Jorge had to admit, even though this wasn’t his Charlotte, she certainly had the energy and experience of the woman that he had known so well. As he watched the woman dance, it was like watching an artist paint or a songwriter create, she was sheer poetry in motion, dancing with abandon and moving with such ease that it would have put anyone to shame. If she was indeed similar to his Charlotte, then she had years of experience that would have afforded her skill beyond match. And she more than proved that already.

Their song came to an end and the two of them had found themselves drawn even closer together. This wasn’t something that was rare for the crime boss. He had spent time in his own club before, traveling amongst the people, being a friendly face in the club. He rarely stepped out onto the dance floor but, like tonight, when he did it, was done with breath-taking perfection. Jorge was a man of many surprises…much like the woman that he danced with.

The two were now dangerously close. For the next several moments, Jorge had forgotten about any connection that the woman made have had to his Charlotte and instead he was looked upon her as another stranger, an enticing woman that he had picked up at his club. It was all true, of course, the only thing that was giving him pause was her resemblance to his old colleague. But those were sensations and feelings that were quickly being drowned out by the pounding in his ears.

Sweet words fell from his lips, commenting on exactly how surprising he found the woman to be. As if to push that line even closer, she edged towards him, the idea of personal space absolutely foreign to her, as she leaned up to whisper hotly into his ear.

>> ”Tell me more about it somewhere more private,”

If there were any barrier or confusion still raised between them, it was utterly gone now. There was no mistaking what the woman wanted, hell, there was no mistaking what either of them wanted at this point. While it was weird that Charlie was the spitting image of someone he knew, in that moment, none of it matter. The two had danced, physically and metaphorically, around what the both of them wanted from this little engagement so there was no need for pretense anymore.

A wicked smirk on his lips, the man whispered back into her ear. ”It’s amazingly private back at my place…” he said. ”…plus you can’t beat the view of the river.”

When he had received confirmation that that would be their next stop, the impish grin only widened as he turned and led her off the dance floor. Passing a nearby work, he whispered for them to have his car brought around to the front of the building as he was going to be taking an early night. With Charlie at his side, Jorge ascended the steps, to the entrance, where his head of security, Duke Manchester was waiting. Duke was a large man, dark of skin, around the same age as Jorge but built like a tank. He was the first to step forward, opening the back door of a sleek, black town car, for both Jorge and his guest.

Duke eyed the blonde for a second. There was an odd sense of familiarity in his eyes, but he hadn’t know Charlotte as long as Jorge had. Not thinking twice about the strange sense of déjà vu, he simply smirked as he then nodded to club owner. “Have an excellent night, boss.”

Jorge just chuckled, waiting for Charlie to climb in first before he nodded to his employee and friend. ”There’s little doubt of that at this point, my friend.” He started to climb in before he stopped and gestured to Duke. ”Don’t burn my club down.”

Duke snorted. “With all this water around, I doubt that’s possible, sir.”

The door closed, the driver already knowing where they were going, and the duo was off, to other adventures that would await them; adventures that would include a penthouse view.

The idea that they could go somewhere private seemed to spur Jorge on. With the okay from her, he bent down and suggested that they go back to his penthouse. Oh, yeah. He was definitely loaded. People short on cash didn’t have penthouses with views of the river. If there had been any doubt in her mind that he was making stuff up, it was dispelled in that moment. She was going to his penthouse with a view of a river.

Charlie had put her hand on the back of his neck as he bent forward, and she stood there now, purring under her breath. ”That sounds like a plan,” she said, as if that would have any impact on the course of the evening at that point. They both knew where it was leading and what they would be doing. Having a view of the river during it didn’t sound bad, either. In fact, it was probably going to be one of the nicest… meetings that she’d had in awhile.

After Charlie had grabbed her discarded jacket, the two of them exited the club and walked to the car that Jorge had parked outside, because of course he had a car parked outside. What kind of person with any money didn’t have a car parked outside?

Charlie winked at the man standing outside of the car, figuring that he likely worked for the man that she was accompanying home. Again, he had an odd phantom of a look, as if he recognized her from long ago, despite the fact that it was completely impossible. Charlie ignored it in favour of climbing into the vehicle.

She ignored the conversation outside, her common sense as a private investigator having been turned off for the evening. If she wanted to know something, then she was just going to get it out through other means.

The ride to his building was relatively short, given that they were in New York traffic, but they made do in the back of the car. Charlie, at least, knew how to keep him entertained. By the time they had gone upstairs, there was already a level of comfort that had been achieved.

He really hadn’t been kidding. The view was fantastic. Upstairs, Charlie found it difficult to tear herself away from a window. Really, there wasn’t any reason to, so long as he joined her there.

