The Devil's Game (9 page)

“I’ve already packed your bags, and Jim is getting the plane ready as we speak,” he said, keeping step with Damien, who continued through the house and up the stairs. “The car should be here in twenty minutes at the most. I hope that gives you enough time.”

“I just need a quick shower.” Damien said.

“Where are you going?” Karina called out from the bottom step.

Both men stopped walking and turned to face her as though they’d forgotten all about her. Damien came back down.

“There’s been an emergency shareholder’s meeting called in Beijing. A completely bullshit meeting, but it’s imperative that I’m there to keep things from getting any worse.”

“How long will you be gone?” she asked. She realized she didn’t want him to go. She wanted him to stay here, with her, to take her back out on the boat.

“I don’t know. Only a couple days, hopefully. A week at the most.”

“A
week
.” That was almost a quarter of the time she was supposed to be here. Five days ago she would have been breathing a sigh of relief. But now….

“I’m sorry,” he said, kissing her cheek. And then he rushed back up the stairs to Tom, who kept talking to him as they walked away.

Doubts

Karina had never known boredom like this before. And she never imagined it could’ve come while in a house as impressive as Damien’s. The truth was that she missed him more than she wanted to admit. Something had changed, a shift had occurred, and once the walls had come down, it turned out she enjoyed his company—even when he wasn’t touching her (though she rather preferred that part).

Monday morning she was curled up on a lounge chair, watching the filter robot moving along the bottom of the pool. She wondered if there was a pattern, or if the movements really were random. What if it kept missing the same spot?

Annoyed with herself, she stood up just as Romi came out holding a phone.

“It’s Mr. Bishop for you,” she said.

Karina’s heart raced at the thought of hearing his voice.

“Hello,” she said.

“Bored yet?” he asked.

“I’m keeping busy,” she lied. “Why? Are you heading home to come interrupt my fun?”

“Unfortunately not,” he sighed. “Which is why I’m calling. I have to attend a charity event on Saturday.”

“Will you be back in time?”

“I’d better be, I’m the keynote speaker. I was hoping you’d come with me.”

She laughed. “You called from China just to ask me on a date?”

“Actually, I’m calling to tell you that you have an appointment tomorrow.”

“I do?”

“Yes. Assuming you would agree to come, I made an appointment for a dress fitting. It’s a formal affair. I had planned to take you to the fitting, but there’s no way I’ll be back in time, so I’m afraid you’re on your own.”

The idea didn’t really appeal to her, at least not without Damien. It was something to kill the time though.

“I suppose I could fit it into my busy schedule,” she said.

“It’s at eleven, so you should leave by ten-thirty.”

“You mean I get to drive one of your fancy cars?”

“Nice try,” he said. “I’ve arranged a driver for you.”

“Of course you did.”

“And everything at the boutique has been taken care of. You don’t need to worry about anything other than getting yourself there.”

“Okay.”

“I should probably get some sleep,” he said. “The jet lag is killing me and I’ve got another long day tomorrow.”

“All right,” she said, sad to have to say to goodbye. “Good luck.”

“And Karina?”

“Yes?”

“I’m sorry,” he said. “The last thing I wanted to do was take off like this.”

“It’s fine,” she told him. “Go get some sleep. I’ll talk to you soon.”

She hung up the phone. So tomorrow was planned for her, but that still left today to wallow in her boredom. Deciding she’d had enough of the sun, she ventured indoors to see what movies Damien kept stocked in that fancy entertainment room of his.

When Karina walked into the boutique the next day, she was painfully aware of how much she didn’t belong here. Since she would just be trying on dresses, she had opted for jeans and a tank top—a decision she regretted as the three impeccably dressed women behind the counter glanced in her direction with a look of disapproval. Karina walked toward them, and the tallest of the three finally approached her.

“I’m sorry miss, but we’re by appointment only,” she said with a fake, condescending smile. Maybe Karina didn’t really need to go to this affair after all.

“I have an appointment. I’m Karina Watson.”

The woman raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing her.

“Damien Bishop arranged it,” Karina told her.

Everyone’s demeanor changed at the mention of his name, and Karina hated these women even more for it.

“Oh yes,” said one of the ladies, a blonde. “We’ve been expecting you!”

The third girl ran off to the back room.

“I’m Yvette,” said the blonde. “Right this way and we can get started.”

Yvette led her to a chair with a side table, and the third girl came out of the back room carrying a tray with champagne in an ice bucket and a single flute glass. Karina was grateful as the woman poured it, because she had a feeling she was going to need alcohol to survive these vultures.

As Karina took her first sip, Yvette pulled out a rack already containing some dresses.

“Mr. Bishop told us a little about the event and your size, so we went ahead and pulled a few items to get started. But let us know if you’re looking for something different.”

Karina stood, still holding the glass, and looked over the selection. They were all gorgeous. But it didn’t take long to find her favorite—a strapless satin-twill gown in midnight black with an off-center slit on the front.

“Can I try this one on?” she asked.

“Of course.”

Yvette grabbed the dress and showed Karina to a dressing room. The second she stepped into it, she knew this was the one. It was less embellished, less flashy than the others, but sometimes less was more. The slit came half way up her thigh, and the back flared a bit just below her backside. A mermaid skirt, Yvette called it.

She walked out and stood on a little platform in front of several mirrors.

“Wow,” said the brunette who had brought out the champagne. “That dress is perfect.”

Karina did a little turn—being careful not to fall and embarrass herself—so she could see the whole dress. It
was
perfect. She was almost sad that Damien wasn’t here to see it, then decided she’d rather spring this on him later. At home.

