Fiendish: A Twisted Fairytale (49 page)

He moved with long, purposeful strokes thrusting upward, hitting my core with radar precision. The ripples started building, and I was floating, spiraling on that orgasmic bliss that
only he could bring me to. His fingers dug into my ass as he lifted me completely, and I wrapped my arms around his neck while he rocked my body with a few more powerful thrusts.

 
Seth held me tightly through the final shudders of his climax before finally withdrawing. He kept his arm around my waist, giving me time to be steady on my own feet again. He pulled the fabric of my dress to cover my exposed breast before leisurely fixing his clothing as if this was a normal encounter. 

I pressed my legs together tightly when I felt a trickle start down my thigh.
Glancing over at the sheer barrier, I was mortified to learn we did in fact have an audience. Not only were they watching, but over Seth’s shoulder, I saw Cindy standing halfway up the stairs, looking shocked. Slowly, I kneeled down to pick up my torn panties, balling them up tightly in my hand, hoping she’d leave. Instead, she continued her journey up to us. I wanted to melt away into the background, but Seth stood with his hand out waiting to help me up. 

With his hand firmly around
mine, he walked us over to the couch, pulling me into his lap as he sat. She put bottles of water down on the table. I kept my head down, feeling very uncomfortable, cheap, and exposed. Seth lifted my chin forcing me to look at him, his lips claimed mine while she stood there watching.

“Can I get you anything else?” she asked.

Seth broke from our kiss, running his thumb across my lips. For a moment, the world seemed to fade away as he looked at me. The background noise of the music disappeared. Cindy and the people in the booth next door no longer mattered; my only focus was his penetrating gaze.

“No, I have everything I want right here,” he answered dismissively, not breaking from our connection.

Neither of us paid any attention to her leaving or if she even said anything before doing so. He could make me feel so many things at once it was dizzying. One minute I could feel cherished, then insecure, then frightened, then desired. I was in a perpetual state of sensory overload when I was with him. It was dizzying but oddly exciting.

“Everything you want?” I asked cautiously.

He pulled at the lacy black fabric sticking out of my hand. I relaxed my fingers, and he slid the tattered remnants of my panties free of my grip, tucking them into his jacket pocket as if they were a handkerchief.

“Everything,” he replied with a serious look on his face. 

It wasn’t an ‘I love you.’ He had yet to return my declaration, and I hadn’t said it again since that night, leaving doubt and uncertainty to become my closest companions. I felt foolish enough saying it and getting nothing back in response. I didn’t want to make it worse by acting like some needy, lovesick teenager asking if he liked me as much as I like him, even though I desperately needed to know.

***

Calida looked at me with the same hopeful expression she’d had since the night she professed her love. She’d been hoping and waiting to hear those three little words. She hadn’t pushed or inquired about what my feelings were for her. Instead, she just waited and hoped that those feelings were returned.
You don’t love. You want, you desire, you possess, but never love.

That was true, I
’d never loved, never wanted to love. Love made you weak and clouded your judgment. Love could make a person be willing to change the very fiber of their being just to please the other. Love, to me, was a useless emotion. It could be too easily twisted from the idyllic thing it should be into something perverse. I had no use for love, but Calida needed it. Every look, every touch, and every time she bent to my will, it was because she needed to believe I loved her. 

 
“What you’re doing is wrong.”
It was the voice, the one from my dreams. I blinked, and there she was. Anna.

“Let her go.”

Chapter 36

“Maybe we cannot go. I can
call, tell her I’m sick or something.” Calida looked over at me expectantly; worry lines were etched on her beautiful face.

If you are so intent on making her happy, maybe you can kill the sister.
I smiled at the thought of being able to help ease her discomfort while working out some pent up frustrations of my own.
You miss it. You need it
. I closed my eyes briefly, I’d missed the thrill and exhilaration of the prospects of what could be done, but it was short lived. I got something more in being with her.

“We are not cancelling. She
’s just your sister. You haven’t seen her in years; she has no real bearing in your life.”

I knew some of the history between them. Dorian tormented her
as a child and was probably the person most responsible for Calida’s consistent self-doubt. The short time I’d spent in her company yesterday gave me a firsthand account of how things might have been for Calida.

“But she does. When my parents are gone,
she’ll be all the family I have. I’ve always wanted to have a close relationship with her, but she doesn’t like me. She drove four hours because she wants something, and her wanting something from me is never a good thing.”

I moved Calida
’s hair back, giving her a kiss on the shoulder. She sounded almost frantic and I didn’t like seeing her in this state; especially not because of that person.

“I
’ll be there with you, everything will be fine. Now, we’re supposed to meet them at their hotel at seven and it’s six-thirty, so we need to leave.” I got off the bed, waiting for her to do the same.

“Are you sure I shouldn
’t change?”

“Calida, stop!”
I snapped. “I’ve already told you what to wear, and you look stunning. We aren’t discussing it any further.”

Her lips clamped shut while her eyes dropped to her lap. “Sorry. I…she makes me nervous.”

I took a steady breath then kneeled in front of her. “There is no reason to worry. You look beautiful as always, and I will be with you. It’s just dinner.”

She
gave me a radiant smile, appearing to relax slightly. “You’re right,” she said, standing and smoothing her dress down.

Calida
fidgeted a little during the car ride, but remained quiet. Dorian and her fiancé were waiting for us in the lobby of the Westin hotel. Her face was drawn into a tight smile when she saw us approaching.

