Текст книги "Forever a Jett Girl "
Автор книги: Meghan Quinn
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Текущая страница: 3 (всего у книги 22 страниц)
4
“I Need A Dollar”
Goldie
“These dishes were actually imported from Europe. The queen used them in one of her cottages. I was able to win them on auction; they are worth well over one hundred thousand dollars,” Rex educated me about his stupid ass plates.
All I heard was that they were a giant waste of money. The dishes were wretched. Some creepy square gold and red pattern ran along the edge that was supposed to symbolize family or some bullshit like that, I wasn’t quite sure because I zoned out halfway through the historic details of the dishes.
Who knew such a strong alpha male could be such a dork, with his collection of teacups, swords, and paintings. The more I saw of his house, the more I realized the man was a hoarder of old crap. Rugs from the White House that smelled like musty old man balls graced the floors, chairs from president’s houses that had permanent sweat stains on them, and books that didn’t even have pictures graced his house. Where were the sex swings, the crops, the lubes, and edible undies? Non-existent, unless you considered the pantaloons from a late Martha May type lady that were hanging in the hallway to be edible.
Fucking pantaloons.
“They’re just lovely,” I lied, as I envisioned breaking every last one of them.
There were so many collectibles in his house that I started devising a plan in my head last night to slowly steal items from his collection, so when I left, nothing in his house would be complete. It would be the ultimate burn. First thing to go, one of his damn teacups, and then one of the little silver spoons he collected. Why would someone need a mini spoon that they didn’t even eat with?
“Are you ready to go?” Rex asked, as he checked his watch.
“Yes, just let me grab my phone.”
“No phones,” Rex said. “Any kind of electronics that are taken in the club will be confiscated. We take our privacy very seriously. Every employee will be searched before entering.”
Well, fuck. Talk about uptight. There went my idea of getting proof of the whole operation.
“Not a problem,” I said causally. “Let’s go.”
Shit.
Rex eyed the table we were just eating at and said, “Are you going to clean your plate?”
I looked over at the paper plate Rex had given me with a dried out croissant on it. The man clearly didn’t trust me with his precious plates, which was evident by what I had to eat off of. Not that it bothered me…eating off of a paper plate; hell, I had once eaten off of an old sock. I’ve seen worse.
“Oh, sorry. Great thing about paper plates is you can just throw them out, unlike those king plates you have.”
“Queen. They are plates from the queen,” Rex corrected me.
“Oh, yeah, that old bird. Did you know she carries a purse around with her everywhere she goes? Like, hello, you’re the queen, what do you need a purse for? If you see something you like, you just bust out your queen card and it’s yours. What do you think she keeps in there? Lipstick, obviously, she’s not a beast, but do you think she has things like hand sanitizer? Gum maybe. Oh, wait, no. Do you know what she has? She totally has butterscotch candies. Classic Queenie and her butter…”
“Enough,” Rex said, growing angry. Hello, moody pants.
“Sorry,” I said weakly. “I ramble sometimes.”
“I suggest you don’t,” Rex said, as he walked out of the kitchen.
Touchy!
Wanting to break his dishes right then and there, I refrained, and followed after Rex to his garage, where he held the passenger side door open for me to one of his cars. At least his temper didn’t make him lose his chivalry.
Once Rex was inside the car himself, he strapped his seat belt on and started the car. Before he pulled out of the garage, he turned to me with a gentle look on his face and said, “I’m sorry about losing my temper back there, Kitten. I’m a little sensitive right now. We were supposed to hear about a property we are bidding on today, but because there were so many bids put on the table, the city will be evaluating every proposal and conducting interviews.”
He had to be talking about Lot 17, which meant Jett was most likely punching every wall he comes across from that news. I knew he was hoping to hear about the property soon, but of course, in true city fashion, the decision was pushed further back.
“I’m sorry to hear that. But an interview seems like it might be a good opportunity to talk about your plans. It looks like your business venture would bring a lot of jobs to the city.”
Everything directed toward Rex that came out of my mouth was a lie, but I felt it was necessary to boost the man’s ego every chance I got. The more I showed him I was Team Rex, the better.
He nodded and pulled out of the garage. “That’s a very valid point, Kitten.”
“Are you going to tell them about the club?” I asked, curious what their plans were.
