by Gia Star
She scowled. “Don’t do that.”
“What?” he barked.
“Don’t talk down to me. What I do with my life isn’t any of your damn business.”
“No, it’s just my business to clean up after you, isn’t it?” he said.
“I only asked for you to cover my ride, because I was stranded without any money –”
“And whose fault is that?”
“Yours!”
He turned and gawked at her.
“If you and your brother would act your age and behave like sensible adults, then I wouldn’t have ended up in this mess!”
“Oh, spare me!” he shot back. “Who’s the one not behaving their age? What exactly were you trying to accomplish tonight, Bennett?”
“None of your business.”
“It is my business!” he yelled. “When you call me up in the middle of the night asking for me to come save you from the reckless decisions you made, it’s absolutely my business.”
“I just – needed – a cab,” she said through clenched teeth. “You didn’t even need to get out of bed for that.”
“And what would I have said to Marty?” he asked. “Huh? How was I supposed to tell him that his only daughter, who was entrusted into our company, took off on her own, doing god-knows-what, and I just sent her home by herself in the middle of the night without making sure she didn’t get drugged? Or raped? You see what I mean, Bennett, you’re not thinking!”
She winced, struggling not to cry.
“So quit trying to fight me and clean yourself up. Shower’s over there.” With that, he turned and headed for the kitchen.
Lori was angry, but more than anything she was humiliated. She knew he was one hundred percent right, and the fact that she’d even tried to argue otherwise just made her feel even more pathetic. How the hell did this happen? As soon as the bathroom door was locked, she broke down into tears, hating herself and the position she was in.
She was tempted to stay in the bathroom all night, but figured he was probably waiting for her. So, after cleaning herself with the available soaps, and crying throughout the whole shower, she dried herself off and put on the shirt and shorts. She stared at herself in the foggy mirror for a while, debating what to do. Finally, she came out into the cool air of the house and shuffled toward the kitchen, still gripping her wet hair with the towel. She found Owen holding his head on the island counter, no doubt tired from the late hours. She approached quietly.
“Did you take anything at that house?” he mumbled.
“No,” she said weakly. “Just alcohol.”
“Are you sure?”
“I feel hungover, but that’s all.”
He heaved a heavy sigh. “I can give you some aspirin, but it’s not a very strong kind. I’m almost thinking I shouldn’t give it to you.”
“Do you have anything to eat?” she asked. “Any leftovers or something?”
He got up and went to the large, double door fridge, pulling out a few plastic cartons of leftovers. Pasta salad, saucy chicken and half a steak. He got a fork and handed her the pasta before heating up the meat. Lori’s stomach didn’t feel great but she was too hungry to care, she hadn’t eaten in hours. Owen got her some water before putting the hot leftovers on a plate for her.
“Owen,” she said. “I was an asshole before. You were absolutely right, and I should’ve been thanking you instead of yelling at you. If you hadn’t helped me out, I don’t know what I would have done.
He watched her eat several more mouthfuls before asking. “Why would you resort to something like that?”
“It wasn’t planned!” she said.
He rolled his eyes. “It never is.”
“I didn’t have my wallet or I.D. with me, so this woman bought me some beer and started talking with me. I really wanted a drink, so I joined her, and before I knew it I wasn’t thinking clearly. Next thing I know, I’m invited to some party somewhere. I was already out of it. I barely remember getting in the cab, and I don’t remember actually arriving.”
Owen shook his head as she spoke. “Do you have any idea how dangerous that is?”
“Yes. Yes, I do. That was my first thought after I woke up.”
He looked at her. “Woke up?”
“I passed out at some point –”
“Oh my god, Bennett.”
“I know!” she said, her voice quivering again. “It could’ve been so much worse. Something horrible could’ve happened to me. But it didn’t, and I know how lucky I am.”
He buried his face in his hands.
“I’m sorry, alright?” she urged. “I really am. I’m sorry.”
When Owen looked up at her again, his eyes were sad. His voice sank to a whisper.
“Did we really push you that far?”
“No…” She felt overwhelmed with guilt again. “No, I was acting stupid. It wasn’t your fault, and I shouldn’t have said that it was. I was raised better than that.”
“Yet you still did it,” he said. “I don’t understand why this happens.”
She cocked her head with uncertainty.
“How is it that we drive people to such desperate measures?” He stared blankly at the counter as though it would answer him. “Even if we’re annoying and unreasonable, it doesn’t make sense that we could make people so miserable just by having some fun.”
She debated asking her next question. “Are you talking about the men in your shop?”
Owen looked at her.
“Oliver told me.”
He heaved a sigh and let his head sink again. “We’ve never actually hurt anyone. We didn’t think we did. We never tried to. We just like to mess around and get under people’s skin, that’s all.”
Lori said nothing but ate a little more pasta.
“And I thought you, of all people… You handled it so well at first. I thought it would’ve taken so much longer to break you.”
“But why would you want to break me?” she asked. “Why was that the end goal?”
He looked at a loss.
