I LOOKED around the restroom like I would find the answer written on the wall somewhere. When I didn't, I slowly walked back into the stall I'd just come out of. Maybe if I did as he asked, he'd leave me alone and I could get on with my night.
I'm in the stall.
Put one foot on the toilet seat and take a picture of what's covering your pussy. Then send it to me.
HE WANTS me to send him panty pics? That's why I have this phone?
I don't remember agreeing to this. Besides, I'm at work.
Send me the picture, Sera. Or I'll come down there and throw you onto a table in front of the entire goddamn club and take it myself.
I HESITATED. Surely, he wouldn't do that.
I'm waiting, Sera.
I STARED down at the phone. A whole lot of emotions were running through me right now, including disbelief, anger, and annoyance. But the heavy feeling I suddenly had in my lower belly overrode them all. Biting my lip, I balanced my foot in its high-heeled shoe on the toilet, stuck the phone underneath my skirt, and snapped a picture of my ruffled panties. I had to take two more before I got one that didn't look like a blurry, black glob of nothing. Quickly, before I could change my mind, my heart pounding beneath my ribcage, I sent it to him. His response came right away.
Thank you.
I STAYED in the stall for five more minutes, waiting for my phone to go off again with another message, but it never did. Feeling slightly confused, and weirdly, more than a little turned on, I put the phone back into my apron and went to get my sandwich out of the fridge. It tasted like cardboard, but I swallowed it down, knowing I'd need the energy to get through the last six hours of my shift.
The rest of the night went by without interruption from the phone in my pocket, and when I finally closed out for the night and said goodnight to the rest of the staff, I limped out to my car with the security guard beside me. My feet were fucking killing me. He didn't try to assist me, but instead kept scanning the lot like he expected monsters to jump out from behind the parked cars at any moment.
And even though I told myself I wouldn't do it, I couldn't help but look for a blacked-out SUV waiting for me in the lot. But it wasn't there. Just my car and Bell's, and what I would guess was the security guard's.
I pulled out the phone and checked it, but there were no messages I might have missed as I got into the car. I thought about messaging him to tell him I had his watch, but just the thought made my cheeks heat with embarrassment. Plus, it was late. He was probably sleeping. So, I laid the phone down on the passenger seat next to my purse and started the car. The security guard raised his hand in a wave as I drove away, and I watched him in my rearview mirror as he walked over to the car I didn't recognize. Wasn't he going to wait for Bell? Should I stop and tell him she was still in there?
But before I could make up my mind, he was pulling away.
I headed back to Jade's, feeling weirdly disconcerted, a lot nervous, and if I were going to be honest with myself, a little let down. It took me a while to fall asleep that night, but once I did, I slept like the dead, waking up just in time to make some dinner and get ready for my next shift. Either Jade had stayed out all night, which wasn't unusual, or she'd snuck in while I was asleep and was still crashed out in her bedroom. Eating and getting ready had managed to keep me distracted for a while. But now my anxiety was back in full force as I thought of something.
Was he expecting me to just show up at his hotel every night? Or was I supposed to just go about my business and wait for him to contact me? He hadn't said anything, and since I'd never done anything like this before, I wasn't sure what he expected of me.
I checked my phone again. Nothing. So I went into work and tried to forget about the fact that I hadn't heard from him all day. When my shift was done, I counted out my tips and decided to just go home. But by the time I got back to Jade's apartment, I was a frazzled mess. Part of me was hoping he'd found out where she lived somehow and would be here waiting for me, and the other part was trying to convince myself I needed to pack a bag and run away as fast as I could before he found me again.
My phone vibrated and made a little ding sound right after I made it through the door and set my stuff down on the counter. My heart began to pound as I picked up the phone and opened the text message.
Goodnight, baby girl.
I PAUSED FOR A MOMENT, and then typed,
Goodnight.
I TURNED off the screen and set the phone back down on the counter. Then, keeping my mind carefully blank, I went in and took a shower and pulled on a nightshirt and some pajama shorts. I went to the fridge, but we were out of yogurt, so I added it to my grocery list and grabbed a banana instead, taking it and a glass of water with me over to the couch. Setting them on the coffee table, I unfolded the blanket lying at the foot, spread it over the couch cushions, then picked up the remote and turned on Netflix.
I was halfway through the next episode of the show I was watching when the phone on the counter rang. Throwing the blanket off my lap, I jumped up off the couch and ran over to answer it. "Hello?"
"What are you wearing, Sera?"
His voice made shivers skate over my skin. I walked back over to the couch and turned down the volume on the television. "Seriously?" I asked him.
"I want to know what you sleep in," was his response.
Looking down at myself because I'd completely forgotten if I was even wearing clothes the moment I heard his voice, I told him, "A dark blue nightshirt and a pair of red plaid pajama shorts. Probably not the sexy vision you were hoping for."
But he just said, "That's exactly the vision I was hoping for. Goodnight, baby girl."
"Wait," I said before he could hang up. "Are you still there?"
"Yes."
"Um. I was just wondering when I can expect to see you again. I've never done this type of thing before and I... I wasn't sure if..." I trailed off.
I heard him inhale and exhale, like he was sighing. "I'm not sure," he told me, and I could hear the frustration in his tone. "But when you do, I'd like my watch back."
I started to tell him I'd grabbed it by mistake, but he interrupted me before I could give him the lame excuse I always gave everyone when I actually had to hand something back to them.
"Why do you do that?"
"Do what?" I asked, even though I knew exactly what he was talking about.
"Steal things," he said. "I know you don't do it for money. Is it just for fun?"
My eyes stung with tears, and I blinked them back, although I could still hear them in my voice. "No."
"Then tell me why."
"I don't know why," I whispered.
He was quiet for a few seconds. "Okay. Get some sleep, Sera."
Then he hung up the phone.
"Okay," I said softly. Setting the phone on the table, I went back to my purse and grabbed the charging cord that had come with it, plugging it in. Then I grabbed Enzo's watch and put it on my arm. It was too big for my wrist, so I slid it up to just beneath my elbow. Leaving it there, I went back over to the couch and hit play on the remote.
I didn't sleep much that night.
Or the next.