She looked me up and down and raised a perfectly groomed eyebrow.
“Wild eh?You look a real classy girl to me,” she said, her eyes still on my body.
Suddenly there was a hand on my shoulder. I jumped under its great weight.
“I think this lovely lady deserves the fanciest cocktail you have!” a voice boomed in my right ear.
I looked up to see a shock of black hair and even blacker eyes. A smudge of eyeliner was smeared along his bottom eyelid. I took a step back and saw his clothes; all ruffles, and leather. I saw his face was powdered white, almost like a clown.
“Oh sorry, I didn’t realize this was the bikers for Anne Rice convention,”
I laughed and pushed his hand off my shoulder.
“Oh, you’re so droll.”
His voice was peculiar and affected as though he was raised on a diet of Vincent Price movies and Dirty Martinis. I gazed at his impossibly high cheekbones as he turned to the barmaid.
“Elsie, my purple-haired princess, get her a Violet Royale, will you sweetie.”
Who was this guy? People like him didn’t exist in my little home town or if they did, they were hidden away under a veil of shame, secreted away with their taxidermy projects like Normal Bates. I had a real uneasy feeling inside me. I was intrigued by him, eager to know more but at the same time he creeped me out. I had the feeling that if I kissed him I’d have more of his makeup on me than he would of mine.
I watched as the barmaid poured a drink that was the same color as her hair. She slid it over to me with a cheeky smile.
“Good luck,” she winked. “This puts me on my ass.”
I held it beneath my nose and breathed in its intoxicating scent.
“It’s my favorite,” the ruffled man beside me said.
Pulling away from him yet again, I took a sip of the drink and felt its warmth dance on my pallet.
“This is actually really nice!”
“I knew you’d like it.”
His black eyes were on my face, searing into the side of my cheek.
“You haven’t even told me your name,” I said.
“It’s Sebastian.”
“Of course it is.”
He cocked his head to the side and gave me wary look.
“This is your first time here, isn’t it?”
I nodded with my top lip pushed into my purple drink.
“Is it so obvious?”
I slammed my empty glass down on the bar and wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.
“I’d say so, you’re more…refined than the other girls here. There’s something about you. Anyway, I’m most charmed to meet you.”
He held out a hand and I instinctively took it. His fingers were surprisingly muscular as they joined mine.
“Tammy,” I said. “My mom was a fan of Tammy Wynette. Kind of embarrassing.”
“Not at all!”
He waved a hand dismissively and a ruffle off his sleeve grazed my cheek.
“I think it’s adorable. Just like you.”
I blushed. This guy was something else. I’d never met a man so eccentric and theatrical and it was as mysterious as it was laughable. I wondered where he lived, what his bedroom looked like, what his persona was like when he was out of here. I looked his body up and down and imagined what was beneath the leather and lace. A man like him didn’t come by very often, not on a lonely night like this.
“Tell me,” I said as I rested on the nearest stool and stretched out my long legs. “Do you live far from here?”
It was an innocent question loaded with meaning.
“Why?” he raised an eyebrow. “Do you want to leave so soon?”
“Maybe…”
I traced the length of his calf with my heel before opening my legs slightly. His eyes honed in on the small, red triangle of my panties. A slight pinkness began to form beneath his deathly white makeup.
“You don’t play games do you?” he gasped.
“Never.”
~
We burst through his front door, tearing and pulling at one another as we pushed our lips together. He tasted sweet as I brushed my tongue against his. I was drunk on excitement, high on the danger of blustering into a stranger’s house.
He pulled away as he fumbled to close the door. It was then that I saw the inside of his apartment. Every surface was black and red, the walls adorned with macabre antiquities. It was dark and heavy despite its opulence which gave the impression of being inside a rather sexy and tantalizing coffin. Leaning in behind me, he wrapped his arms around my waist and brushed the hair from my neck.
“Welcome to Chez Sebastian,” he whispered.
