want to do whatever it takes to keep her making that sound. It’s melodic and happy, and I can’t get enough.
After the last round, I carried her to the bathroom where I had set up a bubble bath complete with champagne and strawberries beside the tub. I’ve never used the tub before, but it felt like something she might enjoy. She didn’t get the day of pampering I had set up for her, so I wanted to treat her to some kind of indulgence. The tub is big enough for the two of us, which is saying a lot because we’re both pretty tall.
She’s on one end with her legs in my lap, and I’m on the other, my feet bracketing her body. I pick up her foot and rub it, kissing each toe as I go.
Sipping her champagne, she leans her head back and closes her eyes. “God, this is decadent. I can’t remember the last time I was in a bathtub. How long have we been in here?”
“I don’t know. I forget time when you’re near.” I bite her pinky toe, and she sits up and smiles at me.
“You’ve refilled this tub three times. We’re probably breaking all kinds of laws in this Vegas drought.”
“I’ll have you know my hotels are energy efficient. And you weren’t complaining the three times I filled it.”
She splashes a little water at me, and then drinks more of her champagne. We’ve just been quietly relaxing as I’ve been petting her, but now I want some answers.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
She knows exactly what I’m talking about, and when I ask the question she looks away, setting her glass down. I wait for her to speak, but she doesn’t.
“You could have used that to your advantage at the Mistress Auction.” It’s something that makes me angry to think about, and I’m glad she didn’t. She looks over at me, and I pull both her feet toward me, bringing her body close to mine. She’s straddling my hips and we are nose to nose. “Tell me.”
“I just wanted to keep it private. It’s kind of embarrassing.”
“I think it’s wonderful.”
She blushes a little, and then brings her hand up to play with my chest hair. “My foster mom had a boyfriend who used to threaten to do things to me. He watched me a little too closely. I think he had a weird obsession with me."
I stiffen at her words, my hands on her waist squeezing too tightly.
“Nothing happened,” she says quickly, easing some of my tension. “One night, he came to my room and tried. He put his hand over my mouth and I bit him. He hit me, and my scream woke up my foster mom.” To think that a foster parent would put her in that kind of danger makes me sick. Mandy looks at my chest, still playing with the bubbles in my chest hair. It’s like she’s telling a story instead of confessing something horrible that happened to her. “As bad as it sounds, I think she was jealous. She got so mad at me after it happened. The next day she told me to get my stuff and get out. I was a week away from my eighteenth birthday. She wasn’t going to be getting a check for keeping me so I knew it was coming.”
My heart breaks for her, but I don’t interrupt her. I want to know everything there is to know about her.
“I left and bummed around until I had a friend who wanted to come to Vegas. I spent a year in and out of shelters and doing odd jobs until I met Don. He took me in and got me a job with Aaron and Justin; I owe a lot to both of them. I’m happy with the way my life turned out, but I guarded my body for a long time because I couldn’t forget what it felt like to have someone try to take that from me. Then when the person who was supposed to protect me blamed me and threw me out, I felt like I had done something wrong. I think that’s why I waited, never truly trusting someone with that much power.”
I grab her chin and make her look me in the eyes. I can see the beginning of tears there, and I wish I could take the pain away. “I’m so sorry. Not because I had anything to do with it, but because I wasn’t there to stop