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“146.” I frown as he slides a plastic card through the reader on the desk. “You’re not going to ask to see my ID?”
The guy smirks. “Did we ask for ID when you paid for the room?”
“I guess not.”
“Okay, then.”
He has a point, but that doesn’t make me feel any better. “How do you know I’m even really a guest here? What happens if some rando asks for a key to my room?”
He taps the side of his head with a sardonic look. “Like a steel trap.”
I’ll bet. “Great.”
I turn to go, but his voice stops me.
“You were a lot more relaxed the last time you were here.”
An icy shiver works its way up my spine. I school my face into something that I hope is neutral before turning back to face the clerk. “What did you say?”
“Don’t play coy. We don’t get many kids from that fancy college staying here, so you all stand out. It’s been a while, but I saw you a bunch of times with some pretty boy in a sweater vest.” The clerk waggles his eyebrows, his expression making me feel like I’ve been doused with slime. “Looked like you two were having a good time, at least.”
He has to be talking about Olivia and Vaughn, which only confirms that the latter was telling me the truth about their relationship. Although, it isn’t like he had a reason to lie when he was the one holding the gun.
I take a step closer, tongue itching with the urge to beg the clerk to tell me everything he knows. “Did you only see me with the one guy, or were there more?”
“Just the one.” The clerk’s grin widens enough to reveal several missing teeth. “Though if you have to ask, you must really get around, huh?”
I back away from the desk, glad that I already have the room key in my hand as he continues to stare at me. The glass barrier separating us provides some level of protection because I’ll have a head start if he comes out from behind the desk, but not by much.
“Have a good night,” I say, pushing open the door leading outside, praying that he doesn’t try to follow me.
“Room 146, right?” His voice carries far enough that the handful of women standing just under the awning can hear him. “I get off at ten, maybe I’ll stop by and see if you’re up for some fun.”
The deadbolt is going on the door tonight.
I ignore the curious glances of the women as I pass them. If I meet their gazes, I know I’ll find understanding there. All of us know the truth.
This is a world where men think they get to have something if anyone else has had it. Once a girl opens herself up for business, men expect her to stay that way.
Disgust and anger, more than fear, drive me forward as I hurry back to my room. That clerk is in for a surprise if he shows up here in the middle of the night. No one is taking what I haven’t offered without a fight.
But I might be closer to understanding what happened to Olivia.
Vaughn denied hurting her before we crashed. Even though I was tempted to shut off his ventilator myself, I don’t think he was lying. But if they used to sneak off to this motel together, the wrong person might have gotten ideas about what kind of girl she was.
And then reacted violently when she said no.
Except, I don’t really know who the fuck my sister was. I thought I did when I decided to come to St. Bart’s. But the Olivia I knew would have never taken a starring role in a gangbang.
She never would have snuck off to a seedy motel with a guy that refused to acknowledge her in public.
It makes me wonder if I ever really knew her, at all.
My snacks are gone when I get back to the room, which is more annoying than it is surprising. I guess I’ll be going hungry tonight since I’m not going anywhere near the front desk again.
It takes three tries with the key before the door unlocks. Every time the light flashes red instead of green, my sense of unease heightens. I wouldn’t put it past that clerk to give me a fake key so he could corner me out here in the dark.
The back of my neck dots with goosebumps as I glance to each side of the dark breezeway. Behind me, the parking lot has nearly emptied and I’m hidden from view of the street by a row of tall hedges.
