Mistaken by Fate(7)

“That’s my cue to leave.” She pushed to her feet, looking as shaky as a newborn giraffe.

“For fuck’s sake, sit your ass down before you fall down.” He didn’t wait for permission to grab the comforter off the bed and wrap it around her shoulders. She glared at him, but she let him lead her back to the bed to sit.

“Stop touching me.”

“It’s called aftercare, baby. Get used to it.” He didn’t pull her into his arms because she looked like she’d take off his hand if he tried, but he did tuck the blanket more firmly around her.

“I know what aftercare is.”

“Then you know every sub gets it after a scene.” They hadn’t gone anywhere near as far as he’d planned, but between the bondage and orgasm, she needed some time to find her feet—and he was a bastard for hoping it took her a while to recover, because he was the cause of her weak knees.

Even as the thought crossed his mind, she shrugged out of the blanket. “I’m okay.”

“Ridley—”

“I’m fine.” She didn’t look fine, but this time, when she stood, she didn’t shake. She was fucking magnificent, standing there naked with her hair wild and her body still flushed from what he’d been doing to it. Even the fury in her dark eyes did nothing to check his need. She pulled her dress over her head, very pointedly not looking at him.

He followed her to the door, still watching her stride. They hadn’t gotten far, but that didn’t change the fact that she’d been deep in submission. He’d have to be a bastard and a half to let her walk out of here without making sure she was okay. “Let me catch you a cab.”

“That’s not necessary.”

“Maybe not, but I’m going to do it anyway.” He kept pace with her down the hall, part of him disappointed she didn’t so much as miss a step. She was fine. She didn’t need him—didn’t want him.

No, she wanted his fucking twin.

The elevator doors opened and she stepped in, turning neatly to face him. “Newsflash, Garrett, since you’ve seemed to forgotten—you don’t get to decide who I’m with. You lost that luxury eight years ago when you left me.”

He’d done it on purpose, but he wasn’t about to tell her that. Not now. Not ever. Instead Garrett fell back on the same response he’d given her every other time this had come up. “We were never together, baby. You might have held a torch for me, but—”

She laughed, the sound harsh. “Use whatever excuse you have to so that you can sleep at night, but Will never tried to drive me away. He’s been here the entire time and there’s not a damn thing you can say to convince me that he’s not the right one for me.” The doors started to close. “So have a nice life and maybe I’ll see you again when you come around for your next yearly visit.”

Then she was gone, and he was left staring at a distorted reflection of himself in the elevator doors. As tempting as it was to chase her down and make sure she got home safely, he knew himself well enough to see it for the excuse it was. He didn’t want to see Ridley walk out of his life again.

He was a goddamned fool.





Chapter Three

Ridley rushed out of Serve so fast, she was half surprised her head didn’t spin on her shoulders. She’d seen Nolan, but talking to him now was a mistake and a half. Because she wanted to yell at him, to rage that he’d let Garrett in with her when it should have been Will. But it wasn’t Nolan’s fault they were identical twins, and she’d been banking on Garrett still being out of town.

It was just her luck that she chose his one weekend home to finally make her move on his twin. Fate had always had a strange sense of humor when it came to timing and that man. It was just plain wrong.

She hailed a cab and climbed into the backseat, the hair standing up on the back of her neck. It didn’t make sense for her to be afraid Garrett would chase her down. He wouldn’t. She knew that better than most.

That didn’t mean she was going to stick around, though.

It was only when the vehicle lurched into motion that she let herself really think about what had just happened. She dropped her head into her hands and groaned. All those feelings she’d fought long and hard to put behind her had come rushing back at the first touch of his hand, and she’d been so damn glad because she thought it meant she was moving on with someone else.

She really should have known better.

It was an effort to keep from beating her head against the back of the seat in front of her. Better to cling to the anger and frustration than to really let it sink in that Garrett still affected her so deeply, even after eight years. Her body tingled with residual pleasure from that orgasm—the best one she’d had in years. Even after he’d pulled away, a part of her had wanted him to keep going, to follow through on the promise that had been thick in his voice before the blindfold came off. A small, treacherous part of her wished the blindfold hadn’t come off at all, that she was still in that room, tied up and helpless while he drove her out of her mind with pleasure again and again.