Page 39 of Carnal Risk

“I’m sorry.” Selby stumbled backwards. Making love meant nothing to him. I mean nothing to him. You’re going to be okay. Just walk away. The loop played in her head as she attempted to remain calm.

“Selby, wait.” He went to go to her but Blaire held him tight.

“No…I’ve gotta go.” Tears rose to her eyes.

“This isn’t what it looks like. Dammit, Blaire, get off.” Garrett grabbed her wrists and removed them from his pants. He turned to Selby, who silenced him with her hand.

“Don’t…just no.” She backed out of the room, almost tripping as she bumped into Lars. He caught her in his arms and righted her on her feet.

“Selby, where are you going?” He glanced at Blaire, who glared at Garrett. She adjusted her dress, slowly covering herself. “Garrett, what the fuck is going on here?”

“Let me go.” Selby broke free of his hold and ran.

Reaching for the ribbon under her hair, she tugged off the mask, and discarded it on the floor. She stifled a cry, unable to believe she’d allowed herself to care about Garrett. Ridiculously rich, he could have any woman he wanted. It wasn’t as if she’d thought having sex had been any kind of a commitment, but he couldn’t wait ten minutes to fuck someone else? And he’d planned on taking her home?

Selby heard Garrett call her name, and she glanced back to see Lars grabbing onto him. The sound of their arguing voices escalated throughout the house. She flung open the front door and scanned the parking lot. A dozen stretch limos were parked around the circle but she wasn’t sure which one had brought her. She approached the bellman, concealing her shaking hands.

“I need to go.” She swiped her fingers under her eyes, attempting to stem the tears that continued to flow.

“Are you okay, ma’am?”

“A car. Which one’s my car? I need to leave right now. I’m going to be sick.” As humiliation set in, her stomach rolled, the contents of her dinner edging up her esophagus.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go inside?”

“Car! Now!” she demanded.

He blew a whistle and a driver immediately pulled forward. Selby didn’t bother waiting for him to open the door. She ran to where it had stopped and jumped in the back seat. She called out her address and was relieved when the limo started moving. As they pulled away, she caught a glimpse of Garrett and Lars in the driveway. They’d quarreled, and she knew it was because of her.

Selby flicked up the privacy screen and bent over, putting her head between her legs. Helpless to control her emotion, she sobbed. God, I’m so stupid. She felt like an idiot for allowing him to lure her into his ‘I’ll teach you the rush’ bullshit. He’d been playing her all along, and Lars had known exactly what he’d been doing. It was why he’d been so angry that she’d gone to the party. He’d told her to stay away from Garrett, and she hadn’t listened.

She wished she could blame him for putting her in this situation, but pursuing Garrett had been of her own doing. He’d simply asked her to help his friend, one who’d suffered a loss. She was supposedly the expert, who could assist his company. Instead, she’d lost her mind, engaging in unprofessional behavior. Not only had she just fucked her pseudo-boss, she’d withheld information about a dead man.

By the time the car pulled out of the estate, she’d made her decision. As soon as she got home, she was quitting. She couldn’t go into the office, pretending she hadn’t screwed him at a party. She prayed Lars wouldn’t fire her, that she’d retain her consulting position. She’d get down on her knees and beg his forgiveness, take any account that was available…any engagement except for Emerson Industries.

She shoved back into her seat and curled her legs under herself. As her crying subsided, she reached for a tissue from the console. She glared at her surroundings. The extravagant limousine reminded her of Garrett. This was his life, not hers. It was likely he’d paid for the transportation for all of the guests, including the entire expense of the soirée. It was nothing for someone like him, just a drop in the bucket. His everyday working man Jeep had been a ruse to lull her into thinking he was just like everyone else. But nothing could be further from the truth.

Wealth. Power. At the snap of his fingers, he could have anything or anyone he wanted, anytime, anywhere. There were no limitations in his world. It now made perfect sense why he continued to test death. It was the last remaining frontier. He skated along the unattainable edge of infinity as if he owned the universe. He was beholden to no one. No matter how attracted she was to him, she knew she didn’t belong within the confines of his reality.

Lars had known all along who Garrett was, the kind of daredevil, playboy lifestyle that intoxicated him like a drug. And he knew Selby. Complete opposites, they’d never have a chance in hell of being compatible. Unlike Garrett, she had bills and responsibilities that had nothing to do with employment. She wasn’t afforded the luxury of waking up in the morning and deciding not to go to a client. Avoiding risk, her idea of excitement was watching a horror film and hoping she’d be able to go to sleep. Hell, she hadn’t been on a roller coaster since she was a kid.

She sighed and shook her head. Selby’s tears had dried, but her stomach still churned with anger that he’d gone to another woman within minutes of taking what he’d wanted from her. Recalling their encounter, she cringed, embarrassed that she’d been used. She hated how much she’d enjoyed having sex with him. She hadn’t just liked it; she’d loved it. No man had ever in her entire life made her feel the way Garrett did. But it had all been an illusion.

It was no wonder the twins had asked her status. They’d probably known exactly what would happen to her. Garrett had probably fucked hundreds of women on the terrace, playing at his domination game. Her only regret in leaving was that she hadn’t called him out cold on what he’d done to her. She excelled at controlled conflict in the boardroom, but this situation wasn’t in the office, and it had been far from controlled. She felt like a plane spiraling into the ground, even though her final explosion had been less than dramatic, as she’d run.

The car slowed in front of her condo, and she slipped off her shoes. She could hardly wait to take a shower. She wished she could extricate thoughts of Garrett from her heart as easily as rinsing the scent of him from her skin. As the limo stopped, she opened the door, ignoring the driver who rushed to get there first. She waved him off, but gave him a small thank you before running to her building. She punched in the code, and entered.

On the way up in the elevator, fresh tears surfaced. Confused, she wondered when she’d become such a terrible judge of character. While dominant and commanding, Garrett had been caring toward her, insisting that he wanted to get to know her. He’d invited her to a place he claimed was his inner sanctum, one not seen by many people in his life. Even the twins had made a reference that she was special, implying that Garrett didn’t bring just anyone to Altura.

Her lips pursed in anger. She couldn’t believe that she was even trying to understand what had just happened in any other way than how she’d seen it with her own eyes. A ding alerted her that she’d finally arrived on her floor. The doors opened and she strode to her condo, impatient to get inside. Tapping at the security pad, she entered the code. The handle clicked open and she blew out a breath.

“What the hell?” Adrenaline shot through Selby’s body as she took in the sight of the overturned sofa. Black dirt splattered across the floor, plants had rolled onto their sides. Her desk had been ransacked, her personal laptop smashed onto the stone tiles.

With her first instinct to call the police, Selby remembered she’d accidentally left her phone charging in the kitchen. She gasped as she took in the sight of the mess. The cabinets had all been opened, vitamin and prescription bottles scattered across the floor. Her heart sank when she looked at her charger, the phone missing from its docking station. She carefully navigated around the shards of broken ceramic plates and spied the edge of her cell peeking out from under the refrigerator. Carefully, she bent to grab it, her fingernails tapping at the edges. An inch further, she thought. When it was within her reach, she retrieved it.

“Please work, please work,” she repeated, praying it would recognize her fingerprint. As the biometric lock released and the phone flared to life she exhaled in relief. “Thank God.”

Although the web of cracked glass made it difficult to see, she managed to type in 911. Selby’s hands shook as it rang. The operator clicked onto the line, and she heard the sound of footsteps. The phone fell from her hands as the blow came to her head. As blackness claimed her, she called Garrett’s name.