Love Me in the Dark novel Chapter 25

RIVER

What the hell did I get myself in?

When I came with him to his penthouse, I had no idea my life would be more complicated than it already did. Now my life had changed drastically. I was frowning all the time, wishing I could take back what I said.

I barely ate my food even if it was delicious. We talked about how my life would be the moment I came with him. But it was what he wanted for me—that kind of talk that he had already decided what was best for me. I barely shared my opinion, even though I knew it would be useless. I didn’t even get a chance to tell him what I wanted my life would be if this arrangement would continue.

It was like a one-way trip—no coming back. Once I disagreed with his terms, then we were done. It was what he had been trying to talk to me about, or something more. I could feel it. He was still holding up something. Or maybe I wasn’t there yet—to know whatever it was.

After our lunch, he went out for a business meeting. He said he wanted to buy a company that was settling for a nasty divorce. He left me alone with one sentence. Text me what you don’t like about what's in your room. That’s it. He’s gone.

So we just fucked, then we went separate ways after that. If we fucked on the couch, Krew went to his room after, and I would go to mine. What kind of relationship was that? He was like my fuck buddy, for the time being, then when this was over, I was all alone.

I stared at the key in my hand, berating myself not to get tempted to check what was in the room, but then I had to sleep, shower, and eventually change to something before he came back.

I took a deep breath, inserted the key into the keyhole, then I pushed the door open as if there was a ready prank inside. I flicked the light. To my surprise, it was not what I was expecting. What was in front of me was beyond my imagination. The room was as big as his, but it was a mix of European modern and classic style inspired by Victorian, Greek, and Roman designed with a touch of minimalist color of off white, grayish, and beige with sleek and neutral surfaces. Oh, my. The guitar. He brought it with him.

The furniture was less carving, and undoubtedly, they ditched the knick-knack and used the art mounted on the wall. A modern balloons-like chandelier hanging from the ceiling was exquisite. There were posh sofas, but what caught my attention the most was the extra-king-sized bed with grey velvet headboard.

Ignored the tingles on my skin when I thought of many ideas about how to make use of that very inviting bed. I stepped closer to the door than I thought the walk-in closet.

“What the hell?” The frown on my forehead deepened. There were tons of women's clothes hanging in the closet. From dresses, casual wear, formal, you named it, and still had tags. My curiosity kicked in more. I opened every drawer, and I found lingerie, accessories, bags, belts, jewelry, and shoes. Oh, my god, these shoes. I wished I could afford to buy one. Everything in here was designers, and I would age seventy, I was still not done paying for all of these.

I closed all doors and walked out of the room. “Wait a sec. They’re my size.” I shook that thought off. That must be Krys’ or his previous fuck buddies. Or he used to spoil women to lure them to bed by offering that room.

I scrunched my nose. “Ew! Ew, ew. Just ew.” I shivered at the thought of sharing garments with his former partners.

I felt a twist in my gut. I settled in the entertainment area, turned the tv on, scrolled down some movies on Netflix, and let them play. My mind went back to Briar. I wanted to end this so that I could start searching for a permanent job. I completely agreed with Krew on one thing—to end whatever Briar was trying to do to me.

I planned on meeting him in public to convince him to stop stalking me. What if he would get hysterical?

The movie I played didn’t interest me anymore. I laid down on the couch and grabbed my phone. I texted Journey before I closed my eyes.

“Bored?” A squeezed on my leg jolted me up. My heart was in my throat as I stared at the most handsome man in a suit looking down on me.

“You surprised me. How did the meeting go?” Wow! It sounded so natural asking him. It even surprised me.

A small smile curved up his lips. “We’re still negotiating.” He leaned over to kiss me on my lips. “I missed you,” he said between kisses.

Should I respond? I kissed him back instead.

“How’s your day?” he asked, already standing with his hands in his pockets. He looked more powerful when he did that.

“Good.”

“That doesn’t sound good.”

“Better than looking over my shoulders or frightened all the time in my apartment. Are you still planning on going out?”

“Do you wanna go out?”

“Not up for anything, but you may. I think I stay.” I sat straight, wrapped my arms around my knees, and tucked my chin over.

“What’s wrong, River?” He must have noticed my not-so-lively voice. Could he blame me?

“I’m fine.”

“Let me change my clothes. I’ll be right back. We need to talk.” He climbed upstairs. I watched him stop in the middle. “River, did you check your room?”

“Yeah.”

“And? Would you like some changes?”

“I think it was too much for my style.” I met his gaze. I couldn’t exactly read his expression, but he nodded anyway.

“I’ll be right back.”

A few minutes later, he came from behind, hands on my shoulders, massaging me. God, I loved it. I almost moaned when he found my tense muscles. Keep going. Keep going.

“I’ll book a spa for you. Journey can join if you want.” He kissed the top of my head. I wasn’t aware he had this sweet side in him.