I wasn't really sure when I made the decision to take Everett up on his offer, only that it had been easy to lean into him, to let his touch linger. I didn't feel anything more than the same friendly, platonic warmth I'd always felt for him, but it'd been nice. So I'd let him flirt and joke and tease, and I'd gone along with it.

And then a pretty, curvy woman with perfect chocolate skin sauntered over to Jace and started some very un-platonic flirting.

It shouldn't have hurt to see him letting her run her hands over his neck and shoulders, whispering sweet nothings in his ear. The fact that she was practically sitting on his lap shouldn't have made me wonder when they'd met, if they'd already fucked, when they would fuck again.

And it shouldn't have made me angry enough to move from where I was sitting to Everett's lap.

He gave me a startled look but didn't hesitate to wrap his arms around my waist. He put his face close to mine so that he could speak without anyone else hearing. "Sav, sweetheart, I don't think this is the sort of place where a lap dance is entirely appropriate."

I laughed and kissed his cheek before moving back to my own seat. Everett had gotten the message though and put his arm around me. I'd never thought of myself as a petty person, but I couldn't deny that I enjoyed knowing that if Jace looked over here, he'd see me with an attentive, smoking hot man...and not thinking about him at all.

And it worked, made me feel better.

Until I looked over and saw the woman with her hand in Jace's lap under the table.

"Excuse me," I mumbled as I jumped up. "I need to use the restroom."

I doubted my friends believed me, but I didn't wait around to explain. Heat flooded my face as I hurried toward the back of the restaurant. I'd been an idiot to think that this was a good idea. The moment I'd seen Jace come in, I should have told my friends I wanted to leave. I wasn't a woman who normally played games, and I shouldn't have tried to change that.

After I washed my hands, I splashed cold water on my face, then patted it dry, grateful that my make-up was waterproof. It'd be bad enough to go out there with flushed cheeks. Looking like a raccoon was completely unacceptable.

I automatically glanced up when I heard the door open, and then immediately wished I hadn't when I saw the dark-haired beauty who'd been hanging all over Jace. I turned my attention back to drying my hands and hoped she didn't catch the fact that I'd been staring for a few seconds before I caught myself.

Heels clicked on the tiles as she came closer, and I realized that things were about to get awkward as I tried to explain why I'd been looking at her. I took a slow breath, fixed what I hoped was an adequate smile on my face, and straightened. As I turned toward her, I opened my mouth to apologize, but only got out the first syllable before she interrupted.

"I know who you are."

Shit.

I had two choices, and neither one was appealing since they both required I stay where I was rather than run away. I could play dumb and pretend that I had no idea what she was talking about, or I could own up to everything and hope that she wasn't Jace's girlfriend.

"I think it's tacky that you'd follow Jace here," she continued. "But he's too polite to tell you to fuck off, so I figured I'd do it for him."

My jaw dropped. That hadn't been the angle I thought she'd play. "It's not like–"

"Look," she cut me off again, "I get that he's probably the best sex you've ever had, but you should know that he only fucked you to make sure you gave him a good review."

I flinched as her words hit me, but before I could take them to heart, logic piped up. I squared my shoulders. "If that's true, why did he get me thrown off the story? Seems to me, if he only slept with me so I'd give him a good review, he would've wanted to stay in my good graces. Getting me demoted wasn't really the best way to do that."

The woman's eyes narrowed, but she didn't miss a beat. "Because I came back. Jace wanted me. He always wants me. And he didn't want to wait until the show was over to have me. I always come before his little hobby."

I felt a flicker of anger at her referring to Jace's art as a hobby, but then remembered how he treated me and pushed it aside. I still wasn't going to accept this woman's version of how things had gone though. I could accept that he'd been angry with me for not telling him as soon as I realized who he was, and I could even understand why he'd think I might spill his secrets, but seducing me for a good review then breaking things off in such a humiliating manner didn't seem to be Jace's style. I might have misjudged him, but I doubted I'd done so that much. He could have walked away without making it personal, and gotten both a good review and still been with this woman.

"Why'd he fuck me the second time, then?" I asked, crossing my arm over my chest. "If he was in such an all-fired hurry to get back to you, why didn't he just break things off and walk away the moment he saw me?"

Something flickered across her eyes and her mouth tightened. I almost thought I'd struck a nerve by giving her something she couldn't explain away, but then she shrugged.

"You threw yourself at him, so he gave you a pity fuck. I don't know many men who'd turn down free pussy, no matter how bad you are at sex."

I sucked in a breath as the barb went deep. Was that what happened? Had I been so desperate to have sex with him again that I convinced myself that he wanted me when all he'd seen was an easy fuck?

I clenched my jaw to keep back the tears burning my eyes and stepped around the woman. As soon as I was out of the bathroom, I headed straight for the exit. I couldn't stay, not even with Everett there next to me, pretending to be my boyfriend.

The evening air was hot and muggy, thick with all the scents of the city, but I gulped in deep breaths all the same, willing the warmth to calm my fragile nerves. I needed to get myself together before I hailed a cab.

"Savannah, what's wrong?" Lei asked from behind me.

I turned to see all three of my friends standing there, wearing nearly identical expressions of concern on their faces. Lorde wrapped her arms around me while Everett and Lei transitioned from concerned to pissed.

"What happened?" Everett asked. "Did that asshole–"

I held up a hand. "He didn't do...he didn't say anything."

Lei's eyes narrowed. "Spill it, Sav."

They clearly weren't going to let me go home until I told them, so I just blurted out what happened. All of it. Pretty much verbatim. And then I leaned back against the wall and covered my face with my hands, pretending that none of this ever happened.