Chapter 13 #2
This was the right move. I’m getting everything I wanted from her in high school. The intimacy I always craved.
When she emerges from the fitting room, she’s wearing the blue dress, and it looks just as good as I thought it would. It hits her curves in all the right places, and the blue makes her eyes look like they have a lightbulb behind them.
“Wow,” I mutter. “You look incredible.”
That hesitance creeps into her face once again, so I launch from my seat and walk over to her. I reach out and gently run my fingers down her cheek. “But don’t take my word for it. Get whatever you like. Go crazy. Buy the whole store if you want.”
She shoots me an assessing look before her eyes flash with something mischievous. Does she think I don’t mean it? That I’ll balk if she picks out too many outfits?
Bring it on, Amelia. Let me show you just what it will be like if you let me have you. I’ll buy you the whole damn world. I’ll shower you with kisses. Let me show you what it means to be mine and only mine.
This is only the beginning.
Amy
Fuck, he’s getting into my head again, and I don’t like it.
He’s never had a date like this with any of the past contestants. The amount of money this date must cost his parents is a red flag.
He’s manipulating me, making me feel special.
But why does he have to seem so damn sincere? His gentle voice combined with the adoring looks he’s giving me is making my stomach flutter against my will.
I need to use this to my advantage. When I decided on a makeover, I kept clothes out of the equation. I can’t spend my money so frivolously, no matter how determined I am to take Tristan down.
He said I can buy the whole store, and by God, I’m going to do it. I’m going to spend a fortune.
I know his parents are wealthy, but he probably doesn’t expect me to spend more than a few hundred.
I’ll spend at least five K if it’s the last thing I do. That’s the amount of the betting pool according to Nick. Since Tristan is going to win the bet no matter what—determined as I am to sleep with him and then ditch him—I’ll make sure I clean his family out of that money beforehand and then some.
“Alright, let’s do this,” I say, and Tristan smiles. He has no idea what he’s in for.
I grab an outfit from every single rack, pausing only to find my size.
A few minutes later, the heavy load of cloth drags on the floor as I make my way to the dressing room.
One of the camera guys has huge eyes, and he’s staring at Tristan, probably waiting for him to tell me he was exaggerating when he said I could buy the whole store.
“Wait,” Tristan says, and a slow smile spreads over my face. He’s about to tell me that he didn’t mean it literally, that I can’t actually take all of this home.
He walks over to me and removes the clothes from each of my hands. “It’ll take you forever to try all of that on, and I have something planned.” He looks around the store until he spots the store attendant. “Would you mind ringing all these up?” he calls out.
My skin heats. “What are you doing?”
He turns to me, smiling. “If there’s anything you don’t like when you try it all on, you can exchange or return and get a refund.”
My mouth drops open. “This place is expensive. That was probably thousands of dollars’ worth of stuff.”
He shrugs. “Like I said, no budget. Now how about we do this.” An almost boyish grin spreads over his face. “How about you let me choose one thing for you to try on for me.”
I lower my eyes to the tile floor. “Um…okay.”
His hand grazes my cheek. “I’ve always wanted to see you in a red dress. You never wear bright colors. Here—” he walks a few feet away and grabs a red dress from the rack “—I saw this earlier.” His voice grows husky. “I’d love for you to try it on for me.”
He emphasizes the words “for me” and my tummy does a little flip. “Okay,” I say in a small voice.
His expression softens. “It’s just for fun. You don’t have to get it if you hate it.”
“I’m not letting the camera crew inside the dressing room for this one.”
He scowls. “Fuck no, you’re not. This is for me. Not the whole damn campus.”
Heat unfurls in my belly. I hate that his possessiveness turns me on.
I grab the dress from his hand and walk to the dressing room. I can do this. I’ve already tried on a dress for him.
But not like this one. This dress is going to show every inch of my skin.
I’ve done it once, so why is it so hard this time?
Maybe because this dress is just for Tristan, and something about that idea makes me dizzy. It feels like we’re a real couple.
A moment later, I’m in the dressing room trying to pull the dress over my thick body. It’s so tight, I have to hop up and down to get it over my big ass. When I finally pull the straps onto my arms, I find I have a real problem.
I stretch my arm as far over my back as I can to grab the zipper, making my shoulder pop.
“Hey, Tristan?” I call out.
“Yes?” he answers immediately.
“Can you help me zip it up?”
He’s quiet for a moment, but when he finally responds, the huskiness in his voice sends a shiver down my spine. “I’d be honored.”
When I open the dressing room door, he immediately walks inside. His pretty blue eyes roam my body as if they’re hungry for me, which makes me hot everywhere.
He stands behind me but doesn’t move to zip up my dress right away. In the mirror, I see his mouth move to my ear. “Can I take it off instead? The camera crew won’t know.”
“No!” I squeal, hating myself for how childish I sound. He was probably only kidding. “Zip it up. Now.”
He chuckles as his hands drop to the small of my back. He takes his sweet time zipping it up, his fingers touching my back as he pulls the clasp to the top.
“Damn, Amy,” he says, his eyes meeting mine in the mirror. “You’re only allowed to wear this dress around me, okay?”
I snort. “No. I’ll be wearing this dress wherever the fuck I want.”
He bursts into laughter, and something about the deep rumble makes me laugh too. When his chuckles finally subside, his mouth returns to my ear. “Someday I’ll have the pleasure of spanking you for that sassy mouth.”
My tummy fills with liquid heat, and as if my feet have a will of their own, they turn me around to face Tristan. His eyes widen minutely before I bring my mouth to his neck and place a small kiss on his tan skin.
“Oh fuck, Amy,” he whispers. “I need more. Let’s go to my house after this.”
My belly catches fire. I can’t go to his house right now. He’s turning me on too much with his worshipful looks, and I’d probably be tempted to sleep with him.
Not yet. I’ll get my final revenge just before the closing ceremony of the game.
Right before he gets the chance to execute whatever plan he’s brewing.
A slow smile spreads over my face. “No. I need to write.” I flip around, trying my best to plant a severe expression on my face. “Now get out of here. I need to change back into my clothes. Why don’t you make yourself useful and find me some jewelry.”
He shoots me a devilish smile. “As you wish, my queen.”