Authors: Vera Roberts
Scott nodded. “Yes, Ma’am.”
“Good.” Caprina quickly dressed again. “Don’t worry about taking me back to the airport, I called a cab to pick me up as soon as I landed.” She picked up her suitcase and kissed Scott. “I’ll see you in a few weeks, Scotty.” She then left his home.
Scott looked at the contraption on his cock. There was a small opening for him to pee through but the fun stopped there. Masturbating wasn’t an option and bathing was going to be an adventure.
Scott sighed. Although he wasn’t entirely sure, he was pretty positive what Caprina was doing had nothing to do with BDSM at all.
“You didn’t
handle
me, Ms. Waters,” Scott corrected as the memory once again faded into the background, “you
controlled
me. Big motherfucking difference.”
Caprina leaned in closer and placed her hand on Scott’s thigh. “What are you going to do? She messed up pretty bad and you have your reputation at stake.”
“What I’m going to do,” Scott finished his whiskey and left money on the bar, “is go home to my girlfriend. As you were, Ms. Waters.”
Caprina watched Scott leave EMK. She took his whiskey glass and smelled his essence on it. She remembered how his lips hugged the glass and the smoldering sensuality that enveloped his being. Caprina had spent a lot of money tracking his whereabouts and daily habits over the past several years. She knew how often he got his car detailed to when he picked up dry cleaning. She even knew the vitamin supplements he took to maintain his physique. He was her small obsession and she didn’t mind that at all.
The only problem she had was Mariana. That little girlfriend of his. She was too bubbly, too friendly, too…
intimidating.
Mariana was a nice girl, Caprina could admit. But Mariana had one big problem: she reminded Caprina too much of herself when she was younger. Before her innocence was stolen by Colette and Rodrigo.
Caprina could’ve turned out like Mariana, always looking at things bright-side up and being in love with a wonderful guy. But Caprina wasn’t like Mariana. Her past had turned her into the ruthless bitch behind closed doors. Her tirades and tantrums were as legendary as her magazine covers and designer clothing.
Bitches—Caprina reasoned—took what they wanted and how they wanted.
It was a matter of time before Scott was back in her life and pretty soon, he would be back in her bed. She just had to wait until he made a discovery of what his sweet Mariana did to the major Guess account. And then she would wait for the fireworks to explode.
The seed was planted. All Caprina had to do was wait for the flower to bloom.
****
On Scott’s way back home, he thought about the day’s events. It was unlike Mariana to mess up that badly. She had made mistakes before, but they were minor things such as misspellings or incorrect dates. She had never been under budget. It was not like her.
Scott wasn’t too concerned with Mariana, however. He remembered what Caprina told him at EMK.
She messed up pretty bad and you have your reputation at stake.
“Except I never said what the issues were between me and Mari,” he thought aloud.
Scott suddenly had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Caprina had set Mariana up. He just had to prove it.
T
HIRTY-
F
IVE
Mariana barely slept throughout the weekend. She tossed and turned throughout the night to the point she had to get up and sleep in the living room. If Scott noticed her absence from their bed, he didn’t try to convince her to come back. He had barely spoken to her when he arrived home. He just went into his study and closed the door behind him.
She got out of bed and showered. After she dried off, Mariana wiped the steam from the mirror so she could begin her mantras. “To Sir, I give my submission. To Sir, I give my devotion. To Sir, I give my sex. To Sir, I give my fears. To Sir, I give my trust. To Sir, I give my happiness. To Sir, I give my everything….”
She paused on the last sentence. Scott was angry at her, and although he didn’t say a word, Mariana could feel the tension from him. She was on the verge of destroying his hard-earned reputation and all she had was an ‘I’m sorry’ to show for it.
Even though Scott said he loved her, Mariana wasn’t sure how true it really was. He was being cold and distant to her, almost standoffish. She was waiting for him to finally ask her to move out, but the request hadn’t come yet. He was either waiting for the right time or delaying the inevitable.
Fuck my life.
