Page 27 of Wicked Games
“Ah, saved by room service,” I said, crossing to the door. I opened it without looking through the peephole, which was a big mistake. “Fuck me.”
“My my my,” Percy said, peering over his sunglasses. “I do love the way you greet your company. Sorry, honey,” he said with a flourish then shoved past me. “I’m a one-man man now. Dev and I decided it’s best if we don’t sh—” Percy’s words suddenly died when he caught sight of Ryder leaning in the doorway to the bedroom. Ryder appraised him in return, wearing a crooked grin on his face. Who could blame him? Percy wore purple velvet jeans with a matching jacket over a frilly ivory shirt. He’d paired his ensemble with high-heeled black leather ankle boots, giving him a few extra inches of height. “Share,” Percy finally said, finishing his sentence. “Who, pray tell, are you, darling? Wait!” he nearly shouted when Ryder started to answer him. “This must be thee Ryder Jameson.”
“Percy, did you buy that outfit from Prince’s estate?” I asked him.
“Maybe he stole it from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,” Ryder suggested.
Percy snorted then said, “Oh no, honey. Do I look like the kind of guy who can blend in anywhere?”
“Good point,” Ryder conceded.
“Speaking of points,” I said, “would you like to get to the reason for your visit? It’s not like you to drop by without calling first?”
“I did call,” Percy told me. “Several times in fact, and I’m not the only one.”
“Banks?” I’d left my phone turned off in the bedroom. There was no one I wanted to talk to other than Ryder.
“He’s on a warpath, babycakes. You might want to check in with him sooner rather than later. Especially before he finds out this one,” Percy said, pointing to Ryder, “is back in the picture.”
“I’m not back in the picture,” Ryder said firmly to Percy before turning to face me. “Who is Banks?”
“He’s part of the explanation I owe you. I thought we’d do that over breakfast,” I replied.
“Oh! This sounds so much better than what Deverish has planned.” Percy moved toward the sofa like he planned to join us.
“Hell no,” I said, halting him. “This is a conversation for two.”
“Damn it. Dev is planning to watch another boring documentary, and my ass is a bit sore from trying to distract him from his newfound love of learning how things are made.”
“He’s never heard of the term too much information, has he?” Ryder asked me.
“Nope,” I said to Ryder, “but he is lovable.” I looked at Percy. “Thank you for the heads-up. I’ll take it from here.”
He sighed heavily. “If you insist.”
“I’m afraid I must.”
Percy looked at Ryder once more then said, “I can see why you can’t let this one go, Lucky. I wish you all the best.” Percy’s exit was as flamboyant as his entrance, and I loved every second of it.
“Lucky?” Ryder asked, pulling my attention to him.
“Please don’t call me that,” I said. “I loathe the nickname.”
“Then don’t call me Ry or love.”
“Fine.”
“I’m really looking forward to your ‘explanation’ now,” Ryder said.
“The next time you use those air quotes, I’m going to—”Knock. Knock.
This time, I checked to make sure it was breakfast and not another uninvited guest.
“WHAT ARE YOU GOING TOdo the next time I use air quotes?” I asked once Lucien accepted the cart from the hotel employee and we were alone once again. His gravelly tone of voice said Lucky had something sexy in mind. Lucky, huh? It suited him whether he liked it or not.
“Use them and find out,” Lucien flippantly replied as he placed our breakfast on the small dining table in the suite. His devil-may-care smile dared me to find out. I wanted to really bad, but I wouldn’t. Not yet.
I stopped lying to myself that I could resist him around the time I deliberately watched him jacking off in the shower. If he stayed in town long enough, I would find myself back in his bed. The only unknown factor was if I’d feel happy or remorseful afterward. The answer to my question would be found in hisexplanation.