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together.
What's wrong with me that I love to see him squirm?
You can't leave the building, Jay orders, letting us both know.
I know the rules, Jay. Chill out, Arianna sharply responds.
Jay scrubs his scars, I'm warning you, A. Don't fuck me over.
Gee, thanks, she mutters, taking offense. She grabs my hand and yanks me out the door. Let's
hurry before your domineering boyfriend acts even more like a prick than usual.
In the waiting area I find Charlie sitting on a leather chair with Hattie standing between his legs,
disinfecting his wounds. His eyes are wandering all over her face.
I'm taking Lily to the studio, Arianna informs Charlie.
Charlie ignores her or maybe he didn't hear, I'm not sure which.
Charlie, she snaps, getting his attention. I need you to take me home.
Charlie stands, thanking Hattie, who blushes. The three of us travel to the gold elevator.
As we descend, Arianna explains that she can't ride to any level without a guard, seeming almost
embarrassed by it.
Thanks for sticking up for me, Arianna quietly speaks, taking Charlie's hand in hers. He
looked a hell of a lot worse than you do.
His lips curve to the side, confidently displaying that this is information he already knew.
We arrive on the level Jay lives. He hadn't mentioned Arianna was living here too. I was
wondering how I was going to her place if we weren't allowed to leave the bank.
Charlie has to lead us all the way to the apartment door, which is closer to the elevator than
Jay's. He has his hand scanned before we can. Arianna explains that she also can't enter or leave an
area without a guard or she pays the consequences.
I don't ask what those are. I know it can't be anything good.
Arianna thanks Charlie once we're inside. He lifts his chin and leaves.
The studio looks identical to Jay's. It's a little freaky.
Are you hungry? I thought I would make us lunch? Arianna offers.
Sure. Thanks.
She signals to a bar stool, Sit. I'll get it started. And don't even think about offering to help, I'm
trying to learn how all this works, she waves her arms around at the kitchen.
You and Charlie seem close... I pry, hopping up on a stool.
Oh, we are. He's incredible. He looks out for me, probably the only person in my life who ever
has. It's a shame he's gay.
What? Really? Not that he has to fit a stereotype or anything, but this completely surprises me.
I was shocked too. At one point I wondered if he was lying, but one day he came home early at
the exact moment I had gotten out of the shower and was walking to the dresser. His eyes barely
glanced at me, and not in an uncomfortable, quickly look away thing, but an actual I-could-care-less-
that-a-naked-woman-is-standing-in-front-of-me way.
My jaw drops, You two live here, together?
Yes, but he sleeps on the couch.
Ben doesn't care?
She laughs, No, at this point he's unable to say no to me.
Oh, really...
Not like that. I'm not interested in that anymore, with him or any man. I just mean he feels so bad
about what happened that I think he'd give me his villa in Italy if I asked.
Ooh, you should, I joke.
I agree. She winks at me, Maybe his beach house in Hawaii, too.
How long have you known Ben? I try to casually ask, finding it a good time to weasel it in,
desperately wanting the juicy gossip.
My whole life. She points to the ingredients she pulled out, Grilled cheese okay?
Yup.
She gets to work making them, I'm sure you want to know more; I would. The bread gets
placed on the counter and she spreads butter over it, He's fourteen years older than me, but from the
moment I saw him I was hooked. Can't really blame me, he's gorgeous. She licks her lips, stopping
her cheese slicing to dreamily sigh, My parents noticed how eager I always was to go to San
Fransisco and they knew the reason why. I had thought they were being nice when they allowed me to
go to this bank with them. It wasn't until I was at an age my parents thought was appropriate for me to
be sexually active fifteen I might add, she says with disgust, that I found out the real reason they
liked to flaunt me around him. Basically, they wanted to sell my virginity.
I unintentionally gasp, Your freaking parents?
I know. It's sick, but I've only ever been a money maker to them; another way to con people.
Jesus, that's horrible. I try to hide my revulsion, Did Ben try to buy it?
She looks mortified, God no! He was pissed they even put the offer out there.
That's a relief.
Anyway, they made Vault promise to not ever touch me after he refused, afraid I would get
attached to him and want to stay in San Fransisco. At that point I had become a valuable asset to
them.
That's fucked up.
That's my parents.
I thought Jay was your first? I seriously doubt Jay would pay for someone's virginity.
He was. I had been crying...do you want to know this or is it too weird?
I want to know everything about Jay.
Okay. So, I was crying, telling Jay how my dad had just informed me about selling myself. I was
terrified. I hadn't even kissed a boy yet. Then Jay told me to just pick a guy and have sex. Even though
I wasn't ready, I liked the idea of it being my choice. I remember looking at Jay and thinking how I
loved that he never watched me like other men did. Even being that young I had men of all ages ogling
me, and it always made me uncomfortable. I liked that Jay looked at me like any other person in the
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