“Gonna find someone to shack up with for the night. Bye.”
“What if they come back? Or send more?” There was no mistaking the panic in Bellamy’s voice now. For all her talk, Bellamy was a fucking coward.
“Not my problem, Bel.” Vesper laughed and closed the door, locking it and begrudgingly making sure her wards were still in place. No one except her would be able to enter, but Bellamy didn’t need to know that. She didn’t deserve peace of mind.Vesper chuckled to herself when Bellamy’s angry screams reached her from behind the door.
Bellamy knew full well Vesper wouldn’t have left her completely vulnerable. It would have come down on Vesper’s head if something happened, and she wasn’t willing to gamble with her life just to piss off Bellamy. But she didn’t need to tell her that. Didn’t want to encourage Bellamy making her selfish decisions and bringing all of her problems literally to Vesper’s door. It was bad enough Bel treated the place like she still shared ownership, barging in whenever she felt like.
Vesper got halfway down the bright hallway, stewing in her irritation, before a door opened to her left, followed by a deep sultry voice.
“Hey, V. Heard some shit going down earlier. Know anything about that?” Vesper turned. Cedar peeked down the hallway to see the dead body and raised an eyebrow at Vesper. Quiet instrumentals filtered through her open doorway into the hall. Her long, red hair fell loose past her shoulders, framing her face.
Vesper smiled. She knew where she’d spend the night now. Cedar knew it, too, judging by the way she’d leaned at the doorframe, arms crossed over her chest to push up her tits and showcase her lack of a bra. The thin camisole and skimpy shorts left little to the imagination.
Vesper leaned back on the wall opposite, affecting the same casual posture and hooking her thumbs in her pockets.
“Oh, you know,” she said with a shrug. “Bel dragging her bullshit to me.”
Cedar chuckled, “So, you need somewhere to stay occupied for a bit?”
“Just the night.”
“Well, I’d hate to leave my favorite neighbor out in the cold.”
Vesper smirked, “Oh yeah, I’m sure that would be terrible for you.”
“You’ve no idea.” Cedar’s eyes flashed and she draggedher gaze over Vesper. “You weren’t about to go Downstairs were you?”
Vesper shrugged, she couldn’t afford to go to the Downstairs until she got paid again, but Cedar didn’t know that. “You know the girls like seeing me.”
“So do I. Don’t bother with them. Stay with me.”
“Wouldn’t dream of going down there if you’re up here offering.” Vesper’s gaze drifted, unashamed, down to Cedar’s pushed-up tits before she tore away and met Cedar’s sly expression. “I’ve got a few errands first, though. So, you’ll have to go without for a bit.”
“Don’t keep me waiting, V.”
Vesper winked, turning back towards the stairwell. She needed to restock her med kit after wasting good supplies on Bellamy. She’d considered getting the shitty sutures for when something like this inevitably happens again. She discarded the idea quickly, lest she risk having to use them on herself if there was an emergency.
On the plus side, since she’d used the magic-laced sutures, it meant Bellamy would be fully healed and out of her apartment by morning at the very latest. Vesper wasn’t about to go back to check. Better to wait her out.
On the down side, she’d wasted money she really didn’t have. She was absolutely going to make Bel pay her back. If Bellamy didn’t have the money, maybe she could pay her back in a different way—No! Vesper shook the thought away as soon as it formed.
There was no way she was doing something that foolish. She’d regretted every time they’d fucked. Every single time. Sure, it was a great time in the moment. Helped her work out a lot of frustration. But she never felt good about things after. Like the past week. She’d been so messed up in her head that she blew through her money just for a one-night distraction.
Okay, a several night distraction.
It wasn’t just Vesper who was fucked up after, either. Bellamywas always a little clingier, more jealous and possessive. It was shitty for both of them, and Vesper hated it. Hated her.
They’d already fucked, too recently. She knew Bellamy wasn’t satisfied with how it had ended. Vesper almost laughed. She could picture the outrage so clearly. It meant that Bellamy would just be doubling down her efforts to get Vesper in her clutches again. That was why Vesper was banished from her apartment for the rest of the day and the entire night.
If she went back, they’d fuck. She knew that. Knew she was weak. And Vesper absolutely did not want to do that again. Not so soon.
Cedar was the better option. She usually provided a good distraction—fine, shealwaysprovided a good distraction—and she never fought with Vesper. Never tried to hurt her like Bellamy did. Cedar was an herbalist, not an assassin. She didn’t have it in her to give and take pain like Bel did.
Staying with Cedar was safer, less likely to mess her head up more. Vesper hated how much she had to convince herself not to ditch Cedar and go back to her apartment to fight with Bellamy. Shecouldjust fuck and then leave… get it out of her system. She’d never spent the night with Cedar before. Their relationship wasn’t like that.
It would be better if she didn’t risk any run-ins with Bellamy, though.
Vesper groaned, ignoring the looks she got from people passing on the street. This was not a debate. She had to stop thinking about Bellamy like that. Vesper had just let her win too recently. That was all this was. Bellamy—like she always did—took that win, and wormed her way into Vesper’s brain, and wouldn’t fucking leave.
