by G. , Whitney
“Is coming up here your way of telling me that you’re about to leave, then?”
“No,” I said. “I’m trying to tell you that you’ve been a terrible best friend.”
“Really?” He raised his eyebrow. “That’s what you think?”
“I can repeat it if you like.”
“Look,” he said. “You’ve been spending a lot of time with your boyfriend.”
“Yeah, that’s how relationships usually work.”
“He isn’t who you think he is,” he said. “Simeon has some shady shit going on, and I think you should know.”
“His name is Simon.”
“His name depends on what state he’s living in,” he said. “Nonetheless, he’s not Prince Charming in the slightest and I need you to know that now before you make a huge mistake.”
“You mean, before I fuck him tonight?”
“You’re not fucking him. Ever.”
“Why are you acting so jealous, Hayden?”
“Let me finish talking.” His voice was terse.
“After you stop acting jealous.”
“I’m not acting.”
Silence.
“Your boyfriend is a con artist,” he said. “He’s pretty much Jay Gatsby on steroids, and he’s been cheating on you this whole time.”
I crossed my arms, saying nothing.
“He has a different woman in six different cities, and that doesn’t include you.” He looked into my eyes. “As for his place on the Forbes 500? He paid for a journalist friend to place his name on the website for a day and he took a screenshot before the editor in chief corrected it.”
“How do you know all of this, Hayden?”
“That Ferrari that he’s been driving you around in for weeks is a rental and he hasn’t made the payments in two months.”
“How do you know all of this?” I repeated, my voice cracking.
He still didn’t answer that question. “I think you should break up with him. The sooner, the better.”
“You haven’t talked to me in weeks, and now you’re asking me to dump my boyfriend?”
“Yeah,” he said, his voice deadpan. “I wanted to tell you sooner, but you wouldn’t have believed me,” he said. “And you know it.”
“I don’t believe you now.” I shrugged. “Two weeks ago, you said that he was your favorite out of all my boyfriends.”
“I have never said that about any of your boyfriends.”
“You implied it. You also implied that you’d be there for me, but you seem to have dropped the ball on that one lately.”
“I stalked your boyfriend every day for weeks, okay?” He glared at me. “And I had Sarah do some advanced digging. That’s where the fuck I’ve been. Looking out for you.”
I swallowed. “You know what? I regret ever asking for your help on this.”
“I don’t regret giving it to you,” he said, moving closer. “The next thing you need to do is break up with him and start dating the better guy.”
“Oh?” I glared at him. “So, while you were out galvanizing and stalking Simon, you also managed to find me a replacement boyfriend? How generous. Will he be arriving to this gala anytime soon?”
“He’s standing right in front of you.” He hissed. “And I want you to break up with him, for me.”
Silence.
I blinked a few times, and he took a few more steps forward.
“I fucking want you, Penelope,” he said. “You belong with me.”
Tension hung in the air; neither of us said a word.
The music from downstairs suddenly sounded at a much higher volume, pulsating so loudly that the floors and walls began to shake.
I stepped back, my heart racing a mile a minute, my mind spinning in a million different directions.
Hayden closed the gap between us, and then he pressed his hands on the wall above me.
Trapping my body between his legs, he looked deep into my eyes, his irises a mix of longing and lust. “You should leave this room now if you don’t believe that I want you.”
His eyes were locked on mine, and the suffocating tension in this room was begging to be addressed.
I slid my hand against the doorknob to my left and pressed the lock button.
“I’ll take that as your answer,” he said, tilting my chin up with his fingertips. He pressed his mouth against mine—kissing me deeply and thoroughly.
“Ahhhh.” I moaned at the feel of his tongue controlling mine.
He slid his hand under the thigh-high slit of my dress and tugged at my panties.
I expected him to tear them off like he did at the yacht party, but he suddenly stopped and pulled away from my mouth.
“Turn around to face the mirror,” he said. “I want to look at you while we fuck…”
I slowly turned to my right, and he gripped me from behind.
His gaze met mine in the full-length mirror, and he made me watch as he slowly pushed my panties down to the marble floor.
Stuffing them inside his pocket, he moved behind me again and bit my ear.
“Grab the sink for me.”
I obeyed, grabbing it tightly and watching as he bit my neck and pushed up my dress.
He unbuckled his pants and pulled out his cock. Without saying a word, he pressed the thick tip of it against my pussy.
My eyes widened, and he let out a low laugh as he slowly—oh, so slowly, slid into me.
Oh. My. God.
“Ohhh…” I cried out as I adjusted to his length and his thickness, as he took his time positioning himself just right behind me.
“Does it feel good?” He asked when he was only halfway inside.
“Yes.”
“Good.” He slid the rest of himself into me all at once, making me cry out in a mix of slight pain and pleasure.
“Ohh god…” I kept my eyes on his in the mirror, loving the way he felt deep inside of me. Loving the way he groaned behind me as he owned my body with his.
My knuckles whitened as I gripped the edge harder, as he rocked against me and thrusted in and out with controlled, yet wild abandon.
