“Yeah, well, I don’t really think Rhys is the type of guy to let anything stop him from getting what he wants.”
Zoey agreed wholeheartedly. Even as she played it cool, she stared at herself in the mirror, seeing a new kind of happiness on her face. A dangerous kind of happiness because Rhys wasn’t supposed to be making her feel this way. Better, yes. Healthier, yes. Sexier, yes. Emotionally connected, hell no. She released a breath, noting a new kind of warmth in her chest. Last night, she’d felt protected, not only by Rhys, but by his friends. Being honest and open with people other than Hazel and Elise felt…good. Hell, trusting more than her roommates and her parents felt incredible. She grabbed the curtain and peeked out at Hazel. “Tell me that continuing to see him is a huge mistake. That I should stop whatever is happening right now. That I am actually in way over my head and this is going to end up with me devastated and even more broken.”
Hazel gave a lopsided grin. “Well, you’re not broken. You’re awesome. And Rhys is rich, gorgeous, and obviously has a soft spot for you. Why on earth would I tell you to stay away from him?”
“You wouldn’t,” Zoey hedged. She’d be insane to stay away.
“You’re right. I wouldn’t,” Hazel agreed with a firm nod. “Now get back out here, and let me see that dress on you.”
Zoey hurried to do just that, all the while questioning where exactly life was taking her now. She’d decided to move. Start over. And yet…Rhys. Everything felt different than it had when she walked through Phoenix’s door. She felt different. Before, she’d felt like she wanted to run away. Now she wasn’t sure why she was running. She loved her friends, her job, her life in Brooklyn, and she was beginning to love this new erotic life she’d found. She was even beginning to not hate Manhattan. Sure, she missed home too, but she could visit often. That lump in her throat rose up again, but she forcibly swallowed it back as she whisked the curtain open.
“Oh, you must get that,” Hazel said with big eyes from the other side of the store.
“Isn’t it gorgeous?” Zoey shifted from side to side, studying the white-lace summer dress that fit her like it was made for her. “But it’s also expensive.”
“Oh, please.” Hazel stopped to glance back as she shifted through the skirts hanging on the rack. “Do I need to remind you that you can afford it now?”
“I guess,” Zoey hedged, running her hands over the lacy fabric, wondering what Rhys would think of this dress. Would he like it? Would he want to take it off her immediately? Would he think of something totally erotic to do with the dress? “Okay, you’re right, I never do anything like this,” she finally said. “It’s just so pretty. I must have it!”
“Hell yeah, you do,” Hazel said, going back to the skirts.
By the time they were done shopping, Zoey’d only bought the dress. Hazel bought a long maxi skirt and a crop top that showed off her midriff. Before long, they returned to the subway and headed back home.
When they finally made it back to the loft, shopping bags in their hands, Hazel whistled. “Well, that’s certainly a nice view to come home too.”
“You’re not kidding,” Zoey agreed, embracing the butterflies filling her belly as she spotted Rhys leaned against his black sports car in front of the loft, scrolling through his phone. Her heart flipped over a few times, threatening to melt in a puddle. His head slowly lifted, eyes connected with hers, and the corners of his mouth curved slightly. Heat flooded her from head to toe, all pooling into a needy throb between her thighs. Oh, the power this man had over her body was unreal.
“Hello,” Hazel said by way of greeting. “I’m Hazel.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Hazel,” Rhys said, without any of the heat Zoey was used to hearing in his voice. He offered his hand. “Rhys Harrington.”
Hazel returned the handshake. “Mm-hmm, good to meet you.” To Zoey, she grinned. “I’ll see you inside.”
“Okay.” Zoey turned to Rhys after Hazel slipped into the loft. “Hi.”
“Hey.” There was that heat, nearly sending her soaring backwards like an erotic punch to her gut. “How was your day?”
“Good,” she answered, shifting on her feet, but stopping immediately when she felt her damp panties. To get her mind and her body out of the gutter, she asked, “Have you heard anything from Archer about that woman?”
“He’s still on it.”
“Elise, too.”
