Fever

This guy was the one she’d caught watching her when she’d ventured out to bus the tables. Twice. She’d felt his gaze on her. Burning a path over her skin until she’d shivered with the intensity. Where Ash was lighter, carefree, that whole package of wealthy and I know it and I don’t gotta do nothing except what I wanna, this man was . . . He was Ash’s polar opposite.

Intense wasn’t the right word. It didn’t even come close to describing him. He looked like a complete badass, and she knew badasses. She had plenty of experience with men on the street and from the streets, and she had the sudden thought that she’d rather take her chances with the devil she knew rather than this man staring holes through her.

Dark eyes, dark hair. Really great hair. It was mussed and unruly and longish. A lock fell over his forehead and she imagined him pushing it impatiently back without care over whether it messed it up more. It hung down his collar, giving him an untamed, wild look that probably made women want to try to tame him. Tanned skin. Not the fake tan some of the metrosexual pretty boys went for. There was a ruggedness to him even as he screamed wealth and polish like Ash did. It was just a different kind of polish.

Where Ash wore his wealth like a skin, like he’d always known it, this other guy looked like he’d accumulated his wealth later in life and wasn’t yet as comfortable in it as Ash was.

It was a ridiculous assessment, but there it was. There was something dangerous about this other man. Something that made her stand up and take notice.

“Jace,” Ash returned mildly. “Meet Bethany.”

Oh shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.

This was the threesome guy? Ash’s best friend? A man involved in the outrageous proposition Ash had just given her?

Jace’s lips tightened and he stalked forward. Bethany instinctively backed away.

“You’re scaring her,” Ash said, a reprimand in his tone.

To Bethany’s surprise, Jace pulled up short, but he was still glaring holes in Ash. At least it wasn’t her he was glaring at.

“I told you not to do this,” Jace said in a quiet, angry voice.

“Yeah, well, I didn’t listen.”

Bethany was utterly confused. But then Jace turned to her and there was something in his gaze that caught her breath.

Interest.

Not just a look like a man gave a woman when he wanted to fuck her. It was something different and she couldn’t put her finger on it. But then, he’d watched her all night. She knew that because she’d watched him too.

“I’m sorry,” Jace began.

“Does this offer come with dinner?” she blurted.

She was instantly mortified, but she also knew in that one moment when he looked at her, that she didn’t want him to walk away. Not tonight. Tonight, she wanted one night in the sun. Where it was warm and bad things didn’t happen. She wanted one night to forget her life, Jack and all the problems that came with both.

This man could give her that. She was absolutely positive on that count. And if he came with Ash, she’d just have to take that too.

She did not want to walk out of this hotel into the cold and back to what awaited her.

“What?”

Jace stared at her like she’d grown two heads. His brows drew together and his gaze became even more piercing, like he was peeling her from the inside out.

She gestured toward Ash. “He said you two wanted a threesome. I’m asking if the offer comes with dinner.”

“Well, yeah,” Ash said, his tone suggesting he was insulted.

“Okay then,” she said before she could change her mind.

She knew it was stupid. She knew it was one of the most stupid things she’d ever done, but she wasn’t going back.

“I have to finish here first,” she said while Jace just stood there, silent and brooding, his gaze never leaving her even once. Not to look at Ash. Not to look away. Fixed on her.

“No you don’t,” Ash said. “You can cut out at any time.”

She shook her head. “I get the second half of my pay when I’m done. I have to finish.”

“Party’s about to break up. Gabe’s not going to remain out on a fucking dance floor when what he really wants is Mia at home in his bed,” Ash said. “I’ll cover your second half.”

Bethany went cold and she took a step back, ice forming over her face. Then she shook her head. “I changed my mind.”

“What the fuck?” Ash demanded.

And still Jace stood there. Silent and forbidding, watching her the entire time. It was unnerving and suddenly that alley door was looking better all the time.

“I’m not for sale,” she said in a low voice. “I get that I asked for dinner. I shouldn’t have. You were offering sex. But I won’t be paid for it.”

Pain crept over her. Distant memories, not ebbing. Choices. Consequences. It all drifted together until it was a murky, impenetrable darkness surrounding her. One day. Just one day in the sun. But the sun wasn’t for her. It never had been.

