The guy laughs against my neck. “I feel how wet you are. You gonna come for me, baby? May as well get something out of this too...”
The smell of alcohol on Jake’s breath and his signature cologne brings me back to the present, and a swift gag reflex rushes forth. As fear and rage swell within me, I swallow back the bitter taste. He’s smiling and flexing his fingers around my arms.
You’re Celeste, not Cass. You’re Celeste. I feel my chest rising and falling and try to get a grip. He doesn’t know you’re Cass. Be Celeste.
“Hey Jake.” I shrug free of his hold. “I’ve got to go.”
When I start to walk past him, my head held high, he laughs and pulls me against his muscular chest. “Come on, dance with me, Celeste.”
The moment I tense in his arms, the confident cockiness in his smile fades and a flash of vulnerability reflects in his gaze before shifting back to friendly appraisal. “You ready to graduate? How long has it been…two years since we last saw each other?” He reaches up and touches the edge of my mask, his voice softening. “Damn, you’re even more beautiful.”
Nothing drills home the fact that he doesn’t realize I’m Cass faster than his deferential treatment of Celeste. He’s being sweet and attentive, practically begging her for attention. That combined with the feel of his sweaty body pressed against mine explodes the simmering volcano inside me.
I shove against his chest. “Don’t touch me,” I hiss out through gritted teeth as he stumbles back.
Jake blinks at me in surprise, his hands held up. “What’d I do?” When he tries to take a step toward me, concern etched on his forehead, I hold my hand up.
“Just leave me alone!”
Before he can say another word, I turn and move away from him as fast as I can in my heels, my stomach churning with nausea.
I reach the bathroom at the same time the house lights flare to life. My stomach heaving, I grab for the door handle just as a guy exits. Ignoring the gasps of outrage from the few girls waiting in line, I tug the door closed behind me and hold my hand over my mouth, stumbling to the toilet.
My stomach empties quickly, nothing but champagne, then dry heaves.
I shiver as hot and cold flashes up and down my body, but once the dry heaves stop, I manage to drag myself over to the sink to rinse my mouth out.
I’ve just turned off the tap when my gaze locks with Calder’s steady one in the mirror. He’s leaning against the wall directly behind me, arms crossed.
“Care to tell me what that disappearing act was about?”
As embarrassment heats my cheeks, I gesture to the toilet and what he obviously just now witnessed. My voice shakes as I answer, “Too much champagne apparently.”
Without a word, he removes his hat and sets it on the counter, then steps behind me, his green gaze holding mine in the mirror. “Fifteen minutes have passed since you left me. And I find you on the other side of the fucking house? What the hell is—?”
I spin and wrap my arms around his waist. Pressing my face against his chest, I mumble, “I’m sorry, Calder. You—” I inhale deeply, dragging in his comforting smell. If I can’t wipe out Jake’s memory, I want to at least erase his smell. “—overwhelmed me. I’ve obviously had too much to drink tonight.”
Calder tips my chin up, his warm gaze slowly sliding along my jaw and neck. “A lesser man would take advantage of you in this condition.”
I sigh and close my eyes, then jerk them open when the room starts to spin. “One thing you aren’t is a lesser man. Your stats remain unchallenged. You’re still at one hundred percent. I need to find Scarlett so she can take me home.”
Smirking, he wraps an arm around my waist as if he doesn’t want to let me go. “I can take you. Bash will bring Scarlett later.”
I start to shake my head, then wince at the ringing the sudden movement causes. “No, we came together. I want her to take me home. Can you call Bash and see if he knows where she is?”
Someone knocks impatiently on the door while Calder calls Bash. I pop a mint in my mouth that I discover in the glass dispenser on the vanity, then open the door and say, “There’s another bathroom near the back kitchen entrance. It’s going to be a few minutes.”
When the girl gives me a knowing, snarky look, it’s on the tip of my tongue to tell her it’s not what she thinks, but she and her girlfriends walk away before I can utter a word.
The second I shut and lock the door, Calder tugs me back into his arms. “They’ll meet us at the door in a couple minutes.”