“So you’re not just wearing fancy dress,” I mused. “You live it too.”
He wasn’t listening to me. He was running his lips over my throat as he cupped my breasts. He let out a long sigh and a moan as his lips latched onto my skin. I felt his erection press into my back. As I reached a hand round I noticed it was bigger than I anticipated.
“You’re perfect!” he groaned as I touched him. “So pure and delicate like an angel.”
I pushed my hand down the front of his pants and felt his throbbing hardness. He let out a low guttural moan as I pulsed my hand up and down.
“Stop,” he pulled away. “You’re too good at that.”
He was panting hard, his cheeks burning red. I placed a hand on his chest and began flicking off the buttons of his frilly shirt to reveal a taught and muscular body. He gasped one last time then without warning lunged at me, gripping my hair in his hand. For a moment I panicked as I felt my scalp sting.
“I’ve got to have you.”
He kissed me hard, biting at my lower lip.
“Come on, this way.”
With his free hand, he scooped me up and carried me to the bedroom where he gracefully placed me down on the bed as though I was about to be sacrificed.
“What is this place? It’s like you live in a museum!”
He gave me a wry smile as he watched me look around his room in awe. I was sat in the center of a four poster bed. Above me, the ceiling was painted with cherubs and red roses. Beside me stood a looming grandfather clock. Meanwhile, in front of me, Sebastian was hooking his fingers into the front of his pants.
“Let me get that for you,” I said.
I leaned off the side of the bed, my mouth perilously close to where his penis was going to spring from. I could smell his pre-cum already, was desperate to taste him. With my deft and nimble fingers, I untied his clothes and grew wet as they fell to the floor.
“You’re gorgeous,” I said.
“You sound surprised.”
He stroked the top of my head, petting me like the perfect submissive he was looking for. Holding his length in his hand, he pressed the tip against my moist lips. I felt the heat of his skin on mine, tasted the sour saltiness as I reached out my tongue. He groaned as I flicked it across the head, gripped my hair harder as I kissed his penis.
“Be gentle with me,” he said. “I think I’d die if you sucked on me.”
I looked up at his face and saw the intensity of his arousal in his eyes. He was breathing heavily, his lips wet from where he’d licked them repeatedly. I took a deep breath and smiled then engulfed him with my mouth, sucking him as hard as my body would allow and pushing him as far back as my throat would permit.
“Oh God!” he yelled.
His whole body was shaking, his buttocks clenching as he reached a hard and fast orgasm. Then he gave one final and violent shudder as his fingernails pressed into my scalp. My mouth soon filled up with a hot wetness I’d never experienced before. I pulled away coughing and spluttering as his ejaculate sprayed my face and stung the back of my throat. I dabbed at my watery eyes and saw mascara cover my hand.
“Sorry about that,” he breathed. “I’ve never come so soon before. I promise.”
“Don’t worry about it,” I giggled. “It’s a compliment.”
Chapter Four
> I woke up with a strange taste in my mouth. My alarm was buzzing by my head and I rolled over and slammed the clock with a heavy hand. It only served to make it fall to the ground and continue buzzing out with of my arm’s reach.
“Fuck,” I grumbled.
I kicked the top of my alarm clock and it finally went silent. It was half seven and I had to be in work in an hour. I lay back down and pulled the covers up over my head.
“Aargh!”
I ran my dehydrated tongue over my teeth as I remembered the night before.
“Sebastian…” I said to myself as the memories came back to me.
It had been a strange night but one I wasn’t keen to forget, even if it did end early. The peculiar ruffle covered lothario had shown me a side to life that was as sensual as it was macabre. I reached out for my purse that lay discarded on the floor beside me. Rifling through it, I found the scrap of paper that was adorned with his ornate and sprawling script.
Don’t be a stranger. Meet me at the Vault next Saturday at midnight.
I had no intention of seeing him again. He was someone to take my mind off Trevor, a mild distraction at the least and a couple hours of fun at the most. Still, I found myself neatly folding the paper into a tidy square and pushing it under my pillow. Maybe I’d change my mind once Saturday arrived.
