The Sculptor's Seduction (The Gentlemen's Guild Book 2) Read online

  Cyn groaned, taking a sip of the ice water in front of her and crossing her legs as the dull ache that seemed ever present between them these days grew stronger.

  What was happening to her? Ellie should be here any minute and all she could think about was that moment when Sloane was standing in front of her with his hands on her face; she’d been so goddamn sure that he was going to kiss her. How could she have been wrong?

  His rejection had stung in a way that seemed even worse than Marcus’ betrayal. At least with Marcus, she saw the blonde-bombshell of a reason why he no longer wanted her. With Sloane, all she could see were all the reasons he did want her and yet, he continued to remain steadfast in his insistence that he couldn’t even after he’d watched her pleasure herself right in front of him. She saw what it had done to him and he pretended like there was nothing to see.

  She was a drug – an addiction.

  And she was hoping the redhead approaching the table knew just what the hell that even meant.

  “Cyn!” Ellie exclaimed, reaching around to hug her as though they’d been friends forever. A rush of anxiety swept over her.

  This was a mistake. She shouldn’t be doing this; she shouldn’t be diving deeper into the rabbit hole. What she had was enough; she liked her life enough. There was no reason to risk it all for something more.

  But she couldn’t just get up and leave after asking Ellie to meet for lunch. So, she hugged the vibrant redhead back. “Hi, Ellie. Thanks for meeting me.”

  “Of course! Thanks for inviting me. I was worried Sloane would forget to give you my number.” She sat down with a smile and picked up the menu.

  The waiter returned, taking their order for some iced teas while Ellie had a chance to look over the menu.

  “No, I reminded him.”

  “Oh, good.” She smiled.

  “Thanks for meeting me for lunch. I hope I’m not cutting into your work day.”

  Ellie finished hanging her purse along the back of the chair, turning to stare curiously at Cyn. “Oh, no! It’s not a problem at all. You know I work with Tristan, right?”

  “Oh, no… I didn’t. Sloane didn’t mention it.”

  Ellie rolled her eyes. “Men…” She scoffed. “So, I work with Tristan at Black Box. I’m the in-house business consultant most days.”

  “Oh, wow.” Cyn smiled, a pang of hurt ran through her, remembering the days when she’d believed that she and Marcus were going to work together and share their passion. She hated that a part of her still wanted that with someone. “You must like investing then.”

  “Actually, not really,” Ellie admitted with a smile. “After what I’ve been through, I’m what you would call a very risk-averse person for most things. Which is why I don’t get involved in that side too much. I mostly assess manager-client relationships as well as overall health of the company in terms of employee relationships, outside perception, etcetera.”

  Cyn found her eyes widening, she didn’t realize that Ellie did all of that. Honestly, she mentioned work but figured with a fiancé as wealthy as Tristan... Well, she was impressed that Ellie chose to do all that even when she didn’t need to.

  “It’s really not that interesting, trust me. But, I just love it – especially because it means I get to help Tristan.” Another pang shot through Cyn; this time it was one of jealousy. “Anyway, I need to stop taking over the conversation talking about myself – first the other night and now here… Enough about me. I didn’t get a chance to really get to know you.” She let out a sheepish laugh of apology. “So, what do you do, Cyn?”

  Well, if that was any indication of how the afternoon was going to go, Cyn was going to be in trouble. “Well,” she began, “I work for Keller-Williams showing houses and apartments.”

  “Oh, that sounds like fun! I bet you get to see some really amazing places.”

  “Yeah, it’s pretty interesting. I was over at One57 the other weekend – that place is beautiful.”

  Cyn watched as Ellie ducked her head. “What a coincidence! You were working in the same building that Sloane lives in!” Wait, what? The look of surprise on her face must have given the other woman a clue that she hadn’t known that. Ellie’s face immediately flushed red, afraid that she’d said too much. “I… uhh… he didn’t tell you that? I’m sorry. I thought you knew. Tristan and I actually live there, too.”

