Page 59 of Mastered By Lust

“Yeah.” His scowl transforms into an easy grin. “I’ll be right back with your drink. Don’t go anywhere.”

While I wait for him, I watch Danica like I’m an ancient chaperone auntie. She shines like the sun in her white dress, but she’s soon eclipsed by Troy joining her and Edmund out on the floor. The two men seem to swallow her up in their muscular forms.

Patrick returns to my side, two red plastic cups in hand. He passes me one and taps his against mine. “Cheers.”

“Cheers. Congrats on getting this space.” I sip my drink and let the fruity, fizzy alcohol tickle my tongue and go down my throat. It’s better than the undergrad-quality jungle juice I was expecting. “I think you and Dmitri are going to turn it into a magical club, and I can’t wait to see your vision realized.”

“Aw, thanks, Leah.” He takes a big sip from his cup and holds out his arm to link with mine.

I accept. Our linked arms will prevent us from getting separated as we traverse the chaos of dancers.

“Any word on Dmitri yet?” I still want him to see me. I want him to give me that same look he gave me at the restaurant when he showed up during Gage’s and my date.

I thought things were looking up for us. Tomorrow’s breakfast date would give us a chance to hash everything out. But then he didn’t invite me to this party.

We need to figure out what we’re doing—if we’re doing anything at all.

The thing is, I’m falling for Gage, and fast. But a part of me has always wanted Dmitri, too. As Gage said, Dmitri already has half my heart. Is it selfish to want them both? Yes. Especially when I know this only leads to heartbreak. Definitely for me, but there’s a chance they could be hurt at the end, too.

But I can’t stop myself from falling for them. The night of that first auction truly did change everything. It set me on this path, and I can’t get off of it.

Wherever this takes me, I’m in it. Good or bad.

Patrick chatters away. Thankfully, he doesn’t realize my attention isn’t on him. I take a sip of my fruity drink and nod along.

When we reach the stairs leading to the second floor, I can hear him more clearly. I try to pay better attention.

“We bought the whole building.” Patrick brings me up to the second floor. He points to different doors, some of them still bearing the names of businesses. “Originally we were only going to lease the ground floor. But Granddad thought we should have the whole place. We made an offer to the other businesses that they couldn’t refuse.”

“It’s amazing.”

I can see so much potential here. If Dmitri and Patrick want to turn it into a restaurant, there could be private dining rooms for parties.

But the more I see, the more it seems to deviate from the vision Dmitri always had. He wanted a small jazz club, something popular, but personal. I want to know what he thinks about this place and Patrick’s vision.

The room seems to sway. That’s enough jungle juice for me. I thrust my cup at Patrick. “Where’s Dmitri, again?”

Patrick takes my cup and sets it on the floor along with his. He pulls out his phone and smiles. “Dmitri’s on his way.”

“Need to talk to him.” My words come out more slurred than I expected.

“Sure, let’s head downstairs and find him.” Patrick gently turns me to start walking.

I trip as we approach the stairs.

“Careful there.” His hand is immediately at my elbow.

Everything is hazy. I shake my head, trying to clear it. The drink didn’t taste that strong, and I only had half of it.

“Leah, are you okay?” Patrick’s voice sounds warped in my ears. He takes me down a few steps.

“Yeah. Need Danica. Need to call for a ride.” I stop walking so I can fumble with my phone.

“Here, I’ll help you with that.”

But my phone disappears, and he wraps his arms around me.

I thought something was seriously wrong a few minutes ago. Now, he nuzzles his cheek against mine, and my inner alarm bells are deafening.

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