He flicks a switch and it fills with light. The downstairs is wide open, with only a single staircase in the middle to break it up. He grins at me.
“I did some work to it, obviously,” he says.
“It’s beautiful,” I manage.
“Most of the floors are original,” he says, steering me toward the back. There’s a living room, an eating space with a big wooden table, and a beautiful new kitchen.
We stop in the kitchen and he opens a bottle of wine. “There are seven fireplaces, all original. There are some original lighting fixtures, original windows, stuff like that. I tried to keep as much of the original charm while updating the place to make it actually livable.”
“I think you did a good job.”
He laughs. “It’s easy when you have more money than you know what to do with.” He pours me a drink. “Have some.”
I take a sip. Already the memory of running into those professors is starting to fade.
But it makes no sense. I mean, the way he’s reacting to it.
Getting caught by people he works with is basically the worst-case scenario. That’s what he’s so worried about. I mean, it’s what I’m afraid of, too.
But he doesn’t seem to care about these guys, and I don’t understand why. He says they’re all corrupt assholes, but still…
“Jason,” I say after taking a big, long drink. He frowns and stops talking about the house. “What are we going to do?”
He sighs and sips his wine. “Don’t worry, okay?”
“How am I supposed to do that? We just got caught.”
“Not exactly,” he says slowly. “And those guys…”
“You keep doing this. Why does it matter who caught us?”
“They can be bought.”
That stops me up short. “Bought?”
“Right. Bought.” He takes a deep breath. “I’m going to bribe the shit out of them.”
“Bribe them,” I repeat, shaking my head. “You’re insane. That’s, like, gangster movie stuff.”
“Not really,” he says. “You’d be surprised how often it happens. I mean, these guys are regional professors in a small school. They don’t make that much money. I offer them, I don’t know, half a million each to keep their mouths shut? They’ll do it.”
I stare at him, eyes wide. “How much?”
“You think a million would be better?” He frowns a little. “You’re probably right. A million always impresses people.”
“Jason!”
He blinks, surprised. “What?”
“That’s so much money!”
He hesitates a second and laughs. “Right, sorry. I’m rich as hell, remember? Throwing a few million at this problem isn’t a big deal for me.”
I shake my head, putting my glass down. “No, no way. I can’t… I won’t…”
I start to back away from him. I can feel panic starting to rise.
He’s going to pay three million dollars to keep these guys quiet, all because of me. He’s willing to do that, to lose so much money, for nothing.
Here I am, in this man’s house, all alone with him, and I’m doing this to him. I’m making him pay that much money.
I can’t let someone do that for me. I mean, I just… I can’t.
“Clara, hold on.”
I shake my head, not sure what to say. I go to turn away, but he’s faster. He steps around the island and comes to me, grabs my wrist, and pulls me against him.
I stumble up against his chest. Fear, desire, confusion, it all wars inside of me.
“Clara,” he says softly. “It’s okay. It really is.”
“I can’t let you spend that kind of money. I mean, on me? It’s crazy.”
“Clara, really. I promise… this isn’t a big deal.”
“Big deal? You’re talking about three million dollars.”
“I’m worth billions,” I say softly. “Three million… it’s a drop in the bucket.”
I stare at him, eyes wide, but I can start to see the truth.
For him, three million is like… thirty of my dollars. Just in terms of proportion. Thirty dollars would be a very mild annoyance at worst, if I had to pay someone off with that.
He’s just on a whole new level.
I bite my lip and look away. “I don’t know,” I say finally.
“I told you I’d take care of you, didn’t I?” he asks softly. “I’m your Daddy now, remember?”
I look back at him again. His beautiful eyes stare down at me, and I see something there, something that sparks inside of me.
Possessiveness. Control. Desire.
“Yes,” I say softly. “You said that.”
“That’s right. I told you I’d make sure you’re taken care of, and I meant it. If I have to bribe some asshole professors, so what? I want you, Clara. And I get what I want.”
He kisses me then, hard enough that I can’t argue, even if I wanted to.
Truth is, I don’t want to argue. Not at all.
I want to kiss him. That’s all I ever want when I’m around him.
I let him lead me back toward the staircase. He holds my hand as we move up to the second floor. It’s a little warmer up here, and the floorboards creak as we move down the hall toward the back of the house.