by Charity B.
“Well, wait till you hear what happened today, it might cheer you up.” She pulls away from me, tilting her head in question. “Logan came to Vulture this afternoon.”
Her eyes widen as her hand covers her mouth. “Oh shit, seriously?”
“Yeah…we made a deal. I pay him a shit ton and he allows her freedom.”
She looks at me like I’m full of crap. “That’s it? Money?” She crosses her arms. “That’s anticlimactic.”
I toss back my whiskey. “Sorry I couldn’t make it more entertaining for you.”
She shoves my arm and grins. “Oh, shut up, you know I’m happy for you.” She shrugs. “It just seems way too simple.”
“Men like him operate on power. I presume that’s why he did what he did to Tavin, it gave him some God-like authority over her. By making me purchase her, he not only beat the hell out of my bank account, he made it clear that it was his choice to allow her freedom.”
She takes my glass and pours her own drink. “Maybe.”
“If anything, it gives me more time to figure out how to go about bringing these charges against him. Now, are you coming out with us or not?”
As soon as she rolls her eyes, I know she’s in.
“Fine.”
Lex smacks my ass as we make our way back to the kitchen for dinner. I love to see him dressed so casually in his Nirvana tee shirt and jeans. Things should be different between us now, but they aren’t. Even though I’m his property, he doesn’t see it that way and somehow, that makes me not either.
Sasha takes me into one of the bathrooms to touch up our makeup before we follow Alexander to the Mercedes. She sits in the backseat and lets me sit up front.
I like the way the blond hairs on Lex’s arm show up in the light as the sunset shines through the window. I didn’t know hands could be a sexy body part, but watching the way the tendons move in his fingers as he adjusts the dials on the stereo makes me want to put them between my legs. He turns the music down as he glances in the rear-view mirror.
“I texted Silas earlier, but haven’t heard back. He’s never not down for the bar, so let’s swing by his place and pull him out of whoever he’s inside of.”
Something flies by my face as Sasha punches Lex in the shoulder and snaps, “God, you’re such a pig!”
He chuckles, “What’s your problem?”
She falls against the back seat as her pretty voice mumbles, “Nothing.”
Silas’ apartment building is one of the taller buildings down town. I’ve passed it hundreds of times on my way to playdates.
Alexander pulls open the big glass doors and waves at the security guard behind a desk. He’s in a black uniform and smiles as he nods to us.
“Good evening, Mr. Sørensen, Ms. Sørensen, ma’am.”
I grin at him as Lex pulls me by my hand into the elevator. He slides a special key through the slot commanding the elevator car to take us to Silas’ penthouse. My stomach tickles from the upward movement, until the bell dings at the correct floor.
The doors open to a huge living room and my jaw drops. He has the biggest window I think I’ve ever seen! The whole back wall is one solid window. His floors are black and shiny and it looks like the ceiling is being held up by two huge, white pillars.
Silas is sitting next to a dark-haired lady on one of those weird couches shaped like a peanut. They both turn to look at us and the woman’s face brightens into a huge smile.
“Oh my stars! I don’t believe it.”
Lex instantly stops walking and laughs the funniest chuckle I’ve ever heard from him. It’s almost a giggle and it’s so awkward it makes me grin.
The woman stands up and gives him a big hug, squeezing him tight. “Look at you! My goodness young man, how you’ve grown!”
He rubs the back of his neck. “Hello, Ms. Hamilton.”
Oh, this is Silas’ mom? I look up at Lex. Is he blushing?
Her hand slowly rubs down his arm and she gives him a seductive smirk. “It’s been awhile.”
He does that weird laugh again. “Yes, ma’am.”
I’ve never seen him act like this or seen him look so uncomfortable. He’s usually bubbling over with confidence.
I think my jaw drops because between her flirty smile, her subtle excuses to touch him, his obvious fluster…they’ve had to of slept together.
