Sed glanced at Jessica for approval. She knew he had to indulge his fans on occasion, so she shrugged.

He attempted a weak, one-armed embrace, but Eiffel Tower Fangirl wouldn’t settle for that. She wrapped both arms around his waist and rubbed her face against his shoulder. The young woman trembled from head to foot and continued to cling to him long after he’d dropped his arm.

Jessica tapped Fangirl on the shoulder. Not because that pang in her chest was jealousy: no, she just knew that Sed was exhausted and ready to head back to the hotel. “You’re done,” Jessica insisted. “We’re leaving now.”

Fangirl’s head swiveled slowly and she glared pure hatred at Jessica. Jessica wouldn’t have been surprised if the petite brunette started spewing split pea soup in her face.

“No one asked you, Jessica.”

Jessica’s eyes widened.

“Yes, I know who you are. You’re the stupid bitch who broke Sed’s—”

Sed covered the young woman’s mouth with one hand and chuckled uneasily. “I’ve got to go now.”

He pulled free of Fangirl’s embrace, took Jessica’s hand, and stumbled toward the elevator. Once they were inside and on their way down, Sed leaned against the wall.

“How did she know my name?” Jessica asked.

He shrugged. “Probably read it in a tabloid or something. Don’t worry about it.”

How could she not worry about it? Some demon-possessed fan girl knew her by name and probably had it in for her. Jessica fiddled with the bracelets on her wrists. She wondered how many other Sedric Lionheart fans thought she was a stupid bitch. Because Sed could obviously do no wrong. And why did she care anyway? She knew what a self-centered jerk he was, even if every other person on the planet was clueless.

Sed wrapped an arm around her shoulders and tugged her closer. “I can’t wait to get you to a nice, comfortable bed,” he murmured. “Nothing but missionary position for the next several days.”

She smiled and snuggled closer, her hand resting on the warm skin of his belly. Yes, that was what she needed to focus on. Their sex-only relationship. Not these unfounded feelings of hurt over Sed’s ridiculous fans. Who cared what they thought of her? “Missionary? I’ll believe that when I see it.”

Sed kissed her on the forehead. “You know what I hate about you?”

She scowled, some strange emotion stealing her breath. “What?”

“You know me too well.”

“You know what I hate about you?”

“What?”

“Everything.”

“Oh yeah?”

She nodded.

He chuckled. “Baby, if that’s how you show your hatred, I can’t wait to see how you show you care.”

Chapter 13

Sed accepted the set of keycards from the clerk at the Bellagio Hotel’s check-in desk. He took Jessica’s hand, his heart already drumming with anticipation, and headed for the elevator. Whatever little game she was playing with him, he was more than happy to participate. That h-word did a number on his heart every time she said it, even if he didn’t believe she really meant it, but he had no doubt he’d win her back. She was slipping already.

His cell phone rang, startling him. So few people had his private number. Who would be calling him at one o’clock in the morning? He retrieved his phone from his pocket and checked the number on the incoming-call screen. Eric?

“Yeah?” Sed answered.

“Hate to bother you,” Eric said. “I didn’t know who else to call.”

“What’s wrong?” Sed covered his free ear with his hand and started walking toward the exit for better reception.

“They just checked Trey into Intensive Care and I can’t get ahold of Brian. Trey keeps asking for him, but I guess Brian turned off his phone.”

“What? Why is Trey in the hospital?”

“He had a seizure right after you left, so I called an ambulance. They did an MRI and he has a subdural hema-something-or-other. They have to drill through his skull to, oh I don’t know, fix it. Can you find Brian? Dare is freaking out and scaring the hell out of Trey. Trey could really use Brian’s levelheadedness right about now.”

“I’ll find Brian. I mean how hard can it be? I have no idea where he is and there are only a million hotel rooms in this city.”

Jessica grabbed his arm. “He and Myrna are at the Venetian. A suite with a Jacuzzi tub.”

“Jessica says he’s at the Venetian. Is Trey going to be okay?”

“The doctor said he has a fair chance of recovery if they can decrease the pressure on his brain in the next few hours.”

“If?” Sed ran a hand over his face. “Jesus Christ. This is all my fault.”

“Sed, that’s bullshit. It’s all that bouncer’s fault. You shouldn’t bash people in the back of the head with an aluminum bat.”

Sed glanced down at Jessica who was trotting beside him and staring up at him anxiously.

“If I hadn’t reacted the way I did when I saw…” He avoided looking at Jessica and opened the door to the nearest cab. “Can you take me to the Venetian?” he asked the cab driver.

“Sure thing, mate.”

Jessica climbed into the cab and Sed slid in next to her.

“I’m off to find Brian at his hotel. You try calling the front desk. I’ll call you back soon.”

Eric sighed in relief. “Thanks, Sed.”

Sed ended the call.

“What’s going on?” Jessica took his hand firmly in hers.

He shook off her grasp. He should have been there for Trey, not fucking Jessica along the Vegas strip. If he’d never seen her in the first place, they’d have never been in a bar fight and Trey wouldn’t be in this life-threatening position. “Trey’s in the hospital. I’ve got to find Brian.”

“What’s wrong with Trey?”

“He had a seizure. Something about brain swelling. I don’t know. Eric didn’t explain it very well.” He leaned forward to talk to the driver. “We don’t want to sightsee, dude. Hurry up, okay? It’s an emergency.” He reached for his wallet and tossed several hundred-dollar bills into the front seat.

The cab driver hit the gas, whipping around stalled traffic without hesitation. Soon, they pulled up to the Venetian hotel’s entrance and drew to a stop.

Sed handed another hundred to the driver. “Can you stay here and hold the cab for me?”

“My pleasure, mate.” He turned on the “off duty” sign and put the cab in park.

“What can I do to help?” Jessica asked.

“Stay here. You’ll just slow me down.”

She looked hurt, but nodded in agreement. Sed hopped out of the cab and raced into the opulent lobby. He hurried to the check-in counter to find the night clerk immersed in a heated debate with someone on the phone.

“I can’t ring someone’s room at this hour, sir. I understand that it’s an emergency, but the guest in question has a do not disturb under any circumstances ord—” The clerk flushed beneath his olive complexion. “No sir, my head is not permanently inserted in my ass.”

Sed jerked the phone receiver out of the clerk’s hand. “Eric?”

“Who is this?” someone said on the other end of the line.

“It’s Sed.”

“This is Dare. Will you punch that stupid fuck of a desk clerk in the face for me?”

“If he doesn’t call Brian, then yes, I’ll punch him in the face for you. And again for me. And three times for Trey.”

“Sir, you need to calm down,” the desk clerk said, while repeatedly pushing a button to call for security.

Jessica appeared at Sed’s elbow. She took the phone out of his hand and handed it to the desk clerk. “Jean Carlo,” she greeted the attractive Roman-looking guy.

How the hell did she know him? Had she gone out with this stupid jackass? Watched the fountain with him? Let him put his hands on her? Screwed him? Had she liked it? Begged for more? Sed clenched both fists so he wouldn’t reach across the desk and strangle the fucker.

The desk clerk’s eyes widened with recognition and he smiled fondly at Jessica. “Feather. Lovely to see you.”