by Kelly Favor
Raven closed out of all the internet windows on her phone and put the cell back in her purse. She kept wishing that she’d thought the whole thing through more, considered all of the ramifications.
But things had just happened so fast, and Jake had simply run with the idea, and now it was happening. She never should have suggested any of it.
This was madness and it was already backfiring.
Maybe Kurt had been right to try and scare her off. If only she’d listened to him.
At that moment, there was a knock on her hotel room door.
“Yes?” Raven called out.
“It’s me,” the voice replied.
“Who?” she said, not recognizing it.
“Kurt.”
Her insides froze and her hands tightened into fists. “Please go away.”
“Jake sent me,” he said. “Open up, I don’t have all day.”
“I don’t care who sent you,” she said.
“Fine,” he said. “I’ve got a suitcase full of clothes for you. I’ll leave them here and you can open the door when I’m gone, seeing as I scare you so badly.”
“Good. Please go,” she said loudly.
And then it went silent outside the door. She took a few deep breaths, hand on her stomach.
She hated that man, hated his voice. Why did he have to be there in New York? Why, with every other thing happening, did he have to come around to make it all that much worse?
But there was nothing to be done. She went and opened the door, expecting to see just a suitcase sitting in the hallway. But Kurt hadn’t moved. He was standing beside the suitcase, arms folded, smirking at her. “Hi, Raven.”
“You said you were going to leave.”
“I said that so that you’d open the door,” he said, his eyes sparkling with malice. “I knew you’d fall for it, too. You’re so darn predictable.”
She tried to slam the door, but he stepped forward and blocked it. “Don’t do that,” he said, his smile fading fast. “I want to explain something to you.”
“I don’t want to talk to you, and so help me—I’ll scream at the top of my lungs if you don’t leave me alone.”
“No you won’t,” he said, challenging her with his eyes.
“How do you know what I will or won’t do?”
“I know you were too chicken-shit to tell Jake what I said to you. You don’t want the gravy train to end so soon,” he said, his voice filled with contempt.
“Get away from me,” she said, trying to sound tough, but failing. Her voice shook from the strain. Finally, she let go of the door and backed away, giving up on stopping him.
He laughed as the door swung open once more, but he didn’t come further inside. “Listen,” he said, “you got what you wanted. Jake’s already allowed the two of you to be photographed together, so the damage is done and I’ve accepted that. I tried to talk sense to him, I tried to get you to go away, but it didn’t happen.”
Raven licked her lips. “I really don’t care about any of this.”
“Shut up and listen to me,” he replied, his voice as cold and condescending as a man talking to an idiot or a child he’s lecturing.
“Don’t talk to me like that.”
He chuckled. “Oh, so now we’re supposed to play nice, huh? Well, that’s fine by me,” Kurt told her. “I’m ready to play nice. I’m trying to explain to you that I’m not going to fight this preposterous scam anymore. If you and Jake want to play house like a couple of kids, go right ahead.”
“I don’t believe you mean that,” she replied.
“It’s true. My job now is to try my best to make this fly with the media.”
“It’s as simple as that?” she said.
“You and I can call a truce if you’re up to it,” he told her. He held out his hand. “Truce?”
“Leave me alone and I’ll leave you alone,” she told him. “But I’m not going to touch you.”
He turned and started walking away from her. “That’s the classy lady I’ve come to know and love, Raven. You just keep being you, honey.”
“Don’t call me honey, asshole,” she said and slammed the door shut. And then she remembered that suitcase was outside still, so she opened the door again and dragged it into her room.
She could have sworn she heard Kurt’s laughter still floating down the hallway.
Once the suitcase was in her hotel room and the door was shut, Raven unzipped it, revealing outfit after beautiful outfit folded neatly inside, and tucked away at the bottom were about six pairs of high heels. There weren’t just dresses, skirts and blouses, but also panties and bras.
Raven would have been grateful that Kurt had brought this suitcase to her, because she desperately needed the change of clothes. But the things Kurt had said and done made her disgusted, and part of her wondered if this was some sort of set-up. Would he later try and accuse her of stealing these things?
She had no reason to trust anything that came out of that man’s mouth, and she simply wished he would go away.
She picked out some clothes to change into and then got dressed, her mind whirling with thoughts about this new life that had been thrust upon her. Everything was moving so fast, and Raven didn’t know anymore if she could make the right choices.
Would it be better to just try and go home, run away from it all?
Could she even leave or would Jake find a way to bring her back?
As Raven checked herself out in the bathroom mirror, fixed her hair, she thought about Jake. What was even going on between them?
Sometimes she got the distinct feeling that there was more than just a business relationship. The way he looked at her, touched her, the softness and tenderness in his eyes when he was concerned about something—everything told her that Jake had feelings beyond a mere transactional arrangement.
But then he would act completely disinterested, cold, angry and dismissive of her the next moment. He wouldn’t so much as kiss her.
None of it made any sense. Why couldn’t he just be a normal guy? Did such a category of man even truly exist? Maybe a normal guy was like Big Foot or the Loch Ness Monster—one of those things that people searched for but never quite found.