Years of our friendship unraveled and fell away with every deep stroke. Every wet kiss he pressed against my neck.
He slid his left hand up to my breast and squeezed it, whispering, “You feel so fucking good…”
I moaned as he slid into me harder.
The way he watched me through the mirror as he controlled me, as he fucked me, was beyond intoxicating. I never wanted to look away.
“Slide your hand to your clit,” he whispered. “Let me see how well I taught you…”
I sucked in a breath as he kept up his reckless rhythm, and I slowly slid my hand under the slit of my dress.
I teased my clit with my finger tips, rubbing it in a slow circle, gaining his gaze of approval.
I tried to match his tempo, but it was no use. He was suddenly getting even more turned on at the sight of me touching myself, pushing me closer to the edge.
I can’t hold on anymore.
I gripped the counter harder than I had all night and screamed his name at the top of my lungs.
He stiffened behind me, reaching his orgasm next.
Both panting, our bodies still entwined, we stared at our reflection to see what we’d just done.
He kissed the back of my neck one last time before slowly pulling out of me. And he didn’t take his eyes off mine while he zipped his pants.
He smoothed my hair into place, looking as if he wanted to say something, but no words fell from his lips.
The realization of what just happened dawned on me in slow motion. Each staggered second exposed that the two of us had done more than cross the line of our friendship.
We’d bulldozed over it and set fire to the bridge behind it.
“I can’t do this…” I pushed him away. “I can’t believe that I…That we…”
I unlocked the door and left.
Twenty-Seven (B)
Present Day
Penelope<
br />
I ran out of the building and into the rain, rushing toward the first available town car. The sign in the rear window read, Designated Driver: Paid for by Mr. Hunter, and a valet quickly walked over and opened the backdoor.
“Have a safe night, Miss.” He shut it once I climbed inside.
“Where to?” The driver asked.
“555 Aurora Avenue. As fast as you can, please.”
“Will do.”
His eyes met mine in the rearview mirror as he pulled onto the street, but he didn’t strike up a conversation. Instead, he turned on the radio, letting the songs complement the rain’s steady percussion.
Holding back tears, I leaned against the seat and tried to process whatever the hell had happened between Hayden and me in that bathroom.
My heart pounded an unfamiliar rhythm with every instant replay, and my lips felt pleasurably sore from how hard he’d kissed me.
How hard he fucked me …
“Simon isn’t who he you think he is.” “He’s been cheating on you this whole time.” “Trust me, Penelope. Fucking trust me.”
I knew he’d never lie to me, but those words still hurt to hear. And I couldn’t believe he’d waited more than a single day to tell me the truth.
“You wouldn’t have believed me.”
My phone vibrated against my thigh as the car coasted through Manhattan, but I ignored it.
It wasn’t until I was halfway home that I forced myself to face its screen and change Hayden’s name for the umpteenth time.
Hayden: [img.] [img.] [img.] [img.] [img.]
Hayden: [img.] [img.] [img.] [img.] [img.]
Hayden: [img.] [img.] [img.] [img.] [img.]
I opened the images one by one, feeling my stomach tighten and twist with eachstolen glimpse of Simon’s other lives.
He kissed a blonde on a white-sanded beach, hugged a brunette in the corner booth of a crepe café, and laughed with a pretty redhead over confetti-speckled ice cream.
He wore glasses and a plaid shirt while wearing an “S. Gines” name tag, a suit while standing in front of a sign that read “Sam Giannis Wealth Building Seminar,” and jeans and a T-shirt while picking up a coffee reserved for “Silas Gains.”
Oh my god.
With every new picture, a memory of the time we’d shared over the past few months shattered to pieces in my mind.
As I was staring at an image of him groping some woman’s ass in the arrivals zone at John F. Kennedy International Airport, his name crossed my screen via phone call.
I hit ignore.
I zoomed in on the image and realized that this woman wasn’t just anyone. She was the fiancé who’d supposedly left him hanging on his wedding day, the woman he’d crafted as a total villain whenever he brought her up to me.
What a fucking liar.
He called my phone again, and I immediately answered.
“Yeah?” I didn’t try to hide my disdain. “What the hell do you want, Simon?”
“I’ve been looking all over for you.” He didn’t catch my tone at all. “I wanted us to dance again before the fireworks. I was also hoping you’d want to leave early so we can have the rest of the evening to ourselves.”
He sounded so damn sweet and genuine that I couldn’t blame myself for not seeing through his facade.
“How the hell do you sleep at night, Simon?” I asked. “I want to know.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“I mean, how the hell do you sleep at night knowing that you have multiple women across the country vying for different pieces of your heart?”
He said nothing.
All I could hear was the clinking of champagne glasses and light laughter in the background.
“How many women are there?” I asked. “Do any of them know?”
“Wow. I’m not sure who has gotten into your head with these lies and ugly allegations, but— ” His voice faltered for the very first time since we met. “None of what you’ve said about me is true. I’m falling for you and only you.”
