Page 53 of Tempting the King

But, I’m biased.

I watch his teammates thumping him on the back, and I see the other team’s coach pointing and screaming toward King, who skates backwards, chewing on his mouth guard like he’s just taking a loop around the rink at Rockefeller Center at Christmastime.

The game plays on and every few minutes King is throwing a wave my way, making sure I’m included in his win as I whistle and scream his name until my voice is lost and my love for him multiplies, seeing him in his element.

It’s pure magic. He’s right. He was made for this sport.

When the final whistle blows, I’m jumping and pushing my way through the now-crowded booth toward the door, wanting to get down to him. To help him celebrate and tell him how proud I am of him.

I am caught up in a group as I step outside the box, the two big guys hanging in the hallway take special interest in me as I look this way and that, trying to see through the crowd which way I should go to get down to the ice.

Before I figure it out, my phone vibrates in my back pocket, and something makes me hesitate.

Maybe it’s that I don’t want this moment to end. I don’t want the spell broken. Or maybe it’s a sixth sense. I haven’t heard from Benjamin in a while.

Part of me wants to ignore the call, and ride this adrenaline wave as far as it can go.

Trouble is, I’m still me. Responsible Emee.

I look at the number, and it says Sutherland Suites, and a new wave of excitement charges through me.

Maybe my suite is almost ready. Maybe I can come back soon.

This day just gets better and better.

“Hello?” I answer, holding the phone tight to my ear, pressing a finger on my other hand into my ear, straining to hear over the revelry and celebration going on all around me.

“Emee? It’s Jack, security from Sutherland Suites.”

I grin, yep, I bet everything is getting sorted there faster than they thought.

“Hey, Jack!” I press against the wall as people mill around me. “What’s up? Is my office ready?”

“That’s what I’m calling about… Look, Emee, someone deliberately set off the alarm and sprinklers. And… I think I found out who. Well, I don’t think, I know who.”

“Good. I hope they get locked up.” I’m not normally so harsh, but Jesus, that goes beyond a practical joke. I was scared, but also, so much damage was done. I’m still waiting to see if my insurance will cover the rebuild and the contents.

“Emee, it’s… I haven’t told the investigators yet. I wanted to speak to you first. It was one of your clients.” He draws a breath. “Emee, it was King Hertzof.”

CHAPTER 18

King

“Well, where is she?” My voice is barely above a whisper, but the two bodyguards I put on her are already backing away.

“She said she had to use the restroom. She said…” They look at each other as I fight the urge to crush their Neanderthal foreheads together.

Instead, I bring the tracking app up on my phone for the dozenth time since I got to the booth and found out she’s not fucking here.

It’s still showing as no signal. No signal.

That doesn’t make any fucking sense. Even if she turned her phone off, I made sure the tracker would continue working.

“Keep talking.” I grunt as anger pumps through my veins. “She said what?”

“She was on the phone and she seemed upset. Then, when she tried to leave, we asked her to stay—politely, like you said we should. But, she’s…” Chase, the dark haired guard, swallows hard as I stare into his soul. “Her phone wouldn’t stop ringing, and… She’s tough. And she said she needed to go find a…tampon, and I didn’t know what to do.”

They both look as flustered as two adolescent boys buying condoms for the first time.

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