Greed had tipped over into a dark side of himself that came out in extreme situations. In an anxious and stressed predicament, when there was nothing else but all the Sins pouring in, it had nowhere to go out but the darker place they had been created from.
Greed was hanging on by a thread with Zoe, letting go just wasn't an option. Ever. All he could see in his mind was what he had destroyed before. Lives that he had never meant to ruin. Josie, Stella and Devlin were victims of circumstance. Casualties to a jealous Sin's desire for more than he was ever able to obtain.
The last six months with Zoe had created a world that he had never seen. The more she wedged in between them only made him want it that much more. The events of the day, jail and watching Captain wet whistle of a boyfriend show up like a knight in shining armor only pushed Greed's curiosity.
He decided the solution to this problem was at the nightclub. But, he rerouted all his usual steps. He didn't call Lust out on this one, and instead of dressing in his best he slummed it with a a pair of jeans, white t-shirt and a leather jacket. He walked in with his eye on a particular kind of girl. It wasn't the one who flirted with him or set her tits out on display. Instead it was the shy girl who sat alone at the bar while her friends danced the night away.
His approach was even a little less putting on the moves. It was a casual bump where he instantly apologized. The conversation started soft, him the frat boy who was dragged out by his buddies for a night out after having a fight with his 'best friend' which was a girl.
"My name's Amanda." The girl held out her hand for a shake. She spoke a little bit about her college and that her friends taking her out for her birthday.
"It's your birthday? Well, happy birthday." He gave a intentional soft smile. It reeled her in like a fish. Amanda blushed. He was quite beautiful, but the softness in his eyes instantly made her forget he was a stranger. He sounded so sincere as he described his situation. His best friend, Zoey was completely enamored with this boy and he coudnt persuade her was bad news.
"He actually landed her in jail today. I mean, the guy is like sin incarnate. He just abuses her and I can't stand it." Naturally he was describing himself, but it made his case read believably.
Amanda reached out and touched his arm, a simple, soft gesture of concern. She was the perfect test to his theory. Zoe described things in such a way it sounded like paradise. Sex sounded like a new world he had yet to discover, even with the queen of desire in his bed.
He took Amanda home that night without a drop of influence in her system. Just charm and charisma. It was like the time with the twins, except he had notched this a step higher. And it wasn't the only night he spent with Amanda. It was one or two, it may have been closer to four, just to see if he could have that euphoria Zoe described. Each night he played the game a little different. Romance, flowers, all the bullshit. Anything that made her think something it wasn't. Greed pulled off a convincing scheme. Nice boy that wanted someone nice in his life. If he could replicate Zoe then the result should be the same.
Lust would have patted him on the back for his deceit. He'd pulled out the big guns. He had played his title well. The point was it was a face. The girl couldn't see his plan a mile away. By Friday night after exhausting her he tried wrapping his arms around her, resting his cheek against her shoulder. She curled up, knees drawn in. He'd thrown in the same affection as he gave Zoe. Attention, sex and now snuggling, but he was drawn to the same conclusion. Not any of it had given him the same thrill as that night where his desires had been tempered by Zoe herself. It was a fucking unbelievable outcome and he was kind of mad that he couldn't replicate even a forth if what he had with Zoe. He was doing all the right things, Amanda too, but it wasn't working right.
Untangling his arms from around Amanda, Greed took his phone from off the nightstand.
He wrote a simple text at three in the morning to the only person he wanted to talk to right now. Zoe.