by M. S. Parker
Maybe that was it, I thought as I stroked her curls. I'd spent my entire life surrounded by people who hid who they really were behind masks of propriety and self-righteousness. It was one of the things I'd always hated about my family. Even Samuel, to some extent, played the game.
So did I. I frowned at the stray thought, but didn't ignore it. In a way, it was true. I didn't pretend to be some rich snob who was better than everyone else, but I wasn't entirely honest about who I was either. I just buried myself in drugs, alcohol and sex.
“Are you all right?” Katka's soft voice broke the silence.
I smiled at her and squeezed her shoulders. “Just thinking.”
“About what?” she asked, turning onto her side so that her breasts were pressed against my ribs. “Do you regret this? What we're doing?”
“No.” I kissed her forehead. “I don't regret this at all.”
That much was true. I didn't regret being with Katka. What I did wish, however, was that I had met her first. Things would have been so much easier if I'd met Katka, proposed to her, and had Livie as my sister-in-law.
Another thought popped into my head before I could stop it. What if Livie had just let me close? Would I still have fallen for Katka if Livie hadn't closed herself off to me? What if Livie hadn't set up the no contact rule? Even if she'd wanted to take things slow, would I still have slept with Katka?
Those things didn't matter though, no matter how much my brain insisted that I analyze how I felt. It was too late. Livie had set up the perimeters of our relationship and made it very clear where we stood. Whether it was because of that or because of fate, I didn't know or care, but Katka had my heart. I cared about Livie, but what I felt for Katka was so much more. Maybe it was only because she let me care about her, but it didn't change the way I felt.
“Are you doing anything next weekend?” I asked suddenly.
“No.”
Her fingers were tracing patterns on my bare chest, almost distracting me. Almost. “Would you go away with me?”
Her hand stopped.
“I want you to go to New York with me so we can have a real romantic weekend. My dad knows some people in New York, but if we're careful, we can actually go out without having to worry about someone seeing us. Plus, Livie usually spends the weekends at home working, so there's a good chance anyone who saw us would think you were her.”
She had a thoughtful expression on her face and I wondered if she was preparing herself for some sort of “this was fun, but...” speech. Instead, she simply nodded and pressed her lips against my chest, kissing her way over to my nipple.
“It is now my turn to make you wait.”
Chapter 8
Katka
What the hell was I doing?
When Blayne asked me to go to New York with him, he'd said that anyone who saw me with him would think I was my sister. I'd wanted to ask him if he wanted people to think I was Livie because he wanted me to be her. It was silly, really, and I knew it. He was with me. He wanted me. Even though he was risking everything by continuing to see me, he never said we should stop. But I still couldn't help but wonder if he was only with me because Livie had said no sex, and sleeping with me was the next best thing since we were identical. He'd said that wasn't the case, but it was a difficult idea to shake.
These were the thoughts I had whirling around in my head all week. Part of me was excited at his invitation. A romantic weekend in New York City was like something out of a movie, but I couldn't stop the guilt. I'd never liked lying to my sister and this was the worst possible kind of lie. I tried telling myself that it was Blayne's place to tell her since I knew he'd set the same guidelines with her that he and I had discussed. Discretion and honesty, but no agreement to tell all.
It was the coward's way out, I knew. I was counting on him not wanting to tell her so that I never had to deal with it. She would forgive me for falling for him, I had no doubt. It had been her forgiveness I'd thought about when I'd first decided I was going to seduce him. Then, she would have believed I'd done it for her own good. Now, things were different. I'd gone from trying to prove that her husband was a sleaze, to enjoying sleeping with him, to whatever it was I was currently feeling. Even now, it wasn't that I was worried about her knowing. It was the lies.
The worst part was, every time I thought about her, I wanted to call her and tell her. If I actually spoke to her, I knew everything would come spilling out. So I avoided her, the guilt increasing every time I saw her name on my screen and I let it go to voicemail. Her messages were always brief, saying she was wondering how I was doing, but I could hear the worry in her voice with every new call.
I'd have to make a decision soon, I knew. Livie might think I was still angry at her for marrying Blayne and give me some space, but if I didn't at least answer a single call soon, she'd come by the apartment and I'd have to speak with her face to face. That would be so much worse.
