Page 47 of Honey Pot

“Personally, I would love to see it, and it only makes me more tempted.” Cael flashed his Cheshire smile. However, he stopped and leaned over to look at me. “I’m not getting in. Mary is.”

“No.” I shook my head. “I’m extremely opposed to having balls hurled at my face.”

Cael snorted, and I glared at him.

“It’s not as scary as it looks,” Dean offered through a clenched jaw.

Cael lost it laughing that time.

“Am I the only person in the cage right now that hasn’t had balls in my face?” Van looked between all of us and brushed his long, shaggy mullet under his ballcap. “I’ll turn down the speed on it, and as long as Cael promises not to swing the bat, I’ll play lookout and keep Ella busy.”

“Keep this up you might get some balls in your face for good behavior,” Dean teased and unlocked the cage, slipping out with his back turned to me. Something passed between him and Cael, who looked more tense than he had all day.

Van handed me the bat. “Do you think he’s serious?” He asked me. “About the balls…” He scooted out of the way.

“You aren’t my type, Van,” Dean groaned from the end of the hall.

“No funny business, or I’m snitching.” Van stared at us, tapping two fingers to his chest at Cael, who mirrored the motion before turning to me.

“In you go.”

CODY

“Be careful with that one.”

That’s what Dean whispered when he slid from the cage. It was low enough that Van and Clementine missed, but he made sure I heard it. I didn’t know what to say to him. The defense caught in my throat.

Van’s eyebrows shot up when he caught Dean’s face and vacated as quickly as his legs would take him.

Clementine turned to look at me. “I’ll make you a deal.”

“A deal?” I looked down at her. I wanted to take her round face in my hands and pry the air from her lungs with my mouth. “I’m listening,” I said instead.

“For each ball I hit, I get to ask you a question.” She pulled a small recorder from her pocket and set it on the long thin ledge where we kept helmets.

“You would turn this into work—"

The arguement died on my lips when she batted her eye lashes at me and that bottom lip jutted out just a little more than usual. How could I deny that look?

"Fine,” I said confidently. The bat felt so good in my hands that, for a split second, I was tempted just to try, to see how it would feel to take that swing but Clementine pried it from my fingers.

“You promised the giant chocolate Labrador you wouldn’t.”

“Actually I never promised Van, he just handed me the bat.” I shrugged and she rolled her beautiful brown eyes at me. Her attitude drove me insane. “Loophole.”

But she didn’t laugh and her grip tightened on the bat.

“Alright.” I lifted both hands into the air and backed against the cage.

“Each ball.” She pointed the bat at my chest and smiled. My heart went up in flames like a bonfire. “One question.”

“One answer.” I nodded, constantly willing to push my luck. I asked, “how about a kiss to seal the deal?”

I leaned off the cage, looping my finger tightly around it. She didn’t move as my lips ghosted over hers, my breath fanning over her. Her brown eyes looked up from my lips, a tiny raging fire dancing inside. She searched my gaze for a second, the longest second of my life. I unlocked one finger at a time, slowly falling forward more until I could feel the skin of her bottom lip brushing against my top one.

Seven years was an excruciatingly long time to wait to kiss her.

Another finger popped from the cage and I glided forward ready to be consumed by the bliss that one kiss from Clementine would surely provide.

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