Stepping to the reception, where a pretty blonde woman, immaculately turned out, with bright red lipstick and heavily made-up eyes, looked through me disdainfully, I said softly,
‘Please, can I meet Mr. Finn St Just?” * The woman behind the desk looked at me like I was something unpleasant that the cat had dragged in. I did not blame her. With my round hips and full chest, breasts straining under the old plaid shirt I had on under the hoodie, I probably looked like a tramp, I thought gloomily. But I straightened up, to my full five feet one inch and met her eyes bravely. She continued to study me balefully and then, in a cheesed-off voice, she asked, “Do you have an appointment?’ My heart sank. Shaking my head, and biting my lip, I shook my head sadly. “No…but I needed to meet him urgently. Please?’ My brown eyes and full mouth were my best features, my friend, Stacey had once told me. I thought so too and used all my bravado to straighten up and say, “Please, could you fit me in? I mean, it’s very important.” She shook her head immediately as a phone call came in and she attended it. An older woman, who had been listening intently, stepped to me. “Why don’t you sit over there?’ she said kindly, indicating a set of plush, upholstered armchairs that were scattered around the lounge. And then, with a wink, she added in a low tone, “I’ll call you when he’s free.” I smiled gratefully and walked to the chairs she had pointed out. Sinking into one, I sighed and closed my eyes. What a mess life was! * My father, Derek Cruz, had started a small bakery in a little corner of the town of Luther Springs, where I was born and raised. Dad, with his shy smile and skill at baking, was able to make a success of it. But things went downhill when an investment he had made went all wrong and his partner in the business disappeared after embezzling the funds Dad had so painstakingly collected. Overnight, Dad found himself in trouble, owing money to a notorious small-time crook, Dean Nelson. And that’s when things began to go downhill. The bills began to mount and Dad was not able to run the bakery the way he wanted to. He had already mortgaged it and finally, one cold snowy afternoon, a little before Christmas, he drove his car into the lake and left us to handle the debts. My beautiful stepmother, Heather, who had never really understood the extent of the money he owed, was frantic. She had always been a butterfly, with Church fetes and hen parties keeping her happy. Dad had met her after my mother had died of cancer, and when pretty Heather waltzed into his patisserie, asking for Madelines, he had fallen hard for her. She was sweet and pretty, though empty-headed, as I realized when I grew up. But Dad loved her and she was kind to me. Faced with the enormity of her task, she struggled to run the bakery and to take care of us, my little sisters and the house. I stepped in and at sixteen, I opted to give up school and my dreams of university and a career in astrophysics. Instead, I took over the running of the bakery and tried to keep it afloat. I had never really dated, had never slept with a boy and was now at the ripe age of nineteen, a virgin and ridden with debts and worries. &&& Heather meanwhile, had taken to drinking and she was on the way to becoming a full-blown alcoholic… At the start it was just a few glasses of wine, to keep herself going, she told me apologetically. But it had snowballed into a situation where she was hitting the bottle regularly, no longer trying to hide her addiction. When I tried to remonstrate, she wept so loudly, I stopped for fear of upsetting the twins. The visits from Dean Nelson were more frequent but now, the slimy toad had begun to come onto me. & “If you can’t repay me, hun,” he kept saying,” I can arramge a job for you.” The first time he said it, we were in the tiny living room of our house. I tried to keep it looking neat and clean but the upholstery was old and faded, the walls were moldy and we had yet to pay the rent for last month, as old Mr. Craig had pointed out mildly. We had not been able to keep up with the extensive loans and I was grappling. I needed money, and I needed it yesterday. And when my Dad’s assistant in the bakery, Alice White told me about the realtors who were buying the property next to ours, I had hit upon a wild plan. Surely they would be interested in buying the land on which our little patisserie stood? And maybe, I might make a profit, enough to set up a small bakery in another area…after a while? I could get Heather to make an attempt to get over her addiction… & It was evening, and the gathering dusk outside made me grow more anxious as I looked outside. I had been here for almost five hours now, and still counting. For the tenth time, I went up to the receptionist, my eyes pleading. “Can I please meet Mr O’Grady or Mr St Just?’ I said, trying to hide my frustration. The haughty woman who had spoken to me earlier, snapped, “Mr O’Grady is not here today. As for Mr. St.Just, he does not have time to meet… .” And her eyes ran over me as she seemed to say,” Scruffy teenagers like YOU.” “Please…” I tried and almost jumped as a deep voice said behind me, “Who wants to meet Mr St.Just?” “Oh!’ cried the woman with the blonde hairdo, her eyes flying wide in shock. “Oh, Mr St.Just!” And as she stuttered, I whirled around, to look into a pair of amber eyes, like expensive brandy, almost translucent and I could hear my heart thudding in my chest. &&&There’s a roaring in my ears, for I have not had a thing since breakfast, which was just a sandwich. My breath catches in my throat as I gulp, knowing that I have to say something, have to plead with the man in front of me, to help me to pay off my poor Dad’s bills. For Liam O’Grady and Finn St Just are the realtor giants who are buying every property in sight, turning them into fancy housing estates for the elite. Lavish bungalows in gated societies, with pools huge gyms, movie theatres, and restaurants…the works. And they are also loan sharks… So I want to get them to loan me the money to get out of Dean Nelson’s clutches… It’s become an obsession with me and I have been planning and plotting over the months for this one encounter. Only, with one thing and another, I could not come over. First the oven at the bakery malfunctioned. Then the twins came down with fever… But now, I’m here, finally. And I’m not going away till I get the men to agree to help me. & I look up, wa
By the time I was fifteen, I used to go in and help Dad for he had fired the young man who came in the afternoons, for some inexplicable reason. I helped my father, having watched him back over the years. Old Alice remained but I suspected that she worked for a nominal wage now. Dad’s cake stands became sad-looking and desolate and we had fewer customers. On the home front, Heather was a disaster in the kitchen but luckily, I loved to cook. So I was practically running the kitchen at home as well. This was how I knew that Dad’s finances were in a bad shape for he would ask me to make do with the cheapest ingredients... & One afternoon, I saw him arguing with a man in a cheap suit with a pockmarked face, in the bakery. I had walked back home, for I had to help Dad with the scones that evening. They were arguing and the man was speaking in a loud, threatening voice, “Either you pay up or…” Dad froze when he saw me at the door, my backpack slung over my shoulder, mouth open. The m
I focus on the man who has spoken. He’s sitting, smoke curling from his lips and my heart drops to my stomach. This is the devil alright, and as handsome and evil as one, I think crazily. * The man is dressed to the nines, in a slate grey vest and lavender tie. It would look effeminate on another man, but this man makes it look more masculine. It’s probably the two days' growth of stubble on his strong jaw or the devilish glint in his black eyes. Whatever, he’s all man and I step back, suddenly afraid as I notice the glint of interest in his eyes, which sparkle as they rake my figure and face. “Eh, Finn?’ he asks, swivelling in his chair to take a good look at me, “Who is the little lady?’ I feel my face turn hot with embarrassment, and I square my shoulders. My hair is in a braided chignon at the base of my neck, and I can feel Finn’s eyes on my nape, but he just grunts. ‘Listen to her, Liam,’ he growls. * Liam O’Grady, I think, my heart pounding, he who is regarded as the D
