Anyone But Rich (Anyone But..., #1)(14)

“You could say that.”

Nick nodded but didn’t look surprised. “I won’t keep you. It was good catching up. And, uh, tell Miranda I said hi. Iris too.”

“You got it.” I hoped I sounded light and cheerful, but it felt strange talking to any of the King brothers after so long. It was almost stranger with Nick because I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to feel. At least with Rich, I knew I was supposed to hate him.

Nick headed toward a group of men who were laughing about something and was welcomed with backslaps and manly shoulder squeezes. Something about sports and money made it okay for men to grope each other. I wondered distantly if there was some deeper truth buried in that but decided tonight wasn’t a night for my mind to wander. I had to stay sharp, especially if I was going to avoid Rich.

I was playing a dangerous game. Be seen, but don’t be seen. Be heard, but be silent. I would need to be like smoke between finger—

“Kira?” asked a man from behind me.

I turned and saw Cade, Rich’s twin brother. Back in high school, I’d always been able to tell them apart at a glance because Rich never had a hair out of place, but Cade’s hair was always a wild mess. Beyond that, the men were almost impossible to distinguish from one another. A woman was at his side. She was tall and stately, almost the spitting image of one of those imaginary princesses I’d expected to see.

She was watching me with a look I couldn’t place, and I felt immediately inferior, like she only had to stand there and be to make me feel girlish and awkward by comparison. Well, good for you, Cade.

I squeezed out a smile instead of the grimace that was trying to rise up. “Oh, hey. I’m kind of in the middle of something, so . . .”

“Yeah?” he asked with an arched eyebrow. “Me too, actually.”

The playful note in his voice tugged a reluctant smirk from me. “And what are you in the middle of, exactly?”

“Trying to get you to talk to me,” he said.

“Last time I checked, we were talking.”

“You’re right. I guess my work here is done.”

To my surprise, he and the woman turned and started walking away. I bit my lip as I watched them. I didn’t know what was making me feel so impulsive, but I felt compelled to say something.

“Hey!” I called out.

Cade paused and turned to look over his shoulder. The woman was watching me too with those icy eyes of hers.

“You never asked what I was in the middle of.”

He slowly walked back to me with his eyebrows raised expectantly. “Was it something exciting?”

“That depends,” I said. “Everybody else looks like they want to dance, but I was thinking about seeing how many sweets at that dessert table would fit into my stomach.”

“You had my attention, but now you have my interest.”

I laughed. Cade had always been mischievous. Maybe it was the glint in his eye, or maybe it was just the stuffy, boring party, but I felt impulsive. “I wonder how much we could take before someone tried to stop us.”

“Stella,” he said. “Do you mind giving us—”

“Privacy?” she asked. “Are you sure that’s the best idea?”

“I’m sure I don’t need your permission,” he said a little tightly.

Stella gave me one last look from head to toe and bit her lip. “Be careful with her.”

A minute later, I was surprised to find myself giggling diabolically as Cade and I sneaked out the back door, across the patio, and down a small hill with our arms full of desserts. Even though the food was free, a waiter had tried to stop us when he saw we intended to stuff half the buffet table on our plates. We ended up ditching the plates and taking anything we could carry in our arms when our plan of a smooth exit turned into a mad, messy dash.

I sank down into the grass and looked at the pile of desserts in my arms, as well as the multiple places I’d smeared cream, frosting, chocolate, and fruit fillings on my clothing. From the looks of it, Cade hadn’t fared much better.

“Looks like your dress is ruined,” he said.

I followed his eyes down to my dress, not failing to notice how close his gaze was to my chest. I looked back up at him, hating how the sight of his eyes and cocky mouth in the moonlight were enough to rob me of my breath. He looked so much like Rich, which I knew was stupidly obvious, but even his expression reminded me of Rich. “It’s fine. I have worn this thing like three times in five years. My dad doesn’t really drag us along to his functions as often these days. I guess there’s no legitimate threats to his seat as mayor, so he’s getting lazy about it.”

“That’s right,” Cade said. “You’re the mayor’s daughter. Somehow I’d forgotten that.” He grinned a little wolfishly. “Some guys are into that sort of thing, you know. I bet the locals are crazy about you.”

I laughed. I wasn’t sure how to respond to that, so I decided to pop a chocolate tart in my mouth. Whoever catered this party was a wizard with sweets. I closed my eyes and groaned in satisfaction. “If this is what being rich tastes like, sign me up.”

“Somehow you don’t strike me as the kind of girl who chases after money.”

I licked my fingers clean and shrugged. “I’m happy if I have enough money to get pizza once a week, go to the movies every once in a while, and buy materials for my . . .” I coughed and cleared my throat suddenly, realizing how pathetic what I was about to say was going to sound. “Wow, it’s a little chilly out tonight.”