• Ilsa Sophie Morgan •
It had almost been twenty minutes since we started driving back to my apartment.
There was an eerie silence that filled the car, a certain heaviness flooding everything that stood between all three of us. I sank into my seat, my eyes slowly darting towards the rearview mirror that gave me a perfect view of my boss's son.
He sat besides me, tempting me with the urge to want to look at him again. He was different from what he looked like in the pictures. Different from the images in my iPad — the ones Mr Bolton had sent me.
But luckily, the rearview mirror made it easy for me to spy on this little imp from LA.
His warm caramel skin glowed under the sunlight that pooled all over him, like a flood light. Dark curls of unruly shaggy hair draped all over his face, pressing against his skin like terrible commas from a bad ink. And yet, it somehow managed to blend in very well with his features, as if he had been perfectly designed by the gods themselves.
"This place sure has changed a bit," Eric said.
Sam chuckled, "You haven't seen nothing yet."
"Oh really?" Eric cocked a brow, a visible smirk threatening to show itself.
"It sure has..." Sam said softly. "...even the ice cream shops are much better."
Eric rolled his eyes, as if he was a little ashamed of this whole ice cream thing. I somehow wanted to laugh at him. Judging from how he carried himself with such ego, I never thought he was once the kind that stood on an ice cream queue.
"I don't like ice cream anymore," Eric suddenly said.
Sam cocked an eyebrow, his brown eyes staring at him with curiosity. "Tell me, what do you like these days?"
"You wouldn't believe me, even if I told you." Eric said.
Sam chuckled. "Try me. I might just impress you."
There was an awkward silence, and for a moment, I kept staring at Eric through the rearview mirror. His hand went through his unruly curls, brushing them backwards for a splitting second.
I narrowed my eyes, curious enough to know his thoughts.
But then, he peeled his eyes wide open, and they somehow met mine in a firm stare. His were a darker shade of brown that hinted at a dangerous pleasure.
I felt a shiver race down my spine.
"Maybe something more human," Eric started, his eyes never leaving mine. "Something that melts, and moans and squirms....."
'This is absurd,' I thought, trying to keep my head straight. How could someone easily say something like that? Was he some sort of pervert? I—
"You're describing a real pussy right there," Sam said.
Eric grinned. "Of course I am."
I cleared my throat, straightening in my seat. I could feel his eyes on me, as if he was peeling off every thread one after the other, until he only left bare skin. But I ignored it, this uneasy feeling that burnt into my soul.
I had other things to prioritize.
Sam scratched his chin, his fingers brushing past the few stubble thereof, a pure sign that he had forgotten I was in the car. "Had almost forgotten you was here."
"I get that a lot," I said. "I just didn't think you'd be talking about such stuff with a kid."
"I'm not a kid," Eric defended himself.
I looked at him. "Of course you're. I doubt you even have an ID and you're busy talking about.... "
"Sex?" Sam finished. "C'mon Sophie. Eric's not a kid anymore. He's all grown up. You should have seen him back then, when he was still losing teeth. But right now? He's all grown up."
"Like he said," Eric said. "Why are you so hellbent on making me feel small?"
I sighed. "You are small, Eric."
He rolled his eyes, clearly mocking me. "Well, I'm not the shortest person in the car right now."
I forced a smile. "Now do you see why I think you should go get checked, mentally?"
"I think the only one who needs medical attention right now is you, Sophie or Ilsa or whatever your name is! " he mumbled with an accent tinged with humor, making me feel like a fucking joke.
Say it. Say my name again.
His rough face was not at all handsome. His voice was jagged like a demon lover's—low and crushed velvety, promising things no good woman should wish for. For some reason, I found myself thinking of sex and not in the privacy of a dream, but here, now, in broad daylight.
"And I think we are finally here," Sam said, stopping a the car just outside my flat.
"Finally," Eric said. "A chance to breathe."
I knew he said that intentionally, wanting to see how he'd react to my words. But I wasn't in the mood for an argument. I had already done enough for the day. Now, what I wanted was a moment to breathe. And not focus on this negative energy that he carried.
Just thinking about it made me angry.
"And who said anything about you staying behind?" I asked.
"Uh,that sounds like a really really stupid question." Eric said.
I saw Sam hold back a smile. He always did that when he wanted to laugh. Of course he knew. I had told him earlier. "I wouldn't be so confident, Bolton. You're staying with her."
"Excuse me?" Eric's face paled. "I'm Eric Bolton, not Sophie or Ilsa or whatever. My dad has a penthouse. Take me there."
"Are you seriously throwing a tantrum?" This wasn't something I was expecting from him. I mean, considering how he made me feel small with his height, I expected more balls.
"I'm just saying, why would I want to stay in the same room as you?" Eric said, his eyes tracing me up and down. "Just look at yourself? Just the sight of you makes me wanna puke."
This made me smile. "Now you're giving me more reason to want to keep you."
"Bullshit," he said. "I don't need a babysitter."
"It's unfortunate that your dad gave you one, kiddo... " Sam said finally. "... You may have grown in height, but your dad doesn't trust you to leave you alone in that penthouse of his. If I were you, I'd grow a pair of balls and stay with the chick..."
I punched Sam on the shoulder, and he laughed.
"I don't really know if you have a place to stay for the night, but your dad said you'll be staying with me until he comes back from whatever meeting he is attending," I said. "So I won't force you into something you don't wish to commit. If you wanna roam around New York, sleep in the blood streets? I don't really care. You'll just be doing me a favor. So if you have a backup plan, please use it."
Eric was silent for a while, eyes staring into mine as if he was trying to threaten me. For a moment I felt a shiver race down my spine, my stomach churning with anxiety.
Maybe this was a bad decision after all.
But I didn't really give a damn, did I?
Kids like Eric were the spoiled types, the ones that needed to be thrown into the ghetto just so they could become humble.
If he had been my sibling, I would have punched him in the face for being such a douchebag.
*
At first I thought he wasn't going to join me.
Until I saw him walking behind me into the flat I lived in.
I felt a pang of regret wash over me, because I didn't want him at my place. This went against my contract, and yet his father had insisted, making a final decision without my approval.
I wanted a fucking raise.
Because I was doing him a favor no one else was ever willing to do for him, unless he was paying large sums of money.
Eric Bolton was a grown up, he could eventually stay alone and take care of himself if he wanted.
And yet his father, wanted him to stay here with me.
I chuckled, brushing behind an ear the loose locks of hair that framed my face.
We were in the elevator, and I could feel Eric's eyes burning on my neck like hot iron. I didn't want to look at him, not even once. I didn't want to give him the privilege that somehow, I was finding his presence rather,..... —
Amusing?
That's not the word.
Tempting?
No.
He is just a kid who looks older than he is supposed to.
And yet everytime I looked at him, I knew I wasn't getting enough. There was something about his presence that was addictive. Something that made you want to keep staring at him, from as little as his skin tone, up to his lips, his eyes and everything that made him so undeniably attractive.