Chapter 11
CHAPTER 11
W ow!
I touch my swollen lips and ran to the bathroom. My face was flush, and my eyes all glazed over. My boobs were on the smallish side, but my nipples pebbled into hard peaks you could see through my t-shirt.
I pulled the shirt tight against me and poked my chest out. Even push-up bras didn’t work, but I could get away without a bra when I wasn’t massively turned on, like I was now. My panties were soaked. A naughty thought entered my brain. I could leave them on or leave the stickiness on my thighs in case he came back tonight. I shook my head and giggled while stripping off my clothes and I stepped into the shower.
I’d known him for a day, but I was falling for him. And, I was confident he was falling for me, too. It wasn’t because he swooped in and rescued me, either. We had a spark from the first moment we met in the lobby.
Then, I was two seconds away from being sold in a sex auction. I’d yet to fully understand how Natalie tricked me. Maybe she wasn’t in on it. Maybe she was trying to fix me up with a rich man, make my summer exciting and new. She always told me she wanted to expand my world.
I rinsed off quickly, dried and dressed into my pajamas before crawling into bed. I pulled the cover up over my head and sighed. Kyler asked about my little side, but I didn’t really identify as a little and it wasn’t a side of me, it was who I was.
My little didn’t need a Daddy, but it would be more fun. Especially with a man who knew what being a Daddy was all about.
He seemed more than eager to see all sides of me and made me feel safe to show him, but I should take it slow. Follow his lead.
I couldn’t wait for tomorrow.
* * *
The next morning, I jumped out of bed and dress and got myself together in record time. No longer hesitant in Kyler’s space, I walked into the living room, expecting to find him, but instead, I found a note.
Good morning Rayna,
I will be out all day attending to some business off site. Please stay in the apartment. If you need anything, call Joan at x3325. I will see you tonight.
K
A note. Who leaves notes? He could have texted me. And, tonight was forever away.
With nothing to do, I wandered the apartment but quickly grew bored and hungry. A quick search confirmed, the kitchen was for show. The pantry was bare, and I had confirmed last night the refrigerator was a cooler for soft drinks, a carton of half and half and a bushel of apples. I grabbed an apple and picked up the phone.
“Joan speaking.” She answered on the first ring.
“Uhm, Joan. H-Hi.” I stammered.
“Hi Rayna. What can I do for you?”
“I’d like to get some groceries.” Kyler’s kitchen looked like it hadn’t been cooked in.
She didn’t answer me right away.
“Hello.”
“We have amazing chefs in our restaurants that could make you anything you want.” She paused. “What would you like for breakfast?”
I pouted.
“Uhm. Pancakes and bacon cooked crispy.” They won’t get it right. They never get it right.
“Excellent.” Typing sounds came through the phone. “I’ll have Patrick bring it right up. Anything else you need, just call.”
“What about snacks?” I blurted out.
“What snacks would you like?” She sighed.
Don’t get short with me, Missy.
I sighed louder.
“Why don’t I text you my cell number and you can send me a list?” She hung up before I could say fine.
Five seconds later, my cell phone beeped in my pocket.
Joan: Hi Rayna, you can text me at this number. Let me know what you need.
Good. Avoiding conversation with her would be a blessing.
Patrick knocked on the door ten minutes later. I opened the door. He hauled the tray into the living room.
“Where would you like it?” He asked.
“The table, please.” I pointed.
He sat the tray down and lifted the cover. He picked up the plate of pancakes. The stack was taller than me. He sat it in front of the chair at the head of the table.
“I can do that.” I stepped next to him.
He sat a rolled napkin with silverware next to the plate.
“Since Joan won’t let me cook.” I shrugged. “And, I’m sure catering to my every whim is not part of your job description. Just sit the tray on the table and I’ll take it from there.”
I stared at my feet.
“Ms. Smith?”
I lifted my head.
“It is my job description to look after you.” He smirked. “I can show you my contract if you’d like.” He teased me.
I giggled.
“Really, whatever you need.” He nodded. “It’s my pleasure.”
I sat in front of the jumbo stack of pancakes.
“They don’t really expect me to eat all this, do they?” I snagged the plate of bacon and dumped it on top of the stack of pancakes. I moved a single pancake onto the empty plate.
“Just eat what you can, but you can be specific about your order, too.” He nodded. “Next time.”
“Or, I could cook it myself.” I winked.
“Mr. Grant doesn’t do much cooking in here.” He moved toward the door.
“So I’ve been told.” Did the kitchen not work? All those pretty appliances couldn’t all be for show.
“Also, the housekeeper arrives Monday through Friday from ten to one o’clock. If you’d like to get out of her hair, you can hide out in Mr. Grant’s office. She’s not allowed in there.” He opened the door.
“Do I need to get out of her hair?” I lifted a fork full of pancake to my mouth.
“She’s bristly.” He nodded. “I avoid her, and I carry a gun.”
“Ohh, can I see it.” Learning how to shoot was on my ninja wish list.
“Maybe later.” He saluted and left.
When the maid knocked on the door and entered. I had finished breakfast and was reading on my phone.
She stopped in front of the table and frowned.
