Caught Up in You (3 page)

Alex was a real piece of work.

And trust me, I’ve dealt with pieces of work in the past. Alex was in her own class.

Apparently, she hadn’t been home in over a year, which was one of the reasons Lia was so desperate to make sure everything went smoothly.

And maybe things
would
have gone smoothly if Alex had come home alone.

But she didn’t

She came with
him.

Grayson fucking Walker.

The man who made Lia light up from the inside.

I saw it the moment she laid eyes on him. It brightened her face. It flushed her cheeks. It even seemed to gloss her hair.

I recognize a crush when I see one. But this was more than a crush. This was a longing. A spark. Something that made her come alive. And it wasn’t new. It was old. Ancient. Something buried long ago

And it wasn’t just
her
who had it.

I could see it in the way he looked at her, too.

For a moment, they were in their own world. The restaurant didn’t exist. I didn’t exist. The couple at table 5 who had recently sent back their food didn’t exist.

It was just them.

When you work in my field, you see a lot of things. You see lust. You see flirtation. You see deceitful facades.

But it’s rare to see what I saw that day.

And that’s when I realized that I had lost. I had lost before I even began.

Even if I ever did have a chance with her, I knew right then that there was no way I could ever compete with him. With the way she looked at him.

That’s why it surprised the hell out of me when Alex came out of the bathroom and announced that she and Grayson were back together.

Until then I could have sworn he was an ex-boyfriend of Lia’s. But it turned out she had just loved him from afar. And now he was back in Alex’s life.

Maybe I was the only one who saw the pain flash over Lia’s face when the news struck her. Although I don’t know how I could be. She may have thought she was hiding it well. But to me, it was like a flashing neon sign.

She wanted him.

And she knew she could never have him.

That kind of misery is almost impossible to hide.

______

I suppose it shouldn’t have surprised me when she asked me out for drinks the next night. But I was.

I guess I was too blinded by the shock of the question to really notice the motivations underneath. I was too distracted by the hope of having another chance with Lia to see the truth.

Although it was pretty obvious the moment we walked into the door of Hank’s and I saw Alex and Grayson sitting at the booth waiting for us.

“I thought it was going to be just the two of us,” I whispered into Lia’s ear, the reality of the situation sinking into my stomach like a rough stone.

She smiled and tilted her head as though she didn’t know where I would have gotten that impression. “I told my sister and Grayson that we’d meet them here.”

But it was clear as soon as Grayson laid eyes on me that it was a lie.

She never told them I was coming.

And that’s when all the pieces fell into place. That’s when it became crystal clear what my true purpose was tonight.  

I was here to make Grayson jealous.

Once again, I was a device for revenge.

And I almost cared. I almost walked out. But then Lia squeezed into the booth beside me after buying us drinks, and I could see just how much this game of hers benefited
me
as well.

She was all over me. Her hands, her body, her tongue. They were all mine.

Just as I’d always wanted them to be.

The way she thrusted herself against me on that dance floor—her bare arms and legs slick with sweat, her gorgeous hair sticking to her damp skin—it was easy to forget that I was a mere pawn in another woman’s dangerous game of bartered emotions and tested loyalties.

I finally had her. I finally tasted her. And she tasted as amazing as I’d imagined.

You could definitely say I took advantage of the situation. If she was going to use me, I was going to get something out of it. I kissed her like there was no tomorrow (and for me and Lia, I knew there wouldn’t be). I ran my hands up and down her body, my fingertips blazing as they slipped under her floral skirt, teasing her skin, pressing into her lean muscles.

I devoured her. Storing up her flavor like a camel stores up water.

Then it all came crashing to a halt.

“We’re leaving,” Alex said, “Grayson has a stick up his ass tonight.”

Yeah,
I wanted to agree,
he’s clearly lusting after your sister.

But I was smart enough to keep my mouth shut.

Lia was fighting back a giggle. Her plan was working. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

“You two have fun for us. Since clearly my fiancé is incapable of enjoying himself.”

