Role Play Read online

  “Maybe you do. I wouldn’t.”

  His eyes narrowed even more. “I suppose it’s what everyone wants when they come to the city.”

  “And you’ve got it,” I pointed out. “I would give anything to make my dream come true.”

  “Anything?” he asked.

  I instantly caught his sexual innuendo. For once, my doubts were silent. In this beautiful apartment, with this amazing man, it felt like anything could happen. Like my future could be anything I wanted.

  The tension between us leaped higher as I slowly walked back towards him. Now he was smiling, in response to me. I let myself devour his body with my long sweeping gaze. His eyes were even greener against the gray of his shirt, and the sunlight slanting through the windows lit up his hair like gold.

  I went right up to him and put my hand to his cheek. I kissed him, letting all of my passion connect with him through my lips. He took hold of my waist, pulling me in, taking control of the kiss.

  He was so strong! I felt small and fragile in his grasp, as if he had to be careful not to bruise me. I knew how tightly he could hold me.

  My hands roamed from his silky hair and the back of his neck down to his chest. I remembered nothing felt as good as cuddling against his bare chest when we were at the party. When he was holding me on the terrace after I almost fainted, I wanted to be held by him forever.

  His lips were soft but firm, growing more eager as he bent me back slightly, pressing in to take what I was giving him. As if he wasn’t satisfied with just receiving.

  We stumbled to one side, engrossed in each other. Victor steadied himself on the couch, still kissing me. He grabbed my legs and picked me up, sitting me on the back of the couch. I wrapped my legs around his hips, and he pressed himself against my lace-covered crotch.

  One of his hands slipped down, his sure fingers finding just the right spot.

  My breath hissed inward. “How do you know?”

  “I pay attention.”

  He kept on kissing me, rubbing me with the heel of his hand, his fingers curving under me, pressing against me. My panties were already damp.

  “Umm…,” he murmured. “You love it, don’t you?”

  I loved it that he was touching me, making me feel so good. I loved being in his place; it was how I always wanted to feel. Like everything would turn out okay in spite of all the shit.

  “You love it,” he whispered. His hand kept pressing against me, sending me higher.

  “I do,” I managed to say.

  My head tilted and I arched back into his arms, every muscle straining. He bit down on my lower lip, his teeth sinking into the thick pad. The pain made me gasp, but somehow it drove me even higher.

  My legs wrapped tighter around him, squeezing him with my thighs. He groaned, his other hand holding me up by my waist. But I was twisting so hard that he had to pull his fingers away and grab onto me with both hands on my hips.

  He pressed his hard-on against my panties, bucking against me. It felt even better than his hand! I turned my head back and forth, my hips grinding against him.

  He broke away from ravaging my lips to look into my eyes. “I must have you,” he said.

  “Yes!” I panted.

  His eyes lit up. He picked me up and with a few steps around, fell down on the couch with me. His hands were at the waist of my dress, pulling at the strings. “Like opening a present.”

  He pulled open my dress and gaze down at me for a few moments. “Yum…” His hand stroked my waist and down my hip. Then up to my breast. “I could eat you up…”

  A shiver ran through me at his firm touch. He bent down and kissed my belly, then up between my breasts, pushed together by the cups of my bra. He lightly licked, then bit the fleshy top of my breast.

  A noise broke from my throat, almost a protest. But I let him bite me again, all over my chest. As he devoured me.

  I helped him get off my bra, and unbuckled his belt with shaking fingers. He ripped off a couple of buttons getting his shirt off and they went flying. His muscles bunched as he jerked it away, and I had to touch his chest, had to feel how glorious hard he was, yet soft enough to sink my fingertips into.

  It was like we were caught in a tornado, whirling around and around, clinging to each other. As if I would die if I didn’t join with this man right this second.

  He ripped open a condom and put it on with a practiced expertise that I would only remember later. Right now, I was glad to spread my legs as he settled between them, urging him closer, so I could feel his body against mine.