I take his phone and add an old email to his notes app. He won’t be able to trace it back to me, but a part of me can’t let him go without a way to connect. “Just in case you want a note from home while you’re away.”
Smiling, he tucks his phone away in his pocket. When his gaze drops to my mouth, I start to step back, but his arm only cinches tighter around me.
“I thought you weren’t a lesser man,” I say lightly, even as my chest constricts with a mixture of apprehension and anticipation. I can’t let him reel me in again. I might not be able to walk away this time.
Calder swipes his thumb across my bottom lip, his gaze following its path. “I have to know, Celeste.”
“Raven,” I correct.
His gaze meets mine. “Will Raven let me kiss her?”
I swallow and nod, wanting nothing more, yet fearing where it might lead.
Calder tucks his finger under my chin, then presses his mouth firmly, but gently against mine.
When he doesn’t do anything more than that, I allow myself the brief luxury of melting against his hard frame. He feels so solid and safe, I can’t help it.
His warm breath bathes my lips as his fingers slide into my hair. “I want to be a lesser man right now. So fucking much,” he mutters just before his lips claim mine.
His kiss parts my lips with possessive intensity, the erotic glide of his tongue provoking and enticing as he consumes every breath. Slanting his mouth against mine, he delves intimately deep, showing me how he plans to have me—wholly, completely, and without reservation. It’s so unfair that he’s hitting me with a parting kiss that skips permission and goes straight for forgiveness, so I dig my fingers into his muscular back and return his kiss with equal intensity, determined he’ll leave this bathroom just as affected.
The door handle rattles and a knock sounds as someone calls through the wood, “Anyone in there?”
I break our kiss and whisper against his mouth, “I’m sorry about tonight, Calder. You’ll never know how much.”
He runs his nose along my cheekbone, his erection pressing between my legs. “Actually, I do.” When I wince, he pulls back. “The next time I kiss you, I won’t stop until I’m sliding inside you as deep as I can get.” Clasping my jaw, he lifts me to my toes, his serious gaze scanning my face. “No masks, no costumes. No fake names. No fake anything. Just you and me, and unending pleasure and sweat.”
The sincerity in his vow turns me to mush while at the same time crushing my heart. I hate that he’s making promises to an imposter. “Calder, I can’t—”
“Hey…can you hurry up. I’ve got to go,” the girl calls as she knocks impatiently.
Calder presses his forehead to mine. “Your friend is probably at the door by now.”
The moment she sees Scarlett, Celeste throws herself into her friend’s arms. “Scarlett, tague me home. I feewl awfuz.”
Bash instantly cuts an accusing gaze my way. I just shake my head and shrug. What the hell? “She sounds a lot more drunk than she did a minute ago, man,” I say under my breath.
Once we follow them outside and I see a cab waiting, my concern for Celeste raises. “Doesn’t she have a driver?”
“Oh, she’s staying with me tonight, so no driver. We decided to taxi it,” Scarlett says, looking flustered while trying to make sure Celeste doesn’t hit her head getting into the cab.
As I watch Bash lean on the open car door trying to convince Scarlett to let him ride along w
ith them, I can tell he’s as frustrated as I feel. Of course she turns him down, but when he lifts Scarlett’s hand and kisses the inside of her palm, my gaze narrows. So he’s not quite as frustrated as me. Lucky fucker. At least one of us won’t go home with blue balls tonight.
Then again, of the two of us, he deserves to get laid more. The guy is entirely too intense. Though I’m surprised he connected with someone at a party. This kind of hookup isn’t his scene. Then again, he did go toe-to-toe with Gavin earlier, so he’s not acting entirely out of character. A smirk tugs at my lips. Scarlett must have an amazing body underneath that costume to draw Bash out of the shadows.
When the cab drives away, Bash stares after it for a couple of seconds, then claps me on the shoulder. “Let’s head inside. I need to check on Mina now that she’s decided to join the party.”
“You going to tell me about that?” I ask, nodding after the car’s taillights.
“That’s none of your damn business,” he says, walking away.
His curt tone makes me laugh as I follow him inside.
