Chapter 3

The car pulled up outside a hotel, just as I expected. The moment Patrick stepped out, he pulled Sierra into his arms and kissed her. They headed inside without ever breaking the kiss.

I'd seen the key card for the hotel's presidential suite in Patrick's pocket, so I followed them without hesitation.

I kicked the door open and found them still tangled up in each other.

When Patrick saw me, he wasn't nearly as surprised as I'd expected. If anything, he looked relieved. He wrapped a towel around himself and lounged against the headboard.

"So you figured it out. You're smarter than I thought."

Sierra, too, didn't look the least bit rattled. "Where would you rank her compared to all your exes?"

Patrick actually stopped to think about it. "Second to last. I wouldn't put her any higher."

Then, he turned to me. "We were actually betting on how long it would take you to figure it out."

"You lost. That means you're not getting any for a week," Sierra said as she spread her hands.

"Fine. A bet's a bet. You're really trying to torture me, huh?"

They carried on flirting as though I didn't exist. Rage surged through me, and before I knew it, I slapped Patrick hard.

His head snapped to the side, but he was still smiling.

"Lettie, you know what I like most about you? Out of all my girlfriends, you're the only one who's ever actually hit me."

I was shaking with anger. "You two love feeling what the other feels, don't you? Fine. Let's make it real."

With that, I raised my hand and slapped Sierra.

All at once, the grin vanished from Patrick's face.

"Enough!" he barked, his hand clamping around my wrist. "Leticia Fletcher, are you done?"

His fingers dug into my wrist hard enough to draw blood.

A beat later, he said, "Sierra and I are only physically attracted to each other. It's just about satisfying our physical needs. It's not as disgusting as you're making it out to be. I care about you more."

Patrick tried to pull me close. "I love you, Lettie. Please, don't be mad."

My stomach churned when I heard that. I wrenched myself out of his arms and spat, "Don't touch me! You disgust me."

"Oh, Lettie, you've got that wrong," Sierra said with a smile. "Patrick hasn't been with anyone but me since he turned 18. Hardly makes him disgusting, does it?"

Then, she leaned close and whispered, her voice low enough that only I could hear, "What made you think you could just barge in here and catch us? Patrick's girlfriends have come and gone, but I'm the only one who's always been there.

"I'm the exception, Leticia. If anything, you're the other woman here. If the Thorne family hadn't kept us apart, do you really think any of you would've ever had a chance with him?"

Sierra was trying to provoke me, but I found myself calming down.

For years, she had watched Patrick go through one girlfriend after another. Yet, she had never been the one he chose. If I was right, sex was the only thing she had to keep him from leaving.

Remembering just how irresistible I was, I asked Sierra, "Really? You think you're the exception, huh?

"What if I told you Patrick wouldn't agree to end things with me? Would you still think you were the exception?"