**DISCLAIMER!!!: While you read this chapter, please understand that (as I've said hundreds of times before) there's so much you guys don't know yet! This is only chapter 15 of the 33 chapters written. Things will get worse (aka this chapter lol) before they get better, but PLEASE don't give up on our main man Jedrek. I know some of you are already hell-bent on hating him, but remember that we're all human. We make mistakes and do what we think is best in situations where our backs are against the wall. I tried making my characters as dynamic as possible. So, put your pitchforks away and know that your dear author would never end a story without a happy ending...**

Roxie's POV (plz dear god go read the disclaimer)

Minutes passed by in silence as Jedrek continued to hold me. The sound of the suite's front door opening and shutting finally popped the happy little bubble that'd been surrounding the two of us. My eyes widened as I scrambled to get dressed, too humiliated and embarrassed to even think about letting Milo see what Jedrek and I had done during his absence.

I managed to get my shirt and underwear on and was in the process of searching for my pants when Milo made his presence known.

"Oh shit," he hissed while looking back and forth between Jedrek and me, clearly assessing the state of undress we were both in. He looked me dead in the eyes with a confused stare before I saw anger take over his features.

"What the fuck is this? How dare you put your hands on my girl!" Milo shouted, stomping towards Jedrek with a semi-believable amount of made up bravado. I stepped in front of Jedrek as a shield, putting my hands out in front of me. They made contact with Milo's chest, effectively stopping him.

"Just give it up, Milo. He knows we're not real, and you heard him talking about the club earlier. The jig is up," I stressed with a deep sigh. Milo's anger disappeared immediately. "By the way, why the hell was your brother in Chicago anyway?" I asked, switching my gaze to Jedrek.

"The first time he was there, he was with my team to write the contract concerning our potential partnership with Ezekiel and his company. The few times after that, he was alone and trying to get Ezekiel to sign the damn thing, but he was always occupied with someone else," Jedrek stated pointedly, giving me an annoyed look. I wasn't sure whether it was because I was the one Ezekiel was occupied with, or because the deal kept getting pushed back. I gave him a sheepish look while shrugging my shoulders.

"So, what's your endgame here, huh?" Milo suddenly asked, aggressively taking a step closer as he glared right at Jedrek.

"Milo," I started, not wanting to cause an argument or get him anymore involved in my ridiculous drama than he already was. He was an amazing friend for all he'd done for me thus far, but he shouldn't have to put up with my problems any longer - especially when he had ones of his own waiting for him back in Chicago.

"No, Roxie," he cut me off, "he needs to answer the fucking question. So, I ask again, what's your endgame here? You stormed in here demanding to speak with her, fuck with her emotions some more, obviously slept with her, and now what? What's your next move?" Milo demanded. I took a deep breath, my heart beginning to pound a mile a minute in my chest as I stared intently at Jedrek's face. Despite my effort to stop Milo's interrogation a few seconds ago, I needed to hear Jedrek's answer. It was a valid question - one I should've asked before allowing him to get me in bed.

Jedrek swallowed harshly and released a deep sigh before finally meeting my eyes. He looked pained, but I could already hear the words he'd yet to speak loud and clear.

"Oh my God, you're going to marry her. After everything that's happened and all that you said, you're still going through with it," I choked out. I grew light-headed as everything around me started to spin. I stumbled back until my legs reached the edge of the bed and I sat on it.

"Roxie girl," Jedrek husked out, but I couldn't bear to hear another word.

"Get out!" I hissed, my chest beginning to burn from how hard I was fighting to keep my emotions at bay until he was gone. My gaze never once wavered from my hands in my lap. 

"Please, just listen to me-" he tried once again.

"Get. Out!" I screamed as forcefully as I could muster. Peering up, Jedrek looked torn between doing as I'd asked but also trying to speak with me. Milo, however, wasn't having any of it. He grabbed Jedrek's arm and swung him around so he was facing the door, his back now turned to me.

"You heard her," Milo growled before forcing him towards the door and practically throwing him out. Once he'd successfully removed Jedrek from the room, I could hear whispered words being exchanged harshly between the two. Not long after, the sound of the door slamming jarred my body for the second time.

