Chapter 9: Chapter 9

It was seven a.m., and Kate probably wasn't even up yet. But that didn't stop her. Though her friend had no idea she and Eric had a history, Ana needed company. Her mind hadn't stopped racing since last night. She'd even tried to distract herself with her new purple friend—to no avail.

She hadn't been able to bring herself to climax. It must have been her nerves! Eric's words were still haunting her. She'd been certain he was going to take her in the alley way; instead he'd hissed those miserable words in her ear.

You haven't earned another fuck yet.

Ana still wasn't able to wrap her mind around it. How did one earn another fuck? Her frustration overtook her, and she banged on Kate's front door with more force than was necessary.

"Oh, thank God!" Kate sighed in relief only moments later when she opened the door and saw Ana standing there with coffee.

Ana gave her the cup and slipped past her. "How are you feeling?" she asked softly.

Kate shut the door behind her friend and then joined her on the couch. "Like I had an entire bottle of wine all by myself last night," she confessed.

Ana lifted her brows as she tucked her feet up underneath her in an effort to get comfortable. "More like a bottle and a half. Which comes to about six hundred dollars if I'm not mistaken," she said dryly.

"What?" Kate shrieked.

"I saw Elliot's face when his brother ordered the wine last night," Ana admitted. "He was floored. I remembered the brand so I could google it when I got home."

"Oh, God," Kate groaned. "Now I feel horrible for throwing it up."

Ana laughed again. "Yes, well…maybe you should."

Kate sighed. "So…speaking of Elliot's brother…he said Eric has never reacted to anyone the way he reacted to you."

Ana willed herself not to blush. Sweet Lord! How much did Elliot know? "Well, some people just rub each other the wrong way," she muttered.

"Oh, no. Elliot thinks you were rubbing him the right way," Kate informed her.

Ana took a deep breath. "I thought Elliot was convinced that his brother was gay," she said, trying to change the subject.

"Well…he was," Kate said. "Until you."

"Wha…what did he say?" Ana wanted to know.

Kate's eyes brightened. "Why? Are you interested?"

"No," Ana lied, contemplating on outing herself to Kate. But this just wasn't the time. Her friend had enough going on right now without Ana's confessions—not to mention she wasn't quite sure she had the nerve yet. "He seems…way out of my league. I mean…I can barely scrounge up four hundred dollars to get my car fixed, and he's drinking it for dinner."

Kate shrugged. "It just seemed as though Eric went out of his way to make conversation with you, and he never does that. Elliot says he's not a people person," she divulged. "Of course, with his life splattered all over the papers—"

"Wait…what?" Ana asked, dumbstruck. "His life is splattered all over the papers?"

Kate sighed in frustration. "You took the time to google a stupid bottle of wine but you didn't google Eric Miller?"

Ana shook her head no. "Why would I?"

"Miller Enterprises Holdings, Incorporated, Ana," she reminded her friend. "Miller. It's all his."

"It is?" Ana asked in surprise.

Kate nodded. "He's a billionaire."

Ana choked on her tea. The man who'd escorted her to the back of the bar and proceeded to take her virginity on an old, rickety, wooden bench was a billionaire?

"Ana?"

Ana tried to gather her wits. "I'm so glad I didn't know this last night, or I'd have a made a complete fool of myself!" she said. Of course, maybe she had anyway. She'd all but begged him to fuck her in the alleyway! For God's sake, maybe she had begged him; she was pretty sure she'd been panting.

"He's just another guy, Ana. And not a very polite one at that," Kate scoffed. "'I heard you were recently left at the altar?' What in the hell was that about?" she demanded.

"It wasn't a big deal," Ana assured her friend.

"Of course it was! As if he had a personal stake in it," she said angrily. "I'm going to make sure Elliot gives him hell for that one."

Ana had to fight back a grin at the thought of anyone giving Eric Miller hell.

"Oh, what are you wearing to the club tonight?" Kate asked, cutting into her thoughts.

Ana groaned. She'd forgotten all about the deal they'd struck. Of course, the only reason she'd really wanted to go was to see if she'd run into Miller again; there was no need for a night out now. If he really wanted to see her—and she was pretty sure he did—he had her number. "We don't have to go out tonight," she said.

"Of course we do!" Kate insisted. "Ana, any time you tell me you're ready to put yourself out there, we're going out!"

"But—"

"Besides, I already told Elliot what time to pick us up," she admitted sheepishly.

Ana sighed. "I'm thinking jeans and a short sleeved button up," she conceded.

It was like an exact replay of last night's dinner right before her eyes—except that she didn't have Eric or his fingers to distract her, and Kate and Elliot had their tongues shoved down each other's throats. Seriously? Kate must really be into this guy, because she was never like this.

Ana's heartbeat sped up when she saw a man from the corner of her eye approaching their table. She immediately bristled in an effort to warn him off, but he was undeterred. "Wanna dance?"

She opened her mouth to say no, but why should she? If there was one thing she'd learned from Eric Miller, it was that there was lots of sex out there to be had! And if it was always so explosive then she wanted to be one of the ones having it, dammit! What was she going to do? Wait for him to call? Not a chance in hell. Of course…she didn't intend on sleeping with this guy, but she might as well practice her feminine wiles on him—that was if she had any.

"I'd love to."

Eric was pacing his apartment like a caged lion. He'd called Ana three times in the past hour, and she had yet to answer. Where in the hell was she at eleven o'clock at night? He had her address now, along with half a mind to go over there and find out what was going on. The rest of his mind, however, had managed to talk him out of it. He had a feeling his harsh words from last night had left a mark on her; this might be enough to scare her away.

So instead, he decided to return his brother's call. Elliot picked up on the third ring.

"Hello?" he answered loudly.

"Elliot?" he returned just as loud in an effort to be heard over the club music in the background.

"Hey, Eric. Kate—it's Eric. I'll be right back," he heard his brother's muffled voice say. "And you might wanna go check on Ana. That guys hands look like they're about to slide right into second base—if you know what I mean."

Eric felt his blood pressure rise at his brother's words. Ana was there? And she with another man?

"Hey, Eric. What's up?" Elliot asked when the noise level had decreased.

Eric was already stalking down the hallway of his apartment with his keys in his hand and his jacket on his arm. "Where the fuck are you?" he barked.