The sun beamed down on Rhys, revealing auburn highlights in his jet-black hair that she’d never noticed before. He gave a nod and a warm smile. “Then, hopefully, we will have answers soon.” His gaze flicked to the shopping bag in her hand. “Looks like we were both shopping today.” He turned back to his car, reached into the open window, and pulled out a small bag.
Zoey’s heart still hadn’t recovered from the last flip, and promptly did a little dance now. “You bought me a gift?”
“For tonight, if you’ll oblige me.”
“You didn’t need to do that,” she said, heat rising to her cheeks.
“I know I didn’t have to, but I wanted too.” He offered the bag. “Open it later.”
“Okay,” she said, wondering why he didn’t want her to open it now. Considering people were walking up and down the street, she figured maybe it was something naughty in nature. “Thank you for thinking of me.”
“You’re welcome.” Then he leaned in and winked. “Though I have totally selfish reasons for buying you what’s in the bag.”
“Now I’m intrigued.” She grinned.
“As you should be.” He tucked his hands into his pockets, looking like some model plucked out of a magazine ad. “So, for tonight, I’m hosting a party at a property I own. I wondered if you and your friends would like to come.”
Her mind went straight back to the gutter, but she immediately chided herself. Last night, they had done something so simply normal, eating out at a restaurant. “I don’t think anyone has plans, so I’ll definitely ask them.”
“Excellent.” He slipped his hands from his pockets to take her in his arms. “I’ll send a car.”
It was dangerous how easily she molded herself to him. “Do you need me to bring anything for the party? Food? Or anything.”
“Just yourself.” He dropped his chin and gave her a long moment to stare into his gorgeous, smoky eyes before his lips met hers. His kiss was full of promise of a night to look forward to. When he leaned away, his grin turned naughty. “And don’t forget what’s in that bag.”
“I won’t. Promise,” she said, stepping out of his arms.
“Good. I’ll see you later.”
He opened his car door, and she waved. “Bye.”
She forced herself to stay put and watched him drive off. She’d never met anyone like Rhys. He seemed so in tune with her emotional state, always doing whatever he could to reassure her. To help her move past what had happened. Doing sweet things for her. It made her aware she was doing absolutely nothing for him. When his car faded off in the distance, she decided that needed to change.
When she hurried inside, she found Elise on the loveseat, her legs dangling off the side while she ate popcorn. “Okay, I have to know what is in that bag.”
Zoey laughed and asked, “Did Rhys knock earlier?”
“Yup,” Elise said. “And he had that bag in his hand. I told him to come inside to wait, but he said he didn’t want to interrupt my soap opera.”
Hazel snickered. “Probably saved himself the torture.”
“Yup, probably.” Elise tossed a kernel into her mouth. “Actually, wait before you get to the gift. Let me tell you what I’ve learned about Miss Surprise-You-At-Work.”
Zoey shut the door behind her and locked it before addressing Elise again. “Lay it on me.”
“Her name is Hilary Du Pont, but she didn’t go to school with you. Her family is rich, like stupid rich. Which, of course, leads me to believe she’s a Phoenix member, but annoyingly, they’ve upped their security.”
Hazel rolled
her eyes. “I wonder why that is.” She headed into the kitchen.
Elise grinned at the retreating Hazel. “It’s nothing to worry about. Just makes me stretch my brain a little, that’s all. I’ll find out what I need to and will let you know.”
“Please don’t get into trouble,” Zoey said in all seriousness. “Rhys has his security looking into it too.”
Elise smiled, all teeth. “Oh, then, let the race begin.” She had always been competitive in nature. At Zoey’s heavy sigh, Elise laughed loudly. “Don’t you worry. I won’t get myself or you in trouble. I can handle Rhys’ security. But enough about annoying security men. What did Rhys get you?”
Before Zoey could find out, Hazel returned with three wineglasses and handed them out. “What did Rhys say to you?” she asked, not having heard Elise’s question.
“He actually invited us all to a party he’s throwing tonight,” Zoey said, sliding out of her sandals. “Do you want to go?”
Elise and Hazel exchanged a look and then said in unison, “Yes.”
