by Aspen Drake
“Thank you for coming.” Mercy squeezes my hand, excitement written all over her face. “It sounds too good to be true.”
I nod and then lean closer to her ear so no one else can hear. “But don’t forget, you have to have sex with strangers all day to make that kind of money.”
Mercy sighs. “It’s not as hard as it sounds. The first few times at Pearls, I wasn’t sure I could stomach it. But after a while, it’s like being with a boyfriend that you’re not that into anymore. You can do it, but you’re relieved when it’s over.”
The reminder of Mercy having sex with a few choice clients at Pearls makes my stomach knot. “Hey, how do you know Sebastian?”
Mercy’s eyes go wide. “I was going to ask you the same thing. He’s one of my regulars at the club. How do you know him?”
I consider how to answer this. I mentioned to Mercy that I’ve been seeing someone new, but I haven’t told her his name. Honestly, it never occurred to me that she might know him. “I met him on a delivery.”
There. It’s not a lie, but not the full truth.
She sighs heavily. “Oh, good, because he’s one of the guys who gets extra services.”
The knot moves up to my throat, and I’m not sure how to react. She didn’t do anything wrong, and neither did Sebastian. But the betrayal I feel is real, nonetheless. “So you guys are having sex?”
“Yeah, why?” Mercy can tell from my voice that she’s not fully in the clear. “Are you into him?”
Not anymore. I shake my head and stand up. “No, it’s fine.” I head straight to the door, needing a minute to process this new information.
Unfortunately, Sebastian appears in front of me before I can escape to the restroom. “We need to talk.”
I inhale sharply through my nose and slowly breathe out, trying not to freak over something that’s my problem and not his. “I’ve got to pee, but your other side piece would probably be happy to speak to you.”
Okay, not exactly taking the high road. I wish I could say I’m a bigger person and jealousy doesn’t rule me, but clearly, that’s not the case. After finding out that Rick had been cheating on me for most of our relationship, I don’t have a lot of sympathy for guys who sleep around. Of course, if everyone is on board with that plan, no one gets hurt. But I was too stupid to get that clarification upfront, and now I just want to punch Sebastian.
In the balls.
I push past him and beeline it to the women’s restroom midway down the hall. He calls out to me, but I ignore him, praying my anger doesn’t manifest in the form of tears. Nothing is more embarrassing than being pissed off to the point of tears and having people think they have some sort of power over you because they can make you cry.
Fortunately, I do have to pee, so that distraction helps me get my emotions in order. I’m fine. I knew this was just a hook-up situation from day one. I really had no expectations, so I have no right to feel disappointed. But no matter how badly I try to fight it, I can’t deny how much I like Sebastian. Like really like him.
When he’s sweet, he’s really sweet. And when he’s funny, I never want him to leave. And good lord, the sex is incredible. I didn’t know sex could be like that. I’m not sure how I’ll go back to my vibrator after experiencing what a man like Sebastian can do. It was never like that with Rick. He could get me off, but it always seemed like a burden to him. My orgasms were about a three on a scale of one to ten with Rick, whereas my climaxes with Sebastian are at least a ten every time.
Mercy walks in while I’m washing my hands, and she looks terrified. “I’m so sorry.”
Her hands are positioned in front of her chest as if she’s praying for forgiveness. Now I feel like a bitch for reacting the way I did because she shouldn’t be feeling like she did anything wrong. I’m the one who encouraged her to take on the extra clients when her boss made the offer. She needed the money, and she said her clients were gorgeous and clean. There was no reason she shouldn’t go for it. And that’s what I told her. I just had no idea I’d be with one of those guys on her off nights, giving it up for free no less.
“You don’t have any reason to be sorry.” I force a smile and dry my hands. “You didn’t do anything wrong. Sebastian and I aren’t in a relationship or anything. We hooked up a few times, and that’s it. I thought I was fine with keeping it casual. That’s what I want… Well, in my head, it is. But I guess facing the reality is a little harder.”
