Her body is out of this world.
Fuck.
There is something fucking wrong here. But one thing I know is not wrong at all.
Making her dinner. It feels like the most right thing in the world.
I start preparing the food. It's not that hard, really. Chopping vegetables isn't that big of a deal when you can ask the chef at the store to pre chop it for you so it's ready. The meat is already marinated and ready to go so I get those ready. The couscous is set to boil.
I put the vegetables on a pan with some olive oil and I turn on the stove.
I have another scotch and think back to how I would have probably fucking kicked myself in the nuts if I ever go back in time and tell myself what I'm doing now.
But fuck it, I have bigger plans.
Bigger goals.
I'd tell you what they are but my doorbell rings again.
That's odd. It's a bit early for Brittney to be coming already.
I'm still wearing the apron I put on while cooking and I go to the door.
Yes, I was wearing an apron, okay? I just didn't fucking tell you because … I mean, it's not important, is it? I still got the abs underneath. I still got the fucking cock.
And no, I am not fucking taking off the apron to open the door. Not even if it's …
Cheryl.
She raises her eyebrows at me as she sees me holding a cooking spoon with an apron.
"Do I even want to know what kind of weird sex game you've got going on?" Cheryl asks as she walks in. I turn around to give her room and she looks around as she comes inside.
She sniffs the air. "What's that smell?" Cheryl asks me, turning to me and narrowing her eyes.
I shrug.
"Are you cooking?" she asks me.
"So what if I fucking am?" I snap back to her.
Cheryl smiles. "I'm just asking Ethan, it's okay," she tells me and takes a step over. "Expecting guests?"
I nod as I close the door and head to the kitchen. I need my scotch.
"Who?" Cheryl asks, as she follows me.
"Just someone I know," I reply, not sure how to answer.
Okay, I'm going to be honest with you, okay?
It's not that I don't know how to say Brittney is coming over.
It's that I'm not sure why all of a sudden it's that I don't want to say Brittney is coming over. I'm a bit worried about … what?
But Cheryl must fucking read my mind or something.
"Is it someone you work with perhaps, hmm?" Cheryl asks, taking a step closer to me. "Someone maybe you hired to be the face for Illicit Entertainment?"
I look toward Cheryl.
"You have Brittney coming over, don't you?" Cheryl asks me, her eyes narrowing. "You're cooking dinner for that woman."
"Does it matter?" I ask with a sigh and turn to face Cheryl. I'm not sure if what I'm doing is the best course of action, but I'm sure as fuck not embarrassed about it. But enough is enough.
"Do you know anything about that woman, Ethan?" Cheryl asks me sharply. "Do you know anything about what you look like when you're around her?"
I stare at Cheryl as she continues.
"She's changing you right in front of my eyes," Cheryl says. "You used to be an asshole, now look at yourself. Cooking dinner."
"I can still take care of things that need to be done," I tell Cheryl and take off my apron and grab my glass of scotch and walk out of the kitchen.
Fuck, did you just hear what that sounded like? Did I just fucking say take off my apron?
And I'm supposed to be the bad boy? Jesus fucking Christ.
"You can't walk away from this Ethan," Cheryl says, following me out. "There are thousands of employees who depend on your leadership, and if you're placing it in danger by falling for that woman it's my job to look out for you … and them," Cheryl tells me as she follows me out.
"I'm not walking away from it, Cheryl," I tell her coldly as I go toward the door, open it, and turn to her. "I'm showing you out so I can enjoy my evening in peace."
Cheryl looks at me and pauses. Finally she sighs.
"I can only try to keep warning you, Ethan," she tells me. "You may think you're following your heart, but you could just as easily be getting played. Don't forget how you know her in the first place."
And with that piece of profound advice, Cheryl turns around and walks into the open elevator as the doors close.
Fuck.
I know she's right. I should probably be a bit more careful.
If only I could stop thinking about Brittney for a moment, I might have a chance to listen to my fucking brain.
