Karen's POV
Joe came to meet me as I laid on the bed. He sat on the bed and smiled at me. The other housemates were already coming into the bedroom in their pyjamas.
"Hey, thanks for choosing me." He murmured.
I gave him a smile. "It's nothing. I just needed to choose the first man who approached me."
"At least, that's something. I'm really excited that you chose me."
"You're Brody's girlfriend, right?" He asked and I nodded. "That's great. You're really beautiful and Brody is lucky to have you."
I faked a smile and my mind drifted to Brody. I couldn't stop thinking about him even when I was with Joe. I wanted to forget about him but it seemed impossible.
A raspy breath scratched my throat. "So huh, what do you think about us?"
"I don't know, I don't feel any connection. It's just like the both of you are meant to be."
I shrugged. Did he confirm my feelings? Was I in love with Brody? I frowned. "It's night already, you should sleep."
His fingers brushed at my curls before sliding down my cheeks. "What are you doing?" I asked in a low-piqued voice as the other housemates talked loudly with each other.
"You have kissable lips." He muttered and touched my lips. I shivered and avoided his gaze.
He pulled me in for a kiss and I pushed him slightly and faced the other side of the bed. "I'm Brody's girlfriend." I reminded him.
I could hear him curse himself in disappointment. "I'm sorry for trying to kiss you." He apologized and I ignored him.
The lights went off and I closed my eyes to sleep.
***********
Brody's POV
My eyes slowly fluttered open and I glanced at the alarm clock.
9:10 a.m??
How could I have woken up late?
Getting out of bed, I walked slowly down the carpeted stairs which tickled my tired feet a little, and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, I went to the door. When I opened it, nobody was there. I could feel the morning breeze lightly dancing on my face and the bright sun stinging my eyes.
I became upset when I remembered that Karen chose to sleep on the same bed with Joe. I started back up the soft stairs now comfortable to my feet, thinking I could have just been hearing things, after all I was still hazy from waking up. "How was your night dear?" Mom asked me as soon as she came out of her room.
"It was short and fantastic." I lied.
"You woke up quite late, the maids have prepared something for you to eat."
I nodded and walked into my room. After undressing, I went into the bathroom. "Karen's such a fool, she could have slept on the floor instead of choosing that bastard." I complained loudly.
I scotted off real quick in the shower, pulled on jeans and a T-shirt and walked out of the bathroom. Taking a steadying breath, the muscles in my neck complained.
The house seemed empty without Karen. I didn't feel like going to work, I just wanted to bring Karen back and I would definitely bring her back. I palmed my forehead and let out a slight chuckle. "I'm so stupid. I should have never signed the contract. Foolish! I'm foolish." I muttered to myself angrily.
The door flung open and my mom walked in and smiled at me. "You look handsome, son."
"It's the family trait, you're also a beautiful woman." I told her, my voice thin with stress. I was afraid that Karen would say something that would get me in trouble. I didn't want her to reveal the contract mistakenly.
"Someone here's to see you."
I frowned. Alex didn't tell he would be coming but I knew he was crazy to come without informing me. "Alex's such a dummy. He should have stayed at home." I said, standing up.
"The man sitting down on the sofa is not Alex."
My heart raced, I wasn't expecting anyone. Could it be Bill? Oh God! "Who is he?" I asked.
She shrugged and stammered. "He said...his name...is....huh... Bill."
I suppressed a shiver as my body shook with fear, I swept past her and climbed the stairs quickly. I almost slapped him in annoyance when I found sitting down comfortably on the couch.. "What are you doing here?" I asked, annoyed.
He took me outside the house with a displeased expression. "Where's my client?" He asked.
I shrugged, I didn't know what to tell him. I wished I had called him to inform him of recent development. "She's not ...around." I stammered.
He narrowed his eyes at me. "I'm sorry but I don't understand."
I caught my breath and surveyed him thoughtfully. I didn't want him to be angry if I told him the truth. "Karen is in Los Angeles."
He frowned. "Doing what?"
"My mom thinks Karen's a golddigger and she wants to know if she can trust her. She's in a house with other people so you don't have to worry." I assured him by making my voice calm and steady.
He pushed the words through his gritted teeth. "How could you?"
I glared at him. "I'm sure Karen's safe, my mom would never do anything to hurt her."
"And how sure are you? You're going to pay a large amount of money if something bad happens to Karen and you're also going to pay for extra activities." He told me with a smirk.
I sighed. "I'll pay."
He arched an eyebrow. "And after the contract ends next week, you can wish to renew it."
"I'm never going to renew the contract."
"Really?" He asked aloud, not bothering to hide his puzzlement.
"You should leave my house." I told him without a smile. He was annoying.
Karen's POV
The housemates were seated on the floor. I already knew all their names even though they didn't tell me. I found their names and pictures on a calendar in the bedroom so it was easy to identify them. "Good morning, Joe."
"Hey, I'm sorry I woke up late." I told him and sat down on the chair, watching them play a game.
Joe cleared his throat. "The game looks interesting, we should join them and play," He suggested and we walked towards them and sat on the floor. "So what game are you guys playing?" He asked.
"Truth or dare."
"Argggh, it's really common and boring." Joe told them.
I disagreed immediately. "In my opinion, this is one of my favorite games, it's also fun to know the player's secret and dare them to do something hard."
Helen smiled and gave me a thumbs up. "So it's my time to ask fucking question." Michael screamed and looked at me.
I avoided his gaze, knowing exactly who he picked. "I want Karen Miller,"
I lifted up my face to look at him. "Truth or dare?" He asked and I looked at Helen.
She winked at me and I shrugged. I didn't want to pick dare. Michael could dare me to do something that I couldn't do and truth, I couldn't lie to him.
I paused for a second and murmured. "Truth." Looking at him, I expected the worst question.
He slanted me a look. "I was expecting you to pick dare," he uttered in disappointment. "Do you love Brody?"
Momentarily panic-stricken, I stared at him. I wanted to answer him truthfully. I knew I had started to develop feelings for Brody but I didn't want that to happen. It was just a contract. "Yes, I'm totally in love with Brody." I answered and cast a worried glance at Helen's way.
She smiled at me and gave me another thumbs up. "Hurray, I'm the next," Joe said and giggled excitedly. "We all know who I'm going to pick, I'm picking Karen." He added.
"I'll choose dare."
He smiled and clapped his hands in excitement. "I dare you to kiss me."
I was taken aback for a few seconds. I looked at him in acute disappointment. I thought he cared about me. I thought he cared about my feelings. Why would he ask me to do something he knew would get Brody offended?