"You're still not going to tell me?"
"I'm not going to tell you, because I don't believe you know what you think you know." She laughed. "But if you tell me, I will tell you whether it's true or not. That will have to suffice."
"Fair enough.
You met Hellena when you were both young. She started as an underage model and was living with a man who abused her. When he found out she was attracted to you he cut her, inside and out. You killed him."
"Mariss, how did you find this out?" His arms tightened around her. He didn't believe she'd use the information against him, but he didn't want anyone using it against her.
"You have to hold up your end of the deal, Mr. Boa."
"Yes. That's all correct. He hurt Hellena very badly and she can no longer bear children." He turned her so he was looking down at her. His brows knit together in a deep frown. "How did you learn all of this?"
"I cheated." She pursed her lips. "I bribed your FBI agent friend. He owed me anyway. Plus, he felt I needed to know since I'm spending so much time with you."
Sebastian almost swore, but he bit it back. He and Herbert would have a talk tomorrow morning. He lay back down with her back pressed hard against his chest.
"Bassy, please don't be mad."
"Why do you think I'm mad?" The tightness in his voice didn't help his cause.
"You're squeezing me too hard," she giggled and wriggled in his arms.
Sebastian didn't let go. He squeezed her tighter and pressed a kiss to the back of her neck. She stilled as goosebumps prickled her skin.
"You're a devious little thing, Mariss Red."
"You're not much better, Mr. Boa. If you keep kissing me like that we'll have a problem on our hands."
"Hm.
Like this?" He kissed her neck again, feathery light, and scraped his teeth across the nape of her neck. She moaned. "You like that."
"God.
You know things that…"
Sebastian nuzzled the back of her neck with his nose.
"Hm?
That what?" he teased.
"No, I don't want to talk about that right now. You know what I was going to say."
"He doesn't do you like I do." The moment he said it, Sebastian knew he should have kept it to himself. "Mariss-"
"No, he doesn't."
"Well, that's a relief." He pulled his knees up so his hips cradled hers. She wiggled her ass against him. "Stop that or we'll have to start all over again."
"That's alright. We have all night."
Mindy Revisited
Mariss found him in the kitchen the next morning. She'd redressed in her jumpsuit, and as lovely as she looked, Sebastian found it to be quite a shame that she was no longer naked.
"I made coffee," he said and turned to retrieve the cup that had just finished brewing. He handed it to her with some creamer.
"Thank you." She added the creamer and took a sip. "I called in to work this morning."
He lifted an eyebrow. Hope gnawed at him and he felt empty inside. Sebastian pushed it back down so he wouldn't drown in it. "Oh?"
Mariss' smile was painfully wistful. His chest ached.
"Are you going to spend the day with me?" Sebastian sipped his coffee and let his eyes burn with how much he wanted that to be so.
"I can't. You know I can't."
"Still," he shrugged, playing it down so she wouldn't know how much he hurt.
"What happened in London," she started.
"Don't." Sebastian set his coffee down a little too fast. It sloshed onto the counter top and his hand, burning is skin. "Shit." He shook the liquid off to cool it.
"Bassy, just hear me out."
Her use of that nickname here, in his kitchen, set him on fire. If he hadn't been washing his hands he would have ripped her clothes off and made love to her on the kitchen floor.
Sebastian turned and frowned, forgetting the water running in the sink. He'd never made love to a woman before, but he'd consider last night just that.
"Don't look at me like that," she said, mistaking his frown for something it wasn't. "Just listen." Mariss took a deep breath. "What I said in London. It's true.
Sort of.
You need to understand a few things. Holden doesn't like you, which isn't such a shock, but it's more than just the fact that you 'declared your intentions'." Her voice deepened when she said that last part, like she was trying to sound like a man. "You left the sink running."
Sebastian smiled and turned. He wet a washcloth and shut the water off.
"Holden knows how you affect me. He knows that I'm physically attracted to you. Not because of anything I've said, but because he's not stupid. I never have trouble saying no to anyone.
Except for him.
And you.
When he said what he said, well, he got exactly the reaction he wanted."
Sebastian stared at her as he wiped the counter. Of course, the husband knew the buttons to press. He'd said they were the same, but Sebastian hadn't believed him until this moment. He felt even more the fool now than he had then.
