The Peer and the Puppet (When Rivals Play, #1) (112)

I wasn’t sure how much time had passed lying in the darkness. An hour? Maybe two? He had grown soft inside me, and when I shifted my hips, I could feel his cock stirring.

“Don’t. You’ll be sore tomorrow.”

“I don’t mind.”

He shook his head. “I don’t think I can be gentle.”

“Take what’s yours.” I worked my hips, bringing his cock back to life. “What’s always been yours. We can worry about the consequences later.”




I had trouble peeling my eyes open hours later and coupled with the ache between my legs, I never wanted to leave this bed. At least I’m clean. I felt my skin heat as I recalled the gentle yet thorough way he’d cleaned me after I finally threw in the towel. Of course, I had been the first to do so. We had gone at it with little breaks in between until just before dawn. He almost seemed determined not to waste a single chance to be inside of me.

His side of the bed was empty and cold, so I checked the nightstand for a note and found none. My backpack containing my phone, keys, wallet, and change of clothes was probably still in Tyra’s car. With no other options, I decided to take a much-needed hot shower and wait for Ever to return.

My jaw dropped at first glance of my naked body in the mirror. I looked as if I’d been fighting all night rather than making love. He’d left evidence of passion on my neck, breasts, and thighs. My clothes would hide most of them, but the two on my neck wouldn’t be as easy to conceal, so I decided to ditch my usual ponytail and wear my hair down. Twenty minutes later, I emerged from the en suite and found Ever sitting on the edge of the bed, looking down at his phone. It wasn’t until I inched closer that I realized he was actually fiddling around on my phone.

“What are you doing?”

Not realizing I was standing there, his head snapped around in surprise. It made me wonder what on my phone had so successfully captured his focus.

“I brought your bag up,” he said rather than answering.

I was too thrown off by his flat tone to make a big deal about it.

“Is everything okay?”

Ignoring my question, he picked up my backpack from the floor and dropped it in front of me. “Get dressed.”

“Are you still upset with me or something? I thought after last night—”

“You thought spreading your legs for me would make me forget what you did?”

“But you—”

“I took what you freely offered. You were eager to please, and I needed to relieve some stress. Turns out you’re no different than the girls who bat their eyes my way, hoping to get fucked.”

I was too shocked by his cold demeanor to lash out the way I should. Last night, he gave as much as he took. I could still hear him uttering those three words. “Ever, I’m sorry for hurting you.”

“Doesn’t change that you did.”

“I see. And when you said you loved me?”

He winced, and if I had blinked, I would have missed it. He then pocketed his phone and retrieved his keys from the nightstand. “We should go. Tyra and Vaughn took off thirty minutes ago, and Jamie’s waiting for us downstairs.”

When he turned his back and crossed the room, I took a deep breath and called his name. The sound was barely a whisper, but he heard. “If you don’t apologize and hold me right now, we’re done.”

I hated how small I sounded.

I should have been stronger. More confident.

Maybe then he wouldn’t have walked out the door.





WE RETURNED HOME THAT MORNING, and I was surprised when Thomas greeted us at the door with a threat and a vicious scowl.

“I’ll have the entire police force combing the streets the next time you three stay out overnight without my knowledge.”

“Sorry, Unc. We lost track of time.”

“For nine hours?” Our curfews had been set at ten on school nights and midnight on the weekends, but Thomas was rarely around to enforce his rules, and the house staff kept their heads down. Ever offered nothing when his father looked to him for an explanation. He’d never been the type to offer excuses—or apologize—when he was wrong, so I wasn’t surprised by his silence. Neither was Thomas, apparently, when he dismissed him a moment later.

“Four, I’d like to speak with you,” Thomas hailed when I started for the stairs. Even though I dared not look at him directly, I was aware of Ever’s sudden hesitation to leave. I wasn’t the only one to notice Ever lingering. “Did you need something, son?”

Unwillingly, my eyes fell on him and found him watching me with a white-knuckled grip on the banister.

“I got what I needed.”

His meaning wasn’t lost on me. Looking away before either of them noticed the hurt his words created, I listened to Ever’s footsteps fade and to Thomas’s sigh.

“If he’s giving you trouble, you’ll let me know, won’t you? I know my son can be cold and aloof…even with me.” The concern he displayed was genuine, and I admitted for the first time that Thomas was a good man, but I still couldn’t trust him with the truth.

“Thanks, but I can handle your son.” I pushed my hair behind my ear, wishing for a do-over of the last twenty-four hours. Then again, if I could alter time, I would go back a year, instead.