Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 71165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
I stared at him.
“She’s not better than you and don’t you fucking forget it,” he said from the floor.
He stood, and as I stared speechlessly up at him, he casually peeled off the condom and dropped it into the toilet. Pulling up his low swung jeans, he zipped and buttoned them. “You might want to think of getting dressed. Solomon should be bringing breakfast any moment now.”
Then he was gone, his bare feet silent on the white marble floor.
20
WILLOW
It took a couple of minutes before I could even stand, and when I did my legs felt like jelly. I had to grip the vanity for support. I looked at myself in the mirror and was amazed by my reflection. My face was red, my hair was a mess, and my eyes were wild. There were bruises on my hips from last night, and a love bite on my neck.
I fingered the darkening skin. Was it some sort of branding, a statement of possession? But for whose benefit? Tiffany? What had she said to him?
As I was splashing cold water onto my face and neck, I heard the doorbell. The sound of men’s voices floated over together with the fragrant smell of freshly brewed coffee. I dried my face, brushed my hair, slicked on a layer of lip gloss and went out.
White sunlight was pouring in through the tall windows.
Rex was scrolling through his phone and Solomon was laying the table with what appeared to be a veritable feast. Bread rolls, jam, honey, croissants, toast, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausages, cereal, a selection of fruit, a silver bowl filled with caviar.
“Good morning, Madam,” he greeted.
“Good morning, Solomon,” I replied awkwardly, my eyes sliding over to Rex.
Rex looked up at me and smiled. “Hungry?”
“Starving,” I replied.
“Good.”
“Shall I stay and serve, Sir?” Solomon asked.
“No, we’ll be fine, thanks.”
Solomon nodded. “Very good, Sir. Do ring if you need anything else.”
“Thank you, Solomon,” Rex said, and I echoed his words.
Solomon withdrew, and I moved closer to the table. “Would you like some orange juice?” I asked.
“No, just coffee. Black. No sugar.”
He came and sat down at the table, and I sat opposite him.
“That’s a lot of food for two people,” I commented as I poured a cup of coffee and put it in front of him.
“I wasn’t sure what you wanted.”
“Will the company pay for all this?” I asked softly.
He nodded.
“Even the caviar?”
“Even the caviar,” he agreed, amusement creeping into his voice.
I met his eyes head on. “You must be very valuable to the company then.”
“I am,” he stated simply. There was no arrogance in his expression, it was a statement of fact.
I nodded, then confessed, “I’ve never had caviar.”
He grinned. “Ah, a caviar virgin…”
I shrugged and smiled at him. “What can I say, I’m a bit of a hillbilly.”
“You are definitely not that,” he said, as he used the little silver spoon next to the bowl to scoop some caviar. He set the shiny black pearls on a small round pancake and I had to admit it looked so pretty. Holding the morsel, he reached his hand across the table towards my mouth. I opened my lips and he slipped the food in.
I began to chew and… ugh… it was slimy and disgusting. My first instinct was to spit it out, but I didn’t want to make a spectacle of myself so I swallowed it quickly and took a big gulp of orange juice.
“You didn’t like it?” he asked surprised.
“Sorry… but it’s horrible.”
He started to laugh. “You are priceless, Willow.”
I stared at him. “Why?”
“Because every woman I’ve ever been with always either genuinely loved it or pretended to. No woman I’ve ever been with has called it horrible.”
I laughed too. “I’m a hillbilly.”
“No… you’re honest,” he corrected.
Suddenly, I felt shame. I was not honest. I was a fraud. “Honest?” I whispered. “Look at the elaborate lie I’ve weaved. I’m paying you to be my boyfriend, Rex.”
“Want me to be honest with you?”
“Of course.”
“I actually admire you. You made a plan to save your dignity while suffering betrayal and heartbreak, and you went out and executed it perfectly. Now, stop being hard on yourself and dig into those eggs before they get cold.”
I gave him a grateful smile and reached for the eggs. “The thing I don’t understand is; I don’t care for Steven one bit, and I wouldn’t want him if he was served to me on a gold platter. But I feel insanely bad about him being with Tiffany.”
“News flash, you’re human, Willow. Human beings have egos and feelings. He has humiliated you and acted disgracefully. That shit hurts.”
I cocked my head. “You know, sometimes I feel as if I don’t know anything about you, and other times it feels like I’ve known you forever.”
He laughed. “I’ll go for known you forever.”
“Seriously though, you keep a lot close to your chest,” I said, warming up to the subject.