Playing His Game (The Reynolds Brothers) (3 page)

Scott laughs at my
response. "Yeah, that too."

We walk past the
pool and up the stairs of the deck. A large spread of food is lined up on
tables that back up to the deck railings. We have to stop halfway up the stairs
because there are about twenty people in line before us. I turn around to face
Scott, ready to make small talk as we wait for our turn in line, when Autumn
comes up behind me.

"There you
are. Sorry I ditched you earlier. I was so focused on Jared that I forgot you
know no one here."

I look up at my
sister who is now looking back and forth between Scott and me.

"How's it
going, Billy?" Scott asks her.

"You better
stop that now. You know your brother doesn't let anyone call me that but
him."

Scott and I
exchange glances and both start laughing at how angry Autumn is. He must know
how easy it is to push her buttons, too.

"I'm sorry.
How's it going, Autumn?"

"It's going
great. Your brother was happy about the surprise. If I forgot to say it before,
thanks for letting us have the party here."

"My
pleasure."

The line moves and
I'm able to move up a couple steps on the stairs. As we get closer the smell of
fried chicken invades my nostrils and makes my stomach rumble. I'm suddenly
starving.

"I see you
met Scott." She smiles, gesturing to my flirting partner. "Find me
after you two eat."

I nod my head and
she walks away, leaving me to converse with Scott privately.

"I like your
sister, but she's wound a little tight. It's fun to tease her."

"I know what
you mean. Teasing her is one of my favorite past times. The good thing is that
as uptight as she is, she's not judgmental. She has the purest heart of anyone
I know."

The line moves
again and we continue talking while waiting for our food. By the time I pick up
my paper plate and plastic silverware I'm ready to eat straight off one of the
tables.

The two long
tables are overflowing with food. There's fried chicken, ribs, hotdogs,
burgers, and veggie burgers for anyone who prefers not to eat meat. Then
there's a large green salad that could feed a hundred people. Next to the salad
filled with healthy veggies are my three favorite salads- potato, pasta, and
fruit.

I move through the
line as fast as I can, grabbing a chicken leg, a biscuit, a heaping spoonful of
potato salad, some fruit salad, pasta salad, and a fudge brownie from the plate
at the end of the buffet. I grab a bottle of beer from one of the coolers at
the end of the table and I'm ready for my feast.

"So I guess
we've skipped right past the part where you pretend to eat healthy in front of me."

I turn my head and
try to hold back my smile. "I wasn't aware I was supposed to pretend to do
anything in front of you. I'd never pass up on this kind of food."

I look around for
some place to sit when Scott grabs me by the elbow and gently pulls me in his
direction.  The action loosens my towel so I tuck the beer under my armpit
and refasten the towel as we walk. He takes me to the side of his house where
there is bricked pavement and a swinging love seat, a small metal table and a
patio chair.

"We can eat
in peace here and get to know each other a little better," Scott says as
he sits on one end of the love seat and pats the cushion next to him.

Oh, what the hell.

I move and sit
next to him, putting my beer on the metal side table. Placing the plate on my
lap, I lift the chicken to my mouth and take a bite. Yumm. It's juicy, tender,
and delicious.

Not even caring
that Scott is watching me a moan escapes my lips. "This chicken is so
good."

"If I didn't
know any better, I'd think you've never eaten before."

Any other girl
would be embarrassed by a comment like that, but not me. I love food, and I may
never be model thin because of it, but that's okay with me because I embrace my
curves.

"You'll have
a similar reaction once you start eating."

He listens to my
suggestion and eats while we talk and get to know each other. He tells me a
little bit about his life and I let him know a little bit about mine. He asks
for a few juicy stories about Autumn, or maybe some inside jokes because he
might need them for ammunition at the next family gathering.

And of course I'm
happy to spill the dirt.

I finish the last
bite of food on my plate, setting my plate down on the side table and rubbing
my stomach. "Stick a fork in me, I'm done."

"I don't have
a fork, but there's something else I'd like to stick in you."