The trip back to his penthouse was more than entertaining. Sitting in the back of his town car, the older man grinned from ear-to-ear as he watched Charlie entertain herself with the interior. However, she wasn’t some vapid blonde who had never been in the back of one of these vehicles before. Actually, after it served as only the briefest interaction, the two eventually found other means to pass the time. Means that, while they were not foreign to the back seat of this vehicle, were indeed a pleasure to behold. However there was only so much to be done before the vehicle came to a halt in a seemingly short amount of time.

The building towered, several stories high, and at the top most floor, that was where Jorge Cervantes resided.

The man moved confidently through the interior, smiling and nodding his head to individuals whom worked there. They all clearly knew who Jorge Cervantes was and the importance that he carried with him. A smile on his lips, the man moved with an almost regale air about him, as if he were something that commanded the combined respect of this part of town – and in a way he did. It was his influence, his power, his money that actually helped to revitalize this area but for mutant kind. To them he was a savior and to everyone else, he was a threat.

But what did young Charlie, thing? In the end, as they climbed into the elevator and she continued with her teasing and alluring touches, he doubted that it mattered. After the night’s festivities, there was only one thing on the both of their minds.

Exiting the elevator and stepping through the only door in the hall, Jorge swung his door open to allow Charlie entry.

It was exactly what he had described it as. The penthouse was rather large, taking up the entire top floor of the building. There was a clear, man’s touch to the place but nothing that was overtly masculine and stereotypical. As a matter of fact, it harkened back to the classics days where woodgrain, browns, and leathers were the epitome of taste and culture. Jorge had always considered himself an old soul born in the modern age, as he strolled into his living quarters, the man suddenly fit into like a hand into a glove. It suited him, from the classic woodwork to the small brass knick-knacks that were littered about. But the most impressive were the glass windows. The size of entire walls, they looked out over the New York skyline, the view of the river quite breathtaking to those who weren’t expecting the grandeur and majesty it beheld.

Jorge smirked, saying nothing as Charlie found her way throughout the penthouse. As she did so, with his permission, Jorge turned and strolled over to a bar that was situated against the far wall. It was there that he fixed a drink for the both of them, whatever the woman wanted, he had in stock, and only the best of.

The glasses clinked and clanged, ice within stirred by the liquid they held. Jorge made his way across the penthouse, finding Charlie standing and looking out one of the massive windows of the high rise. He smirked, watching her from behind for a tick before he spoke up.

”As I said…hell of a view.” the subject of his viewership, the landscape or the woman herself was not clarified, not that it really had to at this point. As he approached her from behind, Jorge snaked his arm around to her front, offering her the new drink. At this same time, the immoral charmer leaned down, the scruff of his cheek brushing against her neck just before he planted a small kiss there. He smirked, words whispered into her ear. ”Thoughts?”

Charlie was well used to being up high. As a self-proclaimed dare devil, she had jumped from just about every peak that there was to jump from. Sometimes she did it with parachutes, and sometimes she just jumped. It was always a little more fun to experience the rush of falling the whole way down.

Despite her numerous experiences with height, she still admired it. Standing in that penthouse with a view of most of the city was incredible. She could spot each building and see far into the river. It would be a perfect place for work, too. So much better than her current apartment which was only midway up the building. It was just too bad that it was in a completely different world and whatever they were doing there probably wasn’t going to be a permanent thing.

Jorge was clearly loaded, and he had chosen well in terms of real estate. Charlie was incredibly jealous, but she had to look on the bright side and commend her earlier self for a good choice in a person to go home with.

Jorge had offered her another drink, and she took another whisky. She didn’t want anything frilly and it seemed like it would be best to stick with what had worked before. She waited at the window, not bothering to offer to help. She wanted to be charmed, after all. After a few minutes and some sounds of glasses clinking, a hand appeared in front of her with a fresh glass of the liquid.

>>”As I said…hell of a view.”

”I’d hate to see what you’re paying for rent,” she chuckled, her eyes fixed on the city in front of her. He was a king in his castle with a full view of his citizens below. She felt powerful and important standing there. There and at the club both he had been in charge of his domain, and it was incredible to see. She wondered what he used his power for.

Charlie took the glass from him and took a sip, staying still while he kissed her neck. His scruff felt rough on her skin, but she didn’t mind. She was no stranger to rough.

>>”Thoughts?”

”Do you want to hear my thoughts or do you want to do what we came to do?” Charlie asked, turning around and placing her liquor on a nearby table. She stood back up straight and undid his tie, pulling the fabric slowly from his collar. ”I mean, I’m fine to stand here and wax poetic, but there are other things we could be spending our time on.”

>> ”I’d hate to see what you’re paying for rent,”

Jorge couldn’t help the devilish smirk that pulled at the corners of his lips. Shaking his head as he leaned in close to the woman, his lips finding the back of her neck, the stubble upon his chin lightly scratching against her fair skin, he whispered back to her.

”Heh. When you own it, that’s hardly an issue.” he said, planting another kiss.

