Page 32 of Playing with Forever (Players Club Sinners #1)
Andrea
“A s we go into the next quarter…”
One of my department managers continued to drone on, and I was seconds away from losing my mind.
These mandatory monthly meetings slowly sapped my soul, every time.
Nothing truly important was ever discussed.
Anything that actually mattered could have been sent in a two-line email, and everything else was just a frustrating mix of back-patting and pointless filler.
My phone buzzed against my thigh where I had it wedged between my leg and the chair I sat in. Smothering a grin, I surreptitiously tugged it out so I could look at the message that had just come through. Yep, another dirty text from Chase.
We’d had that interesting little hiatus from our sex life when I first moved in with him—understandable, considering how stressful the situation had been initially. But that cockwarming scene at the tattoo shop that Chase had instigated had been so deliciously unexpected, and so fucking hot.
Now, we were back to having regular sex again, thank God, and it was even more amazing than before. It felt like Chase had finally gotten the message in that tattoo shop that I would rise to any challenge and he wasn’t going to scare me off with what turned him on and what he wanted.
I’m in a meeting, I reminded Chase. I could get in trouble.
That’s fair, Chase replied. You can ignore my texts, that’s your choice. But if you do, I’ll punish you for it later.
Heat slid down my spine. On the one hand, it would be fun to get punished for ignoring him. I knew Chase wouldn’t be truly annoyed if I felt I had to focus in this meeting. On the other hand… it gave me a bit of a thrill to risk getting in trouble by texting under the table. Sexting , no less.
I glanced around occasionally as I replied to Chase or read a new message from him, but everyone else was either so bored or so desperately trying not to seem bored that no one paid me any attention.
I saw Brandon glance at me once or twice, a frown on his face.
But he was sitting right across from me, so it didn’t surprise me that he noticed I might be up to something.
It was worth the risk. No, more than that. The risk is what made it worth it. I had to keep smothering my grin as Chase and I messaged back and forth.
There are still so many things you need to try, Chase texted me. So many things I’m going to do to you.
Promises, promises, I fired back, knowing full well I was begging for punishment later. But Chase liked me bratty—loved it, actually—and the truth was, I enjoyed every second of the consequences.
“Thank you, everyone,” Jones said, and I jolted, realizing the meeting was over.
I stood with everyone else, turning my phone face down on the table so nobody could see if a text came in and leaving it with some of my papers while I grabbed my notebook and pen.
I started after my boss, trying to catch up to him. “Mr. Jones, sir, could I have a moment? I wanted to update you on…”
“Yes, of course, that little project of yours and Brandon’s for the Monarch,” Jones said before I could finish. “How is it coming along?”
I hurried to keep up with Jones, a much taller man with a quick stride, as he walked back to his office and I updated him on the campaign and gave him a rundown on the highlights. He shared his thoughts on changes we ought to make, and I jotted down those suggestions in my notebook along the way.
Jones was the kind of boss who didn’t usually have unique ideas but always wanted to feel like he contributed to a project so he could claim he was ‘hands on.’ I’d learned pretty quickly that I had to take notes on what he said, then find ways to change his ideas and incorporate better versions of them into our projects so that he felt included without ruining the client’s overall vision.
Once that was dealt with, I hurried back to the conference room to gather the rest of my things. Brandon wasn’t there. I figured he was probably already at his desk, and I’d have to catch him there and talk about how we were going to deal with Jones’ latest—
Wait.
An unsettling feeling coursed through me as I reached my seat and I saw my phone on the table, face up. I’d put it face down, hadn’t I, because I didn’t want anyone to see my screen if Chase texted me again? I’d been careful…I didn’t want anybody knowing my personal business.
But now, it was face up.
The only other person in the room was Sharon, one of the administrative assistants, wrestling with the presentation equipment. “Sharon? Did anyone touch my phone?”
“What?” Sharon glanced at me with a frustrated look on her face. “Sorry, I’ve been dealing with this stupid thing. I haven’t seen anybody in here since the meeting ended.”
My phone lay there innocently, like it was taunting me to believe my own memory.
I must have been mistaken. I was being paranoid, and even if I was remembering right, who was to say my phone didn’t get knocked over onto the floor and someone put it back on the table for me?
