“Liam, will you please slow down?” Audrey asked, cringing as Liam wove through multiple lanes of downtown traffic.

“I don’t understand why there’s so much traffic at eight in the evening,” Liam muttered. “This is complete bollocks. Where are all these people going?”

Audrey glanced at him. His jaw was tense, and he was gripping the steering wheel pretty damned hard.

“What’s going on with you?” she asked. “Why are you in such a rush? Practice always runs late on Fridays, you know that.”

“I have a social life,” he said.

“Not this weekend, you don’t,” Audrey said. “Your first match is Sunday. You are supposed to power down and rest until then. Coach Havershom’s direct orders.”

A muscle ticced in Liam’s cheek.

“Coach Havershom doesn’t have Jack to deal with,” he muttered.

“What do you mean?” Audrey asked with a frown.

“I mean, I got word from a mate of mine that your brother’s debt is going to be called in this week, and now I’m trying to find someone who knows that in the hell is going on.”

“And you’re going to find that someone… where?” Audrey asked.

“At a party,” Liam said, glancing at the clock on the dashboard. “In less than two hours. I have a lot to do, and a very short time in which to do it.”

“Where’s the party?”

“Out a bit,” Liam said with a shrug. “I just have an address, but I looked it up and it’s about half an hour from the city.”

“And what’s the attire?” she asked, trying to formulate plans in her head.

Liam glanced at Audrey, then shook his head. “You’re not coming with me.”

Audrey snorted. “Fat chance of that.”

Liam cocked a brow, looking annoyed.

“Don’t give me that look,” Audrey said. “My job is to keep you out of trouble. This is precisely the type of situation I was hired for, Liam.”

She could just imagine letting him go to the party alone. She’d probably be rousting two or three girls from his bed the next morning, long after he’d slipped off to practice.

Hell no.

“I’m only going to help your brother. I’m not thick enough to be drinking and partying right before my first big match playing for a new team.”

“I don’t care. I’m going.”

“You’re going to be a complete drag the whole time.”

“No, I won’t.”

“Is that a promise?” Liam asked.

Audrey bit her lip, then nodded. “Yes. I promise. As long as you’re not in danger, I won’t butt in. I will just… observe.”

Audrey watched as a trace of amusement rippled across Liam’s face.

“You’re to remember that I warned you. You are likely going to be completely stuck up about it.”

“I am not!”

“Want to make a bet?” he asked, his lips twitching.

“On me being stuck up?” Audrey huffed. “I think I can control myself, thank you very much.”

“No harm in taking the bet then, is there?” he asked.

“Let’s hear the terms,” Audrey said, crossing her arms.

“If you lose your cool about anything related to where we are or what the party guests are doing, I win.”

“Are you going to tell me anything more about what this party is for, or who’s attending?” Audrey asked.

“Not a word,” Liam said, a dimple flashing in his cheek.

Audrey considered his words for a moment. “What do I get if I win?”

Liam grinned. “That’s the spirit. What do you want?”

“You stay home and out of trouble for a whole week.”

“That’s not a proper prize, is it?”

“I want that, and I want a full spa day. You’re paying.”

“That’s more like it.”

They pulled up to the house, climbing out of the Range Rover. Audrey trailed Liam inside.

“What’s your prize if you win?” she asked.

Liam pursed his lips, considering.

“Sex?” he asked, raising a brow.

“Absolutely not!” Audrey said, offended.

Liam waved her down. “Just seeing what you’d say, calm down. How about… a kiss?”

Audrey eyed him. “That’s it? A kiss?”

“A proper snog, nice and long. Very hands-on,” Liam clarified.

Audrey scowled at him, and he laughed.

“What?” he asked. “I haven’t seen you hate a kiss from me yet. Besides, you said you could control yourself. If you’re so certain, what’s the harm?”

“There is none,” Audrey snapped, then stuck her hand out. “Shake on it.”

Liam started to take her hand, then hesitated. “One more condition.”

Audrey was pretty sure she was about to start breathing fire any second now if he dithered any further.

“What?” she asked.

“I get to approve your dress tonight,” he said, grinning. “You know, to make sure we blend in. We’re on an undercover mission, after all.”

“Let me guess,” Audrey said, rolling her eyes. “I need to wear something revealing?”