The woman was intoxicating and while she carried with her a ghost of his past, that wasn’t fully what fueled his actions. The woman had been receptive, she had been drawn to him, mostly for all the wrong reasons. However that wasn’t something that was of a concern for him. She was an adult, she made her own decisions, and if she chose to throw herself so blatantly at a man like him, who was he to argue with her? Besides, it wouldn’t be the first time that the businessman had indulged the fancies of wealth or adventure-seeking persons.

As she pushed back against him, Jorge just smirked, letting himself get caught with whatever scent ran through her hair and dotted her skin. Framed against the darkened view of the city, it truly must have been a romantic setting – for most. For Jorge this wasn’t about romance, it was about seduction, even if he didn’t need to try that hard, it was not something that he could easily ignore.

Charlie, on the other hand, seemed all about being blunt on the matter. When he asked for her thoughts, the blonde was quiet for a moment before she sipped her drink, set it aside, and turned to face him. The look in her eyes was unmistakable and curl of her lips made the man grin from ear-to-ear. She started to undo his tie, pulling the fabric from around his neck as her tone of her voice became very husky and very direct.

>> ”Do you want to hear my thoughts or do you want to do what we came to do? I mean, I’m fine to stand here and wax poetic, but there are other things we could be spending our time on.”

A chuckle on his lips and Jorge took on last sip of his drink before setting it on the side. There was certainly no more need for words.

---Fade to Black---

---

The night could have stretched on forever and Jorge wouldn’t have minded. If that had been his last night on earth, he could have gone into the nether with a smile on his face, no matter which judgement awaited him at the end of the glowing tunnel. Charlie had been a welcome distractions and in the midst of their activities, thoughts of Charlotte rarely managed to intrude. There were clearly differences between the two, but there were some things that apparently transcended dimensions. The thought would make him chuckle in the morning hours.

As the light of day streaked through the large, wall-sized windows, Jorge blinked away, pulling himself up from bed. A glance over his shoulder and he found the blonde hair of his companion still splayed across a pillow. To be fair he had half expected her to have collected her stuff and been long gone before dawn even broke. And yet he wasn’t entirely displeased with the fact that she was still here. Last night had been fun, of course, but there were still mysterious that needed to be solved.

But that could wait until after he showered. Climbing out of bed, pulling on his silken pajama bottoms, Jorge exited his bedroom and made for the kitchen. There he set coffee to start brewing before he moved back into the bedroom and into an adjoining bathroom. Moments later there would be the sound of water as it rained down from several large showerheads. It was time to start the day anew.

The evening had been an excellent distraction from life. For a while, Charlie had even gotten a little lost in the experience and had forgotten that she had crossed space and time to be in a completely different version of her world. Jorge was mysterious and interesting, and excellent at whatever he did. It was strange and endearing, and definitely not sustainable.

She woke to the sound of a shower running in the next room, finding herself alone on her back on a strange bed, staring at a ceiling that looked more expensive than the ones she usually stared at. Her hair was a mess behind her and she could feel the sticky sweat of exertion on her skin. It was hardly the first time that she’d woken up in a situation like that, but each time that she did it was a little different. That morning was no exception.

A part of her had wanted to leave as soon as he fell asleep, but something had kept her there the whole night. It was rare for her to do so at that point, since it was considered to be a rather romantic thing to do. People got less attached when they didn’t see you sleep. Still, she had stayed, and she didn’t regret it. Weird.

Jorge hadn’t killed her in her sleep, which was something that she had considered might happen the night before. There was something that was weirdly dangerous about him, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. She wouldn’t have blamed him if he had killed her, though. She seemed to have a face that made people want to snuff her lights out.

But no, she was alive. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, orienting herself to the new surroundings. The apartment was even nicer looking in the pale morning light than it had been doused in the electric lighting of New York City the night before. She could smell the coffee brewing a little ways off, and the shower was definitely coming from the adjoining room.

Charlie stood up and stretched unashamedly in front of the wall-length window before taking a step toward the door. She opened it wide and slipped into the shower behind Jorge. Charlie already wasn’t famous for her understanding of boundaries, and she figured that they were well past any sort of worry about decency.

”Morning,” she greeted cordially as she let the water run over her pale features. Any scent of the night before was washed away by the stream, making way for a fresh day.

Jorge wasn’t exactly sure what to except from Charlie when the morning came but those thoughts weren’t prevalent to the man’s mind at the time. He was too enamored with the woman, with what she had represented for him to actually give it too much thought. Dance, alcohol, music, and the heavy allure of chemistry in the air had pulled the strings enough for him to bring her back to his place where the two had engaged in whatever carnal desires were called for. It wasn’t romance, it was just sex, something that the man had engaged in quite regularly in similar scenarios. This was different though; she was still here once the morning came and…he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about that.

On the one hand, part of him should have felt annoyed. They had their fun, there was no deeper meaning beyond it and at dawn she should have gathered her things and left as so many others had in the past. However, on the other, he wasn’t at all irritated. Maybe it was her heavy resemble to a person whom he had known closely, maybe she was just that much fun last night, but whatever the reason, Jorge wasn’t entirely off-put by the fact that she was still here.