"I'm quite literally the dumbest woman alive," I spoke as soon as Milo was within earshot.

"No, you're not. He led you on and played with your emotions. He's the dumb one. And I am too because this is partially my fault. I encouraged you to continue pursuing him. I should've never done that. I read the situation wrong and now you're dealing with the aftermath. I'm so sorry," he rasped out.

"Don't apologize for being a good friend. I never thought he would choose to continue being with her after all of this, but that was a risk I took and now I have to live with the consequences. I just can't stay here for another second. I want to go home," I hiccuped through withheld tears. Milo's concerned frown deepened before he nodded quickly and whipped out his phone. He instructed me to make sure I had all my things in order before making a quick call that only lasted about five minutes.

"I'm close friends with a client whose company jet is stored at the airport forty-five minutes away. It's being prepped for us and should be ready for take-off by the time we make it there. C'mon, let's get you out of here," he murmured softly. I nodded, wiping away the snot that threatened to drip from my nose before grabbing my things and following him out of the hotel room. My legs wobbling ever so slightly as a soreness took residence between my thighs. 

A reminder of what Jedrek and I did was exactly what I needed right now. Thank you universe. I thought sarcastically.

**

Milo took my phone from me an hour into our flight. I had discovered I could still message Ezekiel about the business opportunity with Jedrek by using the plane's WiFi. That had consequently pissed Milo off.

"I don't understand why you can't be a normal ex-girlfriend and fantasize about his downfall instead," he joked, stuffing the device into his pocket and, subsequently, out of my reach.

"Because when you love someone as deeply as I love Jedrek, you couldn't possibly wish harm on them. No matter how much you'd like to in order to regain a semblance of normalcy," I grumbled back. "Despite everything that's happened between us, and everything he's done to me, I still want the best for him. I've already told you this," I murmured. And because I know he wasn't lying when he said he never stopped loving me. That piece of info was something I planned to keep to myself. I didn't know why Jedrek was acting the way he was, but it didn't make sense. Until I figured it out, I didn't want people trying to sway me; they didn't know his heart like I did.

Milo released an exasperated sigh before letting his head flop back against his seat.

"So, what now?" he asked me, tilting his head so he was partially looking at me. I met his eyes for a fleeting second before becoming interested in my window view.

"I think my time at Rouge is over. It's nothing personal, and I plan to visit often, but I want more with my life. I finally have the means to put myself through culinary school. I think it'll serve as a nice distraction and be a fresh start; the beginning of a new chapter in my life, if you will," I explained.

"I think that's a wonderful idea. Chicago has some incredible institutions that I know you'll love," he responded with a friendly smile. He gently patted my hand before going back to reading the men's magazine he'd been previously preoccupied with.

I spent the rest of the flight lost in my thoughts. It was only when Milo shook my arm to gather my attention did I realize we'd landed and the flight attendant was ushering us off. The second I stepped off the plane steps, I was smothered between Khloe and Ivy's bodies. If I'd had any tears left to cry, I would've shed them at that exact moment. Having two of my favorite people in the world waiting for my return because they knew I'd need them meant more than I could possibly convey. Milo must've contacted them and explained what'd happened sometime during the period in which I dozed off. I returned their embraces, the three of us remaining silent for the duration of the hug. Khloe finally pulled away and pinched my chin to drag my eyes up to her level.

"It's going to be okay, I promise. You're the strongest woman I know. Ivy, Milo, and I are all going to be here to help get you through this," she insisted. I sniffled while blinking away the moisture in my eyes before nodding in reply.

"I told Milo already, but I've decided to finally apply to some culinary schools. Once the summer is over, my time at Rouge will be up. I'm ready to really try and move on with my life this time," I informed them.

"I'm so proud of you," Ivy rushed out, giving me a sideways hug. She then turned the three of us so we were facing the company car Milo called and ushered us all inside.

The entire way home, the girls filled me in on the drama and funny stories of things I'd missed while I was away, making me laugh until my sides hurt. It was a wonderful change from the constant moping I'd been doing recently.