“God, Emma. I wish I had known. How long have you been seeing him?”
“A few weeks, I guess.” I shrug. “I really did meet him on a delivery.”
“I’m sure it doesn’t help, but I haven’t seen him in the club in a couple weeks.”
Oddly, that does help. “Really? You’re sure?”
“I swear. The last time I was with him was almost a month ago, and I usually notice if he comes in.” She nods her head enthusiastically. “I’m positive he hasn’t been in on any of the nights I was working.”
Hmm. That might’ve been right around the time we first hooked up. Thinking back, I remember the night vividly. “Actually, the first time we were together was the night of Hilary’s bachelorette party. He brought me home.”
Mercy cocks her head and thinks about it. “Oh yeah, it was definitely before that.”
“Thanks.” I give her a hug, reassuring her that we’re okay. And then a thought crosses my mind. “Wait, are you into him? You had him first.”
Mercy shakes her head. “No, not at all. He’s hot and all, but the sex was a little…robotic.”
I have to hold back a snort because there’s no way I would describe what Sebastian does with his body as robotic. “Are you sure?”
“Of course. He’s all yours.”
Now I do snort at the absurdity of what she just said. “No, he’s definitely not mine. He’s made it abundantly clear that’s not what he wants, so it wouldn’t have worked out anyway.” But I have to admit that I’m happy to hear he might have held back a little bit with the strippers.
“Well, he’s waiting for you outside. I think you should hear him out.”
“About what? So he can tell me I have no right to be pissed because we aren’t together? I know that, and I feel stupid for wanting more, especially since I shouldn’t want more. I should be taking this time on my own to get over my stupid need to have a man in my life.”
“But?” Mercy raises an eyebrow and puts one hand on her hip, waiting for me to tell her why I can’t get over him.
I heave out a heavy breath and throw my head back, looking straight up at the ceiling. “But he’s so fucking gorgeous. And he’s amazing in bed. I don’t know what you guys were doing, but he does things to me that I didn’t think were humanly possible.”
Mercy’s jaw drops, and she hums loudly. “Damn, girl. Then you really need to give him a chance. If that man can rock your world, you need to let him.”
I roll my eyes at her simplistic view of relationships. Rich and gorgeous is nice for a while. At least, until they decide they want to fuck someone new. Then you have to hope they dump you. Because sometimes, they don’t have the balls to do it, and they just sneak around behind your back until they get caught. Honestly, I don’t want to deal with either one of those options anytime soon. “Thanks, honey. I’ll meet you at the car.”
Chapter 20
Sebastian
This is why I should stay single. Dealing with this kind of drama is stupid. I didn’t even know Emma when I was with Mercy, so it’s not my fault they’re friends. If I were smart, I’d walk away. And if she wants to sell her ass, I should let her.
But I can’t.
Just thinking about some guy putting his hands on her the way I have—or worse—is infuriating.
People filter out of the meeting room, but they’re intuitive enough to know to stay the hell away from me. I don’t know if it’s my eyes or my stance, but strangers are giving me a wide berth. Standing here and waiting for her to come out is hard enough, but knowing that Ang
el is in there telling Emma god knows what makes it even worse.
After an eternity, Angel walks out and gives me a smile. “Good luck,” she whispers before heading toward the lobby.
I’m about to barge into the restroom when Emma walks out. Her eye makeup is smudged, but it doesn’t look like she’s been crying. Thank god. I hate criers.
She stops two feet short of my chest and stands there, daring me to speak first. Whatever. I’m not playing games with her. I hold out my hand and wait for her to place hers in it. Once I’ve got a solid grasp on her, I guide her down the hallway and into a small conference room.
As soon as we’re inside, I close the door and lean against it so Emma can’t escape. She’s not leaving until we hash this out.
“What will it take to get you to reconsider?” I’m not even sure what I’m asking, but I need to know what she wants before we can move forward. I find it hard to believe she truly wants this job, but if she does, I need to know why.
