Page 114 of Offside Devil

An automatic gate slides open and Evan follows the stone driveway around the side of the house, past two different patios, and stops in front of a five-car garage that is uplit like it belongs in an art gallery.

“Is Reeves a mobster?” I whisper under my breath. “This place is huge.”

Jemma is gorgeous. With hair that bouncy and shiny, she could totally be the wife to a mob boss if she wanted to.

I’m suddenly regretting my choice of denim shorts and the stupid t-shirt I ordered online because I thought it was sooo funny that says “Zero Pucks Given.” I should probably be in a Lilly Pulitzer dress and my afternoon pearls.

Then the glass door swings open and Jalen comes bouncing down the back steps in a pair of bright yellow rainboots and a neon green shirt that looks like Hulk’s bare chest. If that wasn’t enough to make me feel better, Jemma steps out in a pair of leggings and a cropped Phoenix Angels t-shirt, and I suddenly feel way less underdressed.

Ungodly rich people: turns out they’re just like us.

Aiden and Jalen collide in the middle of the driveway like they’re brothers being reunited after war. They run hand-in-hand towards the backyard without a single backward glance in our direction.

“Don’t worry,” Jemma says, walking down the steps barefoot to meet me. “The pool is fenced in and the gates are locked. They can’t get into any trouble back there.”

“Wow. That’s nice.”

When Aiden wants to get some fresh air, he has to settle for playing Legos on the balcony or we hoof it down to the park. Zane has mentioned buying a house a few times so Aiden would have more space, and I can see the benefits now. But even he couldn’t afford something like this, right?

… Right?

I’m about to ask Jemma how much money models make and whether her agency is looking for any fresh new faces—this morning’s forehead pimple notwithstanding—but she waves me inside for a drink before I can embarrass us both.

The outside of the house is sprawling, but the inside is all honey wood, soft beige blankets, and natural lighting. Homey, somehow. I’ve been here for thirty seconds and I’m ready to kick off my sandals and change my mail forwarding address.

I don’t get a chance to do either thing before Jemma shoves a glass of juice (fresh-pressed, because obviously) in my hand and looks me dead in my eyes. “So, spill. What’s going on with you and Zane?”

I choke on my first sip.

“God, I’m sorry.” She drops down into one of two chairs facing a wall of windows. We can see Jalen and Aiden kicking a soccer ball back and forth in the grass. “With Reeves gone all week, I’ve been without adult conversation for too long. I’ve lost what little tact I used to have.”

The team had an away series in Austin, followed by one in Houston, so they stayed in Texas between games. It’s been a lonely week, to say the least.

“Also,” Jemma continues, “the boys are going to be occupied for thirty minutes max before they’re in here begging for snacks. I want to get our adult chat out of the way before then. So, I’m not being rude; I’m being efficient.”

She grimaces in apology, but I’m finding her honesty weirdly charming.

The same way I like Jace’s gruff, overprotective facade and Davis’s nonstop shenanigans and Daniel’s goofy, golden retriever energy.

Zane has a good group of friends. I’ve just met them, but I miss them already.

I hit the eject button on yet another dangerous thought spiral and slap on a smile. “What do you want to know?”

“Everything!” She tucks her legs underneath her. “Are you dating? Does he pay you? Is it weird to have your boyfriend pay you?”

“We aren’t dating. He does pay me. And it would only be weird if he paid me for the sex.”

Jemma’s brown eyes flare wide. “So you are having sex?”

“I probably shouldn’t have said that, but I assumed that you had already assumed.”

“Oh, yeah. I mean, Reeves said Zane has been in a much better mood lately, so we knew it had to have something to do with you. Especially after he brought you to the opening day party. I saw the way the two of you were dancing.”

“Nothing even happened that night.” Unless you count the panty-melting dirty talk afterward, which I definitely do. “I went as a favor to him, since there would be press there. He wants CPS to see him as a stable parent for Aiden. Having a steady girlfriend helps.”

Jemma holds a very smooth, well-moisturized hand in the air. “Hold on! You two are fake dating? Is that what he’s paying you for?!”

I should plead the fifth. If Jemma doesn’t know this already, there’s probably good reason.

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