“Oh, man,” I can’t stop my laugh, because honestly, I can’t imagine Lex with this woman and for some reason, knowing who she is makes it funny. “You guys have had sex, huh?”
Alexander’s head whips down at me with his face full now of nothing besides shock. “Tavin!”
“What?!” Silas roars as he jumps off the couch. Uh oh. He’s angry. Really angry. “You fucked my mom?!”
Lex glares at me and Sasha slaps her hand over her mouth like it will keep her laughing inside. Now I feel bad. I don’t want to make them fight.
Alexander holds up his hands. “Look man, it was over ten years ago. You had gone to your dad’s for the summer and it was right after I found out about Aslaug. I was upset.”
Silas looks like he can’t decide whether to yell or cry, when his mom puts her hand on his face. Her nails are long and red and they dig into his cheeks a little. “We were both adults, Sugar. He was sad and I was lonely. He made mommy feel good.”
His face washes out like he might be sick. “Mom…”
I make the mistake of glancing at Sasha, who’s completely red in the face from holding back laughter. I think laughing is contagious like yawning. Her face makes my own small snicker escape, and she looks like she’s about to explode. Lex gives her a dirty look before trying to calm down Silas.
“Really, it’s not a big deal.”
“Well then, I guess it won’t bother you to know I’ve been fucking your sister.”
I look at Sasha’s wide-eyed face and she’s not laughing anymore. I wasn’t expecting that part.
“What?!” Alexander barks.
“Yup, for more than a decade now, isn’t that right, babe?” Sasha’s mouth is hanging open and for the first time since I’ve met her, she’s speechless. Silas looks back to Lex. “I’ve always been curious if your twintuition tells you when I make her come, because that happens a lot.”
Alexander’s fists clench as he takes a step forward. “Oh, you motherfucker, did you forget I know how to box?”
Sasha rolls her eyes at them and grab’s Lex’s hand. “Alex, chill.”
He glares at her. “Chill? You’ve been cheating on Drew and you both have lied to me for years. I mean fuck, is nobody honest or faithful anymore?”
I can feel myself getting smaller. Sasha stands up straight and lets go of his hand to point to Silas. “Drew treated me like shit and this bastard is never going to be monogamous.”
Silas’ mom drapes her purse over her shoulder and sighs. “I think it’s time I head home. She softly pats Lex’s arm. “It was good to see you again, Sugar.”
“You too, ma’am.”
Silas snorts. “Is that what you called her in bed?” Suddenly, his mom’s hand reaches up and yanks down on his ear. “Ow! God!”
“I don’t care how old you are young man, I’m still your mother and you will speak about me with respect.”
“Sorry, Mom.”
She kisses his cheek. “Call me once and awhile, would you?”
He nods and straightens as she gets into the elevator. We all wave at her and as soon as the doors close, Silas frowns at Alexander.
“I can’t believe you slept with my mom.”
“It sounds like we’re more than even. Why didn’t you guys tell me?”
“That was my call,” Sasha says. “I’ve honestly never known what’s up with us and I didn’t need you getting all ‘hurt my sister and I’ll kill you’. I didn’t want it to get in the way of your friendship. Besides, we first hooked up while he was dating Marie and I was with Roger Simons, and we felt horrible about it…and I mean, he’s Silas.”
“What the fuck
is that supposed to mean?” Silas snaps.
This is beginning to feel weird standing here. Still, I kind of want to keep watching. I slowly back up until the backs of my knees hit a big, fluffy, white chair and I sit down.
Sasha sarcastically laughs. “Really, Hamilton? Do you even have standards or will you stick your cock into anyone who’s female?”
Silas’ face is pretty funny when he’s frustrated. Pulling my feet under my knees, I glance to the coffee table to my right and I can’t believe my luck. There’s a bowl of saltwater taffy clearly there for anyone who wants some.
I want some.
Reaching out and picking a pink one, I unwrap it as quietly as possible before popping it into my mouth.
