Taken by You (Taken by You Book One) (16 page)

I wasn’t quite sure what a gala even was, but I knew from Blake it would involve a bunch of important people who were all dressed up and you had to mingle with them to make appearances. It was the same thing I had to do back home growing up when I wanted to stay home and my dad had a work party, but I wasn’t allowed to because they wanted to give a good impression of the family. I guessed the difference was that I’d be mingling with powerful businessmen and politicians instead of Stan Grubunski, the mattress king of northern Illinois.

“
Blake is out of town, right?” Nicolette asked as she stood in my doorway.

I had told her about my times with Blake, even though I downplayed it a little and tried not to go too in-depth about it all. I knew I could trust her and that she wouldn’t even bother telling any coworkers for fear of losing her own job if someone blabbed and Blake found out. Not only that, but it would risk what I had with Blake and she didn’t want to do that to me.

“
Yeah,” I replied.

“
So you’re free for dinner?” she asked.

“
What did you have in mind?” I asked.

“
Sushi?” she asked.

“
Sounds good. I’ll start getting ready soon,” I said.

My bank account had started to grow, well, stay stagnant, as I didn’t have to worry about paying for anything. It hadn’t been that long, but Blake had groceries bought, paid my rent and my upcoming tuition, and even gave me a few hundred dollars for spending money—and that was on top of the clothes and makeover. I still felt a little leery about it all, but Nicolette said it was nothing different than what the women who married these types of guys did. They married rich guys, never worked a day, and just spent their husbands’ money like it was going out of style. I wasn’t anywhere near there, but it kind of put my mind at ease a bit.

Blake had been sending me sweet text messages as the days wore on and he became a little more comfortable with me. It was nice to get a random “can’t wait to see you” text, even if I knew that his meaning partially, or mostly, was because of the sex I was going to give him. I always found it nice, no matter the relationship or situation, to get these kinds of things from somebody else. It can be lonely when you’re totally alone, without so much as a person to talk to, and with Blake, even though we were nothing more than some arrangement, I at least had the intimacy I wouldn’t get anywhere else.

I wore one of the new outfits I had gotten with Katie out to dinner. It was nothing special—dark-wash jeans, a white button up blouse tucked in, and a pair of Nicolette’s shoes that she demanded I wear because they apparently matched better than anything I had. I only took my phone, some cash, my ID, and my keys, as I figured that carrying around my old purse wasn’t going to look so great with this new outfit and everything. I might bring attention to myself that I wasn’t looking for.

The sushi place was equal parts bar and restaurant. They were all melded together and there was live music, though softer, in the corner playing every night. There was a small line, but Nicolette had called ahead and made a reservation at a small table just barely big enough for two. We sat down before a busboy brought us two iced waters and menus.

They had sheets of paper with a pencil for marking down everything you wanted, from appetizers to sushi, even drinks. You then stuck it in this metal rod and people came out and grabbed all of the sheets before taking them in the back to start on. It was a cool concept, and it almost eliminated the need for a dedicated waiter.

We made our order and stuck it in before a busboy grabbed it only ten seconds later as he made his rounds. Nicolette set down the pencil and looked at me with her hand underneath her chin like she was in love with me.

“
What?” I asked.

“
I just can’t believe what you’ve become,” she said.

“
What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked defensively.

“
I didn’t mean it in a bad way! I just mean that weeks ago you were this shy, soft-spoken, frumpy young girl. Now you’ve blossomed into this young woman who’s more assertive, dresses great, and has a sexy killer haircut that does wonders,” she said.

“
Yeah, well, it’s all because of him. I don’t think I ever would’ve found all this stuff without him,” I said.

“
What’s he like?” she asked.

“
You work with him. You should know,” I said.

“
Yeah, but I’ve never spoken with him. Hell, I don’t think I’ve been within ten feet of him before. He’s a mystery to everyone there,” she said.

“
He’s…himself. He’s not like any man you’ve ever met. He can be reserved when he wants to and then outspoken the next. He likes to be in control, but he’s never been controlling or anything like that,” I said.

“
What do you guys do together? I mean, I’ve know you’ve, you know, had sex, but what else?” she asked.

I felt a couple butterflies before I took a sip of my iced water to try to draw out the time before my response. Our entire arrangement was practically built upon the mutual idea of sex. Sure, we did other things together, and I would do the events with him, but there wasn’t much else to it.

“
Well, he has a nice media room. We’ve watched a movie before, gone out to dinner, and then this event is coming up that I’m accompanying him to,” I said.

“
I heard about that around the office. It’s going to be major,” she said, before the busboy brought us small salads with a thick ginger dressing.

“
What do you mean?” I asked, as I grabbed a pair of chopsticks.

“
It’s going to be the party of the year. Anyone who’s anyone will be there, from politicians, to actors, to businessmen and women. It’s black tie all the way,” she said.

“
Great,” I mumbled.

“
Aren’t you excited?” she asked.

“
Well, it’ll be nice to go with him, and it’s not like anybody will really talk to me or whatever, but you never know what can happen at those types of things. I’m not high-class. I’m not used to being around those types,” I said.

“
Oh, relax. They’re people too, you know. They wipe their ass after they shit just like you,” she said, smiling.

“
Nice visual you gave me there, Nic. That’s what I really needed right now,” I said.

