Page 96 of A Fool's Game

“Come visit,” I respond.

Taylor sets Gem on her feet in the elevator, and she leans against him, smiling and telling us all about how much fun she had dancing.

“We should go again tomorrow night.”

Neither of us have the heart to remind her that we’ll be back in Seattle by sundown tomorrow.

Taylor tucks her into bed as I fill her a glass of water, scanning the kitchen for something to snack on. I had far fewer drinks than Gem, but I still want to take measures to feel my best for the long day of travel tomorrow.When Taylor appearsat the bottom of the stairs, I nod to the glass of water. “That’s for Gem. I’m going to sneak down to the kitchen and find something to eat.”

He takes the glass and turns back to the stairs. “Give me a second, I’ll come with you.”

I hadn’t realized that all I really needed was a moment alone until my opportunity slips away. I’m quick to defend it. “Shouldn’t you stay with her?”

Taylor’s halfway up the staircase, tossing me a look like I’m an idiot. “She’s an adult. She can sleep unsupervised.”

“Yeah, I know,” I respond sullenly, but I don’t know if he hears me as he disappears toward the bedroom.

We ride the elevator down to the basement level in silence.

He follows me though the brightly lit corridor to a dim one to the darkest one of all. I bypass the locked main doors to Reef, the casual fare cafe adjacent to the pool at the beach level of the resort, and slip through a service entrance I know leads to an unlocked kitchen door.I’m not bold enough to turn on the lights, so I guide us with my phone light. Taylor must have left his upstairs because he keeps close behind me. When we reach the kitchen, I set my phone, light side up, on the central metal prep table and grab a small paper bag to fill with a few muffins and maybe some fruit if I find some in the walk-in cooler.

When I return, bag as full as I dare, Taylor’s standing just where I left him, arms crossed, glowering at me from the sharp shadows thrown off my phone light.

“What?” I ask.

“What do you mean what?” he barks at me, voice echoing off the stainless-steel tables and walls.

“I’m not?—”

“What the fuck are we doing here?” he interrupts my fumbled reply, louder than before.

“We’re…” I hold up the bag like an idiot. As if he forgot. As if this is what he was asking. “Getting snacks.”

In one smooth motion, he steps forward and smacks the bag out of my hand. I watch it fall, and my loot spill out over the tile floors.It’s this distraction that gives him the upper hand and he takes it, gripping me with both hands by the front of my shirt and walking me backwards until my back hits the closed door of the walk-in with a thud.It knocks the wind out of me, and it’s hard to get another breath in with Taylor pressing me there, his face inches from mine.

“I’ve been patient with you,” he starts, the words taking me completely by surprise.

“What—” I start to protest.

Taylor pulls me an inch away from the metal door by my shirt and slams me back against it, shutting me up.

“You think I don’t want you?”

I want to protest again, but I learned my lesson the first time.

“You think I don’t watch you wanting me?”

Something sputters from my mouth then, but it’s not words.

“I watch you, pretty boy. I watch you fucking her. Your eyes on my dick. I watch you getting hard, and I know it’s not just Gem’s pretty pussy doing it to you.”

I pull my hips back instinctively, as if there was anywhere to hide. Having this man so close, his scent, his strong hands on my body, would be getting me hard all on their own. But his words? My dick’s swelling so fast it feels like the blood is draining from my brain.

And it’s only a matter of time before he finds it.

“Are you hard right now?” he hisses into my ear, reading my mind in the most terrifyingly erotic way.

“No,” I lie.

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