“Hi.” I stood up. “I’m Rayna.”
“Good morning Ms. Smith.” She said with a thick European accent and a curt nod. She didn’t offer me her name. Her lips pierced together as if she smelled something bad. She didn’t blink. Her makeup was sharp. She had contoured angles in her face, or maybe that really was her face shape.
“Well, I’ll just get out of your way.” I stood up slowly.
She gave me another sharp nod and stepped into the kitchen.
I picked up the plate of remaining pancakes and sat them on the counter.
“Please leave it.” She grabbed the plate. “I will clean up after you.”
“Oh, I-I was going to w-wrap them up.” I stuttered. “I could eat off these all week. I could just heat them up —”
“Nope.” She dumped my pancakes into the trash. “Mr. Grant, does not use his kitchen.”
Was it a freakin’ company motto?
She sat the empty plate on the tray.
I slowly back away. I wasn’t going to take my eyes off this woman. She might try to dump me in the trash, too. When she disappeared down the hallway toward Kyler’s room. I tiptoed down the hallway, in the opposite direction to Kyler’s office, where it was safe.
I flipped through a book on The Quadrangle and waited.
Two hours later Patrick texts me.
Patrick: She’s gone. Coast is clear.
Rayna:
I walked back to the living room. The faint smell of ammonia filled the air. I went into my room. I had made my bed, but it had been stripped and remade.
And that’s how the next few days went.
Breakfast followed by a chat with Patrick about nothing. When he left, I walked the apartment ending up in Kyler’s office. It smelled like him and made me feel safe. The afternoon was more of the same, dinner, and an exchange with Patrick before reading in my bed. Kyler arrived back home late and went straight to his room.
The next morning would be another note, vaguer and more emotionless than the one the day before. I wouldn’t be surprised if Joan was writing them for him.
I’d text him and he would answer my questions but wouldn’t engage or elaborate.
It was like the afternoon we spent together, and the kiss never happened. I feel his hands on me and his lips on me. I dreamed about him every night and woke up with his image in my thoughts.
It was torture.
I had to get his attention.
Bright and early Thursday morning, the alarm blares its shrill, unwelcome trill at 6 am. The sun is not even up yet, and a quick peek through the blinds reveals it is pitch black outside. Rifling through the few belongings I possess, I decide on a cropped t-shirt, with a denim skirt. A pair of white knee highs, showing off bright green stripes – paired with white Chuck Taylor’s complete the look. Bonus points? It was the outfit I was wearing that very first day we met. Grabbing a brush, a quick flick of my wrists leaves my hair in two-pig tails curled up on the ends. A swipe of gloss, and I was ready to meet the world. Even though Kyler was specific about the kitchen, the coffee maker was hopefully not off limits since I did smell the bitter brew some mornings. Grabbing a mug, I brewed a pot, then grabbed the iPad, plopping down on the couch to await the nefarious arrival of the man who was a mystery. Thirty minutes later, his door opened. I held the tablet up in front of my face.
He walked down the hall and stopped.
Got him.
“Rayna,” he said.
“I made coffee.” My voice remained even, but my heart raced. I twirled a pigtail around one finger to calm me. It didn’t work.
“What are you doing up so early?” He continued into the kitchen and poured himself a cup.
“Couldn’t sleep.” I sat the tablet down and my insides flipped. He was so beautiful. His black slacks hugged his thighs. His crisp white button down was open at the collar and showed the edge of a black tattoo. He had a black jacket slung over his shoulder. “I thought we could have breakfast together.”
He sipped his coffee. He looked in the cup and sipped it again.
“This is good.”
“I have a secret ingredient.” I stood and leaned across the counter. Squeezing my boobs together as much as possible. “You want to know what it is?”
He peaked and then averted his eyes, but I saw it. The desire. It was unmistakable. It filled the room up and made me warm all over.
“I put a pinch of salt and cinnamon in the grounds.” I picked up the phone. “What would you like for breakfast?”
He pulled out his phone and frowned.
“I’m sorry, Rayna, but I have an early meeting.”
“Okay, well, how about lunch?”
“Afraid I’ll be gone all day.” He took a big gulp of his coffee and sat the mug in the sink. “I’ll be in LA but will be back tonight. If you need anything, let Joan know. Okay?” He barely looked at me as he headed toward the door.
I skipped behind him.
“I’ll wait up for you.” I gripped the door before he could close it. “Or maybe I could go with you. Patrick’s supposed to keep an eye on both of us, remember?”
Patrick and another gentleman I hadn’t met stood outside the door.
“Morning boss.” They said in unison.
Kyler ignored them. He turned back to me. His eyes sweeping up and down my body.
“I’ll be fine, but it’s not safe for you, yet.” His gaze returned to my eyes. They were no longer filled with desire. Hurt, and regret shined in those steely grey eyes. My heart sank. “I’ve got to go. Stay out of trouble.”
I watched him walk down the hall. When the elevator arrived, he looked over his shoulder. When he caught me staring, his head dropped with a shake.
I frowned and turned around.
“You want one pancake for breakfast again?” Patrick called after me.
Kyler’s behavior hurt my feelings.
“No.” I said. “You’d better get me the whole stack