Devastated

“No shit! Did he bid on you at the Scarlet Auction?”

“He didn’t participate in the auction. Exactly.”

“Then how’d you meet him?”

“He was an acquaintance of a guy who did do the auction.”

“What’s his name?”

“Ben.”

“That’s all you’re going to give me? He must be loaded if he’s friends with people who can afford the Scarlet Auction. Maybe that’s why he gets to be a member of the Upper Balcony.”

Now that she had room to think about and regret what had happened between her and Ben, Kimani couldn’t resist feeling a little irritated. “And if he does have money, what does that matter?”

“Just saying. I mean, if he’s good-looking and rich, you totally scored.”

“There are plenty of good-looking, rich, and powerful men who are nothing but misogynists and criminals. And they get to get away with shit because of their looks, their wealth or their status in society.”

“I just assumed that your guy wasn’t one of those guys because Kimani Taylor doesn’t drop her pants for those guys. Am I right?”

Kimani sighed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get bitchy. He’s not my guy, you know. You should have seen the gorgeous woman he was with earlier today.”

“Wait, you saw him already today?”

“It was a chance encounter.”

“And he knew you were coming to The Lair?”

“He couldn’t have. I didn’t mention The Lair.”

“It’s quite the coincidence.”

Kimani shrugged. Sometimes life was stranger than fiction.

“So, he must have seen you from the Upper Balcony, and you’re the reason we got invited up there.”

“I guess.”

“He must really be into you.”

Kimani sat with the idea for a moment, wishing that what Marissa had said was true, then deciding it was better if it wasn’t. “I don’t think so. We had some unresolved issues. That’s what the, um, sex was about.”

“Hm. Guess that’s one to add to the list next to make-up sex and rebound sex: ‘unresolved-issues’ sex. Did you resolve your issues?”

At that, Kimani had to laugh. “No.”

We could have made them worse, she thought to herself.

“Does that mean you guys will have to have sex again?”

“No!”

Her vociferousness took Marissa by surprise. “Why not? If I had a guy like that, I’d try to resolve the issues over and over again. And then one or two more times just for good measure.”

“How much did you and Miguel witness?”

“Well, we saw you grab him and kiss him. Then we went exploring the rest of the Upper Balcony. We came across the Dungeon Room and checked out all the different implements they had. Then we came back, and I peeked in on you. There’s something about your guy—”