Page 25 of True Blue

I tamp down a grin, settling against the wall behind me and once again crossing my arms.

Turning back to Axel, Janette shouts, “I am! We want to play.” She gestures to the table and Axel nods, leaning over to the guy he was playing with and telling him Layla and Janette have winner.

The girls stand to the side, watching the end of the current game as Axel and his partner easily finish the other team who only sinks the ball twice before it’s over.

“Ladies,” Axel says, gesturing to the side of the table they stand on and Janette bounces over, starting to move the cups back into the pyramid formation. Layla follows slower, taking one of the balls from her brother as he crosses to the other side.His eyes meet mine over the girl’s heads once he and his partner face them.

Smirking, Axel winks at me and my dick twitches. I shift my weight, digging my fingers into my biceps once more and hoping no one can see the outline in my jeans. Still, I watch Axel as he helps his partner set up their cups, eyes lingering on the way his fingers flex and following the veins up his exposed forearms.

Janette and Layla laugh, drawing my attention to them momentarily.

The game starts, Layla and Axel facing off for the starter toss and I stay still through most of the game, smiling when Janette finally sinks one on her fourth try. A bead of sweat rolls down her neck, sliding in between the valley of her breasts. My tongue flicks out to lick my bottom lip before I raise my eyes and lock onto Axel's fiery gaze. We stare for a few beats, only breaking eye contact to snap our eyes back to Janette who stumbles a bit on her feet. I come off the wall, steadying her with a hand on her back. Axel nods to me, eyes narrowing on her when she giggles and takes another sip of beer, before he takes his next shot, missing for the first time.

They play for a while, Layla holding her own against Axel, each of their partners clearly the weaker players. I toggle between watching out for Janette and sliding my gaze over Axel, spending the entire game dizzy due to all my blood rushing south.

The game comes down to one cup in front of the girls and two in front of the guys. Layla throws and misses, leaving the chance to tie it up to Janette. I readjust my stance, unsure who I want to win at this point. Every time Axel makes a shot or meets my gaze, my stomach flips. But each time Janette sinks one, she jumps up and down and looks back at me with a haughty expression that makes my blood sizzle.

Janette mimes her shot a few times before letting the ball fly, the little white blur soaring across the table and sliding into the cup on the left without even touching the rim. Janette squeals, jumping up and down and spinning around while Layla laughs. Our eyes meet and Janette smirks once again. This time I return the look, letting the heat in my gut show on my face. She freezes, swallowing hard and staring at me with wide eyes. I chuckle, nodding toward the game still playing out in the other direction.

Axel takes the ball out of the cup, sliding it over to the side and centering the one left on their end. Then he stands, pulling his shoulders back and just flicking the ball across the table with his wrist. It hits the edge of the cup on the girl’s side, Layla’s hand swiping out to stop it but missing a second too late as the ball slides past to the water at the bottom.

Axel merely steps back, staring Janette down as a closed-mouth smile slides into place. I can’t see her face, but I'm betting she looks pretty shocked at the moment. Layla groans, folding her arms over her chest beside Janette. The other guy across from them jumps up and down, hollering in excitement and grabbing Axel’s shoulder roughly. My eyes narrow on the contact until Axel shrugs him off, glancing over at me before looking back at Janette.

“Don’t pout, Blue. It was a close game,” he calls to her.

“We want a rematch,” Janette says.

“You have class in the morning, J,” Layla says to her, touching her shoulder. “Maybe we should head back to West Tower.”

Janette shakes her head. “Don’t want to,” she says, going to sip her forgotten beer on the side of the table and finding the cup empty. She looks over at the guy still standing by the keg and starts to head over.

I push off the wall, putting my arm out and catching her around the middle. “You’ve had enough tonight, sunshine.”

“I’m not Little Miss Sunshine,” she mumbles, sagging against me.

I chuckle, keeping my arm around her as she leans the side of her face against my chest and closes her eyes. “No, I guess you’re not.” I lean down to whisper in her ear, “But the name still fits, sunshine.”

Axel comes around the table, letting some more guys step up to play. “You got her?” he asks me. I nod and he pats my shoulder before brushing a curl off her face. “Get home safe, Blue.”

She murmurs something unintelligible back and he chuckles. “I’ll be back to the suite in a bit,” he says to me, then winks. “Don’t wait up.” Once again, the move makes me tense up and I hope Janette can’t feel my response against her hip.

Layla snorts as he turns and walks out of the room, seeming to look around for someone. I look over at her and she smiles knowingly at me.

“Come on,” I say. “Let’s get her out of here.”

Layla nods, following me as I shuffle her toward the front door. Making it without much problem, she starts grumbling as we help her down the porch steps and I sigh, crouching down and putting my arm under her knees to scoop her up. The move jostles her enough that she opens her eyes and looks around, confused before finding my face. I tighten my grip on her, and she snuggles into me, laying her cheek against my chest and closing her eyes again. The feel of her weight and warmth seeping into me has me fighting a grin I know Layla would call me out on. Nothing I can do about the raging boner I’ve had for the last hour, but the discomfort of walking back with it pressing against my fly is lessened by the sound of Janette’s deep breathing as her mouth falls open and little snores escape her throat.

“I’m on the ground floor,” Layla says, making me stop in the dorm lobby as she looks between me and her friend. “Can I trust you to get her to her room safely?”

I nod. “I won’t hurt her. Her roommate’s my best friend. She’ll let me in and help me put her to bed. Then it’s back to my suite. Swear on my life.”

Layla studies me, looking at Janette a few times before nodding her head. “Axel trusts you. So does she, it seems. I will too.” She starts walking toward the entrance to the hall for the rooms on this floor and I step up to the elevators, squatting a bit to push the button without letting go of Janette.

“I’ll hold you to that, just so you know,” Layla calls from behind me and I turn to the side to quirk an eyebrow at her, my head tipping a bit. “You said you won’t hurt her. That’s a binding agreement now and I’ll hold you to it. Goodnight, Bentley Marshall.”

She disappears around the corner and the door to the elevators slides open. I walk in, turning around and then looking down at the girl curled up in my arms. She sleeps against me, and I study her relaxed face as the elevator climbs up to the sixth floor. Her lips are parted, face completely slack in sleep, but I find myself mesmerized by the slope of her nose and curve of her chin.

Walking with her to Mira’s door, I stop and consider how to do this. I look down at Janette and decide to try to wake her so I can knock on the door. Letting her legs down slowly, I call her name softly. Her eyes blink open a couple of times, and she picks her head up looking around.

---