Cards of Love: The Devil (Devil's Playground #1)(19)
It’s gorgeous and sexy. But far too fancy for my usual movie nights.
My heart drops when I uncover a pair of black strappy shoes under another layer of tissue paper and put the pieces together.
He knows I can’t go there tonight. I don’t know why he bothered going through the trouble of doing all this in the first place. All it does is remind me how much of a freak I am.
I go to open the second box next, hoping to find a note saying not to worry about the party because we’ll have our own masquerade ball at home—but it instructs me to open the envelope first, so I do.
To say I’m confused would be an understatement because when I look inside all I see is a tiny scrap of black lace and a single string of pearls.
I swallow hard when I realize it’s a G-string made of pearls…along with a note.
Wear these for me tonight.
P.S: Don’t chicken out. Open the last box.
My heart rate accelerates. It’s such a bittersweet feeling wanting something so much…but knowing you can never have it because your own mind won’t let you.
I love Cain, but I’m not strong like he is. I can’t walk into a room full of people who hate my existence. I can’t stand there and smile while they all whisper horrible and untrue things about me. I’ll run out in tears and embarrass myself even more.
My stomach churns with an evil lurch when I take the top off the last box and see a beautiful masquerade mask that matches my dress, along with another note.
We all hide behind a mask, Eden.
Show them yours and I’ll take off mine tonight.
Tears prickle my eyes because he’s not playing fair. He knows I’m not strong enough to do this.
Wiping my cheeks, I grab my phone and click open the Temptation app.
AngelBaby123: This isn’t fair.
AngelBaby123: I can’t do this.
Devil: Yes, you can.
AngelBaby123: I can’t turn my illness on and off like a lightbulb. It doesn’t work like that.
Devil: What’s your worst fear?
AngelBaby123: What?
Devil: What scares you the most about going to the party?
AngelBaby123: The people. I’m afraid they’ll all laugh and say cruel things because of who I am. What they think I am…thanks to the rumors.
Devil: What if you weren’t Eden tonight?
AngelBaby123: A fancy dress and a mask doesn’t change who I am. Everybody will know.
Devil: Put the mask on.
AngelBaby123: This is stupid.
Despite myself, I do what he says anyway.
AngelBaby123: It’s on.
Devil: Good girl. Now look in the mirror.
I pad over to my vanity and sit.
AngelBaby123: Okay.
Devil: What do you see? Not what you think you see, but what you actually see staring back at you?
AngelBaby123: A girl with a mask on her face.
Devil: Tell me who she is.
AngelBaby123: Is this a trick question?
Devil: No. Who is the girl you’re looking at? Who do you want her to be tonight?
AngelBaby123: I’m not sure I know how to answer that.
Devil: Yes, you do.
I close my eyes. I don’t need to look in the mirror to see everything I wish I was. It’s already burned into my heart.
AngelBaby123: I want her to be brave.
Devil: She’s very brave. She knows what she wants and she’s not afraid to go after it.
AngelBaby123: I want her to be beautiful.
Devil: She’s the most beautiful woman in a room.
AngelBaby123: I want her to be yours.
Devil: Then meet me tonight. I’ll send a driver to pick you up in a few hours.
Before I can protest, his username turns gray.
Chapter 11
Cain
Past…
“Are you going to the spring fling?” Julia Brown asks, her voice barely above a whisper.
Peeling my gaze away from the board full of trigonometry questions, I look at her. “I don’t know. Haven’t really thought about it.”
The pen she’s chewing on like a rabid animal nearly snaps. “Gosh, I’m so dumb.”
Julia’s a weird girl.
However, she’s also a smart girl—her SAT scores were off the charts. And now that I’m looking at her for more than a second, I realize she’s kind of pretty. Flat chested and a little chubby…but cute. And she’s without a doubt someone my father would approve of as long as I keep those pens far away.
Too bad I’m not even remotely attracted to her.
Which means she’s ideal for me. Way better than Katrina who had a face and body that appealed to me and my cock.
Releasing a sigh, I mull over the idea of dating Julia.
I’m not proud of myself for categorizing girls based on what they can do for me, but it’s been instilled in me since I was a kid. My father told me early on that I had a choice to make. If I pursued politics, I’d have to marry a girl who was good for me on paper but had no romantic or sexual feelings for. If not—I could be a dentist who goes home to the woman he loves with all his heart and soul night after night.