Wicked Game

Chapter 4

            Lucy stretched out on the bed in her dressing room leafing slowly through an old magazine. She stopped at the centerfold. Mirajane, she was easily the most popular model in the industry. She'd started out in the same kind of work as Lucy, and that's what Lucy wanted for herself. To be out from under the cruel thumb of Ivan and his underworld higher-ups. To be free of the undesirable contract that came with her position.

There was a quiet tap at her door.

"Lucy?" A light voice trilled through the wood.

Lucy jumped up, leaving the magazine spread out on the bed, and threw the lock before returning to her perch.

A tall, slender girl with blue wavy hair slipped quietly into the room and pressed the door shut. Slender, Lucy thought, except for her giant rack and ass. Her curves were in all the right places, and of course that's why Juvia was hired to the Blue Kitten six months ago.

"Lucy, you have to tell me what's going on, everyone's talking about it." Juvia's words were eager and hurried.

"Talking about what?" Lucy said at a loss.

"You!" Juvia nearly burst. She took a seat across from Lucy on the setae, her long royal blue satin robe draped glamorously around her. She pressed her tiny fists into her knees in anticipation. "And that guy, Mr Dragneel."

"Natsu?" Lucy was still confused. "What about him?"

"Don't you know?" Juvia's giant blue eyes were wide in surprise. Lucy shook her head mutely.

"Cana saw him in Ivan's office, she said it looked like they were making a deal."

"What kind of a deal?" Lucy shifted her weight uncomfortably. Natsu had been visiting her every night for nearly a week. She had seen him leave with Ivan during the beginning of her set tonight. It made her stomach tighten.

The problem was, she'd enjoyed Natsu's visits. She didn't understand him, or what he was after. But it seemed like... well... it didn't seem like he was after anything, like he just wanted to spend time with her. It made no sense, and it must have been costing him a fortune, but he hadn't made a single pass towards her since she met him. Not one.

But knowing that he was dealing with Ivan was unsettling. Was it about her? Or did it have something to do with Ivan's side business? Lucy was blissfully in the dark about what Ivan was up to, but she knew he had gotten involved in something shady. He had introduced her to a potential new business partner, Maud Geer, a few months back, but she hadn't seen him since.

She was glad of that, too. Something about that guy was off. The relief she had felt when she found out he wouldn't be joining her for a night was immense. Lucy had taken a hot shower after the dinner, washing away the sensation of her skin crawling caused by the scrutiny of that man's gaze.

It was just a matter of time, Lucy told herself. There was no way Natsu was just looking for conversation. He had to have some sort of underlying motivation. Maybe now she'd find out what it was.

"I don't know what the men were saying exactly," Juvia reported. "But Cana said Ivan gave him a set of keys."

"Keys to what? To the club?"

"One looked like a key to the club. The other... well, it had your room number on it."

Lucy's mouth dropped in shock.