“Sienna, why don’t you go get some air,” Luke orders, his voice dismissive and cold as he prepares our drinks. She huffs, rolls her eyesdramatically, and disappears through the glass doors. I’m not wasting any time.
I slip a small USB drive from inside my bra and quickly plug it into the side of his laptop. I listen as the low hum of the fan stops. Tiernan said that would happen if it worked. At least that’s covered.
“So…” I start, trying to sound like I didn’t just fry his computer. “You must stay here often if they justgaveyou this room.”
“Yeah, Vegas is basically my second home. I know gambling isn’t the best habit, but I’m good at it and it fills the time when I’m not working.”
I nod as he glances over his shoulder at me. “That makes sense,” I respond. “I can see why you’d want to come to a place like Vegas. So full of people and parties, it must be easier to blend in, right? Everyone’s so focused on having a good time that they probably don’t even notice you.”
He pauses, his hands cutting an orange into thin slices as he contemplates. “Yeah,” he finally mutters. “It also beats sitting in a mansion in L.A.… alone.” He mixes vodka and some ingredients I don’t recognize together in a stainless-steel shaker. “Fame can be lonely, you know?” he adds as he shakes the mixture over his right shoulder.
My head tilts, and I gaze toward the balcony, where Sienna’s silhouette is stark against the bright neon lights. “I find that hard to believe.” I reply, my voice dripping with feigned sympathy. “You have Sienna right there.”
Luke pauses, his eyes cutting to mine with a flicker of something vicious. “This thing with Sienna isn’t real. She’s nice to look at, the sex is great, but let’s be honest — she isn’t exactly interesting. She’s just part of the brand.” He shrugs, totally dismissive of the woman who’s standing twenty feet away.
Aw, the rich and famous actor wants me to feel bad for him. I didn’t think he could get any more pathetic, but somehow, he keepsproving me wrong. He isn’t just a narcissist, or just an asshole; he’s a predator who doesn’t even view his own girlfriend as a person. He views her simply as an asset.
Luke turns around again, pouring liquid into two glasses, and I take this opportunity to remove the USB I plugged into his computer
Each glass has an orange slice floating on top of the pinkish liquid and a tiny straw inside. He offers me the glass in his left hand, drinks from the one in his right, and then sits down next to me, watching me the entire time. I put the straw in my mouth and pretend to take a sip, but I’m not that stupid. I know what he’s capable of.
In an effort to get the drink out of my hand, I reach for my phone, mustering up as much feigned enthusiasm as I can manage. Then I sing out, “Hey, let’s take a selfie! It’s not every day you’re in Luke Holloway’s penthouse.”
He sets his drink down next to mine, chuckling and nodding in agreement. Leaning in, he wraps an arm around my waist, sliding his hand along my lower back on the way. My skin is crawling, especially after his comments about Sienna, but I fight the urge to pull away.
I take the photo quickly and look back down at the screen. “I can AirDrop it to you, or are you one of those green-text-bubble guys?”
Luke lets out another small chuckle. “Yeah, I’ll take it. Maybe I’ll show Locke the next time I run into him. I’d love to see the look on his face when he finds out we were alone together.”
I swallow down a cackle at the thought of just how much Locke already knows and settle for a shallow, mindless giggle instead. “Luke’s iPhone? It’s on the way!”
I watch as he taps on the screen to accept the file with a smug, unsuspecting grin on his face. He’s so blinded by his own ego that he doesn’t even realize he just invited a malicious payload directly onto his phone. He thinks he’s getting ammo he can use against Locke. In reality, he just handed Tiernan the keys to his whole digital life.
“Nice moves, A. I’m in,” I hear Tiernan whisper through my earpiece. “Keep him occupied a bit longer, will you?”
I let out a sigh of relief and grab my drink from the bar top. It feels like the hard part is over. Now I wait. Luke sips from his glass, while I consider my next move.
Just then, the glass door slides open, and Sienna saunters back in from the balcony. She doesn’t look refreshed; she looks bored and eager to start trouble. She stops by the bar, trailing a perfectly manicured finger over the back of Luke’s neck before her eyes lock onto mine.
“Still here?” she asks, her voice dripping with sheer disgust. “I thought you’d have bored him to death by now.”
I don’t want to drink, but with both of them staring at me like I’m the evening’s entertainment, it’s getting harder to avoid. I take a small sip. It tastes fine, smells fine too, but I know that means nothing. If they drugged this, they’ll be waiting for the first slip.
“Hey, did you see that giant birdcage?” I ask, looking around the space to break the tension.
“Of course, how could anyone miss it?” Luke says, rolling his eyes. They’re glazing over in a way that wasn’t there before; the alcohol must be catching up to him.
“It’s hideous, isn’t it?” Sienna adds with a bitter smirk on her lips. She leans against the bar, watching me over the rim of her glass. “Luke was throwing a total fit because someone snagged his usual suite tonight. He thinks this one isgaudy.”
She pauses, her eyes raking over me with practiced disdain before she lets out a sharp, mocking laugh.
“I told him I’d happily let him lock me in there just to make the decor worth it, but he wasn’t interested.” Her smile sharpens as she looks me up and down. “Maybe he’s looking for something a little more unwilling tonight. Is that it?”
“What, you don’t like it?” I ask Luke, ignoring Sienna and trying to sound fascinated while I slowly start making my way over to the gold bars, drawing him away from the bar and her watchful eyes.
Luke doesn’t look at Sienna or acknowledge her comment. He just huffs, his words thick and slurring as he focuses entirely on me. “Itisgaudy. Cheap gimmicks for people with no taste. Like she said, some asshole snagged my favorite penthouse tonight, so I’m stuck with it.”
He takes a heavy swallow of his drink, his eyes dark and body swaying. As he says it, a spark of satisfaction flares in my chest. I can’t help but wonder if Locke is the one sitting in his favorite room right now.