“
All I’m saying is that you should be excited and you never know what will come out of the night,” she said.

“
Excuse me,” I heard, before I received a tap on my shoulder.

I turned to see a man standing there and looking down at me. He wasn’t wearing the uniform of a worker, so I knew he wasn’t an employee.

“
Yes?” I asked.

“
I was just sitting over there with my friends and I couldn’t help but notice how beautiful you are. I know this is so random and out of the blue, but would it be okay if I gave you my number or something? Maybe I could take you out sometime if you’re interested?” he asked.

I could feel myself blush a little as my cheeks warmed up while he looked at me. It was nice being asked out by somebody attractive, especially when it was random like this. It wasn’t a frequent occurrence in my life.

“
She’s got somebody,” Nicolette said.

“
Oh?” the man asked.

“
I’m sorry, I’m seeing somebody right now. Thank you, though. Those were some nice words,” I said.

“
Oh, okay. I’m sorry for wasting your time. Have a good meal,” he said, looking a little defeated and walking back over to his group.

“
Why did you do that?” I asked.

“
What? You are taken,” Nicolette said.

“
So? You should at least be nice and let me take the reins when somebody is talking to me. I would’ve let him down easy,” I said.

“
Oh, so what, Penny. You’re dating a billionaire who buys you shit and is great to you. Who cares about some random guy in a sushi shop?”

I didn’t argue with her anymore, instead eating the rest of my salad and trying to keep this night and dinner pleasant and fun. There was no use in us fighting about some random guy who asked me out—especially when I had to go home with her and listen to it there. I should just be able to hold my head up and be happy that somebody even bothered to come up to me and at least try. It was nice.

Our sushi came out about twenty minutes later on a wooden boat-shaped plate that we shared. I gently dipped my sushi into the pool of soy sauce and wasabi before tasting the creamy complexion that only a California roll could bring. This was the life.

Nicolette wanted to go home earlier than usual that night because she said seeing all these people out with their boyfriends and girlfriends made her nauseous. She never had problems getting a date before, especially using RandomMeetX, but she always seemed to have a problem keeping a man. In fact, I wasn’t sure if I ever really remembered her having a boyfriend for more than a couple weeks.

I was incredibly happy to take off the heels she’d lent me when we got back to the apartment. I could almost feel my feet bleeding as we walked up the stairs, tapping against each wooden step.

“
I’m going to take a bath,” Nicolette said, before slinging herself into the bathroom.

I went into my bedroom, took off my jacket, and tossed my phone onto my bed to change when it buzzed. I picked it up, seeing Blake had texted me, before quickly unlocking it to see what he had sent me.

“
I’m horny
,” he said.

“
I’m sorry but I can’t exactly help you,
” I replied.

“
Yes, you can
,” he replied.

“
??
” I replied.

“
Send me a picture
,” he said.

I had never sent nudes to anybody before, and quite honestly I never saw the appeal—especially when you’ve fucked the person a few times. He’d seen me naked in person, so why would he want a photo of it? It wasn’t like we’d never met and seeing these things would massively turn him on.

“
I’ve never done that before…”
I said.

“
Then start now
,” he replied.

“
What would you even want to see?
” I asked.

“
Those beautiful, perfect perky tits of yours
,” he replied.

I had to admit that seeing him say that kind of turned me on. I knew our arrangement included sex whenever he wanted it, but was this included in the umbrella of needs? I thought it was, especially considering he was so far away and I couldn’t help him out right now.

I walked over and closed my door as I heard Nicolette turn off the water for her bath. I knew she would be in there for a while, but was cautious even though my door was closed and she rarely ever just barged in. I took off my top, tossing it aside, before unclasping my bra and letting it fall to the floor.

With my phone firmly in my right hand, I opened the camera app and clicked for the front-facing camera. I had never seen any part of my body in a picture like this before, and as I looked at my tits staring back at me on the screen, I started to get a bit turned on. I held the camera out as far as possible so I could get them fully in the shot. I clicked the button and the picture was taken, and I saw it being sent to my photos app. I opened that, seeing it there, my first nude photo.

I opened the messages app and attached the picture to the text before sending it to him without anything else. After I clicked send I changed into an old T-shirt, just like I had planned to before I’d gotten the request from Blake.

Within a minute my phone buzzed again and I opened it up hesitantly, as I didn’t know how he was going to like it.

There was a picture attached to the message, and as I opened it, I saw him in the hotel bathroom, marble all around, standing there shirtless and flexing, although his face was cut off from view—just like my picture.

I bit my lower lip as I zoomed in on his abs and saw each and every distinct one looking back at me. God, was he something else. He knew how to push my buttons and turn me on from anywhere in the world.

“
I like what I see
,” I sent.

“
I want to see more
,” he said.

“
Like?
” I asked.

“
Don’t play dumb, Penelope. You know what I want to see
,” he said.

I knew there was no reason to go back and forth with him and play dumb. We both knew what he wanted to see, and it was something I’d shown him plenty of times before. I took off my pants, slid down my panties, and tossed them onto the floor before climbing into bed and propping myself up a little with my pillows. I put my feet flush on the bed and spread my legs before opening the front-facing camera and putting it down there. I snapped a picture and deleted it before going back again and taking another picture, a more flattering one, from a different angle.