Zoey fought her laughter, waggling her eyebrows. “Didn’t even have to think about that one, huh?”
“Not one bit,” Hazel said, taking the seat next to Elise on the couch. “But what kind of party is this?”
“I suspect it’s a PG-rated one,” Zoey replied.
“Still fun,” Hazel said. “I bet it’s all fancy and stuff.”
“Yeah, yeah, good stuff.” Elise waved Zoey on then shoved more popcorn into her mouth. “Okay, now can we see what he bought you?”
Zoey set both bags down on the coffee table, plus her wineglass, then reached into the smaller one. Her fingers touched delicate lace before she pulled out a stunning black-lace bra. The type of that cost money. Expensive lace that had never touched her body before. “Holy, wow,” was all she managed to get out before she caught more lace in the bag. She lifted out the matching panties, noticing the heaviness of them. “What…the…” She touched the front, feeling more to the material. “There’s something in them.”
Hazel took the panties, studied them, and a second later, her cheeks burned bright. “They’re, you know, vibrating ones.”
“What?” Zoey asked with a laugh.
Elise snatched them next, examining them this way and that. “I bought similar ones for fun once. I mean, not nice like this, and I suspect mine probably don’t work as good, but they’re vibrating panties that come with a remote control.”
Hazel leaned forward, peeking inside the bag. “Is the remote in the bag?”
Zoey shifted through the paper. “No.” She turned around, hoping she didn’t lose anything. “I didn’t see a remote. Did it fall out?”
“Yeah, into Rhys’ hand.” Zoey turned back to catch Elise’s shit-eating grin, as her friend added, “And here you thought this party was going to be PG-rated.”
The Harrington lake house had been in Rhys’ family for three generations, sitting on Long Island’s North Shore. The five-bedroom stone colonial house stood slightly atop a hill, which faced out to the water. Behind the house were manicured gardens designed to impress at parties. Three smaller cottages were spread out on the three plus acres of forested land. The property had been bought and used for business, though Rhys had many parties and spent a lot of time at the lake house during his teenage years. Now he held quarterly parties there to schmooze the right people, to keep his business connections tight, but he also invited Phoenix members to the party. Tonight, they were all in attendance, enjoying cocktails and live music beneath the canopy of stars and twinkling string lights. However, Rhys’ focus had stayed with Zoey since she arrived. From the other side of the bar, Rhys couldn’t fight his smile. He had yet to talk with her, but for the last twenty minutes, he’d been tormenting her with the vibrating panties through the remote control in his pocket, something she’d hid well from her friends. He couldn’t take his eyes off every little wiggle of her hips, every moment she froze under the force of the pleasure, and the way her gaze searched him out.
When she turned again, looking for him, he decided to end both of their suffering. He turned off the vibrator that had been set to the lowest speed, and approached from behind her. “Ladies,” he called. Zoey turned first, her friends’ gazes following. He took Zoey in, every spectacular inch of her in the fitted white sundress. He wondered if this was what she’d purchased earlier today. He liked this look on her. A little innocent, definitely not overdone, and yet, she stood out as the most beautiful woman here tonight. She didn’t have diamonds on her neck or wrist; she didn’t need them. She sparkled without anything added. “Are you enjoying yourselves?” he asked them.
Zoey gave him a lopsided grin. “How couldn’t we?”
Now closer to her, he caught the heat in her eyes, the pretty color in her cheeks. He laughed easily, something he didn’t do often enough. She was in his arms a moment later, and he pressed a soft kiss to her lips, not particularly caring what kind of statement that made to anyone watching. “I’m glad tonight is hitting you in all the right places.”
She laughed with him, but as he released her, a hand presented itself in front of him.
“Hi. Since we didn’t get formal introductions at the house, I’m Elise.”
He shook her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Elise.” All three women were beautiful in their own way. Each unique and different than the women Rhys knew. No fake nails or fake eyelashes. Their dresses weren’t designer, their hair not smoothed to perfection. He liked that about them. “I hope you’re enjoying the party.”
