Page 71 of A Devious Arrangement

“Exactly,” Misty calls me out. “Which is why he’s clearly serious about you.”

The women painting our nails murmur to each other as they work, occasionally casting glances our way.

There’s a lightness in my chest that has no right to be there. I know Bash and my relationship is for pretenses only, so why do I feel like there might be more here?

“Believe what you want,” Scarlet says when I don’t respond. “You never know. These Everett brothers have a way of getting exactly what they want.”

Misty snorts. “Definitely sneaky about it too.”

Scarlet leans in as close as the chair will allow. “Seriously, I’ve never seen him this way. Take care of him.”

Shock ripples through me. Out of the two of us, it’s not him in danger of getting hurt.

Misty covers the bill, ignoring my protests, just making me feel worse. I did my best to enjoy today, knowing this won’t happen again. Once Bash and I break up, there’ll be no reason for the three of us to hang out. Which totally sucks. In a society full of vipers, it feels really nice to have women on my side.

They go ahead while I use the washroom. By the time I walk out the front door, the sky cracks open and lets out a deluge of rain, bringing a chill with it. I stay under the overhang and pull up my phone, groaning. I’m supposed to text Carter to come pick me up, but I’m still resistant to let Bash control any aspect of my life.

I assess my options. Bash’s place is less than a fifteen-minute walk away. I’m wearing a coat, although it’s not exactly rainproof. I’m still in slide sandals, not wanting to mess up the cute flower designs painted on my toes. I raise my foot, wiggling it around, causing the shoe to pop off. I’ll probably die trying to run in these, which means it’s impossible to avoid being soaked through.

My phone vibrates in my pocket.

Hubby: Do you need a ride, Princess?

How can he possibly know that? I huff out a breath and change his name back to Mr. Delusional in my contacts. There’s no question that I should take him up on his offer. It’s cold, it’s rainy, it’s master-level miserable, but I can’t bring myself to do it. After listening to Scarlet and Misty go on about Bash treating me differently than anyone else. I need to get my head on straight. There can be only one delusional person in this non-relationship, and it won’t be me. I tuck my phone back into my pocket before I can do anything stupid, like beg for a ride, and button up my coat until it covers my neck.

The rain’s coming down in huge droplets that splat as they hit the ground. I groan inwardly; this is totally going to suck. I inhale deeply. It’s now or never. I take a moment to brace myself before stepping out from under the protection of the canopy.

It’s freezing, the water immediately soaking through my clothes, causing the wet fabric to stick to me. Goose bumps erupt on my skin as the cold seeps into my bones until it feels like it’s setting up camp to stay there for good. In some form of divine punishment, the rain comes down harder, so thick it’s hard to see.

A whimper pulls from my lips when the strap of my shoe breaks and my bare foot touches the freezing ground. My scream doesn’t travel far in this weather, and nobody can hear my tantrum as I shout my frustration.Get a grip on yourself. No one is getting you out of here but you.

My pep talk works because I make my way slowly to the house. What should have been a fifteen-minute walk is quickly stretching into twenty. I wipe the wet hair off my face, pushing the stringlike strands out of my sight. At this point, I’m positive I look like a drowned raccoon, and I’m really starting to doubt my decision to ignore Bash’s offer.

I’m normally pretty smart, but this moment is proving otherwise.

I got myself into this situation. I will get myself out. Even with shielding my eyes with my hand, it’s hard to see more than a few feet ahead of me as I struggle forward. I’m fine. It’s just a bit of rain. So what if my teeth feel like they’re going to chatter out of my head. A little water never hurt anyone.

Floods, hurricanes, and drowning all come to mind. Jesus…

Since when have I been such a whiner? I lower my chin and look at the ground. So long as I can see the sidewalk, I can make my way home. A shiver travels down my spine, quickly causingmy entire body to shake.Come on…one foot in front of the other. Think of the toasty bath you’ll take when you get home.

That’s if I don’t catch my death out here. Have I always been this stubborn, or is it new? The image of a particularly stubborn man crosses my mind. God, I hope he’s not rubbing off on me.

I scrunch my nose, thinking about my choices lately. Dressing up like my brother, sneaking into the Vault, where being caught could lead to being literally executed, only to be caught by Bash, who just so happens to be a Lord in the Order of Saints. Proceeding to agree to pretend to be his girlfriend. Then have sex with him…

Okay, so maybe my judgment has been off lately. Still, once I pay off the Salvatore Organization and Nikolai’s safely back, I can put all of this behind me. My days of sneaking into buildings and hiding in closets will be over.

A knot forms in my gut, and my eyes prickle. I sniff, nose running from the rain. There’s no way I’m going to miss him. None. Nada. Absolutely zilch.

I’m just frozen and want to go home.

“Anastasia.” My name cuts through the wall of water moments before Bash comes into view. “What the hell are you doing? Why didn’t you call the driver?” His words are clipped but soft, like he’s trying to hold back his worry.

“I…I…” My jaw trembles too hard to form words.

His warm arms wrap around me, tucking my head under his chin as his umbrella protects us. He rubs his hands up and down my arms and along my back. The friction and heat from his hands aren’t enough.

“Jesus Christ, Stasia. What happened to your shoe?” he says, then lifts me into the air, cradling me to his body. I give in, curling myself into his chest and grabbing his coat. If I could meld myself into him, I would.

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