The Game (27 page)

I reached up and rubbed my fingers over the lump on the back of my head. “Wow.”

“Yeah. It’s gonna hurt for a few days. I called your boss, by the way.”

“My boss?”

He lifted a brow. “Yeah. You know. The guy you work for? Mr. Schultz. He sends his
sympathy and says to take your time getting back to work.” Riley leaned forward and
took my hand in his. “Unless you want to quit and stay here as my concubine. I’m good
with that too.” He wiggled both brows, making me giggle.

I sobered instantly. “Ow. Don’t make me laugh.” And then I paused and spoke again,
“He still wants me to work for him?”

“Of course. You do excellent work. He can see that.”

“But I acted like a complete idiot.”

“A deranged woman was out to get you. He understands.”

“Not sure I can show my face there again.” I flopped onto my back, careful to set
my head down gently. I groaned.

“Does it hurt that bad?”

“No. I’m just thinking.”

“Well, don’t think so hard, then.” He moved to sit on the edge of the bed next to
me.

“My life’s a disaster.”

“Still? I thought we’d agreed to give this a shot. Your job is secure. Christine’s
in jail. What more do you need fixed?” He brushed a lock of hair off my forehead.
He looked genuinely concerned for someone who forgot about my apartment.

“Riley, I don’t have any place to live, and all of my belongings were shredded.”

He scrunched his face again. “You don’t need a place to live. You can stay here. I
want you here.”

“Here? In your house?”

“Of course. Unless you prefer the back yard, but it gets cold out there at night this
time of year.” His teasing voice soothed even though I wasn’t sure his idea was a
sound one.

“Riley, we’ve only known each other a short time. I can’t move in with you.”

“Why not? Who cares how long we’ve known each other? It feels right. And I want to
grab onto that and never let it go.”

I held his gaze for a long time. His plan was ludicrous. I opened my mouth to protest
and came up with nothing.

Could I really move in with this man I hardly knew and set up house? And more importantly,
what percentage of the time would he expect me to submit to him? No wonder he said
we would be in constant negotiations. If he thought I was going to stay permanently,
we would need to renegotiate several things right away.

“It’s awfully soon for such a commitment. You aren’t suggesting this because you feel
bad for me losing my apartment, are you?”

“Hell, no. Actually the trashed apartment is just working in my favor. Making my life
easier.” He grinned wide.

Gah. How was I supposed to argue with him when he was so damn charming?

I nibbled my lower lip and considered his ridiculous proposition. Finally, I caved.
“Okay, but only on a trial basis. Two weeks. Let’s see if we can go that long without
killing each other.”

He nodded. “Done.”

“And I’m not your slave. We’ll need to negotiate what hours and days I’m willing to
be in the role for you. It’s fucking hot as hell, and I love it when you control me,
but I also don’t want to feel like I’m losing myself in the process. So, get flexible
on that issue until we come to an amount of time we can both live with.”

“Done.”

I closed my eyes. “That was easy. Am I hallucinating?”

“Nope.”

With my eyes shut and me fighting the need to sleep again, I continued to spill out
my thoughts before they slid away. “And Riley?”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t you ever go behind my back and pull a secret stunt like that one again. I’m
not fragile, and I want to be in the loop on everything that pertains to me or us.”

“Done.”

“Again? Just like that?” I peeled my eyes open to meet his gaze again. “You’re being
far too agreeable. I might need to take your pulse again later.”

He leaned down and kissed my forehead, his lips lingering for long seconds before
he drew back. “Take my pulse any time you want, baby. I’ll still be right here. Nothing
will happen between us without your permission. Promise.”

I felt lighter than I had in days as I let myself slip into oblivion once again.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

One month later
…

“We shouldn’t have rushed this. It’s crazy.
I’m
crazy. There’s too much to do. And we only have two weeks left.” Amy threw her hands
in the air and stomped her foot. She looked hysterical in the short navy dress she
wore that flowed around her thighs as she had her little mini tantrum. “Weddings cannot
be organized in just seven months. I never should have agreed to such a short engagement.”
She shouted those last words while tossing her head back and angling her voice toward
the hallway.

I held back my giggle by tucking my lips in and holding them with my teeth. I could
see Meagan doing the same at my side where we both sat on Amy’s couch. We’d come to
Nashville last night for the big girls’ weekend. Today we’d attended a lovely shower
put on by her coworkers, and now we were set to go out for the evening.

Cade wandered into the room, grabbed Amy by the back of her hair, and tugged until
her head tipped back and she met his gaze. “Baby, I’m warning you. Stop this nonsense.
We’re getting married in two weeks, and that’s final. It’s done. So, stop stressing
over the details. It will be perfect. Whatever isn’t done, we aren’t doing. You’ve
got flowers, a reception hall, a dress, a photographer, a minister, and ten thousand
yards of some strange tulle. All I ever needed was you and a justice of the peace.”