My head falls back
as a giggle leaves my mouth. "You can't say shit like that, Scott."

"And why
not?"

"It's
incestual."

"Incestual?
Is that even a word? Besides, it's not incest. You have to be related for that
to be the term. We're not related, not even by marriage."

"We might be,
and soon. Those two have marriage, kids, and a happily ever after written all
over them."

"It still
wouldn't be a problem. It's not like my mom and your dad are getting married.
It's our siblings, so we're in the clear." Scott's quiet for a moment
before speaking again. "I never thought my brother would ever settle down,
but your sister's been the best thing for him. I kind of love them
together."

"Me too.
Jared's been great for Autumn, too. He's gotten her to lighten up and live a
little."

"A little?
Babe, if you only saw some of the things I've witnessed between those two. It
makes my eyes hurt."

Scott dramatically
takes his fingers and starts to claw at his eye sockets, making me giggle at
his playfulness.

"Back to us.
Since I can't stick it in you, humor me. What was your first impression of
me?"

I sit up straight
on the rocking love seat. This question seems like dangerous territory.
"I... umm-"

"There you
are," Tawny half yells as she walks towards us from the backyard. Her dark
hair is flowing through the wind. "We're about to play another game of
water volleyball if you both want to play."

"Sure!"
I'm a little too enthusiastic with my answer as I jump up from my seat. Taking
my plate from the side table, I turn towards Scott, "Are you
playing?"

"I never back
down from a competitive game of volleyball," Scott replies while winking
at me.

"Alright,
let's go." Tawny reaches for Scott's arm and pulls him towards the back of
the house. I'm happy that Tawny interrupted that moment. I don’t think Scott
would back off if I told him that my first impression was that he's extremely
hot and the V-shape leading down into his trunks makes me want to explore.

Tossing my plate
in the nearest trashcan, I walk towards the pool, drop my towel at the edge,
and jump in. There's nothing like a game of volleyball to distract my hormones.

Chapter Two

The party dwindles
down to about a dozen of us. Jared and Autumn are talking to another couple I
don't recognize and wasn't introduced to. I'm sitting at the bonfire near the
beach with Tawny, Scott, Kelly, some porn star named Don, Kelly's friend,
Parker, and another one of Jared's brothers. I'm having a hard time remembering
his name because I've had about four tequila shots too many.

The six of us have
been playing a drinking game similar to a non-alcoholic game I used to play as
a kid. The dealer gives everyone a card and the high card wins. If you don't
have the high card, you drink. It's a stupid game, and you lose almost every
round, but the point of the game isn't to win.

It's to get drunk.
Fast.

The temperature
has cooled down and there's a strong breeze coming from the ocean, so the fire
is doing a great job of keeping me warm. I have my dress back on over my
bathing suit, but it's not enough fabric to keep me warm all by itself.

Scott has a really
nice set-up out here on the beach. He's made a permanent fire pit out here on
the sand and there are ten Adirondack chairs surrounding the blaze. We've all
opted to ignore the chairs and huddle together on the sand.

Easier access for
us all to the tequila and cards.

An hour ago I was
seated Indian style just like everyone else, but with every shot I’ve found
myself inching closer to Scott or maybe he's scooting closer to me. It isn't
intentional, at least not on my part. He's just really good at taking advantage
of the situation in front of him. Now I'm sitting with my back to Scott's
front. His legs are spread apart and bent at the knee, and I'm nestled between
them. I would have put up more of a fight, but every few minutes Scott will rub
and caress my legs and it makes me all tingly and warm inside.

Bad judgment. Just
another side effect of alcohol.

Scott won the last
round and I watch as he shuffles and deals out a card to each of us. On the
count of three we all flip over our cards.

My card's a three
of hearts.

I turn my head to
see his face and a smug smile is drawn across his lips.

"You," I
say accusingly. "You rigged the deck. You gave me a low card on
purpose."

"Me?" He
lips mockingly.

"Yes, you.
You know I'm right."

