Page 42 of Rhys

Giving the desk one final glance to make sure everything was exactly as she’d found it, Vanessa made a bee line for the door. Her lungs filled slowly with a controlled, calming breath.

“Parker?”

“Hallway’s clear,” he answered her unspoken question. “Go.”

She opened the door and peeked outside. Spotting Parker walking casually toward her, she made sure to flip the lock on the knob first before closing the door behind her.

Vanessa released the breath she’d been holding. “I’m out.”

“Good girl,” Rhys said proudly. “Now all you and Collins have to do is make your way back to the banquet hall and out the front door as if you’re simply calling it an early night.”

Muttering low as he approached her, Parker added, “Anyone asks, I’ll tell them she has a headache.”

“Why am I the one with the headache?” Vanessa arched a brow at the man closing in on her. “Men get those, too, you know.”

Parker’s face lit up with a toothy grin. Tall with short, sandy-blond hair and eyes the color of the ocean, it was no wonder ladies went ga-ga over the billionaire playboy. Not her, though.

No, there was only one man who made her toes curl, and her insides turn all gooey. And he was currently sitting in a van waiting for her to get her ass out of this monstrosity of a house.

Parker flashed her his famous smile as he grew closer. “You ready?”

“More than.”

Shoulders shaking with soft laughter, he turned back around, waiting for her to slide her hand beneath his arm before walking again. They were two steps from the office door when Kenneth Austin appeared at the end of the hallway.

His head was down, and he was looking at something on his phone. If they just kept walking—

Parker spun them around and pressed her back against the wall.

“What are you—”

“Just go with it.”

Vanessa had barely registered the man’s words when he slammed his mouth to hers. She wanted to push him off…or punch him in the throat. But she understood what he was doing.

This wasn’t about kissing her. It was about covering their asses and waiting for Austin to pass.

“Ness? Parker?” Rhys tried to reach them. “What’s going on?”

Preoccupied with Parker’s lips pressing against hers, Vanessa had no other choice but to go along with the ruse. They continued kissing a moment longer, but out of the corner of her eye, she was able to see Austin walk past before disappearing into the men’s restroom.

Vanessadidpush Parker away then.

“Vanessa? Damn it, will someone talk to me?”

“I’m here.” She sounded winded. Using the back of her hand to wipe away the other man’s kiss, she promised Rhys, “Everything’s fine. We’re leaving now.”

“What the hell happened?”

“Austin came into the hallway,” Parker explained. “We had to…improvise.”

“Improvise? What the fuck does that mean?”

Ignoring the low chuckles from the others, Vanessa answered with a vague, “It means we’re in the clear. We’ll meet you at the pick-up location in ten.”

Silent for half a beat, Rhys gave them a grumbled, “See you there. And what the hell are you guys laughing abou—”

Vanessa removed the earwig from her ear as she and Parker stepped out of the home’s front entrance. Doing the same, Parker handed the valet his ticket and the two stood together while the young man retrieved their car.

---