“I was willing to take your bullshit and do what you told me to do, Owen. I would’ve done the job to the best of my ability, even if you didn’t like me and didn’t treat me well. But the two of you together just made things impossible to work with. I couldn’t figure out what you wanted from me, and nothing I did seemed to change anything. And when I thought I was finally getting somewhere…” She stopped and put her own head in her hands.
“Yeah,” he muttered. “Oliver told me.”
More silence.
“Why didn’t you just quit?” he asked. “If it was that unbearable for you?”
“I was planning to. I wasn’t going to come back after today. But I left in such a hurry that I left my purse behind. And now we’re here.”
“And how about now?” he asked.
She shook her head with a shrug.
Owen thought for a while and said quietly. “You should probably get some rest. There’s a guest room you can stay in tonight. I’ll have your clothes washed in the morning, and we’ll make sure you get your purse back.”
He showed her the way to one of the guest rooms upstairs.
“This is the closest one to my room,” he said. “It’s just three doors down on the left. If you need anything, come and find me.”
She nodded. “Thank you.”
He closed the door carefully behind her. Lori looked around at the lovely room. It was decorated in a simple, gender-neutral manner. The bed felt soft and had plenty of covers to keep warm. Lori slid into bed, grateful to be somewhere that felt safe. But despite her aching head and fatigue, she just couldn’t get to sleep. She was disappointed in herself, and reflecting on the conversation with Owen wasn’t helping anything. He’d been angry, understandably, but more than that, he’d been worried about her. She could see it. This reminded her of the worry she’d seen him display over Oliver, and over the idea that he had played a part in ruining the lives of the people who’d hurt his b
rother and tried to kill him.
She couldn’t handle it. Tossing the blankets aside, she left the room and counted three doors on the left before knocking. It opened and Owen looked back at her in nothing but pajama bottoms. His eyes looked glassy.
Clenching her hands into fists, Lori threw her arms around him, holding him tight.
“I’m sorry, Owen,” she said in a weepy voice. “I’m so sorry.”
She felt his arms encircle her and hold her tight.
“Promise me you won’t do anything like that again, Lori,” he said quietly. “Never again.”
“I promise, I won’t,” she said. She looked up at him with sad eyes. “Can I stay with you tonight?”
He looked a little surprised but gently brushed her hair back and nodded. She hugged him again, and he led her over to his bed. They lay close together, entangled in each other’s arms until they both fell asleep.
Chapter Eight
The next morning, Lori woke up snuggled up in Owen’s embrace. She felt his hand had snuck under her shirt to rest on her side, and found she didn’t mind. But her throat was raw and she felt the need to get up for water. Carefully, she pulled herself away, and climbed over him before tiptoeing out of the room. She quietly closed the door behind her, and turned around to be face to face with the other twin!
She gasped with a jump. Oliver looked at her in mute amazement.
“I ...” she started. “Hi.”
His face relaxed to a more blank expression. She was sure he wasn’t happy to see her coming out of his brother’s room.
“Listen,” she started, “Nothing happened –”
“I’m glad you’re alright,” he said.
She blinked at him.
“Owen told me he was going to get you, and I was worried something awful might have happened to you. I wanted to come along and see for myself, but I thought if you saw me, you wouldn’t go with him.”
Her mouth fell open. “Oliver, I … I don’t hate you.”
“You seemed like you never wanted to see me again.”
She looked down at her bare feet. “Yeah well, I was angry. And I’d like to say I’m more level headed than that, but after last night, I’m not so sure that’s true anymore.”
“Give yourself some credit,” he said. “We weren’t exactly easy on you.”
“That’s still no excuse for how I behaved,” she said. “I’m ashamed of it. And I always will be.”
“Everyone makes mistakes,” Oliver pointed out. “I’m just glad you’re alright.”
He continued down the hall to the stairs, and Lori decided to follow him to get a drink.
One of the housekeepers had coffee already brewed, and was working on breakfast. Oliver got a cup for him and Lori as she downed a glass of water.
“I think,” Oliver said thoughtfully, “That Owen and I need to find a new pastime.” He looked up at her as though she might confirm it. “This business of messing with people under false pretenses, it’s losing its edge. And I think we’re really doing more harm than good.”
“What was your goal anyway?” she asked, trying to sound casual.
He smirked. “Well… Since we’ve already revealed ourselves to be scumbags, I guess I can tell you. I wanted to fire you right off the bat.” She gave him a look, and he quickly added, “Not because you did anything wrong. Far from it. Under normal circumstances, you made a perfect first impression.”
“So, what was it, then?”
“I told Owen that we should let you go on the first day, because I knew he would want to keep you around and continue to press your buttons. He would keep irking you in ridiculous ways solely to see how long you would take it.”
She considered this and sipped her coffee.
“It wasn’t anything personal, I want you to know that,” he said. “In fact, I was surprised he tried that with you, considering we already knew you were Marty’s daughter. But he did, and I chocked it up to the fact that he just liked you instantly.”
“What?” she asked.
