Page 18 of Playing Flirty

I stared at his back and narrowed my eyes before downing the pills. “Why are you being nice to me?”

He returned with a bandage and wrapped it tightly around my ankle. “Shaun’s game continues, and I declare myself the winner of this round.” He shrugged, the corners of his mouth tilting upward.

Mine did too.

For a moment, I was confused by how carefully he cradled my foot. How was this the same person who communicated in grunts and groans? He looked like William, but he didn’t act like him. He wasn’t wearing pajama pants, either. Instead, he wore another pair of black jeans and aStar TrekT-shirt.

At no point did he look up at me. When he finished, he picked up his gaming controller and gestured to the TV. “You could join me. I don’t bite—unless requested.”

Ha. That was William, all right.

“What are you playing?” I asked.

“It’s a newBloodbathersscheduled for next year. They want me to check it out and recommend some changes,” he said casually, as if that wasn’t the coolest thing ever.

“How did you get this job? It’s awesome.”

His dimple made a deep divot in his cheek. “AfterWalk of Deathgot some attention, Thunderstruck Games offered me ajob. Apparently, I’d managed to do what they couldn’t.” His smug smile appeared.

It made sense, sinceWalk of Deathhad been the number one most-played game for ages.

I’d been a bit starstruck when I first met William, the creator of a video game I’d played over and over—though I’d never tell him that.

“Now I test and tweak their games while I toy around with my next idea,” he said, perching on the couch armrest.

“Is itWalk of Death Two? There’s been rumors.”

His gaze snapped toward me, turning playful. “How would those rumors have reached you?”

“It’s one of my favorites,” I admitted. But that was only half-true. It wasn’tone ofmy favorites, itwasmy favorite, and I was sure nothing would ever top it. Unless there was a sequel.

The widest grin spread across his face, showing me a side of him he rarely revealed. It wasn’t lost on me that his cheeks were tinged pink too. “Favorite, huh? Makes sense why you’re so good at it.”

“Can’t believe I beat you at your own game, literally.”

He bit his bottom lip. “I let you win.”

I pulled a face.

He chuckled and, rubbing his neck, turned to face the screen. “I’m not working on a sequel.Walk of Deathis exactly what I want it to be. There’s another idea that’s been plaguing me for years. I need to think it through a bit more. You’d love it.”

“Oh yeah? Tell me more.”

“Nah. Maybe I’d rather design a game impossible for you to win.”

An uncharacteristic cackle escaped me. “You’re so mean.”

He laughed too, a light, playful laugh that tickled my skin. It lifted the mystery that often clouded around him.

“I wish I could design games for a living,” I said, using one hand to ensure my coat was still completely closed.

Maybe that would have been my future if I’d given my Board-Game-in-Progress the time of day or entered that competition. Or maybe my game was terrible, and I’d end up exactly where I was now, except with more shame and rejection.

William looked at me, a spark of something I couldn’t name in his eyes. “I could check if there are any openings at Thunderstruck.” His gaze turned wicked, and the left side of his lips twitched up in a half smirk. “You’d make a great assistant.”

I lifted one leg to kick him, and he caught it. Sliding down to the couch, he lifted both of my legs with his free hand, placed a pillow on his lap, and then lowered my feet on top of it.

My heartbeat skipped, and I nearly retracted, but William adjusted the frozen peas and passed me a controller. “You should keep your foot raised.”

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