His smug smile
becomes a huge grin as he squeezes me tightly and says, "Drink up."

I roll my eyes and
down my shot. I can barely taste the alcohol anymore. The tequila numbed my
lips and taste buds three shots ago.

"You know you
rigged the game, Scotty," Tawny shouts across from me in our small circle.
"That's why I never play with you. You’re a card shark."

"Alright, I
think you've had enough, Tawny. Game’s over." Scott's voice is suddenly
stern, so I know he means it.

I stand up and
wobble a little on my feet when Scott's arm swoops around my waist to hold me
steady. Tawny continues on ranting about how she'll never play cards with Scott
again, but I ignore it. I'm too focused on walking back up to the house without
falling on my face.

We take a few
steps in the sand when I spot something small a few steps ahead of me. It's lit
by the light of the fire and looks so beautiful half covered in sand. I squint
my eyes, trying to focus on the object in front of me.

"A
shell!" I shout out.

I bend over,
practically flashing my bottom half to Scott as I reach for the shell in the
sand. It's several shades of white and cream. The edges are rough but the rest
of the shell is soft and smooth.

It's perfect.

"You've never
seen a shell before?" Scott asks from behind me.

"I have, but
not often," I slur drunkenly and turn to face him. "We traveled to
the East Coast when I was eleven for my grandmother's funeral. While there we
took a trip to the beach. It was my mom and dad's way of helping us mourn the
woman I had only met a couple times before. While there I saw some of the most
beautiful seashells. I collected a few of my favorites and took them home with
me. I've been collecting them ever since."

"That explains
your giddy child-like reaction to the shell."

"You don't
get it. That was my only time at the ocean. The rest of my shell collection are
freshwater shells from Lake Michigan and they're mostly from mussels. They're
nothing close to as beautiful as this shell. I need to look for more."

I stumble in the
sand as I start my search for more shells to add to my collection.

"Hold on
there, Winnie," Scott says as he pulls me back into him, forcing me to
stand up straight. "You aren't going to find a lot of shells here. It's
too populated. There's a place I surf at further down the beach. It's more
isolated with no homes or tourists. You'll find some pretty shells there. I'll
take you next time you're in town."

"Okay,"
I respond as I start to feel a little lightheaded. He's probably right about
the shells and I'm too buzzed to even look for more.

"You spending
the night or going back to Jared's place?"

I look up at
Scott, puzzled by his question. His beautiful gray eyes stare down at me and I
lose my train of thought.

What did he ask
me?

All I can think
about is his beautiful eyes, the scar right above his left eyebrow that gives a
slight edgy look to the surfer I met earlier. Then there are his full lips.
I've never been a lip girl, but Scott's lips have me licking my own and
wondering what it would be like to kiss him.

Screw wondering.

I turn in Scott's
arms to face him completely and lift up on my tiptoes. Scott must sense what
I'm doing because he leans down to meet me and our lips touch. Holy shit, our
lips touch and he tastes so good. I'm suddenly lightheaded, and not from the
alcohol.

I move my mouth as
my lips caress his, over and over again. It's a soft, delicate kiss. Amazing,
absolutely amazing, but I need more.

My arms lift and I
wrap them around his neck, pulling myself closer to his body. He's still in
just his swim trunks so I feel his hard abs against my chest. My hands pull on
his neck as I open my mouth and my tongue slides out, asking for entrance.
Scott doesn't hesitate opening his mouth and our tongues meet and devour each
other.

God, he tastes so
wonderful. His tongue is powerful and the way his body is pressed against mine,
it's sending warm sensations to the southern area of my body.

I know this isn't
a good idea. I know I should not be making out with him, but all common sense
went out the window the second I started downing shots.

His hands lower
down my back until he's cupping my ass, lifting me up and nudging my legs with
his elbows so that I wrap them around his waist.

I'm insatiable. My
lips release his as I kiss my way across his chin and to his ear. I feel us
moving, but I don't open my eyes as I'm completely consumed by the salty yet
sweet taste of his skin.