This was possibly the worst part of having a stalker, I concluded irritably as I went back to my desk. Knowing someone was lurking about made me second-guess everything, made me jump at every shadow and start to doubt my own perceptions.
I forced myself not to think about it further.
I was under Chase’s protection, and he was nothing if not zealous.
I was even staying at his place. My project was going well, and our company had a banquet to attend that night, an annual thing thrown by one of the casinos that were our oldest and biggest clients.
I had so many more pleasant things to focus on than whoever was trying to spook me.
Especially since Chase was going as my date.
As soon as I’d told him about the event, he’d insisted on attending with me. He’d gone on about there being a ton of people I didn’t know at the banquet, that all the exits and entrances provided too many opportunities for someone to strike, and it was better to be safe with him than sorry.
“Are you allowed a plus one?” he’d asked after I’d shared the information with him.
“Yes, we all are, although we do need to RSVP if we’re bringing someone.”
“Great. Put me down,” he’d said succinctly. “I’ll be coming with you.”
“Wow, assumptions much?” I’d replied with a bit of sass. “What if I wanted to take Violet?”
He’d rolled his eyes at me. “As much as I trust your sister’s ability to smash a chair over someone’s head if they try to cop a feel, I’m less optimistic about her ability to handle security at a large event like that. Our firm works these kinds of events all the time.”
He wasn’t wrong, and at the end of the day I wasn’t mad that I was going to a fancy dinner on Chase’s arm.
I wrapped up work a bit early like everyone else so that we could all hurry home and get ready.
Chase picked me up, as agreed, and we separately showered and dressed.
I’d stopped using the guest bedroom a few nights ago, but having a second bathroom was definitely useful for times like this when we had a time crunch.
I’d bought my outfit a while ago, a dark purple dress with a slightly plunging neckline and a fuller skirt, and black satin strappy heels.
It was a nice, formal event, so I didn’t want to go too sparkly or body-hugging, and aimed for tasteful elegance, including arranging my hair into a sophisticated updo and going with a smokey eye.
Judging by the stunned look on Chase’s face when I emerged from the guest bedroom, I had succeeded.
He looked gorgeous in a tux with a subtle sheen to the tie and pocket handkerchief, adding a little flair while still being black tie.
The suit was clearly tailored, fitting him like a glove, and I was hit all over again by just how insanely handsome he was.
It made me want to skip the party altogether and just beg him to take me to bed and fuck me with the suit still on.
Chase’s gaze dragged over my body appreciatively, his eyes dark and hungry. More than that, though, there was something else on his face. It almost looked like—like awe.
Clearly I was imagining things, seeing only what I wanted to see. Nobody was going to look at me and feel awe for crying out loud.
“You look stunning,” he said, but there it was again, in his voice.
“Thanks.” I slid my hand down his white dress shirt, feeling the heat of his chest beneath, and smiled up at him. “You’re not so bad yourself.”
Chase grinned and offered me his arm. “Let’s go.”
“Eager to get there?” I asked, slipping my hand into the crook of his arm as he escorted me down to the car. “You won’t know anybody and it’ll be pretty boring.”
“I’m eager to get there on time so we can leave early. And maybe I’m a little excited to show you off.” He followed that up with a sexy wink.
My breath felt as though it left my lungs in a whoosh at that compliment. “Leave early, huh?” I gave him a playful look. “Sounds like somebody’s making some real assumptions here.”
Chase cocked an eyebrow at me. “Should I not be?”
“Just don’t think you can take me for granted,” I teased.
“Trust me. I don’t.” Chase’s gaze was dark and serious.
My entire body warmed. Honestly, I dared any woman not to feel something for a man when he talked about them like that.
I was grateful for Chase’s steadying arm when we arrived at the venue. My gown was floor-length and I wasn’t used to wearing one, so I needed to hold my skirt up a bit and be careful walking in my heels.
Las Vegas never did anything halfway. Opulence was the name of the game.
This ballroom was in our client’s casino at their resort, and everything was glittering and golden.
Everyone else was dressed nicely as well.
I received a lot of compliments on my dress, and Chase wasn’t shy about securing his arm around my waist like I belonged to him.
And tonight, for a while, I felt like I did.