Page 28 of Lovers Fate

I’ve never received a flower before, much less a rose.

Don’t read too much into it, Athena.He doesn’t want you.

I step forward, clutching the money to my chest with one arm, bend slowly, and hold the thornless rose between my fingers. For some reason, a rose from him feels like it’s worth more than all the money I made tonight. The delicate red petals feel soft against the pads of my fingers.

When I look up, he’s gone. I glance at his friends. The woman with the red hair is glaring at me with hatred. She abruptly gets up, grabbing her friend, pulling her out of her chair, and stumbling toward the exit.

The other guys with him dressed in costumes stare at me with their faces painted in different designs. A skeleton, a clown, and one in a devil’s costume with red paint on his face and horns on his forehead. The one behind him is dressed like a mime. One thing these guys have in common is that they all wear black robes.

The person with the mime face paint, who has a black heart painted on his white lips, waves with his fingers as if we’re best friends.

I feel a tug on my tights. I look down and pull my leg away when a man skims his hand over my calves, making my skin crawl.

“Don’t touch me,” I say with a sinister smile.

“Oh, come on, baby,” the man says with a fierce smile. “I saw the way you were grinding your hips. Hoping to get lucky with the man with the hat. He may not want you, but I do. It looks like you need a decent fuck.” He pulls out a wad of cash, wanting to throw up.

“I’m not interested,” I say sternly.

He holds up a wad of hundreds. “Oh, come on, gorgeous, I have something better than a rose and those dollar bills you’re holding to your chest.”

I’ve seen him around here before. He’s one of Rachel’s regulars. I’m almost positive this is the kind of guy she is offeringme to make extra cash. Looking at his bald, shiny head and stomach hanging over his belt has me tempted to slice his throat to see how much he bleeds.

I shake my head, trying to push the crazy thought away, but I keep thinking of ways the skin in his throat would split open.

“I’m not interested,” I repeat.

He chuckles. “That’s what all the girls say until they need something. You’ll cave just like the rest of ‘em.”

When he turns his face to the side, I recognize him. When I was fourteen, my mother and I first moved here, and she took me to the strip mall. His name is Charles. Married, I think he has two kids. At the time, he owned a tax preparation office. He looks older since I last saw him; it’s probably why I didn’t recognize him at first. He’s lost all of his hair since then and gained weight.

I squat so I’m eye level with him, looking directly into his blue eyes. Something triggers me inside. A tick. A madness. His neck vein is pulsing, calling out to me like a boiling kettle.

“Let’s get one thing right, mister,” I warn in a little girl voice. “I’m not like the rest of them.”

His grin widens, as if I’m playing a game. “You’re one of those girls who likes to role-play.” He licks his lips, and the stench of cheap whiskey rolls off his breath. “I got a lollipop for you.”

“Do you,” I say dramatically with wide eyes. “Is it big?”

His eyes fill with lust. “I would love to show you, baby girl.”

I pout. Tilt my head sideways like a coiled spring. “Does it fill with blood?” I ask the words to come out slowly.

“Come. It fills with cum when I look at you.”

Pathetic. He’s too easy. I smile wide and then laugh.

His face falters a bit. He doesn’t know whether I’m playing with him or laughingathim. “You should see what I did to thelast man who touched me with his cock full of cum.” I lean close and whisper, “It was bloody, Charlie.”

Sweat coats his forehead. His throat bobs when he swallows. “I don’t know how you know my name, but I’ll do anything,” he says desperately.

“Think about me with your hand.” I’m on the verge of standing up, but something stops me. “Make sure you scream when you do it.”

His gaze drops to my crotch. He licks his fat, pudgy lips. “I’ll pay you four thousand.” I walk away. “Five,” he calls out before I walk through the curtain.

ELEVEN

DRACO

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