Liam laughed. “You’re getting the hang of it now, darling.”

Audrey snorted and headed to her bedroom. She’d finally started settling in a bit, even going so far as to unpack and hang some framed artwork on the walls. Liam had done his part by having his personal shopper bring in several more racks of clothes for her to pick through.

As much of a pain in the ass as he was, there were some definite upsides to working for a multi-millionaire.

Audrey did her makeup first, then flipped through the racks, looking for something appropriate. She went through two racks before she landed on something that seemed just perfect for the occasion.

It took some wiggling to get into the dress and zip it up, but when she stepped in front of the mirror, her jaw dropped a little.

The dress was sheer black lace in a floral design, with three-quarter-length sleeves and a hemline that fell at mid-thigh. A second layer of fabric underneath splayed a dark stripe across her breasts and hips, concealing just the right places. The rest of her curves, what little of them she had, were on full display.

The only problem was that she absolutely couldn’t wear any kind of bra or panties with this dress. But… maybe it wouldn’t kill her to live a little, for once.

Living life a little wild certainly didn’t seem to hurt Liam any.

And the dress did look incredible.

“Damn,” she said, turning to the side to check out her own ass. It wasn’t too taboo, nothing naughty was showing, but… the dress was definitely a statement piece.

She stepped into a pair of crimson heels, twisted her hair up into what she hoped was a sleek up-do, and smoothed some red stain over her lips.

“Nice,” she said to her reflection. She slid her white pea coat on over her dress, intending to keep her modesty intact until they reached the party.

When she walked back out to the living room, she saw that Liam was standing by the door, waiting for her with an impatient expression. He wore a pair of dark jeans, a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to bare his forearms, and a navy vest.

Audrey’s step faltered for a moment as she unabashedly checked him out.

He’d trimmed his beard, too. Jesus, does Liam ever clean up nice. She tried to think if she’d ever seen Liam put so much effort into his appearance. No, not that she could remember.

It was probably better, because… holy smokes. She imagined that if he dressed like this all the time, they’d have to carry umbrellas everywhere they went to cope with the showers of ladies’ panties thrown at them on the streets.

“Finally,” Liam said, noticing her at last. “Why are you already wearing your coat? I am supposed to have approval over your dress tonight.”

“It’s less material than this coat, which is pretty short,” Audrey pointed out.

Liam gave her a look, then shook his head. “Fine. We have to go.”

He shooed her outside and into the car, then proceeded to drive like a complete maniac all the way to the party. When they finally pulled up at the end of a long white gravel driveway, Audrey gaped at the enormous white-columned mansion outside her window. It looked like a plantation manor straight out of Gone With The Wind.

“This is where we’re attending a party?” she asked, baffled.

“This is it,” Liam said. He pulled open the glove box and extracted a beautiful hand-lettered invitation. He climbed out of the car and stuffed the card into his back pocket before Audrey could get a chance to examine it.

Audrey was surprised when Liam came around to open the door for her, then took her arm and led her toward the front door. He leaned close to whisper to her.

“It’s very important that we appear to be here together, that people think you belong to me, as it were.”

“What?” Audrey asked, wrinkling her nose. “Why?”

“You’ll see soon enough. Just… don’t leave my side.”

When he reached down and took her hand, lacing their fingers together, Audrey couldn’t help the tingle that raced down her spine. They paused before the massive iron front door for a moment, Audrey looking up at Liam.

An electric pulse seemed to pass between them. Audrey licked her lips, began to speak.

Liam shook his head, severing the gaze, and turned to lift the lion’s head knocker on the front door. It sounded their arrival with a great crash, making Audrey a little jittery.

A small window above the knocker slid open, and immediately Audrey could hear the low throb of music spilling from within. Though Audrey couldn’t make out anyone standing behind the door, Liam produced the invitation and held it up with his free hand.

The window shut and the door swung open, revealing a butler in tails and a black mask that covered most of his face.

“Entrez,” he said, giving them a stiff bow.

“Où puis-je trouver les hôtes de la soirée?” Liam asked the butler.

Did Liam just speak French? Audrey gawped at him, but he just winked at her.

“Allez viens, s’il-te plaît,” the butler said, bowing again and ushering them inside.

