s true,” Elliot said. “You don’t need me, though, right?”
I grinned, playfully nudging him. “I see right through you, Bancroft. Desperate to get back to Brienna, are we?”
Brienna was Elliot’s latest girl, a recent arrival on the scene. She wouldn’t last. They never did. For now, he’d give her his undivided attention, make her feel like a queen, until he got bored and moved on.
“My right arm needs a break,” he replied. “Before we came out here, I was banging her three times a day. I need my fix.”
I pulled a face. “Please. I don’t want to hear about your sex life, thanks very much.”
Elliot laughed. “At least one of us is still a blue blood. You’re virtually celibate these days.”
“Hardly,” I uttered, even though that wasn’t too far from the truth. Goddamn Athena getting inside my head and refusing to leave. “I’m choosier than you, that’s all.”
Elliot’s laughter grew. “If you hadn’t set about screwing half the Eastern seaboard of the United States the second your balls dropped, I’d be inclined to believe you.”
If he had any inkling why I’d behaved that way, I’d have no choice other than celibacy, because he’d chop my dick off.
“Maybe that’s why then,” I said. “I’ve run out of options.”
“The news anchor on the TV this morning said there’s a typhoon brewing in the Pacific. I’m sure I read somewhere that typhoons make women’s kink-o-meter kick up a notch. Something about atmospheric pressure.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’ve told you before to stop believing everything you read in the National Enquirer. Next you’ll be telling me E.T. exists.”
Elliot made a shocked face. “He doesn’t?”
“Fuck off.”
Our banter continued the entire journey back to the hotel, and the whole ride up to the top floor in the elevator. At least it kept us awake long enough to make it to our penthouses. We said goodnight. I pretended to check something on my phone until I was sure Elliot had gone inside. Once he had, I flashed the key card, waited for the click, then entered.
“Ah, you’re back.”
The man I’d hired to watch Athena rose from the couch. He stretched, adjusted his pants, and slipped his phone into his pocket.
“All okay?” I asked.
“No trouble. She went to bed about an hour ago.”
“Which room?”
He pointed to one of the guest beds.
“Great. I can take it from here. Thank you.”
“Anytime.”
He bowed, then left.
I went into my bedroom, leaving the door open in case Athena tried to leave. I wouldn’t put anything past that woman. She was as slippery as a snake. Quickly shedding my clothes, I shoved them in a bag, double knotted it, and tossed it in the corner of my room ready for the maids in the morning. I typed a note in my phone reminding me to have a new Alexander Amosu suit made next time I was in London.
I desperately wanted a shower, but how could I risk it? If Athena heard running water, she’d definitely make a run for it. When the answer came to me, I grinned. Striding naked across the living area, I picked up one of the six dining chairs and slid it under the door handle to her room. That should hold her long enough for me to get rid of the cloying smell of smoke.