Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Carley
Ren and Saylor are snuggled on the couch watching television when I walk through the door. I think Saylor is slowly moving him into our apartment. He’s here nearly every weeknight and usually every weekend, too.
“Hey!” Saylor calls.
“Hey,” I answer, locking the door behind me.
I pull out my phone and open up my messages. Typing out a quick message to D, I let him know I am home.
“How was your weekend?” Saylor prompts.
“Jeez … why don’t you let her get settled before you start in with the questions?” Ren laughs, looking at Saylor as though he forgot how overbearing she can be.
“Um,” Saylor’s eyebrows raise with both shock and annoyance. “Because I’m not wired to wait. Duh.”
“Have you met your girlfriend?” I tease.
“Good point,” he points to me and clicks his tongue.
“It’s fine, I’m used to it,” I over exaggerate my exhale in a joking manner. “My weekend was great, but I will save the details for when Ren isn’t around. I’m sure the last thing he wants to hear about is … well … any of it.”
Saylor scoffs and rolls her eyes.
“Whatever. So Ren installed a security system while you were having naked fun all weekend.”
“Really?”
A small amount of relief washes over me, hearing that we’re going to have a way to monitor what goes on in our apartment when we’re not around. I don’t need Blaine showing up in my closet again. A chill rolls through me as I remember back to that morning.
I had just gotten out of the shower, and I was still wrapped in my towel.
I grabbed my undergarments and then went to the closet to choose the outfit I was going to wear that day.
The moment I opened the door, there he was.
I was frozen in place, completely paralyzed.
I couldn’t even call for help. His leering stare still haunts me from time to time.
Saylor was out all night, but thankfully got home right around the time this happened.
She came into my room to say good morning just as Blaine was trying to pin me down on the bed.
She jumped on his back, pulled his hair, and was scratching at his face until the two of them ended up on the floor. He got up and ran off after that.
I don’t know why he didn’t attack me in the middle of the night when I was asleep.
He had to have known Saylor wasn’t there.
But I don’t like to question it, and I can’t think about what would have happened if she hadn’t gotten there when she did.
I picture him standing over me as I slept, and another ice-cold chill pierces me from the inside out.
I filed a police report that day, but I never heard from him after that.
Until Friday night.
“Hey, are you okay?” Ren thankfully breaks me from my inner thoughts.
“Yeah, no. I’m good. Thanks.”
I’m grateful for the sincere, concerned look in his eye.
“So,” Saylor interrupts, “go get settled, and then we can show you how it all works. It’s pretty cool.”
“Okay, I’m going to take a quick shower, and then I’ll be out.”
I take my purse and what’s left of the clothing I was wearing on Thursday into my room. Looking around, I immediately miss being at D’s place. I feel safe with him. Not that I don’t feel safe here. Well, I did up until Blaine came back into the picture.
And that apology he offered me? No fucking way do I think it was sincere.
The look in his eyes on Friday night varied greatly from the one that stared back at me that morning.
He appeared almost innocent, harmless, kind of like he did the night I met him.
Which is exactly why I don’t trust him or believe he’s changed.
Closing and locking the door to my room, I get undressed and throw all my clothes into the hamper in the bathroom.
Turning the knobs in the shower, I let the water start heating up.
Looking at myself in the mirror, I think about all the crazy fun I had with D the past few days.
I run a hand through my hair and catch a whiff of D’s cologne on my thin, chocolate strands.
Holding my locks up to my nose, I inhale deeply, breathing him in and exhaling with a sigh.
I won’t go so far to say that I’m in love with him. It’s still too early for that. But I can say I’m falling.
Hard.
Into love? Lust?
Perhaps both.
* * *
I got comfy in my Wharton sweatpants and a thin T-shirt when I finished showering. I can hear Saylor telling me to, “move my ass” from the living room as I comb my hair. Rolling my eyes, I place the comb on my dresser and walk to my bedroom door.
When I open it, I come face-to-face with Ren, and I gasp loudly.
“Oh, my god you scared the shit out of me!”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. This camera needed to be adjusted a little.”
He points to the upper corner of the hallway. That’s when I notice a chair situated underneath a brand-new camera, installed in the ceiling. I take deep breath with my hand still on my chest as I try to control my breathing.
“It’s okay. Not your fault. I’m just still a little shaken up from Friday night.”
“Yeah, that … that was weird,” he mutters. “I’m sorry that happened to you.”
“Thanks,” I reply. “And thank you for installing these so quickly. And over the weekend? I hope you still had time to relax.”
“Eh, it’s okay. It helps that I like my job.”
“For once, I can actually relate to that,” I smile.
Work doesn’t seem like work when you enjoy what you do.
Or when you’re fucking your boss.
“Anyway, sorry again. If you want, I can show you how everything works now.”
“That would be great, thanks.”
I follow Ren as he walks the chair back into the kitchen, then he leads me to the living room.
“Jesus, finally,” Saylor says from the sofa when we enter.
“Can I see the remote?” Ren asks, and Saylor hands it over.
“Okay, so when you turn on your TV, hit the ‘Source’ button on the remote to toggle through all the devices that are hooked up to it. You have Live TV, which is your cable. HDMI1 is your Blu-ray player. HDMI2 is going to be where you can view your security footage.”
Ren clicks on HDMI2, and the screen is suddenly split into four sections.
One shows the hallway outside of the door into our apartment, another shows the living room.
I see the kitchen in a third square. In the last one, I can see perfectly down the hallway from the camera Ren was adjusting a moment ago.
“Wow, I didn’t even notice one outside the door.”
“It’s small, you’d have to look really hard to see. Technically, you’re not allowed to put cameras out there, but I thought it would be best for you to have one.”
“Yeah, I think you’re right.”