Raven had changed into a short black skirt, black heels, and a white blouse. She had to admit, it was a cute outfit, maybe even sexy. It scared her a little that reporters and photographers might take pictures of her in this outfit and then people would trash her all over the internet.
But she wasn’t going to let that possibility change what she chose to wear.
Will Jake like it? Will it make him want to do bad things to me?
Raven left the bathroom, shaking her head. She was frustrated at how much she continuously wondered about Jake, and how much the thoughts of him touching her seemed to dominate her thinking.
Every so often, no matter where she was or what she was doing, she’d remember him stripping off her robe, putting his hand down there, between her legs…
And then she’d be wet all over again, wishing that he’d do it the same way that night. Even as another part of her said that what Jake was doing to her was wrong, and she was wrong for letting him have his way.
No wonder he won’t kiss you. This is no way for a good woman to behave.
Raven ignored that critical voice. She was used to the self-judgment, and often chose not to listen to it.
There was a time when she’d listened, and it had nearly cost her everything.
The phone was ringing.
It was her hotel room phone. She hesitated, then finally crossed over and answered, expecting to hear someone from the front desk, or maybe Jake calling to check in with her.
But it wasn’t any of them.
“Hello, Miss Hartley,” the familiar voice said, and Raven suddenly realized that Max Mendez was calling her hotel room.
“How did you get my room number?” she said, her voice shaking a little.
“Never mind about that,” Max said, his tone light, f
riendly even. “Just you know that we’re always keeping tabs, Raven. Always.”
“What do you want?”
“That’s not very nice. I thought we were friends.”
“No you didn’t,” she said, and waited for the real reason he was calling.
“You need to come to our office immediately,” Max said.
“I can’t just go to your office, I don’t even know where it is. And I’m in New York with Jake.”
“We’re in New York, too. Our office is a fifteen-minute cab ride from your hotel. I suggest you leave now.”
Raven’s chest tightened at the tone of his voice. Max sounded different, like he was being friendlier because he was actually angry this time. “Why do you want me to come to the office? What’s this about?” she asked.
“Don’t worry what it’s about,” Max said. “You’ll find out.”
“I’m not coming unless you tell me.”
“I’m only going to say this one more time,” he said, his voice getting softer and yet more menacing somehow. “You need to come to the office. Immediately. We know where you’re staying, Raven, so if you don’t come now—we’ll find a more unpleasant way to meet with you.”
Suddenly, she knew. She knew without the shadow of a doubt that Max was telling the truth. She was in some kind of trouble with Max and whoever else he worked with, and there was no way to avoid dealing with it.
“Okay,” she said, finally. “Tell me where to go.”
Raven left immediately, as requested, without telling anyone where she was going. She managed to escape the hotel without being noticed by anyone, perhaps because without Jake beside her, nobody knew who she was yet.
It also helped that she blended in with a group of tourists who happened to be leaving at the same time.
And then she’d managed to find a cab to take her to the prescribed location, a swanky part of town that was even swankier than the one she’d been staying in, if such a thing was even possible.
The cab dropped her off and she walked into the most intimidating building that she’d ever been in—that she could ever have imagined being inside.
It was one of the many buildings located on the uber-fancy Central Park West, and she was immediately greeted inside the lobby by an unsmiling security guard. She expected him to ask her name or who she was there to visit.
Instead, he said, “Raven Hartley?” as if he’d been expecting her at that very moment, like she was being followed.
“Yes,” she answered, uncertain of what to do or say at every turn. She was sweating lightly.
“Please follow me.” He led her toward the elevators. The inside of the building was enormous, all dark marble, fancy mirrors and art adorned the walls. There was another guard standing beside the elevators, watching her with suspicion.
“Hi,” she said, smiling at the guard, whose frown merely deepened. He didn’t respond.
They got into the elevator and rode up to the fifth floor. When they got off, Raven was greeted by her old friend Max Mendez. He looked a little haggard somehow, pale. He was wearing the same blue suit she’d seen him in before.
“I’ll take her from here,” he told the guard, who nodded and stayed inside the elevator as she got out.
“Wow,” she said, stepping out into the enormous hallway.
There were huge stone pillars every few yards, and by the walls, some beautiful chairs and couches. There was even an enormous fireplace with a fire burning brightly inside.
“Nice, ‘aint it?” Max asked her.
“Stunning,” she said. “This is Club Alpha headquarters or something?”
“Or something,” he said, breathing heavily out through his nostrils as he walked, leading her down the hallway. He opened the doors at the far end, and led her into a smaller room that seemed like a library or study of some sort. There were ornate bookcases all along the walls, more fancy paintings, another huge fireplace, and various armchairs, desks and tables meant for study.
There was nobody in the room, however, and Raven’s heart started to race. She swallowed, feeling like she wanted to run. “Could I use the bathroom?” she asked.
“I can’t let you do that right now,” Max said, his eyes turning on her like a predator’s, cold and without pity.
“I can’t even go to the bathroom?”
“No,” he said, gesturing to a chair nearby. “Why don’t you have a seat?” he said.
