The Sun Isn't Supposed to Cry

In the private lounge at the club, the men teased me, asking who I would choose tonight. I gave them a sultry smile. “Whichever gentleman has the most money.” They immediately started competing over who was richer. Then the man who had been silent in the corner spoke. “Come sit here.” His voice wasn’t loud, but the noisy room fell silent in an instant. I didn’t move. He glanced around at the others and asked casually, “What, am I not rich enough?” “Sienna, are you ready? Hurry up. They’re waiting for you in Room 1888!” The manager rushed into the dressing room to hurry me along. I continued filling in my eyebrows. “Aren’t there other girls available?” “We have a lot of important guests tonight. Mr. Reed’s here, too. Those other girls can’t handle a crowd like this. We need you.” My hand paused. Victor Reed was here? “Got it. I’ll be right there.” I put on my boldest lipstick in front of the mirror. At the door to Room 1888, I put on a dazzling smile and stepped inside. The room was crowded tonight. Some of the men already had girls in their arms. Victor sat in the center. The manager hurried over and pulled me forward, smiling. “Here she is! Our gorgeous Sienna! Let’s see which lucky gentleman catches her eye tonight!” Then she turned to me. “So many gentlemen to choose from, Sienna. Who will it be?” The men loved this part. Even Victor watched me with interest. I couldn’t just say I wanted him. My eyes flickered, and I gave them a flirtatious smile. “That’s such a hard choice. How about this? I’ll pick whichever gentleman has the most money.” The room erupted. The men laughed and bragged about their wealth. I kept smiling as I watched them trade jokes. “All right, settle down. Mr. Reed hasn’t even said anything yet. You really think any of you can beat him?” said a man beside Victor. “Well, when you put it like that, the rest of us don’t stand a chance. His club, his girl. Figures.” “Exactly. We should take Mr. Reed out of the running.” I grew nervous, afraid Victor might agree. Instead, he smiled. “The lady made her terms clear. Let’s play by the rules. No special treatment.” I relaxed, thinking I had this in the bag. Then a cool, rich voice came from the corner. “Come sit here.” The room went silent. I froze, too. The people standing near the corner moved aside, and only then did I see the man sitting there. The shifting light fell across his face. My eyes widened. My feet rooted to the floor, and my entire body went rigid. He looked around the room and raised an eyebrow. “What, am I not rich enough?” “Of course you are. If you’re second, no one here would dare call himself first.” “You’re joking, Mr. Hayes.” “We’re just a little surprised. You’ve never been interested in this sort of thing before.” The men rushed to flatter him. Victor gave me a pointed look. “What are you standing there for? Go sit with him.” With Victor telling me to go, I had no choice. I had never imagined he wouldn’t be the richest man in the room. And I certainly hadn’t imagined running into Julian Hayes here. I sat stiffly beside Julian and poured him a drink with equally stiff hands. Even in that smoky, sleazy room, I could still catch the faint scent of pine on him. “What’s your name?” he asked after a while, swirling his glass. “Sienna.” I kept my head lowered, afraid to meet his eyes. “Tacky.”I had worked here for over a year. The last time I’d felt this helpless was on my first day. My mind was blank. All I could do was keep pouring Julian drinks. I didn’t even notice when Victor came over. “Why are you sitting so far away? How are you supposed to keep Mr. Hayes company like that?” Victor’s voice snapped me out of it. I glanced down at the space between Julian and me, then inched closer and gently linked my arm through his. He didn’t push me away. “Is she your top girl?” Julian asked Victor. “Come on, we run a respectable establishment. No need to put it like that. But she is the prettiest girl here, and she knows how to keep our guests happy. You could call her the face of the place.” Victor offered him a cigarette, then cupped both hands around the lighter as he lit it. Clearly, Julian outranked him. “Really? She seems pretty dull to me.” My eyelids twitched. Sure enough, Victor’s voice dropped. “Sienna, have you been neglecting Mr. Hayes?” I clenched my fists, then released them. Taking a deep breath, I slipped into the role I was supposed to play. I picked up two glasses and pressed close to Julian. “Mr. Hayes, I wasn’t feeling well earlier. You won’t hold that against me, will you? I promise I’ll take very good care of you from now on. Okay?” Julian watched me with dark, unreadable eyes. He said nothing and didn’t take the glass. His stare made my scalp prickle. Victor spoke up. “If Mr. Hayes won’t take the drink, can’t you feed it to him?” “If you don’t take