by C. M. Owens
Gah, I sound pathetic right now.
Stepping aside, I let Rain in, preparing for Kode to walk out in his boxers or something.
“Get dressed. We’re going back up there, and you’re going to stay with Dane and me for the rest of the night.”
Great. I’m not the only one that knows I’m pathetic.
“I’m fine, Rain. Really. I was just about to go hit the gym instead, and then shower for bed.”
She pouts adorably, and I turn to grab a pair of shorts and a tank top just to go along with the ruse. As I start pulling the shorts on, bypassing panties, I glance toward the door to the bathroom again. Kode is being completely silent.
“I don’t like this,” Rain groans as I pull on my sports bra. “I can’t believe Kode did that. And I don’t know where the hell he went. He told me he was coming to apologize, but obviously he’s not here and hasn’t been here.”
Swallowing on a choking wad of air, my eyes flick to the rumpled bed, and I curse myself for letting him get me naked and worked up. I was ready to push him away, but I’m sure I would have just given back in.
He’s like a walking magnet, and I’m the polar opposite that can’t stay the hell away. Everything was fine until he saw me at that bar. Am I so weak that I can just dismiss the man he really is because of his sex appeal?
Yes. Yes I am. I have to get out of here. Out of Vegas. Anywhere far away from Kode.
Rain talks about introducing me to more people tomorrow as I work on braiding my hair into twin pigtails. Apparently she’s not going away, so I might actually have to go work out. Fine by me. Maybe I can find my dignity and sanity on the treadmill, while trying to run Kode out of my system. It’ll also give him time to leave instead of us continuing this stupid conversation.
Kode is still in the bathroom when I finish pulling on my sneakers, and Rain follows me out of my room. She keeps promising to talk to Kode, and I glance over my shoulder as we head down the hallway.
“I’m just going to take the stairs,” I say with a wave when she presses the elevator button.
“You’re sure you don’t want to just go back up there? I swear Kode will behave around Dane.”
I doubt Kode would behave in front of the pope. In fact, I’m almost certain he could tempt a saint to attempt murder.
“I’m positive,” I say before heading down the stairs.
After swiping my hotel key card through the slot in front of the workout room, I push through the door and find the first open machine. Should have grabbed my phone, because I hate working out without music.
After running on the treadmill for an hour, the boredom gets to me, and I hop off to grab a towel from the rack. Unfortunately, that run did nothing to clear my head. Kode is still very much cluttering it up.
Sluggishly, I make it back to my room, push through my door, and… stumble to a halt while gasping.
“Good workout?” Kode asks from my bed, casually lounging on it in nothing but his navy boxer-briefs.
He flicks the channel on the TV, acting as though there’s nothing at all wrong with this entire scene.
“What the hell are you doing?” I ask in disbelief.
He gives me a shrug, flipping the channel again. “Trying to find something worth watching.”
His eyes don’t even meet mine, and I continue staring, torn between being speechless and confused. Confusion wins, prompting my lips to move.
“Why are you in my bed?”
“The bathroom wasn’t very comfortable.”
I’m going to kill him.
“Kode,” I groan, pinching the bridge of my nose, “why are you in my bed?”
“Better question,” he says, flipping the channel once again. “Why are you in a regular room instead of a suite?”
That’s not a better question. It’s a stupid question.
“I took a regular room to make sure everyone else coming for this week had a nice suite. The hotel only had a limited number left when I checked for availability, so I booked this room since I’m less high maintenance.”
He snorts as though that’s a ludicrous claim. “You’re less high maintenance? You were driving a top-of-the-line Benz when you turned sixteen. Your wardrobe costs more than most people’s homes. And you have enough makeup in that bathroom to take care of Broadway’s needs. Seriously, who brings that much makeup? You have like thirty of everything, and there’s three bags of the stuff in there.”
I frown, realizing he’s been snooping. I suppose he didn’t just sit in the bathroom and stare at the back of the door while I was trying to get Rain out.