“No, that won’t be a part of the proposal. The city officials who are interested in the club know about our plans, but that is more of an idea that stays behind closed doors.”
“I can understand that,” I answered, while Rex drove through the streets of New Orleans. “Where is your club now? I didn’t know there were so many gentleman’s clubs in New Orleans. How does one choose?”
“We own a building off of Canal Street that is covering as an apartment building, but really is the club inside. You’ll see.”
“So, then why move the club if you already have the space?”
“We would like to have more playrooms in the club; right now we only have four. We would also like to have a bigger floor show and hotel rooms for those who would like to take one of the girls for the night. Plus, we would like to have space to house the girls. Right now, they are going in and out of the building, and it’s starting to look suspicious.”
So, the man really didn’t have any original ideas whatsoever. Everything he was saying was an exact replica of the Lafayette Club, but just skankier.
Jett had rules and limitations for a reason…that was because the Lafayette Club was all about the girls and bettering their lives, while taking advantage of the rich and filthy. Masquerade wasn’t for the benefit of the employees. No, it was for the benefit of the owners, at least that’s what I could surmise from what Rex had already told me.
With each passing moment I spend with Rex, I’m starting to see how much of a self-centered man he actually is. I’m just glad I met Jett before Rex made his offer for me to be with him, because at the state in my life I was in back then, I would have said yes to him, and who knows where I would be right now? Especially after the conversation I overheard last night.
They wanted to make me the main attraction? What the hell did that mean? Was it like Diego’s club, where the girls performed stunts and had sex with someone on stage? That wouldn’t fly for me.
We rode in silence for the rest of the ride, only speaking occasionally about the weather. To say the man was a bore was an understatement. Why did I use to like this guy so much?
Rex pulled up in front of an old looking building made of brick that actually looked kind of creepy. There was one door in the front, and it was black with no windows. Yeah, I could see how scantily clad women walking in and out of this door would look suspicious. Jesus, I was even smart enough to know that you had to change the façade of the building to make it look less skeezy.
“See why we want a new building?” Rex stated, as he got out of his car and buttoned up his suit jacket. He walked around to my side, as he handed the keys to a valet, who had popped out of nowhere. Rex opened my door and held out his hand for me. Reluctantly, I took it in mine and let him lead me inside.
“How do the members get inside the building? Do they walk through this door? It doesn’t look very nice.”
“No, there’s a back entrance they use. We wouldn’t ask the members to walk through the front. We try to keep things as discreet as possible.”
“So, why don’t you have the girls walk in the back as well?”
“Because, they are employees; they’re not allowed to intermingle with the members unless granted permission. The building really is too small for the operation we’re trying to run.”
“I can see that,” I replied, as I walked through the front door with Rex. The hallway to the front was dingy with torn black walls and filthy floors; it really surprised me how disgusting the place was, especially since Rex and Leo were running it. Not that I had met Leo, but if he was anything like Jett, he would require things to look immaculate at all times. Right now, their club, Masquerade, looked more like a crack whore’s den rather than a club for the elite of New Orleans.
“As you can see, the front entrance needs a little work, but we’re trying to avoid making any more improvements, since we’re trying to grant the club a new location. The interior is much more presentable, I promise.”
At the end of the hallway, we came to a dark door that looked like it was almost metal. To the side was a scanning mechanism that threw my whole life off. Were we entering some kind of secret underground storage space for the FBI where they kept the aliens and Elvis Presley?
With precision, Rex entered a code into the keypad, which lifted the door of the scanner thing and he bent forward to have his eyes scanned.
He could not be serious. For a club? Get real, buddy.
“We have the most advanced security system money can buy. We don’t let just anyone in here.”
“I can see that,” I said, as I waited for the door to pop open.
“We’ll get your information keyed into the system later today.”
“Good morning, Mr. Titan. Do you have a guest with you?” A robot lady said over a loudspeaker in the hallway. Earth to Rex, there’s something called volume control.
Talk about peeing my pants.
“Who the fuck was that?” I asked, as I slowly crouched, looking around for a machete woman to pop out of the corner and start whacking away.
“That’s the system. It records everyone who enters and leaves and who they brought with them. The system can tell if you have a visitor or not. We keep a log of who is coming and going at all times.”
Paranoid much?
“Saki, I have one guest with me, Goldie, our newest member.”
Saki? Sounds awfully close to Suri. Did Rex rip everything off? Fucking weirdo.
