Page 10 of Once in a Lifetime, Part 2

Slowly, he lifted his head. His eyes found the lens. “I… I’m sorry, Stella, for the horrible way I treated you…”

She motioned for him to keep going.

He swallowed. “I’m sorry, Stella, for sleeping with your best friend and turning your life upside down…” His voice faltered. He forced himself to keep looking at the camera. “…because I don’t… I don’t know how to keep my dick in my pants.” The last words came out tight, controlled. But his eyes gave him away. Glassy. Right on the verge.

“Say, please forgive me, Stella. I want to hear you say it.”

His gaze dropped for a moment, unfocused. Then he lifted his head again, forcing himself to meet her eyes. “Please forgive me, Stella.”

She lowered the phone and stopped the recording, smiling. “Oh my God. You came out so cute. Wanna see?” She moved closer and sat beside him.

Before he could react, she pressed play. The screen lit up. Mano’s breath caught. His own body. Bare. Exposed. The ink on his face, the words he’d been forced to say. Something twisted in his chest.

“I… I’m sorry, Stella, for the horrible way I treated you…”

His own voice. He flinched and turned away, squeezing his eyes shut. “Turn it off…”

“I’m sorry, Stella, for sleeping with your best friend—”

“Please, turn it off,” he said, sharper this time, his breath coming fast now.

“See?” she said, pausing the video. “You can behave when you want to.”

Mano kept his gaze down, refusing to look at her. His jaw was tight, his expression drawn, his eyes glassy as they slowly fell shut.

“I hope you learned your lesson,” she added, her tone turning colder. “And stop acting like some tough alpha male.”

Mano barely heard her. All he could think about was the video. Where it could go. Who could see it. “Untie me.”

She stood, opened a drawer, and took out the keys. “Just a reminder,” she said as she stepped back toward him, “if you try anything stupid, you and your little buddy are done for.” She slipped the key into the cuff and unlocked it.

The metal clicked open. Mano let out a low groan as the circulation rushed back into his wrists. He brought his hands forward, rubbing at the red marks left behind.

“Not so hard to be a good boy,” she said, a smug smile tugging at her lips. “All it takes is a little effort… and the will to behave.”

“We’re done,” he said, forcing himself to meet her eyes. “You’re gonna leave Ody and Anna alone.”

Stella tilted her head. “Thing is…” she said, almost casually, “that video puts you exactly where I want you. So you’ll do what I say. Or I talk to Anna.”

Something in Mano snapped. “What the hell do you want from me?”

“From you?” she echoed, a slow, sly smile spreading across her face as she stood up. “Oh… so much.” She took a step back, looking him over. “Go wash up. You don’t wanna walk out looking like that.”

Mano didn’t answer. He grabbed his clothes and headed to the bathroom. He looked at himself in the mirror and shut his eyes. He turned on the tap and scrubbed his face hard, soap burning his skin. He rinsed and looked up again, his stomach dropping when he saw the ink hadn’t moved. “Stella!”

She appeared in the doorway.

“Why won’t it come off?”

She glanced at his face, then smiled. “Oops. I forgot to mention… It’s permanent.”

He stared at her, then grabbed a fistful of her shirt. “Get it off me.”

“Watch it,” she said, her tone sharp.

His grip tightened, then slowly loosened as he let go. “Get it off.”

“Go sit.”