What was off-putting was the fact that Jorge wasn’t exactly sure how to proceed from here. Therefore, he did the only thing that he could – he went about his morning routine. Coffee was prepped and brewing, teeth were brushed, and now the man was in the midst of a shower. He would treat this morning as any other morning until something changed enough to draw his attention to it.

That was when the shower curtain opened and in stepped a very nude, very bold, and now very wet Charlie. Jorge stood there, a little dumbfounded for a second as she greeted him, standing under the shower head, watching her as watered dribbled down the curves of her body. Still with soap in his hair, Jorge arched his eyebrow, watching for a second before he finally did respond with an equally respectful tone, ”Good morning.”

Only the sounds of the shower continuing to spill around them filled the space. The haze of the steam furled and unfurled all around them, making the shower looked as if a thunderstorm were about to break. Moving under one of the other shower heads, Jorge rinsed the soap out of his hair, keeping an eye on Charlie as she went about her own bathing routine. Again, this was just a tad awkward for the man as it was partially unfamiliar to him. So, instead he did his best to just roll with it.

”Sleep…well?” he asked. Because, really, what else was there to say? As he said this picked up a bottle of soap and kindly offered it to the woman whom he was now sharing his shower with. He wasn’t going to be rude, after all.

Yeah, she’d needed that shower. The night before had been fun, but it had also been sweaty, and Charlie didn’t like to go places when she smelled. Sure, she died fairly often, but that didn’t mean that she couldn’t have good personal hygiene. If Jorge had a shower, then she was sure as hell going to use it. Even if it was occupied. She was just making herself at home.

She’d greeted him politely and then proceeded to go about her usual morning routine. She didn’t want sex and she didn’t expect him to do anything; she really just wanted a shower and she wasn’t good with boundaries. Besides, it wasn’t like there was anything there that she hadn’t seen the night before.

Jorge, on the other hand, didn’t seem to know what to do with her. It surprised her a little; he had seemed so suave the night before, and it was funny to see him put off his game. She smirked at him and quirked her eyebrows, which probably only made things worse.

>>”Sleep…well?”

Charlie shrugged. ”About as well as usual. You?” She’d slept fine. His bed was comfortable. It was a weird thing to make small talk with, but he was clearly having trouble being casual about it, so she bit.

She thanked him and took the bottle of soap, squeezing some out onto her hand before handing it back to him. Charlie kept her eyes on him as she lathered. ”Is there something wrong, Jorge?” she asked innocently, trying to prod him out of his shell of awkwardness.

There was no expectation from her. He could whistle, stay silent, go about his routine, pleasure himself, or do whatever the hell else he wanted and she wouldn’t care. Charlie didn’t typically spend more than a night with one person, and she wasn’t interested in anything more with him if he didn’t have anything else to offer her. All she wanted was a shower. Was that so wrong?

Okay so maybe Jorge was a little unsure of what to do with the situation now. Understandably, this was a situation that was kind of without precedent. Of course, he had those one-night stands who would try to awkwardly stick around in the morning, offering to make breakfast or talk about last night or even insinuate that they could stick around a bit longer if he wanted them do. Those were not unknown to him but, always, but Jorge had usually been able to handle them with grace and patience. Jorge wasn’t a “relationship” type of person and reminding others of that had almost become second nature to him.

However, this time it was different. While he and Charlie had their fun last night (and again in the early morning hours), he didn’t peg her as the type to stick around. Once dawn broke, he had expected to find the other side of the bed completely empty. Even when he found her there, he wasn’t all that put off by it, rather what did surprise him was the woman’s apparent complete lack of personal boundaries.

Standing in the shower, watching her climb in as if she owned the place and began her own routine, he was admittedly surprised. To throw more perplexing logs onto the fire was the fact that she seemed almost cold about it. She wasn’t trying to ignite his passions, she wasn’t excitedly trying to insert herself into his life, rather she was just…there. It was almost as if they were roommates (again, definitely with boundary issues) and this was actually part of her systematic approach to the morning.

Really, momentarily unsure of what else to do, he simply asked how she had slept. That seemed like a safe enough conversation to engage in, at least until he could get an idea of where all this was going.

>> ”About as well as usual. You?”

He nodded. ”Same.” Really there didn’t need to be much else to say. Instead he reached over, taking the bottle of soap and offering it to her. She took it, squeezing some of the contents into her hand before she started to lather. He watched her, his amusement at the whole situation beginning to shine through as he just smirked. This really couldn’t have been more interesting at this point.

>> ”Is there something wrong, Jorge?”

”Not a thing.” Still with a grin, the crime boss slowly shook his head. Instead he finished running his hands through his wet hair, closing the gap between them with a step as he looked down at her. ”I said last night but…you truly are a full of surprises.”