“I don’t even think you’ll need any alterations. You are planning to wear heels, aren’t you?”

Karina nodded. She was now, apparently.

Just then, a chime went off, signaling that another customer had walked in.

“Yoo hoo, anyone here?” called a voice that made Karina’s skin crawl.
Tabitha
.

She walked back to where Karina and the women were, looking much more put together than Karina had when she walked in.

“Oh, Miss Rose!” Yvette exclaimed, jumping to attention. “We weren’t expecting you today.”

Tabitha removed her oversized sunglasses. “I was in the area,” she said. “I thought I would check in on my dress. Oh, hello.” She had finally noticed Karina “Haven’t I seen you before?”

Karina stepped down from the platform. “The engagement party,” she mumbled.

“That’s right. I was talking to Damien, and then you apparently had something urgent to tell him.”

Karina wasn’t sure how to respond to this woman. If she had disliked her at the party, that was nothing compared to what she was feeling now.

“I think I’ve decided on this dress,” she told Yvette.

“Excellent choice,” said Yvette.

“That is a gorgeous dress,” Tabitha chimed in. “What’s the occasion?”

“Some charity event this Saturday. I’m going with Damien,” she said, trying to gain the upper hand.

There was a flash of venom in Tabitha’s eyes, but it was gone so quickly that Karina couldn’t be sure she hadn’t imagined it.

“Ugh,” said Tabitha. “Is it that stupid museum fundraiser? I went with him last year and it was
so
boring. I’m glad he was smart enough not to ask me again this year. Better you than me,” she said with a forced smile.

Karina could feel the heat rising to her cheeks.

“Oh look, Miss Rose,” Yvette suddenly called out. “I’ve found your dress. Shall I get you a dressing room?”

Karina hadn’t even realized Yvette had left the room but was grateful for the interruption.

“Lilly, will you take care of Miss Watson while I help Miss Rose?”

“Absolutely,” the brunette said before turning to Karina. “If you want to change, I can bag the dress and ring you up.”

Karina nodded, not trusting herself to speak.

After changing back into her dingy jeans, Karina waited at the counter while Lilly found the right garment bag for the dress. She ran it through the register, but as Damien had promised, everything had been arranged and Karina didn’t even have to sign for anything. Lilly brought the bag around from behind the counter and handed it to Karina.

“Just between you and me,” Lilly said quietly, “Mr. Bishop has never bought Tabitha a five-thousand-dollar Jason Wu gown.”

The girl was trying to make Karina feel better, but her brain got stuck on the five grand part.

“Um, thank you,” she said, and made her way outside, where the driver was waiting to take her back to Damien’s home.

When Karina got home that afternoon, she fired up the laptop and did a search on Tabitha Rose. It didn’t take long to find her. Apparently she was a model, though it looked like it was mostly local stuff. Her parents were donors for various organizations, so they must have money.

Karina added Damien’s name in the search box with Tabitha’s, and the first thing that popped up was a photo of the two of them from an event. She read the caption and her heart sank. She’d been hoping that Tabitha was lying, that Damien had not actually taken her anywhere, but here was the proof. She slammed the computer shut, not wanting to see anything else.

By that evening, Tabitha’s words had replayed in Karina’s mind a million times, and it sounded uglier each time. Tabitha was jealous, Karina kept trying to tell herself. But the truth was that Tabitha and Damien must have dated on some level. He claimed that they never slept together, but what reason did she have to believe him?

“Miss Watson?”

Romi’s voice cut into Karina’s thoughts, and she looked up from where she was reading—or rather attempting to read—on the couch in the sitting room.

“I’m heading out for the evening,” she said. “Do you need anything else before I go?”

“No,” Karina said, shaking her head. “Of course not. Good night.” It was still so weird to have people waiting on her.

“I’ll set the alarm before I go.”

“Thanks, Romi.” Then she thought of something. “Wait.”

Romi turned around.

“May I ask you something?”

“Of course,” said Romi.

“Has there ever been a—a mistress of the house?”

“No, only you.”

“Me?” Karina frowned. “I hardly think I count.”

Romi shrugged. “I was instructed to make sure you felt at home and that we all did as you asked. Same thing as far as I’m concerned.”

“Did you think it was weird he was bringing me home, then?”

Romi sat on the edge of the other end of the couch, keeping her posture straight.

“Honestly, when I got word to prepare for your arrival, I was sure that some nasty woman had finally sunk her claws into him. Most of the staff and I were bracing for a real witch to come barging in those doors.”

Karina’s eyes went big.

“But that wasn’t the case,” Romi concluded, apparently not willing to say any more on the matter.

“So he hasn’t brought other girlfriends around?” Karina asked.

“I’m not really comfortable discussing Mr. Bishop’s private affairs.”

“You’re right,” Karina said, shaking her head. “I’m sorry I put you on the spot like that. Forget I asked.”

“No worries,” she said, rising from the couch. “Good night, Miss Watson.”

“Night, Romi.”

Karina heard the beep and then the door closing behind Romi. And now she was all alone. Well, not completely alone. She knew that Damien had security patrolling the property twenty-four seven, even if no one was home. Being obscenely wealthy was starting to sound like a real chore.

She sighed, thinking she should head up to her room. All that was waiting for her up there, though, was another night of restless sleep. She closed the book she had borrowed from Damien’s library, giving up on it, and looked at the mini bar. Perhaps she just needed to take a page from his playbook and enjoy a nightcap. She stood and looked at the collection of crystal decanters. None of them were labeled, and so she sniffed each bottle until she found one that appealed to her. She poured a little of it into a cut-glass tumbler and took a sip. It was almost like wine but had a brown tinge to it and was much sweeter.