Hudson(30)

I feigned innocence. “To get to the party?”

“To come looking for me.” She wet her lips and my gaze immediately rushed to her tongue as it flicked along its path.

Damn, she was going to make it difficult to keep focused, but I tried all the same. “I didn’t come looking for you. You summoned me.”

“That I did.” Her gaze flickered to my lips and back to my eyes. “And you came.”

“No, I didn’t. Not yet.” Flirting was easy with Christina Brooke. I’d have f**ked her in high school if it weren’t for the fact she’d had a steady boyfriend. The boyfriend hadn’t been a problem for me, but Christina had been loyal. She’d also been innocent then. The way her demeanor had loosened up since the summer before, I had to think college had stripped her of her naiveté.

And then all I could think about was stripping Christina of other things.

“Oh, such a naughty boy.” Her grin was as wicked as my thoughts. “I sure hope that you haven’t already chosen your target for when you do.”

“And why is that?”

“Because I’d like to volunteer.”

I stifled a laugh but kept my face straight. “That’s funny that you think you’d have any choice in the matter.” I placed a hand on the wall above her head and leaned in. “I mean, if you’re my target, I’d hit it, whether invited to or not.”




Her intake of breath was audible. “Damn. You just soaked my panties.”

I glanced down at her tight skirt, imagining what sort of panties she was wearing underneath. Then imagining beneath the panties. “Maybe you shouldn’t be wearing any.”

“That could be arranged.”

The banter was more than fun. It was getting me hot and making me forget my real purpose for approaching her. I dropped my hand from the wall and took a sip from the beer I was nursing, forcing my mind to switch gears. “Why are you alone anyway, Christina? I expected to see Celia hanging at your side.”

She gave a bored shrug. “She was here earlier.”

“She already left?” Shit. I’d been too cocky to think that she’d wait.

“She might be back later. She said she needed some recovery time.” Christina swept her hair off her shoulder.

I raised a brow. What did she need to recover from? My nerves stood on end, concerned that I’d misstepped somewhere along the way. Self-centered thinking, maybe, but it didn’t end my worry.

Christina answered my questioning expression. “She broke up with her boyfriend today.”

My heart pounded in my ears. Celia had broken up with Dirk. It couldn’t be that easy, could it? I’d been prepared for a confrontation. I’d been prepared to put on a good show of longing. The news was almost anti-climactic, but still very satisfying.

“Are you sure they really broke up?” I took another tug of my beer to hide my glee. That swallow finished off the drink.

“Yeah, I’m sure. She was here when he called.” Christina took the bottle from my hand and set it on the buffet behind her. She waited until she was facing me again before she continued. “I don’t think she was planning to dump him, exactly, but one minute she was saying hello and the next she was saying she was sorry it was over. Yeah, I eavesdropped, but she didn’t leave the room, so I figured fair game.”

“Damn.” As if I’d judge her for eavesdropping. I could kiss her for it. And I would kiss her—very soon. A victory kiss followed by a victory plunge.

But first, there were too many unknowns. Celia and Dirk may have had a fight that had nothing to do with me. I needed more information before I could truly celebrate success. And I needed my source to give it to me without noticing I was prying.

With my hands free of the bottle, I moved into Christina, pressing her further into the wall. My di**ck hardened at the full body contact. “Why did Celia do that? I thought she was really into her boyfriend.”

Christina chortled. “You did not. You thought she was into you.” So I had no need to cloak my interest after all. “And she is. She dumped him because of you.” She ground her pelvis against mine.

A surge of triumph washed through me. My pulse quickened both from the excitement of my achievement and from the knowledge that I was about to f**k and f**k hard. It was almost painful to draw out the celebration, but I also knew the pleasure of delayed gratification.

Christina traced a finger along my jaw. “Obviously, you don’t return the feeling.”

“And she thinks of you as a close friend, Christina. Obviously, you don’t return that feeling.” God, what despicable people we were. We deserved each other. At least for the night.

“Au contraire. I love her like a sister.” She trailed her hands up the sides of my fitted shirt, sending sparks of electricity thrumming through my veins. “But she is not Hudson Pierce material. She could never handle you.”

“And you think you can?” It was my turn to smirk. As if anyone could handle me. I was the one who handled people. Just like I was handling Christina Brooke. She may have thought she’d seduced me from across the room, but it was I who was in control. And when I took her, it would be on my terms.

But allowing her to believe she had the power was half the fun.

“I know I can.” Her chin jutted forward in a challenge. Or she was hinting that she wanted to be kissed—probably a combination of both.