The Beautiful People Read Online Free PDF Page B

“Oh.” I
gasped as the realization hit me. “Is he dangerous?”
                “Very. And
he isn’t used to being denied anything he wants.”
                “And you
think he wants me?”
                “I know he
does,” Grant said. There was a shadow of sadness in his hazel eyes. “Nat, I
really wish I hadn’t gotten you a job here.”
                “Is Dominic
really his nephew?” I asked, anxious to change the direction of the
conversation.
                “Yes and
the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.”
    I laughed finding that
hard to believe. Dominic was nothing but a sweetheart. He didn’t have a dark,
brooding presence like his Uncle.
                “If you
have such an issue with Dominic, why did you let me hang out with him at
Miranda’s again last night?”
                “Because he’s
Miranda’s cousin.”
                “Oh.”
                “Natalie,
will you please take me seriously?”
    I could see the concern
on my brother’s face and didn’t want him to keep nagging me. “Yes Grant. I am
taking this seriously,” I reassured him.
    He relaxed a bit after
that and let me finish counting out my tips in peace. I was shocked to discover
I had made over $400. There was a lot of money being spent at Crimson. Despite
having a creepy boss man, this was a great place to work.
    Dominic walked down to
stand in front of me. “Hey Nat, do you have any plans for after work?”
    I was just about to
answer when Grant butted in. “I’m her ride. We’re heading out in a few
minutes.”
    After shooting death
rays at Grant I looked apologetically at Dominic. He was just being nice and
Grant was behaving like a giant ass.
                “I can give
her a ride Grant, if she wants to hang out?” He regarded me with his deep green
eyes. Thank God I was sitting because my legs probably wouldn’t have been able
to support me. It was utterly bizarre how Dominic’s mere presence affected me.  Before
Grant could speak for me again I answered, with exaggerated enthusiasm. “That
would be great! I’m not ready to go home yet.”
    I turned towards Grant
with a big smile and batted my eyelashes. He frowned at me and shook his head.
“Yeah, sure you’re taking me seriously,” he muttered. I heard the defeat in his
voice and knew I had won, because Grant would have to physically pick me up and
carry me out of the club. I wasn’t going to budge.
    ***
    Dominic and I were
flying down Broad Street, heading towards South Philly in his Mustang. The worn
leather seats smelled like a mixture of smoke, gasoline and Dominic’s cologne -
definitely a man’s car. It was just the two of us and I enjoyed being alone
with him. I found that once I got over my shyness, he was easy to talk to. I
had no idea where we were going. He said he was taking me to a special place not
too many people knew about. We could have driven around ‘til dawn, I didn’t
care, as long as I got to stay next to him.
    He asked all sorts of
questions about me. When we had spoken on the phone the other night, we didn’t
talk about our family. I told him Grant was three years older and my only sibling.
Our parents divorced when I was five and our Dad moved to Texas. I hardly knew him.
He was remarried and had another family. We stayed with our Mom in York and
Grant was forced to be the man of the house.  
                “He’s kind
of overbearing, but I don’t think he really has a choice,” I revealed to Dominic.
    Dominic nodded his
head. “I can see that and I think it makes him good at his job. He’s always watching
out for everyone.”
                “Yeah, but
it’s not easy when you’re his younger sister, trust me!”
                “Does he hold
you back?”
                “He tries
to!” I laughed.
                “Like he
tried to keep you from going out with me