Free Chance on Love by Vristen Pierce Page A

her out. She loved her, but it would have to be done—simple as that.
    At her bedroom door, he turned back. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
    She sighed. “Yeah, I’ll—”
    Chance turned and walked out.
    What a bastard.
    ****
    He laughed under his breath as he put his coat on. The woman was good . There he’d been, worried over whether or not a one-night stand would inadvertently crush her precious little feelings when all the while she was working him .
    Or at the very least, trying to. Sure, he’d been suspicious of her intentions right from the start, but nothing had cinched it for him more than that unexpected call from her friend. Well, Love’s reaction to said call had cinched it for him. She was up to more than wanting him to be her date to a damn party. He just had to figure out what.
    In the meantime...
    Hell if he knew. As he walked to the car, he went over his options. If he were sane, he’d stop this madness right now. But he’d always been a little crazy. ‘Like a fox,’ his grandfather always said.
    He’d planned to use her anyway, with her permission, of course—he was nothing if not a gentleman—so maybe they could have some fun for a while. Fun. He shook his head as the cold, January night air chilled him to the core. They would have a lot more than that and that was the problem.
    He had meant what he’d told her about his feelings regarding love and romance, but he feared that could change if he fucked with the likes of that woman too long. And how stupid would that be, developing feelings for someone who not only freely admitted that she hated him, but was actively doing something to hurt him in some way?
    Chance pressed the alarm and the Jag chirped in response. Sliding behind the wheel, he thought about this latest turn of events. He had always been the master of casual sex. Nothing was different this time. They may hate each other, but their chemistry was undeniable. He’d fuck her and move on...just as he’d done the rest. He clenched his jaw as he started the car.
    Stephanie Love may have wanted to hurt him , but he could definitely return the favor. And in the last way she’d ever expect. She was so sure she was above falling in love. He’d show her differently. Then it would be his turn to inflict some pain.

Chapter 10
    Stephanie stared at the bouquet of orchids that had been delivered not ten minutes after she’d arrived at the station. She drummed her fingers on the desk as she glanced at the card.
    Forgive me, please. I miss you.
    Clay
    He had some nerve trying to woo her. Of course, now that he realized she wasn’t giving his sorry ass a second thought, and she’d ‘moved on’ with Valentine, he was ready to flirt. Pathetic. She crumpled the card and tossed it in the small trash can beneath the desk just as the phone rang. “Stephanie Love speaking.”
    “Hi— Um, is there any way I could speak to Ch—I mean, Mr. Valentine? His cell goes straight through to voicemail.”
    Stephanie rolled her eyes. The woman sounded young and, ugh, pretty. Beautiful , even. And all that perk in her damn voice just made it worse. This had to be Jen. The more mature, less cheerleader-sounding one was Ellen. “I can take a message.”
    “Thanks! This is Jen—”
    Yep.
    “Would you just have him give me a call as soon as possible, please?”
    Having taken messages from Valentine’s women before, she knew the drill. “Should be easy,” she said dryly. “He already has your number.” She matched Jen’s chipper tone. “I’ll just run and see if I can hunt him down for you!”
    Oblivious to being mocked, Jen thanked her profusely before hanging up. Stephanie shook her head in disbelief as she stood. If she didn’t feel low enough, managing Valentine’s love life should take care of that nicely. Instead of having news staff meetings, she was busy chasing him around saying things like, “You should really call Plaything #463. She’s left another message!” Yeah, life was