“Come on in—Beefcake, no!” An orange cat the size of a small toddler tried to escape through the narrow opening of the door. Liv shoved her leg in the way just in time to block him and earned a glare that said Beefcake would definitely try to kill her later. Another cat—a tabby named Howler—darted beneath Alexis’s desk before peeking back out with his own evil glare.
“I keep them in my office on Tuesdays,” Alexis explained, gesturing for Liv to sit down. She shut the door. “They hate the strange cats.”
Howler and Beefcake were rescues who lived in the café full-time to charm the patrons in between adoption events and, apparently, to plot murdery stuff at night.
Alexis dropped into the creaky chair behind her desk. She let out a dramatic sigh and let her head fall back against the top of the chair. “My entire body hurts. I’m only thirty. How can I hurt this much at thirty?”
“Because you’re on your feet all day and never sleep.”
“You know me too well.” Alexis lifted her head and narrowed her eyes. “Something’s wrong. What is it?”
Liv swallowed away the sour taste of nerves and guilt. Alexis was a new business owner, probably barely turning a profit. She hated to put her on the spot, but she had to get Jessica away from Royce. “I need to ask you for a favor.”
“Of course. Anything.”
“I need you to hire someone.”
Alexis tilted her head. “Like, someone specific?”
“Yes.”
“Okay,” Alexis said slowly. “Who?”
“A young woman named Jessica. She works at Savoy.”
Alexis’s face went blank for the briefest of moments. But with a rapid blink, the moment passed. “And you need me to hire her because . . . ?”
Liv let out a long breath. “Something sort of happened.”
Alexis sat up straighter. “What kind of something?”
Five minutes later, the entire story hung in the air between them like a rancid smell, the kind that would whip in from the back-alley dumpsters whenever the busboys would go out for a smoke on a hot night. Alexis’s expression was the same too—pinched and nauseated.
A deep swallow tightened the cords of Alexis’s throat. “What are you . . . what are you going to do?”
Liv shrugged. “Whatever I can to help Jessica and stop Royce.”
Alexis did the rapid-blink thing again. “What do you mean, stop Royce?”
“Stop him from doing this again. There’s no way Jessica is the only woman he has done this to, but she’s going to be the last.”
Alexis shot to her feet and threw open the door. Beefcake and Howler saw their chance to escape, but Alexis either didn’t notice or didn’t care when they skittered between her legs into freedom. Liv hovered in the doorway of the office, mouth agape as she watched Alexis grab a bottle of bourbon and two glasses. Alexis wasn’t much of a drinker. Never had been. But when she returned to the office, poured a single shot, and threw it back, Liv felt the dual smack of shock and realization. “You’re not surprised to hear this, are you?”
Alexis filled both glasses this time and handed one to Liv. “Royce has always had a reputation.”
“A reputation?”
Alexis stared at the second shot but then pushed it away.
“You knew he was like this?”
Alexis sat down again.
“And it never occurred to you to tell me?”
Alexis winced. “I wish I could hire Jessica, but I can’t. I’m sorry. I’m barely squeaking by as it is with the staff I already have.”
“She probably doesn’t get paid very much as it is. Maybe she could just start—”
“I can’t, Liv. I’m sorry.” Her sharp tone left no room for argument.
Liv wanted to be pissed, but had no right to be. It was a long shot from the start. “It’s okay. I shouldn’t have put you on the spot.”
“What about you?” Alexis asked.
“I’ll find something.”
“The Parkway Hotel is looking for kitchen staff. I know the head chef there. I could call him tomorrow.”
Liv nodded absently. “That’d be great. Thanks.”
“How are you for money in the meantime?”
If anyone else had asked the question, Liv would have bristled at the bluntness, but this was Alexis. Practical and steadfast. A wise old aunt in the body of a thirty-year-old. “I have enough in savings for a few months.”
“I’m sure Rosie will give you a break on rent and bills.”
“She already does.”
Alexis reached across her desk and squeezed Liv’s arm. “I’m sorry, Liv. I know how disappointing this must be for you after how hard you’ve worked.”
“I’ll survive.” It was the story of her life. She’d learned quickly as a child how to adapt to new circumstances. You learned a lot of lessons when you grew up with two warring parents who were too busy trying to one-up each other to notice that with every argument, every custody hearing, every petty slight, they were yanking the rug out from beneath their daughters’ feet. She’d survived worse. She would survive this.
