Page 9 of Tequila & Lace
“What do you mean?”
“So youdoknow more than two words?” I rolled my eyes. Crossing my arms over my chest, I looked out the heavy tinted window at the passing street lights. “I wouldn’t give me attitude, sweetheart. You don’t know what I’m capable of.”
I turned and straightened my head back toward him. “What am I doing here?”
He smiled. “You have a date.”
“With…” I paused and then took a big swallow of nothing before I was able to speak again. “With you?”
He gave a deep belly laugh and then leaned forward to grab the champagne bottle that was sitting in a bucket of ice. “As much as I would love to get a taste of your pure pussy… It is pure right?” He gestured with the bottle toward me. I curled up my lips in disgust and grunted. “I’ll take that as a yes.” He laughed. “Whales pay a lot of money to fuck a virgin.”
“Wait. What?” I sat up straighter, trying to sit as far back as I could from this man. I felt cornered, trapped and my heart began to race so fast that I knew if I didn’t calm the fuck down, I was going to pass out.
He filled two flutes then leaned forward, his arm reaching out with one of the champagne flutes in his hand. I glanced at the bubbly liquid and then back up to his face, finally getting a good look at the man sitting across from me. The interior of the limo was dark, the only light from the pin-point, multi-colored lights on the ceiling shining down, but I could see the skin on his face was a deep sun-kissed brown. Tony had dark eyes and a neatly trimmed goatee that was the same color as the hair on his head.
I’d never had a sip of alcohol before; never had the desire to try it. I’d seen Mother come home drunk too many times and I never wanted to be like her. But at this moment not being inthismoment sounded like the best idea. I couldn’t believe what was happening and on my birthday of all days. I reached for the glass with a shaky hand, my gaze dropping down to the massive gold ring on the ring finger of his right hand and then took a sip—a big one of the bubbly liquid. It was tart and didn’t taste that great. I’d expected it to taste like juice.Why did people drink this shit?
“This is how it’s going to go, sweetheart.” He took a sip of his champagne as he leaned back in his seat. The colored lights from the ceiling shined down on his white shirt under his black suit jacket and I stared at them and not his face. “We’re driving to a hotel where your date Marco will be waiting for you. Jose will bring you up to Marco’s room, and then you’ll dowhateverMarco wants you to do for two hours. Jose will drive you home when you’re done.”
“Who’s Jose?”Like that was the most important question to ask.
“The limo driver.”
“And where will you be?”
“I don’t make it a habit to escort my girls to meet their johns.”
“Um, what?”
“Which part didn’t you understand because we’re almost at the hotel?”
“I’m working for you?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
“I can’t work for you. I’m seventeen. I’m in high school. And my best friend is a cop!”
He laughed and rubbed his goatee with his thumb and index finger. “Sweetheart, please, I have cops on my payroll. They don’t scare me. And your mother started much younger than you and look how she turned out.”
Exactly.
“You don’t havethiscop on your payroll.”
He leaned forward as the car pulled to a stop. Tony pushed a button, telling Jose to give us just another minute, and then turned his attention back to me. “If I hear from Marco that you were not cooperative ineveryway, you and your mother are going to pay.” I blinked at him. “Do I make myself clear?”
“I thought you cared about my mother?”
He gave another laugh, the same one I knew would give me nightmares. “Sweetheart, your mother is nothing more than a whore makin’ me a shit load of money.”
“A whore?” I spat. “You turned her into one!”
He grinned. “It’s what I’m good at.”
Before I could respond further, the door opened and a hand reached inside. I looked up, then back at Tony and he nodded. This couldn’t be happening. This was supposed to be my surprise birthday dinner. Instead, I was about to walk into a hotel and lose my virginity.
“Go on, sweetheart.”
A lump was forming in my throat and tears were on the verge of spilling over my eyelids, but instead, I put my big girl panties on and grabbed Jose’s hand as he helped me out of the limo. My heart was beating so hard I thought it was going to beat out my chest and onto the stone walkway as I took a few steps on wobbly legs until I got my balance in the ridiculously high heels. Now I understood the makeup, the dress, and the shoes. And to think I had thanked my mother for this.
