Probably not, but from the way Max was looking at his brother, I could tell he didn’t agree with Devon’s decision. And I can use that dissonance to my advantage.
“What are you reading?”
I look up from my book only to stare right into Latisha’s eyes.
I hold the cover up for her to see.
“Nice … So do you know what happened to Lauren?”
I frown and put my book down on my lap. “Why would I know more than any of you? We were all in the same room.”
“I don’t know. Maybe you caught something I didn’t.” She rolls her eyes. “Ugh, whatever. You don’t have to be such a bitch about it.”
“I’m just simply stating the facts,” I say.
“Yeah, yeah.” She waves her hands while she turns and walks like she can’t even be bothered.
Not that I care. I pick up my book again and continue to read.
“Why are you even sitting all alone over there?” Stacey suddenly asks.
I look up and see her fiddling with Hyun’s hair, trying to make a braid, even though Hyun seems uncomfortable.
“Why not?” I reply, raising a brow.
Why can’t they all just get out of my hair?
“Because I like to read in silence,” I say.
“Oh, and we’re too chatty … Of course.” She flicks her fingernails at me. “Whatever.”
“Whatever … what?” I put my book down but this time for real. “You know; if you’ve got a question for me, ask. I have nothing to hide.”
She purses her lips and looks me up and down. “At dinner. They forced Asya and Hyun to—”
“Please don’t talk about it,” Asya interrupts, putting her cup of tea down. “I really don’t want to be reminded of that humiliating evening.”
“Well …” Stacey continues. “You never once said anything to the men to object it.”
“Yeah … Why didn’t you say something? We were all pissed … except you,” Jordan says.
“I’m sorry. Are you accusing me of something here?” I fold my arms and stand my ground.
“I’m just saying it’s a little conspicuous that you were okay with all of that.”
“I was not okay with all of that,” I say, grinding my teeth. “I just know what the rules are, and I abide by them. That’s all.”
“Why?” Stacey asks, cocking her head at me like it’s her business to know.
I narrow my eyes. “I think the better question is … why wouldn’t you?”
“Because they’re crazy, maybe?” Jordan shouts.
“I don’t think it’s that crazy.” Latisha shrugs, but the moment she sees the girls’ reaction to her response, she turns around and shakes her head, walking into the bathroom. “Never mind,” I hear her mumble.
“See? I’m not the only one who knows how to follow the rules.”
“But they’re insane, and you know it. It’s dangerous,” Jordan sneers.
“I’ve told you before; if you want to leave, go. No one’s forcing you to stay.”
Stacey pulls a little too hard on the rubber band she put in Hyun’s hair because I can see the cringe on Hyun’s face. “But that’s just it … How do you know Camilla got home safely?”
“Oh, here we go again …” I rub my forehead with my index finger and thumb. I so do not have the patience for this.
“Enough about Camilla. She’s gone from the house. We need to focus on who’s still here. And right now, Lauren’s in some kind of dungeon basement being tortured while we sit around here doing our hair and makeup. Don’t you think that’s depraved?” Jordan says.
“Listen. I’m not here to make friends. I’m here for the money. That money they offered all of us. So unless you’re not willing to go all the way for that sweet ass money, I suggest you stop complaining,” I sneer.
“I’m not complaining,” Jordan says, standing up to face me. “I’m saying you just seem a little too relaxed, considering the circumstances.”
“Really? What else am I supposed to do then? Sit around and growl to myself all day long?”
“Girls, girls,” Britt jumps up and gets between us before things get out of hand. “Let’s not fight, okay? We have it rough enough as it is. We don’t need this.”
“Obviously,” Jordan replies.
I keep my mouth shut but my eyes on her. I’m not walking away until she does.
But then someone knocks on the door.
All eyes pull away except mine. Not until Jordan finally turns her head and looks.
“Naomi. Please come out of the room alone.”
It’s Max.
I open my mouth but stop myself before I respond.
All the girls look at me.
Without saying a word, I turn around and walk to the door, ignoring the ogling that’s going on behind my back.
***
Accompanying Song: “Eyes on Fire” by Blue Foundation
Making as little sound as possible, I open the door and step out of the room, closing it behind me. Max is standing in the hall and turns around to face me when he hears my footsteps.
He smiles softly. “Come with me.”
He holds out his hand as if he wants to chaperone me somewhere. I narrow my eyes. “Why?”
He cocks his head. “Because I want time alone with you. Now, c’mon.” He beckons me to accept his hand, so I do.
Not because I want to, but because I need to in order to win.
He takes me downstairs to the room I adored when I first came here. Before I knew what depravity would go down in this place. How naïve I was. Just thinking about it makes me shiver.
“Sit down,” Max says, and he points at the bed.
I do what he says as he closes the door and locks it. Then he sits down next to me, making an indent in the bed that allows him to lean against my side.
“How are you?” he asks.
“Why do you care?” I look up at him.