“Okay,” she replied, not knowing how else to respond to his refusal. So she sat down and crossed her legs. She felt a little dizzy, faint, and tried to ignore the intense pressure in her bladder.
“You know, I wish it didn’t have to be like this,” Max said, pacing a little in front of her.
“Like what?”
He turned and glared at her. “You got the cushy gig, you know? Any girl who works for us would have given a fucking arm and leg to be with Jake Novak on tour. But what do you do, you go and fuck up a choice situation. I knew you’d be trouble from the minute I laid eyes on you.”
“I didn’t do anything,” she said, trying to meet his relentless gaze.
He sneered at her. “No, of course not. Little innocent Raven Hartley never does nothing wrong. Not you.”
“I don’t appreciate how you’re speaking to me right now.”
“So what?” he laughed, contempt written all over his face. “What the fuck do I care if you appreciate it? Do you know what kind of trouble I’m in because of you? Huh?”
She swallowed again. “I…I really need to go to the bathroom.”
He bent down and pointed a thick finger in her face. “You’ll fucking sit there until you’re told you can go. I don’t much care if you piss all over the seat. You sit and wait for the boss.”
The boss?
Just the way he said it made her afraid. Who was the boss? Could he be any worse than Max Mendez? She didn’t want to even think about that possibility.
“I’m sorry I got you in trouble, Max,” she said, finally, as Max stood near her chair, hands clasped in front of him, waiting.
“Yeah, yeah.” He sighed. “That’s the game, baby.”
“I’m doing the best I can.”
He glanced at her briefly, then went back to staring straight ahead. “Well I hope for both our sakes that you start doing a heck of a lot better. Because if not, we’re both going to be in a world of trouble real soon.”
Raven’s stomach knotted, tightened, and her bladder ached. She re-crossed her legs and waited, trying to keep herself calm.
There was a buzzing from her purse and she took out her cell phone. A message had come through from Jake.
Where are u? Just knocked on your door.
She sighed. What to tell him? Certainly not the truth. And then it hit her, an easy lie.
I’m with Sky. I’ll let u know when i’m free.
She typed it quickly and put the phone away.
Max glared at her from the corner of his eye. “You better leave that phone in your purse when the boss comes in, or I’ll take the whole thing and throw it in the fucking fireplace.”
She ignored him but her body was shaking from fear and anxiety.
A minute later, the doors opened again, and then a slender man walked into the room with a friendly smile on his face. He was maybe early forties, handsome in a regular guy sort of way, dressed in a vest and tie, dark slacks, gleaming shoes. He was very put together in an understated sense.
“You must be the famous—or should I say infamous—Raven Hartley,” he exclaimed, still smiling, offering his hand to her.
She shook it, noticing his grip was soft and his hand was clammy. She took her hand away as soon as possible. “Hi,” she said. “And you are?”
He grinned. “I’m just so glad to meet you, finally,” he said, dodging her question. He shot a cold glance to Max. “Thanks,” he said, his tone changing, becoming harsh.
Max’s head seemed to go down, like a whipped dog. He started walking toward the doors, leaving without s
o much as a backward glance. He shut the doors behind him on his way out, leaving Raven alone with the boss.
“Call me Scott,” the boss said, smiling once more, pulling over another chair and sitting down just a couple of feet away from her. He crossed his legs and straightened his tie. “I hope you understand that we brought you here today for an important reason. Not just to scare you,” Scott said.
“I guess I don’t understand,” Raven said softly. “I’m confused.”
Scott leaned forward, smoothing his tie again. “You see, what you’re doing right now with Jake Novak—it’s very bad for business. We can’t have it.”
“Can’t have what?”
Scott’s smile faded. “Can’t have you in the news, acting like his girlfriend. This isn’t in the contract, it’s not part of the program. You’re putting us in a very awkward situation.”
“But Jake is the one who asked me to do it, and I was told to always keep the client happy,” she replied.
Scott didn’t seem to like her using their words against them. “Keep the client happy, yes, but that only goes to a point. Discretion is the ultimate goal here, Raven. Would you like a drink?”
“No thank you,” she said, but Scott was already out of his seat and walking over to a table nearby, grabbing a pitcher of clear water and pouring it into two glasses.
“The thing is,” Scott said, as he poured the water, “once the media starts digging into your background, they’re going to find out a lot of things. Things that are bad for you, bad for us, and bad for Jake. We can’t have it.”
“I don’t know what to say,” Raven told him. “You want me to tell Jake I can’t be his pretend girlfriend anymore?”
Scott crossed back and put her glass down on the table beside her, while he took a sip from his. “I want you to do better than that. I want you to leave today—leave now—and never speak to Jake Novak again.”
Raven thought about it. And then she remembered Skylar and the help Jake was providing to her. If Raven simply took off without so much as an explanation, Jake might stop helping Skylar. “Couldn’t I at least tell Jake why I have to go?”
“No,” Scott said. His eyes were hard steel, harder and meaner than anyone, even Max. She thought that Scott would just as soon snap her neck if she annoyed him enough.