Reinvention of Chastity (8 page)

Damn if she wasn’t right. He wanted her and the next time he got her alone, a taste wouldn’t be enough.

* * *

Chastity searched through the volumes in the law library to find the book she wanted. Months ago, if someone would have told her that she’d end up in a public restroom with Sebastian and she’d be the aggressor, Chastity would have laughed. It seemed like she had more of her mother in her than she thought.

Not knowing exactly what it was that had given her the balls to walk in on Sebastian while he was in the men’s room, she was pleased with herself. Her makeover gave Chastity more confidence than she ever thought she’d possess.

54

The Reinvention of Chastity

No longer did she get tongue-tied whenever she talked to a good-looking man. Now she walked with a spring in her step, and her head held high. The plan was going beautifully. Actually, much better than she thought it would. It was apparent to her that Sebastian was jealous of any attention she gave to other men, as demonstrated by his reaction to Kevin, and then to Jeremy at lunch.

It hadn’t been easy keeping him at arm’s length these past eight weeks, but she knew the longer she pretended indifference, the crazier it would make him. She could hold him off no longer. This afternoon proved that.

The plan, however, was not completely foolproof. There was no denying how he’d made her feel. Her body had ignited with flames at his touch. She couldn’t remember a time when her pussy had been wetter.

He seemed to know just how to caress her in all the right places.

Seduction was the name of the game, but if she kept on this path, who would be the seducer and who’d be the seduced?

So deep in her thoughts, Chastity didn’t hear Jeremy enter the library until he spoke. “Chastity, fancy finding you in here.”

She let out a yelp of surprise, and whirled around to glare at him.

“You scared the bejesus out of me. You can’t just walk up on people like that. What if I had a heart condition?”

A dark blond brow rose in question. “Do you?”

“Do I what?”

“Have a heart condition?”

“No, but that’s beside the point. You didn’t know if I had a medical condition or not. But if I had, you’d be feeling pretty sorry right about now.”

His blue eyes gleamed wickedly. “Not if I got to give you CPR.”

Chastity rolled her eyes. Jeremy was the kind of guy it was hard to stay angry with. “Behave.”

“Okay. Okay. I’ve been duly chastised. So, what are you looking for?”

“I’m trying to find the volume with the Dumas vs. Impco case.

Someone didn’t put these books back in order when they took it out.”

55

Eve Vaughn

He moved to where she stood, reached up and pulled a thick, green law encyclopedia from the shelf. “Here you go, my dear.”

She smiled, taking the book. “Thank you, kind sir. Well, I have to get back to my desk. I have a lot of work today. A couple people are out and it didn’t help that we came back from lunch late.”

“Actually, I’m glad I ran into you. We didn’t really get a chance to talk like I wanted to at lunch with Sebastian there. Maybe we could do dinner instead?”

“Why?” The word flew out of her mouth before she realized how it must have sounded. She’d been questioning motives a lot lately.

“Why? Because I’d like to get to know you better and because the lunch I had planned for us, didn’t quite turn out how I wanted it to.”

“And you wanted it to turn out how?”

Jeremy went bright red before letting out a nervous laugh. “Well, uh, you’re not going to make this easy for me, are you?”

While Chastity found Jeremy attractive with his blond hair, blue eyes, and chiseled face that could have passed for a young Paul Newman, she preferred the dark and brooding type, like Sebastian. Besides, she didn’t need the added complication of getting involved with him when her focus was getting back at Sebastian.

She’d only agreed to go to lunch with him in the first place because Pearl was being particularly nasty earlier and she’d needed to get out of the office. She sighed. “Jeremy, can I be honest?”

He frowned. “You’re going to give me the ‘let’s be friends’ line, aren’t you?”

“Well, it’s not that I don’t like you, I do, but…”

“But?”

“Well, I’m just not interested in any romantic involvement. You’ve always been nice to me and I appreciate it, but I can’t help but wonder if you would have even thought of asking me out if I didn’t have this makeover.” She could tell by his reaction that she’d flustered him when he began to stammer. Chastity held up her hand to stop him. “It’s okay.

