CHASE: Complete Series by Cassia Leo Read Free Book Online Page B

at that moment I had very little control over the terms of this engagement.
“Larissa, are you alright?”
How embarrassing. The bride was consoling me on her wedding day.
“I’m fine,” I said, popping out of my seat and throwing my arms around Nina. “I’m just so happy for you guys.”
I watched over Nina’s shoulder as the Secret Service agent held the door open for Chase and Katherine at the back of the chapel. They were leaving through the rear entrance, probably being whisked away to their suite or to a secret exit where a car would be waiting to carry them off to another private lunch meeting.
“Larissa?”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” I said, letting go of Nina as I tried to focus on her beautiful floral crown and flowing dress instead of the expression of pity on her round face. “Go. Go be with your husband. Enjoy the reception.”
“You’re not coming?”
“I think I’m just going to go back to my room. I hardly slept last night and I have to rest up for tomorrow night’s fundraiser.”
Her eyes lit up at the mention of the word husband and she quickly set off down the aisle. Isa gazed at me for a moment. He was the only campaign staffer who I was certain knew about Chase and I.
Isa glanced at his new wife as she approached the chapel doors then back at me. “He’s a good man,” he whispered. “You deserve a great one.”
I managed to make it back to my hotel room without another emotional breakdown. I slid the cardkey into the reader on the door and the lock clicked. When I pushed the door open, I couldn’t believe my eyes.
All the furniture in my hotel room was gone and a trail of rose petals and candles cut a path across the floor toward the balcony. The French doors stood open displaying a breathtaking view, but the lights of Las Vegas couldn’t match the radiance of Chase’s smile.
As my feet carried me forward, part of me hoped this was it. He was finally going to properly propose and give me the ring I’d been waiting to wear for six weeks. Another part of me thought this wasn’t right. In my hotel room, overlooking a city known for legal prostitution with his legal wife somewhere nearby.
But, as I approached the balcony and breathed in the scent of rose petals and fire, I knew there would be no resisting. I crossed the threshold onto the balcony and Chase held out his hand. I placed my hand in his and he softly pressed his lips to my ring finger. His eyes were locked on mine as he gauged my reaction then his lips curled into a smile.
“My mother once told me that where you find love is where you’ll find success,” he said, as he pulled me toward the waist-high wall enclosing the balcony. “I told her I had to find success before I could think of falling in love.”
Chase had never spoken to me about his mother, though from the daily phone calls I gathered they were still quite close.
“My dad told me I would find the man of my dreams the moment I stopped looking,” I replied, as we gazed at the shimmering lights of the Vegas strip. “My mom was a little less romantic. She told me I’d find love when I found a guy who didn’t mind the way I looked sitting on the throne.”
Chase laughed out loud, a robust laugh that rattled my bones. “I’m sure you’re quite the vision sitting on the throne,” he said, casting me a sly sideways glance. “I like your mom.”
“Yeah, well, she doesn’t like me very much. I haven’t spoken to her since I left home two years ago.”
He turned to me and I expected to find pity in his eyes. What I found instead was concern. “Larissa, you have to speak to your mother. She has to know about your success.”
You call this success?
“What am I supposed to tell her? I’m working on the most expensive and feverish campaign in the history of the world, oh, and by the way, Mom, I’m having an affair with the soon to be President of the United States.”
He looked as if I had just told him he lost the election.
“I’m sorry. That came out