“Still pouting, I see.” He’d walked to the bar in the corner of the conference room; Lily Mae knew this because she could hear ice plinking in the bottom of a glass. Now when Tony approached, she had no choice but to look at him.
He was wearing a black suit, but this time with a white shirt and electric blue tie. She knew most women would have melted with pleasure to be on his arm, especially in the dress he’d picked out. Lily Mae could feel his hungry eyes on her as he took it in. The sleeveless wrap dress clung to her upper body, the bodice hugging her breasts while revealing the swells of flesh thanks to a plunging neckline. The hem came to the middle of her thigh. The heels Kelly had chosen were strappy and uncomfortable. Lily Mae didn’t feel elegant; she felt gaudy and artificial.
His choice of Malargo’s was no different. It was the kind of place where people dined so they could brag about it later. But even in L.A., Lily Mae had never been impressed by four hundred dollar bottles of wine or one hundred dollar entrees that wouldn’t fill a teacup.
Tonight they were seated at a table by the window—a plum seat, Tony bragged. He ordered for both of them: chicken Milanese with an arugula salad for Lily Mae, and seared tuna with lemon and peppercorn butter for himself. The champagne was Dom Perignon. Lily thought it was a pretentious choice.
“Don’t you like your food?” Tony asked. He nodded at her plate as the champagne was being poured.
“I don’t have an appetite,” she said.
“Well, I do,” Tony said. “And you’ll find that out tonight, right after I teach you a lesson.”
When Lily Mae looked at him warily, Tony lowered his voice. “You think you can defy me, Lily, if not directly then passively. I intend to set the tone for our relationship tonight. The bruises I put on your body will fade, but the obedience I instill will last. By the time you wake up tomorrow, there will be no doubt in your mind who your master is.”
Lily Mae wanted to call out for help, but she was too petrified to even speak. All she could do was shudder, and her sense of dread only grew when Tony raised his hand and beckoned for the check.
Tears clouded her vision as she kept her eyes on her plate of uneaten food.
“Get up, Lily,” Tony said. “It’s time to go to the car.”
“Tony…” she began. “Please…”
“Save your pleas,” he said. “You’re going to need them in the bedroom. Now get up. We’re leaving.”
Her legs felt like they were made of wood as Lily Mae stood to go. She didn’t react when Tony Orzo put the wrap over her shoulder.
“Come on.” His tone indicated he was becoming increasingly agitated with what he considered her passive aggressive behavior. He squeezed her arm hard as he led her out to where a car was waiting. But as the valet opened the door, she stopped.
“Lily,” he snarled. “You’re only making this harder on yourself when you resist. Get in.”
But Lily Mae couldn’t move. She looked at Tony, her eyes finally betraying the anger she felt.
“I said get in, bitch.”
“Excuse me, but I don’t think the lady wants to go with you.” A deep voice interrupted the strained moment and Lily Mae gasped, looking up in disbelief at the face of the man she loved. For a moment she stared dumbly, unable to speak before finding her voice.
“Jace…” She said his name in a breathless whisper. “What are you doing here?” she asked.
“What I should have done years ago,” he said. “Coming to find out why you ran away.” Jace turned to Tony. “Let her go.”
Tony only tightened his grip. “So you’re the one she was with down there.” He smirked as his eyes roamed over Jace. “You want to know why she let you go? She said she was sick of wasting her time with an idiot country boy…”
“Jace, that’s not true…” Lily Mae began, but Tony continued to speak over her.
“She said she missed fucking a real man. The first thing she asked for when she got to my office was for me to bend her over my desk and take her up the ass like I used to…”
The two men were the same height, but where Tony was lean and thin, Jace was broad and muscular. The punch Jace leveled right at his face wasn’t particularly hard, but it didn’t have to be. Tony dropped like a rock to the pavement and lay there moaning.
“Is it true?” Jace asked. “Do you want him?”
“He forced me to come back,” Lily Mae said. “I got involved in something, and the only way to keep from involving you was to come back.” Tears slid down her face. “I lied to you, Jace. You deserve better.”
Jace indicated the man who was now stumbling to his feet.
“And you deserve this?” he asked in disbelief.
“I don’t know,” Lily Mae said. “Maybe I do. I had it all and threw it away. Maybe this is karma.”
“Watch out!” someone called, and Lily cried out when she realized Tony, his expression furious, was reaching into his jacket. But another man had appeared, and Lily Mae’s eyes widened to see Lyle rush up and grab Tony from behind. As he wrenched Tony’s arms behind his back, Lyle reached into the man’s pocket and pulled out the gun he’d been reaching for. Popping out the magazine, he jammed the empty gun back in his pocket.