Page 38 of Riptide

A broad smile broke across Garrett’s face as he watched her sashay away down the hallway.

“Dude. You’ve got it so bad.” Seth laughed.

“Stone,” Garrett snapped.

“We’ve got this,” Seth whispered.

Garrett tapped at his watch and looked up to Seth. “I’m happy you could come by tonight. The limo will be outside for you later when you’re ready. Please indulge in the chocolate fountain. Selby picked up strawberries from the strawberry fields today and they are to die for.” Garrett flashed his fangs and then lowered the volume of his voice to a whisper. “Text me later. Just follow the music and you’ll find the party.”

“Will do,” Seth replied.

“Thank you.” Kaimana nodded at him, her stomach curled tight in nervousness as Seth took her hand and led her further into the mansion.

As they entered the great room, Kaimana’s jaw dropped open at the sight. Grateful for her mask that hid her astonishment, she held tight to Seth’s hand, taking in the spectacle of Club Altura. Bare-breasted fairies fluttered their iridescent wings, dancing amongst the sea of partygoers. A man dressed as a policeman handcuffed two purple kittens who stood spread eagle against a grand piano. Across the room a half-naked rabbit stood behind a DJ stand while a woman with cat ears gave him a blow job.

She tightened her grip on Seth’s hand, not realizing he’d begun speaking to a tall redhead. The mysterious woman, dressed in a full-length latex jumpsuit, ran her fingers over his shoulder. Kaimana grimaced at the strong vanilla fragrance that wafted up her nose.

“I’m Luna. Like the moon.” She giggled and flashed a flirty smile at Seth. “So nice to have new blood in the club. So I hear you knew Evan.”

“Yes. We just saw him in New York,” Kaimana said.

“Terrible accident. We were all very upset by it.”

“Were you close?” Seth asked.

“Evan and I were…well I guess you’d call our relationship complicated. We worked together.” She removed her hand from Seth’s shoulder to run the pad of her finger over the rim of the champagne glass. “I used to work for him, then switched departments. But then, as life would have it, I ended up working with him on another project.” She rolled her eyes and lowered her voice to a whisper. “He was fascinating. Truly brilliant. Such a loss.”

“So you work at Emerson Industries?” Seth asked.

“Yes, well, it’s where all the cool kids are.” Her fingers brushed Seth’s chest. “At least the ones of us who are left.”

“You were dating Evan?” Kaimana asked.

She laughed. “Well what’s your definition of dating? I guess you could say we had a thing. Just a little fun, so to speak. I was kind of dating another person for a while.” She shook her head and sighed. “I mean you do know about Seth, too. He also died. Terrible situation. Fell off a cliff. Never returned. I was heartbroken.” She sighed. “He really was quite funny. Sexy too. Very sexy. He’s also dead now, though. What a mess. A shame really. He was this super cool surfer. Fucking brilliant but always kept it under wraps. With us, it was kind of on and off, really. But now it’s definitely off so, yeah, I’m free to play.”

What the actual fuck? Is this Seth’s girlfriend? Kaimana tugged her hand out of his at the realization he’d slept with Luna.

Jealousy stabbed through her, but she forced a sweet tone of voice, recalling Garrett’s warning on the plane. “I’m Paris.”

“Hi Paris. Love your name. Like Paris France. I love your dress too. So sexy.” Luna looked to Seth. “I’m open to couples. Do you guys play with others or are you only into each other? Because I’d love to see what’s under those masks of yours later.”

“Me and Stone? Monogamous? Oh no. Of course not. We have what we like to think of as a friends with benefits arrangement.” Kaimana’s face heated with anger under the mask. “He’s absolutely free to play with whomever he likes. As am I.”

“Tonight we’re together,” Seth insisted.

“Of course, darling. We came together.” Kaimana began swiveling her head, looking for an exit. They needed to talk to more people and if she spent one more second with Luna and Seth, she doubted her ability to remain civil.

“I want to find Selby and thank her again for inviting us. I’ll be back,” she told Seth.

“Paris. This place is kind of big. Maybe we should stay together,” he suggested.

“No worries. If you’re around later, I’d be down for a little play time,” Luna told them.

“Oh look at that.” Kaimana pointed to the patio. “More bubbles.”

Luna laughed and leaned toward Seth. “She’s delicious.”

“I’m sorry about losing Seth. It must have been terribly difficult,” Kaimana said.