“Seth, how nice to see you again.
I didn’t know you would be joining us.”

“I wouldn
’t dream of missing out on an opportunity to get to know Calida’s sister better.”

Doria
n’s face contorted into a frown before easing back into the fake pleasantries. “Let me introduce everyone. Daniel, love, this is my sister Calida and her—
boyfriend
—Seth.” The word rolled off her tongue as if saying it left a bad taste in her mouth.

“Nice to meet you,” he said, shaking my hand and then Calida
’s.

I noticed his eyes comb over her body as he held on to her hand longer than necessary. My arm tightened around her waist
, pulling her closer to me. Dorian seemed to notice as well, she took a step closer to him and linked her arm into his.

“Calida, I
’m glad to see your choice of outfit is more appropriate this evening. I was worried you were going to show up in something dreadful.”  Dorian’s condensing tone was unmistakable, causing Calida to shift and tense.

“I have very fond memories of you in this dress,” I whispered.

Calida leaned into me and I watched as a smile spread across her face, no doubt recalling our time spent in the photo booth while in Miami. Letting my lips brush across the soft exposed flesh on her shoulder, I cut my eyes over towards the sister. Dorian was tight lipped watching our exchange. She was a woman clearly jealous of her sister having any kind of happiness.

“We should head up to the restaurant,” Dorian said, walking towards the elevator.

Calida stood in front of me, taking comfort in my arms that I kept securely around her waist during the ride, Dorian linked her arm in with Daniel, but her attempts at affection seemed forced. No one spoke until after we were seated.

“Calida, I am glad to finally be able to meet you. I was hoping we could get together sooner, but with schedule conflicts
, it never seemed to be the right time.”

Calida tucked a strand of hair behind her ear smiling shyly at Dan
iel. “It’s nice to meet you too. I had no idea Dorian was dating anyone, let alone engaged.”

Daniel
’s eyes went to Dorian. Clearly there was something there; Dorian didn’t look pleased at Calida’s statement.

“Oh, you silly girl.
I’m sure I’ve told you a few times. You probably just forgot,” Dorian stated.

She tried to keep her tone light, but I picked up on the warning there.
Calida looked confused but didn’t contradict her sister.

“Well, in either case, we
’re meeting now so better late than never,” Daniel said. “Dorian had mentioned that there wasn’t much of a family resemblance. I found that hard to believe since the genetics in my family are really strong, my brother and I could practically be twins. But I can see she was correct. I would have never guessed you two were sisters.”

“Yes, darling, I told you.
I got the beauty and the brains.”

Calida flashed her sister a pleading look that Dorian shrugged off, fli
pping her hair back. She was a woman on a mission to watch her sister squirm. The conversation was put on hold when our server approached the table.

“Good evening, welcome to the Sundial. My name is Janet, and I
’ll be serving you tonight. Would you all be interested in hearing about our specials?”

Janet began rattling off the C
hef’s specials, giving advice on the best wine pairings to go with each meal. Daniel appeared to pay more attention to checking out Janet than he did his menu. I turned my attention to Calida, and watched as she tried to listen and scan the menu at the same time.

“So are there any questions?” Janet inquired once she finished.

We all took a moment to look over the menu before ordering. Daniel and Dorian each placed their orders leaving myself and Calida. She chewed on her lip as she tried to decide.

“We
’ll take the
Pork and Duck Terrine for a starter
.
I’ll take the
Juniper Braised Lamb Shoulder
. She will have the
Maple Leaf Farms Duck.
I would also like a bottle of your Château Latour,
Pauillac
.”

Calida closed her menu
, handing it to Janet, not questioning my choice for her.

“You let him tell you what to eat? I guess you would need someone to make up your mind for you since you can be a little ditzy and indecisive at times. It
’s a wonder he can put up with that.” Dorian sat a little straighter in her chair, her beady eyes peered down on Calida as she sat lining up her silverware in an attempt to avoid looking at her sister.

“When it comes to places like this
, I’m a little out of my element. Seth has a more sophisticated palate and excellent taste. I don’t mind defaulting to his selections for me.”

Calida wasn
’t very assertive, but she was able to defend herself to that woman although it wasn’t needed.

“That sounds like a smart woman,” Daniel agreed. “Besides, it is chivalrous and customary of the man to order for his date.
A tradition that has long since been forgotten in most cases.” He looked over at Dorian who put a tight smile on her face.

Clearly they often jockeyed for position on who wore the pants.
Killing the sister would be doing the world, not just her, a favor.
The more time I spent with her, the more I was in agreement.

“So, Calida, what is it that you do?” Daniel asked.

“I work for Patrick Thorn, he’s an interior designer.”

“Interior design, is that interesting work?”

“It can be. I’ve done a few small makeovers, but I’m only his assistant, so I’m mostly in the office.”

“You mean secretary?”

A smug look of satisfaction crossed Dorian’s face before she turned her attention towards me. Janet returned with the appetizers and bottle of wine, after sampling it, I gave the nod that it was acceptable. She filled our glasses then made an exit; Daniel’s eyes followed her ass as she retreated. It was becoming clear how he put up with Dorian, he had a wandering eye. I could safely assume that being faithful was not high on his list of priorities.

“Since we are talking about jobs, what is it that you do Seth? Oh wait, let me guess. Um, you look like the artistic type. Yes, a struggling artist perhaps. Calida does have a history of dating g
uys that she needs to support, so it would make perfect sense.”