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PLAY WITH ME 14
Evan Reese was tall and leanly built, though not scrawny. Rangy, that was the word. He had the look of a man who spent his life outdoors. A well-to-do man, though not born to money. He had met his wife, Christina when she used to own a food truck, and after two failed attempts, had finally found the guts to ask her out on a date.Christina had accepted to go out with him because she liked him. She liked his sense of humor and the way he looked too. A strong-featured face, the deep-set gray-blue eyes crinkled at the corners, framed by dark lashes. His hair was black, cut far too short to be fashionable. A practical style. What on earth did a man like him see in a woman like her? Christina had wondered. If any other stranger had tried to strike up a conversation with her and ask her out on any other day, she’d have spurned him. Maybe the fates had indeed intervened to bring two kindred spirits together, in which case it would be unwise of her not to follow their lead, so she had accepte
PLAY WITH ME 15
"Are you hungry?" he asked, trying to change the topic. "I noticed we didn't have anything to warm up in the fridge and we're out of a lot of things. I wanted to go shopping but I got stuck at work. I can do that tomorrow, but what matters is now. Do you want to go out and grab something to eat? I know it's a bit late but maybe if we look around we might find a place that's still open""No" came Christina's curt reply.Evan nodded his head. "Okay," he said, dragging the word. "Should I go get something for the both of us then? I can be fast so we can have dinner together before we go to bed""I said no!" Christina said, this time her voice was harsh. "I just told you no. What part of 'no' do you not understand? If you wanna go out, then please just do so and go away. I want to be alone"She pushed the clothes on her lap onto the bed and stood up, murmuring some words he couldn't understand. She brushed past him towards her wardrobe, withdrew a suitcase which she took back to the bed,
PLAY WITH ME 16
Her phone vibrated across the surface of her nightstand, and a groan slipped out of Chloe's mouth. She ran her hand over her head, mussing her long dark hair.The phone continued to vibrate, drawing her attention back to it and another groan from her throat. She knew that he would want to talk about their previous discussion and she wasn't ready for it. She liked him all right, and he didn't live too far away from her, so she wouldn't even have to worry about distance being a problem in their relationship. She wasn't dating or involved with anyone, so why the hell was she hesitating? She groaned again into the phone as she finally picked it up and swiped her hand across the screen.“Are you okay?” Matthew asked her, his voice gruff with concern.Chloe instantly felt guilty. “Yeah, I'm fine,” she said.“But you’re groaning,” he said. “And you don't sound fine. Is something bothering you?”Chloe almost said 'the only thing bothering me is someone interrupting my sleep', but that would b
PLAY WITH ME 17
“Are you guys going to the season opener?” she asked.“Wouldn’t miss it,” Peter said.“I have a favor to ask then.”Both brothers looked curiously at her.“I’m bringing a client and I’d like to keep my relationship with Bryce on the down low.”Curiosity gleamed in their eyes. She knew they wanted to ask, but when she didn’t volunteer her reasons why, they didn’t pursue the matter.“Okay. Not a problem,” Peter finally said. "Anything for you"“Are you three going to stand out there all day or are you coming in to eat?”Their father’s voice boomed from the front porch, and they all turned to see him leaning against the doorframe, impatience evident in his stance.Chloe grinned. “We better go in before your dad starts muttering threats,”she said playfully.Peter ruffled her hair then tucked his arm over her neck so he had her in a headlock. He started toward the house, dragging her with him.When they got to the porch, she laughingly stumbled from Peter's hold and gave their father a qui
PLAY WITH ME 18
No one seemed surprised by that announcement. Edward was a ladies man and almost always had a date to go too... Sometimes with different women."Of course you do," Bryce murmured and everyone laughed. "Hey, this isn't just any date okay?" Edward retorted. "I like this girl…" "You say that about all of them" said Bryce. “I’ll walk you guys out. I need to run, too since I have work stuff to prepare for.” said Chloe.Darrell grimaced, and she steeled herself for another gruff lecture about how she worked too hard. An interesting statement since Peter worked harder than all of them, and no one ever lectured him.To her surprise, he remained silent. She regarded him with a raised eyebrow and wondered if he’d burst at the seams, but his lips remained in a firm line. He rose from the couch to hug her and then gruffly reminded her to be sure and get enough rest.They all walked out together, and Darrell reminded them all of lunch next Sunday, and told Chloe that he wanted her to come too.
PLAY WITH ME 19
A derisive, strangling sound rose from his throat. He liked his lips as if to rid himself of a really bad taste.“It’s different,” he said.Her lips curled. "It's not to me. Bryce, I love you dearly. You're like a big brother to me... the best brother a girl could ask for. I need you to do this for me.. Please”He huffed, then his expression grew thoughtful again. “I assume you’ve done your research on this man and his company. You know him well?.”Chloe nodded before he’d even finished. On the surface, Bryce looked and acted laissez-faire. He had all the appearances of a golden-boy jock whose only concern might be fast cars and faster women. But beneath that illusion lay a man who had a deep social conscience.His refusal of endorsement deals had gained him a reputation of eccentricity from some. Others regarded him incredulously as a fool to pass on the opportunity to make millions by doing nothing more than lend his name to countless companies willing to part with their dollars for
PLAY WITH ME 20
Timothy almost groaned out loud, but instead he returned her gaze, "Hi," he replied. A little courtesy wouldn't hurt anyone right?"I'm Mirabel" said the redhead, batting her ridiculously long lashes at him. "Nice to meet you""Timothy" he said simply and she flashed him another smile. Timothy gripped his glass harder, and hoped that the Lady would just get the message that he would rather be alone tonight. But luck was not on his side today, because she made no effort to leave."So what are you doing sitting here all by yourself?" asked Mirabel. "You didn't get stood up by your date now, did you? Of course you didn't. Who would do that to a cutie like you"Timothy shook his head. "No, I didn't get....stood up" he replied, "I mean, kinda. I was supposed to hang out here with a friend but he had to cancel. I figured I'd just have a coupled of drinks before I head home"Mirabel smiled at him again. "I thought so, because who wouldn't want to go out on a date with a man like you. Well I
PLAY WITH ME 21
"Relax." Chloe said, and flashed a smile at him. "I mean, it's good to know that you care. But I can hold my liquor, thank you very much, and I didn't come with my car for your information. So no, I will not be driving home.""Of course you can hold your liquor," Timothy said sarcastically. "Don't even make me remind you of the time that you got really drunk at Patrick's house party and I literally had to sneak you into your house so you wouldn't get in trouble with your parents."Chloe smiled at the memory. "Yeah, I remember, but my parents would have been mad anyways…Even without the drinking. I snuck out, remember? Those were fun times indeed," But that was then and things weren't the same anymore. In fact a lot of things were different now, she thought. The last time she was here, they had been a couple and she couldn't deny that it was one of the times in her life when she had been genuinely happy. They had talked and made plans for the future... None of those plans were actualiz
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