“It’s incredible,” Hazel answered with twinkling eyes. “I have never seen anything so beautiful as this—oh, look, champagne. I’ll grab us some.” She beelined for the waiter striding away from her with the tray holding the champagne flutes.
Zoey gave a soft laugh and an easy shrug. “Hazel gets easily distracted, sorry about that.”
“Nothing to be sorry for,” he said, honestly. He found all of them refreshing, but most of all Zoey, the woman making him break all his rules. “These parties can be a bit distracting. They’re always showy.” He turned to Elise and smiled. “I’ll introduce you around later. This party is full of lawyers and politicians who always need a good private investigator in their pocket.”
“I’d appreciate that. Thanks,” Elise replied with sincere gratitude.
Just then, off Zoey’s shoulder, Rhys caught Archer approaching, and he chuckled. He’d seen his friend pissed before, but nothing quite like this. Archer’s gaze was fixed on the woman they were well acquainted with now, but he grabbed two champagne flutes as he walked by.
Elise was saying something to Zoey that Rhys couldn’t catch, but she went dead silent as Archer closed in. Her gaze scanned him from head to toe before her chin lifted and shoulders squared. Ah, so she knew exactly who Archer was, and by the slight curve of his mouth, Archer knew this too.
Eyes locked on her, Archer offered her the champagne glass. “Hello, Elise.”
She gave a polite smile. “Hello, Archer. Thanks, but I don’t take drinks from strangers.”
Archer gave that smile back. “Let’s not play games, shall we? We both know we’re not strangers. You probably know more about me than I know about myself.”
Her smile now showed teeth. “I could say the same to you.”
Archer winked. “You probably could.”
Zoey looked between her friend and Archer and gave a tight laugh, taking the champagne glass from Archer. “Thanks. I’d love a drink. This champagne looks yummy.” She set it down on the table next to her.
Rhys shoved his hands in his pockets, chuckling at the tension pinging between Archer and Elise.
Something Hazel immediately noticed when she returned. She handed a champagne flute to Elise and asked, “What’s wrong with you?”
Elise took a long sip, keeping her stare on Archer then smiled at Hazel. “Oh, there’s just this annoying bug, buzzing around me, that I want to squash.”
Rhys barked a laugh, unable to
help it, not surprised one bit when he looked at Archer to find him grinning too. Elise was just the type of woman Archer liked. Strong, beautiful, but more importantly, a challenge.
“I really hate bugs,” said Hazel, obviously unaware who the bug was. She sipped her champagne and let out a long sigh. “Beautiful night. Gorgeous party. Seriously, can this night get any better?”
“It can,” Rhys said then offered Zoey his hand. “Let’s go get you a drink.”
“I’ve—”
“Leave that one,” he interjected, knowing she’d never drink it, and understanding why. “Indulge me.”
Zoey looked at her friends.
Elise waved her off, still in a fierce stare down with Archer. “We’re fine.”
Zoey’s expression declared she didn’t believe her friend. “No squishing bugs tonight, all right?”
“Can’t promise that,” Elise said, smiling at Archer. It wasn’t a sweet smile.
“When did Zoey start caring about bugs so much?” Hazel asked Elise as Rhys took Zoey’s hand and led her away.
“Don’t worry,” Rhys said to Zoey, tucking her arm in his. “Archer won’t let her squish him.”
Zoey asked softly, “He’s pissed, eh?”
“That’s probably putting it lightly. Archer is not used to someone getting by him, but I’d be willing to bet he’s more intrigued than angry. He likely wants to get into her head.”
“He’ll need a key that no one has found yet to get inside that head.”
If anyone could unlock a strong mind, it was Archer. He had the skill set, confidence, and patience of a saint. The man gained trust like Rhys had never seen, and he was owed that too. When they reached the bar, he said to the waiting bartender, “An unopened bottle of your best.”
The bartender responded without question, dropping a new bottle of champagne in front of Rhys, along with two glasses. Within minutes, Rhys had popped the cork, poured the glasses, and offered one to Zoey before adding to the bartender, “Whenever Ms. Parker would like a drink tonight, open a new bottle for her and pour the drink in front of her.”
Watch Me (Phoenix Book 1) Page 9