Page 35 of Selfish Desires

“Vincent,” Zachary said, stepping closer and reaching out a hand. “If you mess this up, Blair will never forgive me. She already blames me for setting Wendy up for imminent heartbreak 2.0 because I gave you a clue to her whereabouts.”

“I promise. I won’t let anyone down. You have my word.” I slapped my hand against my chest just to prove my point.

“Good,” he replied. “Because if you do, I will kill you.”

“What. A. Day,” said Marissa, counting out the drawer, finalizing the receipts for the end-of-day cash out.

And it was a day. The restaurant was packed, and my body ached with a lingering delicious buzz from last night. That didn’t mean my head was totally fucked with what I did and how I would handle Vincent going forward. It was a strange feeling, though. Sleeping with Vincent didn’t tie me in emotionally any more than I was before we reconnected. And to be honest? The one part about last night that disappointed me the most was how I wanted him to be rougher. I wanted to be punished for my heart and mind wanting him. Needing his touch to be free again. And I still wasn’t satisfied. I knew we had to speak again, but it couldn’t involve sex. It just needed to be us and our words.

“You look different. I’ve wanted to ask you all day, but I kept getting distracted by every table. And, oh my God, did you see how many bottles of wine that party of five ordered?” Marissa gestured to the now-empty cafe.

“I know,” I snorted. “I think they have a problem.” I nudged Marissa’s shoulder while wiping down the counter.

“Let their problem be our next great find.” Marissa glanced in my direction. “So, anything new?”

“New? Not really.” I shrugged, totally blowing this lie that barely started.

“You look like you have the glow.” Marissa dropped her gaze, throwing me a knowing look at what she meant by the glow.

I tossed the damp rag aside, rolled my sleeves, and laughed. “Marissa, it’s been a wild twenty-four hours.” I bit the inside of my cheek, quelling a smile. My fingers trailed along my neck, where Vincent’s fingers wrapped tightly around. My head tingled when Vincent tugged my hair. I dropped my hands to my sides, brushing my bruised hip bones where Vincent’s vice-like grip punished my skin, grabbing onto me as he fucked.

Marissa closed the cash register, pivoting her body and crossing her arms. “Come on, Wendy. You can’t leave me hanging like this.” And then her eyes popped. “Did you sleep with Stephen?”

I threw my head back, laughing. If only she knew about that fiasco.

“I’m serious, Wendy. I saw Stephen pass by the shop today, looking through the glass like he was searching for you, but he didn’t come in. And now it all makes sense.”

“Marissa, no.” I shook my head. “We didn’t sleep together.” Scratching my head, I decided why hold back any details. “I mean, I did try to seduce him when I came back from New York that night, but it didn’t exactly go as planned.”

“Oh?” Marissa's eyebrows rose in intrigue. “This better be good.”

I sighed, leaning on the counter and staring at a spot on the wall. “Oh, it was bad. It was so bad.” I laughed, remembering the flash of fear swirling in Stephen’s eyes. “I wanted it roughish? Yeah, after the day I ran into Vincent after three years, I didn’t want anything gentle. Stephen wasn’t into it, to say the least.”

“The least,” Marissa repeated.

“The very, very least. I think it turned him off, actually.” I squinted into the overhead light.

“Really? That’s weird.” Marissa twisted her face. “Like, what did you ask him to do?”

“I kind of guided his hand to my neck…” I trailed off, letting my hand around my neck complete the sentence.

“Oh my God, I love hand necklaces.” Marissa laughed, and soon I joined. Except, we were dead serious.

“Right? It feels good.” The thought alone triggered a blush spreading across my face and chest.

“With the right person, everything feels good.”

“Well, Stephen was not that person.” I shrugged.

“Definitely not.” Marissa shifted, wanting to ask something. “So, who was the right person then?” Her eyes lifted from the floor to meet mine.

My silence offered too heavy a hint, and I swore Marissa’s eyes bulged out of their sockets.

“You slept with Vincent last night, didn’t you?”

“Please don’t judge me.” I slapped my hand over my eyes.

“Oh, I am judging you. But in a good way.”

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