by M. S. Parker
When Kit put his hands on my hips, I pushed back against him until there wasn’t any space between us. I reached up, wrapping my arms around his neck as I swayed to the music. I closed my eyes, letting myself enjoy the feel of his hands sliding around my waist, the softness of his dark hair under my fingers, his breath hot against my throat. I wished I was wearing something sexier, but he didn’t seem to mind as we moved together.
I wanted to take him home, I decided suddenly. That’s what I needed. A “moving on” fuck. Kit was sweet, but not that vulnerable kind that would inevitably cling. He was the kind of guy who’d make sure I came first and wouldn’t do anything I wasn’t okay with. I could tell by the way his body moved that he’d be good in bed. It wouldn’t take much for me to get what I wanted. A kiss and a whisper in his ear, and we’d be in a cab heading back to my place.
I turned in his arms and pressed my mouth to his. He stiffened a moment in surprise, and then responded with the firm pressure of someone who knew how to kiss. His tongue slid into my mouth and twisted with mine. It was a slow kiss, but not hesitant. It was the kind that should’ve made me weak in my knees.
My phone buzzed and I reluctantly pulled back to answer it. All of my good mood vanished when I saw the name.
DeVon.
I didn’t bother to read it. I didn’t want to hear anything he had to say. I turned off the phone, but the mood was broken. I could dance with Kit again and try to get that connection back, but I knew it wasn’t going to happen. Despite everything that had happened, I couldn’t hook up with some random stranger in an attempt to wipe DeVon from my mind. It wouldn’t work.
I sighed. I needed to go home.
I pulled Tracy aside, leaning close to be heard over the music. “I’m getting tired and I have a lot of work to do on my apartment this weekend. I’m going to head home.”
“Are you sure?” Tracy asked.
I nodded. “Do you want to split a cab or are you going to stay?”
Tracy glanced at Chris who smiled at her. I was usually a good judge of whether or not a guy was a creep. Chris was a good one. I looked over at Kit and felt a twinge of regret. So was he, but he deserved better than revenge sex, even if it was only a one-night stand.
“I’m going to stay for a bit.”
I studied her for a moment. She was a bit tipsy, but nothing dangerous. She hadn’t drank anything since the wine we had with our dinner and she’d eaten. Unless she went wild after I left, she’d be fine.
“Call me when you get in,” I said. “Even if it’s three in the morning. I want to make sure you get home safe.”
Tracy nodded, then asked, “Is there something wrong with Kit?”
“No.” I shook my head. “He seems like a great guy. I’m just tired.” I didn’t give her the chance to ask anything else. I gave Kit a kiss on the cheek and thanked him for a great time, then hurried towards the doors before I could convince myself to go back and drag Kit into the bathroom for a quickie. That wasn’t what I really wanted and it wouldn’t be fair to him. I wouldn’t intentionally fuck someone while I was thinking about DeVon. I’d done it by accident to Taylor and that had been bad enough.
The ride back to my apartment was quiet. The driver had tried to initiate a conversation once or twice, but my single word answers had made it clear I wasn’t interested in talking. It wouldn’t make me feel any better. I stared out the window and wondered how, in a city of so many people, I could feel so alone.
Chapter 7
DEVON
I’d had a miserable weekend, what I remembered of it, but today things were finally starting to look up. I’d been negotiating for months to get one of my biggest clients in to read for Fire and Fury, an action movie that was already being predicted to be the biggest box office hit of next summer. He’d gone in to audition this morning and I’d just gotten off the phone with the studio. Not only did they want Landon Sully in the movie, they wanted him for the lead. This was huge. Landon was one of my prize clients. A former black belt champion in karate, twice voted onto the hottest upcoming stars list in Only Hotties magazine – ranking six places higher the second time – Landon wasn’t only someone with the skills and the looks to make it in Hollywood, he was actually the kind of guy that everyone rooted for.
I wanted to celebrate. Normally, for something huge like this, I’d call a couple of my favorite girls, rent a penthouse suite in Vegas for a weekend and wear myself out. I frowned, my mood dampening slightly as I thought of how, ever since the incident with Samantha last week, I hadn’t been in the mood for sex. It wasn’t even that I couldn’t have it without thinking about Krissy. I was at the point where I didn’t really even want it. Aside from the rare times I’d been ill, I never gone more than a day or two without wanting sex. I definitely never went more than a week without actually having it, in one form or another. When I was twenty-three, I’d broken my leg and hit my head during a skiing accident. I’d had to stay in the hospital for observation for an entire weekend. By the second day, I’d had a nurse giving me a hand-job. I didn’t do long periods without sex.
Until now.
The guilt over how I’d treated Krissy was eating me up, consuming pretty much every waking moment. I was able to focus on work, but just barely. If I wasn’t working, I was running through everything again in my head. I kept telling myself that I had nothing to feel guilty about, that it was her fault. She’d agreed to go to Carter’s house. She’d jumped into his bed.
She’d failed the test.