A low, muttered curse tore from Jace’s lips. The first sound he’d made in forever. Then that mouth tightened. He was pissed.

His gaze skated sideways at Ash and it was then she realized he was pissed at Ash. Really pissed.

“I told you not to do this,” Jace ground out. “Fuck it, man. You should have listened to me.”

This was getting worse. Evidently Ash wanted some action. Jace did not. Ash wanted to approach her. Jace did not. Could this get any more humiliating?

“I’ve got to get back to work,” she said, hastily backing away until her escape route to the door leading back into the ballroom was secure.

And just as quickly, Jace was there, sliding over, a barrier to her freedom. He was so close she could smell him, could feel his heat wrapping around her and it felt so damn good that she wanted to do something really stupid and lean into him. Just so she could feel it brush over her skin.

Then his fingers slid underneath her chin, a touch so gentle she couldn’t help but respond, lifting with him so that her gaze met his.

“You finish work. We’ll wait. Then we’ll have dinner. Anything in particular you like? And do you want to go out or eat in the hotel room?”

The questions were softly worded. They sounded intimate. He never looked at Ash once. His stare was solidly fixed on her and she was too mesmerized to look away. And she promptly forgot that she’d changed her mind about sleeping with them.

Jerking herself from the intensity of the moment, she glanced down, taking in her clothing. There was no going home and changing. No home. No clothes. Certainly nothing she could wear to any place these two would set foot in.

She cleared her throat. “Hotel is fine, and I don’t care. If it’s hot and tastes good, I’ll eat it. Nothing too fancy. In fact, what I really want is a burger. And fries.”

She’d kill for both right now.

“And orange juice,” she finished in a rush.

Amusement glimmered on Ash’s lips but Jace was still utterly serious.

“Hamburger. Fries. Orange juice. I think I can handle that,” Jace said. Then he checked his watch. “People will be cleared out in fifteen. How much time you need to finish?”

She blinked. “Uh, not everyone will clear out in fifteen minutes. I mean even if the guests of honor leave, people always hang out afterward. Especially when there’s food and drink.”

He cut her off before she could say more.

“Fifteen minutes, Bethany. They’ll be gone.”

It was a promise. It wasn’t speculation on his part.

“How much time you need?” he asked impatiently.

“Thirty minutes maybe?” she guessed.

He touched her again, his fingers gliding over her cheek and up to her temple, where he toyed with loose tendrils that had fallen from her clip.

“Then we’ll see you in thirty minutes.”





chapter three





Twenty-five minutes was how much time it took for her to realize she was out of her mind. Twenty-five minutes to know she’d made a huge mistake.

Bethany washed her hands and then checked her pocket again to feel the folded bills. The kitchen had died down and most of the staff had left except for those remaining behind on clean-up duty. That wasn’t her gig, thankfully. Her job was done.

She hesitated as she glanced between the door leading to the alley and the door that led back to Ash and Jace.

Jace hadn’t lied. The ballroom had cleared in fifteen minutes. She wasn’t sure how he’d managed to pull that one off, but then he seemed the type of man who always got what he wanted.

Now all that was between her and a night of hot sex and good food was that door.

The door to the alley swung open as one of the guys hauled a sack of garbage out to the trash bin. A rush of cold air blew in, penetrating Bethany to the bone. She shivered as chill bumps raced across her arms.

That was her other option. Cold. Loneliness. Another night of uncertainty.

Put that way, door number two seemed like the only logical choice.

She pushed off the edge of the counter she was leaning against and walked toward the exit. As she reached it, she took in a deep breath and let herself out.

Jace stood there waiting, hands in his pockets, leaning one shoulder against the wall. His gaze found her and penetrated as swiftly as the cold air had a moment earlier. Only this time, instead of a bone-deep chill, heat spread like wildfire through her veins.

“You ready?”

Even before she responded, he moved, pushing off the wall and then he was next to her, his hand sliding around her nape, his thumb brushing over the soft skin right at her hairline.

Damn but the man’s touch was lethal.

“Ash is in the room taking care of dinner.”

She glanced up at Jace, for the first time directly meeting his gaze. “So we’re staying here?”

