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Chapter One
Should I find it amusing that the man sitting opposite me was an absolute bag of nerves? Probably not. But, much like my mother, I wasn’t the most forgiving of people. And this bloke here had scribbled his name on my shit list.
I hadn’t thought the American model knew that I’d been made aware of his … indiscretion, but I could think of no other reason that would explain his current behavior. Ryland had confidence in spades. He ordinarily didn’t struggle to make eye-contact, nor did he make nervous gestures. But over the past fifteen minutes he’d repeatedly adjusted his tie, cleared his throat, averted his gaze, drummed his fingers on the table, and repositioned his glass of wine. If I wasn’t in such a bad mood, I would have smiled.
Three of my friends—who were sat at a neighboring table intent on ensuring that things didn’t get ugly—were casting mewell go on, tell him it’s overlooks. Moreso Inaya. She kept raising expectant eyebrows at me.
I couldn’t really blame them for keeping an eye on the proceedings, since they were very much aware that I longed to fiercely rip him a new one. I wasn’t the type to bite back words. In that, I was also my mother’s daughter. But causing a scenewould risk me getting banned from the club, which I really didn’t want.
The Vault, one of the most popular hotspots in Redwater City, Florida, was an exclusive 24-hour club that was well worth its membership price. There was nothing like it where I’d grown up in London, England.
If you fancied an average night out, you could head to the main floor where there were DJs, loud music, spotlights, and fog machines. If you preferred to be entertained, you could either make your way to the Burlesque floor or go up to the rooftop and enjoy the comedians and Dueling Pianos shows. I was a fan of each and every floor, but I mostly came down here to the basement. It catered to people who were looking for something a little … different. Sexual. Raw.
You needed an additional membership fee to access the basement, and that fee wasn’t at all cheap. But that clearly didn’t bother the many high-profile people who came here.
Due to their celebrity status, it often suited them to have the typical ‘arrangements’ that existed here. Members could enter into a sort-of-relationship that only existed within the confines of the Vault. This allowed them to not only keep their business private from the outside world but to keep their personal life separate from that of whoever they’d claimed here. In that sense, it was a great place to come if you wanted something light and fun rather than impersonal hookups.
Of course, some people in arrangementsdidmeet and have fun outside of the club as well. Each couple—or threesome or foursome or whatever—had their own rules and boundaries.
I’d been in an arrangement with Ryland for a short time. As he was a dominant character but notaDom, he was the type of bloke I usually went for. Because though I liked to give up control in the bedroom, I wasn’t a submissive in the typical sense of the word. It was simply that, after living a life where I’d alwayshad to be mindful of my words and actions due to the public scrutiny my family as a whole was subjected to, it was almost a relief to simplylet go.It was only when I relinquished power that I really felt free.
That said, I hadn’t given that extent of power to Ryland. I’d held back from him because I hadn’t sensed the strength in him that I was looking for in a person. That meant I hadn’t felt safe enough with him to fully let go.
He’d sensed that I was holding back. I knew he had. And I also knew he didn’t much like it. But that didn’t justify his actions. For me, nothing could.
“We have to talk,” Ryland abruptly blurted out.
Why yes, yes we did. I was looking forward to giving him a right bollocking.
He put his fist to his mouth and let out a quiet cough that seemed forced. “I like what we have. I like it a lot.” He cricked his neck. “But I want more.”
I blinked. He, what?
“I want us to go public. I want us to be an actual couple. I don’t want you to only be minehere. It’s not enough for me anymore.”
I stared at him in astonishment, my lips parted. He couldn’t be bloody serious. Here I’d thought he was a nervous wreck because he’d learned that I knew he was a traitorous twat. Apparently, he’d simply been gearing himself up to make this little announcement. “Ryland—”
“I know you’re a private person and you don’t much like the limelight, but we can’t go on like this forever. We would have gone public sooner or later. I’m all for sooner.”
Iwas all for slapping him silly. He really had the nerve to ask this of me after what he’d done? Did he feel no guilt at all?
I felt my upper lip begin to curl. It wasn’t that I was terribly hurt by his betrayal—we hadn’t embarked on a seriousrelationship or anything—but he’d made me pretty promises when we’d agreed to an arrangement, and he’d gone ahead and broken them.Thatstung. As did the fact that I’d evidently been wrong in thinking he might be different from the blokes in my past.
Unlike them, he hadn’t pre-judged or underestimated me. He’d never questioned why I’d chosen to be a sports photographer when, given I looked uncannily like my mother, it was thought by many agents that I’d be just as successful at modelling as her. He hadn’t ever dumbed down conversation around me like I had no brain in my head—an assumption people often made, as if a person couldn’t possibly be good-looking as well as smart. He also hadn’t ever suggested that I should credit my success to having great connections or to being the child of two famous people.
I’d believed it was a good sign. I’d believed he sincerely respected me. And I’d obviously been mistaken.
“You weren’t expecting this, I can see that,” he added, not sounding at all worried that I was surprised in abadway. More like he thought I was flattered. “But don’t overthink it. Don’t hem and haw. I know you’ll be going back to London soon enough, but we can still make the relationship work. We can still fly out to see each other often.”
“You’re not—”
“We fit, Izzy. You know we do. I care about you. That’s not a one-way street. I know it isn’t.”
Uh, it absolutely was. And if he interrupted me one more time …
“I can’t be happy with only having parts of you. Not anymore. I want everything.” He took a deep breath. “It’s all or nothing.” As his mouth curled into a soft smile, he rested his hand on the table, palm up in a silent invitation. “So, we take this to the next level, yeah?”
It was plain to see that he expected me to excitedlyjumpat that invitation. Unreal. Reminding myself it would be bad to lose my rag, I dragged in a calming breath. “No. No, not happening,” I clipped.
