Promiscuous Lies (Vengeful Lies #2)

31. Posie

CHAPTER 31

Posie

Dutton: You still owe me a date. Today.

I want to ignore it, but I know Dutton has the tendency to do whatever the fuck he wants, and him rocking up to my door uninvited is a very real possibility, even though I just saw him two nights ago.

I stare at the message, confused, before I press call, and his voice comes over the phone.

“A date?” I ask just as he says, “Well, hello.”

“Don’t hello me. Why are you asking me on a date? This is supposed to be sex only. Why are you trying to change things?”

“I never said it was only sex. And you still owe me a date.”

“We can skip the formalities since we’re only fucking,” I say matter-of-factly, peeking around the corner of my living room to make sure Bentley can’t hear me.

He sighs. “They know about you… my family, that is. Now my sister insists you attend her birthday party, and I’m not usually able to say no to her.”

“I don’t give a flying fuck about your sister complex. I hate people; it’s why I have no friends,” I tell him.

“That’s good. I hate people, too. But not you,” he replies. “But you do still technically owe me a date. Remember that little deal we made when you took the new job?”

Motherfucker. I didn’t think he was serious about it or that he’d want to follow through, especially now that we’re fucking. That’s all this is, isn’t it?

“People who only have sex don’t meet family,” I say.

“My family is different. And I wouldn’t put it past them to invite themselves to your home if you don’t come.”

My jaw drops. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

“Do I sound like I’m joking?” he deadpans.

Jesus. I mean, if he’s capable of showing up unannounced all the time, why do I think his family would act any differently?

“Please. We don’t have to be there long.”

“We say please now?” I ask, surprised.

“When the occasion calls for it. But don’t tell my family I begged you to come.”

“Is that what this is, begging?”

“I can get on my knees and show you begging in different ways if you’d like. In fact, I’d much prefer to convince you in other ways.”

I bite my bottom lip, trying not to laugh. I peek back through the living room at Bentley. Today was our day together. “I have a son; I can’t just up and leave.”

“Bring him.”

“To what, a party where dangerous people are? I’m protective of him, Dutton.”

“He’ll be fine. I can assure you he won’t be safer in any other house than the one we’re taking him to,” he says as if his reassurance is enough.

I believe him to a degree, but how can a man who doesn’t have a child understand the protective nature of a parent? Part of me is curious to see what type of people Dutton’s family are. I’m sure they’re all cold and calculated, but I have to squash that curiosity.

“No,” I tell him.

The thought of going out sounds nice, but when it comes time to leave, I don’t want to. This is a real dilemma I seem to have.

“I’m at your door already.”

This arrogant asshole.

“Okay, so you can also leave it.” I walk to the door and pull it open to find him standing there. “How long have you been there for?” I ask, still holding the phone to my ear. He has the audacity to be holding a bouquet of roses and what appears to be a box of Lego.

“Dutton!” Bentley yells from behind me.

I hang up the phone, and he pockets his.

“Are you here to bribe me and my son?”

He hands me the flowers but makes no move to touch me in front of my son, which I appreciate. He then awkwardly hands the other present to Bentley. “I don’t have wrapping paper, but when I was his age, I loved building things such as LEGO.”

I can’t help but snort and break my serious expression at his awkward attempt to connect with a child.

“Can I really take this?” Bentley asks me with wide eyes.

I nod, and he squeals as he takes it. I try to keep my smile hidden because I don’t want to reward or approve of Dutton’s attempts to wedge himself into my life.

“You shouldn’t spoil him,” I say as Bentley tries to rip open the box.

“I can tell the way you look at your son that you spoil him enough as it is. A LEGO set here or there isn’t going to hurt.” I don’t know why it takes me off guard. He’s obviously been paying attention in the few interactions he’s had with my son.

“Want to come to a party?” Dutton asks Bentley, ignoring everything we just discussed. My teeth grind. On second thought, this guy is still definitely an asshole.

“Party? I love parties,” Bentley says as he turns to me. “Can we go?”

“Nice. Use my son against me,” I say, unimpressed.

“If that’s what it takes.”

I lean down and kiss Bentley on the head. “Go and put that in your room for now. Don’t forget to say thank you.”

“Thank you, Mr. Bossman Dutton!” he says before running off excitedly.

“I don’t like people,” I reiterate, holding the huge bouquet. “And you know buying me this shit doesn’t work on me.”

“But your son sure seems to like people, and you can do whatever you want with the flowers as long as you keep the lingerie sets.” He grins wickedly.

I let out a breath as I feel my temper rising. This guy just pushes and pushes. Not that I mind it in the bedroom. Flashes of a few nights ago come to mind, and I avert my gaze from him, trying not to think so fondly of this man right now while he’s pissing me off.

It’s true, though. Bentley loves people because he hasn’t been hurt by this world and doesn’t understand how cruel life can be. I certainly plan on protecting him from that as much as possible. I hope when I die, he won’t be as lonely as I was when my parents died. That part kills me the most because no matter how much I want to protect him, I’m also isolating him. I can’t blame it on Dutton, but he makes me more aware of the bubble we’ve been living in.

“What’s the dress code?” I ask, and he looks me up and down. I’m wearing a skirt and a plain white shirt.

“What you have on is fine.”

“So help me God, if I walk into this party and I’m dressed like this while other people are dressed up, I will kill you.”

“Okay, so they may all be dressed up, but that’s how they are; they love clothes.”

“That’s better.” I shut the door in his face and head to my room. I’m pulling a few things out of drawers as Bentley runs in.

“Are we going to the party?!” he asks eagerly.

“Change into your best black pants,” I tell him. He grins and runs to his room with another excited squeal. I can’t help but smile. He doesn’t have many fancy clothes, as he’s so young, but I took him out in a new outfit for his birthday, and he’s been asking me when he can wear it again. Even though it hasn’t been all that long, I’m not sure if it fits him anymore—he’s growing so fast. I guess we’re about to find out.

I put on a simple black dress, followed by some basic black heels, just as Bentley comes running back in. The pants still fit him, barely, though I can tell he won’t be able to wear them much longer. He also has his button-up shirt on, the buttons not quite matching the holes.

What am I doing? And why am I doing it?

This isn’t me. I told myself not to do things for a man again. Look where it got me last time. And I try to tell myself this thing with Dutton is nothing serious. But letting Dutton around Bentley in any capacity is serious for me, and so I’ll make it my mission to have a proper conversation with Dutton after this. It’s not just my feelings that have to be considered; it’s Bentley’s feelings as well. And Dutton can’t assume he has free rein to come and go as he pleases.

“Ready,” Bentley says enthusiastically. I look down at his big brown eyes. I can’t say no to this little guy.

I already know he’s going to be talking about this for days.

“Yep. Best behavior, remember,” I tell him. He nods before he turns and runs back to the door, pulling it open to let Dutton inside. Surprisingly, he waited outside after I closed the door on him. Bentley begins telling him about the new Transformers movie he watched, and I smile as Dutton tries his best to follow along.