Kade's Game (10 page)

I'm not sure which part
of the evening has been the most boring—hanging around everyone who has a stick shoved up their ass, or dancing to music that puts babies to sleep in front of women who are cursing my firstborn in whispers.  If one more person gives Raya a condescending look, I'm going to haul her out of here over my shoulder.

And my mother's parents aren't any better.  It's sad when I actually appreciate my father.  Considering he and my cousins have been incredibly welcoming to the girl who wasn't born on silk sheets, I have a new appreciation for all of them.

The only time she isn't getting the snooty snorts of distaste is when she's getting ogled by the bored husbands looking for a new side dish.  Then of course, there are a few hormonal idiots who are undressing her with their eyes—that doesn't include me.  That pisses me off even more.

Fortunately, she seems to be oblivious to everyone's reaction to her.  She has taken the backhanded compliments without so much as flinching.  But Raya doesn't know how to look for the sharks disguised as Nemo.  I've never been more grateful for her naivety than I am right now.

Wren comes over, offering me a discreet wink, and sidles up next to my girl.  I'm surprised Erica let him come tonight without her.  She cheated on him, yet she's the one who gets crazy jealous.

"We're about to go to the den," Wren says, motioning toward the uppity crowd who are slowly diminishing.

"Sounds good.  Will you hang out with Raya for me for just a second?  I need to go find Mom.  I forgot to tell her something."

Wren nods and smiles knowingly, and I kiss Raya's forehead without thinking about it.  That wasn't me staking my claim.  Okay... Maybe a
little
bit.

She shivers and that gives me a smile.  I love her body's reactions.  I know I have her body's approval, now I just need to make sure the rest of her is on board.  She's skittish, meaning she's been hurt.  She doesn't date
—ever.  She's had one serious boyfriend, and the bastard cheated on her.  Kid gloves.  I'll have to ease her into the idea so it doesn't overwhelm her and end after ten seconds.  Not that I'm looking to dive into a serious thing.

Focus, Kade. 
Mom
. 
I have to find her and make sure she behaves.

After grinding my teeth all night when someone said something insulting to Raya while veiling it as something kind, I won't have a tooth left if my mother decides to play bitch.  She never likes any girl around me.

"Oh a scholarship?" Mary Perkins—one of the biggest socialite bitches—had asked Raya. "I'm sure a scholarship is very helpful to a girl in your condition." Yeah.  Her condition.  Poor is apparently a condition.  She made it sound like an incurable disease.

That one word was laced with utter disgust
—
scholarship.
  Raya works twice as hard as her screw-up son who only got into college after Mary made a call.

Raya had just smiled and nodded, not noticing the underlying insult.  If she did, she didn't let me know.

That is the least of the shit that was said, and I'm determined to make sure my mother doesn't make me blow a fuse.  Maybe Dad will help me for a change, seeing as he seems to really have a lot of adoration for Raya.

When I find her, Mom is talking to Johanna Wright, one of the many bitchy women who spoke poorly to my girl.  Fortunately, Johanna is so good at giving insults as compliments, that Raya actually thanked her.  It broke my heart.  She doesn't deserve this shit.  She's too sweet to notice how cruel they all are.

"Mom," I say, my eyes on Johanna in warning.

She doesn't miss my menacing gaze, and the bitch in black turns away from my mother to show me the challenge in her eyes.

"Kade," Mom says, but I don't move my stare.

"Johanna," I say, not calling her Mrs. Wright the way she prefers.

She's forty but looks thirty, thanks to heavy plastic surgery.  And her husband of choice is one of the most coveted plastic surgeons, second only to Dr. Sterling.

"Kade," she drawls, sounding bored.  "Did your girlfriend enjoy her evening?"

I accept the challenge.  "She did.  Most of the time she was busy being fawned over by the men, so I had to stay close.  She's a little too young for this crowd."

First two stabs, talk about her age without talking about it, and point out Raya's beauty and youth.

If you didn't know to look for it, you wouldn't have seen her flinch.  But Johanna's eyes have changed.  I pissed her off.

Mom's eyes go back and forth, and she waits, curious as to what will happen next.  She'll stop me if I go too far and stop playing the game.  I prefer to be blunt.

"I see.  She does indeed clean up nice.  Maybe once she's been around you for a while, she'll fit right in.  That should help with the men.  You know how they are," she says, smiling artificially.

Yeah.  She just said the rich boys like slumming it.  Mistake.

I stifle my anger, though it's painful to do.  "Has she met Frank?" Mom asks, making me bite back a smile.  She's helping.  Frank is Johanna's husband, who has a loose zipper he seems to lose control of around pretty girls.

Mom just gave me the opportunity of a lifetime.

"She did.  Frank's been drinking, and he's always so much more charming when he's drinking," I say with a small laugh, noting the twitch that instantly develops in Johanna's right eye.  "He was studying her facial structure, said he wished he could duplicate it for some of his clients.  Then he proceeded to mention how he was happy to see the larger breasts coming back in style."

Johanna swallows audibly, and I intentionally let my eyes flick to the small breasts she had implanted just last year to replace her fuller ones.

I completely embellished that story.  Had Frank spoken about Raya's breasts, I might have killed him.  But Frank's too drunk to remember what he did or didn't say.

She opens her mouth, probably to say something about how trashy large breasts are, but Frank staggers in and saves the day.

"We need to go, dear," he says with bored tone, clapping my back as he nears.

"Kade," he says, turning his attention to me.  "You did good with that one out there.  I'm still fascinated by the symmetry of her nose.  People pay thousands for noses that aren't anywhere nearly that perfect."

I'll let him talk about her nose.

Johanna's teeth make a sound that has me wondering if she'll need a dentist after this.  "Let's go, Frank," she says coldly.