Contrary to what most people thought, I could forgive a lot, but I couldn’t forgive cheating. The knot in my stomach that had been present since I first told Krissy to flirt with Carter grew. Trust wasn’t something I’d ever given lightly and ever since I’d caught my fiancée in bed with my so-called best friend, I’d held onto my trust even more tightly than before.
The thought that had been nagging at me for the past couple days, however, hadn’t been that she deserved the way I’d treated her, but rather that what she’d done hadn’t been cheating. Cheating implied that there had been a commitment, a couple. She and I hadn’t made any declarations. We weren’t a couple, hadn’t ever been one.
Still, I’d expected more from her. I’d put her on a different level than other women, thought she was special, but she wasn’t. That was it, I told myself. The reason I resented her for sleeping with Carter was because I’d thought better of her, but she’d turned out to be the same as every other woman, using sex to get what she wanted. I ignored the fact that I’d slept with women who’d wanted things from me. I also ignored that I’d told her to flirt and charm different men. There was a line between flirting and fucking, I reasoned. And she’d crossed that line. She wasn’t perfect.
I leaned back in my chair, thinking. Krissy might not be perfect, but she was still a great agent and I wanted her to stay at Mirage. For work purposes only, of course. I needed to make things better with her. I couldn’t talk to her, not about any of what had been going on in my head, but I could do what I did best. I could charm her. Not seduction, just straight-up friendly charm.
There was a UFC fight at the MGM on Friday. That would be a perfect opportunity to set things right and celebrate with Landon. The two of them would hit it off and she would see that I saw her as a valued member of the team, not someone I just brought out when I needed her to flirt. And since it was business, she wouldn’t refuse.
I picked up the phone. “Di, hey, it’s DeVon.”
My casino host at the MGM was always happy to hear from me. With all of the money I spent there, I knew they’d told Di to make sure I always got what I wanted. That was good, because I had a feeling what I was about to ask for was going to be hard to come by, even with me being able to pay whatever she asked.
After a few sentences of small talk, I told her what I wanted. “Three ringside tickets to this weekend’s fight.”
She didn’t say she couldn’t do it, didn’t even hint that it might not be a possibility. She did, however
, tell me that they would be fifteen grand each.
“Put them on my account. Now, here’s what else I’ll need.”
Chapter 8
KRISSY
He was doing it again. I read the email for a third time, even though I knew it wouldn’t change what it said. It was short and to the point, so it took me only a couple seconds. DeVon was telling me to keep my weekend open as I’d be joining him for a trip to Vegas. The arrogance set my teeth on edge. I wasn’t going to stand for this. I was not a toy to be played with whenever the mood struck. Sure, we’d had a good time when we’d fucked, but that didn’t give him the right to keep on trying to manipulate me.
I was tempted to do my usual walk-by of Melissa and go straight into DeVon’s office, but the memory of catching him with Samantha stopped me. That wasn’t an experience I cared to repeat.
Melissa actually smiled at me when I stopped by her desk and I wondered if Tracy had put in a good word on my behalf.
“May I go in?”
She nodded.
When I opened the door, to my relief, DeVon was sitting at his desk, reading a script. The normalcy of what he was doing and the polite gesture towards the chair across from him threw me. Some of my anger abated, but I clung to it. I needed to stay strong. I’d let him fool me once into thinking he was a decent guy, I wouldn’t do it again. I pushed aside the memory of Tracy telling me how good Devon had been to Melissa when she’d been going through a rough patch. Backbone of steel, that’s what I needed right now.
I did, however, take a seat and attempt to keep my tone relatively polite.
“You want me to go to Vegas this weekend.”
“Yes.” DeVon leaned back in his chair.
“This wouldn’t happen to be another attempt to manipulate me into doing something you want, would it?” There really wasn’t a good way to ask that question, was there?
He raised an eyebrow.
“Because that has to stop. I’m your employee. Tell me what I’m supposed to do for Mirage. Don’t play games.”
He held up a hand. “It’s not a game, Krissy. I want you to escort Landon Sully to Las Vegas on Saturday morning. We’re celebrating his being cast in a huge movie. I won’t even be there until that evening when the UFC fight is taking place. It will be your job to keep Landon entertained. You will have an expense account, of course.”
“Oh, okay.” I blinked. Definitely not what I’d been thinking. “Um, thank you.”
“Melissa will fax you the flight information later this week.” He looked back down at the script he’d been reading.
I was apparently dismissed. I left his office, my head spinning. He was sending me to celebrate Landon Sully getting a part? Was there more to my ‘job’ than he was telling me? Landon was Mirage’s biggest client. Totally hot and a real sweet guy, from what I’d heard. He didn’t seem like the kind that needed to be charmed. And if DeVon had been so pissed at me for the whole Carter thing, why would he put me in the same position again? Unless, of course, that was the point. He figured I’d agreed to spend “alone” time with Carter once, I should be okay with it again.
“Are you okay?” Tracy’s voice barely made a dent in the chaos in my head.
