The Seduction Game

Chapter Twenty


When Kate awoke, Will was gone, but not absent. She could see his dent still in the bedsheets next to her, smell his scent in the air, and a little note stuck to the lamp on the bedside table. Vaguely she remembered him telling her—as she had drifted off to sleep in the very early hours—that he had to head to the office first thing, that he had something to sort out, something he wished he could put off but it was even more necessary than ever now. He’d be back soon enough though, she was sure, and though she would have liked to wake up with him next to her, she figured there’d be plenty of opportunities in the future. And besides, in the meantime, she could take a moment to deal with the emotions that were fizzling in her gut.

Emotions that she could put no names to, but were getting stronger by the freaking minute.

Smiling, Kate stretched out, enjoying the feel of the cool sheets on top of her, the softness of the pillow underneath. Will’s bed was significantly bigger than hers. Well, it was an actual bed, rather than a pullout sofa, and it had way less lumps. She couldn’t deny how comfortable it was or how good it had felt to sleep next to him.

Another smile and she hunkered down into the bed, replaying the feel of Will’s hard body surrounding hers. How, even though it was so hot, she had never felt like she needed space from him. She had felt comfortable and cherished.

It was weird.

But it did not feel wrong. It felt oddly right. And he’d been so damn tender. So careful and so considerate. Especially during round two, which had been even better than round one, which she hadn’t thought possible.

Would it be too corny to say it was life changing? Kate didn’t know, but something was different, prodding away at her, making everything take on a certain glow.

She sat up, not believing how goofy she was being, grabbed the note, confirmed what she’d thought, popped her glasses on, and jumped out of bed. Will’s tee was on the arm of the winged chair next to his bathroom and she shrugged it on before making her way through to the kitchen. The tiles were wondrously cool beneath her feet and she paused for just a moment at the room-length window to admire the view. The harbor stretched out before her, the water glinting in the sunshine. Boats were leaving their moorings, others getting ready to, and the whole area was bustling with activity. It was alive. Exactly how she felt.

Her canvas tote was exactly where she had left it and after a long drink of water, it only took a moment for Kate to root around inside before she found the contract. It was the one Chris had given her all those months ago. She’d wanted to rip it up but Meg had urged her to store it away with all the rest of the papers and letters Will’s people had given or sent. Who knows when you might need them as evidence, Meg had insisted.

Meg was right.

Kate needed them now.

The contract listed the address of Will’s headquarters, not even a twenty minute bus ride away, and she stared at it for a few minutes, trying to decide what to do. A phone rang, pulling her out of her wonderings. Kate jumped up and zeroed in on the handset. It went straight to the answering machine and her heart thudded when Will’s voice rang out, asking the caller to leave a message.

“Will, it’s me, Jen,” the caller said. “You rushed off really quickly, what’s going on? Everything okay with Kate? I’ll try your cell but if you get this before, then give me a call back. Love ya.”

His sister. And he’d spoken about her. Kate’s heart thudded some more. She tightened her grip on the contract, and then she nodded, her mind made up. She would go to see him. She would let him know what she had decided. A decision it seemed that had been made the moment she’d awoken.

“Time to get this over with,” she said, her voice ringing around the space. “To end it once and for all.” Only it was not really an ending, was it? It was an entirely new beginning because she was going to sell. She was going to hand K.I.T. over to Will. And it wasn’t just the fact that they had slept together. Or the fact that she was falling for him in a really big way. Though obviously those factors counted. Their relationship, whatever it might be, could hardly flourish with The Risings hanging over their heads. No, it was because Will was nothing like she had imagined him to be. He was sweet and good-natured, passionate and funny. He was, as Meg had said two weeks ago, awesome.

She grinned—seemed like that grin was not going to leave anytime soon—as she tapped her Android and called up Meg’s number, typing in a text as speedily as possible.

I’m selling.

The text reply came not thirty seconds later. Serious?

Yep.

Because you smexied him? You did, didn’t you? Dear Lor’ tell me you did.

We did!

Her phone vibrated a moment later and Kate answered the call. “Hey.”

“I want all of the details and I want them now,” Meg screeched.

Kate laughed. “I’m not giving you details.”

Meg groaned. “Why not? You’re no fun.”

“Because it’s personal.”

“Well, clearly it was good enough,” Meg said, the question obvious. “Because he’s got you ready and willing to sell. Sex for property. Who’d have thought?”

“You know that’s not why I’m doing it.”

“Then why?”

“It’s because it’s the right thing to do,” Kate said, and it was. After all this time, she’d finally realized that holding out was stupid. That she was holding on to something that didn’t really exist. When her parents had died she’d been bereft, feeling like there was nothing left, and that was no wonder. Having no other family and being alone in the world, and being the sort of person who was not naturally social was bound to make her feel that way. But the building was just a building. Kate understood that now. It was not a physical representation of her parents. It was not the only security she had. There was her job, there was Meg, and now there was Will.

She didn’t have to be alone anymore.

She could take a chance. Take a risk. Change isn’t always a bad thing.

“I’ve been telling you that for weeks,” Meg was saying now. “Weeks and weeks I’ve been extolling the virtues of moving, but nooo, you only listen when someone as hot as Will tells you.”

“I just needed a bit of time to get there on my own.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Well, wait till you see our new place. You’ll be glad I held out. Now I gotta go. I want to tell him as soon as possible. The sooner we get The Risings out of the way, the sooner we can move on.”

“With the smexies?”

“With us.”

“Then…” Meg paused. “You think this might be more than just a flaming affair?”

“I don’t know,” Kate said slowly. “I just don’t know. But the way he was last night. The way it felt being with him…Meg, he was so considerate. So sweet. He made me feel cherished.”

“He’s smitten,” Meg declared. “And why wouldn’t he be?”

“I hope you’re right. I really do. I’m pretty smitten myself.”

Meg sighed. “I am so damn happy for you, Katie. It’s like a freaking fairytale or something.”

“Better. It’s real life.”

Twenty minutes later and the excitement that had propelled Kate out of Will’s apartment was dampened just a bit by the fact that it seemed the bus was going to take forever to arrive and worse, the bus stop didn’t even have a shelter to hide under. Kate baked in the early morning heat, alternating between wishing she’d packed a bottle of water in her canvas bag, and regretting the impulse to wear jeans. But they were cute, and more than once she’d seen Will giving her that look of his when she’d worn them. And so, faced with the skinnies she’d stashed in her tote or the dress she’d worn yesterday, vanity had kicked in and Kate had found herself flat on his bed shimmying them up her thighs and taking a deep breath to get them buttoned up.