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“What’s it for?”
It didn’t matter what I used it for. “Sleep here until you’re on your feet. There’s a bathroom down the hall, and the break room always has leftover food. What do you say?”
“I…I don’t know.”
My patience had officially expired. “Ten, you’re taking one or the other. Now, pick. As one of the Barsetti models, you’re my property. I can’t have a dirty, sleep-deprived, starving woman on the runway. You’re hurting me as much as yourself. So choose.”
She eyed the bed in the corner, her eyes lidded and heavy. “This is so embarrassing…”
“I’m not judging you, Ten.”
“I never should have told you. I should have just kept my mouth shut.” She left the table even though she hadn’t finished the meal sitting in front of her. She grabbed the heavy bag she’d left by the door, and I hadn’t even considered how odd it was that she would bring such a big bag with her. But then I realized it contained all the possessions she had.
“Ten.” I didn’t need to raise my voice to establish my power. All anyone needed to do was listen to it, and they would know not obeying wasn’t an option. “If you walk out that door, you’re fired.”
She held one strap over her shoulder and continued to stare straight ahead.
I was bluffing, but I hoped she didn’t realize that. “You’re taking the money. It’s an advance, not charity.” I grabbed the money then came up behind her. I unzipped the biggest pocket and dropped the money inside. “Now, leave. I have shit to do.” I turned back to the table, where my sketch was waiting for me to finish. Lingerie was so simple that it was difficult to constantly reinvent old styles. With clothes, there was a wide array of different things to choose from. That made my job more challenging, but I enjoyed every second of it. I wasn’t a fan of clothes or fabrics.
I was simply a fan of sex.
Ten slowly turned back to me, doing her best to hide the moisture that was quickly building up in her eyes.
I purposely stared at my sketch so I wouldn’t have to look at it.
“I take back what I said…you aren’t an asshole.”
My fingers gripped the pencil tighter, more annoyed by those words than pleased. “Just because I’m not an asshole doesn’t mean I’m a nice guy. And trust me…I’m not a nice guy.”
5
Sapphire
I took his money because he forced me to.
But I was grateful that he made me.
I was able to get myself a real dinner and a room at a decent hotel. I went to bed that night with a satisfied stomach and lay on a bed that hadn’t been devoured by moths. The crazy lady in the bunk next to me at the hostel couldn’t keep me up all night when I slept alone.
It was really nice.
I’d been living my life like this for two weeks, and I’d finally reached my boiling point. It was harder in New York City because people weren’t as generous or compassionate there. If you asked for food, they pretended not to hear you and just kept walking.
If it weren’t for Conway, I wasn’t sure what I would have done.
Slept on the street again.
He was the one who insulted me first, so I didn’t feel bad for calling him an asshole. But when he gave me food and money…I wondered if I misjudged him. Maybe he wasn’t the cold and arrogant man he constantly projected. Maybe he had a soul underneath all that hardness.
Or maybe he just cared about protecting his brand.
He obviously wanted me in his lineup. He wouldn’t take the time to help me unless it benefited him in some way. So perhaps that was all he really cared about. If I wound up dead or got jumped, he wouldn’t be able to use me anymore.
Whatever the case, I was grateful.
It was nice to feel safe in a hotel room…even if it was just for a little while.
When I walked into his building, the other models there immediately turned up their noses when they saw me. Gossip had spread fast, and they all knew I was the one woman who showed up to the audition fully clothed. They also knew Conway Barsetti hadn’t even bothered with the other nine models because he only seemed to be interested in me.
So, of course, they all hated me.
I took the stairs to the top level and knocked on his office door.
“Come in.” His deep voice sounded exactly the same as it did yesterday, powerful and masculine. He could command an entire army based on his voice alone. He also had the look of a commander as well…a man with the whole package.
I stepped inside.
Conway was too involved in work to look up at me, but he must have known it was me because he wouldn’t let a random person share his space with him. He stood at the table, his broad shoulders filling out his suit perfectly. His back was ramrod straight, and his head was dipped slightly forward as I watched his hand scribble across the notebook.
