Back in the main bedroom, I flopped onto the bed. There were a few paperbacks in the nightstand, but little else. Bored and lonely, I flipped on the flatscreen television mounted to the wall. Unlike the TV in the locked room, this one had full satellite hooked up. As I flipped channels, most in Spanish, I eventually found several American channels and fell asleep watching one of them.
I woke from my nap in Nate’s arms, some soccer game on TV. “Sleeping beauty,” he teased, a lopsided grin crossing his lips. “I hate it here without you—I feel unwelcome,” I whined. He pulled me tighter and kissed my forehead. “You’re very welcome, it’s just we’re not used to having guests here, and certainly not a woman. Rex wants you to stay—he told me we’re having dinner out by the pool tonight—the three of us. I’ve never known him to plan anything like a meal with others before. You’re good for him, Penny.”
I curled up in Nate’s embrace, inhaling the rich scent of his spicy cologne. “Who’s room was this?” I asked, my lips at his neck. “It was Evelyn’s room, his wife.” I looked around—I couldn’t imagine Rex in here. “They had separate rooms?” Nate ran his fingers through my hair. “I don’t think so—I think he set it up to please her. She wasn’t happy to be brought to Colombia.”
“Why did you come here? To Colombia?”
“Oh, to take Rex’s survival course.”
“So that’s how you got clean, by spending a week in the jungle?”
He shook his head, a look of regret falling like a curtain. “No, I left the second night—ended up in Medellin and…” He trailed off and never finished, the sadness washing over him. I kissed the soft skin of his collarbone, my kisses trailing up his neck until my lips crashed onto his, his lips opening as my tongue slid in. The bulge of his erection in his fitted jeans drew my hand to it, stroking up and down as it grew. “Nate,” I moaned. “Penny, stop…” His hand covered mine, pulling it away from his hardness.
“Why?” I was confused. “Is everything okay between us?”
He smiled and stroked my cheek. “Everything is perfect. I’m so…I’m insane about you, babe. But Rex said no sex, kisses and cuddles only.”
I sighed, annoyed at the control Rex wielded. “He won’t know—we don’t have to do what he says!” I moved to stroke him again, but his grasp on my wrist stopped me.
“Rex knows everything that happens around here. And…it’s not that I have to obey him, it’s that I want to obey him.”
He kissed me again before sitting up. “Dinner is at seven. We’re getting dressed up.”
“Dressed up? I was given a few pairs of jeans, shirts, flats—I have no idea where the dress I had on went to.”
“I’m sure he’ll take care of it. I need to go return a few emails and get ready. Don’t worry! You have two men who are obsessed with you.” He winked at me before climbing out of bed and leaving my room.
Nate was such a comforting presence to me; I felt a sense of loss every time he left my side. Dinner… My stomach rumbled—I hadn’t eaten since the pastries Nate brought to bed that morning. When I was a captive here, my meals were brought to me on a tray. Now, I really wasn’t sure what my place in the house was. Rex said I was a guest, but I didn’t feel like a guest. I felt like the new kid on the block at a place I never wanted to leave.
The clock by the bed said it was a quarter to six. I took a long shower, shaving everywhere I hoped would later be licked, in the gorgeous shower. He did all this for her... I couldn’t help but be jealous that Rex loved someone—I already knew deep inside I only wanted him to love me. Me, and Nate, I thought. Nate said she left two years ago—but Rex still wore a heavy gold wedding band on his left ring finger. Evelyn…her name was immersed in the sea of ink on his tanned skin. Another name floated next to it, Noah. The name Noah was intertwined with a rose, the Virgin Mary overlooking it. During our time together, I wanted to ask Rex about his tattoos—they clearly were meaningful to him, and not decoration—but got the feeling Rex didn’t much like to be asked personal questions.
When I emerged from the long, steamy shower, I noticed a bathrobe hanging on a hook near the door. I didn’t remember it being there before. I dried off with one of the fluffy white towels, and wrapped my long hair in another. The robe was warm as I slipped it on. Maria must have come in while I was showering and I didn’t even notice it, I assumed.
