Page 2 of The Billionaire Love Match

“Casey!”

She swung around to face the guy, who still had an amused expression on his face.

“How do you know my name?” she asked. But he hadn’t been the one who said it. She heard it again, faintly, but getting louder, now right outside the door.

“CASEY!”

Lucas.

Her eyes widened and she looked around in a panic. There were stalls, but none of them had doors. She could only think of one thing to do. It was a terrible plan. But it was all she had.

In two strides she crossed the room to grab Mr. Casual by his expensive looking T-shirt. The cool look was gone, replaced with total shock as she swung him around, putting her back up against the wall and pulling him close to her.

“Sorry about this,” Casey said.

Green, she realized. His eyes looked green with brown flecks.

And then she grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him into a kiss.

For a tiny moment he resisted, but almost immediately began to kiss her back. The electric current she had felt when he touched her arm had nothing on this kiss. She felt it in places she didn’t know existed in her body. Places that didn’t seem to relate to kissing at all: the inside of her elbow, her lower back, the top of her foot. She didn’t need to keep pulling him toward her as he was now leaning even closer to her, his hands cupping her face.

She had started it, but he had taken control, his lips both tender and passionate, pulling her deeper, closer. Everything disappeared. She couldn’t feel the wall behind her back and the sound of the club faded. There was only this moment, this kiss. His fingers now touched her neck, her collarbone, back up to her cheeks.

The door slammed open again next to them and they pulled apart, both breathless. For a brief moment they locked eyes. He looked every bit as shocked and smitten as she felt. The kiss had made her completely forget the reason that she had pulled Mr. Casual close—to hide her face if Lucas came through the door. Which he now did, barreling past two burly guys who stood just outside.

And then Lucas pulled him backward by his shirt and punched him in the jaw.

Casey screamed and the two burly guys from outside burst in, grabbing Lucas. But not before he got in a second good punch.

“You slut!” Lucas shouted, spittle flying from his mouth. He looked like a wild animal and for a moment Casey felt actual fear. She had never seen this level of rage. Over time he was escalating, not slowing down.

The two big guys must have worked for the show because they were wearing earpieces. They held Lucas fast. No easy feat since he was over six feet and worked out seven days a week.

“Sorry,” one of the guys said to Mr. Casual, who was bent over, holding his face. “He pushed right by us. We’ll get him out of here.”

“Okay,” Mr. Casual groaned.

As the guys dragged a still-screaming Lucas out of the bathroom, Casey realized she had been frozen to the spot, her hands shaking. Now as Lucas’ curses and screams faded, she could only hear Mr. Casual’s groans.

She crossed the room, putting a hand on his back. He flinched and jerked away. Then realizing it was only Casey, tried to regain that practiced casual look. Only now his eye was swelling up and he had a thin cut in his jaw.

“I’m so so so sorry,” Casey said. “Can I do something? Here, let me get something for the blood.”

He stood then, and they were almost as close as they had been a few minutes before when they shared that incredible kiss. Her heart started racing, but his eyes were wary now. She backed up and wet a few paper towels from the sink.

The bathroom door swung open again and a short guy with spiky blond hair looked shocked to see them both standing there.

“GET OUT!” Casey and Mr. Causal yelled at the same time. The guy disappeared through the door.

She smiled faintly as she brought the paper towels to him. “Here,” she said, reaching up to wipe the blood from his chin.

He grabbed her wrist, sending sparks flying down her arm. Blood or no blood, she wanted a round two with his lips. It took control not to lean in again. Was he hesitating as well? But he took the paper towel and dropped her wrist. He walked away to the mirror. She reminded herself to breathe. This was crazy. She never acted like this.

Casey looked down at her shoes. She was wearing her favorite cowboy boots, a soft brown with turquoise stitching. Amanda tried to convince her to wear heels, but these were more her style. She didn’t want to pretend to be someone else for a guy or TV or anything else.

“I really am sorry,” she said.

“Yeah, you said that.”

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