“Very well, sir.”
The door clicked open, and with curiosity, I walked closely behind Rex, peeking over his shoulder and taking in Masquerade.
Surprisingly, there was no greeting space in the club. Instead, it opened up to a room that looked very much like the Toulouse Room, but instead of purple gracing the walls, they were covered in black and trimmed in gold. The gold paint was miraculous. It shined against the black and glittered in the light. I had never seen anything like it. There was a main stage in the middle of the room, with leather chairs circling around it, and above the stage were gold chains hanging from the ceiling, making the center of the room look almost sinister. I wondered what the hell they planned on doing with all of those chains…only time would tell.
Continually absorbing everything around me, I noticed around the room were little doors that must have led to the playrooms Rex talked about. I was most interested in seeing one of those rooms, to see if they were like the rooms Diego had set up, or if they were darker, less sexy.
A long bar rested against the back wall, holding only top notch liquor; I wouldn’t expect anything less. Bar stools also sat in front of the black marbled bar, offering a heightened view of the main stage.
The feel of the room was dark, perverse, and almost dangerous.
“Welcome to Masquerade, Kitten. What do you think?” Rex said, while opening his arms and showing off his pride and joy.
“The gold is divine,” I answered honestly, as I ran my hand up one of the moldings.
“Gold is the equivalent to power in New Orleans.”
Thanks to Jett, I already knew that.
“How does the club work?” I asked, eyeing the stage.
“Come with me,” he led me to one of the chairs and pressed a button on the armrest.
A door to the right opened and two women immediately walked out into the room, completely naked. Hello nipples! They kept their heads hung low and walked hand in hand up to the stage. They were both brunettes, roughly the same size in every aspect. They were bare of all hair and had boob jobs for sure, because there was no way their boobs were that perky naturally.
I watched as they ascended the stairs of the stage and started grabbing the chains from the ceiling. The chains clanged together as they moved them and adjusted their heights.
“Every girl submits to the males in the club, they are not to look us in the eyes and they are to always stay silent.”
“Interesting,” I replied, not really knowing what to say to such a thing. Honestly, I would rather eat his dick than alter who I was to be one of Rex’s fem-bots. “What are they doing?”
“They’re preparing the main attraction.”
AKA, what I would be doing once Rex got his way.
With morbid curiosity, I sat at the edge of my seat and watched as one of the brunettes stood in the middle of the stage and allowed the other brunette to attach chains to her wrists and ankles. Once she was secure, the brunette who wasn’t chained stepped away and went back to where she came from.
So the girl just stood there naked, strapped to chains? That didn’t seem like that big of a deal.
Before I could ask another question, Rex stood up and took off his jacket. He rolled up his sleeves and stepped up on stage. Things were about to get awkward.
He looked the girl in the eyes and said, “Do I have permission to touch you?”
At least he had the decency to ask. I would have thought, after the way it seemed like he treated these girls, he wouldn’t even care to ask if he could stick his finger in their cooche.
This girl nodded, and in fascination, I watched as Rex ran his hands up and down the girl’s body, making her writhe under his touch. Her nipples were erect and her eyes were shut. So, it was like Diego’s club; she practically orgasmed on stage. Was that so bad?
Rex bent down and opened a panel that was on the floor. He dug around for a second and then grabbed a flogger. He ran it through his fingers right before he struck the girl on the back of the thighs. The pain coming off of her face was almost unbearable to watch.
“What the hell are you doing?” I asked, as I stood and got up on stage to stop Rex.
“Goldie, please step down. Only one member is allowed on stage at a time.”
“One member? You mean more than one person comes up here?”
“Yes, the members take turns coming up on stage and practice dominating our girls. We have demonstrators come in to show the technique of flogging a woman, and when they’re ready, they are allowed to come up here and do what they want to the woman.”
“And how does she feel about that?” I asked, as I lifted the girl’s chin so she would look me in the eyes.
“She’s paid, right sweetheart?”
“Yes, sir,” she said weakly.
I wanted to scream at the girl and tell her how messed up this was. Everything about this club went against every moral in my body. I was okay with stripping and giving lap dances, I wasn’t a damn moral compass, but having no say in what happened to you by multiple men? Oh, fuck no.
Then it dawned on me, this was what Rex wanted me to be, the main attraction, the girl all the men flogged, touched, and fucked.