As entertaining as this was, Jorge needed to press on. They had their fun, and it was fairly amazing, but there were still questions that he needed to have answers to. He needed to know about the other side, about the people there, about how things worked and what didn’t. But, most of all, he wanted to know if there were more to Charlie than she was letting on.

Giving her a mysterious, yet knowing look, Jorge grinned as he excused himself, climbing out of the shower and grabbing a towel from the rack. As he dried himself out before wrapping the same towel around his waist, he grabbed a second one from a linen closet and placed it on the rack closest to the shower so it was easily in her reach once she was done. After he took a few steps back, Jorge turned to face the mirror as he began to comb his hair. His eyes on the mirror, he didn’t turn to face her as he addressed the blonde.

”Listen…last night was great…” he complimented. ”But today I have to head back to the club to handle some business…”

It was a familiar speech, or at least it shoulder have sounded like one. He needed to head to the office or she assured his bedmate that she could stick around, maybe even eat something, but to make sure to lock the door on her way out. Essentially, hang around if you must but leave before he gets back. Most those experienced with bed hopping with powerful individuals would know it. However, Jorge had his own surprises. After he adjusted his hair, he finally turned back around, his eyes on the shower door.

”…I would like you to come with me.” A charming smile. The charisma seeped back into his silken voice, the made recuperating from his earlier confusion. ”That is…unless you have other plans in mind for exploring this world?”

It had seemed for a while that Charlie had completely thrown Jorge off his game and she was going to have to deal with a stammering man for the rest of the morning, but he had recovered from his little bout of astonishment. There really was nothing to be afraid of, after all. It was the same thing that he had seen all the night before, only in a different context.

She was, admittedly, full of surprises, and Charlie doubted that he could even guess the half of them, but she snorted nonetheless. With a shake of her head, she brushed off the comment. ”You’re one to talk, mister ‘I’m merely a local businessman,” she replied, throwing his world back at him verbatim.

She had been surprised by him. He had seemed like someone important for their conversation, and she had no doubt that he was powerful, but owning a penthouse apartment in the middle of Manhattan was a different matter. It was impressive, to say the least.

Jorge left the shower, leaving Charlie to take full advantage of the complete stream of water. She was finished with her regular routine, but she took a moment to appreciate the hot water that didn’t sputter or threaten to turn cold like it did at her apartment. Yeah, she could certainly live like that.

Still, she knew that it wasn’t something built to last beyond that night. Charlie didn’t do romance or relationships; she was built for one night stands and casual situations. She had learned her lesson long ago that any relationship she had was just going to be work and would only end up as a set of painful emotions later down the line. Plus, people didn’t often take the fact that she would never age very well. It was great for her, but it sucked for the ageing partner.

Jorge didn’t seem like the kind to want to get invested in anything lovey-dovey, either, which was part of the reason that Charlie didn’t mind staying for the morning. There seemed to be an understanding between them which made her feel very comfortable.

So, she turned off the tap when he started on the usual spiel, ready for what was coming. She was well used to the speech that he was starting, having heard it many times before, as if the person that she had slept with had thought that she, of all people, might get attached or want to stay longer than she was welcome.

He had trailed off part way through as he fixed his hair or something, so Charlie took the silence as an opportunity to step out of the shower and wrap herself in the towel that he had left out for her. She could finish the speech for him, by that point. She thought that she knew where he was going with it, so it was easy enough to tack on the words that he had trailed off from. ”I’m sure I’ll be able to find some coffee and close the door on my way out. I’m a big girl, Jorge. Don’t worry, I don’t want to make this any more awkward than-”

>>”…I would like you to come with me. That is…unless you have other plans in mind for exploring this world?”

Charlie stopped, dripping on the bathroom floor, and cocked her head at him. She had really misjudged him. She did her best to stay at face value whenever possible, but apparently, she hadn’t done a good enough job and he was falling or wanting companionship. Ugh. This was the worst situation.

”Look, Jorge,” she started politely, deciding to let the old man down easily. ”You’re a nice, rich guy, and honestly, if I was still in my sugar daddy stage, then maybe I would consider something long term here, but I’m really not looking to start anything. It’s better for the both of us if I just leave, I think.”

She sighed and shook her head as she ran her fingers through her hair. Damn, they had been so close to something that worked.

It was probably a mistake for Jorge to reveal this side of himself to someone whom he didn’t know at all, but after last night , there was something about the woman that actually made him want to trust her. Really, he probably should be more careful but everything about this woman was way too much like Charlotte to be a coincidence. Yes, she wasn’t actually Charlotte, but he had a feeling that there were far more similarities between the two woman than he initially believed.

Of course that meant that he would have to get the woman to trust him. She was from a different universe. While she may have had some of the same mannerisms and beliefs as his own Charlotte, she also had some differences that were worth noting. Would anything about the Syndicate’s operations appeal to her? He wouldn’t just foist her into it, but if she was indeed a mutant, then he could certainly use allies on the other side. Charlotte had always been practical and logical in those respects, something that he respected, which was why she rose so high in the ranks.