146
Brittney
"I'm not sure that's a good idea, Walter," I say from the back seat of the limo as Walter drives me towards Illicit Escape.
We're weaving our way towards Times Square. It's been two days since I went over to see Ethan, have dinner at his place, and fuck his brains out.
"Are you forgetting that we have a job to finish here?" he asks. He's looking me straight in the eyes with a serious gaze.
Since I stole the data from Ethan's office, there have been four software upgrades. The data I had was junk literally 24 hours after I had it. I gave the USB device to Simon yesterday who tried to run it on his computer in his office before throwing it against the wall and then getting up and stomping it.
"I know; I haven't forgotten," I say thinking back to Simon's frustration yesterday and threats to give Robert a call. "But did you forget the icy tone in Cheryl's voice in his office? She's onto me. She isn't messing around. If she finds out what we've done; I'm in serious trouble. This won't be some little slap on the wrist. I'll do prison time, Walter. I mean, you saw the NDA I signed, right?" I say. By the look in my eyes, he knows I'm serious too, but he then tries to lighten the situation.
"You're being paranoid," Walter says. "That's all. You're letting the stress get to you, darling. This is a big job. I get it. But buck up. This job is nearly done. You've done tougher things in the past. Are you forgetting all of your past clients? I honestly don't know why you're letting this job get to you … more so than anything else you've done. Let's just finish this now."
Those words make my mood sink even lower. The job's almost complete. I know what you're thinking. How can the job be over if the data I stole is now junk?
I'll tell you why.
I'm inside.
I' the face of Illicit Escape.
So what the data I stole has gone bad?
I can try again. And if I don't succeed, I can maybe try again. And if I still don't succeed, I can even at the end steal the physical prototype somehow.
Yeah, don't roll your eyes, hun. What I'm trying to say is that there are options.
I should be happy. Walter's right. I will have made more money than I've made with a single client before, and I'll be safe from Robert. This is just one job of many. You'd think these facts alone would have me finding Simon and throwing the I.E. data straight into the palm of his hand and calling it a day.
But that's not how I'm feeling. That's not exactly what I want to do. Are you following?
This is new territory for me. I've always been able to handle any job. But I may have just met my match. Maybe I bit off more than I can handle with this one. But did I have a choice? Simon basically threatened my life if I didn't take this on.
How can I explain any of this to Walter? He'd just say that I'm overanalyzing things.
He's known me forever. He'd just keep telling me to relax.
He'd also say I'm not thinking clearly. That I need to take a deep breath and steady my thoughts. Get my head screwed back on straight. To stop being a 'negative Nancy' in that off English accent of his.
The car stops outside the Illicit Entertainment offices in Times Square and Walter gets out to open my door.
"Okay, here you are darling," Walter says. We are both standing outside the Illicit Entertainment headquarters. "While you're in your shoot, I'll make my way to Ethan's office and plant the bugs; I have three-one underneath his desk, one behind a wall socket, and one buried in this potted plant here. I added a nice note from you, for a bit of realism. He'll never suspect a thing."
I look at the plant in Walter's arm. It's a potted plant with a pink ribbon around its pot and a card that reads simply, "Love Brittney." Shit. That makes me feel awful.
"Do we really have to plant these bugs?" I ask.
"To get this job done, yes," he says. "I could potentially install a shotgun mic outside of his office window, and it's very good at recording conversations, but given the fact that his office isn't on the ground floor, that wouldn't be practical. In fact, I'm not even sure that's possible."
I nod to Walter. My insides are in knots. Literal knots that make me want to curl up in a ball, or maybe under a rock. I feel sick. How did I end up in this situation?
I feel like one of the worst possible people on the planet for what I'm about to do to Ethan. I know he has this bad boy image, but underneath it all, he's a good guy. It's true. He doesn't deserve this. All of these thoughts are going through my mind as I stand here in the Illicit Entertainment lobby and wait for the elevator.