Delivering the Virgin(34)

And I'd expected to be fired, I admit. Evidently I'd committed some  crazy breach of protocol, offending the artistic types. But instead,  when I got a call from my agency about the afternoon's incident, it was  the opposite  –  Alexander was inviting me to a private party.

"Do I have to?" I'd asked. "I thought that douchebag hated me," I confided to Deborah.

"No, of course you don't have to," she said reassuringly. "But Jason  Alexander is a hot young designer whose star is on the up and up. Keep  an open mind, you know? You never know what will happen."

And so I'd agreed, showing up an expensive loft in Tribeca. Shaking my  head resignedly, I held tight to the champagne I'd brought. Hopefully a  fancy bottle of Chateau L'Anglais would put him in a good mood.

But my instincts weren't off. The minute the door opened, I saw that I'd  been duped. I'd been invited to a gay party  –  Bears and Twinks, to be  specific. The bears were great big guys, hairy and beefy, and the twinks  were their boytoys, simpering and eighty pounds at most. Not that I  have anything against gay men, I just didn't expect to be the only  female in a room full of grinding gay dudes.

"Hey sweetie!" called Jason, sashaying forward in a caftan. He was built  like a tank and I could see right through the gauzy material. Nope, he  didn't shave down below. "Glad you could make it last minute," he sang  insincerely.

"Th- Thanks for inviting me," I stammered weakly, holding forth the  bottle of wine. "This is Chateau L'Anglais, I hope you like it."

"Oh we only drink French," he'd said dismissively. "But thanks anyways. Make yourself at home  …  if you can find a spot."

Because I could see now that this was actually a gay sex party. We were  in someone's private apartment and they'd covered every item of  furniture with plastic so that people could get down.

And the guests weren't wasting any time. The twinks were taking it in  every conceivable position, showing off the elasticity of their bodies,  their willing and supple limbs bent like circus acrobats. I could see  spatters of semen everywhere, pooling and drying on the plastic tarp,  condom wrappers strewn about.         

     



 

"Make yourself at home!" Alexander echoed in a singsong voice, before disappearing into the crowd.

And I could have cried, I could have thrown a tantrum per my old ways,  but instead I grit my teeth and made myself stay. It was tough, I admit.  I witnessed more depravity that I'd ever imagined in my life and not  that kind that's soft-core.

After about two hours, I said goodbye to Alexander, thanking him  graciously for inviting me, although I'm not sure he could hear given  that his face was planted in some other man's butt. But I'd learned a  lesson  …  know your place, don't think you can get away with murder  because you're a pretty blonde. This is New York City where anything can  happen, and that included my date with Rafe Connor.





CHAPTER NINE


Rafe




She walked towards me with a warm smile, her hair a mass of gold down her back, her dress clingy but modest.

"Mr. Connor, thanks for inviting me," she said. "I'm so hungry after the morning shows, I'm going to eat like a cow."

I smiled at her words.

"Call me Rafe, please. Plus, I'm sure you don't eat like a cow, you're  svelte, perfect for modeling swimsuit attire," I growled in response,  eyeing her curves appreciatively. "Please, take a seat."

She dropped gracefully into the chair and threw me a teasing glance.

"So are we really here to talk about a raise?" she asked mischievously,  taking a sip of her sparkling water. I almost lost it right there. The  glance she gave me over the rim of her glass was exactly what I hoped to  see in an ingénue  …  so long as her lips were wrapped around my dick.

"We are," I confirmed. "Levast is prepared to pay ten thousand per show provided there's fair play in return."

That made her brow crinkle.

"Fair play?" she asked confused. "What does that mean?"

"Oh we just want to get our money's worth," I said vaguely. There was no  sense in bringing up the nudie pics now. I was just getting to know the  girl and wanted to keep things light. "We pay you money and in return,  we expect a little something, that's all. We can work out the details  with your agency. I understand you're with Deborah?"

The little girl still looked confused.

"I am working with Deborah," she said slowly. "But I'm not sure I  understand. What else do you want other than walking in shows?"