Would Charlie had a similar path before her?

As the kingpin continued his grooming regiment of smoothing back his hair and keep his beard combed, he straightened up and started to explain to the blonde that their night had been great but that he had to return to the club to handle some affairs. As he explained this, though, it seemed that Charlie tried to predict where the conversation was going.

>> ”I’m sure I’ll be able to find some coffee and close the door on my way out. I’m a big girl, Jorge. Don’t worry, I don’t want to make this any more awkward than-”

It was practically. Clearly she wasn’t unaccustomed to hearing it and, in all fairness, Jorge had said it a number of times himself to men and women who had attempted to extend their time in his presence. Jorge was actually surprised for a moment to hear those words coming out of Charlie’s mouth, almost as if she had stole something from him that he was looking forward to saying. Of course, that actually wasn’t what was on Jorge’s mind. At all.

So, he clarified. He explained that trying to ditch her was not actually his endeavor, but rather he was trying to invite her to come along with him. Now it was her turn to be caught off guard. Charlie was quiet for a moment, staring at him closely before she finally took on a low of something akin to annoyance and disappointment. What an odd reaction.

>> ”Look, Jorge…You’re a nice, rich guy, and honestly, if I was still in my sugar daddy stage, then maybe I would consider something long term here, but I’m really not looking to start anything. It’s better for the both of us if I just leave, I think.”

He stared at her. For awhile he stared at her as she finished drying off her hair and shaking her head in disappointment. He wondered if he should actually be offended by her words but, instead of wounded, he actually was amused. After a second of staring, a low rumble could be heard from his throat. Choking? Sobbing? Crying that he couldn’t make it work with someone amazing? No. None of that. Actually, it was laughter, one spurred on by complete and utterly amusement at the pair of shiny brass ones that the blonde sported. Shaking his head in response, Jorge just walked up to her, his hands hanging loosely at his sides, swaying naturally with each step. The man had a clear strut about him, natural and not at all forced, a sign of his natural charisma and power.

”Wow.” he said, still chuckling as he re-entered the bedroom, leaving Charlie in the bathroom but leaving the door open so that she could hear. ”Listen sweetheart. Last night really was great, but try to not flatter yourself too hard.”

He grinned devilishly towards her. Pressing a button on the side of a wall, a hang wardrobe slowly emerged from the wall. As that happened, he slipped away to a dressed, and pulled it open where he grabbed a few essentials, including boxer shorts. Unwrapping the towel from his waist with no shame (not that he needed any), he dressed as he spoke.

”I’m earnestly asking if you would be interested in coming back to the club. I think I have something you might…like.” He then smiled as he started to button up a shirt he had pulled from the rack, advancing on her. ”Come on, Charlie. What’s another couple of hours?” A broad smile. He then tried to sweeten the pot as he adjusted his cufflinks. ”I’ll even throw in free drinks and front you a stack of chips to play the tables. Sound good?”

Okay, so perhaps Charlie had gotten a little ahead of herself.

Jorge didn’t want what she’d assumed that he wanted. In reality, he wanted… something? A business deal, maybe? She wasn’t sure exactly what for, but it was worth finding out. So long as he really didn’t want something romantic.

It really seemed like he didn’t, though. He was even laughing at the idea. She understood being a bit thrown off, or even finding the idea hard to picture, but the laughter was a little much. The blonde stood in the doorway with a sour expression, her hip jutted and her hair still tangled as she regarded him. It wasn’t as if he was relationship material either.

”Well I can’t say that I’ve ever accompanied a one night stand back to a bar,” Charlie admitted, her voice a little sharper than before. The idea of falling for her wasn’t that absurd, was it? It had definitely happened before. He was just too spoiled up there in his penthouse.

She did the best that she could to complete her morning routine and comb her long hair with the items that she pilfered from his bathroom, and by the time she walked back into his room, she was mostly ready. She didn’t often carry a lot on her, so she was pretty much screwed in terms of makeup and extra clothes. If she was going to go out again, it would be in the same clothes that she had worn the night before. It would be her second walk of shame that week.

Charlie walked back into the bedroom and pulled on her clothes as Jorge got dressed at the other end of the room. The man even had a stinking moving closet, of all the things to waste money on.

>>”I’m earnestly asking if you would be interested in coming back to the club. I think I have something you might…like. Come on, Charlie. What’s another couple of hours? I’ll even throw in free drinks and front you a stack of chips to play the tables. Sound good?”

She narrowed her eyes and made her lips thin for a moment as she considered his offer. She didn’t really have any plans other than exploring, so it didn’t sound like the worst idea. She wasn’t sure if she completely trusted Jorge, but it wasn’t like she had anything to lose. Plus, free drinks and game chips sounded like a pretty damn good deal.

