Duplicity Read online

  “Well . . . I just . . . I got distracted.” Dana shrugged and glanced away, but not before Lilith caught the look her face. Lilith had to stifle a groan. She knew that lovesick look, that giddy glow of infatuation. As well she should. Dana wore it often enough. Dana was boy crazy, and she had a knack for picking partners who were all kinds of wrong for her.

  Mal wrinkled his nose. “Oh, Dana. Not another one.”

  “He’s sweet, Mal. He’s so sweet.”

  He groaned, but the noise was resigned. “You don’t say.” He looked up at Lilith, and they shared an exasperated but affectionate expression.

  Lilith gave a minute shrug of her shoulders as Dana waxed romantic about her latest crush. It could be worse. They both knew how bad it could get.

  All things considered, her trepidation over just what kind of a loser this latest guy could be was a welcome change to the downright dangerous path Dana had been walking two years before. The boys she tended to fall in with these days weren’t the pick of the litter, but they weren’t complete assholes either.

  It could be so much worse.

  Breakfast came, and the atmosphere between the three friends got lighter. About forty minutes later, they were ready to leave.

  Lilith reached for the check without thinking, but Mal pushed her hands away. “I got this one.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah.” He grinned at her. “They got your order wrong anyway. You shouldn’t have to pay for soggy biscuits.”

  “Heinous stuff,” Dana said around her last mouthful of eggs and stuffed French toast.

  Lilith stared at her friend. “Delicate palate my ass.”

  ~0~

  In the continuing theme, the second mini-emergency of the day struck almost as soon as breakfast was done. Mal and Dana both had class. Dana’s car decided then was a good time to break down. Again. The siblings rode off together—they were going to the same school, after all—and Lilith had the joyful task of donning coveralls to work on the car for the better part of her afternoon.

  She had just enough time to sneak in a nap before work, but of course, that nap had run a little longer than she’d intended. Lilith arrived at work fifteen minutes late and sprinted to the dressing room to change while hoping to avoid her boss. Smith didn’t tolerate tardiness, and the last thing Lilith needed was a lecture tonight or a dock in wages; she was still three hundred dollars short on rent as it was.

  Nodding at the others, Lilith made a beeline for the clothes rack. She shifted through the various dresses and accessories. Smith catered to every fantasy, from dominatrix to librarian. Deciding she didn’t have much time to get fancy, Lilith grabbed the naughty nurse get-up that would allow her to pull her hair back into a ponytail.

  “Hey, good lookin’,” Ethan, the club’s main bodyguard, said as she poked her head out. He was a flirt, but he had no interest in scantily clad women. He had no carnal interest in women period.

  Lilith offered him a grin, and peered around the club. “No one yet?”

  “Nary a soul.” He shrugged. “It’s Tuesday, and it’s early.”

  Not a lot of people were looking for the kind of fun she provided on a Tuesday. Even though she’d been late, the other girls weren’t in any hurry to get out on the floor, so Lilith hopped onto a barstool to wait.

  Almost as soon as she’d settled, she heard the telltale bing-bong from behind the bar. It was the alert that the door to the club had opened, and she looked toward it. A man she’d never seen before stood in the entry. Lilith began assessing him as a potential customer before the bartenders, whose job it was to usher men to tables and booths, had a chance to approach.

  He was huge. He had to have been almost seven feet tall. His arms were bigger than Ethan’s, and that was saying something. He wore a black suit and shirt with a red tie, and his thick, dark hair was combed straight back, reminding Lilith of the hit men in the old mobster movies she used to watch. Lilith knew money when she saw it, and this man was definitely money.

  She also knew trouble when she saw it. The stiff way he stood and the scowl he wore on his angular face gave her a bad feeling. Nonetheless, rent was due. She didn’t have to leave with this clown. Maybe all he wanted was a little hands-on dance. Resolved, she stood from her barstool, straightened her skirt and readjusted her tits.

