Grant at her window. But it was Marcus.
He stared at her through the glass, gesturing for her to let him in. His expression seemed to be saying, Open up or I’ll break in anyway. She shook her head and made a gesture as if to say, Get lost, you prick! Then Marcus slipped two fingers along the frame, fiddled for a few moments, and raised the sash.
Penny’s mouth fell open in shock.
‘Hope Grant is less good at forcing the locks than I am,’ he said, stepping over the windowsill and boldly entering her room.
‘Get out of here! I’d rather sleep without throwing up on my pillow,’ Penny said, covering herself with her sheets. As if she needed to – any right-minded nun would have coveted her sensible pyjamas.
Penny’s room suddenly felt tiny in relation to Marcus’s bulk.
‘Say, what’s wrong, little lady? You shocked at what you saw? You’re really not getting much, are you?’
I’ve never done it in my life.
‘I get plenty,’ she lied, ‘but not with strangers and not like that. You were nearly in the garbage!’
‘When you’re in the mood, it doesn’t matter where you do it, especially with someone you’ve only just met. At least they don’t expect anything – they just let themselves go.’
‘So do you always do it in an alley, not like – you know – in bed?’
‘In bed I run the risk that people wanna sleep over. That doesn’t happen down an alley.’
‘You have it all figured out, don’t you?’
‘Pretty much. So what were you doing back there anyway? Were you spying on me? Did you like what you saw?’
‘I didn’t see a thing!’
Marcus shot her a sardonic look. ‘You saw it all, baby. I could tell by the way you looked at me.’
‘I was paralysed with shock, more than anything else. You know how you freeze if you see something horrible?’
‘You’re a lying bitch, but no matter – you sure can run fast. By the time I got out front you were gone. Didn’t we have a deal? Why’d you come tonight anyway? Did Grant visit you again?’
‘No, I wanted . . . I wanted to ask you something – something that would have given you the chance to earn more money. But I’ve reconsidered and decided it doesn’t matter, so you can go now.’
‘Oh no, you need to tell me now. Any money involved and I become very curious indeed.’
Penny looked down at the sheets. Marcus sat on the end of the bed and started to light a cigarette.
She stopped him. ‘No, not inside. Grandma doesn’t like it.’
He went to the window and straddled the sill. He lit his cigarette anyway, but at least blew the smoke outside. Penny thought about whether or not to tell him about her plan, and then the memory of Rebecca made her give in. She told him everything in a whisper.
Marcus burst out laughing. ‘You want me to pretend to be your boyfriend? You reckon I look like someone who’s a boyfriend?’
‘You look like a savage and sexy bastard, and that’s good enough for me. If I can’t upset them because I’m richer or more beautiful, then I’ll make them burn with envy over the kind of man everyone wants to screw.’ She realised she’d been a little too frank.
Marcus shot her a roguish smile. ‘Should I take that as a compliment?’
‘If you think it’s a compliment for your dick to be bigger than your brain, then fair enough. Now go away and leave me alone.’
‘So you don’t want to fool your friends anymore?’
‘They’re not my friends, they’re assholes.’
‘And how much were you willing to pay me?’
‘Two hundred and fifty dollars.’
‘For one night?’
‘Yup.’
‘That’d be great. Where did you get the cash?’
‘That’s my business.’
‘I wanna know. If it’s stolen, I could end up back inside for money laundering.’
‘I earned it fair and square. I provided a bonus service to some rich guy who likes honest women, and he handed me an astronomical tip.’
Marcus froze, his cigarette suspended between his lips. ‘Bullshit,’ he murmured.
‘You can get dirty at work, but I can’t?’
‘Enough now.’
‘Why? You make me mad or try to embarrass me every step of the way – but you can’t take it when I do the same thing to you?’
‘You’re so bad at this game. Don’t go around saying shit like that, OK? I’m nice, but you say stuff like this to another guy and he might break you in half.’
‘And you wouldn’t dream of it?’
‘Of course I dream of it, but I can control myself.