Verified Client: Mr. Kyle Richardson
Nickname: King Kyle
Occupation: Businessman - Ties to Nightclubs and Property
Nationality: East Mediterranean
Location: Sydney, Australia
Celebrity Status: A - Untouchable
Security Level - Bodyguard + 10
Package: GFE + Expenses
Booking Time: 2 Days + 1 Night
Hotel: The Darling - Penthouse Suite
As soon as I saw his name I felt the blood rush to my head. Kyle and I had met before I had started working in this line of work. I knew exactly who he was the moment I opened the brief Lou had sent over but it wasn’t seeing him again that had me on edge, it was the fact that I was booked to see him. Surely he couldn’t have known that he was booking me? As much as I wanted to ask Nick if he knew about my latest client, I was smarter than to open those can of worms.
* * * *
When the elevator doors opened and we stepped out, I was in awe as I looked around the room. The blue and pink strobe lights complimented the wooden surroundings that were an unusual mix of colonial and contemporary designs but they seemed to fit well together. Nick placed his hand on my back that jolted me back to reality. We walked towards the V.I.P section on a raised platform on the other side of the room past the bar. The club section was packed to the brim with people dancing, drinking and enjoying themselves. Just as the crowd parted slightly I saw my friends and was blissfully happy to see that they had definitely been taken care of. When we finally reached the roped off area that was guarded by two burly security men, Nick removed his hand from my back. In an instant something shifted in me the moment his last fingertip brushed just under my ribcage. I felt different about this scenario and began to question again why we had been treated so well. I began to question the motivation behind his kindness and yet I didn’t get the sense that something was seriously wrong by his body language.
“Hope you enjoy your night Miss. Reid” he said looking directly into my eyes with a kind smile in his own.
“Thank you Nick” I responded a little more cautiously before walking over to join my friends.
The night was just as incredible as the experience we had been given. The drinks never stopped flowing and eventually we all moved onto tequila shots. By the third shot I was feeling the alcohol begin to consume me and the fear of being sick encroached at rapid speed. I excused myself from the table and headed towards the bathroom in opposite the corner of the room. At first I hadn’t noticed that one of the security guards had followed me through the crowd but I soon sensed that someone was not far behind me. I turned around to see the same security guard that was at the entry to the bar, Lucas. I cast it off as a coincidence and quickly snuck into the ladies room, which was surprisingly empty. After ten minutes I came to the conclusion that the feeling of being sick was a false alarm and exited the stall. I found it strange that the bathroom was still empty despite the floor being so busy. I walked up to the gold guilted basins and washed my hands. As I looked up at my reflection in the mirror I saw a woman that had no direction in life. I resigned myself to the fact that my slightly made up face with colours that complimented my structure, the dark brown almond shaped eyes, curvaceous figure, long legs and of course the little black dress had been the reason that the girls and I had been noticed. It had nothing to do with the fact that we were just a group of girls, rather we had been judged on our appearance. So what was it about mine that had caught Nick’s attention? I didn’t feel special. I was just me.
A few moments later a group of girls made their way into the bathroom. I could hear their heels clicking on the marble floor but didn’t hear the usual girly giggles that came from a good night out. I caught a glimpse of them in the mirror as the turned the corner and it was then that I recognized them, they were the same group of girls that had entered before us in their short dresses. I quickly dropped my head and focused on finishing washing my hands. Two of the girls went into a stall while the blonde stood beside me rummaging through her clutch. I turned to walk over and dry my hands but before I had the chance to pass her she spoke.
“Hey, do you have a tissue?” she asked in her cockney accent.
“Sure” I responded, opening my clutch and pulling out a clean tissue from the packet and passing it to her.
“Thanks. I saw you in the V.I.P section. Have you been here before?”
“No, it’s my first time” I responded as I watched her reapply her eyeliner.
“How are you liking it so far?”
“It’s great. I can’t believe how busy it is” I said wondering where the conversation was headed.
“Cool. I’ll let the owner know. We’re partying with him. We are always V.I.P at his clubs.” she responded as a matter of fact as the other two women exited the stalls.
“Well have a good night” I responded, refusing to play into her little game and began to walk away.
“Don’t you think she’s just her type girls?” she said a little more upbeat.
“Yeah. Something’s up with him tonight, he seems a little distracted. Maybe she’s the flavor of the month considering he hasn’t allowed any other V.I.P’s into the building. Who is she anyway?” One of them responded.
As much as it confused me I wasn’t going to allow it to play on my mind a second longer. Something was definitely up about our ability to walk in so easily but whatever it was, I wasn’t interested and I wasn’t going to ruin the other girls nights. I left the bathroom before I could hear any more and almost ran into Lucas, he spun around at such a speed that it caught me off guard and I hit the wall to my left at full force when jumping back.
“Miss. Reid. I’m so sorry. Are you ok? Let me help you up” He said before lifting me off the ground at lightening speed.
“What the hell were you doing there?” I asked as I rubbed my elbow.
“I’m so sorry. I was under orders” he responded, but the look on his face told me he gave away too much.
“What kind of orders would have you standing outside the women’s toilets?” I asked with a furrowed brow.