"Khloe is leaving out the best paaart!" Ivy interjected in a sing-song voice. I raised a single brow while setting my sights on the woman in question. My interest only further piqued when she turned bright red all over and shyly averted her gaze.

"Spill!" I immediately yelled, beyond curious as to what she'd gotten into in the three days I'd been gone.

"It's nothing, really," Khloe began bashfully. I opened my mouth to goad her, but Ivy beat me to it.

"She's been seeing a client exclusively!" she blurted. My mouth dropped and my gaze instantly flew to Khloe. It wasn't unheard of for clients to book specific girls every now and then, but it was rare for them to do so numerous nights in a row. To my knowledge, there were only three girls who worked at Rouge - myself included - who'd been somewhat exclusive deals with particular clients. I knew Khloe had been tending VIP rooms more often than usual the last few days of work before I'd left - she even went in on a few of her days off for extra hours - but I hadn't given it a second thought. In reality, I just figured she had her eye on a new expensive handbag.

"Who is it? Do I know the client? Is he new or a veteran at the club? Is he cute? Show me pictures!" I sputtered my questions out rapidly. Khloe just laughed bashfully before sighing happily.

"He's new, just moved here from New York because he got relocated through his job. There was a similar style club back where he used to live, so one of his coworkers recommended he visit Rouge and put in an application. He saw me on the floor while he and Milo were walking to Milo's office to discuss initial expectations and paperwork should he be accepted and given membership. Milo said that he asked about me right away. After Milo explained how things ran, he made a very, very generous monetary offer," she said.

"Just call it what it is, babe. He straight up bribed Milo for membership so he could see you," Ivy interrupted with a wiggle of her eyebrows. I looked to Milo for confirmation. He just pretended to zip his lips and throw away the key, but I could tell by the look in his eyes that what Ivy said was true - at least partially, anyway.

"He still had to go through the normal vetting process we make every new member go through, but the monetary offer was to speed up the process and put his application on the top of the pile," Milo further explained.

"Anyway, he got membership about a month ago, but per club rules, he wasn't allowed one-on-ones with any of us for the first couple of weeks. His probationary period was up a week before you left and that's when he started requesting me in his private VIP room," she continued.

"And?!" I demanded, desperate to hear her thoughts about him. I'd never seen Khloe look so smitten ever before, even since the beginning of our friendship, so I knew this guy had to be the real deal.

"He's perfect, Roxie," she gushed, a lovestruck look taking over her face. Ivy and I squealed like little school girls while bouncing up and down in our seats.

"I need more info! Name, what he looks like, what he does for a living, tell me it all!" I insisted.

"Well, his name is Xander. He's thirty and the most beautiful man I've ever seen," she gushed, her comment invoking a scoff from Milo. She giggled and rolled her eyes at him before continuing. "I don't have a photo of him, but I have no doubt you'll see him the next time we work. He's not what you're into, he's more lean and toned," she commented while looking at me.

"What's that supposed to mean, huh?" I teased, nudging her side playfully.

"That you're into dudes that are built like a brick shithouse," she laughed.

"I wish I could say you're wrong," I giggled back.

"Where are you all being dropped off at?" Milo suddenly cut in, looking up from his phone that'd he'd been previously occupied with.

"Are you not including yourself in that statement?" Khloe asked with a single raised brow and a particular look in her eyes. Milo cleared his throat and looked back to his phone to avoid eye contact with any of us.

"No, I have other plans. I'm assuming you and Roxie's place?" he asked, further deflecting the question.

"Yes. Unless you suddenly have other plans too?" Khloe asked while looking at Ivy, though I knew the comment was a playful dig at Milo. I had a very strong feeling that I knew who Milo's "other plans" were with, but I wasn't sure how much Khloe knew or if she and I were on the same page.

"My only plans include drinking you bitches' wine and plowing into whatever take-out food we order," she grunted while patting her stomach. Milo nodded a single time before leaning forward to convey the message to the driver and going back to his text conversation. A small smile creeping onto his lips as he continued typing.

Oh yeah, I know exactly who the "other plans" included...