The men seem to have forgotten us, like we’re maids back at The Montclair.
“So we supposed to keep standing here looking pretty for you boys?” Sierra pipes up.
Eric grins at her. He nods to the butler/guard. “Joe’ll show you to your rooms.”
Sierra returns a smile. Meanwhile, Lee doesn’t look up at me. His cue ball strikes the red ball near the other end of the table.
I don’t understand. Leering, ogling, pawing—I would have expected those behaviors. Lee seems disgruntled.
Sierra and I follow Joe up to the main floor and then up another flight of stairs to our respective bedrooms. Mine appears every bit as nice as a room in The Montclair. Patio doors lead to the deck that I saw from the front of the house. The queen bed has like a dozen pillows on it and faces a wide fireplace.
I never dreamed of actually sleeping in a room as nice as the ones I clean, but my circumstances prevent me from enjoying it. I think I would have been more at ease had I been chosen by Eric. I don’t think I would have liked losing my virginity to him. There’s something icky about him. And I think I would have come away with that feeling even if I had met him in a normal setting, like at a bar or grocery store. But Tony Lee...
Damn.
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I sit on the edge of the bed, then leap to my feet.
Condoms! I forgot to get some. What if Lee doesn’t have any? How will I get one? Will they let me make a run to the nearest drugstore? Then I realize if I spend the night, my roommates will worry about me.
Good going, I tell myself. I find my cellphone and think about what to tell them. I text Talia that I have to work late and might just spend the night at the hotel. I hope she believes me.
Sinking back down on the bed, I bury my head in my hands. I shouldn’t go through with this. I’m not prepared. Plus, I’m not even sure Tony Lee likes me. You’d think he would, given that he chose me, but then why didn’t he seem interested? He probably would have been just as excited to purchase insurance or one of those annoying additional warranties that the stores try to push onto all electronic gizmos. And because the cashier brings it up just as you’re checking out, you wind up having to make a quick calculation to see if it’s worth an extra twenty bucks to save yourself a hundred and fifty bucks on the off chance your printer breaks down in the next two or three years. Do I know the probability of a printer breaking down? Hell no.
Do I know the probability that this is all worth it for twenty thousand dollars?
Hell no.
CHAPTER SEVEN
From the bedroom window, I see Tony Lee, Eric Drumm and the man named Joe get into a car. I’m not sure where they’re going, but their departure gives me more breathing room. I spend the next hour staring at the ceiling as I lay on the bed. The down comforter is amazingly soft, and I’ve never slept in a bed with down before, but I barely notice. My mind still turns. Maybe I should see how things go and pull the plug if I get really uncomfortable.
But I’m uncomfortable now.
I mean really, really uncomfortable. I wonder if there are any special exercises I should be doing down there to prepare myself. I’ve heard women mention Kegel exercises, but I think that had to do with postpartum stuff.
Despite my concerns, I find myself also wondering what Tony Lee would be like in bed. The year after graduating high school, I almost did it with a boy I was dating. I might have gone all the way, but he ended up ejaculating just from rubbing himself against me.
“Beginner’s luck,” scoffs Sierra from the doorway.
I sit up. “I’m not sure I can go through with this.”
She narrows her eyes. “Are you stupid or something? You’re going to pass up the opportunity to have sex with Tony Lee? I’d do him for free, but your redneck ass is going to get paid a buttload of money to do him.”
“Just because I’m from North Carolina doesn’t mean I’m a redneck.”
“Whatever. I got nothing for losing my virginity.”
“I think he knows I work at The Montclair. I still get paid for the hours I worked this week, even if I’m fired, right?”
Sierra rolls her eyes. “Why would he buy you if he wants to fire you?”
“I don’t know. It’s just the look he had on his face. I’m sure he’s not happy that one of the hotel employees is...doing this.”
She shrugs. “Well, maybe you’re right.”
“Have you...have you done this sort of gig before?”