Page 43 of Sweet Retribution

“So how does he find his women?”

“Did.” She points an angry finger at me. “Stop trying to sabotage. These women weren’t street hookers spreading their legs to pay the bills. They’re high class women who like sex. It’s not about money for us. In fact, being paid is insulting.”

“I don’t get it. You have sex with random men just for...”

“For fun? Yeah. We’re all screened, sign contracts, and get tested regularly.”

“Sounds so...” I lift my shoulders. This is a new world to me. Sex is supposed to be something special between two people.

“We like sex, and the men and women we choose to be with want the same thing from us. There’s no emotional attachment, no worries about hurt feelings. Not even payments exchanged.”

Great. I totally screwed up Stone’s sex life in more ways than one. Not only did I cut him off from his sex club, but I convinced him to have sex with me, and somehwere along the way I got my emotions mixed in with it. Exactly what he didn’t want. No wonder he’s distant from me.

However, the observation Sebastiana made yesterday still resonates. I do believe part of his resistance to rekindle our budding friendship is his guilt. I go back to my earlier mission of putting on a smiling face and pretending all is okay in my world. It’s really the only way to survive, mentally and emotionally.

“I’m cut from a different swath than you all, and I’m okay with that. I don’t judge you, Sebastiana.” I place my hand over hers and squeeze. “I appreciate your honesty and your friendship.”

“Yikes. If you’re this sweet and sappy with Stone, no wonder he ran for the hills.”

I pull my hand away and frown.

“I’m kidding.” She lets out a laugh. “You’re a sweet girl, Gia. Don’t change for anyone.”

Sweet isn’t exactly a word anyone has ever used for me. Maybe mother. Now that I think of it, I’ve never had friends, never had a boyfriend, and other than employers and fellow employees, I’ve never even socialized.

No one has ever gotten to know me to tell me if I’m sweet or not. Twenty-six is too old to be making friends for the first time, yet too young to be mixed up with a man like Stone.

“You’re right. I’m not going to change for anyone. If being sweet irritates the hell out of Stone, then he’s going to be the one suffering, not me.”

“Thata girl.”

The afternoon rain shower dampened all the patio furniture so Maria sets the dining room for dinner. Sebastiana and I are taking our seats when Stone, Marco, Tio, and Lucca came in.

Maria bustles in behind them with a stack of plates and silverware. “I apologize. I didn’t realize you’d be joining the ladies for dinner.”

It isn’t her fault. We haven’t eaten together in days, and when we did, it had been an uncomfortable silence. Stone takes the seat at the head of the table, with Tio joining Sebastiana on one side of him and Marco next to me on the other. That leaves Lucca with the other head of the table between Sebastiana and me.

I’m not surprised Stone chose the end furthest away from me, as awkward as it is.

“This smells delicious,” Lucca says to Maria. He’s changed since my kidnapping. He may have been on babysitting duty but it wasn’t his fault, nor was it Maria’s or Stone’s that I’d been taken.

Still, it has shaken Lucca and he’s softened around Maria and me.

“Gia made the ravioli.”

“You’ve turned into quite the cook,” Tio says from across the table.

“I’ve had the best mentor. It’ll take years of practice to reach Maria’s caliber.”

“I’ll be here for the ride sampling along the way,” Marco says before shoveling a forkful of spinach ravioli in his mouth.

The implication is clear. He expects me to be here for a few years. He’s aware of our sham of a marriage and is only being kind. I cast a quick glance down the table toward Stone, who is avoiding acknowledging my presence, which is fine with me.

We eat in silence, with the exception of an exaggerated sigh from time to time by Sebastiana. When her plate is empty, she pushes back her chair. “You guys are a real bore. I’m going to the lounge to watch porn. Anyone want to join me?”

She runs her hand along Tio’s shoulders. He stiffens at the gesture and keeps his head bowed toward his plate.

I try not to laugh. Sebastiana is only trying to get a rise out of the men, which I’m sure she does. All except Stone. He only seems annoyed with her.

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