Zelina

I speak to the workers after the fire is handled and all chaos has been quieted down. As Steve told me, nobody knew what went wrong and how the fire broke. For now, it has been reported as an accident, and I try hard to convince myself that it is true. We spend a lot of time at the site with the police officers who arrived shortly after us, and when it's late in the night, Steve advises me that I should get some rest.

Despite all my protests, he seems persistent about making me go home. But I don't want to be away just in case we suspect something unusual. As much as I want to see this as an unfortunate event, I cannot shake off the gut feeling I have. At last, I had to listen to him. So I get in my car but not to go home. I know I can't relax right now, so the only place that can bring me a little peace is where I am heading out.

When I reach the destination, I walk into Alexa's bar and straight go to the counter. People around here seem to be having a good time as usual, and I wish I could let myself be like them. Andy sees me, and he rushes towards me immediately.

"Zelina...where have you been all this time?" He asks in a surprised tone.

I grab a stool, ignoring his question. "Go get me a drink, Andy," I say.

He frowns, taking in my face. "What? Is everything okay?"

I look at him, feeling annoyed now. "Didn't you hear? Get me a drink."

Instead of taking my order, he continues to stare at me. I frown and watch him as he raises his hand to touch my forehead. "Wow! Wait...let me check your temperature."

"What the fuck, Andy?" I snap his hand off me and glare at him.

"You never come here to drink, remember?" He reminds me slowly, looking a bit amazed by my reaction. "There has to be something definitely wrong."

Before I can answer him, Alexa joins us, and she looks at me. "Oh, my god! Zelina...I missed you so much. You didn't show up after Thursday..."

I cut her off midway, knowing where this all is going about. "I am not in a mood. Can you guys just not bother me now?"

They both exchange a look and then turn to look at me.

"What?" I ask.

"Just spill it out, bitch." They say in unison, making me look at them in disbelief, but I can't hide the grin that starts to appear on my face now. Jeez. Why do I have such crazy friends?

I shake my head and tell them everything that happened at the factory because I know they won't let me sit in peace otherwise. I also fill them in with the events that took place since Thursday, from Merrick being the angry man who lashed at me here at the bar to getting him to close a deal with me on the very next day. I give them every single detail about what I have been doing since then, and it somehow eases my nerves.

"Oh my god, I would have died to capture his expression during that presentation," Alexa laughs after I tell them about the little fun I had yesterday teasing Merrick under the table. "I can't believe you are going to torture that sexy businessman like that."

"He should have known that before he stepped into my territory. Now there isn't a way to escape." I say, now sipping the wine that I finally managed to squeeze out from Andy.

"Fuck! He is in so much trouble." Andy whistles, looking at me.

"But I do need to appreciate that guy's self-control. I mean, if he could resist Zelina until now, then I am pretty much sure he could achieve anything." Alexa smirks, and I roll my eyes.

"Wait...Is this the same Merrick whose fiancée left him?" Andy speaks, and I turn my head towards him, growing curious about what more he knows about him. "I've heard that he's got a small dick."

I frown, feeling offended by his statement. "Who said that?"

"Just some floating gossips." He shrugs, throwing his arms up in defense. "Thought I should warn you."

"That's fucking bullshit. I am yet to find it out, but I am damn sure he's got a huge one." I say.

"You need to get us some proof when you finally figure that out," Alexa suggests, making all of us laugh.

After hanging out for some time, Alexa returns to her cabin, and Andy gets busy attending to other customers. And I find myself alone again, recollecting all that has happened today. That's when I notice a man taking a seat next to me. I feel a bit dizzy, but I know I am not drunk.

The man turns towards me, and when my eyes meet his, he speaks. "Oh, Simona, it's such a pleasant surprise to see you here." He smiles. "How have you been?"

I observe his face and smirk, bringing the wineglass to my lips. "That's probably the lamest way you could have opted to start a conversation." I laugh, looking at his face turning bright red now. "Anyway, my name is Zelina, and you are?"

He stares at me in disbelief until I raise my eyebrow at him in question. "I...I am Jordan."

"Should I buy you a drink?" I ask him.

"Umm...okay." He answers, relaxing a bit in his chair now.

We talk for some time, and before I know I am in this Jordan's car, probably going with him to his place. The next few minutes appear to be blurred, but I get back to my senses when I feel a tongue shoved inside my mouth. I am pretty sure that I am responding with the same intensity, pulling on the roots of the guy's hair. He kisses my jaw and then moves towards my cheek.

I feel his tongue in the crook of my neck, and I suddenly get a flash of flustered Merrick gazing at me the moment I ran my toe over his leg. I smile, thinking about it, and throw my head back, giving him more access to my skin. The guy pulls back, and I look into his eyes and all of a sudden I realize they aren't blue. His hair isn't black, and I slowly register that he isn't Merrick. Where am I? And what am I doing?

Then it dawns upon me that I was at Alexa's bar, and I went with the guy I met there. "Stop...we can't do this?" I push him away instantly and say.

