CRUEL MONEY (Cruel #1)

6. Penn

Penn

6

With great effort, I remained where I stood, watching Natalie’s ass disappear through the door. I had no idea how all of that had gone so terribly wrong.

The last time I’d seen her was six years ago. It had all been so easy. Like breathing. Honestly, I’d never thought that I’d see her again. And, now that she was here, in my summer home, it was hard not to remember why I’d wanted her in the first place.

And I hadn’t been bullshitting her when I told her that I remembered our time together. I remembered it vividly. That whole weekend. She was the only highlight of the whole godforsaken thing.

She’d been this bright light. Unobscured by the drama of my world. Completely innocent to the glamour I had thrown over our interactions. The gentle exaggerations I’d fabricated into our encounter. But it hadn’t been a lie. If anything, f**k, I’d been too honest with her.

She’d made it easy to be honest.

And, now…

Now, I had no f*****g clue who this girl was.

Woman. f**k, was she a woman now.

When she’d walked out of that water to me like the water goddess Melusina—a spirit in form, having just lost her tail for the night to find a husband—water had dripped down her form. Her silvery-white hair soaked and glowing in the moonlight. She’d looked…buoyant. Unguarded and radiant, even in the faint light from the embers and moon. Transcendent. It had felt like a dream.

A dream that had quickly run off the tracks.

A lot could happen in six years. That much was obvious. I’d obviously changed since then, not that she wanted to give me the benefit of the doubt. But she’d been so young and vibrant, and now, she was jaded and cynical. Somehow, both suited her.

Fuck! I was so f****d.

The smart thing would be to walk away from this. To let her be pissed at me for leaving that day. To let her have the one night of fun with my friends, the assholes they were, and then disappear again. Her life had moved on. It would do it again.

But, somehow, my feet didn’t listen. I was intrigued. And I wasn’t easily intrigued.

I found the outdoor stereo and flipped it on, connecting it to my phone before turning on Matt Maeson’s “Cringe.” Then, I walked out onto the back deck. The rest of my crew and Natalie were down to their underwear and enjoying the heated pool. Even though I’d just seen her completely naked, my eyes were still drawn to her figure only dimly hidden by the water.

“Come on, Penn,” Lark called. “Don’t make me splash you.”

“Wait!” Katherine said. “I know you love your obscure music, but can’t you put on something a little more mainstream?”

“Some TSwift for Katherine,” Lewis said with a laugh.

“Hey, she’s nice!”

“Can we just agree you all have the worst taste in music?” I asked on a sigh.

“No,” Katherine and Lewis said together.

“I do!” Lark said with a laugh. “I admit it.”

I should have known they’d make me change the song. If it wasn’t from an artist they recognized they always complained. “Here.”

I switched it to Panic! at the Disco’s song “Don’t Threaten Me With A Good Time” and waited for them to roll their eyes at me, which they did, as if on cue.

A laugh escaped me. Typical. I kicked my shoes off and then slowly stripped off my button-up. I couldn’t help but look up at Natalie as I removed my pants and tossed them to the side.

Normally, I read women so easily. The hunger in their eyes. The desire painted on their faces like makeup. But Natalie wasn’t wearing makeup, and from the distance, she didn’t even seem to be paying attention to me unclothing. Suffice it to say, that wasn’t a normal occurrence. I was gifted with some pretty lucky genes, and the hours at the gym before I went in to lecture sure didn’t hurt. It was one of the few times I could get my brain to shut off, so I went religiously.

I slipped into the pool as Katherine dived into a story about the upcoming gala event she would be attending. I was only half-listening. I hated gala events. If I never had to go to one again in my life, I’d be happy.

But I wasn’t that lucky.

Not with a mother in politics and the last name Kensington.

I’d become a professor to escape it all, and it had only half-worked. At least I had an excuse now when I wanted to leave. Most people tended to zone out when I started discussing my research in ethical theory. Almost a guaranteed end to a conversation, which worked in my favor.

“Oh my god, Natalie, why didn’t I think about this before?” Katherine asked, downing the rest of her flute of champagne and refilling it.

She offered some to Natalie, but it looked like the alcohol was finally catching up with her. She declined.

“Think about…what?” Natalie asked, her words slurring together.

“You should come to the event. Come see me in the city.”

Lark and I shared a look. We both knew what that meant. Katherine had found her new project. She’d had a few since I’d known her. None had ended well.

“But Natalie is working here all fall,” I reminded Katherine.

“She could still come into the city. It doesn’t take that long, especially this time of the year.”

“Yeah. That’s a great idea,” Lewis said.

He moved over to Natalie’s side and slung an arm around her shoulders. I clenched the edge of the pool. My knuckles turned white.

“Is it?” Lark asked quietly.

Thank god someone was on my side. Lark, always the sensible one. We were the only two who had real jobs that weren’t because of our parents. But I also saw her the least. Her real job, like mine, kept her away from us far too often. If I wanted to see her, I had to fit into her insane work schedule. Between the two of us workaholics, it didn’t happen often.

“Of course it is,” Katherine said.

“Sure, sounds fun,” Natalie said.

She swayed on her feet, leaning into Lewis for support. He looked perfectly chummy about it.

“Great! It’s a date.”

Natalie nodded and then blinked. “That champagne kicked my ass. I think I need to…” She pointed at the door. “Before I black out.”

