Page 101 of Strings

She smiles. “What kind of business?”

And here we go.Lie well, I tell myself. “He was in pharmaceuticals.” It’s partly true.

“Sales or manufacturing?” she asks.

Sebastian steps forward. “You never told me your dad was a businessman.”

His mother spins around to regard him. “Did you bother to ask? Talia, you have to know by now that Sebastian is one to dive before he even looks to see if there is water in the pool. That’s why his father and I look out for him. Surely you can understand our desire to protect him?”

“Of course.”

Sebastian rolls his eyes and walks away from us. He’s not supposed to leave my side. I suddenly feel like a hungry vulture just swooped down at me.

“We would do anything for him. This room is nothing compared to him. He’s our most prized possession.”

Did she refer to him as something she owns?

She leans in to me and whispers so Sebastian can’t hear. “We are no one’s fool, Natalia, especially not for someone like you.”

“What did you say?”

She turns and heads for the door without answering me. “Shall we? Dinner awaits and it’s a feast you won’t want to miss.”

Sebastian smiles as he lifts his elbow to me. I step forward and intertwine my arm in his. I replay what I thought she said in my head, and for a moment I consider that I heard her wrong. But as we walk toward her, I see it clearly. There’s fire in her eyes. My skin pricks and there’s an immediate change in the temperature of the room. I know this feeling well.

She’s cold but she’s not ice. She’s shrouded in darkness, but her eyes burn bright. She’s holding back. I want to run, but there’s nowhere to hide. I should have known better. I should have felt the evil in her touch. I swallow hard. I’m about to dance with the devil once more. In this house, the devil has a name. They call her Mother.

It’s hard to be hungry when you’re the main course.

Constance pokes her tongue into her cheek and releases a long sigh. “Sebastian! Everyone is already in the dining room. We’re waiting for you.”

My eyes plead with him. “Can we please go home? I’m not feeling well.”

“What’s wrong?” he asks. “You’re white as a ghost. Are you sick?”

“If you care about me at all, you’ll take me home right now.”

His forehead wrinkles as he rubs his lips.

Movement catches my eye. I gaze around his shoulder and see a woman carrying a covered tray walk toward the doors where Sebastian’s mother is waiting. Constance whispers to the woman, who stops and stands to the side.

“Sebastian!” Constance shouts again.

“Maybe you’re just hungry. Let’s have the first course and if you’re still not feeling well, we’ll leave. Alright?”

I shake my head and pull on his arm as he turns toward his mother.

“Sebastian, I think I am the appetizer.”

His head turns and he half smiles before realizing I’m being serious. “Don’t be silly. I’ll protect you. I promise.”

“You’re being rude,” Constance says, shaking her head.

“You act as if everyone is withering away, Mother. Last I saw, no one here was skipping any five-star meals. A few more seconds won’t kill them.” Sebastian steps toward the doors then turns and waves for me to join him.

My lips become suddenly dry and my breath catches in my chest. Am I over-reacting? I gaze at Constance once more and feel my gut twist. Every time I’ve ever had this feeling in my life, I ran. If I leave now and it’s nothing, what will Sebastian think? Why do I care so much? It’s as if everything changed overnight. Suddenly, every move I make is about him. I’ve never let sex affect me this way. Perhaps that’s because it wasn’t just sex and I know it. Fuck. What am I going to do?

I roll back and forth on my heels before turning to eye the front door. Should I leave and cut my losses? Sebastian would probably be upset. Sebastian could get over it. I really don’t care what anyone else thinks, including this dumb-ass dinner party.