Apparently, Celeste’s quick departure has drawn a crowd. The group of gawkers move away from the glass on either side of the door as Bash and I walk in. The sight of them ogling ticks me off. Scowling, I bark out, “Nothing to see here. Get back to the party.”
Bash slides me a sideways look as we pass through the crowd and move further into the main room. “Settle down, Cald.”
I start to say something about despising gossipmongers when a blond guy dressed as a gladiator steps into my path. “I’ve never seen Celeste so out-of-it before. What’d you do to her?”
A couple inches shorter than my six-two height, the guy might be a year or so younger than me, but his accusation raises my protective instincts. I clench my fists by my side and vaguely hear Bash tell me to walk away. “Celeste is fine and none of your concern,” I manage to say in an even tone.
The gladiator puffs his muscular chest up like a peacock, his gaze slitting. “You don’t recognize me without my helmet, do you?”
Helmet? What the hell is he rambling about? Wait…football? “Are you talking about high school?” I’ve killed men with no names, but whose faces will remain etched in my mind until I take my last breath. I’ve been attacked by men wielding knives, bullets, and explosives. I’ve seen best friends go through PTSD, lose their limbs, their lives, and plenty of other dark shit I’d prefer to forget. For a split-second, I just stare incredulously at this jackass, who lives in his safe, elitist bubble. Shaking my head, I move to walk around him.
He sidesteps back into my path and folds his arms. “That’s right,” he says, tilting his chin at an arrogant angle. “Even as a sophomore I kicked your team’s ass. Celeste is mine. Stay away from her.”
“Calder—”
Just as Bash starts to put a staying hand on my shoulder, my fist connects with the fucker’s smug face as I grit out, “Celeste knows who’s worth spending her time with.”
The guy hits the floor hard, skidding across the wood. Everyone backs away and stops talking to watch as the idiot jumps to his feet. Swiping blood from his upper lip, he shouts, “Do you know who the hell I am?”
“Do you think I give two fucks?” Hearing him talk about Celeste like she’s his makes my blood boil. I want to smear this guy’s face into the ground. I take an aggressive step toward him, but Bash grabs my arm.
“Not here, Cald. He’s not worth it.”
Chest heaving, fists clenched, the guy seethes. “I’m Jake Hemming. My father is a senior partner at Hemming, Gersh, and Platt.”
“And I’m Calder fucking Blake. Might want to write that down so you don’t forget it when you go whining to your lawyer daddy.”
Jake’s face flushes even as his hazel gaze turns cold. “We’ll ruin you.” Glancing around at those gawking, he gestures to me. “You all are witnesses. He attacked me.”
My adrenaline vaults and as the beast inside me roars to be set free, the steel hold on my arm tightens. “I didn’t see anything,” Bash states calmly, then addresses the onlookers. “Did anyone see what happened?”
One by one, they mumble in the negative, then turn back to their drinks and chatting with friends.
“Are you serious?” Jake snaps, glancing around for support.
Gavin approaches, his mouth pressed in a tight line. Eyeing Bash’s hand on my arm with a hard glare, he turns to Jake. “I think it’s time for you to leave.”
Bash releases me as Jake’s eyes widen in disbelief. “You’re fucking kidding me, right?”
Gavin’s dark gaze hardens behind his mask. “You don’t come into my home and cause problems with my family. I’m not going to ask you again.”
Once Jake storms out, Gavin sighs heavily at Bash and me. “Do you two think you can control yourselves the rest of the evening? I’d actually like to enjoy the party.”
Bash shrugs. “I never make promises I can’t keep.”
“I’ll keep him out of trouble,” I say, choking back a laugh at Bash’s honest response.
Gavin shakes his head and slides his hands in his dress pants pockets, his voice dropping to private mode. “It’s a good thing you’re both heading out soon.” Fixing his gaze on Bash, he continues, “The Blake name can only stretch so far to cover your asses—”
“We got it,” I cut him off in a cold tone, my amusement gone in defense of Bash. I’m the one who nearly started a fight, yet he’s getting the blame.
Once Gavin walks away, I shake my head. “Gavin can be such a—”
“Dick,” Bash supplies.