“All the footage gets downloaded to a thumb drive which is plugged into the back of the TV.”
“Does it record twenty-four-seven?” I ask.
“Yep.”
“Won’t it run out of memory quickly? Do we need to change it every so often?”
“Not very. The one I put in can hold up to two terabytes worth of data.”
“Is that a lot?”
Saylor laughs out loud from the sofa, and I look over at her quizzically.
“Sorry. It’s just that I asked him the same exact question when he told me that. Anyway … continue.”
“Yes, that’s a lot. Since it’s video, and the files are much larger, it will fill up quicker than if you were using it for pictures or documents. But still, it’s … a lot.”
“Okay,” I take another deep breath, slightly overwhelmed we even needed to install cameras in the first place. “Well, great. Thank you again.”
“No problem.” Ren offers me a kind smile before speaking again. “Well, I need to get going so I can get over to D’s place.”
“Wait, what?”
“Ren! You weren’t supposed to say anything,” Saylor yells.
“I thought we just weren’t supposed to tell her about the guy?”
“No, no, no … we’re not playing that game. What’s going on?”
“Look, it’s nothing bad,” Ren explains. “D asked Saylor to text him the other night after we left the bar. He wanted to know more about that dude who approached you.”
“Yeah, it’s nothing,” Saylor interrupts. “I gave him a little background, and he said he has a guy he’s going to pay to keep an eye on Blaine. That’s all.”
“Well, why didn’t he tell me this?”
“I don’t think he was trying to keep anything from you,” Saylor explains. “He probably will tell you eventually, but he didn’t want to hound you with upsetting questions about your psycho-stalker. He was trying to be thoughtful.”
“He is very sweet,” I gush.
“Anyway,” Ren interrupts, “he asked me to come over and give him pricing for a system. I’m booked all week, so I told him I would squeeze him in tonight.”
“Aww, that’s so nice of you.”
“Isn’t he the greatest?” Saylor squeals, causing Ren to roll his eyes.
“I need to get going. You can finally have your girl talk.” Ren seems eager to get out of the apartment, but I think he’s just reacting to Saylor’s playfully, overenthusiastic reactions toward him.
I actually feel jealous he’s going to see D right now, and I’m not.
Calm yourself, Carley.
I definitely need to take a chill pill. The last thing I want is to become a clingy girlfriend or push D away by not giving him his space.
* * *
I got to work a little early this morning.
I wanted to get caught up on the things that were left sitting on Friday while I was out with Saylor.
I’m certain D would tell me not to stress over it, but I don’t want to fall into a bad habit of neglecting my work just because I’m dating the boss.
I know if people were to find out we’re sleeping together, they would think I’m doing it for advancement.
I want to be able to show everyone I’m still doing my job well despite having an outside relationship with D.
When the ding of the elevator sounds, it brings a smile to my face knowing D is on the other side of the doors. It’s only been a little over twelve hours, but I miss him. I miss having his eyes on me. I miss his smell. I miss being wrapped in his arms.
I miss his dick buried deep inside of me.
I swallow as the doors open revealing D, looking as dashing as ever in a tailored suit. I smile as he walks toward my desk.
“Good morning, théa.”
“Good morning, Mr. Anastos.”
His eyes flare with desire when I call him that.
“Would you meet me in my office in a minute? I’d like a word.”
My face drops slightly, and anxiety creeps in. Did I do something wrong? Is D having second thoughts about being with me? Maybe it wasn’t desire I thought I saw? But then why would he call me théa?
I give D a moment to get situated before I get up from my chair and straighten my skirt, getting out the wrinkles in the back from sitting down.
I walk into his office but stop just over the threshold when I don’t see him at his desk.
Almost immediately, something grabs hold of my wrist and pulls me to the left of the doorway.
I squeal as I’m spun around, and in seconds flat, D has my back up against the wall and his lips on mine.
“You’re going to get tired of me, but I can’t help it. I had to talk myself out of coming to your apartment several times since you left yesterday just so I could see you. I don’t like being away from you for so long.”
“I highly doubt I’ll ever get tired of you, and I missed you, too. Next time you get the urge to come see me, you should do it.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
He brings his lips to mine once more, and his velvet-soft tongue darts out into my mouth.
The feel of it takes me back to this weekend again.
The countless times he traced my body with it.
I think about the many times it found its way between my legs.
The way he flicked the tip of it against my clit.
He catches my soft moan in his mouth, and I feel his cock harden against my stomach.
“Do you know how badly I wish we were working from my penthouse today?” He tears his lips from mine.
“No … even better. I would give anything to work remotely with you for the next three months from my yacht as we sail from island to island with no clear destination in mind. I want to fuck you on every continent, Carley.”
“You can do that?”
“Fuck you on every continent? You better fucking believe it,” he explains, rubbing his hands up and down my ribcage.
“No, I mean work from a yacht in the middle of the ocean.”
“I worked from my yacht about seventy-five percent of the time when I was still in California.”
“That sounds … incredible.”
Just then, the ding of the elevator echoes through the lobby.
“I swear to God, I’ll strangle whoever it is that’s about to interrupt us.”
D walks away quickly, as I hurry to the couch in the middle of the room.
Picking up the pad of paper, I realize there’s no pen or pencil around for me to pretend like I’m doing something constructive.
I don’t have any time to think about it, though.
D begins speaking right before a knock sounds on his open office door.
“After that, I need you to—Ronald, good morning.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt,” his eyes flit from me to D and back.
Shit, can he tell we were just making out? Are our lips swollen?
“Not a problem. Carley, I’ll catch up with you in a little while,” D says, dismissing me from his office.
I’m more than happy to leave. That was a close call, and I’m still not convinced our behavior isn’t blatantly obvious to everyone around us.
I have a feeling this secret relationship of ours isn’t as secret as we think it is.