He stopped at a small table and picked up two silver face masks, deceptively simple homemade papier-mâché affairs. There were dozens on the table, which in itself was curious.

The butler handed Audrey and Liam each a mask, and waited silently until they put them on. Audrey settled hers over her eyes and nose, tying its thick black ribbon at the back of her head.

The butler inclined his head, turned on his heel, and led them onward.

They walked down a long, dark hallway, passing a dining room full of people and champagne and a room full of chaises, where guests seemed to be reclining and listening to jazz. It seemed like any other party… except that everyone wore the same silver masks.

The event was like something out of the Great Gatsby, where any number of well-dressed people were drinking and dancing, each room filled with guests doing a different common activity. Audrey wasn’t quite sure she understood the whole thing.

Were the masks just a part of the theme? It was strange.

“Did I just see people smoking a hookah together?” Audrey wondered aloud, but Liam towed her along.

“We can explore later,” he promised. Then, lower so that only Audrey could hear, “Don’t forget that we are here for a purpose.”

They took a sharp turn, then stopped before a heavy oak door. The butler knocked three times, a specific-sounding rhythm. There was a long moment of silence, a strange cracking sound.

Audrey glanced at Liam, who seemed to be purposely avoiding eye contact with her. She got goosebumps the second before the door opened.

The butler inclined his head and motioned for them to enter. Liam pulled her through the door, purposely leaning down to whisper, “Don’t stare or make eye contact. Try to be natural.”

Then they stepped into a truly strange scene. The room was windowless, with a full-fledged golden throne at one end. At the other end, two planks of wood were crossed to form an X.

A woman dressed up like Marie Antoinette sprawled across the seat of the throne; dangling from her fingers was a whip with numerous leather strips attached.

Aside from her elaborate period costume, she stood out for her lack of a mask. She wore heavy silver face paint instead, a beautiful swirling design that brought out her dark eyes.

Stretched out on the cross was a very tanned, very naked and muscular man, though he wore a black mask similar to the butler’s. His back, legs, and ass were blazing red, suggesting that the Queen had recently used the whip on him.

Between Marie Antoinette and the cross were a dozen men in tuxes and masks, all standing at perfect attention. Waiting for their own turn on the cross, perhaps?

“Bonjour!” the Queen called, beckoning Audrey and Liam forward. “Anglais ou français?”

“English, please,” Liam said, giving her a short bow.

Audrey copied Liam, feeling horribly out of place. She felt like they’d stepped through the looking glass into Wonderland.

“You are new faces, are you not?” the Queen asked. To Audrey’s surprise, her accent was something closer to German than French.

“Yes, ma’am.”

Audrey was doubly surprised by Liam’s politeness.

“You are the footballer?” the Queen asked.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“And this is your lady?”

“Yes.”

The Queen surveyed them both for a long moment, pursing her lips.

“I was told that you were here to settle a debt.”

“Yes, ma’am. Not my own, but I do intend to settle it.”

The Queen tossed her whip to the floor and stood up, stalking to the middle of the room to circle Audrey and Liam, a thoughtful expression on her face.

“There will be no fights tonight,” she said after a moment.

Liam’s shoulders lowered an inch. Disappointment, perhaps.

“I see,” he said.

The Queen moved closer, brushing her fingertips along Liam’s shoulder. She turned to Audrey, an eerie smile lifting her lips.

“I like the company you keep,” the Queen said. She spoke to Liam, but she clearly meant Audrey.

“Unfortunately, ma’am, we don’t share.”

Audrey arched her brows as she turned to stare Liam down. There was something really damned weird going on here, and it was more than just the masks and hookahs.

“Not to worry,” the Queen said. “You should stay for the party, footballer. I like to watch, see other people finding themselves. If you two play nicely, I will consider relieving some of Monsieur Cross’s debt. A small piece, perhaps.”

Audrey’s eyes went wide. She glanced at Liam, who was watching the Queen carefully.

“Even if we just watch?” he asked.

The Queen’s smile widened. “Certainement.”

“Thank you, ma’am.”

Audrey opened her mouth to ask a dozen questions, but Liam grabbed her hand again and gave it hard squeeze. He did another sort of bow, then dragged Audrey out of the room.

Audrey followed, wondering just where the hell this night was leading.