The VIP Room(47)

“You should go,” he said, running a hand through his hair, looking anywhere but at me. “I’ll get a driver to take you wherever you want.”

With that he turned his back to me, walking over to a sleek phone system mounted on the wall across from the elevator.

I’d expected the words. No, that’s not right…I expected this feeling of dismay and utter embarrassment the moment he’d pulled away from me. But to hear him say those words, to kick me out so easily and efficiently, made me feel like a cheap whore. Used. Discarded. I felt dirty. I wanted to scrub myself raw in the shower until I returned to who I was comfortable with.

It was at this moment that I realized I couldn’t do this. I couldn’t do the one-night stand thing. I wasn’t one of those confident, flirty women who partied until the early hours of morning and took her pick of willing men to go home with. I was the girl who always liked a steady boyfriend for a reason. Even Ryan had never made me feel so unwanted.

I heard Tristan’s voice, talking to someone on the other end of the phone. “Martin, have a car waiting downstairs in a few minutes…yes. Thank you.”

In a daze, I stepped over to my dress, which lay in a heap a few feet away…only to trip and fall down when I realized my panties were still tangled around my ankles. Pain flared as my kneecaps collided with the hard marble floor and I cried out, trying to catch my fall with my hands.

I heard Tristan curse and his footsteps hurried over to me. “Are you alright?” he asked urgently. I felt his warm palms on my bare shoulders, ready to hall me up.

“Don’t,” I bit out, unable to meet his eyes. “Just don’t. I’m fine.”

My face was probably bright red. I was on the verge of tears. I felt pathetic, a naked mess on the penthouse floor of a man who wanted to kick me out. I just wanted to leave. I wanted to get dressed, high tail it out of here with as much dignity as possible, and never see this man again.

Frustration made me kick off my panties. But because tonight was the most humiliating night I’d ever experienced, they got caught in the straps of my heels. I was all too aware of Tristan watching, his hand hovering somewhere near my shoulder. After struggling for a brief moment, I finally tugged off the heels. Relief swept up the soles of my feet after hours of forced pain.

I struggled to my feet, shying away from Tristan’s hand when he reached to help me up. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him run a hand through his thick hair.

“Go sit down,” he ordered, bending down to grab my dress off the floor. “I’ll get you ice for your knees.”

I tugged the material from his hands, using it to shield my nakedness, even as my throat tightened in mortification. “No. I’m fine.” Even though my voice was quiet, it didn’t waver. “Turn around please. I’d like to get dressed.”

I didn’t care if he’d touched my body intimately only a few moments before. I wanted to dress in privacy, even if it was a false sense of privacy.

Breathing an inward sigh of relief when he turned around to face the elevator, I quickly donned my bra and panties, followed quickly by the dress. It was difficult to zip up by myself, but I managed since there was no way in hell I’d ever ask Tristan. I decided against putting my heels back on. At this point, I no longer cared. I was exhausted. All I wanted was to go curl up at home, where I had a tub of ice cream in the fridge, so I could lick my wounds in private.

I snuck a glance at Tristan’s turned back. He seemed taller now that I’d slipped out of my heels, more intimidating. He was still shirtless and I found myself admiring the strong muscles lining his back with a strange mixture of regret and disgust.

How could someone so beautiful be so…so…

Dropping my gaze, I realized I was in no position to point fingers. I told him all I wanted was one night. That’s what he gave me. I’d just envisioned a different outcome. Minus the humiliation, of course.

After reaching down to snag my discarded clutch off the floor, I peeked down at my knees and saw that they were bright red. I inwardly groaned. Walking through the lobby of the building would not be fun. I looked like I’d been on my knees all night.

You’ll never see these people again, Noelle. It’s okay, I reminded myself. You’ll wake up tomorrow morning fresh and forget all about tonight.

With that thought, after smoothing my hair away from my face, I padded across the marble floor to the elevator, slipping past Tristan. With my back to him, I pressed the down arrow. The doors automatically slid open and I moved to step inside.

“Wait,” he murmured, catching my wrist. I hated the jolt of electricity that went through me when all I should’ve felt was fury. “Let me at least take you home.”

Why the sudden change in heart? A moment ago, he couldn’t wait to get me out the door. Did he feel bad for me? Pity me?

My spine straightened and I cast him a glance over my shoulder, pulling my arm out of his grip. His green eyes burned into mine, no less mesmerizing than they were before. I couldn’t read him. And I certainly didn’t want anything from him, especially his pity.

“I believe you called a driver to take care of that.” I stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the lobby. Carefully keeping my face blank, I nodded at him. I wished I could come up with something flippant to say to show that he hadn’t really hurt me. But nothing came to mind. Plus, he really had hurt me. Instead, I settled for, “Goodbye.”