Page 10 of Black Sheep
“You have any questions yet, Drew?”
I have thousands of questions for Cannon, but only two very, very important ones—why did the Casso family order my father’s death, and who did it? But of course, I can’t ask them.
“No questions.” I lie with a cheerful smile on my face that’s as fake as my name. “Tanya is doing a great job. I’m excited to shadow her today and learn the ropes firsthand.”
I expect to hear a pissed huff from Tanya, but her expression is one of pure worship.
Oh, good Lord. This is so weird.
“Perfect.” Cannon’s gaze tracks over my uniform shirt. “I’m glad. I don’t like to make hiring mistakes. No good comes of that. I’ll catch up with you later to answer any questions Tanya and Matteo can’t.”
Even after his eyes leave me and he takes a half step back, clearly intending to leave us, his scrutiny remains like tiny pinpricks all over my skin. I’ve never been this hyperaware of a man before, and I don’t know what to do about it.
“I have a question for you,” Tanya says with honey dripping from her tone before he can turn.
It’s impressive that the edges of her phony smile aren’t wearing thin already. It has to be a lot of effort for her to pretend this effectively when only moments ago she could have won a contest for superbitch.
“Can we talk about it in your office after the lunch rush?” she asks. “I’m sure you know what I want to discuss.”
Did her lashes just flutter?Lord, she’s got it bad.
“Not today, Tanya. I’m busy.” Cannon’s tone shifts from easy to harsh in a heartbeat.
Tanya bites down on her lower lip, as if holding in a protest, but says nothing further as Cannon disappears into the hidden hallway. As soon as he’s gone, her chin rises an inch and she glares down her nose at me.
“Don’t make me look bad while we’re working, or you’ll be out on your ass tomorrow.”
And ... superbitch is back.
6
Drew
For the next two hours, I shadow Tanya as she works the room, efficiently moving from table to table, taking orders and chatting amiably with the club members.
For all that she’s a complete bitch to me, I have to admit she handles the members with laughable ease. Apparently, I’m not the only chameleon in this place.
We move to a new table, and her bright smile, just a few watts dimmer than the one she graced Cannon with, lands on a celebrity actor who has a reputation for being extremely private. I remember reading once that he doesn’t have any social media accounts, and he once told a journalist that he only owed the public his performances, not his soul. Of course, the media just tried harder to hound him for interviews after that—an assignment that I turned down because digging through his trash to find out what he was really up to wasn’t of interest to me.
“Hey, Tanya. Good to see you,” Silas Bohannon says as he lowers the newspaper he’s reading.
“You too, Silas. You drinking, eating, or just smoking today?” she asks, opting to not introduce me as the new trainee, like she has for every other table.
Hmmm.I can’t help but wonder why not. Territorial? The rest of the men we’ve served over the last two hours were businessmen and politicians, and Silas Bohannon is our first celebrity.
“Eating and smoking. Although my trainer keeps telling me I have to turn in my humidor key.” He shakes his head with a smile. “Too bad he doesn’t always get what he wants.”
“Absolutely. What’s life without a few vices?” Tanya leans forward to remove the wineglass from the place setting in front of him.
Instead of responding to her question, he cranes his neck to get a better view of me. “Who’s your friend?”
Almost as though she forgot I was standing next to her, Tanya glances over her shoulder. “Oh, this is Drew. She’s learning the ropes. First day.”
“Nice to meet you, Drew.” His gaze narrows on me. “Have we met before? You look familiar.”
My stomach instantly twists into a web of knots, but I school my reaction to casual confusion. There’s no way he can recognize me, even if he’s seen me on TV before. I knew walking into this job that I’d be facing a crowd of the most elite members of the city, some of whom I’ve interviewed before, and I took great pains to change my appearance as much as possible. I’m not just a chameleon, I’m a damn good one.
“I would definitely remember if we’d met before, sir. I can safely say we haven’t.” I keep my tone friendly, deliberately injecting a hint of star-struck, but keep my hands firmly clamped together by my waist.
