Authors: Nicole Garcia
"Is anyone sitting here?"
Kelly continued to chew her food and never made eye contact with him. "Does it look like anyone is sitting there?"
Jace didn't wait for her approval to sit. He pulled the chair out from under the table and sat down, placing a crisp freshly pressed linen napkin in his lap. He called the waiter over and ordered breakfast. Eggs, pancakes, bacon, and blueberry waffles were brought to the table for him.
Kelly's eyes widened as she scanned the food, she wondered where he was going to fit it all. "You do realize we're only going to be in the house for one day right? Not a week."
Jace spoke with his mouth full and she could barely hear him, he was still shoveling food in his mouth like he was on death row and this was his last meal. "Hey, you never know. We could be there more than one day. I need all the energy I can get. But, I'm sure it will be a piece of cake. Have you seen the competition? They all look like they're scared of their own shadows. When I win that money you'll all have to drag your asses back where you came from with your tails tucked between your legs."
Kelly slammed her fork down on her plate. "What the hell do you mean when you win? I think you've forgotten about your biggest competition."
"Oh yeah. Who is that?"
"Me."
Jace swallowed the bite of pancake he had in his mouth and laughed. "You? You're my biggest competition? Oh, I highly doubt that."
"Why? Because I'm a woman?"
"No, not because you're a woman. You're not winning because I never lose. I always get what I want."
Kelly huffed at his ridiculous oversized ego. "Pffft, you better get used to the idea that of losing because I'm winning that money and there will be nothing tucked between my legs when I leave that house."
Jace leaned forward with a naughty smile on his handsome face and winked at her. "Maybe you need something between your legs."
Kelly jumped up out of her seat so fast it went flying behind her. She walked over to him and bent down to whisper in his ear. "The others might be afraid of you and you may be able to intimidate people, but don't think for one minute that applies to me. I know it's all a front. I can see right through you. I know you want me. And you being between my legs is something that will never happen." Kelly then licked his ear with one slow sensual stroke.
Kelly watched his smile dissipate. His confidence wavered right in front of her eyes. Pleased with herself she stormed out of the hotel dining area and pressed the button for the elevator. The bell dinged and the doors opened. She stepped inside and waited for the doors to close. She pushed the button for her floor and leaned back against the wall. Her heart was racing and felt as though it was going to jump out of her chest. She was never that confrontational before. What was she doing? He was a ticking time bomb just waiting for someone to cross him.
Kelly never let many things bother her, but she was no push over either. She always stuck up for herself and never let anyone take advantage of her. Jace was not going to be an exception. There was never a time where she hadn't thought before she spoke or acted. But, Jace brought out this animal inside her. He got under her skin and annoyed her to no end. Why had she let him get to her like that? He obviously was egging her on purposely and she fell for it.
The elevator stopped on her floor and she placed the card key in the door slot. She closed the door behind her and the conversation they had played back in her head realizing what she had done.
Oh my God. Did I lick his ear? Holy shit, I did. What the fuck is wrong with me?
Kelly leaned against the door and bowed her head. Her legs weakened and gave out from under her. She slid to the floor and put her head in her hands.
What an idiot
. Could she possibly have made herself look more like a fool than she already did? Definitely not.
There was one good thing about what happened. The look on his face had been priceless. She was guessing that not many people got the best of him. That alone was enough for her.
Chapter Seven
The network's company van shuttled the contestants from the hotel to Waverly Manor. Jace rode in the back. He sat as far away from Kelly as he could. The only problem was he was facing her the whole time. So, he had two choices. Either continue to look in her direction or stare out the window. He chose to stare out the window. All he kept thinking about was how good it felt when her tongue slowly glided over his ear. Her warm breath sending chills throughout his body.
He wanted to take her right there on the table in dining room of the hotel. He wanted to drive his cock deep inside of her so he could hear her screams of pleasure. Begging him to push harder and faster until she reached the ultimate point of ecstasy.
Jace was getting harder by the second just thinking about her. Before he left the hotel he had to relieve some of the tension caused by that one flick of her sweet tongue. There was no way he could do that in the vehicle with everyone watching him. He adjusted his erection and continued to look out the window.
When they pulled up to the mansion it was nothing like Jace had imagined. Of course it had been abandoned for many years but the disrepair was more than he'd expected. The cement pillars in front of the home were cracked and pieces were missing. Jace couldn't see how they were still holding up the balcony on the second floor. It was obvious the mansion had been updated to a more modern home than it had originally been when it was built in the late 1890's, but all that beautiful craftsmanship was for naught. Broken windows were boarded up with wood planks, and half the shutters adorning them were hanging by the hinges.
The building was covered in vines and moss. The smell of the mold growing on the outer walls of the house was overpowering as the wind blew it through the open window of the van.
All passengers were instructed to exit the vehicle and wait on the porch of the mansion where two big men were standing. Jace thought they looked ridiculous. They looked like nightclub bouncers. Muscles so big they couldn't even turn their necks. It was comical to say the least.
A camera crew was on standby ready to start live filming. Photographers from local newspapers were lined up outside the gates of the house hoping they could get a tiny glimpse of the contestants to be featured on the new reality game show.
Lights flashed in Jace's eyes as he looked around the property. He walked up the broken concrete steps thinking if he didn't need the money so badly there was no way in hell that he would ever do this. It was like a three ring circus. He was expecting jugglers and clowns to make an appearance.
