Page 36 of The Catch

Ugh. He was Cat Kryptonite. Just when she started to feel like a normal human being around him, he touched her just so or said something adorable, and that drunk-on-Josh feeling swooped in and shoved her off her guard.

Maybe it was the way he always seemed so in control. They’d been going at it like a couple of teenagers on her couch, and even though she could see his physical reaction—flushed neck, dilated pupils… other things—his hands were steady. If he was nervous at all, he didn’t show it. He was so sure, so comfortable, in every touch or look they shared that her constant confusion felt utterly sophomoric in comparison. Like when he’d asked her to tell him what she wanted and instead of purring out some sexy reply, her cheeks had burned red and she’d admitted to being a complete amateur in the arena of adult relationships.

Josh laughed at something Bill said and tightened his fingers on her hip. Probably to remind her that she should participate in the conversation. She had to get it together. She couldn’t cheat at the bet by acting like a total weirdo. Dani and Sonya would accuse her of sabotage if Josh dumped her because she could only seem to go mute or babble incoherently whenever she was in his presence.

Speaking of the bet, clearly she couldn’t just keep going on these dates with Josh, waiting for him to make a misstep on his own. Date number one was already a point on his board, and she didn’t have weeks to invest. She was already getting used to having him around and spoiled by his torturously slow hands and knack for using his teeth in all the right places.

Now she was feeling more than dewy. She was practically overheating.Enough of this bewitching.Fantasizing about what would have happened if they had just ditched the party and stayed on that couch wasn’t helping her stay unattached. She needed a way to push things along. She stepped away from the circle the three of them had made, feeling terrible about sacrificing Josh to Cranshaw, but she needed a splash of cold water and to think.

“I’m going to run to the ladies’ room,” she said, with a squeeze to his fingers. “I’ll be right back.”

The hallway to the restroom was well-lit, and Cat squinted against the fluorescent bulbs as she left the dim lounge area. When she pushed open the door, she spotted one of her agency’s interns leaning against the bank of sinks, scrolling through her phone with one hand, her drink in the other. An idea hit her like the flash from the girl’s phone as she took a selfie.

“Hey! Kasey. I’m glad you’re here.”

“That makes one of us,” she said, taking a long pull from her wine glass. Kasey was a senior at UVA, and Cat had immediately bonded with her when she found out they not only shared an alma mater but had both lived in the same dormitory as freshman. Kasey was also hot as hell with auburn hair and flawless skin. Not to mention a rack that stopped men mid-sentence as she passed. She would be perfect.

“You’re not here with a date, are you?” Cat asked, formulating the best way to phrase what she was about to ask.

“No, but thanks for reminding me.”

“I need a favor.”

Kasey nudged a clump of mascara away from her eyelash with her pinky finger, then pouted in front of her phone for another shot. “What do you need?”

“Come here.” She hooked her arm in Kasey’s and dragged her out of the bathroom and into the corner of the restaurant, pointing. “See that guy over there? Blue jacket, talking to Bill?”

“Um, yeah. Wow.” Kasey took another gulp of wine, looking as though she were undressing Josh with her eyes.

“He’s my date.”

“Oh!” Kasey said, straightening her shoulders. “Sorry for staring.”

“It’s okay. I need you to hit on him.”

Kasey’s head whipped around, her long ponytail nearly smacking her in the face. “What the—?”

“Hear me out. I just want you to flirt with him a little, maybe slip him your number. Then let me know how he reacts.”

“That sounds bizarre, and yet not entirely unlike you,” Kasey said with a judgy little sip of her wine. Maybe Cat was spending a little too much time with the interns. “Why exactly are you trying to give that one up?”

“I’m not. I’m testing a theory.”

“Like a social experiment?”

“Yes!”Exactly Kasey, you little soc major, you!

Kasey peeled her eyes away from Josh and settled them on Cat’s with a filthy expression. “Do I get to fuck him if he calls me? Are we gonna compare notes?”

Kasey’s words fell over her like an emerald-colored veil. Cat’s hands tightened into fists, and her teeth began to grind.What in the literal hell, Kasey?

“No,” she said, clenching her jaw, and calming the nonsensical urge she had to fire her right then and there. She didn’t actually have that power, though. “You do not.”

“Why not?” I mean, if he takes my number while he’s here with you, he’s no good for anything else, right?”

“Just… ugh.” Cat sputtered. She hadn’t expected that reply or the way the champagne and hors d’oeuvres started creeping back up her esophagus at the mental image of Josh and Kasey doing… that thing she’d just said. Maybe this was a bad idea.

“Fine. I’ll do it.” Kasey sighed. “Let me get another drink first.” With that, she turned on her impossibly high heel and sashayed over to the bar.

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