Fiendish: A Twisted Fairytale (30 page)

“Would you like another drink?” asked the bartender, interrupting my thoughts.

“Yes. And what’s the lady at the end drinking?”

The petite blonde had been eyeing me since I sat down.
 She looked to be a working girl, a very high class one by the looks of her designer dress and runway ready makeup. The seat she took at the end of the bar gave her a perfect vantage point to watch both doors, allowing her to survey the place for the perfect mark.

Her body swayed slightly to the rhythm of the smooth jazz the live band was playing.
 The drink that sat in front of her was only half touched, ordered because she needed to seem like she was simply another patron. Otherwise the hotel might ask her to leave. They knew what she was but turned a blind eye, like many other high class establishments, as long as she and the others remained discreet. I’d made sure I sat in her line of sight. Her eyebrows shot up when she saw me hand over my black Amex to pay for my drink. This will be easy, almost too easy. I needed a challenge. 
You have one, her name is Calida.

“A Mojito,” the bartender answered.

“And one Mojito for the lovely lady as well.”

When the bartender gave her the drink, I saw her look over in my direction, and I raised my glass, tipping it towards her.
 She straightened up on the bar stool, pushing out her chest showing off her assets. She gave me a coy smile, I gave her a wink, and moments later she was sashaying her way over to me.

 
She gave me a seductive smile as she stood close, giving me a chance to appreciate all she had to offer before sliding onto the empty stool beside me. She was a beautiful woman, perfectly groomed and manicured, yet nothing stirred for me, not even the excitement of luring a new prey.

“I
’m Kimber,” she purred, leaning closer to me. 

The perfume she wore was strong, slightly overpowering, a stark contrast to the soft feminine scent of Calida.
 I had no doubt she paid way too much for it because it was some rare French or Italian must-have.

“I wanted to thank you for the drink.”

She placed her hand on my thigh, high enough to be suggestive but low enough not to be vulgar. I glanced down at it before looking back at her. 

“How much for the night?”
  I asked, downing my drink.

“Three thousand,”
 she responded while trying to gauge my reaction to the cost.

“Let
’s go,” I said after giving her one more inspection. 
She’ll do
. 

She grabbed her clutch off the bar before linking her arm in with mine. “Do you have a room here?”

“No. For three grand we need a place a little more…private. I don’t want any interruptions.”

The drive was quiet, no need to fill the space with empty small talk.

“We should take care of business before pleasure,” she stated as we pulled into the garage.

“Of course, but since I
’m not carrying that much cash on me, we’ll need to go inside.”

“Oh, no worries, I take plastic,”
 she replied, pulling out her phone only to see it had no service.

“It
’s really bad reception here,” I said with a smirk. 

Once inside, I left her in the living room while I went upstairs to the safe.
 Moments later, I handed her the money. She relaxed after she did a quick count.

“Now, would you like another drink?”
 I asked, walking over towards the bar.

“Yes, that would be lovely,” she replied, eyeing the décor.
 

I could tell she wasn
’t impressed, not that it mattered. If she was unhappy with what she saw upstairs, I couldn’t wait to see her displeasure of what would soon be her new accommodations. 

Chapter 26

I looked at the message again on my phone. Calida didn’t need me to pick her up; she was working late. I didn’t believe that because she’d never worked late. She’d been getting off at five or shortly after five since the day she started. Either that boss of hers was up to something, or she was lying to me. So I waited. It was six-thirty when she finally exited the building, looking very tired and in a bit of a rush. No doubt she was concerned she was going to miss the bus.

She stopped in her tracks when she spotted me sitting on my car.
 I took in the sight of her, displeased to see her wearing a dress. Her legs were very sexy, one of the many features I enjoyed looking at, and I didn’t approve of her showing them at work. That man didn’t need any more enticements. 
I will need to speak to her about her wardrobe.
 Maybe I’d take her shopping so I could pick out some appropriate things for her to wear until she finally quit as I’d asked.

“What are you doing here?
 I told you I didn’t need a ride,” she asked with a hint of annoyance in her voice.

“This is the only thing I have on my schedule. I didn
’t mind waiting.”

“So you
’ve been sitting out here for an hour and a half?” she inquired skeptically.

“You
’re worth waiting for.”

She blushed and glanced down at her feet.
 She was still not used to the compliments. There was something about the innocence of her reactions that I found endearing. I opened the door, and she got in without further protest.

“Where are we going?”
 she asked when she noticed we weren’t heading towards her house.

“We need to talk, so we
’re going to my house.”

“We can talk at my house,”
 she said nervously.

I gave her a quick glance. “No, we can
’t.” 

She didn
’t say anything more. Instead, she chewed on her thumb nail while looking out the window.

“Are you hungry?”
 I asked once we got in the house. She shook her head no in response. “You’ve worked late; you have to be hungry…unless working late entailed a quiet dinner with your boss.” 

Calida let out a heavy sigh before walking into the kitchen. She took a seat at the table and waited.
 I pulled the chicken Parmesan I had prepared out of the oven to fix her plate.

“Where did you learn to cook?”
she asked when I sat the meal in front of her. 