I never noticed how much Silas uses his hands when he talks. “Um, okay, so you don’t want me to hook up with other women, yet you’re the one who doesn’t think we should be together. You’ve always said that, Sash. And I quote: We would never work, Hamilton, we both know it. Now shut up and fuck me.”
His impression of her is terrible and Alexander’s look of disgust is adorably sexy. Both of which cause me to laugh to myself as I grab another piece of taffy. Blue this time.
“Well, was I wrong? I could never truly be with you because I would always wonder if you had just slid out of someone else. You can’t be faithful to me.”
“You never asked me to be, so how would you know? I’ll take whatever you’ll give me, Sasha, but I’m not putting my heart out on the line when you clearly aren’t interested. So, I hook up with as many girls as I can, hoping it will make me feel better about not being able to be with the girl I really want to be with.”
Oh, that’s really sweet. I didn’t know Silas could be like that. “Aww.”
They all three look at me while Lex smirks and I chew my taffy.
Sasha turns back to Silas. “Is that true?”
He combs his hair out of his face and clasps his hands behind his neck. “And now you’re going through with this wedding.”
“The wedding’s off.” She rushes out her words and the way his face brightens makes me smile.
“Really?”
Lex holds up a hand. “Wait, so why would you even be with Drew, much less marry the guy if he was so terrible to you?”
She sighs and looks at the ceiling. “I had barely been clean three months when I met him. He was stable and in the beginning, he was really great. I don’t know, I did like him a lot. I think I felt indebted to him for giving me a chance when I was struggling. Maybe I convinced myself I loved him because I knew he could never truly break my heart.”
Silas steps to her and holds her face. “You almost ruined both of our lives, Sash.”
Lex looks between them before he backs up to stand next to my chair. I hand him a taffy and he smiles at me before taking it and popping it into his mouth.
Sasha’s voice is shaky when she says, “I’m so sorry, Hamilton…I didn’t know.”
He leans down to kiss her and it quickly becomes clear that this kiss is escalating. Lex is trying so hard to find somewhere to look that isn’t at them. “So… are we still going to The Necco Room?” The only answer to his question is the soft, wet sounds kissing can make.
I stretch my fingers out to lace them with his as I look up at him. “I still wanna go.”
He lets out a breath of relief as he pulls me off the chair. “Great, let’s go.” He drags me to the elevator and pushes the button. As we get in and the door closes in front of us, he shakes his head.
“Well that’s not an image I’ll soon be forgetting.”
“I think they’re cute together.”
“I think I need a drink.”
I choose the seat that I think of as ‘ours’ while he gets us drinks. It’s so exciting to be openly here with him and not have to worry about Logan or Clients. It’s impossible to stop myself from smiling when I look at him, and when he smiles back, my heart feels like it’s stretched way out.
I still can’t believe Logan sold me so easily. If I’m being honest with myself, it hurts me more than I want to think about. Master has been trying to buy me for years and Logan always says no. I kind of wonder if I’ll miss him. I barely remember him not being there.
If I can change my life however I want, what will I do? I don’t know how to do anything and now I can’t even dance. I don’t usually spend much time thinking about my future because it always makes my stomach hurt. Thinking about it now still makes me feel weird, just not in the same way. It’s like I’m less than scared, and more than worried.
Alexander slides into the booth next to me and hands me my drink. It burns down my throat and I can’t wait until the fuzziness takes this feeling away.
“What’s wrong?”
I look up at his bright green eyes and wonder how things must look through them. “It’s hard to believe we’re really done with him.”
He sighs and his shoulders press against the back of the seat. “We aren’t done with him, Tavin. He’s going to pay penance for what he did to you.”
My heart starts thumping like a drum beating against my ribs. Just because I don’t want to be Logan’s plaything doesn’t mean I want anything to happen to him.
“Why? He’s going to leave us alone. Can’t we just be together? Forget about him and move on?”
“No, I can’t fucking ‘forget about him and move on’,” he snaps, before he throws back his entire drink. Almost immediately though, he softens and brushes my hair over my shoulder. “He shouldn’t get away with what he did and he can’t be allowed to do it to anyone else.”