“That’s for something I’m doing while I’m here. I arranged a lunch meeting for tomorrow.”
That seems to get his attention because he leans up from the bed and flips off the TV.
“You’re selling makeup?” he asks with an eyebrow raised.
It’s not surprising that no one knows or cares what I’ve been doing with my life. It shouldn’t bother me that Kode has no clue, but it does. I know every business he owns or invests in.
Christ, I sound like a stalker.
“I’m launching my own line. The lady I’m meeting tomorrow has a chain of department stores. They’re small and admittedly low-end, but it’s a start. I don’t expect to be an overnight sensation. But if the meeting goes well, I’ll get a second meeting in the afternoon, and I’ll need to have that makeup with me.”
His grin slides up as his eyes do something funny. He’s amused. The bastard is amused. I should have kept my mouth shut.
“Get out of my room if you’re going to sit there and make fun of me. I’ve put a lot of work into this.”
I turn and head toward the bathroom, but the sound of the bed shifting and feet moving hurriedly have me turning around. I almost bump into him when he tries to match my abrupt stop.
“I wasn’t making fun,” he says with a cheeky grin that betrays him. “I swear. I was just surprised that you’re doing this the hard way. You’re the niece of Paul Colton—fashion master of the universe. Call him. He’d put your line in his stores, and it would take off with ease.”
Rolling my eyes, I head into the bathroom, groaning when he follows behind me and shuts the door. I’m not claustrophobic, but right now, with Kode sharing this small space with me, I’m finding it hard to breathe. I focus—or try to focus—on the conversation at hand, as opposed to the gloriously nearly naked man.
“I don’t want to do it the easy way. I want to earn my spot so that no one can take success away from me if I make it. I still have money from my trust, and every dime is going into this. It means a lot to me.”
His grin only grows as he leans back against the counter of the small bathroom, watching me with guileless amusement. His exposed body is very distracting despite my attempts to ignore it, and that only pisses me off more. He shouldn’t be so frigging sexy when I’m pissed. And he really shouldn’t be hard right now.
“Stop looking at me like that,” I say in a clipped tone. “I realize it seems laughable to you because you own a chunk of Sterling Shore businesses, and you have investments in large New York companies, but this is a really important part of my life. Don’t spoil it by mocking me. Please go away.”
Again, his smile only grows. “You seem to know a lot about me for someone who hates me.”
He crosses his arms over his chest, watching me with that stupid grin. He needs to put on clothes before I do something stupid like kiss the bastard again. And he needs to get out of the bathroom. This space is too intimate, and my mouth is running before my mind can censor the words. I have to stop accidentally revealing too much.
“Know your enemies,” I mumble.
“You’re going to go that route? I’m not stupid, Tria. Be honest.”
Honesty is not an option. I can’t tell him how mildly obsessed I’ve been with him. Not when he’s only ever looked at me like an annoyance.
I need a therapist.
“I’m not as self-absorbed as you are. So yes, I
know what others do with their lives. Go. Away.” Insulting him instead of fueling his ego is a much better route than honesty.
He shrugs while pushing off the counter, and heads out of the bathroom. That was easier than I thought it was going to be. Trying not to think about him putting his clothes back on, I strip and climb into the shower.
The water shoots out, icing me down before warming up. I take my time getting the sweat and pool water to wash away. I really hate Kode Sterling right now. I might have been lonely and lost before sleeping with him, but now I’m lonely, lost, and confused.
Cursing him, I cut the shower off and wrap up in a fresh towel. After using my last clean towel to wrap my hair up in, I head out of the bathroom… and again I’m stumbling to a halt while my eyes gape in disbelief.
“You’re still here?” I groan.
The blonde-haired devil on my bed gives me a lopsided grin that has my heart betraying me with a racing rhythm. He pats the bed beside him, winking at me, and I mutter a curse before walking over to my temporary dresser. Why is he still practically naked?
