Page 8 of Carnal Desire

I had no idea what they were talking about, but judging by the expression on Ariel’s face, she did.

“Bye now,” Ariel said firmly.

Ariel hustled her friends out the door and I went in search of plates and napkins. She came into the kitchen behind me, dropping the food on the dining room table along the way. The kitchen, dining room, and living room all flowed into one large open space, affording a view of the city skyline from every room. In the distance I could see the Sears Tower, as the locals called it, or the Willis Tower, as tourists would say. It was a whole Chicago thing, and I’d lived here long enough now to be in on it.

“Plates are up here,” Ariel said, reaching over my head.

I could feel the heat of her body against my back, and I resisted the sudden urge to lean back and rub myself against her. She smelled good, like the citrus body wash she favored. Not that I’d ever noticed her body wash while cleaning her shower. Oh God, what was I doing? Lusting after my boss and the woman who was helping me out? I was such a jerk.

I scooted out to grab some napkins, then took the plates from Ariel. She retrieved two glasses, pouring us each some water from the filtered dispenser on the refrigerator, then she followed me to the table.

We were both quiet as we served ourselves a few slices of pizza along with some breaded mushrooms.

“I’m sorry if my friends made you feel uncomfortable,” Ariel said.

“They didn’t,” I replied. “Well, not much.”

“We’ve all been tight since we were babies,” she explained. “Our parents were friends and the three of us went all the way through school together before starting our business.”

“You’re in real estate development, right?” I asked, pretending like I hadn’t devoured every single bit of public information on this woman that I could. And spied on whatever I saw in this condo.

“Primarily, although AGM – our company -- has other business holdings as well, mostly nightclubs and restaurants,” she explained. “We all have separate enterprises, but our joint ventures are the big moneymakers.”

I nodded, feeling completely out of my depth. Our eyes caught and held, and for some reason I started to feel hot. A trickle of sweat traced its way down my spine, but I couldn’t look away. When Ariel finally glanced down at her plate, a flush of pink across her cheeks, I felt ready to combust.

We ate in silence for a few minutes. I hadn’t had pizza in more than six months, and I devoured it like it was my last meal. I’d been relying on the dinners they gave us at the shelter – usuallycasseroles of some kind – and the boxed lunches of sandwiches and noodle cups they sent us off with in the morning. Things like pizza were a luxury for me right now. I was going to enjoy every bite.

“Do you have plans this weekend?” Ariel finally asked.

I resisted saying that my weekend plans involved me wandering around the city until it was late enough to go back to the shelter.

“No.”

“Great, you’re going to hang out with me.”

My head popped up. “Oh no, you’re already letting me stay here, I couldn’t impose on you more.”

“Sadie,” she said slowly, the way she said my name in a tone that almost sounded tender made a little thrill go through me. “I’d like to think we’re friends. Can we be friends?”

“Sure, I’d like that,” I said honestly.

Although if I was being one hundred percent honest, I would say I wanted to be more than friends. Unfortunately I was a broke and homeless cleaning lady and Ariel was one of the richest and most sophisticated women in the country. This was not some fairytale. Women like me did not end up with women like Ariel, at least not for more than a quick fuck. I’d do well to remember my place.

“Great, then let’s have some fun this weekend, okay?”

I wondered how much her kind of fun would cost. I had about three hundred bucks in the new savings account I’d opened after Jane took me off our joint account and stole all my money. I needed to save every cent for an apartment. I could afford cheap rent somewhere, but getting several thousand dollars together for deposits and move in fees were a killer.

To my surprise, Ariel seemed to pick up on the reason for my hesitation.

“Don’t worry about a thing. This weekend is on me. It won’t cost you a thing.”

“Oh no, I…”

Ariel held up her hand. “No arguing,” she said in that sexy bossy tone.

My lips clamped shut without any consultation with my brain.

“Now let’s go to bed,” she said firmly. “You look like you’re dead on your feet.”

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