Avoiding Intimacy (Avoiding #2.5)(21)

He stifled a laugh. “Me, too.”

Her eyes darted to his quickly and saw his meaning. She probably should have blushed or giggled or something equally girly, but all she did was smile, a slow devious smile. Her eyes flickered down to the water and then back into his hungry hazel eyes. He was making this difficult.

“You should probably do that then. I need to get out of these wet clothes.”

“You should,” he said, clearing his throat as he watched her pull herself out of the water, “probably do that then.”

“Oh, I will,” she said, winking at him as she dripped across the concrete floor back to the changing area.

As soon as the door closed behind her, she leaned back against it and closed her eyes, breathing heavily. What the f**k was she doing?

CHAPTER 5

PRESENT

“This place is a dream,” Brigitte said, finishing her fourth flute of Champagne since Chyna had ventured into their midst.

“It’s an opera house,” Chyna said nonchalantly.

“I’m not an idiot!” Brigitte cried.

“Stop treating me like one. Stupid American.” The last bit was muttered under her breath.

“She didn’t have to say you were an idiot, Bridge,” Ravenna responded cattily.

Even though the woman was bitchy, she still stuck up for Chyna. Chyna wasn’t sure why, but it had always been that way.

If anyone else stepped out of line, Ravenna was certain to bite their head off without a second thought. She was a vicious opponent who didn’t back down, and it didn’t take much with many of the twits that circulated the modeling community.

“Don’t start with me, Ravenna.”

Brigitte scowled.

“Ladies,” Giovanna cooed, “can we not?”

“Yeah, Bridge,” Ravenna spat her name out. “Keep it together.”

Brigitte teetered forward in her dress as if she were going to lunge for Ravenna.

Giovanna quickly stepped in between them.

“Will you two please just quit it? It is our last event together. We have been living together for nearly two months now.

We have done everything together. Can we just savor our last evening together?”

“Fine,” Brigitte agreed, stepping back and lounging against a cream chaise. Her blue dress slit open to her hip as she rested backward.

Ravenna just shrugged, leaning against the wall like a Greek goddess statue.

Black feathers trimmed her low-cut gown and held back one side of her cascading red hair wrapping around and over her right shoulder.

“Thank you,” Giovanna muttered, turning away from the girls, her dress sweeping out behind her in layer upon layer of yellow tulle.

Chyna hadn’t moved from the large window ledge she had been sitting on throughout the entire confrontation. She had been too concerned with when Marco would come for her. The four of them had disappeared into a private room after spending an hour on their feet while designers examined their gowns, taking no interest in actually speaking to the models themselves. It was dreadfully boring, and they took solace in each other’s company as soon as they could leave. They wouldn’t be able to be gone for too long before someone noticed their absence.

“Ay! Americano,” Brigitte chirped, saying the name like it was a dirty word.

Chyna’s head snapped up and found all three girls staring directly at her.

“Were you listening to anything we were saying?” Ravenna asked with a pointed smile.

“No,” Chyna said with a shrug. Did they say something they said been important? She assumed they were still arguing as per usual. It gave her a lot of time to drift away.

“We were just asking,” Giovanna began, glancing between her co- conspirators for support, “what Marco is like?”

Chyna stared between them, wondering where this was going. She was sure whatever it was would only mean trouble. “What do you mean?”

“Oh, you know!” Brigitte chimed in.

“I’m sure I don’t.”

“What’s he like in bed?” Ravenna asked bluntly.

“None of you know?” Chyna asked, throwing it back in their face. Though, she was mildly curious. It’s not like she spent all her time with Marco. He could have had the opportunity to f**k every one of them if he had wanted to.

“Oh, why are we even bothering to ask her?” Brigitte asked, throwing up her hands.

“I don’t know what he’s like,”

Giovanna answered, ignoring Brigitte. “I know Bridge has no idea.”

Brigitte hmphed in frustration. She was the youngest of the bunch, and sometimes it really showed through.

“Ravenna?” Giovanna asked.

Ravenna smiled her biggest, most devious smile.

“Well?” Chyna asked, not buying her act for one minute.

Ravenna was not Marco’s type. Far from it. She was gorgeous and curvy, but she was unable, or at least unwilling, to take direction. Chyna wasn’t submissive by a long shot, but she knew when to give and when to take.

“Spit it out,” Giovanna said, planting her hand on her hip.

“Fine!” Ravenna called. “I haven’t slept with Marco, but Chyna has. So, you spit it out. What was he like?”

Chyna shrugged, looking back out the window. She didn’t have any desire to parade her sex life before these girls. The only person she had ever shared details with was Alexa, and she wasn’t here. She was in New York, probably where Chyna should be, making Alexa feel better.