There’s no explanation needed.”

56

The Reinvention of Chastity

“Is it Sebastian?” When she didn’t answer immediately, he rushed on.

“I kind of saw the way the wind blew at lunch.”

“It’s not what you think.”

“Isn’t it? I may be slow on the uptake on certain things, but I didn’t miss the state of dishevel you both returned in from the bathroom.”

Heat flooded her face. Chastity was grateful that her skin tone would cover her blush. “It wasn’t what you thought,” she denied.

He gave her a crooked grin. “I have a feeling it’s exactly what I thought. Look, if you prefer Sebastian over me, I’m okay with that. If I hadn’t told you already, I really like what you’ve done to yourself. You can’t blame a guy for trying.”

She smiled back, feeling more at ease now that she knew he wouldn’t push his suit. “Oh, yes I can. I’m surprised though.”

“Why is that?”

“I’ve seen some of Sebastian’s women flitting in and out of the office, so I know he likes a little variety, but I didn’t know you were down with the swirl.”

A confused look crossed his face. “Down with the swirl? What the heck does that mean?”

“You know, have a taste for chocolate?”

It took him a moment before understanding entered his eyes. “Oh! I get it.” He chuckled. “You see? I told you I was slow on certain things.

Well, to be honest, I’ve only dated one black woman, but that was back in college.” A far-off look entered his eyes, and Chastity got the distinct impression that there was more to the story than he was letting on.

She knew it would be best to mind her own business, but curiosity got the better of her. “What happened?”

He turned his back to her with a long sigh. “It…it didn’t work out. My parents…”

“Your parents didn’t approve?”

“Not really. The truth of the matter is, that regardless of what my parents thought, I should have stuck by Serita’s side. I was still in college though. I had it good—didn’t have to get a job; my folks were 57

Eve Vaughn

paying the rent on my cushy apartment off campus and my credit card bills. To top that off, they gave me a monthly allowance as well.”

“Wow, you did have it good. Your parents must be loaded.”

He turned back to face her, a derisive curve on his lips. “They do okay. Anyway, when I started dating Serita, everything was wonderful until I took her home to meet the folks. They were cordial to her and smiled in her face, but I knew right away something was wrong. When she left was when they laid into me. They made it clear in no uncertain terms that if I didn’t stop seeing her I’d be cut off. I…you have no idea how much I regret doing what I did next, but I broke up with her in not so nice a way.”

“How old were you?”

“Nineteen. Old enough to know better.”

She touched his hand in an act of understanding. “You were just a boy. We all do things in our teens that we later regret.”

“I just wish I hadn’t been so weak.”

“You were young and scared. While I don’t necessarily approve of what you did or how you did it, a lot of people would have made the same decision.”

“That doesn’t make it right.”

“No, but at least you acknowledge your error, and that’s a sign of maturity. Whatever happened to her?”

“The last time I heard, she was married with a couple of children. I guess she’s happy.”

“Well, things worked out for the best then.”

He shrugged. “Maybe.” Something in the way he said that one word made her think that all wasn’t well.

“Are you still close to your parents?”

“That’s the funny thing. After I dumped Serita, my relationship with my parents deteriorated. They acted as though everything was hunky-dory, but I grew to resent them to the point that I cut myself off. I realized that as long as they supported me, they could make the same threat when I did something else that didn’t meet their approval. Now we only ever communicate on holidays, if that.”

58

The Reinvention of Chastity

“That’s so sad. I’m not that particularly close to my mother either, but she’s still my mom and I love her.”

“I love my parents too, but I just don’t like them very much.

Sometimes I wonder what might have been.”

“Isn’t that a little futile? The damage is done, and the best you can do is learn from the past.”

He nodded, and then a smile appeared. “You know, I’ve really enjoyed this conversation with you.”

“I enjoyed it too. We have to do it again sometime.”

His smile widened. “Over dinner?”

Chastity laughed. “You never give up, do you?”

“I haven’t even gotten started, my dear, but don’t worry, I won’t persist. I can take no for an answer. A word of friendly advice though, be careful with Sebastian. He’s my friend, but he doesn’t have the best track record with women.”

