Descent From Grace: A Luxe Novella Book 1.5 (28 page)

I’m staying away from Lily, not because I want to, but because I have to for multiple reasons. Every time I look at her there’s a different man talking to her. Out of the six men here, I only know two: Tony and Caesar. Also, the shirt she’s wearing is begging me to suck her nipples and I can’t because she’s in pain, and also Karen’s here.

All of a sudden the birthday girl, Donna, squeals while running toward the door. I turn around to look, not sure how whoever it is got past the doorman downstairs. Justin and Barry Borg. Sly bastard. I know he heard about the party from Lily. Last party he dropped in on got a little out of control because of him. He grins at me with a nod of his head while Donna’s latched onto him. Donna fell in love with him, she was the first girl he took on a date and he couldn’t stand how giddy she was.

I wonder how the date with Lily went. When Tony called to tell me it was going until eleven I was pissed, but then I thought about the ten grand I was going to make off this poor bastard.

Barry is already in the mix of women, he’s not as popular as Justin. Women love Justin for his tattoos, which thankfully he’s hiding behind a letterman jacket tonight. Maybe Lily didn’t see them today . . . she better not have. As I turn back to the conversation I was having with Caesar, I see Karen headed straight for me. I swiftly turn on my heel and approach Justin, putting my hand into his.

  “Everything all right tonight, Borg?”
  “Better than expected.” He grins with a nod. I smirk. If only the shit knew she’s my girl and he has no chance. “Heard you were having a party and I couldn’t resist.”
  “Help yourself, man. You’ve been here, know the usual shit laying around. I think there’s some coke in the living room, but not sure how clean it is. Last shit I sampled was more K than anything. Don’t break shit this time.” I grin at him.

A hand on my back has me turning to face Karen. She smiles at me then looks at Justin like she wants me to introduce her.

  “You’re.” He points at her and squints with uncertainty. “You’re the girlfriend?”
  “Karen.” She’s drunkenly smiling and shaking his hand.

Uninterested in Karen, I see his gaze drift behind her and the look on his face is like he’s in a paradise. I’m turning to look and all of a sudden Karen stumbles, almost falling. She’s in fucking heels and shouldn’t be because she’s trashed and still healing.

Grabbing her, I hold her upright. “I think you need sleep,” I say in her ear.
  “I need food,” she mumbles and heads toward the kitchen.

I just want her in bed so I don’t have to worry about her anymore and I can freely talk to Lily. Justin’s wandered off so I follow Karen into the kitchen.

  “I’m drunk.” She hiccups, shoving bread into her mouth.
  “I’m gonna get you home,” I say, gabbing her arm; she pushes me back.
She angrily, drunkenly points her finger at me. “I’m staying here.”
  “No you’re not,” I say simply. “I’m getting you home.” 
  “I’m not going home, Ian.” She hiccups again. “I haven’t seen week, I’m staying.”

I think I may have overdone it with what I encouraged her to drink. She can’t even form proper sentences.
  “No. You can either take a cab or I’ll take you right now.”

She starts arguing with me and pushing me. Every time I step forward, she pushes me back and I’m losing my cool. I can’t take much more of this and she won’t let me by. I don’t want to hurt her by shoving past and knocking her down, but she’s leaving me no other options.

*LUXE*

Lilith, Heidi, and Ashley headed to the kitchen for a shot and when they walked in, Karen angrily shoved Ian into the counter, hitting him in the face.
  “What the fuck, Hulk!” Ashley growled, grabbing Karen’s arm.

Karen swung, but missed Ashley, hitting Heidi weakly in the shoulder. Ian grabbed Karen’s arm and when she pushed him again, she hit him in the face for the second time. That was when Heidi retaliated by hitting Karen in the face. Karen fell to the ground and Lilith quickly reached for her, but she was already hitting the floor, holding her cheek.

Ian stood up straight and Ashley put her hand on his shoulder. “You all right?”
He muttered something, squatting next to Karen where Lilith was trying to assess the damage. Ashley held Heidi back who was drunkenly enraged by Karen’s pathetic punch. Ian looked at Lilith, wanting to kiss her over Karen’s slumped body crying on the kitchen floor.
  “Ian, stand her up,” Lilith urged.

