I laugh when Sasha tries to poach on his food, and he tells her no. He says he only has enough for him, but I happen to know he has a fridge full of prepped food. Karma is a bitch. She gave up her ass less than twenty-four hours ago, and now he won’t share his food. I do believe vengeance is a dish best served cold.
A week passes, and Irelyn has since gone, taking her slutty cousin with her. Things have returned to normal, but Phoenix has been a little hot and cold. Some days, he can be sweet and considerate, and other days he can be a douche. He offers to watch Elementary recordings with me one day, and then another day, he tells me, “Meh, that show is for pussies.” One day, he seems to enjoy my company, and the next day, he is entertaining his groupies. I swear, he gives me whiplash. The good thing is I haven’t reverted back to the black baggy clothes. I’ve been wearing mostly jeans and T-shirts still, but they fit. Irelyn couldn’t wait to take me to get a few things before she left. It’s not as bad as I thought. I’m just glad I have someone like her in my life who cares enough to call me out on my shit. I miss her already, but she needed to go home to get packed because classes start in a week.
Phoenix
I’m on the sofa, killing time on the Nixon website looking at watches, when Harlow comes downstairs at a snail’s pace. I zero in on her legs that are on display in the cheer shorts she obviously slept in. She is sexy as fuck. I’ve been at constant half-mast ever since she started showing that banging ass body she had been hiding. She’s quite stacked, with a D rack and an ass you could probably set your beer on. The guys have kept their ogling in check, but I know they have thought about what it would be like to fuck her just once. That shy, immature way she has toward men is at odds with the package she comes in. She’s not going to be ready for the attention headed her way once she sets foot on the University of Alabama campus. She has no idea how gorgeous she is, yet so down to earth. She is a rare find.
I do note that she is looking a little pale as she gets closer. I watch as she goes to the refrigerator and puts her head against it. I get up to see what is wrong.
“What’s wrong, Harlow?”
“I don’t know. I just don’t feel very well. I’m achy all over.” I feel her head with the back of my hand, and she is burning up.
“You definitely have a fever. What did you come down here to get? I’ll get it for you.”
She uses her hand to push off the fridge, and I can’t help but notice her cleavage push up against her tank as well. God, she is sick, and here I am, checking out her tits.
“I just needed to get something to drink,” she replies.
“You need to eat something, too. Go get back in bed, and I’ll bring it to you.” She looks at me hesitantly but then decides to listen. She heads back the way she came. I set about fixing something I think she will be able to tolerate while sick. I make her oatmeal with a little more water in it than I use for myself so that it has a soupy consistency and will be easier to get down. I make toast and pull out a breakfast tray while I’m waiting for the two slices to pop up in the toaster. Lastly, I add a glass of orange juice to the tray before grabbing some cold and flu medicine we keep in the medicine cabinet downstairs. I don’t know what other symptoms she has, but this should take care of them all. I head back to the kitchen to put the remaining shit on the tray and take it to her.
Harlow has already fallen asleep, so I set the tray next to her on the nightstand and shake her gently.
“Wake up, sleepyhead. You need to eat.” She rolls over and looks at me with those beautiful grays, and I feel a twinge of something in my stomach.
I help her sit up and place the breakfast tray on her lap. She gets all misty-eyed and mouths, “Thank you.”
“No problem. Here. Take the medicine first,” I suggest as I take the two capsules out of the foil packaging for her. I hand them to her, and she swallows them down with the orange juice. She takes a tentative spoonful of the oatmeal, and again, I encourage her to eat. I step into the hallway to make a phone call after I’m satisfied she is doing as she is told.
“Hello?” Sevyn picks up the phone after the first ring. “Phoenix? Where are you, man?”
“Sorry, dude, but there has been a change in plans. I can’t meet up with you today to handle that for you. Can you reschedule?” Sevyn and I have an undisclosed arrangement. We help each other at predetermined times, but our individual involvement with said help is kept strictly between us. The guys know he exists, but only by name. They don’t know where I spend my time when I leave here.
On the other hand, he knows about the life I have here, and I know of his. Our partnership requires us both to be knowledgeable of each other’s personal life so that the arrangement we have in place is not sidelined by surprises. We have to know what timelines are available to us to be beneficial to each other. Nobody outside of the two of us can know about our connection if our arrangement is to work.
“I guess I’m going to have to reschedule. I would appreciate a little notice next time, though. This makes me look bad.” He sighs.
“I didn’t know ahead of time. Harlow is sick, and nobody’s here to look after her. I don’t know where the hell the guys are. They were gone when I got up.” I’m prepared for teasing since I don’t normally give two shits about anyone but myself, according to him. Instead, he lets me off the hook.
“Fine. I’ll text you later with a new date and time.” We hang up, and I see that Harlow has fallen asleep again, this time with the tray still in her lap. She finished the orange juice, at least. I walk over and collect everything to take back to the kitchen. I’m tempted to slide into the bed next to her, but with how on edge I’ve been, I don’t know if I could maintain my control at that proximity. I’m not a saint. She tempts me like no other. Sometimes I feel like she is wearing me down and not the other way around. The fact that I fucked Sasha set us back tremendously. Although I backed out of giving Sasha the whole Dom experience, I still gave her multiple orgasms. That night with her was gratifying at the moment, but I hate the rift it’s caused between Harlow and me. I know that she likes me; her jealousy proved that. The crazy thing is, I now feel that it goes beyond the sexual attraction I picked up on initially. Imagine that. Someone wants me for more than just my dick, yet we both continue to participate in this orchestrated dance where we ignore and avoid the inevitable.
Be that as it may, I still have needs right now. I need something tight I can slip in and out of, and then carry on about my business, but I can’t leave Harlow here alone to fend for herself. I almost consider the possibility of rubbing one out, although I haven’t done that in ages, when I hear the guys coming in downstairs. Thank fuck.
“Where in the hell have you guys been?” I ask. I noticed that Asher is not with them.
“Ren and I went to visit the deep throat twins.” Killian grins. “Damn, those women have skills.” Ren nods his head in agreement.
“Don’t get caught up, fellas. Knocking on the same door too many times leads to someone catching feelings and shit.” I personally have a three fucks and you’re out rule. And that’s only if her shit is phenomenal. Basic bitches get the standard one-night stand. If any of them knew the restraint of my actual desires, they’d probably run. Then again, some would be foolish enough to stay and accept all the darkness I unleash, just to have a piece of me. I have to be mindful of the weak. I require submission, not a pushover.