He frowns, seemingly upset that I asked. “Why shouldn’t I? I like you.”
“Right.” I roll my eyes.
“Why is that so hard for you to believe?”
“Because you keep eight other girls here for your amusement. Oh wait, it’s seven now, isn’t it? One ran away because she didn’t think this game was appropriate. Maybe she had a point.”
“Or maybe you remember that fact because you’re glad she’s gone? Because it means you’ll have a greater chance to win?”
I sigh and turn my head away from him. He will not catch me in a lie. I know he sees right through it, so the only option left is not answering that question at all.
His hand is suddenly on my leg, slithering upward. “Tell me you don’t like me.”
“I don’t,” I say with an indifferent voice.
But all he does is burst into laughter.
“You can fool them, but you can’t fool me.” I suppose by them, he means the other girls.
“It’s true,” I add, trying to make it more believable.
His laughter stops, and his face turns dark. “No, it’s not.”
“I hate you,” I say.
His fingers curl around my thigh in a possessive manner. “Lie.”
“What do you want me to say?”
“The truth. Be brave.”
I shrug, trying not to let him get to me, even when he does. “I just want the money that you offered me.”
“Uh-huh …” His fingers inch up even further until they’re right below my pussy. “But you need to marry me for that. And for me to want to marry you … I have to pick you.” He leans in and whispers in my ear, “So you’d better start giving me a reason to want to marry you.”
I suck in a breath as his tongue wets my skin, drawing a line from my ear down my neck. I’m trying not to shudder; honestly, I am, but this motherfucker makes it so hard for me to ignore my body’s response to his touch.
“Admit you like being touched by me … Maybe I’ll pick you if you do,” he whispers, pressing a kiss to my neck.
His lopsided smile makes me shake my head. How am I supposed to keep resisting his charms when he keeps looking at me like that? Like I’m the only one of the eight girls he really wants to get to know?
“It’s a start …” he muses.
“Why are you so intent on me being attracted to you? Is it that important? I mean you have seven other girls waiting in line, dying to get that fifty million—”
“I don’t want them,” he interrupts, and he reaches for a strand of my hair and tucks it behind my ear. “I want you.”
“Then why are they even here?”
“Because my brothers invited them.”
“No, you got three in total.”
A wicked smile forms on his lips. “So you figured that out …”
Fuck.
I turn away my gaze and close my eyes. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
“You’re smart. I like that.”
“Yeah well, you still have two other girls you picked, so why me?”
“They were never a real option. None of them are. How many times do you want me to tell you that I want you? But you do have to work for it. I’m not going to make it easy.” He leans back on the bed like he expects me to sit on top of him and kiss him or something.
“Well, then why are they even here? Why didn’t you just invite me?”
“Because I have to. That’s how the rules are.”
“Who makes the rules?” I ask.
He frowns, looks away, and sighs. “Someone else.”
“Your father.” I fill it in for him since he doesn’t feel inclined to tell me.
He makes a face. “How do you … oh …” It seems like he remembers something.
“I listen … well.” I smile softly.
“You never fail to amaze me,” he murmurs.
For a second there, I feel like it could almost make me blush. Almost. “Thanks.”
“C’mere.”
He beckons me to lie down with him, but I refuse. “No.”
“Why not?”
“Because you want me to be all fucking sweet and cuddly with you when I’m not, and I can’t. I need to know why the girls need to be terrorized for this game.”
He sits up. “You mean what I did to Jordan?” His hand is back on my thigh this time, but even closer to my pussy, up until the point that I can feel him graze my clit.
And fuck, does it feel good.
“I can do the same to you … but better.” His tongue dips out again to lick my earlobe. “You only need to ask.”
He plants a kiss on my neck and underneath my ear, his lips finding their way to my lips until they briefly touch.
I stand up to avoid feeling my pussy thump.
He sighs. “You can’t keep avoiding me, Naomi …”
“Your brothers. They dragged Asya and Hyun. They humiliated them,” I say, changing the subject. “And you came in their food.”
“That’s the rules. Deny our request, and you get worse. That’s how it goes. And the cum in the food was also necessary to give all girls equal treatment.”
“And you agree with that? You actually want to do that?” I cringe at the thought of eating food laced with their cum. I could stomach his, yes, but not the others.
“No, but it’s not up to me.”
“It’s up to your father then?” I pace around the room while his gaze follows my every move.
“No … my brothers.”
“Why can’t you oppose them?”
He gets up now too. “It’s not that simple. They have equal rights to all the girls. That’s how it’s been for ages.”
“Ages? Oh … that’s new information,” I scoff. It is … I’m just not sure if I should be shocked or disgusted.
“This is tradition. It’s how we’ve always done things in our family, and our generation is no different. We search for the most qualified, smartest, most beautiful women alive and let them compete.”
“You mean … sign a contract and become your naked servant without rights.”
