Page 92 of His Obsession

“In the movies, they always drive nice flashy cars, go to expensive parties with beautiful women and booze.” I filled him in on the movies I had watched as research during the weeks I was laid up in my home. His laughter continued as we picked up speed on the interstate, making my body press into the expensive leather seats.

“Those are the movies. Flashy cars draw attention that I don’t want. Besides, this may look like a typical sedan, but it’s worth more than that. You can’t put a body in the trunk of a Ferrari,” he said, winking at me. My eyes widened in shock, surprised he would joke about dead bodies. “Some of those parts in the movies were real, Liz. I will not clarify which ones.”

“Seeing what I’ve seen now, I’m sure I can accurately guess,” I said.

I know on some moral ground, I’m toeing the line of being just as bad by not caring. But after everything I had been through, I couldn’t seem to find the Liz that would have cared about it. What did that say about me?

“Are you okay?” he asked, worry coating his words.

“I’m good. How about we get something to eat? I’m starving.” I gave him a smile that reached my eyes.

His shoulders relaxed, and the corners of his lips peaked. “I know just the place.”

∞∞∞

Alek dropped me off at my place so I could get ready for our dinner date. It was the first actual date we had—I didn’t consider the one with Jake and Lucy a date at all. He told me I needed to dress fancy. This place had a dress code. I freaked out at first, not able to think of what I would wear.

“Liz, wear the red dress, it cups your tits and shapes your ass,” Lucy said, grabbing it from the hanger and molding it to her body.

I scrunched my nose and shook my head; there was no way I was wearing something like that. Those things worked on Lucy’s body, but not mine. I preferred to leave some curves to the imagination. I didn’t want people staring at me. Besides, it didn’t cover my scars and would show all of them with the slit that ran clear up to the hip.

I grabbed a deep purple long-sleeved lace dress that fell down to the knees. The dark lacy sleeves were elegant and covered enough to hide the scars on my shoulders and long enough to cover my thighs. “What about this one?” I placed it on my body and looked in the mirror. It was perfect.

“I guess,” she said, rolling her eyes. She put the red dress back in the closet and pulled out a pair of square-heeled pumps. “These will go great with that.” She handed them to me and plopped on the bed, grunting.

“Thanks.”

“Where are you even going?”

“He is taking me to Lucky Lucci, it’s a fancy Italian restaurant.” My grin beamed, and I couldn’t stop the red from scorching my cheeks.

Lucy shot to a seated position and fanned herself. “Oh my God,” she said, like one of those jersey girls. “Lucky Lucci’s, that’s so fancy.” Her stupid imitation made me roll my eyes and laugh. I slipped the rest of the dress on and walked into the bathroom to do my hair and makeup.

“Lucy, you better get in here,” I said, trying to do my best Ricky Ricardo impersonation. She laughed, rounding the corner, and stopped when she saw my eyeliner run across my face.

She put her hands across her mouth to stop the uncontrollable giggling that erupted from her mouth. “What the fuck did you do?”

My hand was shaking so badly from the nerves I couldn’t keep a straight line while doing my wing. It jerked when I moved to connect it at the corner of my eye. The black liner ran right to my eyebrow. “It’s not funny! I need your help. This is a disaster.” I grabbed the pad soaked with makeup remover and wiped the streak from my face.

Lucy sobered and took the pen from my trembling hands. Her palm was gently resting on my cheek as she finished the wing I butchered. Grabbing the eyeshadow brush, she swiped it over the palate of lavender and completed my look. By the time she finished, I had taken enough deep breaths to calm myself, so I didn’t poke myself in the eye with my mascara wand.

“That’s better,” she said.

“You are a lifesaver. You have no idea.” I turned, giving her a hug. “Now, for the hair.”

I had a perfect idea for my hair. I would leave it down but curl it so large ringlets would hang down. Alek loved it when I left it down. He was always trying to take it out of my ponytail.

“Liz, are you ready?” a deep, husky voice said, alerting me to Alek standing in my bedroom doorway.

I licked my lips and took in Alek standing before me. His five o’clock shadow perfectly trimmed, his black suit was flawless as always, and his styled hair made me want to run my fingers through it. I shook my head out of my daydream, imagining all the things I wanted to do to him. “What are you doing here? I have thirty more minutes.”

“I was in the neighborhood,” he said, smirking. His smile caused heat to pool in my belly.

“Well, I’m not done with my hair, so have a seat in the chair and wait.” I pointed to the chair covered in clothes I had thrown out of my closet to find the right one. I watched Alek grab the dresses and toss them on my bed, taking his seat.

From this angle, I could watch him in the mirror, and he knew it. His gaze caught mine, and we held it until Lucy interrupted.

“What are your intentions with my friend?” she started in on him.