Page 42 of The Baller

Her gaze flicked over to Lux. He was striding purposefully toward us, but there was no mistaking the peach cable-knit sweater under his jacket.Damn you, Jennifer Lawrence.When Meg turned back to me, she didn’t even bother trying to hide her amusement.

“It’s light orange.”

“Light orangeispeach,” I hissed with a moan, but before I could stop her – or order her to save me – she’d jogged across the street. Lux stopped in front of me, his eyes traveling the full length of my body before they met mine with the same level of amusement Meg carried.

“Well, hey there, Goldilocks. I see you got the memo,” he laughed, the deep baritone vibrating through me until it hit every cell in my body and I could no longer tell whether I was more anxious than I’d ever been, or more turned on.

His scent hit next; that smoky, rich, intoxicating aromathat may as well have been Xanax, and I looked up into hazel eyes filled with so much happiness they’d almost turned bright green, especially against his golden tan skin. I found myself smiling back until it dissolved into a laugh of its own.

I couldn’t deny it was a little bit funny.

I’d forgotten about the hot chocolate until he thrust a cup at me I hadn’t noticed he’d been carrying.

“Thank you,” I replied with a smile.

“You’re welcome,” he responded with a grin, and reached into his pocket to remove a packet of Milk Duds and another of Junior Mints. “Snacks for entertainment.”

Holy shit. The sugar demon in me let out a war cry, and whatever expression I was wearing had Lux throwing his head back with a laugh.

“I’ll take that as approval. Now, drink up. Asher frowns on anyone bringing liquids in here, but I’ve managed to get away with it so far.”

I gulped down a mouthful, somehow managing not to burn my throat. “Who’s Asher?”

“He owns this place. Have you been in?”

I shook my head. “No, not yet. I just got here, and then the guys said you were coming down the street, so I waited.”

Lux peered over to where Ethan and Meg were standing, both of them looking as unassuming as possible, and gave them a little wave. They didn’t wave back.

“Where’s Special Agent America?”

“Who?”

“The leader of your street gang…”

I bit back a smile. “Oh, Jake. He’s at the end of the street somewhere. I don’t know exactly, but he won’t be far.”

Lux spun around then turned back to me. “That’s three,where’s the fourth?”

“Ava’s by the back door,” I replied, wondering why I was telling him, although he already knew what they were all capable of.

“Four.”

“Yep.”

“And they’re always around?”

I nodded, my stomach dropping to somewhere around my ankles. Even this non-date date I didn’t really want to go on was about to tank because the baggage I came with was armed and trained to kill.

Lux chuckled and combed his big hand through his hair, and I found myself wishing I was the one doing it instead. Each wave looked so perfectly placed; soft, and silky, and…

“Man, was I ever wrong when I said you looked like you needed protecting.”

My eyes refocused on his face which was grinning down at me. “Wh… what?”

“I was wrong,” he repeated.

“It happens.”

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