Hannah POV ...
The Erald Room was elegant, with nearly everything in green. The furniture was a smooth, stained oak, and the bed had a massive four-post canopy with sheer green curtains. The bathroom was nearly as large as the bedroom, with a stone shower and a jacuzzi tub.
On the center of the counter, between the his and hers sinks, were two plush, green towels and two washcloths. There were also bottles of body wash, shampoo, conditioner, and body lotion.
I kicked off my heels, stripped out of my dress and underwear, and walked into the shower. As I stood allowing the hot water to wash over , I tried to forget the events of the night. This was my shower, in my room at my ho. Everything was normal.
Nothing had changed. I would get out of the shower and have dinner with Lori in the kitchen when I was done. But the truth was too heavy to wish away.
Scrubbing my hair and my body did help release so of the tension. When I stepped out of the shower, grabbing a soft towel to dry off, I did feel a little better. The soap and hot water had at least washed away the gri from that place.
"Ma’am?" a woman’s voice called from the bedroom. I assud it was the maid.
Wrapping the towel around , I walked to the bathroom door and found a neatly dressed woman standing between the door and the desk, where a tray of food sat.
"Yes?" I asked her.
"I have brought you dinner," she indicated the food, "and so clothing." She had a few items of clothing draped over her arm. "if you want more clothing options, please let know," she said.
"You can leave them on the chair, thank you," I said to her.
"My pleasure, ma’am," she said. "Do you need anything else?"
"How do I get to the main family room from here?" I asked her, rembering that Roman would be there.
"Just take the elevator down to the first floor, make a right down the corridor, and you will find the main family room at the end of the corridor," she said.
I thanked her again and she left the room, closing the door behind her. The clothes that the maid left were a couple of pairs of pajamas, a patterned sundress, a cropped white blouse, and a pair of jean shorts.
I removed the towel and slipped on a pale blue silk pajama set before sitting down at the desk to eat.
The al was a seasoned chicken breast with wild rice, asparagus, and a buttered roll. A small plate of apple pie and a glass of tea with lemon and water were also on the tray.
The scent of the food made ravenous. I ate most of the al and half of the pie before wrapping myself in a green bathrobe and venturing out of the room.
What was I going to say to Roman? I thought as I took the elevator to the first floor. Did he even want to talk to ?
I made a right down the corridor and stopped just outside the double doors at the end.
Roman had let know that he would be in the main family room if I needed him, and we certainly needed to talk. Grasping the handle of one of the doors, I pulled it open quietly and peeked inside.
The room was dim but not dark and a low pulse of music filled the room. Ramon was seated on one end of a huge, cream-colored sofa with his head leaned back, staring up at the ceiling. I stepped into the room and the door clicked closed behind . Roman glanced up at .
"Mind if I join you?" I asked him.
"No, of course not," he said sitting up and gesturing toward the sofa. I walked over and took a seat, leaving a good amount of space between us. "Do you want a drink?" He asked , indicating the bottle on the table in front of him. "I can also get you sothing else from the bar."
I reached over and picked up the bottle of bourbon. It was a vintage brand, very expensive. "I’ll have what you’re having," I said, placing the bottle of bourbon back on the table. Roman stood and walked to the bar, grabbing a shot glass.
He poured a shot of bourbon and handed it to . I tossed the shot back. It was smooth with only a slight burn at the end. I held my glass out to him for another.
Roman raised his brow in surprise, but his smirk showed approval as he poured another shot. "Impressive," he comnted before taking his seat again and pouring himself a shot.
I stared at the brown liquid in the shot glass that I held. The shot glass itself had a fancy yet understated cut and the edges sparkled even in the dim lighting. I gently tilted the glass, rolling the bourbon in a slow circle several tis. I could feel Roman’s gaze on , but I didn’t look up.
I stared down into the liquid, thinking of how I would ask Roman my first question. Tossing the shot back, I drank the liquid and finally glanced up at Roman, eting his clear blue gaze.
"So, what’s your plan for ?" I asked Roman.
He frowned. "What do you an?" he asked .
"You bought and paid for at an auction," I said, holding his gaze. "My father made it clear that he doesn’t care what happens to . The n at The Auction House don’t care what happens to . What do you plan to do to ?" I asked him, knowing that he’d had a good amount of ti to think about it.
Roman’s face contorted into a horrified grimace. "I don’t plan on doing anything to you," Roman said. "Whatever you’re thinking may happen to you, just forget it," he added.
"I have a hard ti believing that you went to an establishnt that sells won as mistresses and sex slaves," I said, "but you don’t want to do anything to ."
Roman shifted uncomfortably on the sofa and brushed his hand over his sandy brown crew cut. "You’re right, I did, but it was purely an accident," he said.
"An accident that you went to The Auction House, or an accident that you bought ?" I asked him.
"Going to that place was a huge f*cking accident," he said. "Bidding for you just happened to be collateral damage."
"So you never planned on bidding for any Woman?" l asked.
"I had no idea that I was going to a flesh market," he said, gesturing with his hands as if he were at a loss. "This guy I was with just said he could get on the list for that place and I went to check it out. He never once ntioned illegal human trafficking."
Silence hung between us, softened by the quiet beat of the surround sound music. I turned my attention to the bourbon and poured myself another shot.
"If you don’t believe , ask your brother, Freddy," Roman said. "He knows I’m not that type of guy. We went to school together for damn near our entire childhoods."
I t Roman’s gaze and I really looked at him. The only n I was allowed to be around were the n that showed up to my father’s client parties. They were usually middle-aged n or older. I wanted to think I would have rembered a guy Freddy’s age.
A handso guy like Roman should have been easy to spot. The flash mory of a curvy blond at a party struck . I had seen her on a couple of occasions, and she had been hanging all over a guy with short, sandy brown hair.
Thinking harder, I could distinctly rember his strong jawline and his blue eyes. I did rember Freddy talking to a guy that could have been Roman, a guy that I rember thinking was really attractive. But the blonde that was always hanging around had made assu that they were a couple.
"I think I do rember you," I said to Roman. "You’ve been to my father’s parties a few tis, but you were always with so blond Woman."
Roman scoffed. "It’s nice to know that you rember , but not so great that you rember being around her." He was leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. I had the sudden urge to move closer to him, to feel his body heat next to mine.
But I decided against it. I was looking for comfort, and now that I realized I did at least know of Roman before tonight, it felt like I almost had a friend that I could confide in. The situation was less than ideal, but Roman actually seed like he might be a decent person in a less than ideal situation that might not have all been his fault.
User Comments
0 comments from readers