Chapter 32 Marfil
I hadn’t really expected him to come into my studio, convinced he would resist the temptation. I had tried to make it hard for him, but Sebastian Moore had an enviable resistance.
All week, I had done my best to provoke him by any means necessary.
I was pissed at everyone, especially him, for having lied to me, and for sitting back and letting Marcus watch me whenever he wanted.
A part of me hoped that Sebastian would just forget about his job and take me away…
but nothing could be further from reality.
Staying over at Tami’s and at Liam’s had been mean of me.
I knew that he’d have to wait up all night in his car, that he wouldn’t sleep well for days, but my anger was greater than everything else.
I refused to let Marcus watch me through his spy cameras!
And although I knew I was being childish by provoking Sebastian, like with the hickey that went too far, it was just so easy.
There was nothing I wanted more than to penetrate his armor of self-control.
We had broken off whatever it was we’d had between us, and I hated how quickly he’d given up, how little he’d been willing to fight for me.
He came into the studio, slamming the door behind him, and stopped in the middle of the room. “Is this what you want?” he asked, pupils dilated and breath agitated. “You like seeing me like this?”
I barely blinked. “I love seeing you like this.”
He pressed his lips together and took two long strides toward me.
He stopped briefly, looked deeply into my eyes, trying to transmit everything his mouth couldn’t say.
Then, cupping my face, began to plant soft kisses along my lips.
I panted as I felt his erection against my stomach, and smirked up at him.
He didn’t say anything, simply sucked on my bottom lip, hard, and moved down to my neck.
“Sebastian…” I began.
“Don’t say anything,” he ordered me, pinning my wrists behind my back as his mouth kissed the spot where Liam had given me the hickey after I’d begged him to help me make Sebastian jealous.
Liam had refused at first, annoyed. Something had been up with him lately, but after pestering him for half an hour, he finally gave in just to shut me up.
That morning with Liam, I had laughed throughout the entire process, but the feel of Sebastian’s lips sucking at my skin instantly made me wet.
I rubbed myself against his pants, desperate for any kind of friction to help me ease the pain I felt at not having him inside me, but Sebastian immobilized me.
“Tell your little friend that if he touches you again, I’ll kill him.” He released me when he saw that I was wriggling uncomfortably and took two steps back. “Don’t toy with me, Marfil,” he said as our chests rose and fell in unison.
“You started this game,” I answered, controlling the urge to throw myself back into his arms. I was still furious with him, and now disappointed, for more reasons than one. “Did you get a good night’s sleep?”
Sebastian shut me up with a glance. I was being a bitch, and we both knew it, but my pride was injured, and it made me want to provoke him.
Because of him, a man who’d hurt me and tried to rape me now had the access codes to the cameras Sebastian had installed all over my apartment without my knowledge!
“As soon as I walk out that door, this little game of yours is over,” he said, stepping toward me again. “I’m your only ally here; don’t push me away.” He kissed me hard, then walked away.
Deep down I knew he was right.
I wiped away a single tear of rage from my cheek before he saw it on his computer screen, and picked up dancing where I’d left off, staring into the camera.
I decided I couldn’t keep crashing with my friends any longer, and the days in the apartment became unbearable.
I now had three men built like refrigerators following me everywhere, including around campus.
Egor and Jakov ignored my complaints about their wardrobe choices and continued to wear those black suits and ties, including those earpieces they used to communicate with each other and Sebastian.
Sebastian was… unrecognizable. If he’d been hermetic before, he was now cold as winter in the North Pole and much stricter with what he allowed me to do.
He literally had his eyes on me at all times, and his habit of worriedly scanning every space we entered only increased, causing me to be suspicious of everything around me.
“Are you sad you can’t come in?” I said, closing the door to the women’s bathroom in his face.
I had gone to lunch with Tami and was trying to convince her to come out with me that night. My life had become a living hell, and I needed to go out drinking and dancing.
I touched up my red lipstick and ignored Sebastian entirely as I walked back to our table. We were at Catch, a restaurant Tami and I both loved.
“So, what do you say?” I asked her for the fourth time. “The plan is to go to PHD. We can have a glass of champagne or the drink of your choice, some fried mozzarella, which I know you love, and then do some dancing.”