“My mother.
 It was another one of her passions.”

“Sounds like you two had a close relationship.”

“I suppose.”

“What was her name?”

“Rose.”

We ate the rest of dinner in silence.
 Occasionally she would look up at me as if she wanted to say something but remained silent. It was as if she was waiting on me to direct the conversation. 
I guess Monday left her more skittish than I realized.

“What do you want to say to me?”
 I finally asked.

“Nothing.
 You’re the one that said we needed to talk, so I was waiting on you to talk.”

“I want to talk about Monday.”

“I’d rather not,” she replied before getting up to clear our plates.

There was a look in her eyes that told me she was nervous about broaching the subject again.
 I may have been too hard on her, but she needed to understand things had to be discussed, that she couldn’t just make decisions on her own. Although she was right, a baby right now would be too much of a complication for me. Regardless, it didn’t give her any right to act so rashly. 

“Well, it
’s something we need to talk about, especially considering you’re back in the same situation you were trying to prevent with your rash actions. That is unless you
took care
of things again.” I didn’t bother to mask the displeasure or warning in my voice.

Why does it matter if she used Plan B or not?
Because she’s rejecting a part of me! No one can do that to me!
But what happens if she were to get pregnant?
 
You haven’t planned for that.
 Then she would do as she is supposed to and take care of my child just as my mother took care of me.

“I would like to go home now.” Her face held a look of sadness and exasperation over my comment.

“Don’t you think this is an issue that needs discussing?” I asked as I got up from the table. 

She moved out from the corner so that she had her back towards the archway.
 A smirk played on my lips as I realized she didn’t want to be pinned into a corner.

“I wasn
’t aware you left any room for discussion on Monday. You made your view perfectly clear, but I didn’t understand then and I don’t understand now why you have such an opposition to me taking a logical step to prevent us both from being forced into an unwanted situation.”

“An
‘unwanted situation’?  Is that what you would consider it?  Unwanted?”  I asked through clenched teeth, taking a step back from her.

“Seth, I didn
’t mean it like that,” she replied, stepping closer to me, but I took another step back.

“How exactly did you mean it then, Calida? Because I took that statement to mean any offspring of mine would be unwanted by you.
 What did I misunderstand?”

“That
’s not what I was saying. Seth, it’s just this, us right now. A baby, is that really what you want?” She took a tentative step towards me. “It’s not that I don’t want
your
child, I haven’t thought about it like that. I’m just saying the timing wouldn’t be ideal right now. Please tell me you understand that,” she pleaded. 

I didn
’t say anything as I studied her face. Her eyes shone with the unshed tears as her level of unease grew under my scrutiny.

“So in a few weeks, if you discovered you were pregnant, what would you do?”

Subconsciously, she placed her hand on her stomach, looking down not meeting my gaze. Nervously she chewed on her lip, an action that was quickly becoming a distraction because every time she did it, it made me want to kiss her, and I hated that feeling. 

“I
’m waiting on an answer.” The impatience in my voice caused her to jump. 

“I don
’t know what I would do. Okay?” Her voice was barely above a whisper. “But,” she said, looking up at me, “I know what I wouldn’t do.” Her voice held more conviction with that last statement. 

There was a haunted look in her eyes, a sadness that led me to believe she had more experience on the subject.
 
Interesting. Looks like she’s keeping secrets after all.

“I
’ll take you home now.” 

“So that
’s it? End of discussion for you?” she asked, throwing her hands up in frustration.

“Yes, I
’m satisfied with your answers. For now.” 

Calida took a deep breath and let out a slow exhale. “Yes, take me home.
 I’m tired.”

 
I watched as she absently tried to rub the tension out of her neck. She looked as frustrated as I felt, although it was for two very different reasons.

“Come here,” I said, offering her my hand.

She hesitated for a moment before she stepped forward. Her head rested on my chest, and I ran my fingers through her hair, enjoying the feeling of its silkiness against my fingers. Her soft rose scent wafted up, seeping into me, making me want her.

“Do you understand why I did what I did?”
 

“Yes, yes, I do understand.”

“Oh, good. That is a relief. I have an appointment next week, so it won’t be an issue much longer.”

“No.
 I’ll take care of it.”

“But…”

I looked down at her and smiled before giving her a soft kiss. “I said I’ll take care of it.” I held her gaze so she understood it was no longer up for discussion.

“Okay.”

“Let me put the leftovers away, and then we’re going to bed.”

“I thought you were taking me home.
 I have work tomorrow. I can’t stay here tonight.” 

“Can
’t? That is the second time this week you’ve told me you
can’t
do something. Do you know what I hear when you say that to me?”

She shook her head no.
 

“I hear you
won’t
do what I have asked. I asked you to tell your boss you would no longer be his date at events, but you
won’t. 
Now, I’m asking that you simply spend the night with me, and you
won’t.
 So tell me, Ms. Alexander, why don’t you want to spend time with me, but you are so willing to do so with your boss?” 

“That
’s not…it’s not what I meant. You’re twisting my words again.” 

I cocked my head to the side, giving her a quizzical look.
“Again?”