Page 38 of Playing Flirty

She hummed and grabbed her keys on the way to the door. “I suppose he is the perfect person to do it. He won’t go easy on you. Are you ready?”

I wasn’t. How could I ever be ready to have someone tear apart the game of my heart that I’d spent years pouring myself into?

But before I could answer, my phone buzzed. It was strange seeing William’s name beside a text message.

“He’s here,” I told Neema as she opened the door. “I’ll walk down with you.”

We walked downstairs to the parking garage, where William’s car turned into the visitor’s bay, the loud sound of the engine bouncing against the concrete walls. He pulled into a space, and everything stilled the moment he turned off his car.

Climbing out of the driver’s side, William stretched his long legs and rolled out his neck. It was a mystery how he folded himself enough to fit into a hatchback.

Black jeans. Starfleet T-shirt.

Neema waved at him on her way to her car. “Be nice!”

He lifted his hand and saluted. “We’re Playing Nice.” He glanced at me, and even in this mediocre lighting, the lines of his face spelled mischief.

My stomach somersaulted against my will.

“Stairs or elevator?” I asked, ignoring the nerves brewing within me.

“Stairs. I sit enough during the day.”

His body said otherwise.

Bah. Stop.

I swatted away that thought and raced ahead, but he and his long legs caught up within a couple steps.

Unfair.

William walked into my apartment and looked around. The small kitchen to the left was clean, spotless even. I’d wiped it down before he arrived. Across from it, the living room looked… well… lived in. The large, worn navy couch faced a decent-sized flat screen, and underneath it, my Xbox sat on display. I’d left it there for him to see. Between the couch and television was the coffee table with my board game already set up and waiting.

Which was the main focus of today’s meeting.

“Have a seat.” I gestured to the couch. “Coffee?”

He nodded and walked straight to the Xbox like a magpie seeing something shiny.

I picked up a box of chocolate chip cookies and said, “Think quick,” before tossing them at him.

One large hand snapped upward, and he caught it just before it hit him. He fell backward onto the couch and spread out in the way only William did, like he belonged there.

“Thanks, these are my favorites,” he said. “Did you get them for me?”

“Purely coincidental. I didn’t buy them specifically for you.”I think.

I exhaled a shaky breath. Why did it feel like a job interview or a first date? Neither of which I had much experience in.

William let his gaze linger on my face before he looked down at the cookies and opened them. “Take a breath. I’m not going to kill you or seduce you. This is business.”

“Can you read minds?” I asked. That could be a problem.

“No. But I can read you.” He glanced over his notes. “Which is why it’s so easy to beat you.”

“Oh, stop it.” I carried over the two mugs of coffee. “You take it black, right?”

“Yes, as you once told me, ‘like my soul.’” He flashed me one of those smiles, and a strange tingle spread across my chest. Was this his dark magic at work?

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