Free After the Rain by Karen-Anne Stewart Page B

her dad when we visit them next month.”
    “Congratulations, man. Really, I’m happy for you, Sara’s a great girl.”
    “I’m happy, too,” Chase admits, the slaphappy grin spread across his handsome face giving solid proof to his words.
    Kas returns his attention back to his wife, shaking his head amusedly at Seth’s lack of rhythm. Raina catches his gaze and flashes a bright smile, winking at him, making him want to have her, badly. Feeling remorse, he wonders if he should have told Raina about Seth’s feelings. Seeing him dance with the girls, his confliction, and how he respectfully holds back from getting too close to Raina, eats at him. Seth’s very good at hiding his feelings, only he and Chase have caught the indications, but the brief flash of pain in Seth’s eyes when Raina keeps adoringly glancing her husband’s way while she dances with Seth and Sara tugs at him. Seeing Raina so happy with her friends, he stands by his decision of not telling her. He doesn’t want to take anything away from her; she’s already lost so much in her life, and he won’t risk her losing Seth, knowing that his friendship means too much to her.
    Several songs later, the trio joins the table laughing and sweating. Raina grabs her water, draining the glass, before taking sips of her mojito, trying to cool down.
    Seth leans back in his chair, “I’ve missed you guys, you have to come visit me in Boston, I have a killer suite overlooking the city.”
    “Doesn’t every big shot marketing specialist?” Raina teases.
    “Nah, only the best ones,” Seth quips as Sara smacks his arm.
    Seth takes a long sip of his drink, “Seriously, all of you need to visit soon.” He turns to Kas and Chase, “I can get you tickets to whatever game you want. The perks are the best part of the job.”
    “We’ll take you up on that,” Kas promises.
    Raina pulls her long hair into a ponytail, “It’s unbelievably hot in here!”
    Kas holds back a needy groan when he takes in her flushed cheeks and sweat slickened skin. Tracing his finger down her neck, he wishes it was his tongue, “I’ll get you some more water.”
    “Thanks,” she calls out to him as he makes his way back to the bar. Taking another sip of her mojito, she finishes the drink that was mostly ice.
    Sara slides her margarita to her, “Here, I’ll share until he gets back.”
    Raina takes a small sip, not wanting to drink too much but wanting to quench her thirst. Sara takes a quick sip herself before grabbing her friends again and dragging them back out onto the dance floor.
    Chase studies Raina, relieved to see no residual effects of her last encounter with Chris apparent in her tonight. Taking a swig of his beer, his eyes darken. The realization of how close she came to losing her life that night is sobering. He’s still amazed at how Chris was able to remove the monitor without alerting the authorities. Pete’s still working on how Sutton did it. His thoughts slip to Evan Parker, and he grips his mug tighter. Both are geniuses, both malevolent. Seeing her being just another twenty-one year old tonight is refreshing. He takes another sip of his beer, musing about how she deserves this night, how she needs this night.
    “They’re already back out there?” Kas asks, setting the water and another mojito on the table.
    “Yep, I can’t tell who’s torturing who more,” Chase states quietly.
    Kas doesn’t miss Chase’s meaning. Searching the crowd for them, his body reacts involuntarily when he spots Raina. Her slick, creamy skin is glistening in the flashing lights. Her eyes are the brightest jade. The long auburn mane is bouncing back and forth with every move of her sensuous body. When she throws her head back in a fit of laughter, he can’t take anymore.
    He’s a man on a mission as he walks onto the dance floor. He reaches her, grabs her by the waist, and spins her around. The surprised look in her eyes ignites a wildfire, and he pulls her body flush to