His words are heavy as they fall over me. I never considered Logan would get another Lotus. Logan is my burden, no one else’s, and I won’t let another girl suffer for what’s mine.
A lady in a short skirt stops at our table. “Hey there! My name is Cheyanne. Can I get you guys more drinks?”
Lex nods with enthusiasm. “Yes, you can. Surprise us, something strong.”
She gives me a friendly smile as she picks up our glasses. “Gotcha, hon. I’ll be right back.”
I shake my head. This was all too good to be true. How can I live this perfect life with Lex if someone else has to take my place with Logan? I can’t. The disappointment is sludge in my throat.
“I’m sorry, Lex…I know what you’ve done for me.” I squeeze his hand and let my tears fall. I knew it, I could never have this life. “I have to go back. I didn’t consider another girl and I can’t let him do that.”
Maybe if I beg his forgiveness and plead with him to take me back, the thought of replacing me may not have occurred to him yet…unless that’s why he sold me in the first place.
His large hand yanks free from my hold to squeeze my wrist. “Do not ever. Ever. Mention going back again. Do you understand?”
I narrow my eyes at his order. “Are you telling me as my boyfriend or as my owner?”
His nostrils flare as he releases my wrist to lean back. “I’ve already explained that to you. You can’t throw it in my face when you’re upset or to get what you want. It’s not fair.”
I want to crawl under the table because he’s right. I know he doesn’t think of me as property and that was a mean thing to suggest. I just can’t bear the thought of Logan stealing someone else’s life because I want my own.
“I—I’m sorry.”
The features of his face relax as he laces his fingers between mine. “Hey, you don’t need to apologize. I shouldn’t have snapped at you and I didn’t mean to make you worry. I have no idea if that’s what he’s planning. What he’s already done though, he can’t walk free from that.”
I take a deep breath and wish our drinks were here. He has a point. What if there’s no other girl and I throw away my chance at freedom for nothing? Logan has never been predictable. Lex only wants me to trust him, and I do. He’s never given me a reason not to.
Cheyanne arrives with our drinks and they’re both gone before she finishes asking if we want another round.
Only once. “His jet.”
The fall of his face tells me that wasn’t the answer he was hoping for. “I don’t want you to have to worry about anything anymore. Trust me to take care of this and to take care of you.”
“I don’t want you to take care of me. I want to take care of myself, for once.”
“That’s not what I’m saying. Taking care of you means making sure you’re as happy as I have the power to make you. We’ll get you the documents you need so you can get a job or go to school or do whatever it is your amazing little heart desires.” He takes my hand and kisses it like you would a queen. “I’ll help you get your own apartment if that’s what you want. I just want to be with you, Tav. I’m not going to stop you from doing anything that might improve your life in any way.”
My excitement gobbles up my worries at the idea of making all my own choices.
Cheyanne brings our drinks to us and leans her hip against the table. “Can I get you two cuties anything else?” I smile at her. She’s nice. Alexander tells her to bring another round whenever she gets the chance and she winks at me. “Sure thing.”
When she walks away, I look up to see Timothy smiling and holding hands with who I know is Todd, from the pictures he showed me. I wave them over and they sit across from us.
“Hey! I’m glad you guys could make it.” Alexander holds his hand out. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Alex.”
“Likewise, I’m Todd.” He’s even more handsome than the pictures. His dark hair is short on the sides and the long part on top is streaked in bright blue. In the pictures, his hair never looks the same in any of them. He grins at me. “You must be Tavin. Timmy was right, you’re a cute little gumdrop.” As hard as I try not to, I still laugh. Timmy? “It sorta feels like I’ve met you already.” He looks around for a moment before he asks, “Where’s the mouthy one?”
Lex laughs as he swallows his drink. “Sasha isn’t coming. She’s spending the evening with her…” He’s acting as if it’s painful to say the word, “boyfriend.”
