Free Dirty Trick by Christine Bell Page A

dreaded the thought of seeing Serena again before he had a chance to explain, but it didn’t feel right just walking out on Grace.
    “That’s okay, I already feel like there’s a giant neon sign over my head, flashing ‘Freshly Laid,’ or something, and she’s going to grill me about this anyway, so I’d rather not give her additional ammunition.”
    He’d just have to hope that the grilling didn’t end with a big reveal out of Serena. But it was out of his hands for now, so he nodded and stepped back. “Okay, I understand. But how about one for the road?”
    Just in case it all hit the fan, he dipped his head low and pressed his lips to hers for one more kiss. She opened them eagerly, and what was meant to be a goodbye had his just-sated body waving hello again.
    He drew back slightly. “I’m very glad to have made your acquaintance, Ms. Love,” he whispered against her mouth. And with that, he let her go, turned on his heel, and walked out the door.
    By the time he reached his car, his insides were wrecked. The elation he’d felt had already faded, and a sense of hollowness had started to set in. He’d waited so long for Gracie to give him a chance…to see him as someone who could be a hell of a lot more than a friend. She’d given someone a chance tonight, but to her mind, it hadn’t been him. He’d lied to her. Pretended to be someone he wasn’t. Now he had better make sure it was worth it, for both their sakes.

Chapter Six
    “You had sex with him?” Serena stared at her from across the granite island of Grace’s kitchen, mouth agape, and set down her forkful of grapefruit. “Like, the full Monty?”
    Grace nodded, tugging at a loose piece of rattan on the seat of her stool. In spite of her embarrassment, she couldn’t stop the grin from stretching her mouth. “Yup.”
    “Inside Chaz’s house?”
    “Yup.”
    She searched her conscience for some guilt but couldn’t find even a drop. Regret that he’d left so quickly? Yes. But she wasn’t in love, so it wasn’t a heartbreak. She hardly knew him, and no matter what, he’d given her a big piece of something she could never repay. Her confidence.
    Once Grace had wiped the stupid grin off her face and gone back out to the party the night before, Serena had been MIA. When Grace checked her phone, there was a text saying she’d finished her meeting with Chaz and was headed to a booty call but that she would catch up with her in the morning. That had given Grace enough time to decide exactly how much to tell her friend about her night with Catman.
    In spite of her resolve to keep it to herself for a little while, the second Serena showed up with fruit and bagels that morning, it had all but exploded from her lips. After all, it wasn’t often a girl got her mind blown by a stranger. At least, not this girl.
    “So what now? Are you guys going to go out again or?”
    Serena had apparently digested the information thoroughly enough to resume picking at her breakfast again, and chomped on a segment of fruit while Grace debated on exactly how to answer that question.
    “I’m not exactly sure. He had to leave right after…you know.”
    Grace set her fork down again with a clatter. “Oh he did, did he? That motherf—”
    “Take a pill. It’s not like that.” In spite of her reassurance, she really had no idea if it was “like that” or not, but judging by the rising fury on Serena’s face, it was better to placate her instead of risking her friend hunting poor Catman down and showing him what kind of damage a super-villain could really inflict. “He had to go, but he said he’d be in touch.”
    It sounded lame even to her ears, but for some reason, she had believed him. He’d looked so sincere.
    “I’m sure that no guy has ever said that after sex,” Serena snorted.
    “I think he was telling the truth. Maybe I’m naive, but you know what?” She shrugged and laughed, feeling more free and relaxed than she’d felt in years. “I