She was unable to lift Karen who had three inches and fifty pounds on her. Ian pulled Karen up and when she tried to fight him, he managed to slump her over his shoulder. With a glance at Lilith, he rounded the corner out of the kitchen. Heidi stared at Lilith puzzled and still pissed from her faintly hurt shoulder. Lilith slightly laughed and when she looked at Ashley, it turned to full blown laughter that Ashley followed. After pulling down three shot glasses, Lilith opened the freezer for a cold shot.

  “Ladies,” Justin said, entering the kitchen; Lilith glanced at him.
  “Justin?” Heidi asked.

With her back to them, Lilith smirked with annoyance. Heidi seemed to be on every man Lilith wanted.

  “Yeah. Don’t hit me, but what’s your name?” Justin asked.
  “Did you hear I hit that girl?” She obnoxiously laughed.
  “Um, no.” He was clearly incurious.
  “I hit that girl. Is that why you said don’t hit me?”
  “What girl?” His arm reached around Lilith and he took one of the shots she was pouring. “Thanks,” he said in her ear, then turned back to Heidi. Ashley and Heidi began to explain what happened and a lackluster chuckle left him. “Is that what happened to her? You knocked out Jacks’ girl?”

  “No, she’s just some girl,” Heidi said, rolling her eyes.

Justin didn’t follow anything the drunk girls were telling him and he didn’t care, he only wanted to be where Lilith was.

With abruptness to change the subject, Ashley squawked, “Lilith, where’s our shots?”

She handed Heidi a shot then swiped the third shot glass from Justin’s hand. After handing Ashley her shot, Lilith filled the third glass to the rim.

  “Oh! Lily, I brought that lipstick for you!” Heidi boisterously cackled, making Justin cringe.

He looked for a shot, wanting to escape Heidi’s obnoxiousness, but saw Lilith had the glass. She smiled at him and held up her shot in acknowledgment, and after drinking only half, she handed it to Justin, who gladly finished it.

  “What do you do, Justin?” Heidi asked.
  “I work at a pizza place.” He set the shot glass on the counter; Lilith smirked.

  “He makes really good pizza,” she convincingly said.
  “Oh.” Heidi was clearly unimpressed. “Which one?”
  “It’s not really a pizza place as much as it’s the rotating pizza stand at the liquor store, but I put the pepperonis on the pieces that spin in that heating lamp case. Sometimes they start to curl up and I have to pull them off and replace them with fresh ones. My boss tells me to throw them away, but I don’t.”
  “He eats them,” Lilith candidly added. Straight faced, they both stared at Heidi while Ashley keeled with silent laughter.

  “Do you make the pizza too?” Heidi was slightly disgusted and very confused, but still trying.
  “No, it’s frozen. I’m pretty much just the pepperoni replacer, but it pays well.”
  “Yeah?” Heidi cringed.
  “Yeah, I can usually get four or five forty’s and a pack of smokes at the end of the week. And I don’t really need food.”
  “He eats the pepperonis,” Lilith reminded.

He put his arm around her shoulders and pointed at her with his free hand. “She loves my pizza.”

Lilith gave a confirming nod.

  “Oh my god!” Ashley’s laughter caused tears in her eyes.
  “You guys are fucking with me, right?” Heidi dryly asked.

With an attempt at seeming offended, he snickered, “What do you do?”
  “Uh.” She looked over at Ashley and haughtily laughed.
Smiling, Ashley said, “She’s a model.”

Justin looked at Lilith then slipped his arm from around her and creepily slid toward Heidi, leaning on the counter next to her.

  “I’ve never met a model.” The doe-eyed look he gave her accomplished its task. She was creeped out.

  “I’m not surprised.” Heidi let out a snobbish laugh.

  “Hand model?” He blinked a few times, fluttering his long, dark lashes.

  “Oh my god,” Heidi scoffed. “What? You can’t even be for real.” She conceitedly scoffed and grabbed Ashley’s hand, pulling her from the kitchen.