“I think your room is actually better than my suite. It’s cozier.”
“Then I’ll trade with you if it will get you to leave me alone,” I mumble absently while searching for something to put on.
“You’re welcome to head up to my room. I’ll give you a five minute head start.”
I toss a glare at him over my shoulder, and head back to the bathroom to dress in a pair of skimpy shorts and a midriff-showing tank top. If he wants to play this game, then let’s play. I’ll torture him the way he’s torturing me.
After once again braiding my damp hair into twin pigtails and dressing, I head back in. When his eyes turn on me, his gaze heats, and I instantly regret the choice in wardrobe.
“Come sit down. I don’t bite, Tria. Well, that’s a lie. But you like it when I bite.”
My whole body turns about five shades of red, but I finally go to stand beside the bed.
“Why are you doing this? You know this thing between us is twisted. Possibly psychotic. You’re an asshole. And you hate me.”
I expect him to announce his master plan to use me for whatever sick reason. It’d be better than this guessing game.
His dark smile sends shivers down my spine, and he tugs my hand until I’m falling on the bed very ungracefully. I quickly shuffle around to get away from that hard bulge he is shamelessly leaving on display, and I sit down on the bed at a semi-safe distance away from him, crossing my legs.
“You hate me, too, but you still want me. So why the hell are you being such a pain in the ass about it?”
That earns him an eye-roll. “Gee, keep talking like that, and I’ll throw myself at your feet,” I mutter dryly.
He snickers softly before reaching over and running a finger down my leg. “I’m not exactly the sweet guy with Hallmark lines coming out my ass, Tria. Nothing new. But you didn’t mind it that night. Was it really just the alcohol?”
Blowing out a harsh breath, I shake my head. “I wish. It had nothing to do with alcohol. But it doesn’t mean I want it to happen again.”
That finger of his runs the line of my calf, slowly trailing down my ankle to my foot, before he runs it across the tips of my hot pink toenails.
“Why not? Just tell me what is making you so damned stubborn about this.”
Stubborn? That’s not the word I would use to describe me at all. Borderline crazy would be a better assessment, because I should not be sitting on my bed beside the one guy who has tormented me for too long.
“Fine,” I say, annoyed with him for looking so damn good while I try to regain my sanity. “If you must know, it’s because you’re still a playground bully.”
Vaguely I’m aware that those words sounded so much better in my head—where they should have stayed.
His eyes go wide in surprise before turning amused, and he stares at me, making me feel mocked before he even opens his mouth. When his lips twitch, all I want to do is take my stupid words back.
“So what are you saying, Tria? That I’m a kid in a man’s body? That if I pull your pigtails that means I like you?”
My cheeks heat because that’s not what I meant. At all. Just to make it more embarrassing, he tugs one of my braids and grins like the cocky asshole he is. I really hate that smile.
“You can’t do that stuff,” I mumble, pushing at his chest, but finding myself unable to quit touching him once my hand finds the firm lines of his flesh. I was a little too numb to fully appreciate the way he felt the last time my hands were on his body.
Every inch of his body has definition that only the perfect can possess. Those lines at his hips form that mouthwatering V that disappears behind his boxer-briefs. His golden skin has the perfect amount of tan, and his mouth is by far the sexiest mouth on any man.
He pulls up on his elbows, then tugs me down, forcing my head against a pillow before he covers my body with his.
“Can’t do what stuff, Tria? I’ll tug your pigtails some more if it makes you blush like that again.”
His body presses down on mine, and my breaths grow ragged. It’s embarrassing when my heartbeat kicks up hard enough for him to feel it against his chest.
“I’m not Rain,” I say in a shallow breath, trying to find the will to push him away, but finding nothing but a broken resolve. “I’m not a substitute.”
He frowns as he runs his fingers through my hair, his eyes moving to the dark locks.