He gave her a warning glare that melted my heart. He was gruff sometimes, just like
I’d found Riley to be, but he loved Amy to pieces, and all he wanted was to be married
to her.

“Deep breaths, Amelia.” He held her gaze while she obeyed him. “Good. The plans are
perfect. No more stressing. Go out with your girls and have fun.” He released her
curls and nodded at Meagan and I before leaving the room.

I tried hard not to laugh.

At the last second, he grabbed the corner as he rounded to the hall and turned back.
“Where are you women going again?”

“We didn’t say,” Meagan responded, sitting up straighter next to me as if a longer
spine would give emphasis to her sassy response.

Cade pointed at Amy. “We have an agreement.”

She rolled her eyes. “I know. I haven’t forgotten.”

And then he was gone.

“What’s the agreement?” Meagan whispered, leaning forward.

“No men’s hands on me.”

Meagan laughed. “As if anyone would want another man’s hands on them after Cade’s.”

“I know. Preposterous, right?” Amy stepped toward the kitchen. “Who wants a drink
before we go out?”

I did. In fact, I wanted about three just to calm my nerves. I hadn’t gone three days
without Riley for the past month. Already I missed him. He hadn’t been able to join
me for this bachelorette weekend. I’d come to Nashville with Meagan, leaving him at
home dealing with work issues. I had no idea what they entailed, but he’d been adamant
at the last second that I should go and he would see me when I got home Sunday night.

I was loath to admit I already hated this plan. That’s how far under my skin he’d
gotten.

Amy returned with three wine glasses dangling by the stems in one hand and a bottle
of something that probably cost more than my rent in the other.

If I had rent. Which I no longer did.

“How are you adjusting to living with Riley?” Amy asked as if she’d read my mind.

I shrugged, trying to be more nonchalant than I felt.

“It must be wonderful,” Meagan responded, “because I never see her anymore.”

Amy smiled. “Were you able to recover anything from your apartment?”

“A few things. It was a disaster. Riley hired people to go in and clean up the bulk
of it before I got there. I did salvage mementos and some clothes. There weren’t many
items Christine hadn’t taken scissors to.”

Amy visibly shuddered. “I’m so sorry, hon. That blows. I hope they keep her off the
streets and throw away the key.”

“Her father actually offered to pay for the damage.”

“Really?” Amy took a sip of wine. “That was nice of him.”

“Yeah. Riley turned him down of course, but it was a gesture. And that’s what counts.”

Meagan plopped back on the couch and took a long drink of the wine. “This is delicious.
I’ve never been a wine snob before, but I could get used to this.”

Amy angled the discussion back to me. “Are you happy?”

I smiled broadly. “Very. It’s a culture shock, for sure, but I’ve never been happier.”

“Are you still mad at him?”

I shook my head. “We have an agreement. He doesn’t meddle in my job, and I don’t freak
out on him.” I smirked. “At first I was leery. I felt like a moron going back to that
office after the way I acted and how many people saw me.”

“What ended up happening with the business proposal Riley had for your company?” Amy
asked.

Meagan had already heard most of this, but I hadn’t had the opportunity to chat as
much with Amy in the last few weeks. “I didn’t want to force him to take his business
elsewhere because that would have hurt Talent Marketing Group just to save my pride,
but I also wasn’t willing to take the project myself.

“Talk about a conflict of interests. So, I told Mr. Schultz to give the account to
Stacy. She’s over the moon. Riley still grumbles about it, but I had to take a stand
and make it clear I was serious about him sticking his nose in my work.”

Meagan reached for the bottle of wine on the coffee table and topped off her glass.
“I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall when you had that discussion with
him. He doesn’t seem super flexible to me.” She chuckled.

“That’s an understatement, but I made it abundantly clear he needed to let me develop
my own career. If he gets me special favors by marching into my office or buying it
outright or whatever, I won’t have any way of knowing if I’m even good at my job.
And that’s not who I am. I want to succeed without his help.”

“I hear you,” Amy said. “Cade and I went through the same thing. And now that I work
for him, it’s uncomfortable at times. I know people treat me differently since the
owner is about to become my husband, but I’ve learned to live with it. I know I’m
a valuable asset in my own mind, so I ignore the doubts of other. Most of the time.”

“I keep trying to decide if I would want these astronomical problems you two have
or if I should run from your sides and hide. Maybe I shouldn’t even come to the wedding
where there will be far too many rich dudes. Who would have thought it would be so
much trouble to date a rich guy?” Meagan flipped her brown curls over her shoulder
and stuck her nose in the air in mock snobbery.

“Don’t knock it until you try it,” Amy added. “There are bonuses to being with a man
who doesn’t have to count pennies at dinner.”

“That may be true, but I still can’t wrap my head around my two best friends in D/s
relationships. How did this happen?” she teased.

I turned to face her more fully. “Listen to you with your perfect acronyms for dominance
and submission. I’m so proud.”

“Yeah, well, I thought I better study up on the lifestyle a bit so I’d understand
you both better. I can’t say I’ve figured it out, but I’ll admit some parts are panty
melting.”