  “Be careful with this one, Lil Bit,” Ethan said, his tone low as he leaned over the counter. He’d always had a soft spot for her for reasons that escaped Lilith’s comprehension.

  “You know I got this.” She winked and nodded her head toward her boot where she kept the three-inch blade he’d given her when she’d first started working there.

  “Signal if you need me.” They had a system. If she got herself in a predicament with a customer, she would signal to Ethan with her eyes, and he would come over with some made-up excuse. It wasn’t something that happened often, but every once in a while a real nut walked through the door. The crazy ones could be scary.

  Of course, Ethan was only of help while they were still in the club. Once she walked out the door, she was on her own—hence the knife in her boot.

  Lilith focused on her prize, settled now in a booth, and began working her way over, giving the bartender time to get his drink to him. She hoped her initial assessment was wrong. He was intimidating because he was so huge, and if he was coming in alone on a Tuesday night, he’d probably had a bad day.

  Well, she could make it all better. Just what the doctor ordered, right?

  He was a little older than the usual frat boys that frequented the place. He was quite handsome now that he had relaxed a little. Not as handsome as Trey by a long shot, but—

  Lilith stopped short, somewhat disconcerted by the unbidden thought.

  It had been four days since Trey, and she didn’t quite understand why she even remembered his name at that point. There was something about the man that had gotten under her skin, and as much as it irritated her, she couldn’t seem to brush it off.

  Her eyes swept the club again, looking toward a small group of guys that had entered. When she saw they were college-aged, her pulse quickened, and she wondered if he was with them.

  Such a stupid thought, she chastised herself. As if he would appear just because he’d been traipsing around her head for days.

  Just another john, even if he had looked at her in a way . . .

  She shook her head to clear it. Thoughts like that were counterproductive. Rent, rent, rent. That was the one thing she needed to think about. Her work wasn’t so unlike anyone else’s; she wasn’t getting paid to daydream.

  “Hey there, sunshine,” she purred, coming up to his table. “Is this seat taken?”

  His bored expression turned into a charming grin so quick, it was almost comical. He slid over to make room for her. “Well, hello.” When she sat, he leaned in, his voice a rumble near her ear. “I didn’t eat my apple a day to make sure I didn’t keep the doctor away.”

  Oh, he thought he was clever. Never mind that she was in a nurse’s outfit and not a doctor’s. Lilith gave an appreciative giggle, as if he was as funny as he thought he was, and leaned forward so she could feel the heat of his skin. “Well, you look plenty healthy to me.” She drew her hand down his chest. “But maybe we should check. Just to make sure.”

  He grabbed her wrist hard enough that she gasped. “Easy, sweetheart,” he said in a low, borderline threatening timbre. “I know your little tricks. You keep your hands where I can see them—out of my pockets—won’t you?”

  Lilith’s eyes narrowed, and she yanked back her arm, scrambling to get out of the booth. “What the hell is wrong with you, prick? Are you accusing me of trying to steal from you? I wasn’t trying to get to your pockets.”

  “Settle down, kitten.” He leaned back, one arm thrown over the back of the booth.

  What she should have done was walk away from him. She knew better than to engage an asshole customer. But he’d pushed the wrong button, and she was pissed. “Listen, rich bi
tch, unlike some of us at this table, I work for a living. I don’t take anything I don’t earn.”

  He chuckled.”You are a pistol, aren’t you?” Another chuckle. “My name’s Francis, by the way. Frank.” He reached out, drawing his hand down her side. “Why don’t you tell me—”

  She smacked his hand away. “You don’t get to touch me.” She leaned into his bubble space and got right in his face with a sneer. “That’s how pathetic you are—you couldn’t pay me to fuck you.”

  Spinning on her heel, Lilith was ready to storm away, but he grabbed her by the arm. “Don’t walk away from me.”

  “Bite it.” She yanked her arm from his grasp and flipped the bird before she strode off.