Alec Sanders opened the front door and welcomed them. A fake smile splayed across his face and his insincere politeness was sickening. Jace knew he was only doing it for the sake of the cameras; that was fine with Jace. All he wanted was to get the day over with and win the money so he could go home and take care of his mother.
As they entered the mansion Sanders told the security guards at the doorway to search each contestant. No one made a fuss over it. No one except Jace of course. "If you think you're going to put your hands on me you're sadly mistaken."
Sanders pushed the security guard to the side and was now eye to eye with Jace. "Mr. Dalton, if you want to play the game you
will
play by the rules. You will be searched or you will not be allowed in the house."
"Like I said, not you or any of your goons will be putting their hands on me. If they do, I'll break some hands and legs."
Before the producer had a chance to respond, one of the guards came up behind Jace and tried to grab him by the arm. Jace spun around and caught hold of his shirt pushing him backward into the window pane shattering glass all over the floor. Blood poured from the open wounds of the guard's bald head as Jace dropped him to the floor.
The other guard attempted to rush at him, but Sanders held his arm out to prevent him from doing so.
Kelly and the others ran back to the entryway to see what was going on. Kelly looked at the man who was now lying on the ground; his head was covered in blood. She rolled her eyes and shook her head as she addressed Jace. "Can't you go anywhere without starting trouble or hurting someone?" She turned away and went back into the house.
Jace glared at Sanders. "Like I said, I won't have you searching me. I know the fucking rules and I'm a man of my word. I don't expect someone like you to understand that." He pushed past the producer and entered the mansion.
The inside was worse than the outside, but he'd figure as much. Peeling wallpaper and dusty picture frames lined the walls. There were puddles of stagnant water all over the living room. Jace looked up at the water stains on the ceiling from where it had leaked. The room was filled with furniture covered with white sheets. The only lights on in the house were the ones coming from the cameras that were filming the beginning of the show.
The old mansion smelled horrible. A combination of mold and vomit permeated the stale air. Jace held his breath for a few seconds trying to prevent himself from hurling all over the floor. All the other contestants were holding their noses and complaining about the smell. All except Kelly.
He peered over at her, she definitely had her game face on. No emotion, no weird offensive facial expressions for the stench that was nothing less than the smell of death. She was right. She would definitely be his biggest competition, but he still was going to win. There was no question about that.
Everyone in the room including the television staff was fanning themselves with anything they could find. It was hot. The kind of heat that would make your skin blister. That must have been the reason the wallpaper had peeled right of the walls. The temperature had to be over one hundred degrees and probably melted the glue that held the paper in place.
One thing was for sure, the heat wasn't helping the smell at all.
Sanders entered the house with more camera men following. "We'll get started in a few minutes, will everyone please line up in front of me so the camera can get a good shot of each of you."
They all lined up as instructed, Jace stood in between Kelly and the fidgety woman. Being that close to Kelly was driving him insane. He caught the faint scent of her perfume, it was much more preferable than the horrible stench of the old house.
Before the cameras started to roll the woman to his right leaned over to him and spoke in a hushed tone. "Do have any stuff on you?"
"What?"
The woman repeated her question. "Do you have anything on you?"
Jace was confused at first but quickly realized what the woman was talking about. She wanted drugs. He turned to his left; Kelly heard the woman too, she had a disapproving scowl on her face. A look a mother gives her child when their hand has been caught in the cookie jar. He straightened his back and faced forward. He answered her without looking in the drug addict’s direction. "No."
What the fuck was wrong with that woman? Why would he bring drugs to a television show? Was she crazy?
Her withdrawals were obviously clouding her thinking. He saw the many effects of being addicted to drugs on the street every day. His first job had been to supply the demand, and then he was moved into a higher position in Cesar Gonzales' cartel.
When Cesar told him he no longer had to deal drugs on the street corner anymore he couldn't have been more relieved. Not that his new position was any better, but at least he wouldn't have to see one suffering person after another all day long. Men would beg him for drugs and women would offer sexual favors so they could get a quick fix. At first, he thought they all were pathetic beings walking around in a daze like zombies. As he got older he realized what a horrible disease drug addiction was. It took over your life until there was nothing important left in it, leaving an empty shell of your former self.
Right now he didn't care what Kelly or anyone else thought of him. All he was interested in was winning the million dollars. He was growing impatient and was wondering when they were going to start filming. To him they were wasting their time. Time he didn't have to spare. His mother didn't have much longer to live and he wanted to be with her as much as he could before she passed.
A make-up artist put the finishing touches on Alec's face, he brusquely pushed her away as the director shouted one minute to filming. One minute closer to finally having enough money to take care of his family without struggling. One minute closer to having enough money to move away from Cesar and all the shit that went along with being his enforcer.
The director counted down the seconds, then The Haunting was live on television for millions of people to see. Alec Sanders stood in front of the camera and began to host the show by introducing the contestants. "Welcome everyone to the first episode of TSN's The Haunting. The first ever reality game show where you can win one million tax free dollars just by spending twenty-four hours in a mansion. But, not just any old mansion. We are standing inside the infamous Waverly Manor. A home that has been said to contain supernatural entities. These six contestants behind me will try and brave it through the night in order to win more money they could ever imagine having in a lifetime. Let's meet these desperate souls shall we? Each of them was given the choice of using their full name or an alias to be known as on the show."