Ashley looked back at him and grinned; he nodded at her then stood up straight and pushed his curls from his eye before looking at Lilith.

  “Hey.” The smile that caused him cheek pain was back again.
  “Hi.” She couldn’t stop her own smile. “I didn’t think you’d come.”
  “I said I would.”
  “I just thought when we said goodbye, that was for the night.”
  “No, that was goodbye to our paid for date.” He smirked at her. “I like this. You should have worn this earlier. More comfortable.” He touched her shirt at her stomach.

  “I assumed we’d be at dinner in a restaurant.” She smiled and pushed away the hair that fell back into his eye; it was just as soft as she imagined.
  “I need a cut.” He chuckled.

  “No you don’t.” If she didn’t get out of there she was either going to pass out from her painful arousal or throw herself at him in
Ian’s
kitchen.

  “I’m gonna find my friend.” She randomly pointed.

He grabbed her hand, stopping her from walking away. “What’re you doing tomorrow?”

  “Not working.” She smiled and left the kitchen before exploding from his touch.

Avoiding him was hard because he stared at her most of the night, silently calling her to him, and his eyes were so enticing it was difficult to look away. A few times she got caught up in a stare down from across the room, but Ashley would get her attention and then she’d remember Ian. He wasn’t there to catch her lustful glares because he left to take Karen home.

Lilith had enough to drink, but Ashley kept trying to give her more.

  “I’m done. I have to go to my mom’s tomorrow.”

Ashley frowned, but when Justin walked up she was smiling again.

Discreetly, he pulled a bottle from his pocket and whispered, “I have this.” He glanced around suspiciously.

Lilith had to put her hand over her face because she was laughing so hard.

  “So if you got the cash, I got the stuff.” He facetiously glanced around with wary again.

  “What is that?” Ashley laughed.

  “Goldschläger.” He leaned into them again and quietly said, “But I’m not sharing with anyone because it’s my favorite.”
Ashley couldn’t stop laughing at him. “Then why’d you show us?”
With a snicker, he said, “Well I’ll share with you—”
Lilith interrupted with a laugh. “Did you bring that?”
  “No. I took it from the cupboard.” He pointed to Ian’s liquor cabinet.
  “You’re really fuckin’ hilarious. I like you.” Ashley laughed at him.
  “Sorry about your friend. Hey, no offense, she just seems like a snotty bitch.”
  “She is,” both girls said at the same time and he smirked.

  “So?” He held up the Goldschläger.

  “No thank you,” Lilith said, putting her hand to her stomach.
  “Right, kidney stones.” He pointed at her and Ashley looked at her oddly. “But you know, one little sip will probably make that feel better.” He pulled out his charming grin.
She smiled. “I’m going to see my mother tomorrow, I’m gonna pass.” To her right, she noticed Ian walk through the door.

Her smile brightened upon seeing him, which caused both Ashley and Justin to look at her captivator. 

  “Boss’s back. Payday?” Justin questioned, finding her enthralled smile a bit odd.
  “Yep.” Lilith grinned. “Excuse me.” She walked around him and approached Ian.

The smile he returned mimicked her beguiled beam and he nonchalantly walked her down the hall to the bedroom.

  “How’d tonight go?” he asked and without responding, she threw herself at him, kissing him hard.

  “Fuck, Lily,” he growled, pinning her to the door. Running his nose along her jaw line, he stopped at her lips, able to smell the sweet liquor on her breath. “I want you so bad.” He firmly pressed himself against her.
She could feel his erection pressed between her legs and shakily exhaled.

  “I want you, baby. Fuck me.”
It was a fleeting thought when he remembered the pain she’d been in.

  “We can’t.” He pulled away.
  “Ian!” she pouted. “I just need to be fucked by someone!” she drunkenly complained.
He grabbed her arm. “You need to be fucked?” he questioned, carefully twisting it behind her back. “Someone needs to fuck you?” he growled in her ear, while pushing her to the bed.
  “Yes,” she moaned, getting more aroused from his forcefulness that brought her pain, but in the best way.

  “Who needs to fuck you, Lily?” he asked with anger and pressed his erection to her ass as she was bent over the bed.
  “You do,” she moaned.