“I came because you invited me. And I’ll go if you want me to.”
I didn’t want her to leave. She saw that when I blinked and looked past her shoulder like a smart comeback was hiding over there somewhere.
“Have you ever sat in a Bentley before?” I asked.
“Yeah, all the time.”
“Sure.” I scoffed taking her by the hand again and leading her to my father’s car. The back seats were real leather and there was enough room to lie down comfortably.
“When I was a kid, sometimes I’d come down here and play James Bond in the back seat. Would you like a sip?”
I pulled out a flask from my back pocket and offered it to Telula. She looked at it, tilted her head to the left like to say I’m not that stupid and mouthed the word no.
"I'm not trying to trick you, Telula." I took a gulp myself. "It's just vodka."
“Sorry, but I can’t say I totally trust you. You are a pretty big jerk.”
“What?” I put my hand to my heart as if I’d been wounded. “I can’t believe you’d say that. I’ve got to sit down. It’s like you punched me in the gut.”
I crawled into the roomy backseat and gasped. Telula laughed. I really liked that sound.
Chapter 6 - Tilly
I couldn’t help it. I liked Lucas.
“All right, one sip and scoot over. I’ll be Miss Moneypenny.” I grabbed Lucas’s flask, took a small sip and let the warm feeling spread from my throat all the way down to my toes.
“Do you like James Bond movies?” Lucas asked as I climbed in next to him and pulled the door shut behind me. The bang bounced off the floor and walls for several seconds. Then it was quiet as a church again.
"Not too much. I can't imagine a guy who is so irresistible to women that they just drop their panties as soon as he walks in the door. The threat of torture or death from their own governments for giving up secrets isn't even a deterrent."
“What are you talking about?” Lucas took another sip and handed me the flask. “You’re looking at a guy like that right now.”
“What?” I started laughing almost spitting out my second gulp of vodka. “You really do think so don’t you.”
“You’d be surprised what women will do when they know you’ve got money.” Lucas’s face darkened. I wasn’t sure how much he’d had to drink before I got to the party. But as he spoke his eyes began to redden. I didn’t say anything. I just listened.
“What have girls done for you?”
“Well, it isn’t what they’ve done f
or me. It’s more like what they’ve done to me.” He chuckled but I could tell I was making him uncomfortable. Good. He should know how that feels.
"I'll bet a good bit of it is illegal in this state." I mused dropping the smile on my face. "What do you tell them when they do these things?"
“What do you mean?”
“Do you tell them you love them? Do you let them believe you are serious?”
“No. I’m always honest with them.” He cleared his throat. “Look. I’m eighteen years old. I have no idea what I want to do when I go to college. How could I possibly be serious about a girl? They know this. But they always think they can change me. That’s where they make their mistake. I’m not changing for any girl. She’ll have to change for me.”
“Is that so?” I whispered. I hadn’t eaten a thing at home. I was sure there would be food here but now that I think about it I think I only saw beer and bottles. The two swigs of vodka had gone right to my head.
I hoped the fact my mind was buzzing didn’t show in my eyes. I stared intently at Lucas as he told me how some of the girls he’d been with made it very clear they were hoping to secure their stake in his inheritance.
“Of course I’m going to have a lot of money. My dad is CEO of Cambridge Logistics. He’s connected to everyone from government officials to Hollywood to the United Nations. I mean, the president of Argentina asked him to be the godfather of one of his kids. That’s connected.”
"Yes, it is." I purred. "Did he do it?"