A smile twitched the corners of his mouth. “I own the hotel. Seems as good a place as any to stay for the night.”

He owned the hotel. Okay, not that she didn’t know he and Ash were stratospherically out of her league, but hearing those words, I own the hotel, just reinforced that she should have chosen the cold over temporary warmth.

“Obviously I didn’t prepare for this,” she murmured as they headed toward the elevators. “I don’t have any clothes or . . . stuff.”

She wanted to laugh because the entire conversation was absurd. Even if she’d known, she wouldn’t have been prepared because she didn’t have stuff. She had nothing except the hope of the next day being better than the last.

Again, Jace’s mouth twitched and his eyes gleamed as he ushered her into the waiting elevator.

“You won’t need clothes. Or . . . stuff.”

Her hands trembled and her knees shook. This was her last chance to back out. He leaned forward to punch the button to the top floor. The door was still open. It would be easy to walk out, say she’d changed her mind and slip into the cold night, embracing what was real.

Jace suddenly looked at her, his gaze seeking, almost as if she’d broadcast her thoughts in real time. He stared at her a long moment, his finger pressed against the button to the floor. When she made no move, he straightened and leaned against the far wall, still studying her as the doors closed.

“You’re nervous,” he said, still staring at her.

She gave him a duh look and he smiled again. He had a killer smile. It wasn’t easy and charming like Ash’s. Smiling seemed to come natural to Ash, like it was in his makeup to be this easygoing, flirtatious guy who women fell all over themselves for. Bethany didn’t get the impression that Jace was much of a smiler. He seemed way more serious than Ash. And if she was honest, that brooding, badass persona hit every single one of her buttons. Because this was a man she’d feel safe with for the night. He was a man a woman felt very secure around.

“Nothing to be nervous about,” he murmured as the elevator stopped.

As she started to step off, he put his arm out to stop her and then he pulled her into his arms. She landed against his chest and his head was angled so their mouths were close. So close she could feel the harsh exhalation of his breath.

“Bethany, there’s nothing to be nervous about,” he said again, that mouth hovering so temptingly over hers.

He trailed a finger down her cheek to the corner of her mouth just as the elevator started to squawk because the doors had been left open for so long. He ignored it, focused on her, watching and absorbing like he could reach into her thoughts. Or like he wanted to, at least.

“I’m okay,” she whispered.

And then he smiled. Really smiled. Not one of those twitch movements where it looked like he was about to smile or that he was fighting it. A full-on, teeth-flashing smile. And man, did he have beautiful teeth. Perfectly straight. Ultrawhite. Million-dollar smile. But then, everything about him was aces . . . right down to his shoes.

So far out of her league. So far it wasn’t even funny.

Visions of Pretty Woman danced in her head. Cinderella. A one-night fairy tale. Only she knew better than to ever dream of happy endings. Fairy tales were nice to read. They were nice to think about. But they weren’t remotely realistic. Fairy tales didn’t happen to girls like Bethany.

So she’d take her one night and tomorrow she’d go back to doing what she did best. Living one day at a time, taking it as it came. Surviving.

He gestured for her to proceed from the elevator, and as soon as she stepped out, he fell into step beside her, his arm wrapping securely around her waist. It felt good. Too good. It was too easy to get all wrapped up in the fantasy. This man didn’t give a damn about her. He wanted to get laid. She wanted warmth and food and a means of forgetting her shitty existence. That was an arrangement she could deal with.

A moment later, he opened the door to a sprawling suite. She hesitated just inside the door as she saw Ash setting out plates of food onto the polished dining table. There were three places set and it was obvious she was in between them. Her glass of orange juice was sitting by a plate with a burger and fries and on either side were plates with steaks.

The smell wafted to her and her stomach immediately clenched. She was starving and she’d never smelled anything so good in her life.

Ash turned and gave her that lazy smile, his eyes glowing with charm.

“You ready to eat?” Ash asked.

Oh yeah. She was ready to eat. It was all she could do to calmly nod and not throw herself at the table and start tearing into that burger.