Chastity smiled. “Oh, I’m not the one who’ll need to be careful.”

59

Eve Vaughn

“Oh, my goodness! I can’t believe you did that, girl!” Dallas screamed, falling back on the couch, her body shuddering with laughter.

“Yes, I did, and to be honest, I can hardly believe it myself. You have no idea how hard it was for me to walk away like he didn’t have the same affect on me as I obviously did on him.” Chastity tried hard not to remember the way his hands felt on her skin, the way his mouth slid against hers, or the thrust of his fingers in her pussy.

Sebastian’s hard body pressed so deliciously against hers was all she could think about since it had happened earlier in the day. He kept giving her smoldering looks whenever he walked by her desk for the rest of the day. The tension could be cut with a knife.

Dallas squeezed her hand. “I’m so proud of you, girlfriend. Wait until we tell the guys. They’ll be thrilled too.”

“Yes, the plan seems to be going well. I didn’t think I had it in me, but just when I find myself falling under his spell again, I think about what he said.”

“That’s the spirit. You should get a digital camera and take a picture of his facial expression when you drop the bomb on him.”

Chastity shrugged. “And then what? Post it over the internet? No, I don’t want to humiliate him to that level. As much as he’s hurt me, I could never be that malevolent.”

“Yet he humiliated and used you.”

“He didn’t realize I was listening.”

“Why are you starting to make excuses for him? You’re not chickening out, are you?”

“Of course not.” Something still nagged her about this entire thing. It was true that he’d used her, but did Sebastian really deserve this?

60

The Reinvention of Chastity

Dallas pursed her lips, not looking quite convinced. “You don’t sound very enthusiastic.”

“I am.”

“Are you really? Don’t punk out on the plan now. You have to show this bastard not to toy with you again.”

“I’m not backing out. I just…well, what happens if he does start having feelings for me? What if I don’t have it in me to hurt him?”

Dallas crossed her arms, a shrewd look entering her dark eyes. “Is that all that’s on your mind? There’s something you’re not telling me.”

With a sigh, Chastity decided to unload completely. “I’m not sure if I can do this and not let my feelings get in the way.”

“You can’t be serious. After what that turkey said about you, you’re still harboring feelings for him?”

“Feelings aren’t like a faucet. You can’t just turn them on and off, just like that. Anyway, I didn’t say I had feelings for him, just that I’m not sure if I can go through with this and not get hurt. The incident in the bathroom today shook me up more than I would have liked it to.”

“But then that means you have to keep reminding yourself of what a rat he is. Don’t let yourself get caught up. Sure, he may be able to touch you in the right places and do things your body hasn’t experienced before, but keep in mind that it’s just physical and nothing more.”

“But how? I’m not experienced in this like you.”

“It sounds like you were doing fine to me. Is this what’s really running through your mind or are you just trying to find a reason to back out?”

“I’m not trying to back out; I’m just trying to weigh all the pros and cons.”

“Well, you can’t end this now. I won’t let you,” Dallas said stubbornly.

Chastity hopped off the couch, placing hands on ample hips. “
You
won’t let me?”

“You’re damn right. Me and the boys put a lot of work in to give you this new look.”

61

Eve Vaughn

“Is my look what this is all about? Do you think if I halt this crusade of revenge my makeover would have been in vain? Never mind that I feel good about myself, and for the first time I don’t feel like your ugly friend.”

Dallas’s jaw dropped. To say she looked stunned would have been an understatement. “You’re not serious, are you?”

“Do I need to spell it out for you?”

“Obviously you do, because I can’t believe what I’m hearing.”

Chastity began to pace her living room floor. It seemed like she’d been making a lot of confessions lately. Her feelings about how she viewed herself in relation to her best friend were something she’d bottled up for a long time. She wasn’t sure how to explain herself.

Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, she walked over to the couch and took Dallas’s hand in hers. “You know I love you like a sister, right?”

“Of course I do, and I love you too, girl. You’ve got to know that,”

Dallas said earnestly.