  Damn.

  “I knew Sloane owned it… or that RSP owned it.”

  Ellie sighed. “I don’t know why he tries to be so secretive about these things… I guess I just assumed because he brought you to our party that you… ahh… had been there.”

  “No.” Cyn laughed, shaking her head. “Things aren’t like that between Sloane and I.” Ellie just stared at her curiously. “I told you, I’m not what he’s looking for.”

  “Why not?” Ellie blurted out bluntly and Cyn couldn’t help but like the woman even more for it – even though her questions were about to reveal the part of her life that most people found distasteful. “Because you show houses? I don’t understand.”

  “Because I’m an escort and a stripper.” Although, Sloane didn’t even know about the stripper part.

  Cyn had to give the woman credit; her mouth didn’t drop open in shock. Yes, Ellie’s eyes widened in surprise at Cyn’s revelation, but she didn’t fall out of her chair – which is what Cyn expected.

  The waiter chose that moment to come take their orders. They each ordered a summer salad with the weight of Cyn’s confession hanging in the air, waiting for the server to leave so that it could be cleared.

  “Well, now I know how and why Pierce was really involved in all of this,” Ellie remarked tartly once the waiter left.

  Cyn laughed, feeling the tension begin to ease out of her body wondering what Ellie’s first response would be.

  “He likes to push his friends beyond their comfort zone.” Ellie elaborated. “That’s how Tristan and I met. They were auctioning some of their pieces and Pierce switched the one Tristan wanted with one he’d done of his mother; my father was the person who bid and won it. In his infinite wisdom, he thought he could blackmail Tristan into drawing my portrait and Tristan – in his infinite confidence – agreed, thinking he would break my heart in revenge.” Ellie sent her a satisfied smile that said her fiancé’s retribution clearly hadn’t gone according to plan.

  Cyn listened, fascinated by the story behind how Ellie and Tristan had met – a situation that was not completely dissimilar to her and Sloane; both had secrets and both had come into the arrangement under some level of duress – at least on one side.

  “And now you’re getting married…” Cyn murmured in awe, amazed at how Ellie managed to stay so optimistic after everything that she’d been through, an optimism that had finally been rewarded. She took a sip of her tea, looking away from the table and the woman whose luck she would never have.

  Fate didn’t favor the fallen.

  “You said it wasn’t like that between you and Sloane.” Cyn felt Ellie’s perceptive gaze on her. “Do you want it to be?”

  She kept her stare away from the table and the woman who was daring her to decide what she really wanted.

  “I don’t know what I want anymore.”

  “I don’t believe that,” Ellie countered. “You are beautiful, brave, and bold. I – jealously, I’ll admit – noticed the confidence with which you carry yourself. You know who you are and, I think, you know exactly what you want. I think the problem is you’re suddenly afraid to admit it because it’s not what you thought it would be.” She paused to take a drink. “I’m sorry. I hope that wasn’t too forward of me. Having cancer kind of forced me to be good at reading people, otherwise, some peoples’ reactions would have surely crushed me.”

  “No, it’s ok. You’re mostly right.” Cyn agreed, her eyes finally meeting Ellie’s. “I’m afraid because what I want has the power to break me… again.”

  Their food arrived as Ellie pondered her response.

  “You m
ean, Sloane?”

  “Maybe. More so my feelings for him,” Cyn replied.

  “Why?”

  Cyn stared for a moment. She didn’t mind sharing her story – it wasn’t like it was some great big traumatic travesty. Shit happens… shit happened and she’d lived and learned.

  “After college, I was accepted to Juilliard for dance. I ended up in an affair with one of my teachers who was married; ironically, I always assumed that if anything was going to go wrong it would be because of that, but it wasn’t. He told me he loved me and that he would leave her for me after graduation; he laid it on thick and I thought I was in love. I walked in on him with a freshman right before graduation.” Cyn shrugged, trying to play down the moment that had altered the course of her life. “That’s why I do what I do because it keeps me in control of my feelings and the relationships that I enter into.”