Alex turned to leave and I felt as though my time was up. As soon as Grayson was gone—as soon as there was no one to put on a show for—I would be cast aside.

But Grayson lingered behind, waiting for Lia to follow them. When she didn’t he said, “Come on, Lia. It’s time to go.”

I almost rolled my eyes at the desperation in his voice. C’mon, man, at least
try
to hide your boner for her.

I was proud when Lia stood up to him. When she didn’t cave at his directive. “That’s okay, Grayson. I think I’ll stay.”

“Yeah, don’t worry,” I added. “I’ll get her home.”

And then, because I’m a total asshole who loves to fuel fires that I didn’t start, I winked at Grayson. I knew it would send him hurdling over the edge. I knew he didn’t trust me. I saw the way he watched us on the dance floor. Like an overprotective secret service agent.

And that annoyed the shit out of me.

So I fucked with him.

Sure, you could argue that I did it out of jealousy. Because I knew Lia would rather be dry humping him on this floor right now instead of me. And maybe that’s true. But all that psychological crap is irrelevant.

I did it and it worked. 

“No,” he asserted, surprising everyone. I had a feeling Grayson wasn’t a super assertive guy to begin with.

Pussy.

“Don’t      worry. She’s a big girl now,” Alex assured him, looking amused by the whole exchange. If she couldn’t see what was really going on, then she was blind as a bat.

But I suppose the old adage is true. The heart sees what it wants to see.

“Thanks,” Lia hissed at him. “But I’m pretty sure I can make my own decisions. Besides, you’re not my brother
yet
.”

I wanted to high five the girl. It was bold. It was genius. It was totally something I would have said.

She knew how to rile up Grayson Walker almost as well as I did.

I turned to hide my laugh behind my hand and when I looked back, she was gone. My eyes shot toward the door to see Grayson actually pulling Lia by the arm.

I hurried after them, shoving my way through people. Before I was even out the door, I could hear Lia screaming at him.

“WILL YOU STOP TRYING TO SAVE ME?! YOU CAN’T DO IT! I’M NOT YOUR FUCKING PROBLEM!”

And that was my cue to extricate myself from the situation. This was some complicated shit that I really didn’t want to get mixed up in. Lia was in love with Grayson. Grayson was in love with Lia but engaged to Alex, who was in the dark about the whole thing.

I’d done a lot of things to get a girl into bed, but I had just reached my limit on the crazy scale.

I’d had my fun. I’d kissed her. I’d touched her. I wished I could have taken her to my bed for at least a night before throwing in the towel, but some things are just not worth the headache.

“Look, it’s fine, Lia,” I said, putting my hands up to indicate that I wanted no part of this mess. “We can hang out tomorrow or something.”

Everyone in that parking lot knew it was a big fat lie.

There would be no hanging out tomorrow.

I had served my purpose tonight. And that was the end. I walked over and kissed her cheek, before shuffling to the street and heading back to La Bella Vita where my car was parked.

For the briefest spark of a moment, I had the inkling to whisper something into her ear. But I knew it would be unwise.

Get out as fast as you can, Blake,
I told myself.
Just walk away and don’t look back.

That was the MO. That is what has always kept me safe. Or more importantly,
sane
.

It had worked for me so far. Why change it up now?

But as I walked to my car, I thought about what I would have said to her. Had I been a different person. Had I wanted something else out of this life.

I opened the car door and collapsed into the driver’s seat.

“Open your eyes, Lia,” I said quietly to the empty car, “I’m right here.”

Five

The call came the next morning. I didn’t recognize the number on the caller ID. A New York City phone number. I remember the time when 212 area codes used to excite me. It meant the possibility of an audition or a call back. But I hadn’t gotten a call from the city in years.

Curiously, I answered.

“Hello?”

“Blake?”

“Yeah.”

 The voice was familiar and yet not at the same time. Like an echo of someone I knew. Someone I had been pining after for the past few months.