  There’d been a rush in the time it had taken her to get to him and the infuriating minutes they’d been talking. The club was dark, the music pumping, and there were a lot of people milling about. She shouldered her way along the edge of the crowd, slipping into the spots the lights didn’t touch, so she could get to the back to regroup. She was unaware her little friend had followed her until he had grabbed her again and dragged her into a secluded corner.

  Lilith’s back hit the wall, and Frank’s arms came up around her, caging her against it. She looked toward the bar for Ethan to come help her out, but she couldn’t see him anywhere.

  Her thoughts were a crazy whirl in her head. She knew how to defend herself, but this guy wasn’t attacking her—not really. These guys were used to being in charge, and a lot of them liked it rough. If she overreacted with a client, caused a scene in the club, Smith would be pissed. She would be out of a job and shit out of luck.

  Frank huffed. “Just in case you were wondering, this little hard-to-get act is not cute.” His hand was heavy on her cheek. “Okay, princess. You win. You should be paying me for the fun we’re going to have tonight, but I’ll bite.” He started to grope through his pockets.

  Taking the opening where she saw one, Lilith ducked under his arm. “Look, I think it’s sweet of you to have donated your brain to science, but you need to listen to me now. You—” she poked her finger at him “—are not getting any of this.” She gestured at herself.

  The expression that twisted Frank’s face was chilling. That was when she knew with certainty her first assessment was right. He was trouble. He was one of those guys. The world was his, and her body was nothing but a toy to him.

  “Hey, Francis,” someone said in a booming voice. Frank stopped mid-step. “It’s a small world. I wouldn’t have expected to run into you here.”

  Lilith had never been more relieved and elated to see someone in her life. “If you’ll excuse me, it looks like I almost forgot about my appointment,” she said to Frank, stepping to Trey’s side and looping her arm through his. “Silly me.”

  Pushing up on her tiptoes, she kissed Trey—a long, slow, hot kind of kiss. His gasp of surprise was muffled against her mouth, but he got the idea just a second later. He returned her kiss with gusto, his hand cupped against her cheek.

  When she pulled back, she wound her arm around his waist and leaned against his side to look at Frank.

  He was glowering. “You make appointments?” He sounded suspicious.

  “Sorry, bud. You snooze, you lose.” He winked at Frank and put his arm around her shoulder as he guided her toward the door.

  They got outside the club, and Lilith pulled away. “Sorry about that, kid.”

  “Was he bothering you?” His tone was calm, and his stance casual when he asked, but there was an intense look in his eyes.

  Lilith shrugged. “He was just a bit thick. In the big head.” She jerked her thumb at the club. “Some of the jackasses in there don’t understand that we still get a choice in the matter. We can choose our, er . . . customers.”

  He hummed in response.

  “So you knew that prick?”

  Trey snorted. “Good ol’ Francis was a TA when I was an undergrad. He hates me because I’m smarter than he is, even though he’s got a few years on me.”

  “Well, no offense, but it doesn’t seem like it would take much to be smarter than him.” Shaking off the remainder of her nerves, she smiled up at him, making her expression sly and inviting. “So. Did you come back for more, or were you looking for one of the others? Just because I told that asshole we had an appointment doesn’t mean you’re on the hook.”

  He pretended to sigh. “Well, I have no choice now. If I go back in there, I’ll get a reputation for being a minuteman.”

  Lilith nodded with mock seriousness. She put her thumb to her lower lip, pouting it out. “Won’t you allow me to rectify the situation?”

  His smile crawled up his face and he offered his hand. “We might be able to work something out.”

  Chapter 3

  Lilith wasn’t going to win any awards for best guest. Miss Manners would be horrified. For one thing, she’d walked into Mal’s apartment unannounced, pushing by one of his roommates without so much as a ‘how you doing’. Then, rather than being attentive, she was sitting in his room, on his bed, spaced out.

