Gaming for Love (5 page)

After my shower, which
lasted longer than planned since I had to take care of myself twice
to avoid being rock hard for the rest of the day, I head outside.
Luke and his buddies are just about done cleaning up the backyard.
Even though we have a shit ton of money, my parents make us clean up
after ourselves. We don’t leave extra work for anyone who works for
us.

Blaine is one of the
guys helping clean up and just seeing him makes me rage with jealousy
and protectiveness. When I saw him go to Yasmin’s cabana yesterday,
I wanted to go all alpha on his ass. I know she’s not mine and I
don’t want her to be, but she is not going to be anyone else’s in
front of me. That’s fucked up, I know, since I was all over someone
else in front of her. But, I can’t help how I feel. As I walked up
behind him and heard her trying to get him to leave, I wanted to
protect her so much it hurt. I only ever feel that way about my
family. And, she is not my family. I need to figure this shit with
her out and fast.

“Hey man. What was
your deal yesterday? You had Britt hanging off of you so I thought
that cabana girl was fair game. Then you flip out on me, jump in the
pool with her and get right back to Britt. Why were you cock blocking
me if you didn’t want her for yourself?” Blaine says, trying to
look intimidating.

It’s not working for
him. “She was telling you to leave her alone and you weren’t
listening so how was that fair?” I spit out.

“Whoa, wait. Cabana
girl? Was he messing with Yasmin?” Luke asks me.

“He was trying to.”

“Dude, you stay the
fuck away from her. I mean it. She is helping my niece and she
doesn’t need to deal with your shit.” Luke turns on Blaine.

“What about your
brother’s shit? He is the most fucked up of all of us and he can
touch her, play mind games with her? She’s a hot piece of ass. I
bet I could turn her no into a yes and make her scream my name all
night if I tried a little harder. I would be okay with a no, too, if
you know what I mean.”

As Luke and I both
lunge for Blaine, Ryan and Owen run out of the house and grab us,
holding us back. “Get the fuck out of my house and don’t come
back!” I yell.

He looks between me and
Luke. “You heard him,” Luke says.

“You just fucked up,
Luke. You won’t get in now.” He turns to the guys around us.
“Come on. He’s not going to be in the frat so you don’t have to
help him. Unless you and your brother want to apologize, Luke.”

“Just go, asshole,”
Luke tells him, but I can see that he is upset.

When they are gone, I
turn to Luke. “I’m sorry, bro, I had no idea that was going to
happen.”

“I know. It just
sucks. I was set in Chicago but here I have to earn it all again. But
he’s a dick. You and Yasmin are more important.”

“She is. I’m not.
I’m not worth it.”

“Shut the fuck up,
Scott. How many times do we have to tell you that no one blames you
for Amber? We
love
you. Why won’t you believe us? You need to forgive yourself,”
Owen tells me and his eyes are glassy.

“That asshole was
right about one thing. You can’t play with Yasmin. When you left
her in the deep end and went back to what’s her name, she looked
like someone kicked her puppy. If you want to be with her, go for it.
But if you just want to play with her and use her, think again. We
may not have known her long but I like what I know. And I know she is
not one of your quick fucks,” Ryan says, giving me a stern look.

“Yeah, I could tell
how much you liked her. She liked you too, it looked like. The way
she was all over you in her bikini.” I am jealous again and I hate
it, but that’s how I feel.

“All over me?” Ryan
reaches forward and grabs my shirt. I work out but I am no way
delusional enough to think that I could hold my own with my brother.
He’s like a block of marble. “She gave me a hug because I was
being nice to her. She was very clear in the fact that she is not
interested in me, even if I wanted her. Which I don’t. I
thought
that I wanted her with you, but after you practically
fucked that girl in front of her and let her walk away, I am not so
sure anymore. What the hell were you thinking?” He shoves me
backward, looking pissed. I look around to where Owen and Luke are
both standing with their arms crossed, glaring at me.

