Page 26 of City of Wind and Lies

God, for all the gossiping she does, I feel like she would have mentioned it at some point. What if he's just out here using work NDA's as an idle threat to keep the women he's sleeping with quiet?

No. I shake that thought away, because somehow I just know that's not his MO. I mean, he's definitely not a predator. A royal prick? Sure, but he's not that level of creep.

I swing my car along the curb, shifting into park and killing the engine outside of Drea’s condo. Unbuckling my seatbelt, I let loose a scream, banging my fists against the leather of the steering wheel. Is it necessary? No. Does it make me feel better? A little.

Grabbing my keys from my purse, I shift it and the tote onto my shoulder and make a beeline for the empty house. Drea will be helping her parents at the restaurant until after the lunch rush, so I know I’ll have the place to myself.

The quiet of the house practically screams at me as I try to decide what I need to do right now to feel less used.

Food? Sleep? Bubble bath? Trash TV?

None of the above sounds particularly appealing. I'd rather be curled up in Bowie's strong arms in our normal post-sex cuddle as he strokes my back and calls me his good girl.

Normal, ha.

There’s nothing normal about any of this.

Fuck.

I scream again, because apparently, that's my thing now.

"Wren?"

Drea's soft voice pulls at the thread, unraveling the curtain of my dreamless sleep as consciousness seeps back in.

I blink my eyes open to see her leaning over my bed, the slightest bit of concern etched into her forehead.

"Hey," I say with a yawn, stretching my arms above my head. "How was work?" I roll over, searching for my phone as I feel the bed dip behind me.

"Fine, but it's almost three, why are you home?"

"Glad to see you too," I quip.

"Oh, shut up." She shoves my shoulder playfully. "You know what I mean."

I rub the sleep from my eyes, feeling mildly better after the bubble bath and nap. Pressing myself upright, I swing my legs over the side of the bed to sit up beside her.

"Bowie and I fucked, it got messy, and I came home," I say nonchalantly, picking at the loose thread on the hem of my faded purple tee as I stand.

"Messy how?" she questions, pushing to her feet and following me as I pad toward the kitchen.

"Well I bled on him, he freaked out and told me to leave, so I did." I shrug, grabbing a glass from the cabinet and turning on the tap.

"Wait." She folds her arms at her chest. "He fired you after fucking you?"

"No," I sigh, taking a drink of water. "We had sex, like mind-blowing sex. Like, the best we'd had so far."

She raises an eyebrow. "And?"

"And, then there was some blood after and he shut down. Like full on, 'that'll be all Miss James'," I say, mimicking his icy tone. Folding one foot beneath me and pulling the other knee to my chest, I curl into the corner of the couch as Drea crosses her legs and sits beside me.

"It was just so weird. I could feel his emotions bleeding into me while we were going at it, like he needed me and it was fine." My fingers tap against the glass in my hand. "I didn't stop him when I felt the pain, it made the release so much better, ya know?"

Her lips tip into a smirk and she nods at me in agreement.

"I knew he needed that after the whole Allen thing, and then it was just done. No response, no reason, just radio silence."

I can feel tears starting to brim in my eyes as I take another sip of water. I lean over to place the glass on the table, the movement inviting the pulse of pain to reawaken between my thighs. I swipe away the moisture, inhaling and releasing my breath slowly. "But it's fine," I insist, my lips tilting into a small smile as I meet Drea's gaze.

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