He barely acknowledges her before letting his gaze flicker to my mother, and then he gives her a wink.  Mom forces a smile as Frank staggers out, and my fists unclench for the first time since I walked in here.

"I really hate them," Mom grumbles, relaxing as though she just sat through a suspenseful evening.

I bypass all the small talk and dig into what I came to say.  "Be nice to Raya.  She's had a night full of undercutting bullshit.  I won't let my family do that."

Shit.  Mom looks hurt.  That all came out too harsh.

"Kade, since when am I like that?"

Mom was born wealthier than most people in
Sterling Shore, but she was raised by a nanny who might as well have been her mother.  She raised her to be a grateful, usually sweet person, but this life sometimes hardens you to the point where you lose concern about the emotions of others.  I've seen her be cruel, but there's no need to mention that.

"I just don't want anything else to be said.  You hate it when I bring girls around, and you say things like Johanna just did."

She frowns as she stares at her glass of champagne.

"I have my moments, but I don't do that with anyone who isn't doing the same.  You've only brought girls like Courtney Hughes around.  God knows I can't behave around a catty attitude like that."

My lips twitch with amusement.  "You make it sound as though I've dated hundreds of girls.  I just bring them around for functions like this because girls like that can handle it.  I don't have time for dating."

Even though it seems
like I'm constantly making time for Raya.

Her sad smile intrigues me.  "Raya is sweet, Kade.  She's not like the girls you're used to.  Don't hurt that girl."

I start looking for the knife it feels like she just stabbed me with.  Am I that bad?  Tag is bad.  I rarely get around.  Hell, I can't even remember the last time I had sex.

"I realize she's sweet.  We're friends," I say with a shrug, not willing to explain my slight issue with my sudden addiction to the girl waiting on me.

Her eyes narrow like I'm an idiot for trying to lie.  But I'm not getting into this right now.

"She's not like your father.  You have to be built for a transition like this.  You have to be able to take the hits and keep getting up.  She's fragile, Kade.  She's might as well be porcelain."

I've already thought about that numerous times, but I can't just let Raya slip away because she might not adjust.  I hate these kinds of functions, but I also know how to work them.  I can protect her until people find a new target.

"Just play nice.  That's all I'm asking," I say on my way out the door, not giving her another chance to make me worry about what could happen.

When I make it back to Raya, the beautiful smile she gives me is breathtaking, and all my tension dissolves as I move closer.  Right now, the only thing I want to do is press my lips to hers and get lost.  I can't wait until we reach that point.

She's stronger than she acts, I hope.  Because I'm too far gone to turn back.

"You ready to kick back with my family for a while?" I ask, sliding my arm around her waist.

When she leans into me, it all feels so right, like we were molded for each other.

"Yes.  Anything to get off my feet."

I frown down at her heels.  "You should have said something.  We could have sat down sooner."

She smiles up at me, and I forget what conversation we're even having.  "I enjoyed all the dancing.  It was fun."

Fun.  She had fun.  She never even knew these shady people were insulting her.  She deserves so much better.

I went around the party in small spurts during the evening, making sure to return the favor to everyone who had said something.  I felt like a damn chick, but Raya couldn't fight these battles.  All along, she had fun.

Relief fills me to know for certain she had no clue.

I pull Raya to one of the couches in the den, and she comes willingly, letting out a content sigh when she sinks down.  I make sure to leave no room between us while ignoring the scrutiny from Tag and Wren.  I completely ignore Bity.  If he'll screw his own brother's fiancée, there's no telling what he might try with my girl.

"I'm exhausted," Wren groans, stretching out on the couch.

Tag and Bity are furiously texting.  Both are probably trying to get laid.  Raya seems tired, so I pull her closer, wrapping my arm around her shoulders and letting her settle in against me.  It's always so natural.

Dad comes in and occupies his chair, and Greta is behind him with whiskey on a tray.  Raya waves it off quickly, and I stifle a grin.  She's a lightweight, and she's had her fill of champagne.

I take the drink, happy to have something to calm me down after my standoff with Johanna.  Mom walks in and doesn't slow down.  She grabs a drink from the tray on her way to Dad.

"Thank goodness it's over," she says, exasperated, and then she drops to Dad's lap, making his throaty chuckle emerge while he wraps his arms around her.

Raya smiles as she watches them.  My parents are an anomaly.  Being married for this long and being in love is almost impossible in our world.  And they're nauseatingly in love.

"We still on for
Aspen?" Tag asks, looking toward my parents.

"Of course.  Is Melanie going to be there?" Dad asks.

"Mom?" Wren asks, seeming distracted as he pulls out his vibrating phone.  "Yeah, she's coming."

Raya leans into me more as she yawns, and I bring my arm down from the back of the couch to wrap it completely around her, pulling her even closer.  I've never been this comfortable with anyone.

Tag smirks when he glances our way, and I see it in his eyes that he's about to irritate me. "What about you, Raya?  You coming with us?"

He's such a jerk.  She has her own Christmas.  I know she's close to her family.

She grows rigid against me, and I almost want to go slap him for making her think about the way we're sitting.  She's comfortable with me, but she's still skittish.  Does he not see that?  He's supposed to be a master at reading girls.

"Um... no," she says with a soft, rattled laugh.

"You going to your family's place?" Wren asks, putting his phone away and focusing his attention on her.

"No.  My family does Christmas next weekend, actually."

So she doesn't have anywhere to go?  I've mentioned Aspen numerous times.  Why didn't she tell me she had no plans?

"So soon?" I ask as she moves away from me.

"Yeah.  My stepbrother is a Marine, so it's not easy for him to come back on holidays.  Instead, we celebrate when we can.  Mom plans it around his return."