And I guess, in a way, it was.

“It’s Alex Smart. Lia’s sister.”

I actually pulled the phone away from my ear and stared at it. The way people do in the movies. It was just so unexpected. And my first reaction was that something had happened to Lia. She had been pretty drunk and pissed off last night. What if she’d been in some kind of accident? What if she’d gotten mad, jumped in the car, and drove off right off the road?

“Is Lia okay?” I asked.

There was a pause on the other end, as though she didn’t understand the question. And then she said, “I’m not calling about Lia.”

“Okaaaay,” I said slowly. “How’d you get my number?”

Don’t get me wrong. Alex was hot. And normally I knew better than to question a phone call like this. Hot girls just had a magic way of obtaining my number. I had started to think it was written on a bathroom wall somewhere.

For a good time call Bartender Blake. He serves a mean martini and an unforgettable orgasm.

Alex didn’t answer the question. In fact, I think she purposefully glossed over it. “I need to talk to you. Where do you live?”

Well, it that wasn’t ballsy as shit, I don’t know what was.

“Um,” I said with uncertainty. “What is this regarding?”

I barely recognized myself. What the hell was I talking about?

And since when did I use words like “regarding?”

When a girl who looks like Alex Smart calls you and asks for your address. You give it to her, plain and simple. I’m not sure where my hesitation was stemming from. Maybe it was the way Lia talked about her sister—that undeniable feeling of inferiority that she felt around her. Or maybe it was the way I’d seen Lia act at the bar last night and the night Alex arrived. But for some reason, I found myself instantly distrusting her motives.

“I…” she started to answer, but something was tripping her up. I had a feeling she wasn’t expecting me to challenge her request. I also had a feeling she wasn’t used to being challenged.

“I…” she began again and I swore I heard a small sniffle.

Was she
crying
?

My first thought was that she finally got a fucking clue and realized her fiancé was in love with her sister.

“I just need to talk to someone,” she said, her voice warbled and slightly whiny. “I didn’t know who else to call.”

Well, that was pretty twisted logic. She barely knew me from Adam.

But sucker that I am, I caved. I told myself there was no harm in letting her stop by. I would just hear her out and then send her on her way.

“Sure,” I said, reciting my home address into the phone.

Looking back, that was probably my most idiotic decision of all.

Six

Alex arrived fifteen minutes later. She looked fucking stunning in a pale yellow sundress that showed off her tanned skin and shapely legs. I’d have to have been pretty much dead not to react to those legs. Those breasts. That hair.

I could understand why Lia felt so insecure when it came to her sister. They both had the same dark hair and crystal blue eyes, but somehow Alex just had a more polished look about her. It wasn’t that Alex was prettier, per se. Lia was a knock-out. Alex just knew it. She carried herself without a pinch of self doubt.

She just fucking sparkled.

But still, seeing her standing outside my front door looking like sex on a stick, I couldn’t help but think about Lia.

I felt guilty for inviting her sister into my apartment. I felt even guiltier for letting my eyes drift down the length of her body with a lustful hunger.

And I hated myself for all of it.

Lia doesn’t give a shit about you
, I reminded myself.

She used you to make Grayson jealous. She thinks of you as nothing more than a player. She won’t ever take you seriously.

So why should I care?

I shouldn’t.

I offered Alex a drink. I had water and whisky. Typical. She opted for the whisky. I poured us two glasses, handed her one, and took a seat on the sofa. She swallowed a long, slow swig before plopping down next to me.

She was close.

Too close for a woman who’s engaged to someone else. The proximity sent shivers up my legs, electrifying my groin. Her bare leg rested against mine and she didn’t even bother to move it.

She looked distressed. A scowl contorted her deliciously pink mouth. A single worry wrinkle etched across her forehead.

I wasn’t a fool, though.

I had a feeling she knew exactly what she was doing.

The pouting. The leg touching. The slow pouring of whisky down her open throat.

And it was working. My body was on fire for her.

God, I was easy.