Obsession (Seven Vices Series) by Emily Blythe

Author:Emily Blythe [Blythe, Emily]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-02-18T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nineteen

Lola

That morning, after submitting my dress for the showcase, I headed down the steps that led to the central courtyard at my college campus. I stopped in my tracks when just ahead of me, sitting on the steps, was none other than Minty. She stood out like a sore thumb in her short body con dress and Italian leather boots.

“Hey, Lola!” Minty skipped towards me as if nothing had happened.

“Hi. What are you doing here?” I continued walking toward the courtyard, with Minty struggling to keep up.

“I need to talk to you.”

I didn’t respond, as I focused on making it to my first morning class.

Minty grabbed my elbow, forcing me to stop and listen to her. “Earth to Lola! What’s wrong?”

I scraped the sole of my shoe against the course pavement. When I looked up at her, she looked remorseful.

Shit. I couldn’t stay mad at her. And what could I blame her for… doing her job? Going on a paid date with a guy I liked?

The thought struck me like lightning. Julian. A guy I liked. That thought was proof enough that I was sleep deprived. Julian was a client. Minty’s client, too. I didn’t own him.

“Sorry, I’m just exhausted.”

“Yeah, I guessed you would be.” She looked around to see if anyone would overhear us. There was no one within earshot. “Are you okay? After last night?”

“So you know what happened?” I asked.

Did Julian tell her? Had they been in contact again?

“No.” Minty shook her head. “I don’t know anything. After the ballet last night, Julian put me in a taxi straight away and said he had to go look for you. I didn’t understand what was going on.”

I sighed. There I was, jumping to conclusions again. God, I needed to get some sleep.

She asked again. “So, what happened?”

I gestured for her to sit with me at a nearby bench. We sat for a few minutes as I explained to her everything that had taken place the night before. Including what Julian had revealed about Cole’s past, Hannah, and the kiss.

By the end of my explanation, Minty’s lips were parted. She looked at me as if I’d just made the whole thing up. Maybe I had made the entire thing up. Perhaps it was all a lucid dream.

“Wow. It all makes sense now.” Minty stared off into the distance for a moment. “It makes perfect sense.”

“What does?”

“Julian — why he is the way he is.” She turned her attention back to me. “You know, whenever I had a booking with him, it was always platonic. Even if he booked me for the night, nothing physical ever happened between us. A few times I made advances towards him, because, you know, he’s hot. He still refused, even though he’d paid for me.”

She shook her head as she continued. “I knew he was hurt. I just didn’t know why. Now I get it. The love of his life was an escort, and she went missing because of some crazy client.”

“I know.” I gripped harder onto my sketchbook.

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