“You know, years ago, I would’ve loved nothing more than to hear you say that.”
“Better late than never, right?”
“More like, better off as never.” I swallowed the lump in my throat. “We’re fucking over, Simon. I’ll send you some pictures as a parting gift, but please don’t contact me again.”
“Penelope, don’t do this to us.” He had the audacity to sound sincere. “We have something special here. I felt it the moment I saw you at the airport.”
“That was probably guilt for cheating on the other girls.”
I didn’t wait for a response. I ended the call and forwarded him every single picture I’d received from Hayden.
Once the last one went through, he disregarded my wishes.
Simon: I’m so sorry about this situation, Penelope. I’ve always been afraid of committing to one person, but I can honestly say that you were on the verge of transforming me into the better man I want to be.
Simon: I can let all of them go for you. I swear.
Simon: Please take as much time as you need to think about forgiving me. I’ll never talk to any of them again if you give me another chance.
I blocked his number and turned off my phone. I had someone far more important to think about.
When the driver pulled the car in front of my brownstone, he turned around and handed me a Kleenex.
“Hope the rest of your night gets better, Miss.”
“Thank you.” I handed him a few twenties and headed up the steps.
As I was rummaging for my keys, I spotted a note that was taped to the doorframe.
* * *
Soooo….
I went out to a Sailor Moon Con in Jersey for the weekend.
Don’t judge me!
Tell me everything (& I do mean EVERYTHING) on Monday.
Tati
P.S.—Please don’t move the star crystals on the mantle.
I crumpled the note and pushed the door open.
Wanting to silence the thoughts that were racing through my head, I hastily unzipped my dress and avoided looking at myself in the mirror as the fabric fell to the floor.
I shut myself inside the bathroom and let the tears break free as I stepped into the shower. I turned the water to the hottest setting, allowing the streams attack me with their scalding, unrestrained judgement.
You had sex with your best friend.
In a public bathroom.
You fucked him a bathroom, and you broke up with the guy he’s been helping you chase for weeks.
As much as I wanted to deny it, I knew that things would never be the same between us again.
Not after that.
I tried to think about something else—anything else, but it was no use. All I could hear over the water slapping my skin was Hayden’s deep, rugged voice.
“You belong with someone else … And that someone else is me.”
“Yes, I want you to break up with him, for me.”
The steam fogged the glass doors and assaulted my throat, making another minute inside the shower unbearable.
Giving in, I turned off the water and wrapped myself in a towel. Since I was still on edge, I headed toward the kitchen.
I needed a drink.
“Hello, Penelope.” Hayden’s deep voice stopped me dead in my tracks.
I turned around to see him sitting on the edge of my bed. He’d pushed his shirt sleeves back to his elbows, and he’d loosened his dark tie.
Staring right at me with his jaw clenched, he looked torn between pulling me against him or losing his shit on me for leaving the gala.
“Is your boyfriend coming over to join this conversation?” he asked.
“He’s not my boyfriend anymore.” I swallowed. “I’ll have to figure out a title for him soon.”
“‘The One That Wasted Our Time’ seems fitting.”
“Our time?”
“Yes.” He nodded. “He’s been in the way for too long, and I wasn�
�t lying to you about him.”
“I’m aware.”
“I also wasn’t lying about us.”
“There is no us,” I said. “That’s the most ridiculous thing that you’ve ever said to me. Then again, it may be tied for first place with you admitting that you stalked someone for an entire week.”
“Longer than that.” A faint smile crossed his lips, but he didn’t let it stay.
“I can’t be just your friend anymore, Penelope.” He looked into my eyes. “I refuse.”
“Are you saying it’s all or nothing?”
“Yes. But I’m also saying that I want to be yours, and I want you to be mine.”
Silence.
My heart was begging me to say yes and throw myself all over him, but my mind knew better.
Hayden had never been in a functioning relationship in his life.
Stay friends, stay friends …
“What if I said that I need to think about it?”
“I guess you can do that.” He walked over to me, wrapping an arm around my waist. “But that doesn’t need to happen until tomorrow. I think we need to pick up where we left off at the gala in the meantime.”
“What makes you think that’s a good idea?”
“Because I know you,” he said, running his fingers through my hair.“Tell me how you want it.”
I stood still, completely speechless.
“Tell me, Penelope,” he whispered. “Do you want me to go slower? Devour your pussy with my mouth?”
“Yes.”
“Can you say that for me?”
I swallowed, and he tugged at the edge of my towel until it fell away from my body. It landed on the floor in a useless heap.
“Penelope.” He bit my bottom lip, trapping it between his teeth while he stared into my eyes. “Tell me what you want.”
“I want what you said.” I struggled to speak. I was beyond turned on. “I want that.”
His low laughter turned me on even more.
Letting my lip go, he pressed a light kiss against my lips. He pressed his palms against my ass—alternating between soft and hard squeezes.
“I’ll give you whatever you want,” he said. “But I need you to say it. I need you to be very clear and direct with me.”
