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He didn’t want to know what I thought. If I truly told him my ideas about his relationship, we would be in this restaurant for weeks. With me, using the few things I learned from my college psychology courses to analyze why the women would agree to something so unusual and why he possibly had severe commitment issues.
The whole thing seemed so strange and sexist to me.
He can have sex with other women, but they had to sit there and be faithful to him. Insanity.
I didn’t have an exciting dating life. I hadn’t spent time with any man besides Gabe since I broke up with my other boyfriend three years ago. There wasn’t anybody out there who commanded my attention.
Each time I met someone I gave them the V.I.B. test. Vivian coined the term for Vibrator, Ice cream, and Book test. Basically, if I would rather spend the night at home with my vibrator, a pint of Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey ice cream, and a steamy romance novel, then he’d failed the V.I.B. test.
Could Chase pass the V.I.B. test?
I glanced at him as he sat in his seat, waiting on my answer and drumming his fingers on the table.
Of course, he would pass if he were single.
He was the type of guy I didn’t think I could get. Every part of him symbolized male perfection. He had the face and body women visualized when they touched themselves on the darkest and loneliest nights of their lives, the nights when they yearned for a dark gorgeous hero to soar down and save them. He was a billionaire, and by god, that was sexy in itself. I’d known poverty all my life. I’d been hustling, begging, and hoping for money since the first time the electricity shut off in our house due to my mom not paying the light bill.
He was also fun. In this week, I loved being around him. He’d taught me so much about business and just watching him work made me feel like I was learning valuable lessons. I got the feeling that whether he was rich or not, if I’d been with him, my life would improve just from his advice and support. He fascinated me. Even the arrangement was interesting.
But interesting from afar.
I would’ve loved to read about this relationship or watch it on TV while snacking on a bowl of spicy buttered popcorn.
But participate? No way!
“I’m sorry, but no, Chase. I can’t do it.”
He returned to finger tapping. The muscles in his jaw twitched. “Is it because of the three girls who died?”
I tensed. “Were those girls a part of this arrangement?”
He averted his eyes and stuffed his mouth with food.
“Chase?”
He finished chewing. “Yes. All three had been involved with us.”
And now they are dead.
“Am I in some sort of danger?” I pushed my plate away, no longer hungry.
“No. The last woman died two years ago. Since then I’ve doubled up on security. Those deaths emotionally broke me and everyone else in the arrangement.” He frowned. “I’d been determined to never add another woman again.”
“Then why me?”
“I saw you at that party and everything shifted inside of me. After two years of mourning, depression, and regret, I heard your laugh and wanted to be able to laugh like that with you, to experience happiness again.”
“You have three women to make you laugh.”
“And still I want you.”
I sighed. “Back to these deaths. Do you think the women were killed by someone who—”
“Oh no. I don’t think they were killed. It’s just discovering that a man’s three ex-girlfriends died back to back would scare most, so I figured that was why you were hesitant.” His eyes widened as he shook his head, but for some reason I didn’t believe him.
Fear plopped to the pit of my stomach and then unfurled into a full blown anxiety attack.
I hadn’t had an anxiety attack like this in a year.
