She bites down on her bottom lip as I take the paper from her. I’m gentle with the edges, and I make sure not to touch any of the marks. Her eyes watch where I touch the paper, and her fingertips are covered in ink of some sort. I shake the paper slightly, finally getting to see what she’s been working on all this time.
And it’s beautiful. I knew she wouldn’t disappoint me.
It’s just a sketch of the room. Of the piano, really. But the way it’s done romanticizes the barren room. Something about the subtlety of the lines, the delicate details and shading. There’s a softness to it that I’ve never felt in that room myself. But it’s what she sees. What she feels being there. It makes me see it in a different light.
“You have such talent, sweetheart.” I lift my eyes from the sketch to her eyes and love how much light shines back at me.
“Thank you,” she says in a whisper, a blush coloring her chest and moving up to her cheeks.
“You should do this… for a living.” Her long lashes whip up as she stares back at me. “It’s a crime that you do anything other than this.”
I expect a smile in return, but instead she answers kindly, but firmly, “I can’t. I have work, and… I just can’t.”
“I’ll get you a studio tomorrow,” I say out loud without thinking. It was a fleeting thought in my office, but hearing her now, I know I need to get her one.
“A studio?” she asks me with disbelief.
I nod my head, my brow furrowing as I second-guess what it’s called. “For your art,” I state and gesture to the paper in her hand.
There’s still a look of confusion on her face. Her soft lips part, but no words come out. She clears her throat, looking away from me.
“What’s wrong?” I ask her, taking another step closer but standing an arm’s length away. The warmth from this morning is gone. The girl I held in my arms last night isn’t the same one standing in front of me.
“It just seems… a bit much?” she responds after a moment.
I can tell she’s trying to distance herself. She’s already waiting for this contract to be over maybe, so she can stop playing the part. So she can just go back to being herself. To being Brooks’ possession to barter off when he sees fit. The second the thought comes to my mind; jealousy ravages my thoughts.
And for the first time in years, I show it, my expression, my stance, everything shows what I’m feeling and thinking. I can’t stop it. Arianna takes a small step back, fear clearly evident as she reacts to my anger.
I shake my head slightly, letting out a heavy exhale and pinch the bridge of my nose, hating that I’ve scared her. I don’t want to hide anymore, but my anger isn’t for her. None of it. But this is why I hide it.
“You’re playing the part of my girlfriend.” I start speaking without thinking. Convincing both of us that a studio is necessary for this… game. “They’ll expect me to pamper you,” I finally open my eyes and chance a look at her. “I would do anything for someone I want to impress.” For you, that dark voice in my head whispers. For someone I want to love me.
I ignore the thought, a chill traveling down my spine as Arianna slowly nods her head. She visibly swallows, still a bit unsure of herself.
But she answers with the words I want to hear. “Okay,” she says and her voice is soft, meant to appease me. “Thank you.”
My eyes search hers, but she isn’t looking at me. I chance a step toward her and cup her jaw like I did this morning. Her posture softens and she pushes her cheek against my palm, her small hand cupping the back of mine and her eyes shining back at me with vulnerability. “Let me spoil you, sweetheart,” I speak slowly. “Just for the rest of the contract.”
I’ve told many lies in my life. So many deceitful things have left my lips. And I know full well the words that just slipped past my lips are nothing but a deception.
I said them only to get her to cave to me. I want her to submit to me. I can feel that darkness in me rising. A possessive side is controlling me. And I don’t stop it. I don’t even want to suppress it.
She’s making me weak. And for the first time in my life, I don’t give a fuck.
Chapter 24
Arianna
Let me spoil you, sweetheart.
Zander’s words run through my mind, causing warmth to flow through my chest. I told him yes, only for the contract. But that was a lie. I want to get lost in his world and become his plaything. I want to fulfill his every desire; all while being spoiled by him. It’s a fantasy and it’s dangerous to get lost in it, but I am. I’m becoming consumed with the thought of being his and losing sight on what the reality of this situation is.
Each day that passes I feel more at ease, wanting more and more of what he has to offer.
I suck in a deep breath as I gaze out the floor-to-ceiling windows, remembering the way he looked at me the other day. There was something in his eyes. Something that told me what we have feels real. I want to believe it. But it’s too good to be true. And like most things that are too good to be true, it’s easy to be fooled. I don’t want to be that girl, hoping and wishing for something that can never be, all while ignoring the truth. Everyone knows that in real life there are no Prince Charmings and no knights in shining armor. Still, I’m drawn to him like a moth to a flame.
“There you are,” says Zander’s deep voice behind me.
I turn around with my eyes closed, wanting to believe in the fantasy. And when I open them, I’m lost in the world I want. In the make-believe. He’s leaning against the doorjamb in the doorway, wearing dress pants and a matching dress shirt, looking classically handsome and sexy as fuck. My breath halts in my lungs, refusing to leave the moment. This is real. If only I could hold onto it.
“Here I am,” I say, flashing a light smile, ignoring my racing heart, the fear and every other thing that’s going to rip us apart and leave me shredded into nothingness. I can pretend. For him.
Zander grins at me, walking over to deliver a warm kiss on my lips. I like this smile. There’s something different about it than the way he smiles at everyone else. This one is just for me. I think it's the way his eyes brighten and the skin around them wrinkles. I nearly melt into his hard body, my knees going weak from that look.
When he pulls away, I’m breathless and feeling drunk on lust. If he wanted to take me right here, right now, I wouldn’t dare object.
“Are you ready to go see the studio?” he asks me, gently rubbing my arm and causing sparks to flow through my body.
I gaze up into his eyes, seeing the caring warmth reflected there.
All the questions are right there, on the tip of my tongue. Is he going to keep me afterward? Does this feel the same to him? I’m falling into a dark abyss and I’m terrified; I just want to know that he’ll catch me. But closing my eyes and imagining he will makes the fall that much easier, that much more enjoyable. Even if there’s nothing but the hard, cold unforgiving ground there to meet me when this is all over.
His eyes stare back at me as the questions makes my stomach flutter, but my lips stay closed tight. My heart is clenching in agony because I already know the answers, I already know the truth.