  “You’re so wet,” he growled. “Say you want me.”

  I barely hesitated at his demand. “I want you!”

  He pushed the tip of his cock into me, biting his own lip as I lifted my hips to let him slide deeper. I loved the wash of ecstasy over his face, then how he looked into my eyes, letting me see how he felt.

  As he thrust in deeper, I pulled him down against me. He was so heavy, pressing me into the cushions as he pushed into me. Flashes of the Chamber went through my mind, of Victor’s eyes as he took possession of me, how he comforted me there and on the terrace, when I felt safer than I ever had before.

  Only now I was euphoric, flying higher than I had ever had before.

  He lowered his mouth to my throat, kissing me. I gave into the inevitable as he buried his face and bit my neck.

  It sent me right over the top. I couldn’t withstand the battering waves that drove me out of my mind. I had never felt so good…

  “Yes!” I cried out. “Victor!”

  Chapter 12

  Victor

  “Yes, give it to me,” I growled.

  I couldn’t get enough of feeling her moving underneath me, drawing me in with her hands and legs, riding me as much as I rode her.

  I greedily watched her face as she came, knowing that pleasure was because of me. It felt so good that I almost climaxed instantly, as I plunged in and out, never ceasing.

  I could feel everything! Usually it was like I was watching myself when I fucked a woman, watching how she let me inside of her. Taking my own satisfaction, separate from hers.

  But Sierra drew me in and there was no wall between us. She threw herself with abandon into our passion, and I couldn’t hold back.

  I wanted to keep feeling her skin, so firm and smooth, and hear those little sounds she made from the back of her throat, like purrs and growls, urging me on.

  The room spun around me as I raised up, trying to breathe. Trying to separate, to delay. But there was nothing like that now. There was only the sensation of rocking together, like we were alone in the world.

  I came in a long slow buildup like I never felt before, as a tidal wave rushed through my soul, wiping out everything I had carefully built over the years. Washing me clean with her. Destructive, yet purifying.

  As I slowly swam back to life, I realized I was squashing her into the leather cushions of the couch. The smile on her face, the way she languidly stroked the hair at the back of my neck, said she didn’t mind.

  “The bed is right there,” she laughed. “We couldn’t even make it.”

  “That was… wild,” I agreed.

  It was supposed to be the usual kind of conquest. I had seen plenty of women get turned on by my place before. But Sierra had prowled around in delight, assessing the loft like she was a real estate agent. She had been completely open about her enthusiasm.

  So I figured I was right about her after all. It gave me the green light to keep lying to her.

  I had been surprised when I kissed her that she jumped me instantly. Maybe the sight of my view had overwhelmed her usual caution.

  But something else had happened as we had sex. She had drawn me in unawares. I started to believe in her again. Like she could be real, not a selfish bitch like the others. Like Adrianne.

  I pushed myself off her, detaching myself by degrees. She looked like she didn’t want to let me go. And I didn’t want to let her go. But the contrast between reality a
nd what I felt was giving me a mind-warp.

  I avoided her eyes as I gathered up my clothes. My shirt was messed up, with the fabric torn by two of the buttons when they came off. I crumpled it up to throw it away. I couldn’t afford to waste money like that. I made do with putting on my suit pants, the best I owned, which I had kicked off as heedlessly as my shirt.

  She wasn’t smiling now, not after I pulled away so abruptly.

  Sierra went into the bathroom and was in there long enough that I was able to calm down and regain my wits. I wasn’t sure why I had reacted so strongly to her.

  When she came out, her own polite mask was firmly in place. It almost felt like the whirlwind sex hadn’t happened. Almost.

  I’d never seen a girl detach as quickly as I could. Usually women would be trying even harder, touching me even more to break through.

  “You said you found out something about Lola?” Sierra asked.

