The street light cast a dark shadow upon his features, making his handsome face look dangerous, and the smirk on his lips looked sinister.
Eva shifted uncomfortably. It was a lie she told, but he couldn't have known that. After all, this was their second encounter.
But then, why did he look at her that way?
As if he could see right through her lies.
She shook her head inwardly. There's no way he'd know that, right? She thought.
"I've never worked here before so…" she mumbled, trailing off when his eyes narrowed and she looked away. "It's not a lie…" she continued, but his words had her heart stopping for a moment.
"Then I suppose you have an identical twin sister," he asked. Although his face remained vacant, lacking emotion, she could hear a little tease in his voice.
Eva wanted to believe it, but the intensity of his gaze didn't let her entertain the thought and quickly dismissed it.
"Sasha Stones, was it?" Smith continued.
Eva's head snapped up, and she met his gaze once again. Her hands became sweaty despite the cool breeze around them.
"I'm assuming you're Eva Stones then?" He tilted his head, his eyes never leaving her face.
He noticed her swallow an invisible lump in her throat, the small bite of her lower lip and the droplets of sweat forming on her temples.
"I don't know…" Eva began but was once again interrupted by Smith.
"Don't deny it," he said sharply. His hand slipped into his coat's pocket and took out the identification cards. "If this isn't you, then who is it?"
Eva could tell from his grim expression that another lie would get her into trouble.
The man in front of her looked easy on the eyes, her type of man, but he was no ordinary man. She had seen with her own what he could do. The fact that he was in possession of the ID card she gave to Jon meant that he had power enough to make things go his way or he owned the club itself.
"Me," she said in a soft whisper, her head bowed and lips pursed. She began kicking the sand on the ground as the fear of being kicked out and hated by him started to gnaw at her.
His burning gaze didn't soften. It remained intense and unyielding, and Eva felt every bit of it.
"I'm sorry," she apologized. She raised her head but still couldn't look him in the eyes.
A group of teenagers walked past them, glancing curiously at them before heading into the club.
"Come with me," she heard him say, and for the first time since he discovered her little forgery, she met his gaze.
Surprisingly, it didn't seem to bear any hostility or negative emotions towards her.
Eva parted her lips to speak, but he started walking before she could utter a word, and she ran after him.
They reached his car, and the driver appeared next to it as if he had never left even for a second.
"Get inside," Smith said as he opened the door to the back. He stood beside it until she was seated and shut the door himself. He then went around it where the driver held the other door for him.
The ride was silent, which made it feel longer than it should have been, and throughout the ride, Eva was too aware of herself, even conscious of how she breathed.
Finally, the car stopped in front of a restaurant and they exited the car.
Before they walked through the door, Eva caught sight of a poster at the side, her eyes narrowing, but she was only able to catch a glimpse of the title only.
A recruitment poster, she thought. Her eyes lingered longer than they should have, and she nearly walked into the wall beside the door when a hand grabbed her arm and pulled her to the side.
Eva's eyes widened, and she wanted to complain until she noticed how close she had been to colliding with the wall.
"Thank you," she said, her ears turning red with embarrassment. He just looked at her and said nothing before walking inside.
"He's definitely angry," she muttered under her breath. Giving one last glance at the poster, she followed him inside.
Once seated, a waiter walked up to them and took their order and left, and tension rose between the two along with an awkward silence.
His steely cold gaze made her even more uncomfortable and made talking much more difficult. As if he understood her dilemma, he shifted in his position and asked,
"Why Sensual Nights and a fake ID?"
"I had no other choice but to use the fake ID," Eva said after a brief pause. "No one needs to know about me. No one close to me will be affected either."
She met his gaze and was shocked to see him without judgment in his eyes.
She didn't know what she expected to see when she looked at him, but she felt relieved to see that the way he looked at her wasn't bad.
"And…?" Smith probed.
"Not many places that pay well will employ someone like me. Bars and club houses are the only places I can work," she replied. She hugged herself with one hand, and her eyes stared at the table, blinking a little too much.
Smith watched her closely. He noticed the way she bit down on the side of her lip, the way she held herself as if, if she didn't, she'd crumble. His gaze lifted back to her and then asked, "Someone like you?"
Eva didn't respond. She already felt small, like a prey. She didn't want to say more and demean herself even further.
"Here," he slid the ID towards her. "I have no use for it." Eva lifted her gaze from the catfish in front of her and looked at him. "Just know that if you are caught, everyone you are trying to protect will be in trouble. Sensual Nights isn't a place ruled by the kindhearted. Don't forget it is also a crime to forge an identity."