I know that they aren’t
going to stand for some bullshit answer so I give them the truth.
“I-I think I may want to be with her. I mean, really be with her.
Not just for a one night fuck. But I’m afraid that she is going to
use me like Amber did. Or I’m going to fuck up and hurt her. Then,
she won’t be there for Alex. So, I thought that if I looked like I
was getting it on with someone else, she would stop looking at me
like she wanted me to kiss her.”

“First off, Yasmin is
nothing like that psycho bitch Amber. We all hated Amber and I don’t
think any of us feel that way about Yasmin.” Ryan looks to my
brothers who shake their heads. “She’s really cool and smart and
doesn’t put up with your behavior, which is just what you need.
Second, I don’t think she is the type of person who would abandon
Alex if things go south with you. She may not want to come around if
that happens, but we could take Alex to her. And third, you need to
have a better opinion of yourself. You may try to give off the
asshole vibe, but we know you better. Like Owen said,
no
one
in this family blames you for what happened. It was
not your fault. Please believe that, Scott. As lucky as you would be
to have Yasmin, she would be lucky to have you, too.”

“You all hated Amber?
You were nice to her when I brought her around.”

“We were nice to her
because we wanted you to be happy. Even Mom couldn’t stand her. We
were afraid that she was using you, we just didn’t know how much.
We
carry guilt for
that, for her, too, you know.” Luke and Owen nod at that, too. How
could I not have known? And they feel guilty? Wow. Before I can
process what he told me, Ryan continues. “Now, are you going to man
up and go for it with Yasmin?”

“Yeah, I think I am.”
I tell him, taking a deep breath. “Can I have her phone number,
Ry?”

“Hell yeah,” he
tells me taking out his phone.

“We’ll help you if
you need anything,” Owen says.

“Yeah, you know Owe
and I are better with the women than you two old guys,” Luke says
with a laugh. I know my brothers would help me and would be there for
me no matter what. Maybe it’s time I start realizing that I deserve
their love. I’m not quite there yet, but I have hope. That’s
something that I thought I lost nine months ago.

* * *

Yasmin

It’s been a busy day
at the store. Sundays always seem to be a big book buying day. I need
it.

The website is coming
along and Erika keeps telling me to read that article but I haven’t
had time. She thinks that maybe I can get a small business loan to
buy the software when it is ready. I don’t know if I could get a
loan, but if this software is really that good, I could sell my
house. It wouldn’t be a great choice, but to save the bookstore I
would do it.

Sam arrives, so I head to my office
to grab my purse so I can get something to eat. As I walk in the
door, I grab my phone and notice a text had come in a few minutes
before.

Unknown: Hey Yasmin. It’s Scott.

My breath catches in my throat.

Unknown: Are you there?

Me: I’m here now. What do you want?

He replies almost immediately.

Unknown: Honestly, I want you. Will you go out with me tonight?

Is he kidding me? He was just with
another girl
in front of me
yesterday and now he expects me to go out with him?

Me: What about bikini girl?

Unknown: Bikini girl?

I don’t answer him. If he can’t
figure it out, that’s his problem. I start to leave the backroom
when he texts again. I guess he got it.

Unknown: OH! She’s a non-issue.

Me: Really? Because you couldn’t get away from me fast enough
to make your way back to her yesterday. You looked pretty busy with
her tongue down your throat when I left.

Unknown: I couldn’t get away from you fast enough because I
wanted to kiss you more than I wanted my next breath and that scared
the shit out of me.

Me: I wanted to kiss you too. And it scared me too. But I
didn’t run away to be with someone else in front of you.

Unknown: I shouldn’t have done that. I was hoping that I
could make you not want me anymore if I acted like an asshole. I
didn’t want to be with her. I wasn’t with her after you left. I
only want you.

Me: You have a really funny way of showing it.

I swallow and finish typing,
deciding to just lay it out there. What do I have to lose at this
point?

It hurt. Seeing you with her really hurt me. After the barbeque
Friday night, I thought that you liked me. I didn’t know if you
would be at the party, but I was hoping that you would be. I wanted
to see you again.