“I don’t know.” Tami sighed, putting a bite of maki in her mouth. “Is Liam going to be there?”
I rolled my eyes in response. “He’s the one putting us on the list. But don’t worry, he’s going to be working all the tables in the VIP section, so he’ll hardly be with us, I promise.”
“Why the hell does he still work as a club promoter?”
“Because he likes the nightlife, ladies, and alcohol,” I explained, shrugging as I took a sip of my drink. “And he gets paid to go out partying,” I added.
Tami’s expression made me laugh. I worried sometimes that Liam would get burnt out, working in the clubs at night in addition to his day job, but he seemed to enjoy it.
“I think I’ll pass tonight,” she answered, looking disgusted.
“Come on, Tami! Liam is great. You just need to loosen up around him. He can tell you’re judging him, and that makes him want to mess with you. Don’t play his game! Can’t you see that’s what he wants?”
“Why? Explain to me why he would enjoy harassing me?”
I thought about it for a few seconds.
“Maybe he likes you…” I had never considered the possibility before.
Did Liam like Tami? Wow. And what about her? No, that was impossible.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” she answered dryly.
I didn’t push the issue, but I made a mental note to ask Liam about it later. If he liked Tami and he hadn’t told me, I was going to kill him!
We finished lunch and said goodbye, Tami grudgingly agreeing to meet at PHD, a club located on the rooftop of Dream Downtown.
Inside the car on the way home, I informed Sebastian of my plans.
“Is it really necessary for you to go out tonight?” he asked, frowning, his attention fixed on the road.
“Yes, it’s necessary for my mental health.”
He shook his head but didn’t say another word.
When we got home, I went straight to my room, the only space that still belonged to me, where I could do whatever I wanted and not have to answer to anyone. That night, Marcus Kozel was going to find out what kind of woman he was dealing with.
I put on the sexiest dress I had—super short, black, hugging all my curves—and bloodred heels that lifted me a few inches off the ground. I would’ve loved to see Marcus’s face when his lackeys sent him their report for the night.
I pulled my hair up into a high ponytail and took my time doing my makeup.
I used a dark eyeshadow that brought out the color of my eyes and spent extra time making sure my lips were perfectly lined.
When I walked out of my room, Sebastian observed me without a word.
I was glad not to have to answer any comment from him because, even though a part of me had dressed like that for him, we were still barely speaking to each other.
“Are the gorillas downstairs?” I asked as I checked my bag and touched up my lipstick in front of him.
“Egor and Jakov are waiting, yes,” he patiently corrected me, his gaze pausing on my legs.
We left the apartment and stepped onto the elevator, where we stood against opposite walls and glared at each other.
“Don’t fuck up my night, Sebastian.”
“Don’t do anything stupid and we won’t have any reason to.”
He looked very handsome in his dark jeans and gray sweater.
Simple was sexy, something I hadn’t realized until I met him.
The fact that he cared so little about fashion or his appearance made him even more attractive.
I looked at his arms, his hands, remembering the places they’d been, and felt a sudden heat travel through my body, stopping at my cheeks.
“I wish I could read your mind…” he said, staring at me.
“You wouldn’t like what I’m thinking, believe me,” I answered.
He moved closer and placed his hands against the wall on either side of my head. “No? And why’s that?” His face was so close to mine that I could feel his breath on my lips.
Just then, the elevator doors opened, and he stepped away from me with his characteristic calm. I recovered my composure and pushed past him without another glance. No way would I fall for him again.
The night wasn’t cold at all, the late spring storm having given way to more typical April temperatures, and the city was beautiful. I didn’t fail to notice the fact that Sebastian held the door open for me or the gentle brush of his fingers on my waist as I passed.
I didn’t want to talk to him, and I was more nervous than normal, so I pretended to call Tami, talking to myself for the entire drive to the hotel as he kept his eyes fixed on the road.
It didn’t take us long to get there, thankfully, and I jumped out of the car as soon as he pulled over. Tami was already waiting for me along with Stella and Lisa, who all turned to stare at the entourage trailing behind me. I smiled, pretending this was all perfectly normal, and greeted them.
“Are you guys ready to get drunk tonight?” I asked excitedly.