Page 34 of Play With Me

Kate may have been engaged to Mick first, but she’ll never have him the way younger me did. Now, I feel sorry for her and onlyslightlyashamed of my actions. But no one else's feelings matter when you’re young and in love. You don’t care whose life you destroy as long as you get your chance at happiness.

A hand touches the small of my back. Lips press against the side of my neck chastely, causing my thighs to clench as I inhale the spicy scent of the current man I love to hate. “Are we pretending tonight?”

My eyes flutter shut as his hand slides around my waist, slowly drawing me back into him. Every nerve tingles with awareness, and I swear there’s static electricity crackling all around us. I fucking hate that such a simple touch has this kind of effect on my body. “Don’t we pretend every night, Anders? It’s all a game to you, right?”

He chuckles, never letting go of me as he walks around to my front. His hair is slightly more styled than usual, and his beard is trimmed, but he didn’t shave it off completely.

And Jesus fucking Christ, this man knows how to wear a suit.

“You’re looking at me like I’m a piece of meat.” The hand around my waist pulls me closer while the other tips my chin up as he kisses my lips. It’s slow—not chaste, but not passionate either—and sensual. It makes my insides turn to liquid, and things low in my body clench around my emptiness, wishing to be filled.

As soon as he finishes weaving his spell on my mouth, his lips slide to my ear, and he whispers, “Tonight, I’m playing a different kind of game, Cara. Are you up for playing with me?”

Before I can answer him, I hear, “Carmela! So glad you could make it.”

Anders’ hand tightens on my waist as he turns me and pulls me closer to his chest, never letting me go as the couple of the hour approaches us. Kate Charles is all Snow Queen in a petite five-foot-two frame: pale skin, icy blonde hair, sky-blue eyes, and a frosty demeanor that she hides behind a fake…well, everything. She’s as carved up as an ice sculpture, whittled away over the years into an image she deems perfect.

Kate is dressed in a powder blue gown thatshimmers as she walks, and Mick is wearing a matching suit—minus the shimmer. Both are holding glasses of champagne and looking at us with interest. Though, while Kate’s seems genuine, Mick’s is definitely borderline angry.

Rigidly, Kate air kisses my cheeks before turning to Anders and holding out her hand. “I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Kate Charles, Mick’s wife.”

Anders doesn’t let go of my waist but does take Kate’s outstretched hand and kisses the back of it, earning him a surprised look and a flush of her rosy-painted cheeks. “Anderson Brooks. Cara’s boyfriend.”

Mick blinks before understanding dawns over his features. He thinks Anders and I are just playing a role—and we are—but Anders apparently is going for an Oscar tonight. As he drops Kate’s hand, he grabs my chin to kiss me again. “I’m going to go find us some drinks. I’ll be right back. Kate, it was lovely to meet you. Happy anniversary.”

I bite my lip as he leaves—thankful for whoever invented lip stain—ready to plunge headfirst into my own role for the evening. “Isn’t he great?”

I’ve never beenniceto Kate. I’ve always rejected her attempts at whatever weird idea of friendship she thinks we could ever possibly have. But tonight, I do my best to act like I normally do with Lenni.

She sidles up beside me, also watching him walk away—and damn, does he look good when he’swalking away. “He sure is something. Where’d you find him?”

A sly smile creeps across my lips as I turn to catch Mick’s eye. “A mutual friend.”

“Is that so?” There’s something in her voice that makes me break out in goosebumps. “Well, make sure to keep him away from the ladies at table nine. Or else you might lose him.”

A golden-haired blonde tall enough to be a runway model approaches Anders and introduces herself. He looks her up and down before shaking his head and turning to point directly at me, making my chest swell with pride. Even if he’s pretending, at least he’s loyal.

“I’m not worried about him.” I turn to look at her before looking at Mick, who’s been silent this whole time—exactly how he usually is around Kate. “We don’t like to share.”

I don’t stick around for a response from either of them.

Anders turns around with our drinks just as I approach him. Wrapping my hand around his neck, I pull him down for a kiss. Not like the ones he keeps giving me—but an open mouth, ‘he belongs to me’one that screams stay the fuck away.

“What was that for?” he asks against my lips when I pull back. He looks dazed as a lazy smile pulls at the corners of his mouth.

“I saw you turn the blonde down. Seems like I’ve trained you well, so I’m marking my territory.”

He lets out a laugh as he straightens and hands me my champagne. “I’ll allow it. At least for tonight.” Tucking me into his side, he leads me away from the bar and into the sea of tuxedos and evening wear. “Let's get this party started.”

The next few hours pass in a blur. We mingle, we eat, we dance, we mingle some more. I pass out all the business cards I brought, and Anders doesn’t even make one joke about the club or me recruiting new clients.

He’s actually sought Kate out multiple times throughout the night, and I have a feeling she might have made her way onto his suspect list by the way he’s casually asking her questions. Though, to my knowledge, Kate doesn’t know anything about the ongoing investigation or the murders. She—like every other woman in the room—seems to be entranced by his good looks and suave demeanor, causing Mick’s mood to sour as the evening progresses.

“Thank you, again, for coming tonight.” Kate leans over in her seat, speaking in low tones over myshoulder. “I thought it was only appropriate for you to be here. Since you’refamilyand all.”

The way she says the word family has my skin breaking out in goosebumps. Like she’s hinting at something but I don’t know what. Keeping my eyes on the dance floor I reply, “Well, when Mick said you insisted, how could I say no?”

She’s silent for a moment, but when she speaks again I canhearthe smirk on her face. “Your boyfriend is quite the hot commodity.” My eyes stray to the bar where Anders is getting us another round of drinks. He’s flanked by multiple women, smiling at them politely without being over the top. “You may not share, but I think it’s only fair that you let me have a little sample. Hmm?”

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