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He drags a palm over his stubbled face, looking tormented. “Sweetheart, stop acting like a bratty little child. You’re out of control. I’ll listen and give my honest opinion, good or bad. I promise, I’m fully capable of separating business and pleasure. Because I’m an adult.”
Rage rises inside me again at his obvious implication: that I’m not.
“If your stepsister is a fit, then I’ll say so. Of course, I will. Because that would benefit me.” He smirks. “Although, in the interest of transparency, I should probably admit pushing your buttons is rapidly becoming my new favorite game.”
I let out a primal shriek of rage that makes Reed laugh, which only pisses me off more. “Stop being so goddamned condescending!” I shout. “This isn’t a joke. This is my stepsister’s life. Her dream. And you’re making a mockery of it. Plus, you’ve repeatedly impugned my character!”
Reed’s eyebrows shoot up at my dramatic last comment, and, I must admit, I think maybe my word choice and intonation were both a little over-the-top. But, whatever. I’m so fucking angry, I press on, letting myself feel whatever I feel and say whatever angry, babbling, bizarre thing pops into my head. “You’re not the only ‘adult’ who can separate business and pleasure, Reed. Yes, I went to that event with Alessandra’s demo in my pocket. That was the business side of things for me. And, yes, I planned to give it to you, if the opportunity fell into my lap. And, yes, maybe I flirted with you a little more aggressively than I normally would have, at first, simply because I was so shocked and excited when I realized I’d caught your eye. But guess what is also the truth? The pleasure part of this equation for me. Namely that, by the time I served you that tenth drink, I wanted you, Reed. I wanted to come home with you, and let you do literally anything you wanted to me, for no other reason than I wanted to experience the pleasure of it.”
“Liar,” Reed says. But before I can smack him, he adds, “You knew you wanted to fuck me by the third drink.”
I know he’s trying to calm me down with humor. But it’s too late for that. The man basically called me a whore. There’s no coming back from that. “Maybe even the first,” I say. “But now? Congratulations. I wouldn’t fuck you if you paid me.”
“Interesting choice of words.”
I grit my teeth. “It was a figure of speech. I meant I wouldn’t fuck you if you were the last man on earth. Is that clear enough for you?”
He sighs. “Okay, it’s time for you to stop acting like the hotheaded, impetuous twenty-one-year-old you are, and come inside. It’s cold out here, and I’m hard as a rock for you. Let me bribe you, sexy Georgina. I promise you’ll like giving me your end of the bargain.”
My traitorous clit pulses again. This time, thanks to the look of molten lust on Reed’s face. There’s no way I’d say yes to him, obviously—let alone yes, yes, yes. But I can’t deny my body wants to, even in the midst of my mind’s rage and disgust.
But before I’ve said a word, I’m saved by the bell. Or, rather, by the blinding headlights of my Uber shining onto Reed’s chiseled face.
“Perfect timing,” I say smugly, turning away from Reed. “Ciao, stronzo.”
I wave to the driver on the other side of the gate to let him know I’m coming, but Reed grabs my shoulder.
“Tell him to leave,” Reed commands, his voice brimming with intensity. “Come inside with me and play me the demo. Let me show you what your body can do, Georgie.”
I whirl back around. “I already know what my body can do. You wanna see?” Glowering at him, I flip him the bird with both hands. “Pretty cool, huh?”
Reed leans against the gatepost and chuckles. “Wow. Tell me how you really feel about me, baby.”
“There aren’t enough middle fingers in the world to tell you how I really feel about you, baby.”
He grimaces playfully. “So heartless.”
“It was never my ‘heart’ that felt attracted to you, so it’s not a big loss.”
“Tsk. So rude. You’ll catch more flies with honey. Didn’t your momma ever teach you that?”
No, she didn’t, asshole, because my mother is fucking dead. But if she were here, there’s no doubt in my mind my fiery, fabulous badass of a mother would be applauding me for flipping you off, ya big dick. In fact, she’d be flipping you off, right along with me. I don’t say any of that to Reed, of course, but it’s sure as hell what I’m thinking.
Wordlessly, I turn around and inspect the metal gate, my anger at an all-time high. First, this arrogant piece of shit tells me I’m “play-acting confidence in my mother’s heels,” and then he tells me my momma should have taught me to play nice in the face of flaming assholery? Well, fuck that. And fuck him. “How do I get through?” I yell, pounding on the iron gate with my palm. “Help me out of here or I’m gonna climb over this gate and fall on my ass, and then sue your ass for negligence and false imprisonment!”