Holy shit! Jett would have a coronary if he found out what Rex was planning.
Sweat started to trickle down my back as I tried to figure out how the hell I was going to get out of the predicament I put myself in.
“Do you have a problem with this, Goldie?” Rex asked, eyeing me with that devilish glare.
Yes, I had a problem with it, Jesus, but Lord knows I couldn’t say that. I kept reminding myself I was doing this for Jett; I was doing this for us. I had a purpose for being here, and it clearly wasn’t going to be easy, but I was bound and determined to make sure that not only did I get to live my life with Jett, but now that these girls were involved, I was going to find them justice, just like Jett would.
Lifting my chin, I looked Rex square in the eyes and shook my head. “Not a problem at all. Where are the other girls? I would like to meet them and have a run-through of what is expected of them, what kind of training you would like me to conduct, and form some sort of a schedule. Is the club running now?”
A grin spread across Rex’s face from my “eagerness” to start my roll.
“Only a few members are testing things out right now. Since we have you on staff now, we can start really training the girls and getting them ready. We are looking to officially open in two weeks, to see how things might run so we can prepare for our new space.”
“How many do you have on staff?”
“Three girls, four including you, and one bartender, Blane.”
“Blane?”
“Yes, he is also in charge of the demonstrations.”
Interesting, I thought. I didn’t like Rex grouping me in with the other girls, that terrified me and I promised myself that by opening day, I would be taking down Rex’s operation, because I didn’t want to come close to that stage.
The clunk of a bag hitting the bar sounded, and both Rex and I turned around to find a very muscular man with tattoos running up his forearms standing behind the counter. His hair was blond and cut stylishly, while his blue eyes stood out against his tanned skin. From what I could tell, he must be Blane because he had Dom written all over him.
“Speak of the devil,” Rex said. “Blane, please come over here and meet Goldie.”
Blane looked up at me and gave me a wicked grin, as if I was fresh meat. Instantly, I put up my guard. I didn’t trust this guy one bit. He reeked of trouble.
With a swagger that was unfortunately sexy, he walked over to us, while eyeing me up and down, sizing me up. Once in front of me, he stuck his hand out and offered his name.
“Blane, nice to meet you, Goldie.”
I gripped his hand in mine and was frightened to feel such a tight grasp when he shook.
“Nice to meet you,” I lied, as I pulled my hand away. “How do you know Rex?”
“Rex and I go way back, isn’t that right, buddy?” Blane said, while clapping Rex on the back.
“It is.”
The way Rex smiled had me wondering what the hell their history was. Whatever it was, it wasn’t good. Right about now, I wanted to run back to Jett and bury my head in his shoulder. Things were getting a little too intense for me, and I was for sure in over my head.
“Why don’t we let Blane show us what he does up on stage?”
Rex led me off the stage and back into my chair. He kept his hand on my thigh while we watched Blane prepare for his “show.” I wanted to flick Rex’s hand off of me, but reminded myself to keep the illusion, to make it look like I was here for Rex, not for Jett.
The way Blane spoke softly into the girl’s ear reassured me that what I had seen Rex do wasn’t close to what Blane was going to do, and I was right. Instead of pain, I saw pleasure cross the girl’s features. Blane wasn’t cruel or hard on her. No, he was gentle, yet commanding, he sort of reminded me of Jett.
Lord help me…
5
“Unfaithful”
Jett
“I didn’t expect to find you in here, boss man,” Babs said, as she walked into the gym wearing her Jett Girl gym attire. “Working off some pent up frustration?”
I huffed at her, wiped my face with my towel, and turned up the speed on the treadmill I was working on. I usually worked out with Kace, but he was out recruiting this morning, so I was on my own, which I was enjoying until Babs walked in, breaking my concentration.
“Not talking today? Alright, then I’ll talk,” Babs continued. “She loves you, you know that? Maybe if you showed one ounce of love for her, she would have stayed.”
“It’s not like that,” I gruffed out, as I continued to run on the treadmill, increasing my speed to a sprinting pace.
“But, isn’t it? You’ve always been a prideful man, an emotionless man, and then Goldie comes along and turns your world upside down, shows you what it’s like to have someone truly care for you, truly want you not for your body or your money, but for your mind and your kind heart. But what do you do? You go and fuck it up.”