  It wasn’t often Lilith visited Mal’s apartment, and with good reason. Sitting in his room never failed to throw into sharp relief how surreal their friendship was. Mal’s personal space was a room in an apartment he shared with three other undergrads. A glance showed a staggering difference between his life and hers. Beyond his room, the apartment was spotless. How he managed that when it was four guys—and their significant others more often than not—in one space was beyond Lilith.

  It looked like the apartment of a normal twenty-year-old man.

  Not that she and Dana were slobs. Their apartment just always looked cluttered and dingy. Lived in, she supposed, just like the she felt: a little worn, a little shabby.

  Then again, everything about Mal and his life was neater. Of the three of them, he’d managed to get out of childhood with his feet on solid ground beneath him. He’d gone straight from high school to college on a full scholarship. He worked hard at a student job to pay for his share of the apartment, and he had a beautiful, talented girlfriend who was likewise putting herself through school. Unlike Lilith and Dana, he had no record. He’d kept his nose clean even though he’d been through the same bullshit.

  It wasn’t to say he’d made it out of their ordeal unscathed, but he was doing well.

  Lilith wondered if Mal would have anything to do with her if it wasn’t for Dana, or if they hadn’t been thrown together by shared circumstances. They hadn’t been that good of friends before seventh grade. If they’d met now, there would be no chance of them being friends at all.

  For some reason, it all made her think of Trey and his immaculate home. She’d felt out of place both times she’d been there, as though she didn’t belong in clean places with nice things.

  The night before, she’d tried to keep them in his car. She’d spent the drive to his place whispering filthy things in his ear, determined to distract him from his strange inquisitiveness. Her dirty mouth and her fingers traipsing along his inner thigh worked for a time. When they’d arrived at his place, he only got out of the car long enough to pull her into the backseat.

  When she was straddling his lap and he was sliding inside her, it occurred to Lilith that she’d missed him. She realized then she was glad he’d come back, glad they had more time together.

  More than once, since their first encounter, Lilith had wondered if the way Trey had treated her, the way he’d looked at her would change if they saw each other again. Had it been just the mood he was in that night? Or was it that he’d been thinking of someone else? Often the men who came into their club had a particular person in mind - someone who was forbidden to them.

  Lilith didn’t much care one way or another what the men who were with her thought, but she had to admit if she had a least favorite client, it would be the ones who were pretending she was someone specific. It wasn’t that it bothered her that they asked her to wear certain items or they called out different names—none of t
hem were with her when they were together anyway. It was the look on their faces when they realized it was all a fleeting delusion.

  No one wanted to be looked at like that—like their mere presence was a letdown.

  But Trey treated her with the same degree of gentleness as before. Even in the darkness of the private carport, she could see his eyes intent on her as they moved together. His fingers, curled on either side of her hip, caressed her skin.

  Further proving he was unchanged, even as they found a comfortable rhythm, he’d begun throwing questions again.

  Did she have a favorite position, as he used his nose to tilt her head back so he could kiss her neck?

  Was her favorite position the same as the one she was best at, as his hands splayed wide over her bare back?

  Struck by the absurdity of the situation—it was like having a calm business conversation while she was riding him like a show pony—she’d giggled. It was such an honest, unplanned response, it had startled her.

  The motion of her laughter and the effect it had on the way they were connected made him gasp, and he’d been distracted enough to give in to the language of sex. It was a guttural language—all sighs and moans. There was no room for talk, and Lilith was back in her element. She was fluent in this dialect.

  When it was over, she’d let him lay her down on the seat. He seemed to want to take care of her, so she let him button her back up.

  He’d gotten out of the car then, holding his hand out palm up. He held a bill in his other hand, extending it to her. “Come inside?”

  It struck her that even though he was paying, he was not demanding. He’d offered her a choice without assuming.

  “Hey, Lil.”

  Lilith snapped out of her reverie, blinking as Mal waved his hand in front of her eyes. He chuckled. “Are you okay? I mean, not that I mind you hanging around while I do all this fascinating homework, but you’ve been kind of staring off for almost an hour now.” He winked at her. “The silence is a welcome change and all, but it’s a little unnerving.”