Unknown: I DO like you, Yasmin. I am SO sorry that I hurt you.
I can’t promise to never hurt you again. But, I’ll try my best
not to. Please go out with me.

Me: I want to but I can’t. I don’t trust you. I saw the
girls you were with at the party. I can’t compete with them. You
may think you want me, but I’m just something new and different for
you. You’ll realize it and then walk away for something better.
Someone thinner. I’m sorry, but no.

Unknown: You can’t compete with them? Are you kidding me?
They are nothing next to you. You were the hottest girl at that
party. Every guy there wanted to be with you. I don’t need someone
“thinner.” I mean WTF ,Yasmin.? You have to know how perfect your
body is. How can I prove that? I’ll do anything. Well, almost
anything. As long as it’s legal :)

Me: Thanks for the compliments but I don’t know what you can
do. I have always wanted to be wooed, though. Maybe you could do
that? If you want…

Unknown: Wooed?

Me: Yeah, you know, romance me. Make me feel special.

Unknown: Umm, you ARE special but no one has ever called me
romantic. I am not sure how to do that. You mean flowers and shit?

Me: It could be flowers or it could be whatever you want. It
would just show me that you really are interested and that I am worth
putting in a little bit of effort for. If you don’t want to, that’s
fine.

Unknown: You ARE worth it and I definitely want to show you
that. I’ll think of something :) Can I keep texting you while I
attempt this romance thing?

Me: Yes, yes you can. I would like that.

Unknown: I’d like that too. I better go now so I can try to
plan this out. Talk to you soon.

Me: I can’t wait to see what you come up with :)

I close my eyes and
resist the urge to jump up and down. Maybe I wasn’t wrong about him
Friday night. I walk next door for lunch with a smile on my face.

Yasmin

Scott’s texted me
several times a day since he first started three days ago. Mostly
just asking how I am doing or what I am watching on TV at night. Oh,
and if I am reading anything sexy that I want to tell him about. I
keep saying no to that. I’m not ready to share that with him,
although every time he asks, a shiver runs through my body. It’s
become comfortable and fun, but there has been no formal wooing yet.
Although the multiple texts a day do make me feel special, I can’t
help thinking that he has given up. It makes me a little sad, but at
least we’re friends now, I guess.

Scott’s texts have
also been taking my mind off the problems with my store. I’m still
keeping a steady stream of customers, just not enough to make up for
the slow periods we’ve been through. Sean is almost done with the
website and my friends Sarah and Lisa from Girls with Books have
promised to promote the new website on their blog and Facebook page.
Sam has set up a Facebook page for the store and she is posting when
new books arrive and about local author events. I really need to book
a major author event but my store doesn’t have that kind of clout
anymore. My parents used to have major authors and celebrities in
monthly but that dried up a few years ago when one of the local
Barnes and Noble stores became an event store. I know we aren’t a
huge volume place, but our customers would support an event. I just
have to figure out how to get one!

I’m hanging out in
the front of the store with Erika when Alex and Gary come in. I
introduce everyone. Alex needs new books and Gary wants to pick up a
new football book. I point Gary to his book and head over to YA with
Alex.

“How are you doing,
sweetie?” I ask her, noticing that she looks tired.

“I’m fine …no,
I’m really not,” she tells me, sitting in one of the chairs. “My
mom’s birthday is in a few weeks and I’m not sure if I can handle
it.”

“Honestly, my
parent’s birthdays aren’t hard for me because I still celebrate
those days for them. I invite my friends over and we eat their
favorite foods. Now, the day that they died is different. I can’t
really function on that day. But I choose to celebrate their lives on
their birthdays,” I explain to her, stroking her hair.

“Wow, I never thought
of it that way. I can do that, I can celebrate them. I don’t have
any friends except for you, though. Would you come over and be with
me and my family?”

“Of course I will!
When is it?”

“June 30,” she
tells me, looking excited now.