Chasing Heartbreak (Dark Love #6) - Kat T. Masen Page 0,27

tension chaining me down the past week. Feeling liberated on copious amounts of champagne, my body sways in tune to “The Hills” by The Weeknd as Noah draws me close to him, our faces only inches apart. I lean in closer, about to whisper in his ear how much I missed him when the devil’s eyes find me from across the room.

Dominic.

KATE

Dominic moves toward where we’re standing with Allegra attached to his arm, making quite the dashing couple.

I’ve only met her once—the first time Dominic introduced her as his fiancée. Despite it being years ago, the face has been etched in my memory—the deep green eyes against her olive skin to her perfectly sculpted features descendent from her Italian heritage. Without a doubt, she’s beautiful. And no matter how scorned I was upon first meeting her, I can’t ignore my insecurity stemming from the ugly disease of comparison.

But that was then, and now, I’m no longer a woman driven by my emotions. No one makes me feel less than what I deserve to be. I control my life and no one, especially her, has the power to change that.

The closer they get, the more their costumes become apparent. Allegra is wearing a century-style satin gown in royal blue with distinctive gold lace trim. Sitting on top of her head is a white wig, styled to the event’s era and theme. Dominic is wearing an aristocrat suit, similar to Lex and Noah, with a simple mask. The shade of royal blue and gold matches Allegra’s costume to a tee.

The perfect couple.

Only a few feet away, my breath begins to hitch, and the champagne swooshes in my stomach in an unpleasant way. A wave of nausea climbs up my throat before I purposely swallow and tell myself to get my act together. All these unwanted feelings need to chill the hell out and disappear, if only for the next few moments.

“Lex Edwards,” Dominic greets with a polite smile, extending his hand toward Lex. “A pleasure to see you again.”

It takes a moment for Lex to realize it’s Dominic, shaking his hand before turning toward Charlie.

“This is my wife, Charlotte Edwards.”

“Dominic Kennedy,” he introduces, his eyes entirely on Charlie and devouring her in a way which Lex appears bothered by. “I’ve heard a lot about you… from my brother, of course.”

When it comes to poker faces, Charlie is a professional. Given her career choice of being a lawyer, which involves arguing for a living, attending court, and never showing the other players your cards, I know her well enough to know she’s playing the game right now.

Forcing a smile with the tilt of her head, she extends her hand out politely to shake Dominic’s. “All good, I hope, though we met years ago at your mother’s Christmas party.”

“Right, of course,” he answers, then purses his lips, turning swiftly until his complete attention is on me.

The shift of his gaze falls on the floor, trailing up my dress and past my ample bosom where he bites his bottom lip before looking into my eyes. Keeping my expression entirely still, my lips are tight, pretending to be the old friend and not a part-time lover who fucked him a week ago.

He leans forward to kiss both my cheeks in a bold move, something Europeans are known for despite Dominic being American. The graze of his lips against my skin ignites a flame, but I pull away quickly not to draw further attention to us.

“Kate, you’ve met Allegra,” he goads with a knowing smirk on his face. “My wife.”

His wife. Arrogant prick for reminding me.

Beside him, Allegra studies me with a piercing stare. “Yes, of course.”

Following Dominic, she leans forward to kiss both my cheeks. The guilt consumes me, eating away at my conscience. Allegra is no longer someone in the shadows. She’s living and breathing while clutching onto her husband for dear life—a husband who so quickly devotes his time to my body on his business trips to Paris.

The silence between us begins to alarm me. What if she found out? Can she tell right now that something has passed between Dominic and me? In a frantic panic, the scent of Noah catches my attention, causing me to act quickly.

“And this is Noah,” I blurt out, resting my hand on Noah’s shoulder. “My partner.”

The moment ‘partner’ leaves my mouth, I mentally scold myself for being such an idiot. The boyfriend sounds juvenile, and my date is no competition for a wife. Lover seems inappropriate, so