Page 30 of Eye Candy

What the Hedy Lamar?

Chase was staring at me like he wanted to eat me alive, starting at my pussy.

As I reeled, our host Greta appeared at my side with my handbag and phone and set them down next to me on the bar. I should have apologized for making a scene at her birthday party—she didn’t even like ‘Teddy’ and I’d ruined her party—but I didn’t have the wherewithal.

His words were still echoing in my head. ‘If I spanked you every time you misbehaved, the only thing redder than my hand would be your ass. Brat.’

“Should we take her up to Francis’s office?” Greta asked Chase, staring at my knee.

“I think she’s fine, Grets,” he answered, not taking his eyes off me. His low voice evensoundedlike sex. What happened to my blushing blogger?

“Yeah, she’s fine,” I echoed. “It’s just a scratch. I’m”—withmassive effort, I looked away from Chase—“sorry, Greta. About everything.”

“No, you’re not,” he muttered.

I felt like I’d been turning non-stop pirouettes for an hour. I’d thought Chase was attractive before, but it was a safe kind of hot, more about symmetry than sexuality. But the way he was staring at me now, a little flushed but utterly focused, made me feel… feverish.

Earlier, at dinner, when Fiona had asked Chase about Joe, he looked like he wanted to sink through the floor. I didn’t know much about panic attacks in a formal, clinical sense, but I knew what panic looked like, and that was him. For whatever reason, I couldn’t sit by and watch Chase be picked apart by society vultures. I hadn’t stopped to think, I’d jumped into action and created a scene to pull focus.

I thought I had Chase’s measure, but then he’d surprised me with a peek at some deep cuts on his heart. And now, he’d surprised me again with this completely shocking turn of events.

The man I thought had been traumatized by the sight of my bra during strip chess had just talked aboutspankingme. And called me a brat. True, Iwasa brat, but no one ever called me on it!

Chase was supposed to be an uptight silver spoon whose family I could gently relieve of generational wealth they didn’t need and be on my way. This changed everything.

“Whelp, I’m going to go…” I tried to slide off the bar.

Chase stopped me with a hand. “Oh no you don’t, Candy Floss?—”

I groaned at the nickname. Not because I didn’t like it, because I liked it too much.

Nicknames made thisa thing, and I couldn’t afford things. Not with him.

Greta looked from her friend to me and back again, her eyes wide. “Oh.Oh. Well, I’ll give you some privacy. The murder mystery is done anyway. I can’t find the host, and Francis told meif one more person called him guv’na he was selling the bar and moving to Berlin.”

Greta waved and disappeared upstairs, I assumed to Francis’s office. A few of the servers swarmed in the background, seeing off the last guests and putting the room back to rights. We were unnoticed.

“Where’s your future wifey?” I asked.

One of Chase’s eyebrows raised above the rim of his glasses. “Don’t be caustic, Floss.”

“Again with the five-dollar words.” I grumbled. “I’m not caustic. And I’m not jealous?—”

An annoying grin played at one corner of his mouth. “I didn’t say?—”

“I’m just annoyed because you kept looking at me. That’s poor date conduct. I would never stay on a date with a man who ignored me and stared at someone else.”

And threatened to spank said someone else, and turned her on so much she doesn’t know which way is up …

“Well, she didn’t. Stay, that is. Obviously, things were—” Chase stopped, took off his glasses, and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Anna and I discussed it and we’re better as friends. She went home.”

Satisfaction ran over me, sticky and warm like honey.

“And where’s Joe? I thought he was supposed to be here tonight.”

“Don’t ask me about my brother,” he said sharply. “You focus onme.”

CHASE

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