Page 14 of To the Highest Bidder

She smiled, but her body felt oddly weak. Besieged by sensations that were rendering her inert. I still don’t know if it’s any of your business.

While we’re in this arrangement, everything that concerns you is my business.

Did I already say that you’re kind of intense?

He didn’t reply immediately, and her eyelids were heavy, despite the way her body was flushed with a strong sense of pleasure. She was close to drifting off when her phone buzzed again.

Dream of me. I’ll know if you don’t.

Intense bastard, she thought with a slow smile as she pushed her phone aside and closed her eyes.

Of course she dreamed of him. How could she not? In every way, he had already taken possession of her. Her whole body was in tune to him, and only him.

The next day seemed to drag. With Anita away on camp for yet another night, there were no school lunches to prepare, no uniforms to clean, no timetable to check. She was at a loose end on a day when she most needed distracting.

She went to the gym, and ran for an hour on the treadmill, then did a yoga class. She prepared a light dinner for Jenna and wrote a little note to go with it, taking care with her spelling as she always did when leaving notes for her friend or sister. Then, she set about some of her practice tests before finally allowing herself the luxury of preparing for her night.

It was only as she was drying herself after the shower that she realised he hadn’t told her if they were going out that night. What should she wear? Jeans were too casual for a restaurant, but perfect for a night at his apartment. A dress might seem like she expected to be shown another Four Seasons style dinner.

She shook her head.

This was sex.

She smiled as she unhooked a Mac coat from her wardrobe and looked at it thoughtfully. She’d seen it in movies, but did she dare? Could she actually turn up at his apartment wearing only a pair of lacy underwear, some sky high heels and a coat?

Apparently she could. She pulled the coat on and slid her feet into a pair of stilettos. Bright red lipstick and a finger comb of her long dark hair completed the look.

He had no idea what he was in for.

She threw a couple of things in an oversized handbag and headed for the door. Butterflies stormed her stomach as she walked to the nearest subway. Part way down the line, the train was held to even out the service, and she sat there watching the clock on her iPhone, waiting and waiting, wanting only to see him again.

She hopped out at ninety sixth street

and Lex and walked the short distance to the Park Avenue address he’d given her. While she felt slightly self-conscious in her near-naked state, she also felt deliciously filled with anticipation.

The buzzer for his apartment didn’t have a name, but she pressed the number anyway.

His voice was instantly familiar to her; an impatient tone now his trademark. “You’re late.”

She blinked, as she fished her phone from her pocket to check the time. He was right. The delay on the subway had held her up. “Are you going to dock my pay?” She asked with mock fear.

His laugh was a rumble. “I can think of other ways to exact revenge.”

The door made a low-pitched rumbling sound and a click, so she pushed it inwards.

When the elevator pinged open on the top floor, he was waiting for her. Indolently reclined against the wall, dressed in a pair of jeans and a collared t-shirt.

“Hi.” She said, suddenly shy.

His eyes burned into her. “Hi.” He held a hand out for her bag. She passed it over.

He pushed the door into his apartment and hooked her bag over a stand at the entranceway.

“Wow.” She froze right inside, spinning a full circle to take in the view of the apartment.

“Wow.” She repeated, taking a step into the palatial space. “This is… just… wow.” Open plan, and on a scale that made enormous seem miniscule, the apartment spanned forever. At the edge of it was a wall of glass that revealed the shimmering Manhattan skyline like jewels stitched into a black velvet neckline.

His shrug was dismissive. “I’m glad you like it. Can I take your coat?”

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