Playing With Fire. Kayla Perrin

Wendell.

      As they moved toward the exit, Nicholas placed a hand on the small of her back. “You okay?”

      “Yeah, I’m fine.”

      When they were through the front door, he turned her in his arms so that she was facing him. “Is it Wendell?”

      “No. No, of course not.” Zienna stroked his cheek. “I’m just tired, babe.”

      “Why don’t you go to my place, get into bed and rest until I get there?” He lowered his voice. “If I can’t have more of you right now, I at least want your body next to mine tonight.”

      “That I can do,” Zienna told him. She smiled. “And, yes, maybe a couple hours of rest and some aspirin will do me a world of good.”

      She headed to her car with one goal in mind. When Nicholas got home, she was going to do him good.

      Do him until she rid herself of the memory of Wendell altogether.

      3

      “Pick up, pick up,” Zienna said into her cell phone as she sat in her car, anxious to speak to Alexis. She’d called her friend the moment she’d left Nicholas’s restaurant the night before, desperate to reach her, but her series of calls had all gone to voice mail.

      Even though Zienna had put every ounce of her energy into making love to Nicholas, and should have been tired, once he had fallen asleep beside her she had instead lain awake, the evening replaying in her mind.

      I’d really like to talk to you at some point. Clear the air.

      At a quarter to five, Zienna had slipped out of Nicholas’s bed and gotten dressed. She had hoped he wouldn’t wake, but he had.

      “Go back to sleep,” Zienna had whispered. “I’m heading into the office early, and there are some things I have to do at home first.” She gave him a peck on the cheek. “I’ll talk to you later.”

      Once she’d left Nicholas’s house, she rushed to her car and immediately tried calling Alexis again. Ever since they’d become friends in second grade, Zienna had been sharing everything with Alexis, the good and the bad. And Alexis had forever earned her trust when she’d punched the class bully in the face for throwing a rock at Zienna’s forehead in third grade. That incident had sealed their status as best friends for life.

      Now, Zienna groaned in frustration when she heard her friend’s cheerful voice begin her short message again. Where on earth could she be at this hour?

      Undeterred, Zienna promptly disconnected, then called the number once more. She would redial one hundred times if that’s how long it took to reach her.

      Three rings later, a groggy-sounding Alexis finally answered the phone. “This had better be good.”

      “I need to come over,” Zienna said without preamble.

      “Now?”

      “Yes, now. I’m going out of my mind, Alex.”

      “Shit, Zee—it’s five-fourteen in the morning.”

      “Which is why you know it’s got to be urgent. I called you hours ago, you didn’t answer.”

      “I ended up going out for a drink with that guy I was telling you about, the one I met online. I forgot my phone at home.”

      Zienna had pulled up to the curb on a street a few over from Nicholas’s house, waiting to reach Alexis. Now that they were talking, she started her car. “I have to tell you what happened. I’m kind of freaking out.”

      “Okay.” Alexis didn’t sound happy, but Zienna knew she wouldn’t abandon her in her hour of need.

      Sure, Zienna could wait until the work day was over and see her friend then. But she’d already had to wait hours, since leaving the restaurant and going to Nicholas’s place. Making love to her man had done nothing to alleviate her stress. And the way her heart was still beating rapidly, Zienna knew that she had to see Alexis now and share with her what had transpired.

      “I’ll see you soon,” she said. “Want me to grab coffee or something?”

      “No. I’m going back to bed once you leave.”

      Zienna ended the call and began to navigate her way through the Lincoln Park neighborhood, where Nicholas lived, toward the West Loop, where Alexis made her home in a trendy loft. It was a vibrant and artistic area, with chic cafés and restaurants, and several warehouses that had been converted to loft-style condominiums.

      As Zienna continued to drive, she wondered why she was so torn up over seeing Wendell again. Seriously, she shouldn’t be this frazzled.

      “You got the shock of your life,” she told herself. “That’s why you’re freaked out.”

      But damn, what were the chances? She had had the hottest sex of her life with Wendell, and it turned out that he was Nicholas’s best friend? Could this situation be any worse?

      The traffic was light at this hour, and Zienna made it to Alexis’s loft within twenty minutes. She parked her car at an available meter and then called her friend’s number.

      “I’m downstairs,” she told her when they connected.

      Zienna hurried out of the car and up the steps of the building. Moments later, the front door opened. Alexis faced her with one hand perched on her hip. She looked none too pleased.

      “You know I hate you right now.” She flashed her the evil eye.

      Zienna breezed into the condo foyer, her heels clicking on the marble floor. “Wendell’s back in town.”

      “What?”

      Zienna didn’t answer, instead walking the short distance to Alexis’s unit. Her friend scurried into the loft behind her and closed the door.

      “Wendell called you?” she asked, then rubbed her eyes with balled fists. “I can see why you were surprised, but girl, it’s not even six in the morning—”

      Zienna’s throat felt tight as she sauntered across the living room toward the floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the street. She glanced outside, and wondered how the world could look the same when it had undeniably changed.

      Inhaling deeply, she moved to the nearby armchair and gripped the back of it. “Remember I told you that I suspected that Nicholas wanted to introduce me to his friend tonight? Well, I was right. Wendell’s the friend. Wendell. He’s Nicholas’s best friend.”

      A beat passed. And as Zienna’s words registered, Alexis’s jaw dropped. Then her eyes bulged. “Oh, my God. You’re saying you saw Wendell last night—with Nicholas?”

      “Yes.” Zienna rounded the leather armchair and plopped onto it.

      “Holy shit.” Alexis crossed her arms over her chest. “Does Nicholas know?” She went to the sofa across from Zienna and sat on the arm. “What did Wendell say?”

      “Nicholas doesn’t know, but Wendell— Fuck, he told Nicholas he knew me years ago. That I was the kinesiologist he worked with when he was playing for the Bears.”

      “Okay,” Alexis began slowly. “That’s not so bad, right? I mean, there’s no reason not to say you knew each other.”

      “Except for the fact that Nicholas looked suspicious.”

      “He did?”

      “Yeah, and he made an offhand remark about being surprised Wendell never hit on me. And then it gets better. All this time I thought Wendell didn’t want to commit to anyone...well, it turns out he did want to commit. Only to someone else. Some swimsuit model named Pam.”

      Alexis looked as confused as Zienna had been hours earlier, so she took her time and filled her in on exactly what she’d learned.

      “Damn.”