  “Oh my gosh, Cyn. That is disgusting, what he did. I’m so sorry that that happened to you.” She hated being pitied, but the genuineness with which Ellie said it made her sympathy bearable. “I take it you don’t feel that way with Sloane.”

  “No. I feel like I can’t control him or his desire, he is wound so tight. Sometimes, I think he might shatter from the strength it requires to keep it all in.” She let out a sad laugh. “I know he wants me and it’s not just because of how I look or how easily available I am, but there is something truly painful that is holding him back. And the more he holds back, the more I feel like that helpless girl who thought her dance teacher was Prince Charming and that life would always be a fairytale.”

  “First, I wish I knew what happened to Sloane, but like I said the other night, you aren’t the only one he keeps farther than arm’s length away. What I do know is that his mother died tragically when he was relatively young and that him and his father have been estranged ever since; I’m sure that doesn’t really give you any clues to explain his choices…”

  “It’s ok. I didn’t ask you to lunch to help me solve the mystery that is Sloane Peterson,” Cyn replied with a small laugh.

  “I may not know the reasons why Sloane is the way he is, but I can say that he’s not his ‘normal’ self around you. Sloane likes to live in the shadows – on the sidelines. He doesn’t push other peoples’ buttons or do anything to excite any situation; he goes with the flow and hopes that the flow will just let him float along in peace to deal with his own demons.” That seemed right on point. Although, Cyn wasn’t sure she’d noticed any difference in that since she’d entered his life.

  “First, aside from Pierce’s involvement, neither him nor Tristan have ever met any of the models that Sloane has used for his projects – and they’ve been doing this for close to ten years now. That was the first thing Tristan said to me. He came home from the gym the other day and just stared at me; I thought something bad had happened, honestly.” Ellie paused to chuckle at herself. “Here, Sloane had asked if it was ok to bring you to our party. Tristan just stared at me in shock and said that he’d never met one of Sloane’s models before.” Well, that certainly seemed like a departure from his norm. “Not only that, but they’ve never seen Sloane with any woman before. And no matter how much they’ve given him a hard time about it, he’s never shown up with someone even just to get them off of his back.”

  Cyn just sat there, letting the cool iced tea wash down her throat as she thought about the implications of what Ellie was telling her.

  “I can’t promise that it means something. I just know that that wasn’t like the Sloane we’ve known. And then seeing you two together… out of everything you’ve told me today, I was most surprised when you said that ‘it wasn’t like that’ between the two of you, because the way that he was looking at you the other night, I would have bet my life that it was – which is saying a lot since I know what it feels like to have had a real chance at losing my life.”

  The waiter stopped to collect their empty plates and ask if they wanted dessert. They both shook their heads, asking for the check instead.

  “I don’t know, Ellie. You’ve dealt with disaster your entire life, it’s only fair that you should get your happy ending. I, on the other hand, have been lucky most of my life; I think the time finally came for me to pay my due and experience the hurt and loss that I’ve been spared from.” She wasn’t sad as she said it; to her, it just seemed like a fact of life. “As for Sloane, I want… to be with him.” She paused. “I want to be with him,” she said again more resolutely. “But, I don’t know how to show him it’s ok to want… to want me. I don’t even know if it’s ok for him to want me…”

  The waiter stopped to collect their credit cards for the bill.

  “I don’t know how either, I’m sorry.” She bit her lip.

  “Don’t be sorry; it’s not your fault.”

  “You know, I didn’t think I’d ever feel comfortable in my own skin again after all my body had been through with the cancer and the chemo.” Ellie paused, turning over her arms so that Cyn could see the scars that littered the delicate skin from where she’d been poked and prodded so many times. “Tristan certainly never wanted to give me that confidence when we first met; he didn’t want to help me stop being afraid to live my life. I mean, who was I – the daughter of the man who stole something important to him.” Again, she stopped when the server returned with their cards, thanking them, and telling them to enjoy the rest of their day.

