Scandalous Games (Arranged Games Book 1)

I’m going to murder my best friend.

Then I’m going to teach that little cocktease a fucking lesson for disobeying me. I should’ve known she wouldn’t listen. After all, the sole purpose of her existence is to torture and turn my life upside down.

I swear if I tell her not to jump off a cliff, she’ll do it just to piss me off. Almost like deep down she knows I’ll be right behind her. Chasing her. Catching her. Never being able to resist and always making me question my morals.

Bianca isn’t just dangerous.

She’s as lethal as death.

My own sweet demise.

It won’t be tonight, though. She’ll learn not to test my limits, especially when I tell her to follow through with my orders. To never lie to me either.

I don’t believe for a second she isn’t here for me, no matter how much she denies it. While that clarity brings me satisfaction, the second brings trouble. Because she wasn’t the only one who lied, I did too when I said I wasn’t jealous.

Every inch of me is brimming with envy and possessiveness.

She doesn’t realize the wounds she’s opening up.

The moment she had stepped inside the room, I noticed her, looking breathtaking and sexy in her little black dress. Too little because like before, it showed more skin and curves than it concealed. I bet she doesn’t have dresses in her wardrobe that won’t entice and infuriate me at once.

Entice because I crave to rip it off her.

Infuriate because no other man is allowed to gaze at her but me.

I was seconds away from taking out the eyes of every man in the bidding room. It didn’t matter that there were six naked women on display, Bianca had ensnared everyone’s attention with a single glance. So, when I saw none other than my best friend grab her like she was his, my vision blackened in rage and a foreign emotion.

She intentionally chose him, knowing I’ll react.

Her gaze was smug and satisfied when they swung to mine. It was the silent challenge in her bright eyes that made me pause and return that bold stare.

Only for the dirty vixen to up the stake.

Of course, I couldn’t let her think she won so I walked away, leaving her to Justin. I told myself he wouldn’t touch her but I’m doubting it now as I observe the two of them.

I seethe while they sit closely at the bar, drinking and talking. My hand clenching around my second glass of whiskey when she softly laughs at something he whispers to her. It looks so genuine that I’m taken aback. Never has she once smiled at me the same way.

All I ever received are her damn sass, defiance, and dares.

I decide I’m going to make Justin’s death as painful as possible. The bastard is getting close to her despite knowing the truth and just how badly she ruined me years ago. For the longest time, I didn’t care that she was innocent and blamed her with my cold, black heart.

Then, I erased her from my memory until she no longer existed.

As I watch her and feel the familiar feelings ignite, it’s history repeating itself. Yet there’s no stopping it. No one has ever been able to escape, so neither can we.

Nevertheless, I won’t be the only one going down this time.

Bianca will be beside me as I take us both down the rabbit hole.

She remains beautifully unaware of my intentions as she continues flirting with Justin. But I know she feels my hard stare on her even though she can’t catch me in the dark. Every so often, she glances in my direction and every time she fails to find me, a frown pinches her features.

The gesture was similar to that in the past when I stalked her from the shadows.

A wicked game of hide-and-seek.

I’m curious to see how far she’s willing to take her little dare of making me admit I’m envious. It’s a test of both of our limits until one of us snaps. I know I’m hanging on by a thread yet I want to torture myself a little bit more.

The longer she teases me, the harder her punishment is going to be.

I’m sipping my drink when a woman approaches me, the one I was planning to bid on before Bianca arrived. The only reason I was doing it in the first place was because I wanted to forget her and not because I was actually interested in the woman.

I thought a good dirty fuck would make me forget the one I truly craved.

What a fool I was.

No one has ever been able to compare to her.

“Hi,” the girl whispers shyly. She must have seen me watching her in the glass box. “Can I sit with you?”

When she slightly moves closer, the light from the lit sconce slides into my booth. She mistakes my silence for a yes and takes a seat beside me. Her full breasts, which are now covered underneath her short dress, graze my arm as she leans into my side while her hand lands on my thigh.

She certainly didn’t look so bold when she stood naked.

I grab her wandering hand and I’m about to tell her to fuck off, when soft brown eyes meet mine across the room. Bianca’s gaze lowers to where I’m holding the other woman and hurt flashes in her eyes for a second before it vanishes.

It’s enough for the damage to be done.

“Fuck,” I curse when I see defiance flash across her face as she mistakes our closeness for something else. A provocation.

She slowly rises and leans forward to whisper in Justin’s ear. He nods and goes to pay the bartender while she turns to face me.

I narrow my gaze in warning because I know the mistake she’s about to make. It’s too late because she’s already made up her mind. With a pleased smirk and a shake of her head in haughty disapproval, she breaks our eye contact and goes to defy me yet again.

Turning to the woman, I shove her hand away like she burned me but by the time I look back, both Bianca and Justin are gone.

Uneasiness and darkness filters in my veins at the vision of him caressing and pleasing her. Touching her in places where I marked my claim years ago.

The girl calls my name from behind as I push past her. It might as well be white noise. A single goal consumes me as I march toward the rooms in the back. My instinct says I’ll find them in the same room she found me.

Except tonight, I’m the one following her like a stalker.

The lights dim, indicating it’s time for the winning couple to consummate for the hungry audience. I can’t seem to give a fuck about it as I enter the hallway on my right. The few people lingering in the hallway all make their way to the stage until I’m alone.

A low moan pierces my ear just as my gaze locks on their silhouettes. My fingers curl into fists as I close the distance. Each step feels a little too late.

I halt as I round the corner.

Red.

It’s all I see and feel running in my veins. Blazing hot jealousy boils inside me, the flames igniting and making me want to burn her with it. Such a petty emotion yet it makes grown men crumble. Makes them want to destroy the world, kill each other. I claimed myself to be above it but, as it turns out, I’m no different.

Only when it comes to her.

First, it was because of my stepbrother and now… my best friend.

She stills for a fraction of a second, sensing my presence like she was waiting for my arrival. If I wasn’t so attuned and staring so closely, I would’ve missed it. Ever so slowly, hooded brown eyes slide to mine and roam over me before turning away.

The action, conveying without words that I’m unwanted.

Replaceable.

That I’m interrupting her slutty little rebellion.

I try to remain impassive and cold but I’m not made of stone, no matter how hard I try. My body vibrates with violence as she sits on Justin’s lap while his fingers grip her thighs, thumb rubbing back and forth.

Every part of her body that he touches, I want to replace and mark with my teeth, imprint her skin and make her scream.

Until I’m the only one she feels.

Justin doesn’t seem to notice me while caressing her soft skin. And why wouldn’t he? The bastard has the sexiest woman alive writhing on his lap. And I served her ripe to him for the taking.

My first and last mistake.

He stays still in a trance, while she boldly grips his shoulders and grinds on his leg. The friction against her cunt makes a loud moan escape from her lips as she throws her head back. I can’t tell if she’s actually aroused by him or putting on a show for me.

I’ll bet my soul on the latter.

Well played, kitten.

Her bared throat is begging for my hand to be wrapped around it, as I cut off her airway for being so close yet out of my reach. For making me feel like I’m dying. I just might if she doesn’t stop taking her pleasure from my best friend.

I lose the last of my senses as her head lowers like she’s about to kiss him. The fucker won’t be the first to taste her lips before me. An intimacy she never allowed me. Like I didn’t deserve and had to earn it.

My stepbrother sure as hell didn’t deserve it, yet I saw her give him dozens of kisses.

It was tortuous. An inescapable nightmare.

It’s the same feeling rising like a tide as her small hands cup Justin’s face. The thread holding me together finally snaps and I bark a fraction of a second before their mouths are about to touch.

“Enough.”