Masquerade by Lace Daltyn Read Free Book Online Page B

the question.
    “Certainly
not Holly. She’s got a very jealous boyfriend.”
    Beth stifled her elation, then forgot all about it as Anthony’s hand stayed at
the juncture between strap and bra and he kissed her cheek. Just
a light, feathery touch.
    She tossed caution into
the locker behind her and turned into his kiss. Their mouths met, and light
became hard need as reason lost the battle of wits versus desire. Beth dug her
hands in his hair and felt herself lowered to the bench. His tongue touched her,
and she opened gladly to him. He invaded her mouth, searching out the far
corners, their tongues mingling in shared need. Beth welcomed him, welcomed
sensations she’d given up ever feeling again as they
invaded her senses.
    She rose to him, molding her
mouth to his and her hands drifted over muscles that rippled under her touch, making
her bold. She wound her hands around Anthony’s back, pulling him in tighter, needing
the contact.
    His lips left a searing
trail across her chin, down the side of her neck to that most sensitive hollow
at the base of her throat. When his hand settled on the underside of her breast,
Beth arched, letting desire pent up for years out with a sigh as if her entire
body screamed “finally!”
    Anthony froze, then pushed off the bench to stand, backing away from Beth. Confused,
she watched him. The bulge in his pants said he wanted her, so why did he stop?
    “We can’t do this,” he
said with shaky breath. “Remember?”
    Beth sat up slowly,
trying to equate the lust boiling in her blood with a logic she couldn’t fathom.
    “Because
of some stupid rule of Sally’s? It’s just a job, Anthony.” Beth hated
the pleading in her voice but couldn’t help herself.
    “There’s too much at
stake here to screw this up.”
    “What? What’s at stake? Your job? It’s got to be more than that. Masquerade? Do you have some
sort of stake in the club?”
    The thought hit Beth
square in the heart and stole any lingering passion. It was the club he was worried about .
The club mattered more to him than she did. Granted, they barely knew each
other. But she’d thought they had a connection. She’d thought he might be the one.
    Stupid
girl. That was the problem. She’d thought. Beth
rose from the bench, her body weighed down by reality. “It’s nice to know I’m
not worth the trouble.”
    “It’s got nothing to do
with how I feel about you.” He took a step toward her, but Beth held up her
hand.
    Anthony raked his fingers
through his hair. “Don’t you know how beautiful, how desirable you are?” He
clenched his hands into tighter fists. “Shit, Beth, cover yourself up. This is hard enough without having your nipple pointing to me like a fucking
beacon. I’m barely holding on as it is.”
    Beth’s face flamed as she
glanced down. One side of her costume was folded in and
rested underneath a nipple pebbled with anticipation . She whirled,
covered herself, and grabbed her purse and clothes.
    As she passed Anthony,
she paused. “You’re not holding on to anything. Not anymore.” Then she ran out
of Masquerade, vowing to have her friend wire the money for a ticket and head
home as fast as she could.
    Halfway to the loft, the
night began to mellow Beth’s ire. Heat and humidity had faded to a comfortable
temperature, the kind that drew people outside, except that it was three in the
morning.
    And dark. Very dark.
    Beth wasn’t at home in the small community she’d grown to love. A place
where you could go anywhere, anytime. She stopped mid-stride as her
rusty street smarts kicked in and her neck started to tingle with all sorts of
dread. Did she hear footsteps behind her? A glance over her shoulder showed an
empty street, but the fine hairs on the back of her neck weren’t listening.
    Rubbing her neck, Beth
worked hard to ignore the echo behind her, but the sense of unease stayed with
her as she started walking again.
    After another block, she’d convinced herself they weren’t