Strip Tease {to be finished}

Chapter Three

RECAP:

For a minute, she wondered if she was making the biggest mistake of her life.

Deep down, she knew she was.

But hopefully it wouldn't be as bad as she thought it would be.

"Let's go eat, I'm hungry." Austin said, grabbing his coat from the couch and pulling it on. With a sigh and eye roll, Mackie followed.

****

Mackie wasn't sure what to say, as she and Austin sat at a little coffee shop approximately two miles from the hotel. The traffic on the Las Vegas strip was a mess of stop lights, and angry drunk drivers. Not to mention massive groups of people that littered the sidewalks and streets.

She couldn't put her finger on it, but she felt different. Almost daring and alluring to hordes of men that passed by. Possibly, it was the heavy ring that weighed down her third finger, or perhaps just the harsh reality that as long as she was 'married' she was unattainable to all the men that passed by her. Either way, it made her feel empowered, and in control. She wasn't going to admit she liked it, though.

"Here's your drink, sir." The barista said, as she sat Austin's latte in front of him and Mackie's plain black coffee before her. Then the waitress turned and began to flirt shamelessly with Austin, which made Mackie curious as to why he made this decision to get hitched on a whim, just to save face. She watched carefully, as Austin quickly diverted the unwanted attention towards the ring on Mackie's finger and then the obvious dislike on the barista's face as she walked away, not forgetting to send a jealous glance to Mackie over her shoulder.

The curiosity was slowly eating at her as she glanced down at her bitter black coffee. If he could have any girl he wanted, why her? Because she was 'perfect'? That didn't seem like a healthy base for a relationship. In fact, it seemed rather foolish to base a person on their looks. But then there's the background check he ran...

"What was that?" Mackie asked, her inner snoop getting the best of her. Austin had seemed deep in thought, his mind miles away, and she would bet money it was on what awaited him when he returned home, which he never clarified. As he looked up, Mackie could plainly see the depression evident in his features. Was this what a successful man endured? Was this how he saw himself? Just a helpless man, with no more pleasures than the occasional one night stand and the large stacks of money to surround him. It seemed...lonely.

"What was what?" Austin asked, his brown eyebrows coming together over his nose. He was genuinely curious as to what Mackie had to say, and that made her feel good. Although she would never admit it aloud. Those thoughts were meant for her mind and her mind only.

"You turned her away. She basically offered herself to you, and you tossed her aside. Why?" Mackie asked, lifting her mug to her lips and sipping delicately. Austin watched silently, trying to sift through his thoughts while Mackie tempted him with her full lips and dainty movements. Then, the light shimmered on her solitaire and Austin was bitterly reminded of why he married her in the first place.

It seemed so easy, how he could just slip away and admire the smallest things about a woman. Of course, Mackie had beautiful assets. Like slightly large breasts and a thin hourglass figure. Not to mention her midnight black hair and full lips and doe like eyes. She was captivating in every sense of the word, and it made his ego deplete just being around her, as if he shouldn't even bother with such a gorgeous woman such as herself. But he was Austin Dame, and what he wanted, he got.

"I'm taken." Austin winked, which just irritated Mackie. She was reminded of the blackmailing and the tricking and advantage taking. She wanted to know the real reason why, but it seemed that after that vague and dull response, Austin returned to whatever far away land his thoughts took him to as he sipped on his latte.