  Signing her name on the receipt, Ellie continued, “And yet, sometimes, someone walks into your life – or in Tristan’s case, trips and falls – who illuminates so clearly what you want out of life that the intensity of that knowledge is blinding; sometimes, it just takes a little time and courage to get through the brief pain of that glaring brightness and fight for the brilliance of what makes your heart truly happy.”

  Cyn blinked rapidly away the tears that had collected in her eyes.

  “Sorry, I’m rambling again,” Ellie sighed with a smile as they both stood up from the table.

  “Oh, no. Please. I can’t…” Cyn coughed to disguise the break in her voice. “Thank you for meeting me and for everything. I know you don’t think so, but you’ve helped me more than you could imagine – regardless of whether or not anything becomes of Sloane and I.”

  A brilliant smile spread over Ellie’s face. “Oh, that makes me so happy. And, for the record, I have a feeling there’s a lot that’s going to become of the two of you together.” She leaned in and hugged Cyn again. “Feel free to call or text me anytime about anything. We should do this again soon.”

  “Yes – and next time I promise I’ll leave my past and current relationship baggage at home.” She laughed as she said it, but she was also serious. She felt bad that she’d monopolized their entire lunch with a discussion about Sloane.

  “What are friends for?”

  Cyn left the restaurant in awe of Ellie’s openness and insight. She didn’t know exactly how to describe how she felt about Sloane, but she did know that whatever it was, was completely different than anything she’d experienced before. And based on what her new friend revealed, she had a feeling that Sloane was in a similar predicament.

  Like Ellie said, she was stuck in that blinding stage, where she knew there might be something beautiful waiting for her on the other side, but the painful reminders and cautions from her past had her hesitant to want to fight forward.

  Because it would surely be a fight – a fight for her to let go of what she thought she deserved.

  Even though their conversation had planted a vital, blooming bud of hope in her chest, she still wasn’t sure that Ellie was entirely right. Neither of them knew why Sloane was the way that he was – and if his closest friends didn’t even know, there was a good chance she wouldn’t be the one he would open up to. Yes, there was time; but, if by the end of his project she’d made no further headway into his life, she wasn’t sure she could continue.

  Her worthless relationship with Marcus had already robbed her happiness; if she stuck around too long
fighting against his continued rejection, Cyn knew that Sloane could rob her of her heart.

  “What the hell.” Sloane cursed as his phone rang for the third time. Setting down the mallet and chisel that he’d been hammering on for the past… three hours, he stalked over to answer the offending caller.

  “What do you want?” Sloane snapped into the phone.

  “Well, well, well. Looks like someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed,” Pierce retorted. “Although I suspect that any side of the bed is the wrong side without our Miss Cynthia in it.” Sloane could practically hear his smirk.

  “She’s not your anything,” Sloane informed him, not caring what Pierce read into his words.

  “Ahh, I see how it is.” Sloane prepared for more harassment, but then his tone completely changed. “Alright, well I’m calling because I feel bad about giving you a hard time the other night.”

  “You never feel bad about anything, Pierce.” What was his game here?

  “Ok, fine. I don’t feel bad, but I do want to make sure that you still don’t completely hate me otherwise that would really ruin all of my fun.”

  “I don’t hate you, but I might if you keep this shit up. Seriously, man, just give it a rest. Give me a rest.”

  “Perfect. That’s exactly why I’m calling. I want to give you a rest. I’m sure you’ve been hard at work lately…” There was a brief pause to ensure that Sloane understood the double-entendre. “So, I was wondering if you wanted to go out Friday night. There is a business that contacted me to do some promotional material for them and I was wondering if you wanted to tag along – an olive branch if you will.”