Wicked Dirty (Stark World 2)

"Security at his department store chain," Noah says. "Then Damien recruited me and I made the jump from the east coast to the west. Now I'm going to the middle."

Since I'm starting to feel like I'm interrogating him, I back off, and he and Lyle start talking about a regular poker game that Noah's no longer going to be part of, and another friend named Ryan, who's in security, but isn't at the party because he and his wife are on a cruise.

As we make our way back to the patio, we bump into Jane, who calls out to Lyle, then wraps me in such a friendly hug that it's as if we've know each other for years. "You're so lucky to have him," she whispers to me. "I swear he brought emotion to my script I didn't even think possible."

We continue on toward the patio together, where we're greeted by laughter and the smell of sizzling burgers. Damien Stark is behind the grill, which makes me laugh considering he could probably buy every burger joint in the country. Dallas Sykes is standing by him, though I don't realize who it is until Jane introduces us. I've seen his picture before, of course, but he's way more attractive in person. Which, frankly, is saying a lot because he's pretty hot in those photos.

We all settle in with burgers and beer and wine and chips, and it's all so normal and not the least bit ritzy. And when Lyle puts his arm around me, I lean against him and sigh, feeling right at home.

When I'm completely stuffed and lightheaded from wine, Lyle leads me to the hot tub, and we sit on the edge--his arm aro

und me as I lean against him--our feet dangling in the water. "This is nice," I say, and as I turn to smile at him, he takes my chin and and kisses me sweetly, and I think that it's just gotten nicer.

We stay another hour, chatting and generally having a good time, and I feel like I'm one of the group. And for someone who's been self-reliant for so long, that feeling is both surprising and wonderful.

When it's time to leave, I'm standing in the entrance hall waiting for Lyle to finish discussing something about the SCF brunch with Damien, when Riley comes up.

"Hey," he says.

"Hi. Lyle's up there if you're looking for him." I point toward the open-style staircase that leads to the third floor.

"Nope. I was looking for you."

"Oh." I twist my engagement ring, wondering what he knows. Turns out, he knows a lot. Like everything about our fake engagement. And how we met. And the fact that there was money paid.

"We've been friends for a long time," he says, and I nod.

"He told me," I say. "About you and Iowa and Jenny." I flash a tentative smile. "I think he's really lucky to have you for a friend."

Riley studies me, nodding. "Yeah, well that goes both ways." He shoves his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. "Listen, I was going to say that I hope you understand that what he told you--well, he's not one for over sharing."

"I'm not going to give away his secrets, if that's what you're worried about."

"I was. After meeting you, I'm not. But be careful with him, okay? I don't want to see him getting hurt."

"I'm not going to hurt him."

"Not intentionally," Riley says. "But he loves you. He hasn't officially told me that, but I can tell. And that means hurt might be inevitable."

"Oh." I don't know what to say to that, but my heart seems to swell in my chest, and I'm having a hell of a time fighting my smile.

Riley looks me up and down critically, but when he meets my eyes, he's the one who smiles. "Yeah," he finally says. "I think you just might do."

23

"I don't really know him, but I thought Noah seemed sad about leaving," I say to Lyle as we ride the elevator up to his condo. I haven't been here before, and when he mentioned his view from the thirtieth floor, I begged him to detour.

It's a shiny, modern building, and Lyle told me he bought his unit when his sitcom was topping the charts every week.

Now, he leans against the interior wall of the elevator car, the corners of his mouth curved down. "You're not wrong," he says about Noah. "Bet he'd be disappointed to realize he's so transparent."

"Is he okay? Is the move about something other than work?"

"A little of both, although he hasn't actually told me as much." The elevator slows to a stop and the doors slide open. There are four elevators in the building, one for each corner. On most floors, Lyle told me, the elevator opens onto a hallway with two or three units. His unit, however, takes up a quarter of the top floor, and the elevator opens onto a private foyer with his entry door on one side, a flower arrangement immediately opposite the elevator doors, and what he tells me is extra storage to the right.

"Noah really is taking over the Austin operation," he continues. "Apparently Stark International acquired a business, and current management just isn't cutting it. But he also asked Damien for the gig once it came up. I think he wants to get away from LA. There are some bad memories for him in Southern California."

"What happened?" I ask, then say, "Oh, wow," when I follow Lyle into his sparsely decorated condo.