Wrapped in the cozy robe, I walked out to the bedroom to figure out what to wear and saw a dress bag draped across the bed. The faint smell of cologne lingered—one that wasn’t Nate’s signature scent. This one was…earthy, clean, and very masculine. Rex? I wondered. I shook my head—I couldn’t imagine Rex splashing on cologne. I thought the bag would contain the tiny red dress I wore the night Nate drugged me, but as I pulled the zipper down, I gasped. A delicate ivory silk gown was inside—the tiniest spaghetti straps clinging to the satin hanger. The gown was exquisite—far softer and more feminine than anything I’d normally go for. Satin pumps rested at the bottom of the bag—everything was my size. This had to be Nate!
I dried my hair and put the gown on—it felt like a dream against my skin. My only regret was I didn’t have any makeup to apply. Nate took me from The Penelope without even a purse—I rarely bring much down to the club since I live upstairs and don’t pay for anything in the hotel. Just a little eyeliner would make all the difference, I thought as I cringed in the mirror before walking from the room.
Nate was standing in the hallway outside, his dark suit shining as his face lit up when he saw me. “Penny, you look…you just took my breath away.” He dipped down to kiss me, his tall frame bending to wrap around me. “Wow, just wow,” he whispered as our lips parted. “You’re so eloquent tonight,” I teased. His eyes roamed over me before settling on mine, his expression serious. “I’m speechless, yes, but Penny, I’m falling in love with you.” My heart pounded, my palms went sweaty. I felt the same for him, but I couldn’t stop thinking about Rex. I never believed you could truly be in love with more than one person, but now I wasn’t so sure.
Nate took my arm and started us walking. “Can’t be late for King Rex, babe, he doesn’t do late.” He walked me to a wall of glass at the back of the house and outside. The night was warm and sticky—the raw sounds of the jungle all around. We went down a short pathway lined with lighted palm trees. We turned a corner and my eyes drank in a large infinity pool, lit from underneath, with flowers floating across the smooth surface of the water. In the corner, a cabana was lit with candles, and the vision of Rex standing from a chair surprised me. I almost didn’t recognize him—he was in a suit. Not a shiny designer suit like Nate wore, but a simple dark suit that strained to fit around his muscled body.
“It fit,” he said gruffly, pointing at the dress as he approached. “You left the dress?” He nodded, reaching for me and pulling me toward him. “Yeah, and I don’t fucking shop much, so…I did my best. I’ve wanted to see you in something fluid—your curves deserve to be set free, worshipped—not contained in a too-tight dress.”
I leaned in to give him a kiss on the freshly-shaven cheek he offered. The scent…it was the same as the cologne smell in my room. “I wish I had some makeup,” I pouted, rubbing at my eyes. “Cover up that divine skin? Penelope, there’s no cosmetic that could improve the perfection of your beauty tonight.”
Soft Rex always threw me off balance, and I never knew how long it would last. “Thank you,” I said quietly as the two men led me to a table covered in tall candles and fragrant tropical flowers. Nate pulled out my chair as Rex pulled a bottle of Champagne from a silver ice bucket. With little flourish, he popped the cork and poured the bubbling contents into three crystal flutes. He handed us each a glass, my eyes darting to Nate. “Alcohol isn’t his drug of choice, Penny. Life would be easier if it were,” Rex answered in response to my unspoken question. “Amen to that,” Nate chuckled. “Okay, here’s my goddamn toast. To whatever the mother fuck this thing is,” Rex raised his glass as we did the same, clinking them together.
Rex quickly abandoned the bubbly for bourbon, with Nate and I splitting two bottles of wine as we ate. I wasn’t sure if the house staff made the meal, or if it had been catered in, but the food was as good as the best starred restaurant in Vegas—and I dined at them far too frequently to be good for my figure. By the time we made it to dessert, a warm crème brulee served by Maria, Rex’s hand searched my inner thigh, snaking its way up to my skimpy panties as I struggled to focus on finishing dessert. As I slid my dish back, Nate’s long fingers skimmed my other thigh.
Rex’s hand slid down to my knee before leaving my skin wanting his touch. He stood up and slid off his suit jacket, carefully placing it over his chair. “Do you swim, Penny?” I nodded, unable to speak as he removed his cufflinks and placed them on the table. “Good exercise, and an important survival skill,” he said as he pulled his black tie loose. “I’ve never understood the purpose of a tie,” he sighed, wrapping it around his thick wrist. I peeled my eyes from him to look at Nate—who sat rapt, his full attention on Rex.