“You’re not a servant.” He points at the door. “And you can leave at any time.”
I cock my head. “You have the key.”
“Because I don’t want you to leave.” He holds the key up. “You just have to say the words … and I’ll open the door for you.”
I take a deep breath and let things sink in for a moment.
“I won’t … if you tell me what happened to Lauren.”
The look on his face darkens, and his lips purse to thin lines. “You don’t want to ask that question. Trust me.”
I raise a brow and fold my arms. “Yes, I do. If you want me to marry you, at least let me know what I’m getting myself into.”
He balls his fists, his stance suddenly far more threatening. “Are you sure? There’s no going back.”
I nod.
Suddenly, he grabs my hand, thrusts the key into the lock, opens the door, and drags me out. He pulls me along the hallway and down a narrow staircase after which we end up in the cellar.
***
Accompanying song: “Sweet Dreams” by Emily Browning
Screams can be heard … much closer than before.
I shudder at the sound as I come closer and closer, and then we stop right in front of the single door at the end.
“Look through the window,” Max growls.
I do what he says.
And he was right.
I am not prepared.
Lauren’s face, bleeding.
Her body naked in a rack, her ass covered in red belt marks.
And Devon … thrusting into her ass wildly.
“He never asks … he doesn’t play nice …” Max whispers in my ear as he slides aside my hair. Goose bumps scatter on my skin as I watch the scene ahead. “He’s a monster.”
“Why?”
“You know why …”
I turn around to face him, pushing away the tears. “Let her out.”
“I can’t. This is what Devon wants. What she owes him.”
“Her blood? Her cries? Her body fucking marked with his lashes? Her ass used while she’s not even awake?”
Max just swallows and stares me dead in the eye. “I know what he does. I’ve seen it every day… witnessed it firsthand. I can’t intervene. If I did—”
“If what?” I snap.
“They’d kill me,” he says calmly. Like he’s already accepted his fate.
“Then fight them,” I yell.
Max covers my mouth with his hand and pushes me aside, away from the door. My nostrils flare as he checks the window and then stares into my eyes again. “Don’t. Shout. You don’t want him to hear you.”
“You’re all monsters …” I mouth through his fingers.
“I am not a monster,” he snarls. “But I can be one if you push hard enough.”
“Let me go.” I try to push him away, but he’s cornered me against the wall.
“No. Not until you promise me you won’t tell any of the girls what you just saw.”
“Why the hell would I not tell them?”
He leans in; his lips close to mine as he lowers his hand from my mouth. “Because … you want to win. And if they find out that Devon and Anthony aren’t as nice as they think, they’re all going to want me instead.” He smirks. “And neither of us wants that, now do we?”
He’s threatening me—blackmailing me—to keep me quiet.
I make a face and then shove him aside, passing him quickly. “I’ve had enough of this.”
“Wait,” he says, walking after me.
I increase my pace … but he does too.
Soon, I’m running back into the hallway with him right on my tail. “Don’t you run away from me,” he growls.
“Leave me alone,” I shout back.
Within seconds, he catches up with me. His arms fold around me, and his hand silences my scream.
> “Think you can outrun the truth?” he growls. “You don’t get to run away from this.”
“You said I could leave anytime I wanted,” I mumble through his hand.
He pushes me into his room and slams the door shut, locking it again. “I did … but that offer’s off the table now.”
“God, how convenient for you.”
The top part of his lip rises, and he grinds his teeth. “You want to play this game? All right.” He stalks closer. “You have no clue, do you?”
“About what? That you’re a lying, manipulative bastard? That you and your brothers like to degrade women and use them as your personal fuck dolls?”
“I am not a fucking monster, and I am not my fucking brothers!” With a face filled with rage, he towers above me, threatening me not to move.
“Oh … Did I step on your heart? Boohoo.”
He grabs my wrists and pulls me to him. “You don’t fucking understand what’s at stake here, but that’s okay. You’ll find out sooner or later … if you survive.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means I am your only shot at the money you’ve always dreamed of … And that you should be a little bit more grateful and willing instead of angry.”
“Maybe I’m angry because I saw Lauren tied up and in pain,” I spit.
“Maybe you’re just upset I showed you what you asked for, and you regret it now.” He spins me on my feet and forces my wrists to my back, making my body lean into his. “And I am not having it. You asked for this, and I gave you what you wanted.”
“Screw you …”
“Happily,” he replies. “You know … you may think I’m just as bad as my brothers, but you’re wrong. I’m the best you can get. I’m the only thing you deserve. And you know why? Because we’re both made out of stone.”
He plants his lips on my shoulder, moving upward along my neck with his tongue dipped out as if he’s savoring the taste of my skin.
“I’m not your enemy … but I will be if you make me.”
“Everyone here is my enemy. Everyone who stands in the way of me and that cold-hearted cash that screams for me to hold it close.”
Indecent Games Duet - Boxed Set Page 8
