sierra
“Why are we at the mall?” I asked.
“Because your clothes have holes in them,” Steven said, taking my arm in his hand and showing me the hole that I usually played with in my sweatshirt. “I’m going to buy you some warm clothes for the winter.”
“But—”
“Don’t argue with me, Sierra,” he said, pulling me into Luxe Room, one of the most expensive clothing stores in the mall. “Either you can pick the clothes out yourself or I’ll buy you clothes that I want to see you wear.”
After biting back a sigh, I followed him into the store and glanced around at the clothes that were way out of my price range. I hadn’t even shopped here when my parents were alive and we had a little bit of extra money.
An hour later, Steven shoved his credit card back into his wallet and grabbed the three giant bags filled to the brim with new jeans, coats, sweaters, and long-sleeved shirts that he had forced me to try on. I had tried to get out of it by saying that I didn’t like any of the clothes here, but he had taken control and nearly bought me half the store!
“Follow me,” he said with one hand on my lower back to guide me deeper into the mall.
“But the car is in the other direction.”
He continued and stopped near the escalators.
“Why don’t we stop here?” he offered.
I paused in front of Birch Jewels and chewed on the inside of my cheek. Maybe he needed to buy a couple of diamond-encrusted watches or … something for him because if he thought he was going to buy something else for me in here …
He had another thing coming.
“Is there anything specific that I can help you find?” a woman said when we walked in.
“Necklaces.”
“Steven,” I scolded quietly, grabbing his elbow, “no.”
Ignoring all my pleas, he took my hand and followed the woman to the cases to the left with diamond bracelets and necklaces. I ripped some skin off my inner cheek and nervously played with the end of my sleeve.
“Do you like any?” he asked.
“Steven,” I whispered, glancing at the diamonds and jewels, “these look expensive.”
“Do you like any?” he repeated.
Nerves bubbled up my stomach and into my chest. “H-how much are these?” I asked.
The woman grinned. “These average about eighty.”
“Eighty dollars?” I asked, sighing a breath of relief.
“Eighty thousand.”
My hand snapped around Steven’s, and I turned on my heel toward him. “No.”
“My treat.”
“This isn’t a treat!” I whisper-yelled. “These are eighty-thousand-dollar necklaces!”
“Pick out one that you like,” he said nonchalantly.
Like eighty grand meant nothing to him!
“But—”
“Sierra, please,” he said, as if he didn’t want to argue.
Wanting to choose the least expensive one possible, I glanced down into the case. I hated taking other people’s money. Heather’s parents always bought me nice things for Christmas and my birthday that I hated accepting. And I’d tried to repay them for the apartment multiple times too.
My gaze landed on a simple choker-style diamond necklace toward the back. None of the others really fit my style, and I wasn’t someone who wanted huge diamonds on my neck to show off to everyone.
“Do you like that one?” Steven asked.
“It’s nice.”
“Just nice?”
“I think … it would fit my style the best.”
He pointed to the same one in the back. “Let’s try this one.”
“Ah, lovely,” the woman exclaimed. She walked around the cases and unclasped the diamond necklace. I pulled my hair out of the way and swallowed hard as she fastened it around my neck. “This is one of my favorites!”
Once she stepped away, I gazed into the mirror and then nervously up at Steven.
“Leave us,” he said to the woman.
And while nobody would even think about leaving someone my age alone with a piece of jewelry that cost eighty grand or more, the lady nodded and walked into a back room. He stepped behind me in the mirror, his gaze on my neck.
“Do you like it?” he asked.
“It’s okay.”
“If you don’t like how it looks, there are others.”
“No, Steven,” I whispered. “That’s not what I mean. It’s expensive.”
“I asked if you liked it. Not if you think it’s expensive.”
“You’ve already bought me clothes,” I said. “That’s enough. Let’s go.”
“Sierra,” he said, his voice stern.
I sucked in a breath and snapped my gaze to his, feeling the warmth pool between my thighs. He only used that commanding tone when he wanted me to obey him during sex. But this … this was so much money.
And I didn’t deserve it.
“I’ll never be able to repay you,” I whispered, chest tightening. “Please.”
“You don’t have to repay me.”
“But—”
“You want to repay me? You can give me another bath.”
My eyes widened. “But you don’t like baths. Last time that happened …”
Tuesday morning drifted through my mind, and I swallowed hard. My stomach had been in knots all week as I thought about that morning, wondering what had gone through his mind and what had even possessed me to sleep over at his place.
“I really enjoyed it,” he said. “Nobody had given me a bath before. Do we have a deal?”
“Are you sure?”
His lips curled into a smile. “All I want is a bath as repayment.”
“A bath it is.” I glanced at the diamond choker around my neck. “One expensive bath.”
He moved closer to me and brushed his fingers against my shoulder, following my gaze. “Do you like this one? If you don’t, we can try a couple of other places or even order a custom piece for you.”
“No,” I said, because a custom piece sounded even more expensive. “This is perfect.”
“Good,” he said, smiling. “Because you’ll be wearing it often.”