Rubbing my eyes and dragging myself from my bed, I stumbled to the bathroom and switched on the shower. The hot water steamed up the room in a few seconds and I climbed inside, feeling my pores open up and my senses come back to me. I breathed in the warmth and rested against the cold tiles, the sound of the gushing water filling my ears.
For the briefest of moments I thought I heard something click inside my apartment, a door opening perhaps or a footstep on the wooden floorboards.
“What the hell?”
I glanced toward the bathroom door like a dog with its ears pricked up. Trevor had keys to this place. He made it obvious he could come and go as he pleased. Was it him?
“Hello?”
I wrapped a towel around myself and headed out into the hall.
“Hello?” I repeated.
But there was no one there. Instead, I could see the upturned, brass flap of the letterbox. A brown envelope was poking out. With damp hands, I hurried to pry it free and ripped it open.
Tammy, I’m so sorry about last night. I wish I could have seen you but you know what she’s like. Meet me for lunch today?
Stay beautiful
Trev
My heart was beating like a jackhammer. Was he playing games? I’d been thinking about him constantly since the other night and would have done anything to see him again. Now all I had to do was decide whether I wanted to tell him about Sebastian or not.
Chapter Five
The restaurant was deserted except for a middle-aged couple in the corner who appeared to hate each other. They hadn’t said a word since we’d arrived and chewed their food with a venomous tension clenching their jaws.
“A penny for your thoughts?”
Trevor topped up my wine glass, his dazzling smile glinting in the candle light.
“I was just looking at them,” I nodded over to the couple. “When was the last time they spoke to each other?”
He squinted and rubbed at his chin.
“Hmmm… I’d say around nineteen seventy-five,” he gave a facetious smile.
I giggled. Not just because he was funny and charming but because I was nervous in his presence. He seemed to eclipse everyone in the building as waiters fawned over him, tripping over themselves just to please him.
“Why do people even get married?” I asked.
“You don’t want to get married yourself?” he raised an eyebrow. “A girl like you could settle down with a rich man and never have to worry about anything again.”
My stomach lurched. What did he mean? Did he mean I should marry him? Of course not, just shut up, Tammy. Stop acting like a schoolgirl.
“I dunno…”
I shrugged and pulled a napkin off the table, fiddling with it in between my fingers and wishing I’d kept my mouth shut.
“It’ll be my parents’ twenty-fifth wedding anniversary next year and they hate each other. Like seriously, they haven’t said a good word to each other since I was a kid.”
“I can’t say my parents are any better,” he sighed and sat back in his seat before glancing out the blackened windows.
I followed his gaze. He was staring at a man propped up against a fire hydrant, his hat open and empty on the sidewalk. Looking back to him I saw a strange look in his eyes. What would a man of his stature think of a homeless man?
“So… You had it rough too?”
“Erm…”
He suddenly became uncomfortable as though I had stirred up unwanted feelings. He shifted in his seat and flicked his eyes up and down the street.
“Rough… that’s a strong word. I mean I had everything I wanted but…”
“But your parents were never around?”
“Yeah,” he nodded. “That’s it. I had everything I wanted but a hug when I needed it. Jesus, I mean I shouldn’t even be telling you this stuff. We don’t even know each other but…”
He gave me a furtive glance and took a gulp of his wine.
“I dunno. I feel comfortable with you. I don’t normally with, you know, girls.”
I slid my hand across the table and touched my fingertips to his, a test to see whether he wanted to get closer. He took my hand and squeezed it tight, the small gesture of intimacy igniting my insides.