Bianca It was only a lot later that I asked myself why Liam O’Grady had been so curious to know my age.I mean, why would you ask for a prospective employee's age before hiring her?It made no sense.But at that time, I was too overcome to think straight.At that time, I was feeling cold and confused. I was taken aback by the wealth of the people inhabiting those rooms. And I was overwhelmed by the proximity of two men who seemed to send my sexual cravings to never-before-plumbed heights! Liam leaned back and his hooded lids hid his expression, while Finn stood in the background, a menacing presence. I bit my lip and then, as I saw the way Liam O’Grady’s eyes fastened on my plump mouth, I hastily swallowed, cleared my throat and sat up straighter. It only made me come closer to the man before me, his blue eyes, like brilliant stones, locked on me. “Ummm…so, can you help me? Please?” And then, because I was a well-brought-up girl, I added quickly, “Sir?” The groan that came from
Bianca All the way home, in the rattling old bus, I kept trying to figure out what had happened there. I was a mess, my panties were wet and I had actually wanted to get down on the ground and offer myself that rakishly handsome rogue, Liam O’Grady. And to melt in the arms of Finn St Just, surrendering to him completely. Yes, Sir. I had suddenly metamorphized into a seriously horny virgin sex addict! As I got off at my stop, I decided to call one of my best friends to ask about boys and men and what to do…I was clueless. * But when I turned down the road leading to our home and the bakery, for we had begun to stay in the old house, I saw the sportscar that belonged to Dean Nelson, that my father had bought when he was married to my mother. It was tiny but cosy, in my eyes. Shabby but welcoming nonetheless. I ran the rest of the way, my shoulder bag thumping against my hip, fearing the worst, as I breathlessly covered the last few meters. * When I rushed into the front room,
Bianca As I sat there, sobbing at the enormity of what was happening, I felt like doing what my Dad had done; run away and end my life. But …I could not. Heather, for all her sins, was a good soul, kind-hearted and sweet but utterly clueless. And Anna and Rose, my sweet younger sisters, who were five years younger than me, deserved a better life. Nelson would not hesitate to prostitute them, I thought grimly if I was not around. A soft hand on my shoulder made me look up. It was Heather. She sank to her knees beside me, so that we were on eye level. “I’m sorry Bianca,” she said and I melted. I threw my arms around her and wept. “I failed you, I failed my husband, your father. But…I loved him and he never told me…” I pushed away and smiled, “It’s ok, Heather, I’m trying to get someone to help me.” A pair of brilliant blue eyes and a set of tawny eyes flashed into my mind’s eye and I shivered. Heather looked at me in concern. “No, darling,” she said and I felt Rose and Anna
To my shock, Liam O’Grady turned his smile on me but his eyes were …blazing. I stiffened.Job? I thought stupidly. What was he talking about?Had he misunderstood me yesterday?*But my stepmother was gabbing away cheerfully, blissfully unaware of the tension in the room. But then, she was nicely drunk, I thought wearily.Heather, whose hand he had been holding, clasped his with both her hands fervently, as she said, happily,“Oh, Bianca, it’s your lucky phase now, don’t you think so dear!”And she turned to O’Grady, still smiling benignly as she said, clucking her tongue at me with a mischievous smile,“Just yesterday she had a job offer and she turned it down…the naughty little girl!” I whipped my head around t give her a lethal look. Naughty girl indeed, I thought, fuming, and my anger shot up as I saw Liam O’ Grady smirking at me. Finn St Just gave an audible snort and I wanted to die of humiliation.Suddenly Heather saw my expression and stopped. She had figured out, a little
Bianca I rose, my cheeks hot with embarrassment and …I did not know what else. “How dare you…?” I began but Liam O’Grady nodded at his brother and gripped my hands. ‘We will take care of Dean Nelson. In return, you will be our submissive for a year.” The words sank in slowly and I recoiled in horror. “OUR submissive? Did you just say OUR submissive, Mr. O’Grady?” I stammered, as I went on, shock making me widen my eyes, ”You mean like…sleep with BOTH of you?’ “Ah lassie, ‘ said O’Grady almost tenderly but his eyes were hot and blue and openly laughing at me as he said, “Not just sleeping, love.” I pushed him away fiercely, throwing the sheets of paper at Finn, uncaring as they scattered wildly. Breathing hard, I spoke in a low voice, jabbing my finger at him. “So, I have to be your sexual slave for a year and in return, you will free me of my father’s debt?” I looked from one to the other. Finn was watching me, his face blank but Liam? His eyes were glowing with an unholy