The entire week before we left for New York, my stomach was in knots. I was so torn and I didn't know what to do. A guy had never come between Livie and me before. She said she didn't want Blayne that way, so I knew that wouldn't be an issue. It also wasn’t the point. I knew the right thing would be to tell her everything, but that would be betraying Blayne's trust. But the longer this went on without Livie knowing, the longer I was betraying her trust.
I muttered a stream of curse words as I ran my brush through my hair, the curls as tangled as the web of lies I found myself in. I yanked the bristles free and winced at the pain in my scalp. It didn't stop me though. I continued to attack my hair with a vengeance. Why couldn't things be simple? Didn't Livie and I deserve a break? It was so unfair.
I let out a bark of a laugh as I looked at my reflection. Fair. I was having an affair with my sister's husband and I was accusing the universe of being unfair to us. I'd told myself that telling everything to Livie would be the right thing to do, but I knew I was lying to myself. The right thing, the real right thing, would be to break things off with Blayne and then come clean. To not risk everything my sister was trying to build for us for some fling.
I closed my eyes, pain going through my heart. I didn't know what this was for Blayne, but it wasn't a fling for me. What I was feeling terrified me, but the thought of walking away from Blayne scared me more. I didn't think I could do it. I wasn't strong enough. If he left me, it would break my heart, but I could accept it. What I couldn't do was do it to myself.
“What am I going to do?” I whispered. This was a disaster. Everything had backfired on me and now I was stuck in this twisted affair and didn't know how to get out without hurting everyone involved.
Not for the first time, I wished Blayne Westmore had never walked into Frankie's that night. I wished he'd kept walking. While that meant I never would've known him, it also meant none of this would be happening right now. Livie and I would be together at home, wondering if anything would ever change.
I sighed. We’d gotten change alright, but it hadn't been the kind we'd hoped for. I put my hands over my face, despair flowing through me. If we weren't careful, it would destroy everything.
– End of Vol. 3 –
Twisted Affair continues in Vol. 4, release March 19th. To receive an email reminder on release date, click here: M.S. Parker Newsletter
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FREE BOOKS: Don’t forget to check out my other book series, Chasing Perfection and Club Prive, featuring Carrie and Krissy from when they lived in New York City. Right now book 1 of both books is free at most vendors online.
Release Schedule
Twisted Affair Vol. 1 – February 26th
Twisted Affair Vol. 2 – March 5th
Twisted Affair Vol. 3 – March 12th
Twisted Affair Vol. 4 – March 19th
Twisted Affair Vol. 5 – March 26th
Other book series from M. S. Parker
Casual Encounter Vol. 1 to 5
Sinful Desires Vol. 1
to 5
Club Prive Vol. 1 to 5
French Connection (Club Prive) Vol. 1 to 3
Chasing Perfection Vol. 1 to 4
Broken Pleasures
Forbidden Pleasures
His Pleasures – release March 13th
Dark Pleasures – release April 7th
More Pleasures – release April 24th
Pure Pleasures – release May 12th
Acknowledgement
First, I would like to thank all of my readers. Without you, my books would not exist. I truly appreciate each and every one of you.
A big “thanks” goes out to all my Facebook fans, street team, beta readers, and advanced reviewers. You are a HUGE part of the success of my series.
I have to thank my PA, Shannon Hunt. Without you my life would be a complete and utter mess. Also a big thank you goes out to my editor Lynette and my wonderful cover designer, Sinisa. You make my ideas and writing look so good.
About The Author
M. S. Parker is a USA Today Bestselling author and the author of the Erotic Romance series, Club Privè and Chasing Perfection.
Living in Southern California, she enjoys sitting by the pool with her laptop writing on her next spicy romance.
Growing up all she wanted to be was a dancer, actor or author. So far only the latter has come true but M. S. Parker hasn’t retired her dancing shoes just yet. She is still waiting for the call for her to appear on Dancing With The Stars.
When M. S. isn't writing, she can usually be found reading– oops, scratch that! She is always writing. ☺