Page 63 of A Taste like Sin
me opening my eyes to a dreary view of an overcast sky from beyond my windows.
I’m alone again.
A carefully folded note waits on my bedside table, but I don’t bother reading it until I finally find the
strength to stand.
The message is simple:Had some business to attend to. Will return shortly.At the bottom of the
page, he painstakingly added,PS: I have access to your medical records. I will have mine delivered.
I swallow hard, uneasy at the implication. Not only has the bastard penetrated my life further, but
he…
Well, he got what he wanted. Didn’t he?
Thoughts of medical records aside, I drag myself into the shower and dress in the plainest clothing I
can find: a black sweater and pants. After ripping my bedsheets from the mattress and tossing them
into the hamper, I make my usual cup of coffee. Then I slam my fist into the counter so hard that I wind
up crying out and clutching the damn thing to my chest.
What the hell have I done?
Why, I had sex with Damien Villa, of course. Sex with my father’s archenemy while he’s lying near
death in a hospital bed. To put it even blunter: I gave him exactly what he wanted.
Perhaps he’ll move on to the next bored, pathetic socialite? Instead of flowers today, I’ll receive a
calling card or two reminding me of his hate for my father outside my door.
Instead, I find a small ivory box on my welcome mat.
Inside it lies a delicate strip of pink silk covered in tiny, seemingly hand-painted roses. My fingers
shake as I hold it upright. A beautiful custom blindfold sufficient enough to use in whatever game
Damien may have in store for me next. I carry it and the box inside and place it somewhere within
sight, remembering his promise to have my things brought to his place.
When a sharp, shrill tone cuts the silence, I barely recognize it as my cell phone. I answer it absently,
but the voice on the other end snaps me from my daze.
“He’s awake,” Diane says through smothered sobs. “Juliana… He’s finally awake.”
I ENTER MY FATHER’S HOSPITAL ROOM UNSURE OF WHAT TO EXPECT. FROM MY POSITION NEAR THE
doorway, I can tell he’s still in bed. But one obvious change is impossible to miss. His eyes are
open…
Only the expression in them doesn’t belong to the charming, witty man I know. Dark-blue eyes sit like