“I’ve been assigned to make sure that you have everything you need and that no one bothers you.” He responded reluctantly.
“A bit late for that” I scoffed thinking back to the women in the bathroom.
“What do you mean?” he shot back quickly, his eyes darting back and forth around him.
“Lucas, don’t you find this a little strange? I need to speak to whoever it was that ordered you to look after me. I want to thank them and then punch them. I’m really starting to get a little weirded out by this special attention. Especially when there is nothing V.I.P about me!” I was officially concerned about what was going on and I really wanted answers. At that moment he pressed his fingers to his left and listened intently to what was being fed to him through the white earpiece inside his ear.
“Lucas?” I said trying to regain his attention.
“Yes Sir, Copy that.” he said in a submissive tone.
“Hello?” I said again, getting irritated by his lack of response.
“Miss. Reid will you please come with me?” he asked holding out his hand towards a dark stairwell to our right.
“I’m not going anywhere until you respond to my question.” I said with my feet planted firmly to the ground. What the hell was going on?
“Miss. Reid i’ve been ordered to take you into the office. Please let me take you there. I promise you will get your answers” he responded placing his hand on my lower back and beginning to usher me towards the stairs. The moment I felt his touch I felt my mind clear and I had nothing left to say. The concerns simmered below the surface but somehow a calmness seemed to envelop me and I complied. As we reached the second floor I saw a gold oak door ahead of me but the calmness hadn’t disappeared, instead I had grown more confident to handle whatever lay ahead me behind the door. Lucas knocked twice and another burly security guard dressed casually in a pair of jeans and dark blue business top opened the door slightly, looked at both of us and then opened the door fully as he stepped away. Lucas pushed me gently through the doorway and I stopped dead in my tracks the moment I caught sight of the incredible view in front of me. The spacious room had a one sided glass window that looked directly into the V.I.P section in the club below, was filled with gorgeous old woods and warm tones, but it wasn’t the contents that took my breath away. Straight ahead of me behind a large oak desk and a tall black business chat was the most incredible view of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the opera house lit up in bright lights. I had lived in Sydney my whole life and had never seen such a sight in my life. The dark night sky and stars danced above the top of the bridge but the sheer magnitude of it at this angle made the vast sky look so small.
“Thank you Lucas. Will you two please give Miss. Reid and I a moment?” a voice said from my left. It took me a second to break my gaze from the magnanimous view in front of me to register there was another person in the room. My head reluctantly turned to the left and my gaze was met with a medium height, middle aged, gorgeous dark haired and tanned skinned man dressed in a pair of black jeans and a clean white v-neck t-shirt looking straight into my eyes. The realization of his presence commanded me to stand straighter, he oozed power in every sense.
“Yes Sir” They said in unison. I raised my left eyebrow at him, trying to size him up.
“Please also let Miss. Reid’s friends know that she has a prior engagement and let them know she will be down shortly” he added before they both left the room. I couldn’t figure out what this was all about but I didn’t feel I could speak at that point, let alone ask any questions. His presence had me frozen. I heard the door click shut after the men left the room and then it was just this man and I left alone.
“Would you like something to drink?” He asked. Not breaking out gaze and moving towards the bar to his right and pouring two glasses of clear liquid from a crystal decanter.
“Ok” I responded submissively.
“Please take a seat” he said gesturing to the white sofa in front of me. I did as he said before I knew what I was doing.
“Who are you?” I asked in a mouse like voice, he chuckled before walking towards me and sitting down in the other white couch opposite me and placing a glass in front of me on the clear coffee table.
“You don’t recognize me?” he said, scooting backwards on the sofa and placing his free arm across the back of it.
“No” I answered honestly, grabbing my glass from the table.
“I’m Kyle Richardson.” I stared at him blankly.
“Doesn’t ring a bell?” he asked now looking slightly confused.
“No”
“Well, I own this club.” His eyes squared towards me, obviously trying to see if I was playing him.
“I don’t mean to be rude, but what does that have to do with me? and what does it have to do with you ordering your staff to follow me around all night?” I said confidently as I sipped from my glass.
“Ah my apologies for that. I like to ensure my V.I.P guests are always taken care of by my best security team” he responded still not giving anything away.
“And why am I a V.I.P guest?. I’m not a celebrity.”
“You may not be a celebrity but I know you frequent quite a few of my clubs, The Boom Box for one.” He was becoming infuriatingly cryptic.
“So do you treat all of your patrons with this style of treatment?”
“Only the ones that catch my attention for more than just their looks” he said taking another sip from his glass.
“You’re quite vague. If you’re trying to size me up then you may as well stop Mr. Richardson. I don’t play these kinds of games. Please just tell me why I am here and let me be on my way” I responded setting my glass down on the table with a little more force than necessary. He sat up a little when the words left my mouth before a sly grin crossed his face and a small laugh escaped his mouth.
“You’re a firecracker Antonia, straight to the point. I like it” he said still laughing. I’d had enough. I stood up, straightened my dress and picked up my clutch.
“Thank you for your hospitality but this seems to be going no where and I have a group of friends waiting for me. Have a good night Mr. Richardson.” I said, looking him straight in the eye. He was up matching my stance in under a minute.
