It was a cold Tuesday evening, but the restaurant was pleasantly warm. Emily. Silky brown hair throwing off gold light, center parted, slicked down over the scalp, and clipped back with a pretty brooch. Lips too pink, and eyes too warm for someone who’d let me suffer for years under her son’s thumb. She sat down before me, her skin paler than I remembered. The deep purple dress stood out starkly against her complexion.Oh, no fake tan today.“The ring’s nice,” I commented with a sip of my wine.“His name’s George,” she said carelessly. “He has great taste, doesn’t he?”“Acquired?” I said, boring my eyes into hers.Her gaze was sharp. “You’ve gotten brave.”“Better than being desperate.” I set my wine down gently. “Don’t want anything ruining your big day, I assume?”“It’s been years, Lilian.”She sounded so casual and dismissive.“You think invalidating my pain will get you anywhere?”The waiter arrived, asking for our orders. Emily didn’t have the chance to stare me down as she turne
The keys jingled as I unlocked the door.“I don’t know why but I was expecting a huge place.” Marcus chuckled as we stepped inside. I shed my coat and tossed it onto the stand.“It’s just me.” I sighed and kicked my heels off. “So it doesn’t make sense to have too large a place.”“The interior’s impeccable, though.”“I definitely made a big investment in it,” I agreed. “Make yourself at home. Do you like mint lemonade?”“Sure.”I went into the kitchen quickly without another word, really needing to be away from Marcus. My social battery felt like it would die out completely if I spent another second around him. It would’ve been nice to know he was such a talker. Not that it was a problem, honestly, but there was only so much I could handle after everything that had happened tonight.My gaze dropped to the brown file on the island and I almost groaned. Emily’s profile. Snatching it off the marble surface, I pulled open the trash drawer and stuffed it in. Sliding it shut, I breathed dee
“Lilith!” came Aubrey’s excited squeal as she ran into my office and plopped down onto the seat before my desk. Normally, I’d be quite annoyed, but today I felt all right. “You’ll never guess what happened!”“Not until you tell me, no,” I agreed as I typed away and scanned the data for issues. “Make it quick, though. I have to leave for an appointment in ten minutes.”“I got invited to Fashion Week in South Korea!” she shrieked, jumping around in her seat“Oh, wow, that’s wonderful.” I smiled at her. “The getaway you’ve been looking for, right?”She smacked her hands on the table. “Yes, and I’m taking all my friends with me.”“That sounds like a lot of fun!”“It will be!” she cheered. “You’re coming with me!”I blinked at her, trying to register what she said.“Aubrey, I’m not—”“Please?” She rose from her seat and reached across my desk to grab my hands. “You never take a break from work except on the weekends. It’ll be fun. And South Korea’s amazing with so many other conventions ha
I hadn’t felt so excited for anything in my life. I couldn’t sleep, and I felt a surge of relief flowing through me. No Mom, no Emily, no Marcus. And no Cristo. I could finally catch a break. Aubrey had sent me a list of essentials. Apparently, we’d be heading to a resort there with our very own open pool, which didn’t make sense considering how cold it was starting to get. But I went with it and searched for any bikinis I had. Hmm, I’ll have to buy some, I realized while scanning my wardrobe. I hadn’t visited the beach in ages. I was surprised she was only taking three other people along. I thought Aubrey was the super-social kind. But then again, I didn’t know much about her personal life outside her love life. My phone rang on top of a pile of clothes, and I noticed it was already 4:30 a.m. Aubrey wanted breakfast at the airport before we boarded the private jet, so we could all get acquainted with each other. "Do you want me to pick you up?" read her message. "We’re all carpoo
The glitz and glamor of it all, as beautiful and mesmerizing as it was, gave me a headache. Too many photographers, music too loud and it was too cold. It smelled like paint and smoke. Artificial. The jewelry glinted into my eyes, and the whispers tickled my ears and made it unbearable to even be there.I’d made a mistake. Fashion shows were absolutely not for me.I felt Jenna’s hand on mine, gentle and concerned. I looked at her and she nodded in understanding, turning to whisper to Aubrey and taking me away to the bathroom. I followed her without hesitation and looked in the mirror, a little shocked. My neck and cheeks were flushed, making my freckles pop.“Are you feeling okay?”“I don’t know.” I laughed and shook my head. “Guess I’m not a fan of crowded spaces.”“It was noisy, too,” she agreed with a solemn nod. I splashed some cold water on my face, hoping my mascara wouldn’t run down even though it was waterproof. I’d kept makeup on me anyway but didn’t want to take the time to
I woke up in the middle of the night, a little confused and somewhat panicked. I wasn’t sure why, I knew I’d just had a nightmare, but I couldn’t remember any of the details. The lights in the room were off, but there was a dim light from the outside spilling in under the door.It outlined Cristo’s silhouette. He sat on the stool, arms crossed on the bed, leaning forward and his head resting on them as he snored away softly. I felt so bad for him.Tentatively, I reached out for him, unsure if what I was doing was appropriate. I just wanted him to sleep okay and not be too tired to drive back home.“Cristo,” I whispered with a gentle hand on his shoulder. I nudged him just enough for him to open his eyes. He blinked sleepily and lifted his head, yawning wide.“Hi.” He grunted tiredly, and oh, my fucking goodness—what was his voice doing to me?I felt so embarrassed at the very sensual reaction my body had to it that I pulled the comforter over my chest. Not that he would be able to see
My bed was too warm when I woke up, and so was I. Slowly regaining consciousness, I blinked the sleep away.The memories rushed in and I froze in place, realizing that I wasn’t alone. My back was pressed against Cristo’s strong chest, his hand draped over my stomach. His breath brushed over my collarbone and I realized his head was in my neck, lips pressed unconsciously to my jaw.I was going to be turned on and ready for round two if I didn’t get out of his hold quickly. My face flushed as I remembered the way he flipped me onto my side to fuck me from behind, grabbing my waist to hold me in place and caressing my breasts. He’d made me orgasm so violently that I fell asleep as soon as I came down from my high.How loud was I last night?Cristo grunted softly in my ear as he shuffled a bit. I closed my eyes immediately and pretended to sleep, deepening my breath to make sure he couldn’t tell.His head lifted off my skin, his hand moving to rest on my hip for a moment. He didn’t move,
Exhaustion weighed me down, my muscles felt like they were made of lead as I sank into the mattress. I didn’t want to move ever again.The familiar soft fabric of Korean linen felt like silk against my skin. I stared up at the suite’s ceiling, looking murky under the weird, muddy light. Like quicksand, the sheets dissolved under me. I sank inside slowly as the world warped, ever-so-slightly, with everything around me turning to thick liquid. It cradled my head, arms, back, and legs gently. I closed my eyes as I felt my face dip below the sheets, ready to accept the void that was waiting to embrace me.RING!I shot up in bed with my eyes wide open and a cold sheen of sweat on my forehead. My heart was beating in my throat so fast that I thought I’d choke on it. The sunlight poured into my eyes, nearly blinding me and making me dizzy.I really thought I was back in Korea. Back to the night where Cristo and I…Ugh.My mind throbbed against my skull painfully and I groaned. Did I have too