“Oh dear, okay,” Katherine said as if she hadn’t been pumping her full of alcohol all night. “Get some sleep. We’ll follow up tomorrow.”

Natalie nodded and then waded to the stairs. She stumbled on one step and reached for the railing before righting herself. She laughed softly. “Where did that step come from?”

“Always been there,” Rowe said seriously.

I couldn’t help the laugh that escaped me. Classic Rowe.

But Natalie’s eyes narrowed at me. As if I’d been laughing at her near fall. I arched an eyebrow in her direction and admired her body before she reached for a towel. She slipped it around her figure as if she were suddenly shy about it. Even though she’d been skinny-dipping and now nearly naked in front of the rest of my crew. It was cute. Like a glimpse into the Natalie I’d known for that brief time before.

Then, she was through the door. She didn’t turn around even though my eyes tracked her the whole way.

“Oh, I like her,” Katherine mused. She finished another glass of champagne and then swam to my side. “She has teeth.”

“I’m not dense, Ren. I know that you were just being nice to her for my benefit.”

“Me?” Katherine gasped. “I’m always nice.”

The rest of the crew laughed.

“Are you though?” Lewis asked. “Don’t get me wrong. We love you. But…you are Katherine Van Pelt.”

“I’ll remember this,” she said, pointing at them. “I’m nice to people who deserve it.”

“Who deserves it in your estimation?” Lark asked, fighting back a laugh.

“Fine,” Katherine muttered. “But Natalie makes it easy to like her. Especially with the way she insults our Penn here.”

She slid her arm around my waist, leaned into my side, and fluttered her eyelashes at me. The thing with Katherine was complicated. Always had been. And when she did things like this, all she did was blur the line.

I moved out of her embrace. “She’s just hurt. Not the first girl I’ve hurt.”

Rowe snorted. “Or the last.”

“I think you have your work cut out for you,” Katherine said smugly.

“It’s not like that,” I said automatically.

Even as I said it, I knew it was a lie.

I wanted Natalie. She confused me. She intrigued me. And despite all my training in ethics, I wanted to throw my morals out the window and go after her. f**k that smart mouth. And have her crying my name out.

And if I didn’t stop that train of thought…it would become pretty evident what I was thinking about.

“We all know that look, man,” Lewis said. “She gets under your skin.”

“You love girls who get under your skin,” Lark said.

“She doesn’t get under my skin.”

“Yeah, okay,” Rowe said.

“So, fine. Whatever. It’s hardly a challenge if I’ve already slept with her.”

“I really don’t think so,” Lark said.

“Nope. No way,” Lewis said. “She seems to hate you.”

“I’m sure, if I tried at all, she’d be eating out of the palm of my hand,” I muttered like a fool, trying to hold on to a sliver of pride.

Katherine grinned slyly. “I’ll take that bet.”

“What? No. I don’t have to bet on that, Ren.”

“Afraid you’ll lose?”

“No, I think it’ll be too easy,” I said confidently.

“Guys, please don’t,” Lark said. “Don’t you remember what happened last time?”

“I remember winning that one, too,” I said with a challenge leveled at Katherine.

“Still too soon,” Rowe said.

“Feels like old times,” Lewis said. “You two whipping out some ridiculous bet. Well, I’m with Penn on this one.”

“See,” I taunted Katherine.

“Well, man, it’s because you need the most help. Natalie is going to eat you alive.”

I shot him a frustrated look. “So much confidence in me.”

“Well, I’m out,” Lark said, crossing her arms. “This is my vacation, not another chance for you two to go at each other’s throats.”

“It’s just for fun, Larkin, my love.” Katherine wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

“Until it’s not.”

“What are the terms?” I asked.

Lark sputtered, “Seriously?”

Katherine leaned forward, dragging Lark into this, too. “You have her eating out of the palm of your hand by, say, your mom’s annual party. You bring her to the party, and we’ll get an impartial judge to weigh in. You have two months.”

I shrugged casually. “Easy. I only needed a night last time.”

“And, if I win,” Katherine said, tapping her chin, “you’re mine for a night.”

The pool was silent. I should have anticipated her answer. Should have seen where this was all heading. This wasn’t about Natalie. This wasn’t because Katherine had liked Natalie and wanted to see her stand me up. Oh, it went much deeper than that.

That meant…I had to hit her where it hurt.

I smiled and saw her own smile waver. “Fine. And, when I win, you set a date for the wedding with Percy.”

Katherine flinched.

“Harsh,” Lewis muttered.

“You guys don’t have to do this,” Lark whispered once more, trying to be the voice of reason.

But she’d known us long enough. She knew we were two of the most competitive people in existence, and neither of us could back down from a challenge. Especially from each other.

“Fine.” Katherine stuck out her hand. “If you win, I’ll set the date.”

I shook her hand. “Deal.”

I didn’t let her see that I was enjoying this. The bet was a pretense. Now, I could go after Natalie without any s**t from my friends. I could get her back on my side. Figure out what lay under that guarded exterior. Discover all her new truths. Claim her. Touch, lick, kiss every inch of her beautiful body.

Under any other circumstances, we wouldn’t have worked. We came from two different worlds.

I was Manhattan royalty. She was the help.

But I wanted her all the same.

Part II

Let The Games Begin