“Antonia please wait...” he responding, grabbing my elbow gently as I turned to leave. I felt the submissive pull overtake me as another wave of calmness enveloped me. I looked down at his offending hand before meeting his gaze, waiting for him to speak. He removed his hand once he realized I wasn’t leaving, tucked one hand in his jeans pocket and ran the other through his jet black but distinguished hair before he opened his mouth to speak.
“You’re right. I don’t usually treat all my guests this way...” I went to speak but he held his hand up to silence me.
“I’ve seen you many times at my clubs and noticed the air that surrounds you. You are always immaculately understated in your look, you always have a smile plastered across your face, you always carry yourself with sophistication and class but most of all you are always aware of your surroundings. You take everything in and only speak when you have to. You aren’t like most women out there. I don’t look at you and see drama or baggage. When I look at you I see someone at ease, someone who is confident but not cocky and find myself searching for you in my clubs. I don’t usually do this, it goes against every instinct in my body but you’re intoxicating, I would like to get to know you and take you out to dinner if you would let me” He spoke with what seemed to be pure honesty. It should have immediately set off alarm bells in my head but for some reason it didn’t. I was shocked by his words and couldn’t believe them despite my head screaming at me to give him my number.
“I’m not sure what you’re playing at Mr. Richardson but I hope you’ve had a good laugh. Thank you once again but I really have to return to my friends. Have a good night” I responded, offering my hand out to him to shake.
“I’m not playing at anything Antonia. I can understand why you would think that but I am being truthful. You will see, in time.” He responded, respecting my distrust in him. He removed his hand from his pocket, took my hand gently and placed a gentle kiss on my knuckles. As he released my hand I felt him release something else that I quickly grabbed before it dropped to the floor. Looking down at the back card I noticed small inscriptions embossed in gold.
“My business card, my mobile number is on the back incase you ever want the V.I.P treatment again...or change your mind” he added. I looked up at him and searched his eyes for something unknown but they were blank.
“Thank you” I responded before turning on my heel and walking towards the door and opening it gently.
“Antonia...” he called out before I crossed the threshold. With my left hand placed on the corner of the door I turned to look at him one last time.
“Call me Kyle” he said winking at me. I shook my head and laughed.
“Goodnight Kyle” I responded before closing the door and walking downstairs.
When I finally reached my friends it was as though nothing had changed. As soon as they noticed I was back they pounced on me.
“What happened to you?” Tash asked as the girls continued dancing.
“I was taken to meet the owner” I said quietly but they had all over heard me.
“YOU MET KYLE RICHARDSON?, What was he like” Tash screamed and the girls stopped what they were doing and listened intently.
“Yes. Wait you know who he is?” I responded.
“Uh, Duh. He is like the KING of Sydney. Thats why they call him KING KYLE!” she acted like I had been living under a rock. It was only then that the name sounded familiar.
“What happened?” she said again.
“Nothing, he just wanted to make sure we were all having a good night and I thanked him for his hospitality” I said cautiously.
“Oh man! I wish I’d gone to the bathroom with you now. He is gorgeous. Such a catch and bloody single. Rumor has it he is very picky about the women he spends time with. No one has ever really spent much time with him because he is always so busy. I could have totally flirted with him. Gutted!” She said with a chuckle.
“Well he was lovely. I can see what you mean by busy!, we only met briefly” I said trying to sate her so she wouldn’t ask any more questions and luckily she didn’t.
“I’m following you every where from now on, never know when we will run into George Clooney” She said throwing her arm around my neck and giggling.
“Sure Tash, like we’ll get within three feet of him” I responded, playing along. Out of the corner of my eye I saw one of the security guards approaching and thought to myself. Not again.
“Compliments of Mr. Richardson for Miss. Reid and her beautiful friends” he said placing two bottles of Dom Perignon in gold ice buckets on the table in front of us. He then turned to me, placing a small white card in my hand and leaning down to whisper in my ear.
“From Mr. Richardson” he said before walking away.
“Wow, must have been some first meeting. Are you sure your not telling us something Antonia?” Tash said laughing as the girls cracked open a bottle and poured the contents into our glasses.
“Of course not, it’s all part of his business techniques to get us to come back” I responded accepting my glass and the girls returned to their own conversation about Kyle. I opened the envelope and pulled out the white note that was hand written:
I won’t give up. I will convince
you to come to dinner, you have
to go clubbing again sometime.
See you soon and enjoy.
Kyle
I tucked the note away into my clutch quickly before any of the girls could see it and scanned the room. I saw him standing in the corner staring intently at me with a cheeky smile on his face. I shook my head and he disappeared almost instantaneously so I rejoined the girls conversation which had switch to another topic, I was eternally grateful for the distraction of thoughts of Kyle’s words replaying in my mind.
* * * *
When we finally reached the hotel I went straight up to my suite. I had no idea what lay ahead of me for the remainder of the evening but whatever surprises Kyle Richardson had in store I planned to be prepared, so I began my routine of getting ready by running a nice soothing bath before I was due to meet with him as memories of our past replayed in my mind.
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