“Yeah, couldn’t be better,” I replied. I could hear how absent I sounded, but I was too caught up in all the possibilities to correct it. I was going to need to take a long lunch to wrap my head around what had just happened. And possibly the rest of the week to process and prepare.
Chapter 9
KRISSY
When the stretch limo pulled up to the curb in front of my apartment complex, I had to admit, I was nervous. I’d spent the week picking and re-picking my wardrobe, and trying to figure out exactly what was going to be expected of me. For once in my life, I didn’t want to just come out and ask. Part of me was afraid that DeVon would be insulted that I’d even think he’d want me to sleep with Landon, while another part was worried that he would give me the same nod he’d given me with Carter. So I hadn’t said anything. In fact, I’d barely seen him all week. The few times I had, he’d been carefully polite, but distant.
I shook my head. I didn’t want to think about DeVon right now. Inside that limo was Landon Sully, one of the hottest guys on the planet, and I was getting to spend the entire weekend with him in Las Vegas. I wasn’t really the type to crush on celebrities. Why bother with some fantasy when there are so many available men around? Landon was one of the few exceptions to my rule. Thick, dark brown hair that almost looked black and piercing blue eyes. He was just at six feet, so not too tall, but not short, either. And the body on him...let’s just say after I saw his nude scene in the indie film One to Go, he’d had a starring role in some pretty intense sex dreams for the next couple weeks.
I rubbed my palms on my slacks as I walked towards the car. I’d decided on pants for the flight, but my carry-on had other options for the rest of the trip. It had been difficult to know how casual I was supposed to go, but when the limo door opened and I saw that Landon was in jeans and a fitted t-shirt, I felt a bit overdressed.
“Hello, there.” Landon beamed at me as I slid in next to him. “You must be Krissy Jensen.” He held out his hand. “DeVon told me I was going to love you.”
That didn’t really help with the nerves, or give me a better picture of what was expected of me.
As the driver started towards LAX, Landon gave me a once over, the look in his eyes approving, but I didn’t sense any desire. I relaxed a bit. At least I wasn’t expected to fuck him in the limo. Until now, I hadn’t ruled anything out.
“So, DeVon tells me you’re new to LA.” Landon settled back in his seat, his body angled towards mine, but not touching.
I nodded. “Originally from Chicago, moved to New York for school and then out here just a couple months ago.”
“Is this going to be your first time in Vegas?” Landon asked.
“I hadn’t been west of the Mississippi before moving here,” I confessed.
“Well, if you went from the streets of Broadway to the glitter and glam of Hollywood, you’re moving in the right direction to absolutely love Las Vegas.” He paused for a moment, a thoughtful expression on his handsome face. “Though I do have to ask how you feel about going to a UFC fight. I mean, there’re basically four types of main attractions in Vegas. The gambling, obviously. The shady stuff. The shows that can range from Elvis impersonators to Cher. And the fights. Well, the quickie weddings, too, but I don’t think any of us are interested in those, right?” He winked at me.
I was starting to get a pretty good idea of why DeVon hadn’t bothered to clarify anything about what he expected of me with Landon.
“I just know some people aren’t comfortable with violence, and if that’s the case, I’m sure DeVon could trade the tickets for a show or something,” Landon said. “And I also know that while DeVon is the best agent on the planet, he doesn’t always take into consideration what his agents think about the entertainment.”
I couldn’t stop myself from smiling at that. “I’ve never seen a UFC fight, but I had a boyfriend in college who was into boxing, so that doesn’t bother me.”
“Great!” Landon leaned towards me and confirmed my suspicions. “Any chance I get to see ripped, shirtless men get all sweaty, I take it.”
When I laughed, he laughed with me, his eyes sparkling.
“DeVon didn’t tell you I was gay, did he?” Landon asked.
I didn’t say anything. As angry as DeVon made me, I wasn’t going to say anything that could be taken the wrong way. And I didn’t even know which way would be considered the wrong way in this situation.
“I’ve been with Mirage for nearly three years,” Landon said. “But I came to LA with my dad and step-mom when I was twelve. I know how these things work. You thought you were going to have to spend the weekend trying to figure out how to keep my hands off you.” He shook his head. “I don’t hide who I am, but I haven’t done a press release either. DeVon thinks it’s funny someti
mes to send new female agents to me to see how they act, whether they hit on me or whatever.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, that sounds like him.”
Landon leaned forward and opened the mini fridge. “What do you say we make him pay, literally?” He handed me a bottle of sparkling water. “Let’s have some fun with that expense account I know you have.”
Oh, yeah, I really liked this guy.
By the time we landed in Las Vegas, it was like Landon and I had known each other for years. We walked arm in arm through the MGM Grand lobby, both of us laughing over some joke that probably wouldn’t have been funny to anyone else. The woman at the desk did a double-take when she saw Landon, but I wasn’t sure if that was because she recognized him or just because he was so hot. Either way, I leaned into him and he played right along with it, wrapping his arm around my waist and tucking his hand into my back pocket.