Page 8 of Room Twenty-Seven: Theirs to Punish

Lilly is on her back when she pulls the blanket up to her chin. “Um, do you want a blanket?”

“I'm good.” I'm also on my back, folding my hands under my head. I look up at the ceiling.

Lilly reaches over to her nightstand and flips off the light, descending the room into darkness. For a while, neither one of us says anything.

“How do you know Niklas?” Lilly asks softly.

“We met in college. Both Nik and Bane, actually. We all ended up in the same class by coincidence. Nik and Bane hadn’t seen each other in years.”

“I was wondering how they reconnected.”

“Yeah, that whole thing is a story for another day.” And it’s not mine to tell anyway.

“I bet. From what I know, Bane’s mom is a bit of a… um, psycho.”

“That’s putting it mildly.” I chuckle. Bane’s mom is a level-ten nutcase. “I seriously don’t understand how Bane turned out so normal.”

“No offense, but you guys don't seem that normal. I mean, sharing a woman at a sex club… sorry. I shouldn't have said that.”

“Don’t worry about it. I see how it might be strange to an outsider, but really it’s not that odd to us. I mean, tons of people are into it, both men and women who like to be fucked by multiple guys at the same time. It might not be discussed freely in society, but I assure you it’s not abnormal.”

“I read romance books before that had that fantasy, but I never actually thought I would get the chance to do it in real life.”

“You seemed to enjoy it.”

She doesn’t answer right away. After a long pause, she finally admits her feelings. “I did enjoy it. I was overwhelmed at times, but I think it was more so because it was all new to me.”

“About that. You don’t have to answer, but I have to ask. How did you manage to stay a virgin for so long?” Someone who looks like her must have had many guys lusting after her.

“Well…” She sighs. “I moved a lot, so I was always the new girl. I never made friends easily or was much of a social person. I left home when I turned eighteen and had to work hard to support myself. Guys were just never a priority for me.”

“Makes sense.” Although I get the feeling that’s not the whole story. There is something she’s not telling me. “You know, the guys and I don’t have girlfriends for a similar reason. We’re not that social, we don’t go out much, and we’re usually busy with work.”

“That’s why you go to Club Sin?”

“Exactly.” Neither one of us has a hard time picking up girls. We learned early on that delegating work is key when running a successful business. So we delegated finding pussy.

“So what happened after college? You stayed close friends until now?”

“We actually started a business together. Bane had a great idea, we all invested, and it took off.”

“What kind of business?”

“We started out in app design but have expanded into other sectors now, computer programming and such.”

“Sounds…” She yawns. “Boring.”

Her honesty makes me laugh. “I’m sure it sounds boring to you. Just as boring as painting sounds to me.”

“That is weird to think about. I really can’t imagine how someone doesn't like to paint. It’s so relaxing. It’s the only time I feel… in control.” She whispers the last part as if she doesn’t really want me to hear it.

“You are a great painter. I really like the one next to the door.”

“Thank you. That’s actually one of my favorites as well.” She turns her body toward me. I shift so we face each other. “You know, I’ve never had anyone up here before,” she tells me with a hint of embarrassment.

“You are a virgin, so I figured.” I chuckle. It dawns on me that I’m possibly the first man in her bed ever. The thought has my balls aching.

“I didn’t mean guy.” She laughs. “I mean, anyone. You are the first person in my apartment.”

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