  Glad to be reminded, I went back to the desk where my laptop sat. I clicked on the saved website and entered Lola’s full name into the database. It was easy to find out stuff about people online. You just had to know where to look. And I had gotten very good at researching the background of the women who pursued me. Tricia came from a wealthy family and she was a manager at a big insurance company. She also had too much credit card debt that her daddy paid off every so often. And a previous marriage that she had never mentioned to me, or as far as I could tell, anyone else in the scene.

  Sierra was from upstate New York and had taken the SATs twice, scoring well but not high enough for any scholarships. She didn’t have a credit card or any debt.

  That information had given me hope, but then she had come in gushing over my apartment, and the doubts had risen again.

  “What is this?” Sierra asked, squinting at the screen.

  “Lola is getting food stamps. She applied last month.”

  “Food stamps!”

  “It says here from her income that she qualifies.”

  Sierra stared at the number, as if adding it up in her head. “Yes, that’s about what she makes.”

  I gave her a sideways look. So it wasn’t a complete scam. She and her sister were that poor.

  Then Sierra caught sight of something. “Wait a second! Is that supposed to be her address?”

  “Yes, it’s the one on her driver’s license.”

  “But that’s in Brooklyn!”

  “Bed-sty, to be exact,” I said.

  “Lola and I live in Queens.”

  I turned the laptop to myself and called up the DMV. “The last time it was updated was five weeks ago.”

  “She changed her address?”

  “That’s also Martin’s address of record,” I told her.

  Sierra looked very pale. One hand was steadying herself against the desk. “She’s leaving me...”

  “Most likely she’s giving her boyfriend the food stamps. Martin can’t get them himself because he’s only been a New York resident for a few months.”

  “She’s barely slept at our place for weeks.”

  I hesitated, hearing something in her voice. “Is that so bad? Things aren’t very good between you two.”

  Her lips pressed together as she turned away from the computer. “I’ve always had Lola. I’ve never been alone.”

  I watched her walk over to the window and stare out at the view. It gave me a pang to see her take solace in it. “I’ve always been alone,” I told her.

  That got her to turn around. I felt like I had said too much, but the concern in her eyes was reward enough.

  “What about your family?”

  “None to speak of.”

  “No mom or dad?” she asked. “Somebody must have raised you.”

  “Barely.”

  I wanted to believe in her, but all evidence pointed to the contrary. I needed to find out the truth once and for all. I couldn’t stand the way my gut told me to trust her, but objective observation told me to cool it, pull back and take charge.

  There was no other choice. I had to keep moving forward. I was committed now, so I had to play the game as I had always played it. And see what kind of person she turned out to be.

  “Lola’s profile says she’s going to the Festival this weekend,” I told her. “It’s north of Baltimore. I can get us flights down. It will be two whole days where you can see her. Maybe if you talk to Martin, you’ll feel better about the whole thing.”

  “I don’t know… what if she’s angry that I followed her there? That could be the last straw for her.”

  “If you don’t want her to see you, this will help.” I reached into the desk and pulled out a camouflage face mask. It was silicone with holes punched into it, and looked like a steampunk version of a face mask.

  She put it on and went to look in the mirror by the door. “Wow, you can’t even tell it’s me! And my voice… it sounds different.”

  “With that, she doesn’t have to know you’re there. And we can have a fun weekend besides. Everyone should go to Festival at least once in their lives.”

  “I have to work tomorrow.”

  “We can leave after you get off.”

  Even with the free flights, it would cost me about $300 for the Festival tickets and cab fare. Festival was one of the cheapest weekend events you could do in the scene, but everything cost money. But it would be worth it. Sierra expected a romantic weekend getaway with a millionaire, but she would soon find herself in an old children’s camp complete with tents that slept ten people on folding cots.

  Then her true colors would shine through.

  Pulling down the mask to hang around her neck, Sierra finally smiled back at me. “I’ll have to see if I can get off work on Saturday.”

  “Call in sick,” he said. “You won’t regret it.”

