Page 124 of Between the Lines

She looks at me over her shoulder. The playfulness is still there, lurking in the corner of her smile. “No compliments, my dear sir.”

“How much have you had to drink?”

“Not much. Just some champagne.”

I sit down on the low settee across from where she’s swaying to the music the DJ is playing. Every song feels like an erotic remix of the originals. Deep bass, slowed-down beats.

“I’ve spoken to your sister a ton. And her friends.” She shakes her head, moving her hips from side to side. “I didn’t know she ran a sex toy company.”

“Technically, it’s a female sexual health and pleasure empowerment collective.”

“Right. Sorry.” She reaches into the goodie bag and digs around for a bit. Then she pulls out a silicon circle and rotates it a few times around her finger. “Like this. I think this is a… cock ring?”

“Put that away.”

She giggles again. It’s not a sound I’m used to hearing from Charlotte, and damn if it doesn’t run like an arrow through me. “Okay, fine. I guess you’re not interested in wearing it…”

“Not here, I’m not.” I thrust a hand through my hair. “It’s a pretty new venture. She’s always been curious to try, but it was in the past year that she... well. Decided to go for it.”

There’s something liberating about the demise of our family’s good name, my sister had told me. She had nothing left to prove. She could simply be Mandy Hartmanandwork in a business that designs sex toys.

“It’s inspiring. She’s such a character.”

“That she is.” I lean back on the sofa and just watch Charlotte. Arousal is simmering beneath my skin, just from the sight of her being this unbound.

We’re far enough away from the others that her transparent dress is for me and me alone. But the jealousy hasn’t gone away completely. It’s there, threatening to break out. I shrug out of my suit jacket and keep it ready to hand to Chaos if someone comes our way.

She sits down beside me on the settee. The tops of her shoulders are rosy. “You’ve been tanning today, as well,” I tell her.

“I went for a run today on the trails,” she says. “I like the sun out here.”

I stroke my thumb over the redness. “It doesn’t like you back.”

“Aiden,” she says. “Everyone here has a tan. You’re tanned as hell, even if you have an olive complexion. It’s not fair.”

“An olive complexion,” I repeat slowly. “What does that mean?”

She rolls her eyes. “Nevermind. I’ll wear more sunscreen tomorrow. Will that please you?”

I bend to press a kiss on her shoulder. “Your pale skin is beautiful. Don’t change it.”

Her breath catches at the brief contact. “So… your sister,” she says. “She said earlier that there are single women here she wants to introduce you to.”

I groan. “Ignore that.”

“Does she often play matchmaker?”

“No, and never successfully.”

“Because the important Titan CEO doesn’t have time to date.” Her hand lands on my shoulder, fingers curving over the muscle. It doesn’t seem like she realizes that she’s touching me. She’s drunk and happy. My chest expands, warmth flooding through it.

Fuck, this woman.

She’s going to end me.

“Not usually, no. Like you.”

“Like me,” she agrees. “But when you do… I’ve been thinking. There’s a bingo card in the goodie bag. I haven’t looked at it closely, yet. But it’s this list of positions.”

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