“Wait,” he said loudly as Valerie turned away.
“Make sure the glass is actually clean this time. Last visit, the crystal was… cloudy. Hard to find competent staff these days, isn’t it?”
A few nearby tables glanced over.
Valerie felt heat rise up her neck but kept her expression neutral.
“I’ll personally inspect the glassware, sir.”
He waved her off like an insect.
As she walked away, she heard his dry laugh as he leaned toward the woman.
“You have to be firm, Renee. Otherwise, they get ideas. Power dynamics—you wouldn’t understand.”
At the service station, Valerie gripped the counter until her shaking hands stilled.
“That guy’s a nightmare,” muttered Tanya, the bartender. “Last time he tipped five percent and tried to get the valet fired because it was raining.”
“I can handle him,” Valerie said—though her stomach tightened. Victor Sterling wasn’t just rude. He had that bored predator look. And bored predators liked to play.
Twenty minutes later, the air at table one was suffocating.