Page 27 of Villains Never Die

A laugh caught my attention, a low chuckle, unnoticeable if it weren’t for the fact that I’d been the object of it before, and so few people dared to laugh at me.

And maybe I liked the low rumble of it.

I knew that laugh, and its owner was not on the guest list. My head whipped to the side, searching for its source.

Fifteen feet between me and Emmett. A woman I knew to be endlessly chatty had trapped him.

That laugh again. I scanned the crowd, breaking my visual on Emmett.

Then, “I don’t have any plans after this…yet.”

Slow. Seductive. His tone sent a shiver down my spine, and I finally spotted him as a couple moved aside and revealed Rook engaged in conversation with two attractive women. One of them, blonde and wearing a dress that was so short it almost violated my dress code, leaned close enough that her chest nearly pressed against him. She whispered in his ear while her friend stood back, shy, but clearly just as appreciative of Rook’s looks and charisma.

And God…his looks. Gone was the sweat-stained tank top and tattered sweatpants. At the sight of his tuxedo perfectly tailored to his strong body, every coherent thought poured out of my head in a rush.

Until the blonde woman stroked one hand down the front of his shirt, and a scalding feeling raged through me. He noticed me now, his eyes catching mine as his lips curled.

“Excuse me, ladies. I need to talk to someone, but we’ll catch up later.”

No, they fucking wouldn’t.

The women sashayed off to find more champagne and Rook pinned me with that infuriating grin.

“I know you don’t like women,” I said.

“Maybe I do.”

“You don’t.”

“No, but it got your attention.” He shrugged, and the motion drew my eye to his bow tie, colored with splashes of green and brown.

“Is that bow tie camo?” I gawked at the ugly thing sitting at his collarbone.

His smile widened and made my chest do an uncomfortable squeezing thing.

“What? You don’t like it?” He straightened it, looking down and admiring the hideous pattern. “I wore it just for you.”

“How did you get in here?”

“It’s called party crashing. You should try it sometime—lots of fun.”

I took a deep breath in and released it slowly. “I don’t need to crash parties. I’m invited to all of them.”

He slid his eyes up and down my attire and said, “You look good, by the way. Probably would have looked better in red…”

“It was burgundy, and you’re a wanker.”

He snorted. “You’re so British.”

“Yes, well, that is where I come from,” I deadpanned. “Do you have a purpose for being here aside from irritating me? I have things to do.”

I scanned the club that had filled to the brim, but Emmett had disappeared somewhere in the crowd.

“You never agreed to my truce,” he said.

“I was distracted,” I grumbled. Emmett was somewhere in this room, and I was missing my opportunity to talk to him. I searched for his navy clothes, for his dark skin and tall frame. He would be tall enough to see over most of the guests…

“Oh, I’m well aware,” Rook laughed, snapping my eyes back to him.