"That said, what I said was true too." She smiled at him when he felt his emotions close off. "No one does me like Holden," she said softly. "Likewise, no one does me like you. You two have completely different techniques perfected in completely different ways and for different reasons."
Sebastian nodded.
"Of course."
He wasn't sure what he was feeling, and that was a new feeling all together. He finished wiping the counter down and put the cloth in the sink. "May I ask you, how is Juliet? She won't talk to me."
Mariss smiled. It was so full of humor that he almost got angry.
"She's very mad at you. I won't repeat what she's said, but…" She shrugged. "I'll tell her about last night, though. She'll probably call and cuss you out."
"Of course she will." He had to laugh. "Tell her…" Tell her what? He wasn't sure.
"I'll let her know you miss her. She'll love that."
He took a deep breath. "I don't suppose you have time for breakfast."
Mariss bit the inside of her cheek and shook her head. Her hair danced about her face, scattering the scent of her berry shampoo.
"This can't happen again," she told him. There was a firm sadness in her voice that he couldn't help but reciprocate. "I have no willpower when I'm with you, Sebastian. I need you to stay away from me. If you stay away…at least I can function."
Sebastian rounded the counter. She turned to him, her face tilted up. He cupped it in his hand and Mariss pressed her cheek into his palm.
"Tell me that you struggle to sleep when I'm not there.
At least when your husband isn't around.
At least tell me that."
She nodded, her soft skin rubbing against his palm. "I do."
Sebastian's heart soared. He never knew he could feel this way about anything or anyone, but he did. He felt it for her.
"That's why. That's why you have to stay away from me. This can't happen again."
"I know," he agreed.
"Promise me you'll stay away. Please."
"I promise, Mariss. I swear."
Mariss pushed his hand away. Keeping her eyes downcast, she slipped off the stool and grabbed her clutch. She checked to be sure her phone was in it before she looked up at him.
"I have to go."
He nodded. "Kiss me once more." Fearing she'd say no, Sebastian cupped the back of her head and kissed her deeply, tasting the coffee on her tongue. He fed at her mouth, filling himself with everything that was Mariss Red. He'd need something to get him through the next few days if he might never see her again. The feel and smell of her hair, the taste of her mouth, the slide of her skin against his - all things he would miss immensely.
All too soon, she pulled away. "I have to leave or this is going to become a problem."
Sebastian nodded and stuck his hands in his pockets. They walked silently to the door where she turned.
"Good bye, Bassy."
He smiled. "Good bye, Red. Be safe."
"Always."
He watched her walk to the elevator,
then
closed the door, locking it so he wouldn't follow her down like a lonely puppy.
***
Herbert entered the office ushered by Rachel who left quickly. He sensed her discomfort with so much testosterone in one room.
"What is it now, Sebastian?" Herbert took a seat. His eyes were empty and cold.
"What did you tell Mariss about Hellena and me?"
"I told her very little." Sebastian stared at him, waiting for the truth. "I gave her what she needed to find the information on her own, though. I owed her and it was something she needed to know."
"And what makes you an expert on what she needs to know?" Sebastian couldn't believe the man's gall. His sole purpose was to keep this information from getting out and he'd given it away to the first person who asked.
"If she's cavorting with you, she needs to know."
Sebastian crossed the room in two long strides and jacked the man up by his throat. "Mariss is not cavorting with anyone, and I resent the accusation. It seems your usefulness to me has expired. I will no longer require your services."
Herbert loosened Sebastian's grasp and wrenched away. His gaze was fiery.
"Very well.
It was nice working with you, Sebastian.
Always a pleasure."
His words dripped with sarcasm.
"Of course."
He waited for Herbert to leave before he called Rachel in.
"Yes, sir, Mr. Boa."
She shoved her heavy glasses back up her nose.
"Have the car brought around. I have a meeting. You are to stay here until I return."
"Yes, sir."
Sebastian poured himself a glass of brandy.
"Yes, um, I'm calling to have Mr. Boa's car brought around front."
"Rachel." He closed his eyes as he tried to calm himself.
"Yes, sir, Mr. Boa."
"When I said you were to stay here, I meant in the apartment. Not in the office."
"Oh.
Right.
I'm sorry, Mr. Boa."
Sebastian waited until the door was shut to release his growl of frustration. If Juliet didn't come back to him soon he was going to drag her back by her bloody toenails.