“Maybe this is a sign,” Alexis said after a pause.
“Of?”
“You’ve proven yourself. You’re talented and ambitious. Why don’t you just take a loan from your sister and—”
Liv felt her jaw tighten. “No.”
“Why not?”
“Just because I know rich people doesn’t mean I can treat them like an ATM. Money ruins relationships. Trust me, I know.”
Alexis winced. “I’m sorry. You’re right. I don’t understand what that’s like.”
Dammit. Liv shook her head. “I shouldn’t have snapped at you. I’m sorry. I know you’re just trying to help. I’m just—” She let out a frustrated noise, interrupting her words. “Nothing pisses me off more than injustice.”
“I know. That’s why I love you. But I need you to promise me something.”
Liv lifted her eyebrows.
Alexis’s eyes darkened. “Be careful. Royce is more powerful than you know.”
“I’m not afraid of Royce Preston. He’s a bumbling idiot. He literally got caught because he can’t tell time.”
Alexis ignored the joke. “He’ll destroy you.”
“Not if I destroy him first.”
“You really believe you can, don’t you?”
“What I believe is that I don’t have a choice. I can’t walk away knowing what he’s doing and has probably done a hundred times before. I can’t let someone else walk into that kitchen knowing he’s a predator. If I have to bring down his entire stupid empire, I will.”
Alexis stood and peered down at Liv through beseeching eyes. “Please don’t do anything rash. I know what you’re like, and—”
“What does that mean?”
“It means you sometimes act without thinking.”
Liv allowed herself a moment of wounded pride before sputtering, “Am I supposed to stand by and let him get away with this?”
“Just promise me you’ll think about the consequences before you go after Royce.”
Liv stood so she was eye to eye with Alexis. “I’m going to stop him from hurting other women. Those are the only consequences I care about.”
“They shouldn’t be. Other people could get hurt. Think of how many people could lose their jobs if you bring down his empire.”
Liv shook her head, disappointment and confusion a strange cocktail in her veins. “I don’t get this. I figured you of all people would be on my side.”
“I am on your side.”
“It doesn’t sound like it.”
“I just don’t want you to get hurt.”
“I’m more worried about Jessica.”
Alexis’s sigh carried weary resignation. “What exactly are you planning to do?”
“I don’t know. But I’ll think of something.”
Alexis worried her lower lip with her teeth. “Will you keep me posted?”
“I will.”
A young woman in a ToeBeans T-shirt knocked on the door and stuck her head in. “Beefcake just stole someone’s muffin and tried to pee on a kitten.”
“I’ll go,” Liv said quickly. “You should probably deal with that.”
Alexis’s smile seemed forced as she rounded her small desk for a quick hug. “I’ll keep my eyes open for jobs,” she said with a squeeze.
Liv ducked out the back way and walked around the block to her car. But rather than drive away, she sat in the front seat for several long minutes, staring at nothing as she worked out her next move. You sometimes act without thinking. Maybe Alexis hadn’t meant to, but that one had struck a tender spot. Liv had worked her ass off to overcome the transgressions of her wild youth. And though her precious Gran Gran hadn’t lived long enough to see Liv finish culinary school, Liv liked to imagine that the old lady was still up there somewhere feeling proud that she’d managed to set Liv on a better path before it was too late. Liv wouldn’t have gotten her shit together in time to graduate from high school without Gran Gran’s help. And Thea’s, of course.
But could someone ever really feel like they’d made up for the mistakes of their past? Would Liv? Could she ever do enough to be worth all the trouble?
Liv shoved the key in the ignition and waited for a break in traffic to pull out. She wouldn’t go down without a fight. Royce couldn’t get away with this. But before she could deal with him, she had to get Jessica out of there. And if Alexis couldn’t hire her, Liv knew at least one person who could.
Braden-Fucking-Mack.
Temple Club was supposedly one of Nashville’s swankiest dance clubs, but in the middle of the afternoon, it was just a dark, empty tomb with the odor of stale beer and lost hope that hung over every bar on the strip. Liv’s boots clunked across the distressed wooden floor when she walked in.