Chapter Seventeen
Arianna
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I TOSSED AND TURNED, staring up at the white ceiling in front of me, and wondering how long it would be before I heard the creak at the door.
It was only a matter of time, I was sure of it. Arnold would sneak into my room, and give me that look – the look that told me he was waiting for what he was owed. Ever since I laid eyes on him again, I had been prepared for what was to come next - I knew it was only a matter of time before he asked me for something, and I had no idea how I was going to be able to brush him off when he did.
I probably didn’t have a choice right now. I had made it a point not to actually sleep with any marks in the last few years – I had managed to get the act down to a fine point, play it so they had no idea I had no intention of slipping under the sheets with them. But now I was here, in his house, and I doubted I would have much of an option.
There was no way I was getting any sleep that evening. No fucking way. My ears were pricked for any sound outside my door, any small reminder of what was waiting for me as soon as Arnold decided he was ready. In his mind, and based on the story I had told Terrence, the only reason we hadn’t spent an evening wrapped in each other’s arms was because he’d fallen asleep. And not because I’d only ever wanted to snatch some cash and then get out of there.
Of course, I had to let them think they were in with a chance. I had to let them believe they were going to fuck me, that I was just so into them and their incredible, drooping bodies that I couldn’t resist. Honestly, the ego on those guys that they believed they could get their hands on a woman like me for free...
The teasing game worked best. Getting them all worked up and certain they were going to score. A touch on the arm, a toss of the hair over the shoulder, letting my dress ride up just an inch or two to show off my thigh – it always worked. I never had to worry about missing the mark, they fell for it every single time.
And by the time they passed out, I was off with the money, and didn’t have to deal with their breath on my cheek as I pretended to enjoy being with them. I never bothered with anything more than that. I had perfected it, down to an art – exactly how long I would linger on their eyes, how close I would get to them in the elevator. Anything, it seemed, was enough to convince these men they stood a chance, and they were obsessed with me within a matter of minutes.
It was exactly what I had done to Arnold, and I was sure some part of it was still lingering over him, some aspect of his want for me. I intended to play the damsel as long as I could, but I didn’t know how long I was going to be able to pull it off.
I had to convince him I was totally into him, and I had no idea how I was going to do that. It had been such a long time since I’d needed to be with someone I wasn’t actually attracted to, I wasn’t sure I had it in me to pick up where I had left off all those years ago. Hmm, maybe if I just let myself think about Dean, it would be a little easier – he seemed to be the only thing on my mind these days as it was.
I closed my eyes and sank back into the pillow, letting my mind linger on him for a long moment. Damn, that sex had been incredible. Maybe just the intensity of it, the anonymity, knowing I wasn’t going to see him again afterward; it had fired up something passionate inside of me, something needy and wanting.
I eventually managed to get some sleep, thinking of nothing but Dean – how much I wanted him, how much I wished he was there with me in that moment, and how much I longed to feel his closeness again. I knew I needed to forget about him, forget we had ever met, but the passion between us had been far too much for that. Leaving him behind, forgetting about him, was going to be harder than it should have been.
When I woke the next morning, it was to the sound of voices downstairs. I came to sharply, eyes flying open, and looked around the room as I attempted to place myself. Then, I remembered being dragged out of that hotel by the men working for Arnold, brought back here, told I wasn’t going anywhere else. At least I was still alive, and I had made it through the night without being disturbed by Arnold or anyone else.
Downstairs, though, I was sure I could hear someone talking, someone familiar. I furrowed my brow as I tried to work it out and place the voice, but nothing was coming to mind. Arnold? It didn’t sound quite like him, nor Terrence, what little time I’d spoken to him before he had left me to it yesterday.
I slowly climbed out of bed and headed to the door, pushing it open just a crack so I could get a look at what was going on out there. I could hear people talking, but the echo and the way they were overlapping with each other urgently made it impossible to make out anything that was being said. I couldn’t place it.
I grabbed the robe from the back of the door and wrapped it around me so I could go downstairs. I was starving, having basically avoided going downstairs again for anything, even to eat, and I needed to beg for some breakfast if they were going to keep me here longer.
That was what I would tell them, anyway. In truth, though, I wanted to check in on who it was downstairs who seemed so familiar to me. I needed to work out who exactly I was dealing with here. The more I knew about this situation, the better chance I had of getting out of it in one piece, and I was going to take every little chance I could to ensure it happened.
At the top of the stairs, I peered over the banister and down to the group below me – I could see a cluster of men, but couldn’t make out much more than that. I needed to get closer. I painted on my best expression of surprised sleepiness, making sure if someone caught me they would think I had just stumbled out of bed with no idea what was going on, and headed downstairs.
When I reached the bottom, and saw exactly who was there before me, my heart leapt into my throat.
No way. No fucking way. I stared at him, waiting for him to turn and see me. I needed to look into his eyes to be sure of it, but it looked pretty damn like he was...
Finally, he shifted, glancing over to see who had interrupted them. And, as soon as Dean realized I had somehow followed him here, his eyes widened.
My eyes must have been bugged halfway out of my head. What was he doing here? How long had he been here? Was he working with these guys? He looked pretty cozy with Terrence, who had just joined the group, leaning in to catch up on what he’d missed out on. This – this had to be wrong, this had to be a mistake. There was no way we could have run into each other again, and yet...
My entire body stiffened as we stood there and stared at each other. He didn’t seem to want to let anyone here know he was aware of who I was, and I felt the same way. The fact that he seemed so intent on hiding the truth made me wonder just what was going on with him and these men, but I didn’t have to get into it. I wasn’t going to. The less I knew, the easier it was going to be to extract myself from this situation, and I had no intention of kicking around here any longer than I needed to.
“Arianna, you’re up,” a voice came from behind me, and I turned to see Arnold approaching me with a smile on his face. “Come on, let’s get you some breakfast.”
He guided me past Dean and into the kitchen, and I found my eyes lingering on the other man for way, way longer than they should have. I needed to get out of here. I needed to put as much space between myself and Dean as possible, because if anyone caught us looking, there would be hell to pay.
But just before I sat down, he paused, as though thinking of something.
“Did you recognize that man?” he asked me.
“Which one?” I replied, trying to keep my voice as casual as I was able. I was sure he could see right through mw, but there wasn’t much I could do about that – the best I could hope for was that he bought my confusion.