”Alright, fine,” she relented, shaking her head and throwing her hands up in the air. She was going back to that bar during the day. Day drinking wasn’t the worst thing in the world, and it wasn’t all that bad of a plan. ”Show me what’s so interesting. If it’s some ploy for more sex, though, then there will be consequences.”

She tacked on the last sentence with her finger extended to point at him. It was a pointless warning at that point, but it was worth putting out there, even just to make sure that it wasn’t the case. She’d seen some crazy things in her time.

Truth be told, Jorge didn’t have a lot of personal connections. In his ascent to power, the kingpin had learned early on that connections could be costly. Oh he had his paramours every now and again, there were some that even lasted passed the coveted “one-night stand”, but those were rare and they fizzled out fairly quickly. As the years passed and that part of him no longer sought the necessity of human companionship, he quickly learned that it was absolutely for the best. Connections made one weaker so it was best that there were as few people as possibly allowed within his inner circle.

Charlie, while she had been an amazing bedmate, was certainly not someone whom he was in love with. She was great in bed but, aside from that, he knew nothing about her. That was a point that he wanted to change, of course, but not out of romantic interest. Rather, he wanted to see the type of woman that she was when compared to the Charlotte whom he had helped to raise from nothing. It was silly to assume that Charlie was anything like Charlotte just because she looked like an exact copy of her, but there was more to it than that. He had a feeling that there was more in common between them than she was letting on.

Sitting, as he passed, slightly mocking the idea that he had been after something more romantic from her, he did note the small pout on her lips. He said nothing though, instead busying himself with gathering his clothing for the day. A finely pressed suit, much like the one that he had been wearing last night, only now with a tie of the deepest red. He continued to adjust his cufflinks as she stepped out of his bath, fairly made up and seeking out her clothing.

It was then that Jorge had revealed his plan. It wasn’t that he was after her to just have companionship, he had something he wanted to let her in on. The mysteriousness of his words should have been enough to pique the woman’s interest – and, if not, well, a bribe would surely cover the rest. He had a hint of the woman’s personality last night, seeking out drinking, gambling, seemingly drawn to vices. He wasn’t going to deprive her of that, especially when they were going to a club where both were freely available.

He stopped, tilted his head as he slipped his hands into the pockets of his trousers and waited for her to answer. He wouldn’t have been surprised if she said no, especially since she seemed sooooooo disappointed that he wasn’t after her as a romantic partner. But, entice by something that he had said, Jorge smirked as she moved through the conflict in her mind and just tossed up her hands in defeat.

>> ”Alright, fine…Show me what’s so interesting. If it’s some ploy for more sex, though, then there will be consequences.”

He stopped. He chuckled and shook his head. ”I assure you, it’s not.” He confirmed, still, the devilish light in his eyes glistened. ”However, should the situation arise, the sofa in my office is quite comfortable.”

A wink and Jorge turned his back to her, grabbing a jacket and his shoes from the closet and gave it a gentle shove where it started to recede back into the wall. Claiming a seat at the edge of the bed, Jorge finished dressed, grabbing his keys and wallet, before he made his way back out to the kitchen. Pouring coffee for the two of them, he set Charlie’s aside, along with appropriate mix-ins used to make coffee sweeter or better tasting. He still preferred his black.

Taking a sip as he waited for Charlie to finish dressing and join him, Jorge paused as he watched her. One thing that should have been painful apparent last night were the number of visibly mutated individuals in the club. He club was secretly known as a safe place for mutants to congregate, where they wouldn’t be judge and they could have as grand a time as anyone else. Feeling it was time to maybe test the woman a bit.

”Though I’m certain this is an obvious question…” he stared the second he saw her stepping out of the bedroom, wearing the same clothing as last night. ”…I take it that the mutant phenomena does exist in your world?” He gave her a soft smile. ”How is their situation where you are from?”

Charlie rolled her eyes at the comment about the sofa in his office. If she was going to be going to work with him, then she was going to work. The idea of sex had come and gone, and now she was interested in other things. Things like finding out exactly what he wanted from her. Other than the sex.

Clothed, Charlie followed Jorge out into the kitchen. Her phone and wallet were still in her jacket where she’d left them, so there was nothing to worry about on that account. Not that he needed to steal the $40, her fake I.D.s, or her punch cards to the local bars on the other side of the rift that occupied the space in her wallet.

She picked up the mug on the countertop and nodded a thanks to him before downing half of the liquid. Coffee wasn’t coffee if you put anything else into it. She rested her arms on the countertop and leaned forward as she watched him, clearly poised to say something important.

>>”Though I’m certain this is an obvious question… I take it that the mutant phenomena does exist in your world? How is their situation where you are from?”

Charlie took a moment to think before nodding slowly. She hadn’t even considered the fact that mutants might be different or have a different situation on the other side of the vortex. What a strange idea. Were they persecuted or hunted there? Or maybe they had no troubles and they had reached a level of acceptance that her own world was still many years away from? That was definitely something worth looking into.