Is she not being sexually satisfied? Is that something I can help with? Are there other issues? Is it purely financial? If so, what can I do to help with that?
“Reconsider what, exactly?”
Well, shit. I was hoping she would show her cards first, but I guess the ball is back in my court. “This job. Why do you want it?”
She rolls her eyes. “God, you’re dense sometimes.”
“What?” Am I missing something here? “Why?”
“Really?” She seems amused but not willing to budge when it comes to giving me any real information.
“Is it for the money? What if I pay you to not take it? Like, you can be exclusive to me. I’ll pay you weekly, and you don’t have to fuck strangers.” I’m grasping at straws here, but if we can keep our arrangement unchanged, I’m willing to pay a lot of money for that.”
Any humor in her face quickly dissolves, and she pushes at my side to move me away from the door. “You’re an asshole, you know that?”
Jesus, now what? “Yeah, I do. But you’ll need to be more specific here.”
“I don’t want your fucking money, Sebastian. I’m not a whore, I don’t plan to become a whore, and I wouldn’t even consider trying to compete with all your other whores.” She shoves harder, making me lose my balance because I’m more than a little stunned by her declaration.
“Well, why the fuck are you here?”
She turns to me, getting right in my face. “Why are you here?”
Dear god, we’re not doing this again, are we? “I told you, I’m an investor in the place.”
“You’re here for your friend? Because he asked you to come?”
“Yeah, but what does th—” Oh. Now it’s starting to make sense. “So you don’t—”
“God no!” She backs off, putting some distance between us. “I’m here because my friend asked me to be. It might not be obvious because of how I am with you, but I can assure you that I don’t have sex with just anyone. And money certainly doesn’t factor into my decisions.” She stares me right in the eye, daring me to contradict her. “Not ever.”
“I’m sorry, Emma.” I reach for her, but she backs away, leaving my hand hanging in the air between us.
“Don’t be sorry, Sebastian.” She drops her tense shoulders and gives me a sad smile. “It’s been great. Really. But I can’t see you anymore.”
“What? Emma, you’re overreacting.” Her eyes are glistening as I reach for her cheek. When she backs away, the sting of her rejection is intense. “I’m sorry I jumped to the wrong conclusion.”
“Good bye, Sebastian.”
~**~
How did everything go to shit so quickly? A few hours ago, I was joking around with Emma and planning to see her tomorrow night. Now… I don’t even know what happened.
Even though I feel emotionally drained, I’m too restless to think about going to sleep when I get home. Instead, I get on the treadmill and go for a run. I’m in the zone and just about to hit the seven-mile mark when Tim calls me. I hit the speaker button and slow my pace without fully stopping. “What’s up?”
“I can’t find anything on Emma that looks like she’d be hard-pressed for cash. Just regular debt. Credit cards and a car payment. But it looks like she’s recently started paying those off.”
“Yeah, okay. There might’ve been a misunderstanding.”
Tim sighs into the phone. “That’s the good news.”
Of course it is. Hitting pause on the treadmill so I can focus, I brace myself for whatever’s coming next. “What?”
“Ray hasn’t heard from the brother in a couple days. He thinks he might’ve had a run-in with some pirates.”
“Goddammit.” This is not what I want to hear. “Any chance Eli just took the cargo and got himself lost on purpose?”
“Ray doesn’t think so. Sounds like Eli was pretty anxious to get Renzo taken care of. Ray doesn’t think he would’ve bailed on the first job. And he’s known him for a while, so he’s concerned.”
“Fuck.” I grab the towel hanging on the rail and step off the machine, heading straight to my shower. The sooner I can wash this day off me, the better. “What is Ray’s plan?”
“He’s already sent a recon team out to check on things. There are a couple of groups sniffing around the business. One’s out of Russia, and the other’s out of Mexico. Those two are the most likely to grab a boat full of cargo and take off with it. Ray’s guys know where to look, so don’t worry yet. I just wanted to let you know what’s going on.”