****
When Mariana arrived at her internship, she studied the spreadsheet again. The figures were right. She estimated a hundred thousand budget for wardrobe. So why did the spreadsheet she sent out stated fifty thousand?
That’s impossible! I swore it said a hundred thousand!
She tried to plead her case with Chris but he didn’t have the time or desire to hear her. She had put his position at risk as well.
Mariana knew it was just a matter of time before she was going to be fired from McCormick and Sheppard. She was just waiting for the shoe to drop. She also knew the implications of her mistake.
Scott would never forgive her.
****
“Come with me, please.” Scott spoke to Mariana as he strolled past her desk.
Mariana got up from her desk and followed Scott into his office. “You wanted to see me, Mr. Reed?”
Scott immediately picked up on her tone. She was professional and didn’t say too much. There were no smiles, no laughter, and no warmth. He looked into her eyes and saw nothing. When she was at home, it was no different. They shared a bed, but there was no love in their bedroom.
She wasn’t going to like the news he was about to tell her. “I’m going to Vegas for a couple days to supervise Ms. Waters’ shoot. I’ll be back on Thursday.”
“That’s nice,” Mariana replied, indifferent to what he told her. “Is there anything I can help you with?”
“So it’s like that, huh?” Scott leaned back into his chair.
“It’s like what?”
“You don’t have to play games with me, Mari,” Scott replied, “I know what’s going on here.”
“If you did, you wouldn’t have stated that,” she shot back. “Now, Mr. Reed, is there anything else I can help you with?”
“Mariana, I’m doing this professionally,” he reasoned, “there’s nothing personal about anything I’m doing.”
“I understand that.” Mariana quietly replied.
Scott waited for Mariana to say something more, but she remained silent. He felt her tension and coldness. “You’re not going to say anything?”
“Now what do you want me to say, Boss?”
“Scott,” he corrected.
“Uh, really?” Mariana scoffed.
Scott felt like he was arguing with a brick wall. “Mari, I never said I didn’t believe you.”
It just occurred to Mariana their current conversation was the most they have spoken in days. “You sure in the hell acted like you didn’t.”
“If this happened to another employee, I would’ve fired him on the spot,” Scott reasoned.
“So I should be grateful that Scott, the Sir Almighty, saved me from that?” she shot back.
“Get out,” he spat out, and watched Mariana leave. Scott turned his chair around and faced the skyscrapers. He closed his eyes and tried to calm down his breathing. Mariana was working his patience and his last good nerve. Maybe supervising Caprina’s photo shoot was exactly what he needed to get away from Mariana for a short while.
T
HIRTY-
S
IX
“Aileen,” Dove shouted, “come check this shit out. This bitch is nuts!”
Aileen rushed over to Dove as she stood inside Caprina’s walk-in closet. The young women looked around the closet and saw the wall-to-wall décor of Caprina and Scott. “Wow. Somebody call Warner Bros. because this bitch has officially gone Looney Tunes!”
“All right, you have the cameras?” Dove asked and Aileen nodded. “Sweet. Start taking pictures here and I’m going to get everything ready around the house. Jay should be over here soon to help with the set-up.”
Dove walked over to a small bag she left on the bed and pulled out a small camera, about the size of an eraser tip on a pencil. She placed it inside a small metal casing and glued it to Caprina’s TV in an inconspicuous area so she wouldn’t be able to notice. She turned on the camera and sat back on the bed. She picked up a cell phone and spoke into it. “Dom, can you see me?”
“Crystal clear,” Dominic replied over the phone, “be sure you get the bathrooms.”
“Got it,” Dove replied. She walked throughout Caprina’s home and placed the tiny cameras everywhere. She checked with Dominic after each camera was installed so he could properly see her.
She went inside the master bathroom and placed the inconspicuous camera in a hidden corner of the sink. It blended in with the marble tile and was waterproof. She was done with installing the camera when she noticed Caprina’s cabinet was slightly ajar. Dove reached down and pulled out the drawer. A large silver box was dead center and she took out the locked heavy box.
