Page 2 of A Sinner's Virtue
“Marcel, thought you’d be busy with your brothers tonight,” Brian says.
“They’re boring, so I came here. Thought I’d let you entertain me for a bit, B.” I smirk at him.
I’ve been coming here since before I was legally old enough to drink. Brian is an old associate of my father’s. How that man has any friends I’ll never know. The fact everyone is scared of the asshole is more than likely what keeps people in his corner. Better the devil you know and all that.
“It’s busy,” I comment while my eyes bounce around the usually quiet bar.
“Yeah, some asshole posted one of those video things you kids are all obsessed with and now these young idiots keep flooding in,” Brian grunts with a shake of his head.
I laugh. “You went viral, mate. Most people would kill to have that sort of attention on their business.”
“Yeah, I’m not most people.” Brian walks off to serve another customer.
Picking up the bottle of Cinque, I pour myself a healthy serving in the crystal tumbler. Whiskey like ours should be savoured. Sipped. Usually. Tonight, I down the entire contents before refilling my glass again.
I need a buzz, something to distract me from the sense of imminent doom I’ve got going on in my gut. Something real shitty is about to happen. I don’t know what it is. I guess I’ll find out when it happens.
I’m on my fourth glass when my gaze sweeps to the door just as it opens and a woman walks in looking like a deer caught in the headlights. I chuckle before I can stop myself. The guys in here are going to eat her alive. Although, judging by the look on her face which tells me she’s contemplating walking straight back out the door, I think she knows that.
Long blonde hair hangs down to her waist, damp from the downpour that’s going on outside. Thick, pouty lips painted red—bet they’d feel fucking amazing wrapped around my dick.
Speaking of, he’s finally woken up and paying attention, thanks to the woman who just walked in. I told you I had a type, and she’s it. She’s tiny. There’s not much of her, and I imagine if I were standing next to her, I’d tower over her small frame.
I watch her like a hunter eyeing his prey as she tentatively approaches the bar. She’s nervous, her hands twisting around the straps of her purse. Chanel, huh? Little trust-fund brat, no doubt. Brian notices her the moment she takes a seat and walks over. I can’t hear what they’re saying to each other. Which pisses me off. I need to get closer.
As soon as a cocktail glass filled with red liquid is placed in front of her, some asshole is already on her. I can see her discomfort as he crowds her space, trapping her between his body and the bar. I slide off my stool and walk over, my hands fisting at my sides.
“Hey, babe. Sorry I’m late.” I wink at her before turning my attention to the fucker pushing himself against her chair. “Mind backing the fuck away from my girl?” I growl at him.
The guy’s eyes widen as he steps aside with his hands up, then practically runs in the opposite direction.
I sit on the stool next to the woman as my lips curl into a smirk. “Like I was saying, sorry I’m late. I got held up at the office.”
Chapter Two
One hour earlier
“Argh!” I throw my curling iron down onto the vanity. Why am I bothering? What on earth was I thinking? I can’t just go out and hook up with some rando for one night. Can I?
I want to. I want to be that girl. The kind who can let go and have a little fun. I want to be the girl who doesn’t come with enough baggage to fill an Amazon warehouse. And we all know how big those places are. I wish I could be carefree. Live in the moment. Have flings. Enjoy an orgasm that wasn’t brought on by myself.
I’ve accepted the fact that I’m not girlfriend material. My one and only failed relationship is proof of that. I tried. I really did. I actually liked Flynn. I met him a few months after I moved to Melbourne, with every intention of starting fresh. A new me, new life sort of thing.
It didn’t work. I was too much for him. I couldn’t hide myself from him, no matter how hard I tried. Eventually, he saw the ugly parts of me, the things that haunt me not only at night but also in broad daylight.
I remember the first time I panicked in front of him. He freaked out, and I didn’t hear from him for two weeks after the incident. I tried to assure him that I was fine, that I was healing from a traumatic event. I didn’t elaborate on what that event was for obvious reasons.
Turns out, I liked Flynn more than he liked me. Because he only stuck around for six months before he broke things off. Telling me I was too damaged and that I’m never going to be normal.
It stung. But I got the message loud and freaking clear. That was a year ago. I haven’t thought about dating or anything close since. Now, I’m ready to put myself back out there. Well, I’m ready to try to put myself out there.
I figure I can just have sex. People do it all the time. I don’t need a relationship for that. And I enjoyed having sex with Flynn. I didn’t know if I would, but he was gentle and sweet in the bedroom. Which was exactly what I needed.
Now, I just need to try. Right?
I pick up my phone and call Izzy. My… I guess you could call her my unofficially adoptive mother. She and her husband took me into their home, into their family, when I was seventeen. They didn’t adopt me legally. But Mikhail did help me change my last name, insisted that I become a Petrov.
I owe everything to Izzy and Mikhail. If they hadn’t found me when they did, I probably wouldn’t be alive today. I don’t know if I would have been strong enough to withstand the torment my life had become. The life I was sold into.