“Yeah, thanks.” Emma will be devastated if anything happens to her brother. She said they are at each other’s throats a lot of the time, but I could tell she loves him. “Let me know what I can do. If Ray needs any additional resources, I’ll get them to him.”
“You know, you’re sure going out of your way for the brother of someone you don’t care much about.”
I hold back a groan to not further prove Tim’s point. “I never said I didn’t care about her. I just said I didn’t want to commit. But…”
“But what?”
“That might be changing.”
Chapter 21
Emma
The barista hands me a cupholder with four venti coffees and a bag full of pastries. “Have a nice day,” she says as I try to balance everything in two hands.
It’s moments like this when I wish I had one of those tables that could hang from around my neck like the vendors use at ballgames to carry drinks and popcorn. I could balance a lot more food with one of those babies. “Thanks. You too.”
This order is going to a start-up just a few doors down. It’s a quick delivery, but the old building doesn’t have an elevator. I have to walk up three flights of stairs without spilling the coffee or tripping and breaking my neck. Every day is an adventure.
My phone buzzes, but I don’t even attempt to pull it out of my pocket to check who’s calling. The number of people who call or text me is very short, and the list of people I actually want to talk to is even shorter. Hopefully, it’s Eli letting me know he’s fine. I don’t actually want to talk to him, but I would like to hear he’s not dead in a ditch somewhere.
I sigh as I push open the glass door with my ass and step outside. I’m about ninety percent sure the call is from Sebastian. He’s called or texted a few times each day since I walked away from him last week. I’ll admit that I sulked around the house all weekend, feeling sorry for myself. But I’m not ready to talk to him yet.
He obviously thinks I’m like all the women he’s dated—all the women he’s hated.
So I won’t give him the satisfaction of chasing after him. If he wants me, he’s got to do the work. Besides, I might be old-fashioned, but fucking strippers is a deal-breaker for me. If that’s something he wants to continue, he can. I just won’t be a part of it.
And if he wants to continue sleeping with Mercy, he’s welcome to. As long as she doesn’t come home and tell me all the sordid details, she can do whatever she wants. She’s a single, consenting adul
t. There’s no reason for her to limit her experiences just because I have a crush on someone who’s unavailable.
Hell, that’s pretty much my MO. Either I fall for guys who aren’t interested in a relationship, or I fall for those who do want a relationship but only so they can keep me under their control while they go fuck anything in a skirt.
No, thanks.
I’m done with that shit. It’s time I have a little self-respect and demand to be treated better. If that means I’ll spend the rest of my life alone with only a piece of silicone to keep me company at night, so be it. I won’t be any man’s side piece, and I won’t cry over someone who doesn’t care enough about me to give up other women.
Besides, I don’t have time for that bullshit. I promised Mercy I’d be there for her and Owen, and I’ve been distracted lately. Maybe I’ll pick up a Lego set on my way home to work on with Owen after he finishes his homework.
I reach the front door to the building and realize it’s too heavy for me to pull open with just my pinkie finger, and both of my hands are completely full. Of course.
Standing on the street like an idiot, I wait a good three minutes before some lady passing by realizes my dilemma and takes pity. “Do you need a hand?”
I nod appreciatively. “Thank you so much. I’ve been standing here hoping someone would notice and open the door.”
She has a small baby attached to her chest in a carrier and a toddler sitting in a stroller, but she still takes the time to help a stranger. Suddenly, I feel much better about life. I’ve been so busy worrying about my drama and the drama happening around me that I haven’t been paying attention to small acts of kindness when they occur.
The lady opens the door and holds it until I am fully through. I look at her over my shoulder with a wide smile. “Thank you so much. I hope you have a great day.”
“I am, thank you.”
As she continues down the sidewalk with her kids, I stand there and watch. God, I hope her husband appreciates what a good person she is and isn’t off fucking his secretary right at this minute.
