AUTHOR'S NOTE: Make sure you check the tags before you read, because the stuff that happens in this chapter may not be to your tastes. Otherwise, enjoy!
***
Thanksgiving comes and goes, and the Walgrens give me the weekend off because they don't want me around when their children are home for the holidays. I don't want to meet the mini-Walgrens anyway, since I don't know if they're as bad as their parents, and I'm glad to have a break from Steven and Gina. The only problem is facing my own family.
I tell them I've found a job as a municipal government clerk. The stereotype that Asian parents want their children to become doctors, lawyers, accountants, or engineers is well and truly alive in my family, but at least they're happy I'm able to support myself. How my sociology degree helps me oil the gears of government bureaucracy is a question they don't pose.
And now I'm curled up in a ball on my bed while the cramps and general misery cast a heavy cloud on my mind. Tomorrow is the weekend, and my period has finally arrived. The fact that I'm not pregnant is small comfort, not just because Steven Walgren will keep on fucking me until his seed takes root, but because I can't be happy about anything right now.
I know there's a clause in that wretched contract allowing me to skip a weekend when that time of the month arrives, so I uncurl my body and reach over towards the bedside table to retrieve my phone. I half expect to find a text from Gina giving me instructions about what she and her husband have planned for me, and it's a relief to see nothing recent.
'
I can't make it tomorrow. I'm on my period.
'
My brain fog isn't so strong that I can't send a simple text message, and as soon as I've pressed send, I let go of my phone and curl up into a ball again. I'll need to eat soon, but at least I don't have the Walgrens to look forward to tomorrow.
My phone buzzes, and I pick up my phone and check the reply.
'
Prove it. 60 seconds.
'
My heart leaps in my chest. Is she fucking joking?
No. She's definitely not joking, so I stand up and pull down my pants. Then I lift my shirt up and trap the fabric between my chin and my chest to hold it in place. Finally, I hook my thumb behind the rim of my panties and pull it out, stretching the fabric until my sanitary pad is visible.
I can see a fresh red stain in the material, and so will Gina when I send the bitch photographic proof that I'm not lying. I snap a picture with my phone and send it to her with plenty of time to spare, then I let my shirt fall and pull my pants up again.
Sure enough, my phone buzzes again, and I check the message.
'
Looks like you need to change your pad. Drink plenty of water and we'll see you next week.
'
I scowl at my phone's screen. I can't tell whether Gina's mocking me or giving sincere advice. Either way, at least I'm excused from sex slave duties this weekend.
Actually, she's probably right about the pad.
***
On Thursday, I receive another text from Gina, telling me to show up on Friday and pack a big enough bag for the whole week. Somehow, I'm surprised it's taken them this long to make me stay at their house the entire week or even move in with them indefinitely. Given that Gina doesn't want me to meet their kids, that seems unlikely.
I drive out to their mansion and arrive with a roller bag full of clothes and accessories, wearing running shorts and a tank top with a backpack of extra stuff on my back. By now, I'm a familiar enough face to the security guard that he buzzes me straight through the gate, but actually ringing the doorbell and waiting for the front door to open remains a tense experience.
The door unlocks and opens, surprising me with the sight of Steven Walgren on the other side wearing sweatpants and a T-shirt, neither of which can adequately contain his physical assets.
"Good afternoon, Grace," Steven greets me with a shark-like grin.
He opens the door wide for me and I step over the threshold. He even lifts my roller bag by the side handle and hoists it effortlessly into the air, making part of me want to swoon at his display of masculine strength. The sound of the front door slamming shut makes me flinch, reminding me that I'm more like a sheep being invited into the wolf's den.
"How was the drive here?" Steven making small talk with me feels weird.
"Not too bad," I answer politely, following his lead up the staircase, "where's Gina?"
"She'll be back soon," Steven explains, "she's dropping the boys off at their grandparents and then doing a little shopping for a meetup later tonight."
"Meet up? Are you going out on a date or something?"
"
We
are going out," Steven clarifies as we reach the top of the steps, "the three of us are going out for a very special evening tonight."