“Enough,” I said, while slamming my hand on the treadmill and stopping the conveyor belt. “I suggest before you start slamming your boss, you get the facts right first, Barbara,” I seethed, using Babs’ God-given name.
Flustered from my tone of voice, Babs started backtracking. “What do you mean? Is there something I don’t know?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact, you don’t know everything that is going on in this club like you think you do.”
I walked over to the little fridge in the gym and pulled out a water for myself. Without chancing Babs a glance, I opened the cap and started draining the liquid. The workout that I was hoping would give me a little escape from the torment running through my head did nothing but irritate me more.
“What’s going on?” Babs asked, with her hands on her hips, gaining confidence in her defiance once again.
Babs was my first ever Jett Girl. I found her one day, offering up her services, saying she could blow me for only ten dollars, and it would be the best blow job I ever received. At that moment, I knew she needed help; she needed someone to take care of her, so I took her in. It took me a while to tame her, to dominate her, since she was dead set on pleasing me constantly for the “fancy digs” I was putting her up in, but I told her she didn’t have to pay me back, but just to work hard on her Jett Girl skills and education.
Now that she was months away from graduating and launching her makeup line, she had gone back to her old self, not throwing herself at me, but defying me every chance she got. She was just as mouthy as Goldie, but where Goldie spoke randomly about things that popped up in her head, Babs was more forthcoming with putting me in place. Ever since Goldie arrived at the Lafayette Club, Babs had made it her mission to butt into my business and make sure I wasn’t screwing up my chance with Goldie.
“This doesn’t concern you, Babs. So drop it.”
I tried to walk past her, but she placed her hand on my chest and said, “Oh, no you don’t. Everything about this club concerns me, Jett. I helped make this club the way it is today. You, Kace, and I built this club together, so when one of my girls goes missing, I get to know why.”
The unsaid mother hen of the group spoke; she was right. Without her and Kace, I would never have been able to start the Lafayette Club and make it the success it was today, a success for the women involved.
Running my hands over my face, I said, “Goldie left me. She returned her collar. There, you happy?”
“No,” she answered honestly. “Why did she do it?”
This was the part I didn’t like talking about. What did I say? She left me for another man? Once again, I’d failed? I would rather just tell people she left me because I was a bastard, because the thought of telling people she was out doing who knew what, trying to protect me, drove me insane, it made me feel inferior.
She was trying to protect me, me! Fuck, I did the protecting; I was the one who took care of the ones in my life. I wasn’t the one who had to be protected. It gutted me knowing I wasn’t able to do my job, and my Little One was forced to go out into the world on her own to take matters into her own hands.
It gutted me that her “protecting” led her to Rex.
Fury started to run through my veins once again, as I thought about Rex’s text. Last night I had tried to figure out why Goldie would run to Rex, what could she possibly do with him? Yes, she knew about Lot 17 and my dad, but how the hell could she make things better by being with him? All she was doing was ripping us apart.
“Well…” Babs encouraged me to continue.
“Jesus, you’re frustrating.”
“I’m persistent, so don’t test me,” she replied.
Rolling my eyes, I grabbed one of the workout balls and sat on it as Babs did the same.
“To make a long story short. My dad is after Lot 17 and found out I was putting in for the same property. He knew I had something over him, so he took it upon himself to break up me and Goldie by threatening her life. Goldie got sick of the distance between us, and not being able to live our lives together, so she gave me back my collar and said she was going to protect me. She said to have faith, but honestly, Babs, I have absolutely zero faith in the matter.” I took a deep breath and said, “She went back to Rex Titan.”
“What? Are you sure?” Babs asked, growing concerned.
“I have no clue. What I do know is Rex sent me a text last night saying she was with him. I tried contacting her friend Lyla, her old roommate, to see if Goldie possibly asked for her room back, but Lyla hadn’t heard from Goldie in a while. No one has, which leads me to believe that she truly is with Rex.”
“She hasn’t contacted you?”
“No, and her phone is turned off. I couldn’t even track it if I wanted to.”
“Ah, yes, stalker Jett wouldn’t let me down by missing out on that key factor.”
“I’m not a stalker,” I defended. “Just efficient in my tracking capabilities.”
“Clearly, not efficient enough. Do you want me and the girls to get involved?”
