Dungeon Games (Masters and Mercenaries #6.5)(14)

She opened the door, expecting to see some gorgon of a woman, but the female who was pacing outside Derek’s door was petite and perfect, with a fashionably slim figure and icy blonde hair that likely never went frizzy. She wore a gorgeous suit that managed to be both business-like and deeply feminine. There was a fragility to her features that would have every man in a two-mile radius panting after her. It was easy to see this was a woman who spent an enormous amount of time on her body. She likely spent hours on her hair and makeup and the perfect nails on her gorgeous hands. A pampered woman who tried to please the men around her with her looks.

Karina didn’t bother to look at her own nails. Unless she was going to Sanctum, she didn’t bother with things like makeup and nails. Her hair was in a ponytail because her job often had her running after people or running from them.

She would bet the woman in front of her had never chased a bounty through a junk yard or gone through someone’s garbage to figure out if they were hiding a kidnapped kid in their house.

This was the woman Derek had married, his ideal. She was so far from Karina that they weren’t even playing in the same league.

He really was looking for a delicate flower he could take care of. Karina wasn’t petite and fragile. She’d been on her own for a very long time. She would never be more than a convenient good time for Derek Brighton.

“Is there a problem?” Delicate Flower asked, staring at Karina like she didn’t have a brain in her head. She’d placed a hand on her slender hip and frowned Karina’s way like she was a bit of refuse someone had forgotten to take out.

Karina shook her head. “Not at all. He’s all yours.”

The ex-Mrs. Brighton’s perfect lips curled in a Cheshire Cat grin. “He always is. You should probably know that before you go and lose your sad little cop heart to the big bad lieutenant. He has a bad habit of f*cking below his station, but he always comes back to me.”

And just like that Karina’s insecurities were swept away in a tidal wave of pure pissed-off. She didn’t like mean girls. Mean girls made the world a worse place. “I’m not a cop. I’m a PI.”

Cool blue eyes rolled. “Like I care, though that’s way worse.”

She strolled into the door of Brighton’s office and slammed it in Karina’s face.

Karina suddenly knew what she would do with her afternoon. But first she had to figure out what the ex-Mrs. Brighton’s name was. It wouldn’t take much. The good news was, she was a damn fine hacker and she definitely believed that karma at times needed a good shove in the right direction.

If the delicate flower liked to play Medusa, maybe Karina could take on the role of Perseus. It was really for the good of all womankind that she slay the gorgon.

“Hey, Keller? Can I use your computer?” She walked up to the sergeant who hired her from time to time to check out his daughter’s dates. Dani Keller unfortunately had a bad-boy complex that got her in trouble every now and then. She was a sweet kid. Karina had been more than happy to help keep her that way.

“Sure. You gonna f*ck with someone?” He stood up, offering her his seat.

“I would never do that,” Karina assured with a smooth smile.

She was a good liar and this would take her mind off the very dangerous door she’d almost opened with Derek.

It was a door that had to stay closed.





Chapter Three



“God, Derek, are you slumming or what? Tell me you weren’t actually doing something sexual to whatever it was that just walked out of your office.”

Just the sound of her voice made his blood go a little cold. He’d had a massive erection, but the sound of her voice was like reverse Viagra. His dick damn near curled up on itself. The Ice Princess, Queen Bitch of the World, strode into his office.

Karina hadn’t been cold. She’d almost melted his skin when he touched her. It had been a revelation. He’d expected her to tease him, to use her beauty to its best advantage by attempting to manipulate him, but there had been zero artifice in Karina’s argument. It was unexpected and utterly refreshing. There had been a sweetness in the way she’d settled herself over his lap, offering herself up to him.

He’d spanked Karina and felt more in those few moments than he had in the last several years.

“Derek? Are you listening to me?”

He’d kind of hoped if he ignored her she would go away—like a dinosaur that couldn’t see you if you didn’t move. It was a pipe dream so maybe honesty would work. “No, I’m not listening to you. I’m thinking about how close I came to getting inside Karina. It’s five years after our divorce and you’re still responsible for my not getting laid.”

He sat behind his desk with a long sigh.

Maia’s eyes narrowed. “Well, it looks like she left her mark on you. Jeez, Derek. What happened to your pants?”

He couldn’t help the smile that crossed his face. Actually it felt more like the goofy grin of a teenaged boy who finally got his hands on a boob. It was stupid. She wasn’t his type, wasn’t anything close to what he wanted in a permanent submissive much less another wife, and yet the thought of her biting that lip while she decided whether or not to submit to him got his blood hot all over again. “Don’t worry about that. Why are you here?”

Maia frowned and turned to look at the closed door as though she could see through it. “You’re really f*cking that low-grade PI? Derek, what the hell is wrong with you? If you’re that hard up, I will find you a date. We have some very submissive interns. I swear, there’s a pretty brunette who pees a little when you yell at her. I’m sure you could train that out of her. Her father is a circuit court judge. He can help you out enormously. She’s got nice tits and they’re totally real.”