"Well," I said nonchalantly, "Levast has exclusivity restrictions, you  won't be able to walk for any other designers, plus we expect you to be  in prime physical shape, to not embarrass us  …  that kind of thing."

"Oh that," she said, her cheeks flushed. "I can do that, no problem."

"Perfect then, we're going to get along great," I said. "Can we get some champagne here? Let's celebrate."

And I thoroughly enjoyed my lunch with her.

"Can I drop you off somewhere?" I asked once we were in my town car.

"Um  …  how about your place?" she asked with a sweet flush. I liked her  more and more. Evidently she'd read my mind, I just hadn't wanted to  harass her on our first business lunch. But if the woman asks for it,  then I was more than willing.

"Antonio, home please," I said. And the black sedan did a u-turn, sweeping us into the hubbub of Greenwich Village.





CHAPTER TEN


Jenna




I gasped as I entered Rafe's townhouse.

"You live here by yourself?" I asked, my mouth agape. I knew that as  Chairman of Levast Corp., Rafe probably had some serious dough but I  didn't realize it meant a mint-condition townhouse in the heart of the  Village. The building was gorgeous, five floors with a private elevator,  priceless antiques scattered about.

The big man chuckled as I looked around. "It's just me," he growled.  "Santino comes around to keep things in order, but this place is really a  giant bachelor pad."

Just a giant bachelor pad? Hardly. I could see an ornate Japanese garden  through sliding glass doors, and was that my imagination or did those  stairs lead to a basement pool? Wow, this was a far cry from what I was  used to.         

     



 

It's not that my family's poor, it's just that my parents divorced when  we were kids, and with four girls money has always been tight. When Tina  and I announced our intention to go to law school, Mom was clear that  she couldn't help with tuition.

"Girls, I can't," she said with finality. "You know I'm still putting  Karina and Callie through undergrad and that's the most I can promise  any of you. I was happy to give each of you four years, but no more."

"Ma," I whined. "Seriously, Karina and Callie are doing work-study, plus  they got grants right? You know that's money you don't have to pay  back. Please, just a couple thousand here and there would help us sooo  much," I'd wheedled.

Mary had frowned. "No Jenna," she said firmly. "I can't rob your younger  sisters of their right to a college education. Besides, you and Tina  are grown now while Callie and Karina are still in their teens. I'm  sorry, but it's not going to happen."

"Fine," I said haughtily. "I'll find a way, no thanks to you."

"Jenna," said my mom exasperatedly. "The world doesn't owe you anything and you'd better get yourself in check."

"Whatever," I said dismissively. "I'll find a way, you'll see." My mind  had been running at a million miles an hour, probably already scheming  how to find some rich guy in the City.

But thinking back to that interlude, I was ashamed. I'd been so selfish,  so unconcerned, even for my younger sisters. And when Tina had piped  up, it'd just made me look even worse.

"No problem Mom," my twin had said quietly. "Jenna and I will find a  way, and maybe after we start practicing law, we can even contribute to  Karina's and Callie's educations."

My mom had smiled with gratitude.

"Thanks honey but that's not necessary. I'm not going to make you  responsible for your younger sisters, you've got enough on your plate."

And this whole exchange exemplified exactly why I hated my twin. Tina  was always so damn perfect, it drove me crazy. She was always doing  everything right, kissing up to my mom, to our professors, making sure  to get good grades, that kind of stuff. To spite her, I often acted out,  acting even bitchier than normal.

But after my start in modeling, I'd resolved to change my ways because I  obviously wasn't going to be able to rely on my looks forever. In an  industry where sixteen is peak, time was already running out, and I  needed to make more of myself frankly, do an attitude check before I  became the Wicked Witch that no one hired.

So I turned back to Rafe with a genuine smile. My previous self would  have thrown myself at him just because he was wealthy, nothing else  mattered. But the new me was more circumspect. Of course, I had to be  nice, he was the CEO of Levast after all, but I wanted to develop a  genuine connection, make sure we knew each other before taking the  plunge.