  Now she really smiled. “Okay, I’ll do it. Let’s go.”

  Chapter 13

  Sierra

  I hoped that when I agreed, we would end up kissing again. This time in the bed, by that glorious window. I wanted to snuggle with Victor for a long time, and ask him more about his childhood. I never met anyone who didn’t have family. It was my biggest fear, losing Lola. But he lived with that reality all the time.

  So I was ready to settle in for the evening, but Victor looked at his watch and told me that he had a business dinner he had to go to.

  I ended up on the sidewalk much quicker than my mind could process. My body was still throbbing from our first time making love, as I walked to the subway entrance. I had barely been up in his place for an hour.

  That’s not right.

  I couldn’t understand how something could feel so right and so wrong at the same time.

  Looking up at Victor’s window, I thought about how wonderful it was going to be to go away with him. Our relationship had taken a huge leap forward really fast. Maybe I should have played harder to get, but that bus left the station when I let him touch me again at Pleasure Salon, after that awful scene in the Chamber. And then I let him stroke me until I came at the party…

  I was ready to fall into daydreams again, but something else was bothering me. I didn’t like the idea of calling in sick for work. I rarely called in sick, and only when I had to. If I could mask the symptoms, I showed up with a smile. Lola called in sick whenever she wanted to, and that’s why she could barely keep a job for six months. The one thing supervisors wanted was no surprises and a warm body on shift.

  I got onto the subway and on the way north, made up my mind. I got off at 34th St/Herald Square along with the mass of rush-hour commuters. I was jostled and quick stepped it to stay up with the pack. By 5 PM, I was normally still working or long off, so I usually didn’t have to deal with this crush.

  I managed to peel away from the crowded rush headed for the track change, and took the stairs to the street. I had to fight the inward flow as everyone else was getting off work and heading down into the subway.

  I walked straight to the store to make my plea to my boss. Kalisha wa
s a girl on the rise, in her late twenties and that much further along in her career than me. I found her in the big storeroom. She was checking the packing slips on a load of boxes that came in against the list on her clipboard.

  I realized it could blow the whole weekend away if my supervisor refused to let me off. But I had gotten this far by playing it straight. I couldn’t change now.

  I explained to Kalisha that my new guy wanted to whisk me away for the weekend, but I would need to take Saturday off. Kalisha grumbled and checked the schedule, and for a second I thought I made the worst mistake ever. But then my boss relented. I had always been good about taking other girl’s shifts when they couldn’t make it into work, a fact that Kalisha remembered just in time to be gracious about my request.

  By the time I got back on the subway, I wasn’t even seeing the rush hour traffic anymore. All I could think about was going away with Victor, worry-free! I almost didn’t care how Lola thought she could afford a weekend in Baltimore when she was bouncing checks and getting tattoos. I was too excited about Victor to give Lola much thought.

  But when I reached my darkened apartment and saw the few remnants of Lola scattered around, reality rushed in.

  When I opened Lola’s closet, it was nearly empty. Lola had a habit of selling her clothes when she needed cash. Maybe that explained the drought, but more than likely her clothes were living in her new home now. In Bed-sty, a trendy neighborhood, but I’d heard it wasn’t really safe in spite of the influx of hipsters and artists looking for cheap digs.

  I didn’t think spying on Lola at the Festival would solve anything. At this point it was more a reflexive action, trying to stave off the inevitable. I had to take any chance I could—maybe I could learn something that would keep us from flying apart like a nuclear explosion. At the very least, I had to take the chance when it was offered.

  I couldn’t imagine my life without Lola. We had grown up twined together like two trees, and I still needed that support. Lately I had found myself thinking more about the rest of my family, the fact that other than Lola, I had no one else I could turn to. My tired, uninterested mom. My older brother who was about to get married and hadn’t even bothered to text me about it. I had to hear from my mom and then like his Facebook status. It made me felt rootless and exposed.