"What?" He looks at me with a confused expression. "Are you not single?"

"No. I mean, not that." I shake my head. For a second, I think about telling him the truth, that I am on a mission to fuck someone else, but then I look at his innocent face and think about not being the bitch that I am known as for one time. He seems like a genuine guy, and I don't want to break his heart. "I just realized it's no fuck Tuesday for me." I blurt, looking around at our surroundings. He's got a nice room, by the way.

"But it's already Wednesday." He says, glancing at the wall clock, and I groan when I notice it's past midnight.

"Then no fuck Wednesday it is?" I say, looking back at him.

"What does that supposed to mean?" He asks slowly. "I didn't know that term even existed."

"It does...At least for me." I laugh and my eyes fall on the bulge in his pants and I feel pity for him.

"Sorry for that, buddy," I say, slightly embarrassed as I smooth my skirt back. I reach for my purse on the chair left to the bed and start walking. When I reach the door, I am reminded of something. I turn around and take out some dollar bills as I walk back and place them on his nightstand.

"What are you doing?" Jordan asks, gawking at me like I am some kind of creep.

"Thanking you for the lift." I shrug and place some more. "I probably ruined your plans, so this one is for your ride back to the bar." I give him a sheepish grin. "Take it as my apology gift for leaving you dry." With that, I get out of his room, not trying to turn back again.

After leaving Jordan's place, I take a taxi to my house. Probably, I'll have to ask someone to pick up my car from the bar and that's not an issue. The house seems quiet, like always, as I head to my room. I know Jamie would be out with her friends or partying or whatever other shit she must be doing, not like I really care.

I take off my skirt and put on some comfy pajama shorts. My head suddenly feels heavy and I reach for the drawer on the nightstand. Taking out the packet of cigarettes, I put one into my mouth. Then I open the sliding door and step out onto the balcony. The chilly wind feels good against my skin as I go and sit on the square brick at the end of the railing. I keep my right leg dangling out as I rest my head on the sidewall. Closing my eyes, I take a long drag and puff out and then open them again to figure out the weird patterns that the smoke is forming in the night sky.

I haven't slept with anyone since the night I saw Merrick. This had been probably the longest that I have gone fucking no one. And to be honest, I am surprised by my own achievement. I didn't know I could survive this long, but now I can feel it starting to get on my nerves. I feel angry, depressed, and mostly sex-deprived. And it makes me cringe, thinking about what I just did. God! That was really embarrassing. I am still unable to figure out why I openly rejected that guy when my sole motto of going to that bar has always been ending the night with a good fuck.

I know my mind is a fucking mess. Part of me wants to blame it on Merrick for not falling into my trap by now. But again, I have to remind myself that he isn't like the other men I've met before. The fact that he tries to run away from me at any chance he gets makes me want to have him more. He is going to end up naked in my bed one day because he can't be the exception to resist my charms - no one can be. I want to break his self-control and prove that he isn't any different from the others in this dirty business. And I am hell-bent on achieving that.

As I am thinking about the ways to bring Merrick down on his knees, the door of my room bursts open, making me look back in. "Zelina, I've heard what happened at the plant. I mean, how can you be so careless?" Jamie yells, making her way towards me.

"Do you know how much it could cost our company?" She stands by the doorway and asks. I look at her and simply puff out smoke on her face.

She looks at me in disbelief, coughing a little, and tries to clear out the smoke with her hands. "I don't know what the fuck is wrong with this family."

"Why are you barking at me? It wasn't my fault." I say.

"Yes, it was." She crosses her arms over her chest and glares at me. "Ashton was here, wasn't he?"

"You act like you didn't really know."

"He is going to make our lives miserable." She shakes her head and clenches her jaw, trying to suppress her anger. "I don't know what the fuck has gotten into your mind? Why can't you just listen to me for once?"

"That's what I have been doing for years. Listening to your bullshit. But not anymore." I get on my feet and look into her eyes. At that moment, I feel like I am taken back in time and I remember everything that the woman standing in front of me has done to me. "Because I am no longer the naïve teenage girl that you tried manipulating. You can't control my life anymore, Jamie. I know what's fucking right for me."

"No, you fucking don't. You have to listen to me because I am your mother." Jamie says as she looks at me and I can see the burning rage in her eyes. I've never seen that before and I realize that I really wore her patience out. "I don't know what the fuck is wrong with you and honestly, I don't care, but my company is precious to me. So you need to stop whatever hell you have with this Addington and get back to our old clients. Do you understand?"

What she is saying isn't new to me, but every time I hear it from her, I can feel a knot building in my chest, making me wonder how can a mother be so heartless. All she cares about is my father's money and nothing else. How can a mother be so selfish? Sometimes I even wonder why my dad married a woman like her.

I clench my jaw and challenge her. "And what if I told you I wouldn't?"

I've never seen her eyes so red as she steps closer and looks into my eyes. "Then you are going to fucking regret it." She seethes before turning on her heels and then storms out of the room.