Page 27 of Wild King
Let Matthias have them. He’s the man of the hour, so he deserves them. All I get is exiled to an old woman’s house I haven’t seen in nearly ten years.
Thanks for nothing, big brother.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Salem
My sister is waitingfor me at my apartment when I rush in to pack my things for my stay at Kellen’s grandmother’s house. God, that sounds strange. A few days ago, I didn’t even know his name, and now I’ve met his brothers and know more about his grandmother’s house than I know about my own sister’s.
“What happened? Tell me everything. Well, not about the client because I read up on him. Oh, he’s a piece of work. I know you’ll be able to work your magic, but this might be your biggest challenge yet, Salem,” Ever says with glee as she follows me into my bedroom.
I turn around and exhale like I’ve been holding my breath since I walked into that game room at the King house. “The client is the guy I slept with down at that resort over the weekend.”
The words seem to hang in the air like some strange cloud between my sister and me. She looks me dead in the eyes, as if to see if what I just said is the truth.
Yep. It’s the ugly truth, and it’s all out now.
“Shut up! The one that ghosted you? How serendipitous is that?”
The look on her face is utter joy. That seems strange. I expected her to be uneasy about the fact that I’ve slept with our newest client.
“And you’re okay with it?”
She thinks about that question for a moment or two and smiles. “Sure. I mean, you’re a professional, so you’ll do what you do best and fix this guy’s reputation. I know you, Salem. You wouldn’t let your personal life get in the way of doing your job. But that doesn’t mean you can’t make his life harder as a little payback for the shitty thing he did. I say you make him suffer while at the same time saving him. Think of it as balance.”
I open my dresser drawer and begin tossing out bras and panties onto my bed. “I have to say I’m a little surprised at your reaction. I was worried you’d freak out a bit.”
My sister laughs and sits down hard on the bed, making my bras fly off onto the floor. “I think I might be worried if you had parted amicably, but the guy was a total douchecanoe to you, so there’s no chance of the two of you hooking up again. That means you’ll be all business, which I want you to know will kill him. Men hate when women they’ve slept with want nothing to do with them and don’t act like bitches about it. When you show them you’ve moved on, oh, they hate that.”
I glance over at her as her words echo in my head.There’s no chance of the two of you hooking up again.I know that shouldn’t make me sad, but it does. Kellen and I had a wonderful time together down at that resort.
Why did he have to ruin it?
The answer to that question is as obvious as the nose on my face. He wouldn’t need my services as a fixer if he was a great guy. That’s why he ruined what we had together.
Because he’s a dick.
“Well, I’ve definitely moved on,” I say, turning away so my sister can’t see my face, just in case it’s telling a different story from my words.
“Of course, you have!” she says with a laugh, tossing my bras into my suitcase in an attempt to help me. “You’re not the type of woman to stick around once a man shows his true colors. Mama didn’t raise no fool with you or me. So what are you going to do to punish him?”
I shrug, not really thinking of modes of punishment for Kellen at the moment. “I’m not sure. It needs to be something that won’t punish me too since I’ll be in the same house with him for the next twelve weeks.”
Ever collapses onto my bed again and rolls over on her back. Staring up at the ceiling, she grins wickedly. “I say you make sure he sees you with a man in that time. It works on a number of levels. First, no man wants to watch a woman he’s been with having sex with another man. Second, he won’t be getting any for all that time, which is going to be torture for him. It’s perfect!”
Her suggestion stops me dead, and I look over at her in confusion. “Are you saying you want me to have sex with someone so Kellen can see? Are you trying to make sure I need a fixer after this job?”
My question makes all her delight instantly disappear. “You make a good point. Okay, nix that. What else can you do to make him pay?”
“I don’t know, but I’ve got a job to do, so I’m not sure I’m going to have much time to get some old school retribution. Just convincing people to see him as anything but a typical pig is going to be a full-time job.”
My sister shifts so she’s lying on her side and looks up at me. “Is he? I mean, seriously, is he just a pig? I have a hard timebelieving you slept with a man who’s nothing more than that. You usually have better taste in men, Salem. You have no luck with them, but they’re not pigs. Just tools.”
“That’s a comforting thought.”
“You know what I mean. But is he just a pig?”
Unsure how much I want to tell her about my feelings concerning Kellen, I stick with vague comments about him. “I don’t know, but I didn’t find him to be that bad. Yes, he was a little much when I first met him, but as we spent more time together, he grew on me.”