Worth the Chase by J. L. Beck Read Free Book Online

it before, without letting her know I had been here and ended up in Chase’s bed? I couldn’t .
    I was screwed. So fucking screwed.
    Chase pointed us down the basement stairs, Taylor in front while he trailed behind me. I could feel the heat from him against my back as he followed closely behind.
    “You smell good enough to eat… again,” he breathed into my ear right as my feet hit the last step. My mind was racing, my palms sweating. I was flushed from head to toe. The game he was playing right at the moment was a nasty one. He knew I was stuck, he knew there was no way I could respond to his comments. At least not in front of Taylor.
    “It’s beautiful really. Don’t you think, Gia?” Taylor seemed to growl in frustration. I hated that she was the only one oohhhing and ahhhing, but I knew I couldn’t fake it without making her suspicious.
    “Yes. It’s perfect for us, Tay,” I answered her, focusing on anything but the huge ass elephant in the room named Chase.
    My eyes glided across the immaculate hardwood floors to the floor to ceiling windows that mirrored the ones upstairs, and then to each door in the basement. I could only assume they lead into the bedrooms, bathroom, and the laundry room.
    Taylor wandered off into one while I made my way into another. Of course, Chase followed me and as soon as my hand twisted the doorknob and we walked in he interrupted the silence.
    “I refuse to let you stay here.” His voice was stern and the way he was looking at me told me he wouldn’t back down. I wanted to roll my eyes and tell him I didn’t like the fucking idea any more than he did but refused instead. I wouldn’t let him know anything about my feelings. If this bothered him then I was happy, so fucking be it.
    “Well, Chase you have no say. Our parents already paid for six months of rent for Taylor and me, so I suppose I’m your new roommate,” I said in a hushed tone as I looked around the vacant room pretending that he wasn’t even in here with me.
    “These closets are huge!” Taylor’s voice echoed through the basement and into the room I stood in as she gushed about the closet space.
    “I’ll make you regret this,” he growled in my ear as I walked past him and out of the room, heading straight into another room that led into the bathroom which had a shower and a bathtub that would make any woman weak in the knees. I wanted to jump in it right this second and soak my problems away. Chase being the very first of many.
    “I already regret ever meeting you, so I have you beat,” I shot back at him, turning around not expecting to come face to face with him. The close proximity began to mess with my head, making me want to take his lip into my mouth and bite it all while telling him to fuck off. So I backed away before I did something crazy like kiss him again.
    “This place is excellent. When can we move in?” Taylor asked urgently as she walked into the room we were in. Chase smiled at her, it was fake, though, simply because it didn’t cause a twinkle to form in his eyes. Yes, I had realized that when he was genuinely happy his eyes twinkled.       
    “Whenever you want. The rent has been paid, so it seems you’re free to do so whenever.” Chase shrugged his shoulders and handed a pair of keys to Taylor before reaching into his back pocket and bringing forth a second set, handing them over to me.
    “Gia!!!” She squealed, grabbing the keys from Chase and wrapping me in a gigantic hug, well as big as her five-foot stature would allow.
    “I know, I’m excited too,” I whispered into her ear while Chase glared at me. His stare promised war. He was angry that he had been fooled, that for once he had been screwed by a girl and that it wasn’t him doing the screwing. I guess he still hadn’t gotten over our night together, which was fine because I hadn’t either, but at least I was keeping it together.
    As his eyes narrowed further, I knew he would never be able to hold that