“Yeah.” He gave a small laugh. “I think he was intrigued by your good looks and the professional way you presented yourself to us. I think he tried to dissuade you from liking the job so you would leave and he could find someone else to pick on. But then you stood up to him and, well…” he trailed off with a hint of a smile on his lips.
“And what?” she asked.
“That just turned him on.”
She just stared at him.
He laughed a little and nodded. “Yeah, I’m serious. You stood up for yourself, but you weren’t acting, well, bitchy about it. You were still a great employee, even though the circumstances were all working against you. Combine that spunky determination with your good looks, and I don’t blame him for being hooked. He wasn’t going to let you go so easily after that.”
Lori bit her lip and frowned as she processed all of this.
“So, if I understand correctly, he was being an impossible jackass because he was attracted to me?”
Oliver smirked at her over his mug.
“What are we, in elementary school?” she demanded.
“Don’t act so innocent,” a voice came from the hall. They both looked to see Owen giving her a sly expression. “You haven’t exactly been resisting us. From what I hear, Oliver’s already got his reward early.”
“I said I was sorry about that,” Oliver muttered.
“Wait, wait, hold it,” Lori said. “You were attracted to me too, Oliver?”
His face said that should have been obvious. “What’s not to be attracted to?”
“So… You didn’t actually want me as an employee?”
“No,” Owen answered.
“You just wanted me around to flirt with, and in your case, conquer,” she said to Owen.
He raised his eyebrows playfully and smiled at her.
“Afraid so,” said Oliver, sounding a bit less pleased with himself.
Lori let her head fall back in annoyance. “Why couldn’t you just hint at that sooner?”
Both of them looked at her in surprise.
“Seriously,” she said. “Do you know how much could have been avoided? I would’ve been a much better sport if I knew that’s what you were after.”
Owen quirked his brow and Oliver put down his cup. “What?”
“Oh, please,” she said. “You think men are the only ones who like to have a good time? And handsome twins – Hello! Who wouldn’t be into that?”
Oliver looked dazed, and glanced sidelong at his brother. Owen returned the look, but smirked as though he had an idea.
“I don’t think she realizes what she just did,” he said.
“I don’t think so either,” Oliver agreed. “Ball’s in our court now.”
“Ha-ha!” Lori said sarcastically. “Not until I say it is.”
“Oh no, Little Missy,” Owen said, striding over to her. “You’ve just handed us your arsenal.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“Half the fun was getting you to break down and admit you were into us. But you just gave that away. Now, no matter what you say, we know the truth. You won’t be able to lie to us now.”
“Doesn’t mean I’ll just give in and sleep with you,” she said coyly.
“No,” Owen agreed. “But it does mean you won’t be able to resist us for long.”
“Shut up and let’s eat breakfast,” she said with a smile.
“Hold on a second,” Oliver said. “You still haven’t told us whether or not you’re quitting.”
Her smile wilted a bit. “Well, it seems like the best way to go. I don’t know if I could go on sleeping with my bosses and expect to be taken seriously in my job… But if I wasn’t working for you. No harm done.”
“So, you’re going to find another job?”
Lori shrugged.
“I have an idea,” Owen said mischievously. “Let’s play a new game. Every day that you’re able to resist us – both of us – we’ll pay you
a day’s wages.”
“What?” she asked.
“Yep,” he said. “We’d basically be paying you to not have sex with us. So, you wouldn’t be a whore.”
She gave a scoffing laugh.
“But we’ll keep trying our best to change your mind. What do you think, Oliver?”
“I think that’s interesting. She’ll be supported for a while.”
Lori gave him a look. “You don’t have confidence in yourself?”
“On the contrary,” the twins said in unison.
Oliver spoke up, “We don’t need to lay it on thick right from the get go. We like to warm it up a bit.”
“It’s more fun that way,” Owen added. “But there’s a catch.”
“What’s that?”
“You can’t pleasure yourself.”
“What?” She gawked.
“Don’t act like you don’t. All women do. And even if you’re one of the few exceptions, we’ll get you to change your mind. I guarantee it.”
“Uh-huh,” she uttered.
“Also,” he added, “As long as we’re playing, you can’t sleep with anyone else. That’s cheating.”
“Not trying to insinuate anything about your character,” Oliver stated. “Those are just the rules.”
“Alright, fair enough,” Lori nodded. “So, what happens if I give in to you?”
“Then you turn in your paycheck for ecstasy,” Owen purred.
She looked between both brothers and thought it over. “Alright, deal. But don’t get jealous over one another.”
They both chuckled. “You don’t understand,” Oliver said, “We’re twins. We were brought up to share.”
Chapter Nine
Lori continued to visit the office, though not as an employee. She visited as a “friend” which people quickly grew accustomed to once both of their bosses began to treat it normally enough. When she wasn’t there, the twins would invite her out in their free time or else invite her over to their mansion. Their tactics started out simply enough, with subtle looks and knowing smiles. Then came the passive aggressive gestures, the insinuating jokes and comments, and the clearly deliberate showing off of their attributes.