Page 169 of The Surprise Play

“Let’s kiss and laugh together. Let’s spend the entire party showing everyone in there that you and I are made for each other.” She glances up at me, and I grin down at her. “You up for it?”

Her smile is nervous, cut short when she sinks her teeth into her bottom lip.

I brush my thumb over it, then push my fingers on either side of her mouth, making her smile.

She giggles, and the grin turns genuine.

“Come on, let me take you inside and show everyone how much I love my girlfriend.”

I kiss the top of her head and make a move toward the house.

It’s safe to say my breath is on hold as I wait for her to resist me, but then she takes a step forward, then another.

“That’s my girl.” I smile down at her, pulling her up the stairs and walking back inside.

Fuck whoever said that to her.

I still wish she’d tell me so I could kick their asses, but if she doesn’t want me to cause a scene, then fine.

But I’m gonna make sure this whole fucking party knows that she’s mine—and that’s exactly the way I want it to be.

CHAPTER 52

ELIZABETH

I’m doing this for Wily.

Because I couldn’t handle that crushed puppy dog look on his face when he thought I didn’t like his party.

Of course I love it!

I just wish there weren’t so many people here, and I wish to God that he’d never invited Jade and her friends.

Picturing how that conversation went down is easy.

She would have put on her sweet “You’re such a great boyfriend” routine, and he would have casually said, “You should come help us celebrate.”

It wouldn’t have occurred to him that they could ruin my night because I’ve never told him what Jade did to me. What she and her new crewcontinueto do to me.

And I can’t go saying anything now.

I can tell he’s scanning the crowd, trying to figure out who was hassling me, but I seriously don’t want some big incident that will immediately land on the rumor mill, and then I’ll have to spend the next few weeks fending offgossip as the story grows into something grotesque and overly dramatic.

Ugh!

I have lived through way too many years of whispers chasing me down hallways. I don’t want or need that here.

I just have to keep my mouth shut and stay glued to Wily’s side. They wouldn’t dare say or do anything nasty in front of him. Not when Jade’s still set on making him her man.

But he’s mine.

That’s what he keeps telling me, and so I cling to his fingers as he pulls me back through the door.

“Everything okay?” Zander’s the first to approach us.

Wily gives him a stiff nod but then leans forward and whispers something in his ear. Zander’s eyes dart to me, a fierce look crossing his face as he clenches his jaw and grits out, “Will do. I’ll tell the guys.”

“Tell the guys what?” I quietly ask, worry coursing through me in a sickening wave.