Her face falls. She looks around as if uncomfortable. “I was just hoping we could talk.”
“About what?” I ask flatly.
“Um.” She fakes a smile, and it’s obvious she’s uncomfortable. “I was just… I was hoping we could be friends. Nathan mentioned that…”
He’s talked to her about me? My temper explodes like a firecracker, and the sky turns red.
“You’re not the kind of friend I would want, Stephanie.”
Her face falls. “Why not?”
I pinch the bridge of my nose with a chuckle. This woman is fucking stupid.
“I would expect a friend of mine to direct me back to the person I had feelings for. Not ask him to…” I pause and search for the right word. “Practice his skills on me.”
“That’s not fair.”
“Isn’t it?”
“Don’t be a fool.” Her eyes hold mine. “Do you know what I would do to have a man like Nathan Mercer in love with me?’
“I do.” My furious eyes hold hers. “Fall to your knees and suck his dick.” I turn and march off.
I storm into my office and throw my bag on the desk. I text the girls.
We are going out tonight.
Stretch up.
Eliza
It’s 2:00 p. m. when an email pings in my inbox from Nathan Mercer. I roll my eyes and open it.
Good afternoon, Miss Bennet,
I hope you are having a nice day.
This is a welfare check to see if my girlfriend is feeling any more stable this afternoon.
xoxoxo
I smirk. Asshole. I have calmed down considerably, but whatever. I reply:
Dear Dr. Mercer,
Your girlfriend is still feeling unhinged.
It is best to avoid her for your own health and safety.
xoxoxox
I smirk as I wait for his reply.
Miss Bennet,
Does she need me to come over and fuck the crazy out of her?
I’m happy to put her health and safety above mine.
xoxoxo
I smile. Don’t be cute, asshole.
I reply:
Dear Dr. Mercer,
Undoubtedly. However, it will have to wait until this evening.
Miss Bennet will get fired for having sexual relations at work.
xoxox
I tap my pen as I wait for his reply. I look around guiltily.
Miss Bennet,
Is that supposed to be a deterrent?
It’s an incentive to fuck you twice on the reception desk.
xoxoxo
I giggle. How can he calm me down with a few flirty emails? Oh well, I’m sick to death of fighting. All relationships have their problems, I guess. I just have to work out the best way to navigate through ours. I reply:
Dear Dr. Mercer.
I shall take you up on your offer.
I am going out to dinner with my friends tonight.
You can pick me up afterwards, if you wish, for my therapy session.
xoxoxox
I hit send and smile as I wait.
My phone instantly rings, the name Nathan lights up the screen. “Hello.”
“You’re going out tonight?” he snaps.
“Just for dinner.”
“I don’t want you to. I haven’t seen you all week.”
“You don’t have a choice.”
“Who are you going out with?”
“Jolie and Brooke. It’s just dinner, Nathan. I haven’t seen my friends in ages, and I live with you. You get to see me all the time.”
He exhales heavily, unimpressed.
“Unless you want to start another fight over nothing,” I snap. “I’m only too happy to go there.”
“Don’t be late,” he warns.
“Will you pick me up?” I ask.
“Fine.” He stays silent as he hangs on the line. “And?” he asks.
“And what?”
“Is that it?”
He’s waiting for me to tell him that I love him. Well, too bad. I’m not. “Is that it from you?”
“Yes, it is,” He snaps and I know he’s holding his temper.
“I’ll text you where we are tonight. Goodbye.” I hang up in a rush.
I can just imagine his fuming face right now.
Oh well…. he can get over it.
* * *
I see Jo and Brooke at the back of the restaurant, sitting in a booth. I make my way over to them.
“Hi.” I fall into my seat.
“Hey.” Jolie laughs, and Brooke gets up and kisses me.
I glance down to see a near-empty bottle of wine, and I frown. “How long have you two been here?”
“A while,” Jolie replies dryly. “I’ve got issues.” I chuckle as I fill my glass with the remainder of the bottle. “Join the club.”
Brooke rolls her eyes. “I don’t have issues.”
“Yes, you do,” Jolie mutters dryly. “You’re fucking boring, that’s a big issue. It’s worse than ours.”
I giggle as I sip my wine. “What’s the issue, Jo?”
“Well, you know how I’m seeing Santiago?”
“Yeah. Did you wee on him yet?”
“No, but he wants me to go to Spain with him on a holiday.” I frown. “Right.”
“But Brooke thinks he’s going to sell me on the black market or some shit.”
My eyes flicker to Brooke. “What? Why?”
“He wants her to have a threesome.”
My eyes go back to Jolie. “Didn’t you do that already? You were talking about that last week.”
“No.” Brooke smiles sweetly. “He’s saving her for his buddy back home. Isn’t he so thoughtful?”
I open my mouth to say something but nothing comes out.
Yuck.
“So, this fool,” Brooke sneers, “is actually considering going to another country with a man she hardly knows so that he can share her with his friends. Where she doesn’t speak the language, and has no idea who he is or what the laws of possession are.”
“You don’t know him!” Jolie cries.
“I don’t think I want to,” I reply. “Jo, you can’t be seriously considering this.”
“Why not?”
“It’s fucking dangerous. I’m with Brooke; you have no idea what he’s into. He could be a sex trafficker and his job is to come to the states to bring pretty girls back home.”
“He’s not, and you two have read too many dark romance books. That shit doesn’t happen for real.”
“You don’t know that.” Brooke scoffs. “Seriously, you are killing me. You can’t be this stupid?”
“Well, I want to go.” Jolie huffs. “I’ve always wanted to travel, and it’s only one week. He’s going to take me to San Sebastian.”
“To probably kill you,” Brooke mutters under her breath. “He might make snuff movies or some shit.”
Jolie rolls her eyes, and I chuckle. “Jeez, your story makes mine sound tame.”
“Why?” Jolie sighs uninterested. “What’s happening with you?”
It feels good to be with my friends. I’ve been building up all this stress and I’m bursting to vent about it.
“I’m going to tell you bitches everything, and I want your support and understanding because my head is about to explode.”
“Fire away,” Jolie does a little wave to the server. “It will take my mind off of sex trafficking.”
I giggle. “Well, to start with, there is a chick at Nathan’s work who sucked his dick,” I blurt out in a rush.
“What?” they both gasp and sit forward in their seats.
“She wants him and she’s beautiful. She’s also a doctor.”
“What the hell?” Brooke whispers. “Everyone fucking wants him.”
“Oh, you don’t know the half of it. While on my conference last week, guess who I met.”
“Who?” They both frown.
“A guy who used to go out with Nathan.”