She quickly found a hairpin and opened the case within seconds. There were several small baggies of cocaine and marijuana. There were various pills of different colors. A small scale and a tiny spoon were in a corner. Underneath the scale was a handwritten note. Dove took out the note and read Caprina’s list.
1.
Fuck with his head.
2.
Become besties with the enemy.
3.
Find out everything about the little girlfriend.
4.
Interrupt their relationship.
5.
Get Scott.
6.
Enjoy worldwide success.
One of the items on Caprina’s list didn’t make sense. Dove phoned Dominic. “Dom, can you see me?” She asked.
“Yes, Dove,” Dominic answered back.
“I found something for the Mistress to take a look at,” Dove showed the note to the camera. “Can she see it?”
“Yes, she can,” Dominic took screenshots of the note. “Thank you, Dove.”
“Not a problem, Dom.” She hung up the phone. She put the contents back into the silver box and put it away.
Dominic studied the note on the screen before him. “She was planning this all along.”
“I’m not concerned with that,” Sanora leaned towards the screen. Uncomfortable memories of Her past wrapped around Her head and She felt the earth was spinning. She closed Her eyes momentarily to silence the thoughts and then resumed business. “It’s the last item on the list that concerns me.”
Dominic zoomed in the screen to focus on the last line of Caprina’s list. The last line had been recently added.
7.
When all else fails, get rid of MLH.
“MLH?” Dominic was confused. “I don’t understand.”
“It’s a promise. MLH is Mariana Lilian Harlow. She wants her dead.” Sanora stood up and folded her arms. “All right, this bitch just officially pissed me off. Bitch, you want to dance? I’ll lead.”
Book IV—Sanora
He who does not punish evil commands it to be done.—Leonardo da Vinci
O
NE
The location was set. A nightclub in Las Vegas. A few other celebrities were going to make guest appearances, but the focus was going to be on Caprina. Her sparkly pink dress. Her matching stilettos. Her white poufy clutch with the Guess logo. Fake paparazzi were going to take pictures of the scene and the ads would be placed in every major magazine.
Caprina had somehow come back from the darkness into the light once again.
The show was her saving grace. People who once hated her now loved her. She was personable, friendly, and everyone wanted to be like her. She had class, gracefulness, and always smiled. Even when she gave criticism to the designers and models, she had a soft edge and didn’t try to humiliate anyone. She knew how it was to be fresh and try to get some footing inside the industry. And now her smile had gotten a lot bigger. It all because of one person: Scott.
“Ms. Waters,” Scott approached her from behind, “how are you doing?”
Caprina smiled at him through the mirror. She waited in hair and makeup as others tended to her. “Scotty! How are you?”
“I’m fine. I just wanted to let you know I’ll be directly supervising your campaign for now on hence why I’m here today.” Scott forced a grin. He really didn’t want to be anywhere near Caprina but things at home with Mariana weren’t any better.
Caprina pretended to be concerned. “Is everything okay?”
Scott knew Caprina was simply humoring him. She knew very well what happened, and if Scott could prove it, he would go out of his way to personally destroy her. “Everything’s fine, Ms. Waters.”
“Where’s Mariana? I thought she would be here.”
“I have other interns with me, Nate and Robert. As you were, Ms. Waters.” Scott left her dressing room.
Caprina’s eyes followed Scott. “As you were, Mr. Reed.”
****
Scott arrived back at his hotel after supervising Caprina’s photo shoot. He was mentally exhausted and emotionally drained. The shoot had gone off without a hitch, and Caprina was graceful, even with occasional snafus and glitches. She was an impeccable professional and Scott knew the Guess campaign would put her back on top of the modeling world.
Which was exactly what she wanted.
Scott checked his cell phone for any messages from Mariana. There were none. She used to text him whenever he went away on a business trip, sending him sexy pictures of herself to keep him satiated until he came back to Los Angeles. When he arrived home, they would make love throughout the night.