it, Mr. Hayes, I’ll have to feed it to you.” He still said nothing. The atmosphere grew tense. With Victor watching, I had no choice. I gritted my teeth, took a mouthful of wine, and set down the glass. Then I knelt on the sofa, cupped Julian’s face, and passed the wine into his mouth with a kiss. I kept my eyes shut, afraid to see his expression. But I felt his body go rigid and the chill that settled over him. As I tried to pull away, he bit my lower lip. There was nothing tender about it. It just hurt. I didn’t need a mirror to know my face was burning red. Once I sat back down, Victor studied our faces, his gaze moving thoughtfully between Julian and me. My heart lurched. Fortunately, after a moment, he only laughed. “You really do have a way with women, Mr. Hayes. You’ve even made our Sienna shy.” After that, Victor and Julian began discussing a business partnership. I sat quietly beside Julian, refilling their drinks and passing them napkins while listening closely to every word. Maybe it was because my attention had shifted, but I stopped feeling so nervous around Julian. I held his arm and leaned against him naturally, as though we were lovers. It wasn’t until I noticed how warm his body had become that I snapped back to my senses. I adjusted my clothes and discreetly slipped my arm free, intending to put a little distance between us. The moment I moved, Julian clamped a hand around my thigh and held me in place. Great. Now we looked even more intimate. His expression never changed. He listened calmly as Victor spoke. Once he realized I had stopped trying to move, his fingers began brushing lightly against my leg. I didn’t know what to make of it. All I could do was grit my teeth and think: Time really does change everyone. Even Julian had learned to be bad.I drank a lot that night. It was around two in the morning when the gathering finally ended. I rushed to the restroom outside and threw up for a long time. After splashing cold water on my face, I felt a little more clearheaded. I stumbled back to the dressing room, ready to change and go home. “Sienna, Mr. Reed’s waiting for you in the lobby.” I paused and looked at my reflection. The cold water had ruined my makeup. Setting down my bag, I quickly made myself look flawless again. The elevator reached the first floor. The moment I stepped out, someone pulled me aside. It was Victor. He smelled of cigarettes and alcohol, just like I did. It was awful. “Is there something else you need, Mr. Reed?” I asked with a smile. He pointed toward Julian, who stood near the entrance. “Take him home. Make sure you look after him.” He clearly meant more than simply looking after him. I frowned before I could stop myself. “I can tell he’s interested in you.” “Mr. Reed…” Victor stroked my cheek and coaxed, “Be good. If this deal with Julian goes through, you won’t have to work here anymore. You can stay with me instead. How does that sound?” The refusal caught in my throat. Slowly, I nodded. “Okay.” I followed Victor over to Julian. Victor offered him a cigarette and smiled. “You’ve had quite a bit to drink tonight, Mr. Hayes. Let Sienna take you home.” Julian’s dark, perfectly clear eyes swept toward me. I instinctively looked away. I scoffed inwardly. He wasn’t even slightly drunk. Victor’s little scheme couldn’t have been more obvious. I thought Julian would refuse. But when his driver came to get him, he simply said to me, “Let’s go.” I tightened my grip on my bag and followed with my eyes lowered. Julian and I sat in the back seat. A soundproof partition rose between us and the driver, making the space feel even more confined. The atmosphere was strange and oppressive. I barely dared to breathe. He smelled of smoke and alcohol, too. Strangely, though, the clean scent of pine stood out more. He didn’t smell unpleasant the way the rest of us did. “Your husband lets you do this kind of work, Summer?” Julian’s sudden question made me turn toward him. He was leaning against the seat with his eyes closed. I’d almost forgotten. I had once lied and told him I was getting married. “A job’s a job. We all need money,” I replied, forcing myself to sound indifferent. “True. You have a child to support, after all.” He paused. “Is your husband really that useless? Didn’t you say he was well-off?” Was he ever going to stop? I gritted my teeth and made something up. “We’re divorced.” After a moment of silence, he slowly opened his eyes and looked at me. “What’s your relationship with Victor?” My hands tightened instinctively. “He’s my boss.” “You’re lying, Summer.” “He handed you over to me. For a business deal.” I lost patience and snapped, “What exactly are you trying to say? Are you trying to humiliate me? I lost my shame a long time ago. You can’t hurt me with this. Yes, he gave me to you tonight. Don’t worry. I’ll take very good care of you!”