Maybe. But I had no intention of losing sight of my end game. I’d come to Chicago to find Amy, and right now, Tyler Sharp and Destiny were my best starting point.
Bottom line—I was going to stay. I was going to walk through that door and back into that party, and I was going to find him. I knew it, and I could tell by the way that Tyler had looked at me that he’d known it, too.
The party was still going strong when I stepped back into the room. That made sense, I supposed, considering I’d been away less than half an hour. But in that time the world had shifted, and it seemed anticlimactic to go back into the room and have everything be exactly the same.
Then I saw Tyler across the restaurant, saw him looking at me. Saw the heat in his eyes.
No, I thought. Nothing is the same at all.
I considered playing it coy, but I wasn’t certain he’d stand for it. More, I didn’t want to. He’d lobbed the ball soundly into my court. Now it was my turn to return it.
I’d checked my purse with the attendant hired to work the party, so I borrowed a pen from the bartender, then scribbled a note on a napkin. I folded it, then called over one of the waitresses and gave it to her. “Just make sure he’s the one who gets it,” I said, pointing to Tyler.
She flashed a conspiratorial grin. “You got it. Good luck.”
“Passing notes in class?” Kat asked, walking up as the waitress walked away.
“Something like that.”
“Buy you another glass of wine?” she asked, holding up two fingers to the bartender.
“They’re free,” I said.
“Don’t let that discount my generosity.” She took the glasses from the bartender and passed one to me. “To success,” she said, then held up her glass to clink.
“Success? In what?”
“In whatever the hell that was all about,” she said, nodding toward the waitress, who had just reached Tyler.
I watched as he took the note, unfolded it, and then—very slowly—lifted his eyes to mine. Come here, he mouthed, and the command seemed to fill me up, warm and enticing.
“Well,” Kat said, a lilt to her voice. “How very interesting.”
I barely heard her. I was already on my way across the room.
Tyler met me halfway, a small concession that pleased me more than it should. I’d expected him to drag out this little power play and make me go all the way to him. The fact that he didn’t gave me a different type of tingle.
“I was very pleased to get your note,” he said, pulling it from his pocket. He unfolded the napkin, then read aloud. “I want to play.” He glanced up at me. “Are you sure?”
“I’m surprised. You didn’t seem like the kind of man who would give a girl an out.”
“Just this once.” He took my hand, then lifted it so that my palm faced up. Slowly, he trailed his fingers over my palm. It was a simple touch, nothing even remotely erotic, and yet it swirled inside of me, heating me up and fueling the desire that had been bubbling under the surface since he’d left me in that corridor.
“Aren’t you even going to ask what the game is? What I want. What I expect.” He bent over, then whispered in my ear. “Don’t you want me to tell you exactly how I intend to touch you?”
Yes, yes, I wanted to scream. I wanted to know. Wanted to be prepared. But that wasn’t part of the game—of that much I was certain. So I stood my ground and slowly shook my head. “I already told you—I want you. That’s it. That’s all I need to know.”
“I’m very glad to hear it.” He reached out for a lock of my hair and twisted it casually around his finger. “That way I don’t need to waste precious time telling you how I intend to strip you naked. How I plan to stretch you out, and then taste every delicious inch of you.”
I shivered. “No,” I murmured. “You don’t need to. But if you want to tell me, you just go right ahead.”
He laughed, warm and full of life. “Tempting. But no.” He took my hand and started to draw me across the room. “Let’s get out of here, shall we?”
I hesitated, suddenly unsure in the face of reality.
He came to a stop, his eyes on my face. “Change of heart?”
“I—no,” I said, too quickly if the smug expression on his face was any indication. “I was just—nervous,” I admitted.