Page 50 of Playing with Forever
My face burned with embarrassment at Brandon’s clumsy attempt to undermine Chase and insinuate I’d brought my brother to the event.
Chase didn’t even blink. “No, nothing platonic here,” he said with a self-deprecating chuckle. “I’m Andrea’s partner. We wanted to keep things to ourselves, since we’re both very private people.”
The wordpartnerinstead ofboyfriendmade the relationship seem long term, serious. Mature. I hated that I found it so hot, even if it was just all for show.
“Ahh,” Brandon said, and nodded before grilling Chase further, eyeing him with an arrogance that made me internally cringe. “So what do you do? Are you in business? Obviously I work with Andrea, but while at Yale I took some business classes in addition to the graphic design, and no offense but you don’t look like the corporate type.”
I wanted to melt into the floor. Could Brandon be any more judgmental? Or insecure, really, that he had to try and insult Chase to make himself feel superior? I’d never seen Brandon posture in this manner, and quite frankly, his behavior was mortifying.
“No, not corporate.” Chase chuckled easily, seemingly unfazed by the slight. “I don’t do anything that fancy or as fun and creative as you and Andrea. I work security.”
That was definitely underselling his career. Chase looked after billionaire clients and high-ranking CEOs and put his life on the line for others. His security firm was arguably the best in the city, and he was making it sound like he just sat at a desk in a museum all night.
Part of me wanted to speak up and point out just how successful Chase was, but the rest of me forced myself to keep my mouth shut. I didn’t want Brandon to know he was getting to me with his rude comments, and there was honestly something incredibly attractive about the fact that Chase was downplaying himself. He wasn’t playing Brandon’s game, and he was confident enough that he didn’t care if there was a misconception made. He had no reason to brag.
“Yale, though, that’s impressive,” Chase continued, inclining his head. “Although the student loans must be insane.”
“They were, but I was able to pay them off,” Brandon said with a wave of his hand. “Hell, I was even able to get my dream car last year, a Porsche Carrera.”
I couldn’t recall if Brandon actually drove a Porsche or not but I had to bite my tongue hard. Not only was his salary probably equivalent to mine, just under six figures, everyone knew the people who drove Porsches in Vegas were the douchebags. What the hell was he trying to prove?
“Wow, beautiful car,” Chase said, nothing but admiration in his voice.
“Brandon!” someone yelled from another cluster of people, calling him over.
Brandon excused himself and moved on, allowing me to finally breathe.
Chase stared after him, a small little frown creased between his brows.
“I’m so sorry,” I said, still shocked by Brandon’s superior attitude with Chase. “That was the most embarrassing five minutes of my life, right on the heels of my boss.”
Chase glanced back at me, a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. “He knows only douchebags drive Porsches, right?”
“That’s exactly what I was thinking!” I laughed and brought a hand to my face, feeling just how on fire my cheeks were. “God, that was painful. I’ve never seen him like that, ever. He’s usually a nice, decent guy.”
Needing some fresh air after that, I guided Chase to the double doors leading out to a terrace and found us a nice, secluded spot, away from the loud party and other people.
“You two work together a lot?” Chase asked curiously as we stood at the railing, side by side, and looked out over the back end property of the resort.
“Yeah, we’re partners on a pretty big project right now,” I said, finishing my champagne before placing the flute on a nearby table. “He asked me out a bit ago and I turned him down. I don’t date coworkers and he seemed too…well…I had just wasted my time dating a guy who was too passive in bed for me and I didn’t want to make the same mistake again.”
“You didn’t,” Chase said, a possessive growl lurking around the edges of his voice.
That dominate tone of his made my nipples tighten. “Regardless, he shouldn’t have treated you like that.”
“Trust me, I can handle it, and him,” Chase assured me confidently, clearly unconcerned. “If I couldn’t deal with insecure men posturing at me, I wouldn’t be able to do my job.”
“I really do feel bad,” I said, and sighed. “He just wasn’t my type.”
“Mmm. You’ve alluded to that a few times now.” He gently rubbed circles against the small of my back and I shivered, longing to feel his fingers tracing across my bare skin. “You want to tell me what your type actually is?” he asked in a sexy, flirty tone.
“Well.” I turned toward him, stepping close so that Chase’s arm came around my waist completely. I settled my hand on his chest to toy with his lapel, giving him a sultry, seductive look. “Lately I’ve been drawn to tough bodyguards who drive me crazy in bed.” I paused before adding, “even if they’re also stubborn, annoying, and always have to have the final say.”
He arched a brow at me. “I only have to have the final say with sassy, bratty, stubborn art designers,” Chase replied, his voice low and warm and his gaze entirely on me.
“Good thing that’s exactly the type I am,” I said, keeping my voice light and teasing, but there was no mistaking the way my heart thudded in my chest.
Chase didn’t smile. Not right away. He just looked at me, like he was memorizing the moment. Like maybe this thing between us meant more to him than just another temporary fling.
