Chapter 13: Chapter 13

Chapter 13

ALICIA

It's been two weeks and three days since I made a promise.

The promise.

That wretched promise.

The promise that would see me sell my body to Ash Thunder so he could do business with Harry's cargo. Do business he had. Not one day has passed that hasn't seen him sending goods. Heavy goods that put every other goods that have ever passed through Harry's cargo to shame.

So he was true to his word. He has sealed his part of the bargain. The bargain I created in the first place. Unfortunately, I'm having cold feet. Try as much as I need to, I just can't wrap my head around the fact that I would need to sleep with a man I don't have feelings for. A man who's not my boyfriend.

Not just that, I can't stand Ash Thunder specifically. He's so cocky, so annoying, so rude, and so. . . hot. Yes, he's definitely hot. Only a fool would say otherwise. It's in that devil-may-care smile of his. It's also in the way he carries himself, and don't let me even get started on his looks. Probably every woman's dream.

Every woman, but me.

I hear he has ties to the mafia world and his businesses are just cover-ups for illegally-made money. So no, I can't lie about the fact that he's definitely hot, but he's a hot mess.

Too hot for me to handle, that's for sure.

I shake my head as I stand up from behind my desk and walk to the window where I stare out at the cars driving by. When Mr. Harry had begun asking about Ash and when he was going to bring his goods, I had been pushed to the wall. I lied to him that Ash had traveled but would be coming back the following day and do the needful.

I nicked the card Ash gave him from his office, thinking I would just give Ash a call. I had been surprised to see it had an address on it. How could I have known it was his house address? Who puts their house address on their work card anyway?

It wasn't until I'd stood in front of Ash Thunder and seen him in his pj's that I realized I'd been fooled.

That card he gave Mr. Harry was actually meant for me. I know that now. I thought it was his office address and I decided to go there after work to see him and talk with him. Like a foolish lamb, I had stepped right into the lion's den.

The question I keep asking myself is what. am. I. going. to. do?

How do I get out of this madness I have steeped myself into?

My office door slams and I turn around to see Clarissa entering with a wide smile on her face. Even before she opens her mouth, I know what she's going to say.

"I've got a new boyfriend."

Called it.

This girl changes boyfriends like she changes her underwear. What I don't understand is why she just can't settle down with one.

"And please don't give me a lecture about how I should choose one to settle down with and live happily ever after. Some of us are insatiable." She grins.

I don't doubt that. She, for the most part.

"So how did you meet this one? No- don't tell me." I say, feigning disgust. "I really don't want to know."

She chuckles. "Well, get ready then, because he's taking us out tonight to a fancy restaurant. Those types you need reservations for."

I whip around, ready to complain but I think better of it because maybe I do need a distraction. Maybe I need to get my mind off my problems.

Not maybe. I need to.

One of Clarissa's brows is raised as if she's waiting for me to say no before we do the usual ritual of a back-and-forth argument.

"Alright," I say as I shrug. "Why not?"

Her eyes go big and round. "Really? You're not going to bail on me at the last moment?" I shake my head and she screams so loudly, I know people on the road must have heard it as well. "We're going to have so much fun."

"Not so fast, I don't have anything to wear." I'm glum now because most of my clothes are jeans and tees. I have nothing fancy to wear to dinner in a fancy restaurant.

"Come on, babes, I've got you covered." And that's what I'm afraid of. Clarissa wears slutty clothes, claiming since she doesn't have boobs and ass she can get away with wearing them, while I on the other hand-

"And don't even start with the usual my clothes aren't your size mantra. We're gonna find you something even if you have to squeeze into it."

I groan into my hands dreading the inevitable.

*

Thankfully, Clarissa's clothes are too tight and can't even go past my shoulders so at the last minute, I go shopping. Thanks to Mr. Harry who gave me a bonus, I'm able to buy a nice dress. It's not expensive, neither is it fancy, but it's silk, and in the color green and I love green. I take a look at myself in the mirror after trying it on and know it's made for me.

We get ready at my place because Clarissa stays in the school dormitory and has a roommate who has her boyfriend over. Clarissa has my dark hair curled, and now it falls in loose waves down my back. She, on the other hand, is stunning in a black skin-tight dress with her almost nonexistent boobs spilling out and a thigh-high slit. She rocks the slutty look to perfection.

She gave Tommy - her new boyfriend - my address to pick us up, and so on the dot of seven, the doorbell rings. Luckily, we're just putting the finishing touches to our faces. She takes her time to walk to the door, and just before she opens it, runs her hands down her too-tight dress and slaps on a smile. Some seconds later, I hear a deep male voice, and then Clarissa comes in together with a young man I presume is Tommy. He's wearing black jeans and a tee. Informal. Too informal for my liking. I feel overdressed in my knee-length dress.

His brows lift as he takes in the shabby-looking mismatched chairs in my sitting room and then his eyes flick to me. They're cold and distant. His eyes move down my dress and rest on my boobs for longer than is proprietary. First time I ever decided to be risqué and wear a dress that shows some cleavage. I resist the urge to cover my chest with my hands.

By the time his eyes find my face, I'm boiling. I don't like this man for anything. He moves forward and takes my hand in his and lifts it to his lips. "Charmed."

Well, I'm not.

I nod curtly before snatching my hand back.

"Tommy, where are you?" Another form fills my doorway and someone steps through it.

My mouth drops open when I see yet another man coming to stand beside Clarissa's new boyfriend.

"Ah! There you are." Clarissa says with a sly smile on her face. She turns to me. "Alicia, this is Leonard, Tommy's best friend. Sorry, I didn't tell you before but I wanted it to be a surprise for you. Doesn't a double date sound perfect?"

I'm going to kill this girl later.

Now, I slap on a too-bright smile and face this man who isn't looking too shabby. Matter of fact, he looks good in a dark grey suit. He moves forward with a warm smile and an outstretched arm.

"Name's Leonard. You look very beautiful."

Against my will, I blush. That's saying a lot, 'cause I never do. "Thanks!" I warm up to him immediately.

While Clarissa and Tommy are getting touchy-feely, Leonard extends his elbow and I hook my hand inside it as we leave my apartment. Getting outside, I expect to see a nondescript-looking car like a Datsun or even a Subaru, but I'm shocked and speechless when idling in front of my dingy apartment is a sleek-looking sports car, the likes I've seen only on TV.

"You like it?" He angles his body towards me.

"It's very easy on the eyes," I reply, admiring the sleekness of the car.

"It's a 2022 model Porsche." I watch in awe as he moves forward and cleans a stain on the bonnet with his handkerchief.

"Yours?"

"Naah! My boss's!"

I want to ask who his boss is and why he even allowed him to take his precious car out when Clarissa and Tommy come out. Her lipstick is smeared and I know without even looking at Tommy, it's on his lips. Gross.

I sit in front with Leonard, while Clarissa and her deadbeat boyfriend, stay at the back seat. Not long after, we are in a different area with tall palm trees and cobblestone roads. In the next five minutes, Leonard swings into the driveway of a grey two-story building. I look up and my mouth falls open when I see the sign that reads Raven.