“Anyway, my Mom was a real bitch,” he blurted out. “I don’t think she had a maternal bone in her body. She was more interested in morning mimosas and Vicodin. I’d come home from boarding school hoping she’d be waiting for me in the kitchen with a freshly baked batch of cookies but she’d be a wreck instead. Ophelia and I would find her slumped over the dining table with her wig half hanging off. Meanwhile, my Dad, he was just never home. Seeing him during the holidays was almost like a business appointment to him. Not that he didn’t loved me, I mean he told me once or twice that he did but there was never that closeness that other families had. I remember watching movies like Home Alone and seeing all the hustle and bustle around Christmas, the way they were running around together, so totally devoted to one another. Then I’d look at my own house, huge and empty. Sometimes I’d walk the halls at night and hear Ophelia’s miserable violin playing somewhere in the distance. Sometimes I’d hear the faraway sobbing of my mother. Other times there was nothing.”
He went silent and looked back out the window, his brow crumpled up in thought as though he regretted opening up to me.
“Is that why you love women so much? Because you’re trying to grasp the love of a female that you didn’t get from your mother?”
Shit, Tammy. You idiot! Why did you have to say that? He’ll think you’re a real jerk now.
He glared at me and flinched as though I’d slapped him. I was waiting for him to get mad, waiting for him to tell me to leave.
“You know what?” he leaned forward on the table. “You’re right. You’re absolutely right and I don’t know why it’s taken so long for someone to just tell me it straight.”
He took both my hands in his and kissed them.
“Don’t ever change,” he said. “Other girls just want to say what they think I want to hear. They want to get into my wallet faster than my pants but you… There’s something different about you.”
The sound of footsteps broke us apart as the waiter emerged with two steaming plates.
“Le steak tartare et le pistou.”
He placed them down.
“Bon appetit.”
I watched him leave and exit through the mysterious door to the kitchen with an effeminate wiggle of the hips.
“So…” I tried to steer the conversation elsewhere. “Ophelia, tell me about her.”
He pulled away and sat still and perfectly straight like a lightning bolt of tension was push
ing him into his seat.
“What about her?”
He tilted his head back cockily. It made his diamond shaped jaw look solid, almost intimidating.
“Nothing,” I murmured and looked down at my lap.
“You don’t like her, do you?”
I kept staring at my lap, not knowing what to say.
“I don’t know what to think about her but I’m sure she hates me. I heard everything she said the morning after the party. I’m sure it was her that called me.”
“Oh, God, not this again,” he rolled his eyes.
“I’m serious. I know it sounds crazy but I’m sure it was her. I recognized her voice! It’s not like she has one of those boring, typical accents now does she?”
He regarded me coolly as she pressed his knife into his steak.
“Hmm… And what was it she said again?”
“She warned me about the robes….”
He smirked with a mouth full of meat.
“Oh yeah,” he said as he swallowed. “These mysterious robes. What were they again?”
“I… I saw them in your bedroom, in the closet behind the drinks’ cabinet. I wasn’t snooping or anything it’s just that-“
“Enough of that. It’s all silly girls’ nonsense. Don’t get dragged into it.”
He waved a hand.
“Anyway, get stuck into your soup. The food here is delicious.”
I rolled the spoon around in between my fingers and looked around the restaurant. It was starting to fill up now with other couples. Some were so desperately in love that they couldn’t take their eyes off one another while others were ignoring each other like the old couple in the corner. Yet all of them had one thing in common. They were all exceptionally glamorous and it made me feel small and out of place.
“What’s up?” Trevor sensed my unease. “You seem distracted.”
He followed my eyes to a woman at the next table. Her gown was draped over her lithe limbs as the crystal embroidery around her bust glistened. Her neck seemed so long and graceful that her husband must have grown weary of kissing it. Honey blonde hair framed her fine features, her eyes were a steely gray, brooding with intelligence. Her husband meanwhile was portly and at least twice her age. He seemed disinterested in her, so completely enamored with his phone that he barely noticed she was there. He answered his emails as he ate and didn’t so much as glance up to the gorgeous woman at his table.
Too Curious Complete Series (Books 1-5) Box Set Romance Series: (An Alpha Billionaire Romance Series) Page 7
