I slipped them on and attached them to the garter, loving the feel of their silkiness against my skin. I'd love it more when they drove him mad with desire as he tried to concentrate on the road in just a few hours.
Pleased with how I looked, I hurriedly checked my bank account to pay my cell phone bill and saw once again that I had more money than I'd anticipated. Despite working for the stated salary of $60,000, after five months I had over four times that amount in my checking account. Even after all this time, I still marveled at the numbers as they sat there on the screen. For the first time in my life, money wasn't a concern.
It also added to my fear that Tristan was going to simply let me go when my six months were up. Why would he make sure I had so much money if he was going to want me to stay? I wanted to believe that this was just one of his ways of showing me how much he loved me, but every time I checked my balance, an emptiness formed in the pit of my stomach.
Jordan's famous words echoed in my head—Good things happen to good people, Nina. I wanted to believe that more than anything. Closing my laptop, I hoped she was right.
I stepped out of the black Town Car in front of the apartment and a brisk wind blew my dress up nearly around my waist, a la Marilyn Monroe on the subway grate. A group of men across the street whistled, making me feel right at home back in Brooklyn. I bounded up the steps, dying to see my best friend, as the men yelled my name and compliments on my red dress.
As I reached the door, I turned around and waved, yelling, "Thanks!" Jordan waited in the apartment doorway at the top of the stairs with a huge grin on her face.
"Look at you! I love it! This new life of yours looks good on you."
I reached her and took her in my arms for a big hug. "It looks good?" I asked as she held me out at arm's length to check out my outfit again.
"Oh, honey. You look incredible. Same old Nina in a wonderful new package."
I beamed at her compliment. I felt wonderful and wanted the whole world to know it.
"Well, come in. Tell me everything. I need to know the details," Jordan ordered as she pulled me into the apartment.
Everything looked the same as it had when I'd left months earlier, except now there were some pictures on the living room walls. Turning toward Jordan, I pointed at them. "I leave and now there's artwork on the walls?"
She sat down in her chair across from my seat on the couch and chuckled. "I wouldn't call it artwork. Just some pictures. I had a little more money since your boyfriend paid your portion of the rent and more that day."
"More? How much more?" I asked, suddenly worried he was trying to buy me.
"About two grand. I told him I didn't feel right taking it, but he insisted. I assumed you knew because you asked him to."
I shook my head and frowned. "No. He never told me. And as much as you know I'd give you my last dime, I didn't ask."
"Why the frown? It's okay that you didn't ask."
"It's not that, Jordan. I just worry that he's trying to buy things he shouldn't."
"Like your love?"
"Yeah," I answered quietly.
"Honey, if he was trying to buy your love, wouldn't he have told you he did this?"
"I guess. It's just..." I didn't know how to complain about all the money in my bank account and not sound like a spoiled child. "He's done the same thing with me. Instead of paying me the amount I'm supposed to get, he's paid me nearly five times more."
"And the problem with that is?"
Jordan's expression told me she still thought I was acting silly all these months later. "I know what you're going to say. I should just enjoy this, right? It's just that my six months are almost up. What if he is giving me all this money because he doesn't plan to stay with me and wants to make himself feel good about it?"
"Still overthinking this, I see."
"But what if it's true?"
"Have you asked him?"
Looking down at my hands as they sat folded in my lap, I shook my head. "No. I'm too afraid of what he'd say."
"How much longer is there on your contract?"
"A few weeks."
"And has he been acting weird, like a boyfriend getting ready to break up with you? You know. Not answering calls or texts. Not showing up for dates. Has the sex fallen off?"
As I listened to her laundry list of signs, I couldn't say yes to one. He always answered my texts, never failed to be where he said he would be at exactly the time he said he would, and the sex had continued to be mind blowing.
"No to all," I admitted with a shrug. "He's wonderful, even though things at work seem to be constantly on his mind."
"So, let me get this straight. Your gorgeous, billionaire boyfriend treats you like a queen and makes sure you have piles of money to spend on yourself, and you're worried he's going to leave you? You're a bright girl, Nina. Figure it out."
"I know it sounds stupid, but I can't help it. I'm dreading the day that contract ends."
That was the cold, hard truth. I was sick to death over a date on the calendar. It never left my mind, no matter how much money he put in my account, no matter how many times he told me he loved me.
Jordan leaned forward and touched me on the knee, jarring me out of my thoughts about that day just weeks away. "Enough of this crazy talk. Tell me how he is in bed. And don't leave out the details. I'll know if you do."
A blush spread from the top of my head all the way to the tip of my toes. Even before I said a word, she clapped her hands together and exclaimed, "I knew it! No man who sounds so incredibly sexy when he speaks about something as boring as paying someone's rent could be bad in bed."
"Stop it! You're embarrassing me!" I cried, half joking. "I'm not telling you a thing."
"You don't have to say a word. It's written all over your face. I bet he's hung like a horse, isn't he?"
"Jordan!" The blush intensified at her words, confirming that she'd hit the nail on the head.
"I swear there's not a thing wrong with this man, Nina. If you say you're worried about anything with him one more time, I'm going to kick you out of this apartment and never speak to you again."
"That's harsh."
"I'm not kidding, Nina. I could understand if he lacked in one or two areas, but he's perfect."
"He's not perfect. I think many women wouldn't like how he's so possessive."
She laughed out loud. "The only time any woman dislikes a possessive man is if he keeps her from doing things she likes. Tristan doesn't do that, so I doubt there'd be many women in this world who wouldn't be madly in love with him just as he is."