“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“You’re a virgin,” he said, dropping the glass to the bar without turning around.
“I don’t like that word, but… yes, I am.”
Whipping around, he came stalking in her direction. “Then why the fuck did you say you wanted to have sex with me?”
“Because I do!” she called, leaping to her feet, not that it made much difference because he was so much taller than her. To give herself more height, she jumped onto the couch. “I wasn’t saving myself for my wedding night. It wasn’t noble. I just… I never got the chance.”
His eyes widened and his head bobbed. “And I’m it, I’m your chance? Well, fuck, baby, ain’t that swell for me.”
Leaving her, he marched toward the elevators.
Shyla leaped off the couch to chase him. “Where are you going?” she asked. “What does this mean?”
“It means we’re through,” he said, sticking his feet in his boots and swiping his jacket up from the floor.
“But you said I was pristine,” she said. “You wanted me to be uncorrupted.”
“Uncorrupted, not untouched,” he said, pressing the elevator call button.
“Phoenix, this is nuts! It doesn’t change anything! It doesn’t mean anything!”
“Spoken like a true virgin,” he said, stepping back to see which of the two elevators would open.
“So, what? You only want me if I have special skills?” she asked. “Now you know I don’t know how to give you head or ride you raw, you’re not interested? Thanks, I guess I know what kind of guy you really are.”
The elevator doors opened and he stepped inside to press a button. When he moved back, he looked her in the eye. “You better be damn grateful you never found out, Little Lamb.”
The doors slid shut. She was left alone, aroused and angry and confused. Surprise was what she’d expected, it hadn’t even occurred to her that he’d break things off.
Shyla didn’t know why it mattered to him, but if it did, there was only one remedy to the problem… She had to have sex, and fast, or she’d lose her chance with Score for good.
The next day, Score was up and out an hour earlier than usual. From the laundry room, Shyla heard the elevator and assumed Beeks and Fish were arriving. They didn’t arrive. No one did. Left with a full pot of coffee and no one to feed, Shyla sought out Score only to find his bedroom empty.
If he couldn’t be in the same room as her, she wondered what her role would be going forward.
All was not yet lost. The decision she’d made the previous night gave her cause to be optimistic rather than downhearted. Up until the moment of her confession, their night had been going the right way.
Score had one problem with her, her lack of experience, and that was something she could remedy.
Later that day, Shyla sat in the pool lounge in her bikini top and sarong considering how she might go about gaining some experience. Gavin took care of that for her.
She’d seen him around before. Whenever they passed each other, he said hello. Until that day, she’d never been more than polite. But that day, when she spotted him staring, she held eye contact and smiled.
A man, who seemed to be interested in her, right there on her doorstep. It was a coup. Going to bars and clubs, trawling for a date, was her idea of a nightmare. The memory of her first night out still hung heavy over her. Those kinds of places might not be so fun if she wasn’t throwing herself into the drinking they encouraged.
That was why when Gavin left his stool and came over to speak with her, she straightened up and welcomed his request to sit beside her. They talked for a while. He explained he was a freelance journalist, staying with his brother in one of the lower level apartments. His being in the building meant she didn’t have to stray far to gain the experience Score required of her.
Gavin didn’t push, which was nice. Their conversation was relaxed, easy. When he invited her to have a drink with him in the bar the following night, she tried not to be too eager. Dating could lead to intimacy, Score should be impressed by how quickly she’d fixed the problem.
Her duties still included cooking, as far as she knew. After leaving Gavin, she’d returned upstairs to make dinner. The table was set and she’d just put the food down when the three men came out of the elevator.
None of them said anything about her joining them, so she left them alone. Still excited, she went to her bedroom to pick out an outfit for the following night.
The trio were gone by the time she came back to the kitchen.
Shyla waited up. Stupid as it was, some part of her still hoped Score would come to her. By two am, she’d given up that hope and gone to bed. As per Score’s instructions, she slept in the nude with her door open, just in case he changed his mind. Since he’d learned her truth, Score’s bedroom door had been closed. The gesture wasn’t subtle. He didn’t want her to have access to him.
Fish and Beeks were there for breakfast the next day. Their demeanor was the same, which she guessed meant Score hadn’t filled them in. Their secret wouldn’t keep for long if Score kept shutting her out. Although he joined them for breakfast, he wouldn’t so much as breathe in her direction. All Shyla could do was leave him alone to his brooding.
The next few days repeated the same. Each night she met Gavin in the bar, sticking to the non-alcoholic drinks
