Page 9 of The Encounter
“Ooh. Sexy.” Kailynn shook her shoulders in a slight shimmy.
Maddie laughed and made an attempt at changing the subject. “Did you and Chase do anything?”
“We went over to Abi and Logan’s place for game night. None of us felt like partying. It was nice and relaxing.”
Abi was Kailynn’s best friend. After Kailynn moved out of her apartment with Drew, she stayed with Abi. Eventually, Abi moved in with her boyfriend Logan and sublet her apartment to Kailynn. Chase was Kailynn’s neighbor, which was the reason she had hired Chase as her lawyer in the legal battle with her ex. Now that the legal battles were over, Chase and Kailynn were allowed to date. Kailynn hired Maddie about the same time that Kailynn and Chase began dating. Maddie had seen their relationship grow firsthand and was one of the people who Kailynn spoke to regularly regarding her relationship.
Maddie was surprised it was hard for her to talk about Jace with Kailynn after everything she knew about Chase. It shouldn’t have been hard for her to tell her whatreallyhappened, but alas, she wasn’t quite ready.
And, to be honest, she was still in shock.
4
The end of the week rolled around and Maddie found herself stalking Jace’s whereabouts on local gossip blogs. She wasn’t proud of it, but she was hopeless.
“Again, Maddie?” Kayla startled her as she walked into the room.
Maddie slammed the lid of her laptop shut and stood up from the table. “What is wrong with me?”
Kayla laughed. “You’re in love with him.”
Maddie rolled her eyes. “No, I’m not.”
It wasn’t that she was crazy for the guy. She was curious about what he was up to. Was she just another notch on the old belt for BJs in his office? If she didn’t know who he was, she probably would have already moved on and not thought again about it. But shedidknow who he was. What was supposed to be a fun night out of Halloween fun turned into a lust-filled obsession over a local celebrity.
Kayla gave her an ‘oh please’ look before dropping onto the couch. “I’m going to meet up with Robert again tomorrow night at The Revolver. Want to come?”
Maddie’s eyes nearly soared out of her head, but she tried to rein in her reaction. “I’ll think about it.”
Kayla gave her another look. They both knew she was going to go, so there was no use pretending otherwise.
Sure enough,the following night, Maddie joined Kayla at the club. They were able to walk in right away with Robert’s help. Again, he gave them VIP bands. They went to the bar and immediately ordered drinks.
Maddie’s eyes searched the dance floor, knowing she was looking for Jace. She didn’t actually expect to see him roaming around. Halloween was different. He could wear a mask and no one would know who he was. She certainly hadn’t figured it out.
Eventually, she and Kayla made it upstairs to the VIP lounge and found some couches to sit on.
“I haven’t seen him either,” Kayla said, nudging Maddie with her elbow.
Maddie realized her eyes were still surveying the room, waiting to see if she could spot him. She blushed and turned back toward Kayla, taking a long sip of her drink.
“I feel like such a loser looking around for him. I mean, part of me wants to see him again, but part of me is dreading any awkwardness. He may not know my name, but he knows what I look like. I had no idea who he was until you told me.”
A look flashed across Kayla’s face that Maddie couldn’t quite make out before it went back to neutral.
“Let’s just try to enjoy the evening. I’m sure if you see him, it won’t be nearly as awkward as you think.”
Before Maddie could respond, Robert joined them. The music was deafening, making it hard to have a conversation unless you were talking straight into a person’s ear. Maddie and Kayla didn’t have any issues as they were right next to each other, but when Robert joined, it was impossible for Maddie to hear anything he was saying, as he could only speak loud enough for Kayla to hear.
Maddie glanced around the bar again, and her heart leapt into her throat. There he was, standing at the VIP bar wearing tailored suit pants and a blue button-up shirt that was untucked with the top two buttons open. He was talking to the beautiful, blonde bartender. He leaned over the bar, speaking directly into her ear. She laughed at whatever he said and lightly pushed against his shoulder. He smiled back at her.
Red, hot jealousy soared through her chest. But why? It shouldn’t have. He didn’t belong to her. Hell, he didn’t evenknowher. She was just some girl he met last weekend with whom he exchanged oral sex. Nothing to see here. Move on, people.
At that moment, he turned and spotted her. He smiled and gave a slight wave before gesturing at her to the female bartender, who then waved in response. Maddie lifted a hand and waved back, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
Jace made his way over to her and then leaned in close so she could hear him, his spicy scent of cinnamon washing over her. “Hi, Maddie.”
“Hi.”