Someone cleared their throat behind us, and I glanced over my shoulder to find Cade’s
driver at the entrance to the living room. “I’m ready whenever you ladies want to
leave.” He turned and stepped back out to the foyer.

If I wasn’t mistaken, his face was flushed. If he heard any of what we’d said, it
wasn’t surprising.

Four hours later, tripping over ourselves and laughing too loudly, Amy stuck her key
into the front door and opened it. We all fell into the entrance to her condo and
dropped our purses on the floor.

Amy was in the middle of a story, and she continued, grabbing the wall for support.
“When Kelsie spilled her martini on the guy next to us, I thought he was going to
have a coronary.”

Meagan bent over at the waist in laugher. “Who would have thought by the end of the
night he would ask her out.”

We’d been with five of Amy’s local friends, and they had all proven to be as fun and
friendly as she’d insisted.

Holding on to each other and making no attempt to be quiet, we stumbled around the
corner into the living room.

I should have realized the music in the condo was a bit louder than necessary for
the time of night and the fact that there should have been just one man at home—Cade.
But my mind was a little slow, which left me stunned to find not just Cade, but several
of his friends sitting around the long dining room table, cards strewn across the
glass surface and every man holding a set.

Even more shocking was that Riley was there. I widened my eyes, a smile growing larger
on my face.

He winked at me. “Surprise,” he mouthed.

“Cade,” Amy slurred, stumbling to his side. “You didn’t tell me you were having poker…”
she glanced around the table, “…with people from out of town.”

Cade pulled her to his side and kissed her cheek. “Didn’t want you to stress over
it, so I didn’t tell you.”

“I would have fixed you snacks and shopped for beer and stuff.”

“And that’s why I didn’t tell you.” He grinned. “Bachelorette party, check. Bachelor
party, check.”

“I thought you were going out next weekend with the guys.”

“I lied.” He looked so pleased with himself.

I could totally understand his reasoning. Ever since Amy had met him, she’d become
far more tidy than she’d ever been before. And she totally would have gone overboard
preparing for this evening. Which the guys would never have found necessary. None
of them would have even noticed her hard work.

Cade was a gem.

My man, however…

I narrowed my gaze as I strode to his side. The others waited patiently for this interruption
to take place. I leaned in and set my lips on his ear. “What’s your excuse?”

“For what?” He tugged me onto his lap, shocking me.

“Telling me you had to work all weekend,” I added unnecessarily.

“Wanted you to enjoy your evening without checking your watch or leaving early. And
don’t try to tell me you wouldn’t have done that. You totally would have.”

He was right. And he was here. Bonus.

Riley kissed my neck and spread his legs, causing me to slip between them, holding
on to his arms to keep from falling. “Kneel between my thighs under the table, baby.”
His words were whispered into my ear. Slowly. Distinctly. Broking no argument.

I swallowed hard and met his gaze. “Now?” All the alcohol I’d consumed fled my body,
rendering me far more sober than I’d been moments ago.

“Now.”

I hesitated. He’d never asked me to do anything like this before. Not in public. Not
in front of people. Never. We hadn’t even been to a club together, even though he’d
suggested it several times. I wasn’t sure I was ready yet.

It was one thing to submit to him behind closed doors. It made me so hot I couldn’t
deny the allure. But here?

Eight men were playing poker. The table was glass.

I was mortified as I stared at Riley, my mouth hanging open.

“Trust me.”

Trust him? I did. Usually. He hadn’t done anything to break that trust in the last
month. But this was a huge ask.

Or demand rather.

What would the guys think? I didn’t know any of them except Cade, of course, and Parker,
who had obviously made the trip from Charlotte. How would I face these men at the
wedding in two weeks after kneeling on the floor in submission to one of them?

I had a choice to make. And I needed to make it fast.

I glanced at Amy and gasped. She was already on the floor between Cade’s legs, her
cheek on his thigh. Her eyes were closed. Her entire body was under the table where
everyone could see her through the glass.

I surveyed the rest of the men. No one was paying any attention to Amy or me. They
were all arranging their hands of cards, drinking something dark from low balls, or
snacking on pretzels and assorted nuts.

Finally, one of them looked up and smirked at Riley. “Dude, we gonna play this hand
or what?”

Riley shifted his gaze back to me and lifted an eyebrow. He said nothing else.

Where was Meagan?

I twisted in my seat to find her perched on the end of the couch staring at me. She
had her lower lip between her teeth and looked surprisingly intrigued rather than
appalled.

I blew out a long breath and oozed onto the floor between Riley’s legs. Like I was
made of some sort of thick fluid, I flowed into the spot he demanded, landed on my
knees, tucked my hands behind my back, and leaned my cheek against his thigh.

All I could see was the bulge in his jeans that indicated he was aroused.

Good. I wasn’t sure I would be obliged to do anything about that arousal later when
we were finally alone, but I was glad he would at least suffer.