The Arrangement Anthology 1(7)
“Avery, what’s wrong?” Mel asks, noticing how I’ve gone rigid.
“Nothing.” I sweep up the papers and the picture and hand them back to Miss Black. When I touch the photograph, I think of how it felt to wrap my arms around his waist. Hell, I already wrapped my thighs around his hips. My face flames red at the thought and the two women chuckle, like they know what I’m thinking. I push the papers across the table toward Miss Black.
The corners of her mouth twitch with amusement. She senses the chink in my armor. “This is a new client. I met him this morning and he was interested in finding someone to take under his wing, someone with little experience, someone with soft dark hair and even darker eyes—someone like you.”
I smile too widely and shake my head. Butterflies are ambushing my stomach and trying to fly up my throat. I move too much and practically shake my brains out of my head. “I’m not interested.” I try to hide my nerves, but the fact that this guy made me melt before I saw the picture undercuts me. I cross my arms over my chest and lean back in the chair, locking my jaw.
“Very well,” Miss Black says, no longer looking at the guy’s picture. She turns to Mel and pulls out a few pages. There are a lot of pictures of the guy and his preferences are noted.
I tune out what they say. I don’t realize it, but I’m staring at the upside down picture of motorcycle man. He seemed so normal, so nice. What’s he doing at a place like this? If he asked me out, I would have said—stop lying to yourself, you would have said no. I wouldn’t have given him a chance, and why? Because I don’t have time for stuff like this. I won’t start something that I can’t finish.
My eyes fixate on his face. Startling blue eyes look back. A dusting of stubble lines his jaw, dark like the sexy hair covering his head in thick waves. It sweeps across his forehead, like it’s just a little too long. I want to touch it, and push the hair back. Those eyes are too amazing to conceal. My heart is pounding and I’m lost in thought, rethinking the encounter with him earlier tonight, wondering why he’d come here, when Mel pokes me in the shoulder.
“Hello? Earth to Avery?” I snap my gaze from the picture and look at her. “Time to go.” Mel stands and grabs her purse.
Miss Black extends her hand to me, “It was a pleasure to meet you.”
I nod, and shake. “It’s been..” I stare at her, and can’t think of anything to describe how it’s been.
Miss Black breaks the awkward pause and says, “I did the same thing. So did, Melony, if it makes you feel better. Neither of us thought we’d do it. We both said no at first.” Miss Black smiles weakly at me. The handshake stops and before I have a chance to turn away, she says, “We both changed our minds.”
I smile at her, completely and total certain. “I won’t be changing my mind about this.”
I turn away and follow Mel down to her car. I had no clue how wrong I was.
CHAPTER 5
Mel stalks to her room. There’s a frosty silence between us. It’s nearly 2:00am by the time we get back to the dorm. We pass my door first. I move to unlock it, but when I jab my key in and turn the knob, the door smacks into the couch. Again.
“Damn it, Amber! Open the fucking door!” I’m about to lose my mind. It’s the middle of the night. There’s no one to report her to, and I am not sleeping in the hallway.
Mel stops a few paces away and turns back when she hears me yell. Her voice is quiet. “Come stay with us. You can beat the crap out of Amber in the morning.” She doesn’t wait for me to cave and follow her back to her room. I watch Mel’s long curvy form walk down the hall and wonder if I know her at all. She’s a goddamn prostitute. How did I miss that? Am I that naïve? I suck in a breath of air and let it out in a rush.
Running my hand through my hair, I push it back from my eyes and sulk down the hallway after her. She opens the door in silence. I follow her into the room and close the door quietly, assuming her roommate is already asleep, but the room is empty. We both live in the west tower at the far end of campus. It’s the cheapest dorm and the one farthest from everything.
Mel picks up a note next to the lamp after she turns it on. The little room is a photocopy of mine, minus my hideous roommate, Amber the skank. The walls are eggshell white with an industrial tile floor. Mel decorated it more poshly than I did. I could never afford the pretty curtains and thick throw rug that covers the floor. All the throw blankets, lights, and pictures make it feel like a home. My room doesn’t feel like that. It feels like the prison cell of a sociopath. Amber covered her half with sparkly crap and my half remains empty, barren, like my life.