Her lips pursed for a minute as she decided how best to approach her answer. As she thought back to the night before, she clearly remembered there being mutants opening using their powers around them at the bar, so it wasn’t as if Jorge hated them or forced them out of the place that he owned. Even some of the dancers had been mutants. It was actually strange that she hadn’t noticed it more when she was there.

Still, Charlie wasn’t entirely sure where he fell on the subject. She had nothing to lose other than a location setback by telling him, but it was still the only thing that she really had that was a mystery to him. She wanted to keep that to herself until she knew a little more.

”Mutants exist. They live their lives. Some people have issues with that, and some people don’t, but everyone gets over it eventually,” she replied vaguely. ”What’s it like over here? Does everyone lose their s*** if someone has a tail?”

She picked up her mug and finished off the last bit of coffee. ”Now, are you just going to talk about taking me places or are we actually going to go?” She was getting a little anxious, really. She didn’t like not knowing things if it was in her power to find out.

Her eyeroll concerning the mention of a sofa only earned her a chuckle from the watermancer as he left her to finish dressing. Though he didn’t want to admit it, he knew that the only reason that part of him was considering showing her around was because she resembled Charlotte. There was every possibility that she was some goodie-two-shoes or, worse yet, a human. At least she wasn’t an adapted. Just judging from the time he had spent with her, he felt no wane of his abilities. That was all the proof he needed about her in that respect.

Leaving her a mug of coffee on the counter, Jorge finished making his own, taking a sip from it as he leaned back against the opposite counter, watching her lean forward. She took a grateful sip but she wouldn’t get to enjoy it in silence. He had a question for her, an opening serve, as it were, in the discussions to come. How was the mutant situation where she was from?

Truth be told, there wasn’t a lot yet known about the other world. Mutants could be extinct, they could be sideshow freaks, they could be the most powerful rulers on the planet. These were questions he wouldn’t know the answers to unless he spoke to someone on the other side; hence why he was currently addressing Ms. Charlie.

>> ”Mutants exist. They live their lives. Some people have issues with that, and some people don’t, but everyone gets over it eventually…What’s it like over here? Does everyone lose their s*** if someone has a tail?”

He nodded his head, mulling over the words that she uttered. So far it actually seemed fairly lax on the other side. That itself made the man smile a knowing smile. S.U.P.E.R. wasn’t exactly quiet with their actions. Most of the citizens of the city knew of these government agencies but not by name. Men in Black, FBI, whatever they chose hide behind, their presence would certainly be known. However, maybe if there was such an organization on the other side, it was just better at hiding itself.

Interesting.

When asked about what it was like on this side, the kingpin slipped another grin upon his lips as he lifted the mug, hiding his expression and taking a long sip. ”Decidedly different.”

>>. ”Now, are you just going to talk about taking me places or are we actually going to go?”

He could see that she was getting a little antsy. It seemed that the morning awkwardness had shifted victims and now Jorge was once again in the role of power; a situation he rather enjoyed. So, with an elegant wave of his hand, he gestured to the door, allowing her to start. After all, why deny himself an amazing view?

---

The trip back to the club was done in relative silence. Rather than have a driver, Jorge decided to drive his own car, a smoky gray Jaguar that looked as expensive as one could imagine. Where before his conversation seemed to be gearing up to go, the second he got into the car with Charlie, Jorge fell into a silence. But it wasn’t tense or judgmental, but rather that of someone who didn’t want to reveal all of his cards yet. He zoomed through the streets with abandon, only grinning as he took a sharp turn or two. It made the trip far quicker than it normally would be, and thus there was no need to talk.

Pulling up to the club which looked decidedly different than in the dead of night. Jorge drove around the back and into a nearby garage door which had begun to raise at his approach. Driving in, the garage looked fairly normal but clearly more well-kept. Smooth, clean walls, tools of all kinds, and people (security employees) milling about. Coming to a stop, Jorge sighed as he climbed out of the car, not bothering to tell Charlie anything as he marched on.

Whenever Charlie finally caught up with him, he would speak. ”The one thing you need to know about this world, Charlie, is that mutants are the minority.” he said, not bothering to look back at her. ”I’m sure you saw plenty in the club last night, enjoying, dancing, etc. That’s because this neighborhood, and especially this club, is a mutant safe zone.” He swiped his I.D. into a device near the door, pushing it open and walking in, allowing Charlie to show herself in. The hallway they entered was cold and gray seeming, lit by lights that sprang to life at their approach. ”This world is decidedly crueler to mutant kind.” He stopped at another door, turned on his heel, his arms clasped behind his back as he smiled at her. ”So I do what I can to help them. But that leads me to my next question…” he approached her, slowly, almost like a predator, the smile on his lips masking a hellish fire. ”…where do you stand concerning them?”