“No,” I said rather harshly. “I don’t want any of you involved. I want you to stay out of this. Kace is out recruiting a new girl as we speak. I will need you and the other three to welcome her with open arms.”
“Where are you going to put her?” Babs asked, slightly confused. “The only room that’s open is Goldie’s.”
“Yes, and it’s currently being cleaned out.”
“Jett, you can’t be serious.”
“I am,” I said, while getting up and heading toward the door. “She returned her collar, Babs. It’s over.”
“It is not,” Babs said, while pushing my shoulder, throwing me off a bit. “She’s trying to make it better. She’s not leaving you, Jett.”
“With Rex? How is that better? How is her running off with another man making it better? No, we’re done,” I answered, while I headed for my office.
My phone rang, and without checking the caller ID, I answered.
“Jett Colby.”
“I found your new girl,” Kace spoke into the phone.
“Perfect, bring her in. Her room is being set up right now.”
“Jett, do you really want to do this?”
“Yes, now don’t question me,” I said, right before hanging up the phone.
Truthfully, the last thing I wanted to do was bring in a new Jett Girl. I was happy with the group we had. I was pleased with the dynamic of the girls, and bringing in someone new was always a risk, because most of the time, personalities clashed. Given the fact that I was bringing in a new girl because one of their own left, it wouldn’t be easy on the new girl. I actually felt bad for her, because she had huge shoes to fill.
The house was much quieter, much more subdued, like all the girls were in mourning. Kace was always a moody bastard, but now that Goldie was gone, he almost seemed like a piece of him had left. I could tell he was mad at me…mad at me for inviting a new Jett Girl to come on board, but what choice did I really have?
In the off-chance that maybe, just maybe, Goldie actually didn’t leave me to be with Rex, then I needed to carry on, show my dad that, in fact, I didn’t mind that Goldie was gone, even though my heart was ripping out of my chest with each passing moment she wasn’t in my arms.
The third floor didn’t have its appeal anymore and, if anything, I wanted to change out my room for Goldie’s. I wanted to stay in her room, where it was bright and cheery. I wanted to sift through her closest, smell her, feel her…
“Jett,” a male voice rang from my office.
Quickly looking up, I saw George, my lawyer, standing in the doorway of my office. Who the hell let him in?
“George, how did you get up here?”
Clearing his throat, he looked at the ground and said, “One of the girls let me in and led me upstairs.”
“Was she wearing a mask?” I asked, starting to grow angry once again.
“Yes,” George said quickly. “I have no clue who it was.”
Patting my face with my towel, I nodded, and led us both into my office. Since it was still morning and I just got done working out, I left my bourbon alone and offered George a water bottle instead, which he declined.
It was very rare that I allowed anyone to see me in anything but a suit and tie, especially when it came to my business, but George was an exception; I’ve known him my whole life.
Sitting down in my chair, I looked over my desk and asked, “To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing you today?”
“Lot 17,” George said, while pulling out a folder from his briefcase.
“Did we get it?” I asked, leaning forward to look at the file.
“No.” My eyes shot up to his, while devastation enveloped me. “No one got it just yet,” George finished. “Since there has been great interest in the lot, they are going to interview some of the candidates. Luckily, we are one of them.”
“What do you mean, luckily?” I fumed. “We should have been granted the property in the first place. What more do they want?”
“They want to know your plans for the property; they want a presentation with visuals. They want you to show them that your plans will benefit the city.”
“Who else is in the running?” I asked, as I sat back in my chair, trying not to take my anger out on George. He was just the messenger.
“There are only three interviews being conducted. You, of course, Zane Black, a real estate developer in New York City, and Rex Titan and your dad.”
My teeth ground together as I puffed out a frustrated breath. Of course my dad and Rex were in the running. Why wouldn’t they be? They’d bribed practically everyone in the city.
“Do you know who has the upper hand? Who the city is looking more strongly at?”
“Not at this time, but I can do some digging for you.”
“Yes, I need to know what my chances are, what kind of ideas I need to throw together.”
“Stick with your original proposal, Jett. Don’t change it now; it would look like you’re nervous, that you’re original proposal wasn’t good enough. If it wasn’t good enough, it never would have been considered.”
Even though I didn’t want to admit it, because I was a stubborn man, George was right.
If I changed things now, it would look bad for my character. If I changed my plans, it would be showing weakness, and that was one thing I never did; I never showed my weakness.