“Is that why you dyed your hair? Because you didn’t want to look like her anymore?”
We really don’t look that much alike, which is comforting. At least people can’t use me that much.
“It had nothing to do with her. It was for me. Now, please go. Stop using me.”
A startled gasp falls out of my lips when he surprises me with a bruising kiss, and he starts running his hands over my body, grazing the undersides of my breasts with his thumbs. When he pulls back just barely to look into my eyes, I’m breathless.
“There’s only one way I want to use you, Tria, and it hasn’t got a damn thing to do with Rain. Now, shut the hell up and use me, too.”
If I was a girl who didn’t know Kode Sterling at all, I’d probably slap him for that. Unfortunately, I do know him, and despite his crude way with words, I’ve always been fascinated with his blunt honesty. Even when that honesty was brutal and hurtful toward me. If he says he’s not using me to get to Rain, then it has to be true. Right?
“And then what, Kode? Go another few days without speaking or acting like we know each other? Are you going to show up in my room every time you see another guy pay me attention?”
A frown mars his beautiful face, and I take the loss for words as a reprieve. But it’s only a short reprieve.
“Tria, I don’t know what’s going to happen when I walk out of this room—tomorrow. You want a commitment or something?”
I can’t help but laugh at how confused he looks. He’s either really unrehearsed with repeat encounters, or he’s used to getting his way without resistance. I’m guessing it’s the latter of the two.
“No, Kode. I really don’t want that. But I also don’t want to have sex with you and have to feel like an idiot tomorrow. No more pushing me into pools.”
When his lips brush mine teasingly, my hips arch up involuntarily, pushing against the part of his body I want the most.
“No more pools,” he agrees.
“And can you not be a dick to me in public?” I ask hopefully.
“I’m a dick to everyone,” he admits, and for some bizarre reason, that makes me laugh.
His grin comes up fully as he stares into my eyes, and I gaze back into the pools of grayish-blue that are almost silver.
“Don’t be an extra big dick to me just because you don’t want to want to fuck me.”
He laughs lightly before messing with the bottom hem of my short shorts, slowly moving his hand up my thigh.
“That’s a mouthful, but I won
’t be an extra big dig just because I don’t want to want to fuck you. Right now, I’m perfectly fine with wanting to fuck you.”
I’ll probably strangle him at some point, but this could work out to my benefit. If Kode isn’t making my life a living hell, then the others might be nicer to me. I’m not naïve enough to think he’ll ever be nice, but as long as he’s not being an over-the-top jackass, it could be better.
“So until we work this out of our systems, you’re going to be pleasant?”
He nods, his grin growing as he starts working my shorts down my body, only shifting away from me enough to get them down.
“I’ll be as pleasant as I can be. Very few people can tolerate me even then, though. I’m not Dane.”
I snort derisively, because he makes it sound as though that’s what I’m looking for. Obviously that was meant for my sister, more so than me.
“And I’m not Rain. So if you’re using me to get to her, it’s not going to—”
He kisses me. Hard. And for a brief moment, I forget he’s the enemy while I spread my legs wider and dig my heels into his ass. When he withdraws from the kiss, I bite back the urge to demand he resume kissing me.
“I’m not using you to get to Rain, Tria,” he says against my lips, his hands doing a slow exploration of my body. “I’m a dick, but I know what it’s like to feel used so that someone can get to your sibling. Not my style.”
“Someone used you to get to Dane?” I ask, surprised.
His eyes don’t look so cold when he’s being so genuine.
“A lot of people have used me for a lot of reasons. And a lot more have tried. Can you shut up and let me remind you what all I can do to make this night a little more fun? I really don’t want to talk about my brother or your sister while I’m trying to get you worked up.”
His cocky smirk returns, and his eyes shift from genuine to mischievous. Grinning, I pull him down to me and kiss him, deciding to be the one to initiate things for a change.
“But this stays quiet,” I add, breaking the kiss quickly.