“There. Now let’s talk.”
My heart can’t decide how it feels about this. By default, it felt right to demand the money, but I think a small part of me was still hoping that last night was a fluke, that Nico really does care for me.
But I take one look at the cash and square my shoulders, stepping right back into my escort heels. I let a seductive smile slide across my lips as I uncross my legs and spread them.
“So, how can I help you, Mr. Price?”
This time, it’s frustration that flashes across his face at the name. Stepping forward, he places his hands on my knees and tries to push them together. “Scarlett, stop it.”
I manage to maneuver us so instead of my legs closing, I can wrap them around the backs of his legs to pull him into the V of my thighs. “But this is so much morefunthan talking,” I say in a playful whine. Guiding his hands up my thighs, I lean forward to speak against his lips. “Don’t you remember how good it feels to touch me?”
His hands reach my hips, and his grip immediately tightens. I watch as he squeezes his eyes shut, clearly struggling.
“Don’t,” he says in a harsh whisper. “Just…please, don’t.”
“Why not?” My tone is flat and emotionless. “You practically said it yourself, I’m just a whore. This is what I do.”
In an instant, Nico’s entire demeanor changes.
His eyes shoot open and lock onto mine, hurt and palpable regret swirling in their depths. His face goes slack, as do his shoulders and his grip on me. All of a sudden, he looks exhausted.
“I didn’t mean that,” he says firmly, but with a sadness I feel all too well. “I swear to God, Scarlett, I didn’t mean that. And I’m so fucking sorry that I said it. I—” He looks away, his throat bobbing on a swallow. “It threw me off when I ran into that guy, and I took it out on you. Inevershould’ve said those things to you. You didn’t deserve it, and I hate myself for hurting you with it.”
I study him for a moment. I already knew Nico’s freakout was a reaction to running into a client, but what I don’t know is whether the things he said were thoughts finally spoken, or something else.
In the end, I simply keep the emotionless tone and come back with the truth.
“Doesn’t really matter. You were right.”
There’s a flash of anger in his eyes. “ThefuckI was. You are not a whore.”
I roll my eyes at him. “Nico, I literally sleep with?—”
“You are not what youdo, Scarlett.”
It isn’t his outburst that stuns me into silence, it’s the conviction with which he says it.
He must see something in my eyes because he immediately softens.
“You are so much more than you give yourself credit for,” he says, the longing in his expression making my skin tingle all over. “You keep putting yourself in this box because you’re scared to see yourself as anything more. Because your parents and some fucked-up situation three years ago landed you in this twisted lifestyle that you won’t let yourself get out of. Iwant to get you out.” There’s a twinge of desperation in his voice now. “Please, Scarlett, let me get you out. Let me convince you that you’re more than this, that you’re smart and kind and perfect all on your own.”
I want to believe him. Iwantto believe I’m more than just a man’s accessory.
But we already went down this road, and I don’t trust Nico enough to believe him again.
I meet his eyes and hold them as I ask quietly but without wavering, “Why would I do that when, at the first sign of trouble, you accused me of lying to you and acted like a completely different man than the one I’ve come to know?”
The breath he sucks in is audible. I don’t know what he expected me to say, but it wasn’t that.
Slowly, he lets out a big exhale. “Okay. Okay, let’s talk about that.”
I straighten where I’m still sitting on the counter. “Fine. Let’s.”
Seeming to read that I need a little bit of space for this, he backs up against the opposite counter and slides his hands into his pockets. His words are careful when he speaks.
“You know I ran into your client last night. Which wouldn’t have been a big deal, but he said something about you that really bothered me.” Guilt flashes in his eyes. “And instead of asking you about it, I reacted emotionally. I fucked up.” He glances away as he mutters, “It didn’t help that I saw you with Tyler, either.”
“Who’s a piece of shit, by the way,” I snap at the reminder. “Are you friends with him?”
