Page 11 of Room Twenty-Seven: Theirs to Punish

Opening the bag, I grab the warm chocolate chip muffin and take the biggest bite I can manage. The gooey goodness melts on my tongue, and I can’t help but moan at the flavor explosion in my mouth.

Chewing slowly, I watch as Bane sits on the couch next to me. I’m glad he brought me food, but I’m not looking forward to talking to him, especially not after his run-in with Dave.

“I’m sorry yesterday turned out the way it did.”

“Why?” I mumble with my cheeks still stuffed with muffin. “It wasn’t your fault.”

“It wasn’t anyone’s fault. You’re right. Yet I wish it hadn’t happened the way it did.”

“I had to leave.” There was no way I could stay knowing Niklas was there. Just thinking of him now has my stomach in knots.

“I get that.” He leans forward, resting his elbow on his knees. “I would like you to come back to the club tonight to fulfill our arrangement.”

The muffin hits my empty stomach with a heavy thud, the sweet chocolate suddenly turning sour. I take a sip of the hot coffee to wash it down.

“I can’t.”

“I paid your rent,” he announces.

“You did what?” I almost drop the coffee cup.

“I paid the rent you owed and this month as well.”

I slam my cup onto the coffee table, ready to jump up and kick him out of my apartment.

“And now you expect me to have sex with you? How convenient!” Anger bubbles up from deep inside me. How fucking dare he put me in this position?

“Whoa, wait.” He throws up his hands. “I didn’t say that. Your rent is paid no matter if you come tonight or not. I paid it so you wouldn’t do it because you need the money. I want you to come because you want to.”

Dumbfounded, I stare at him.Want to? He can’t be serious.

“Let’s forget about tonight for now,” Bane suggests. “Tell me about you. What have you been up to in the past five years?”

I take a second to let my momentary outrage simmer before I answer. “Since you know where I live, I’m guessing Luke already filled you in.”

“You know what I want to know.” Of course I do. He wants to know if my mom and I blew through all the money and scammed someone else.

“After we left Virginia, my mom and I split ways. As far as I know, she remarried someone in Delaware soon after. I haven't talked to her since.” I don’t have to explain what I mean byremarried.

“My father never filed for divorce, so she’s technically still married to him.”

Another piece of information that has my eyes going wide in surprise. “It’s been five years.”

Bane shrugs. “I know.”

“Why?” I can’t think of a single reason he would want to stay married to her. I can only think of a hundred reasons he shouldn't.

“That, you have to ask him yourself.”

The thought of facing my stepfather after all this time gives me mixed feelings. During the time I spent with them in Virginia, I’d gotten close to Niklas, but I also had a great relationship with his dad.

“Is he doing okay? Oliver, I mean.” If I wasn’t so scared of his reaction, I would love to see him. “Did he recover financially?”

“Yes, he’s also doing great. He had a lot of assets your mom didn’t know about. It took him a bit, but he turned everything around in under a year. You know, consider talking to him. I’m sure he would love to see you.”

“I don’t think that’s true. He probably hates me even more than Niklas does.”

“You'd be surprised.”

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