***
The diner was a bit seedy, but it was the best place for a situation like this. Sebastian polished his spoon before he took a bite of his warm apple pie. A dollop of vanilla ice cream melted over the top.
"Mr. Boa."
A tall, thin man with wiry hair and spectacles stood before him. Behind him was Mindy.
"Please, both of you have a seat." He pushed his pie to the side and straightened in his seat.
"Thank you." The man, a lawyer named Ronny Fickle, slid into the booth. "You understand
,
this is highly out of the ordinary."
Mindy slid in next to Ronny. She refused to look up at Sebastian, preferring her badly manicured fingernails.
"Yes, of course. I won't take too much of your time, but I had a few things I wanted to discuss before the hearing. The accusations against me are astounding. No doubt, the purpose was to ruin my reputation, which they have done, well and proper. I commend you, Miss Williams, for your creativity."
"Mr. Boa," Ronny said, appalled. "Accusations of," he looked around and lowered his voice, "of rape are not to be taken lightly."
"Absolutely.
I agree."
"To refer to such things as a creative means to ruin your reputation is insulting and offensive at best."
"Once again, Ronny, I fully agree. But that is what they are, isn't that right, Mindy?" She looked up at him briefly before casting her eyes down again. "For years, I worked with women against the abuse of under-aged female models. I am still the face of their organization, which is now crumbling because of the ridiculous accusations against me. I'll give you a chance, Miss Williams. Do you have anything to say to me right now?"
Mindy shook her head. Still, she wouldn't look at him.
"Mr. Boa, if you're trying to intimidate my client into dropping the charges…"
"I'm not trying to intimidate anyone." Sebastian watched them both for a moment. Ronny was getting angry. He knew he'd have to get on with this if he hoped to make his point. Mindy was nervous as hell. They both knew nothing had happened that she didn't want. "One of my close friends was raped repeatedly when she was sixteen years old."
Mindy looked up then. Sebastian kept his features even and unreadable, but the look in her eyes said she knew who he was talking about.
"You knew that," he said. "That's interesting. I'm almost done, but I want to give you another chance to amend your statement. This will be your last chance."
"If all you're going to do is bully my client, then I'm going to have to insist that this meeting be over." Ronny put his hand on Mindy's shoulder to usher her out of the booth.
"Oh, it's far from over," Sebastian said, his voice firm and threatening. "I have something to show you." He lifted a laptop from the seat next to him and set it so the three of them could see. "Now, I understand that this is a digitized version. I have the original tape if you'd like to look it over." He showed them the tape on the seat. "This is a security feed from my club." Mindy's face blanched. Sebastian pressed play.
The camera angle was from a security camera above the front entrance. It clearly showed Sebastian and Mindy who were joined by Hellena. There was a good shot of the look Hellena gave the other woman, and then Sebastian and Hellena left together. Mindy stood alone for a few moments before she was joined by another man. They appeared to argue for a few moments before he left and she stomped after him.
"I'm going to assume this was a relative of yours," Sebastian said to the now sickly green-faced Mindy. "You share quite the resemblance." Ronny stared, dumbfounded. "As I said, I will provide you with the original if you need to have it examined."
Sebastian stared at Mindy until she looked up at him. Her eyes were rimmed with tears she fought to hold back.
"I gave you a chance to come clean, Mindy. I believe I behaved admirably toward a woman who threw herself at me twice. Even you said I was more honorable than most, given the circumstances, isn't that right?"
Mindy nodded. "I'm sorry."
"It's too late to apologize, though I will accept it. You'll find I'm a fair man. However, as a man of position and power I cannot let this go unpunished."
"Unpunished?" Ronny exclaimed too loudly. He looked around before he said in a lower voice, "Mr. Boa, what kind of punishment do you suggest?"
"Only this:
Miss Williams will go on record as saying the charges weren't true. Though the damage has been done to my reputation, I won't sue for slander and defamation if she concedes on this point. Is this acceptable?"
Mindy nodded.
"I want to know why, after how respectfully I treated you, would you do something like this to me?" Sebastian realized how betrayed he felt. After being so kind to her, given what he thought of as an unfortunate trait, why had she attacked him, and so publicly? "What did I do to warrant this?"
Mindy shook her head, the tears finally coursing down her cheeks. "I'm sorry. I was there that night because Hellena paid me to have sex with you and say you raped me."