I’ll never understand how Bash can be so unaffected. I want to pummel Gavin each time a dig comes out of his mouth. Then again, Bash’s control over his emotions is one of the things I admire most about my cousin. He’s taught me a lot in that regard. He might be Gavin and Damien’s illegitimate half-brother, but I’m closer to him than they’ll ever be. It’s a fucking shame that Mina is the only one who returns Bash’s sibling loyalty.
Raising an eyebrow, Bash smirks. “Care to tell me what that was all about with Jake? These last few years, I’ve seen you take far more shit without losing it.”
I know he switched the subject on purpose. Bash is a master at redirection. Instead of calling him on it, I let it go. But I’m sure as hell not talking to him about Celeste. Whatever’s going on there is too new. All I know is that I wanted to pile-drive that asshole into the ground for even thinking about touching her. “That’s none of your damn business.” Ignoring his knowing chuckle, I nod toward the bar. “Go check on Mina, then come sit with me while I drown my sanctioned good behavior in a mug of beer.”
Talia’s thrashing around wakes me. I blink quickly, my brain foggy and sluggish. It’s four a.m. I’m surprised I’m in her bed. I don’t remember much about the car ride home other than teasing her that I hope she got laid. I definitely don’t remember her getting me into the house. She must’ve brought me to her room so she could keep an eye on me. I will always miss my sister, but Talia has made the hole in my heart feel less empty.
When she suddenly elbows my arm, I bite back the cry of pain. Her restrained wails and twitchy movements make my heart ache, but I wait until she rolls to her side, then I quickly wrap my arm around her and hold her in place, calling in her ear, “It’s a nightmare, Talia!”
She flips onto her back, her breath heaving in and out. I gently touch her cheek. “You’re okay. I’m right here.” When I see tears trickle down her temple I brush them away. “It’s okay.”
The first time this happened in our dorm room, it freaked me out. But I understood nightmares, so I crawled into bed with her until she calmed down. I think she appreciated that I never asked what tormented her sleep. But now…after all this time. I’m a bit worried. I wait until she settles, then say, “You haven’t had one of those in a while. Do you want to talk about it?”
She grabs my hand and rolls back over, taking my arm with her. “No.”
I recognize her avoidance, but
I can also sympathize so I just snuggle close. “One of these days you’re going to tell me.”
She immediately slides her fingers across the scars on my wrist. “Just like you’ll tell me, right?”
It takes effort not to pull from her touch, but I hold steady, remaining silent. She sighs and tugs me closer. “I love you, Cass, but you still smell like a bar.”
I snicker and brush my lips against her cheeks, purposely blowing my horrid breath across her face. When she protests and tries to roll away, I just grasp her tighter, knowing she needs a comforting touch despite our goofiness. This is exactly what my sister would’ve done for me, and I’m glad I’m here for Talia.
I can feel the tension vibrating in her body, so I whisper, “Think about the fact you finally got laid instead. Hold on to the positive thoughts.”
She instantly goes still against me. “How did you know that?”
I run my tongue across my lips, licking the salt I tasted when my mouth touched her cheek. “Because you smell like cologne and taste like sweat.” Just to rev her up once more, I lick her whole cheek and laugh when she gags and attempts to swat me away. “And because you wouldn’t tell me. That’s how I know.”
Her silence makes me wonder if she’s still thinking about her dream, so I try to draw her thoughts away. “Why don’t you tell me what happens this afternoon at four instead?”
“You heard that?” she whispers.
I snort. “I was drunk, not deaf.”
“Just coffee,” she sighs.
“Good!” Relieved she’s started to relax, I bury my nose against the back of her neck. “And I love you too, Talia.”
After we lay there in quiet silence for a bit and I finally hear her breathing even out in untroubled sleep, my heart feels lighter with the knowledge Talia finally had sex. Maybe it will help her stop obsessing so much on the newspaper. She’s entirely too focused and never allows herself any time for fun. At least one of us got the full-shebang of wonderful feelings tonight.
Well, what I could only imagine wonderful feelings would feel like to fully let yourself go with someone. To be completely uninhibited. Maybe the mask and fake name helped her get past her hang-ups about guys not being good enough. Bash certainly seemed like a fine specimen.
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