Jace put his hand to her back and guided her toward the table. Clenching her fingers to disguise the shaking, she took her seat and then pushed up to the table and the delectable plate sitting before her. Still, she picked up the glass in a casual manner, like she wasn’t starving and could hardly wait to dig into her food. She sipped at the juice but put it back when it hit her empty stomach hard.

Maybe food first was a better option.

Burger, fries and even orange juice was a luxury—one she was going to enjoy every second of.

As Jace and Ash took their seats on either side of her, she nabbed a fry, dragged it through the little container of ketchup sitting next to her plate and then slipped it into her mouth.

“You sure you don’t want some steak?” Ash asked, nodding downward at his plate.

As she stared at the succulent piece of beef on his plate, her mouth watered. And the smell. God that delicious smell was killing her.

“Uhm,” she began.

Without another word, Ash cut a section of his steak and then forked it onto her plate. It was a little pinker than she liked, but what did she care? It didn’t even matter to her what it tasted like. It was food.

“Thanks,” she murmured.

She was aware of Jace’s gaze the entire time she ate and so she very carefully restrained herself, making sure she took her time and didn’t seem too eager. She chewed each bite carefully. Sipped at her juice and was grateful when she finished that Ash produced more.

She wanted to eat all of it, but her stomach rebelled. She had gone too long without enough and she was used to surviving on far less. Her stomach refused to take another bite when she was barely half done with the burger and only a few bites into the steak.

“You aren’t eating much,” Jace observed when she pushed her plate back.

“I snacked on party food earlier,” she lied. “It was really great, though. Thank you.”

He studied her a long moment and she fidgeted uncomfortably. He didn’t look as though he believed her, but he didn’t push the issue. And why should he care if she ate or not? She was here because they wanted sex. They wanted to scratch an itch, though why with her, she’d never comprehend. She highly doubted they had any problem getting any woman they wanted in bed, which meant they could be as choosy as they damn well wanted to be.

“Few things you should know,” Ash spoke up.

Her gaze drifted to his and he’d lost that playful, flirty look. His eyes were serious. Brimming with hotness that took her breath away. In that moment he looked just like Jace did. A hell of a lot more brooding and . . . badass. Which was kind of weird considering the word badass would have never come up in one of her descriptions of Ash.

“We call the shots in the bedroom. What we say goes. We’ll take care of you. We’ll see to your needs. We’ll make damn sure it’s good for you. But we’re in control. If you have a problem with that, you need to say so now before we get into this.”

A heady thrill rolled right through her body. Was he kidding? She fought her overpowering response to his statement and forced herself to be smart about this. Yeah, being taken care of for the night was not a turn-off. Giving up power and control for one night where she didn’t have to think, didn’t have to do, didn’t have to do anything but feel? Not a deterrent.

But she needed to know exactly what this kind of a deal entailed and how deep their kink ran.

“I think that depends on what you want,” she said in a low voice. “I’m not into anything that even comes close to playing with my life.”

Jace’s brow furrowed and he shot Ash a quelling look. “You’ve scared the shit out of her now, man. I told you to chill and let me handle this.”

“She deserves to know what she’s getting into,” Ash said calmly. “I didn’t lie to her and I won’t mislead her.”

“Appreciate that,” Bethany said dryly.

Jace reached for her hand, curling his fingers around hers. It was . . . sweet. And strangely not in keeping with his badass look and those brooding stares he’d sent her way. This was a guy she would have expected Ash’s speech to come from. For him to lay down the law to her and tell her it was his way or the highway.

“We won’t hurt you, Bethany. What Ash means is that we like control. We like . . . submission. Not saying tonight has to be all about that. Just shooting you straight.”

“I get it,” she said softly.

“And?” Jace prompted.

“And what?”

“You good with that? Can you handle it?”

She took a deep breath and nodded. “I’m good with it.”

“Thank fuck,” Ash muttered. “Now if we’re done with all the talking, can we get to the naked part?”

“Ash.”

Jace said his friend’s name like a warning. Then he turned back to Bethany, his hand still snugly circled around hers.

“Go into the bedroom. You can use the bathroom to get comfortable, do whatever you need to do. Undress and wait for us on the bed.”

The soft words whispered over her skin, making her entire body hum with arousal. The man was positively lethal.

Wordlessly, she found herself obeying his soft command and rising from her