Page 39 of Rise of Temptation

“I guess I’m just lucky,” he says, shooting me a wink before shooting several of who I assume are the bad guys in his game. If they’re the good guys, then he needs more practice.

“Can I play?” I gesture at the screen.

“Do you know how?”

“Not even a little bit. But you can teach me. Help me alleviate some of my boredom.” I flash him a sweet smile, and he hands over the controller. I hold it like it’s a foreign object, which isn’t entirely inaccurate. I’ve never been into video games, and I’m terrible at them, but I do know what the buttons are for. Joey doesn’t need to know that, though. The more helpless he thinks I am, the more he’ll focus on helping me and not pay attention to our conversation.

“Wow, you really don’t know how to play. Alright, let’s do this. I love a good challenge.” He proceeds to show me where to put my fingers and explains what all the buttons do before catching me up on what’s happening in the game.

“So basically, shoot all the people coming at me and try to get to the other side of this city without dying?” I summarize.

“That’s the gist,” he agrees. “You ready?”

“I guess we’ll find out.”

He starts the game, and I’m dead within ten seconds.

“I don’t think I was ready.”

“That’s okay,” he says with a laugh. “Try again.”

Twenty minutes later, I toss the controller down and throwmy hands in the air. “I give up. This game is impossible.” And apparently distracting. I didn’t even realize that I got sucked in and completely forgot why I came downstairs in the first place.

“You stayed alive for a whole minute that last time. I bet by next week, if you practice, you’ll make it through the city in one piece.”

“Next week?” I exclaim. “I can’t spend a whole week playing this game.”

“Why not? It’s not like you have anything else you have to do. It might help you not be so bored,” he points out.

“I’d just be bored of the game by then.”

“What would you rather do? Go back to the club?”

I can tell he’s joking, but it’s exactly the opportunity I was looking for to get this conversation back on track. “I’d like to be able to help you guys with whatever work is keeping everyone so busy. Maybe then the other three wouldn’t be working so much and you wouldn’t need to play babysitter.” I pause, wondering how far I can push this, and decide to go a little bit farther. “And I wouldn’t have to worry about you all getting hurt.” It’s not a lie; I don’t want them to get hurt, and I do want to help them with their work. But the pout that I feel gracing my lips is a little over-the-top.

“We’re mostly doing surveillance right now anyway,” he reassures me. “It’s pretty safe.”

“It sounds boring.”

“It can be,” he admits.

“Are you allowed to bring a friend with you?”

He looks at me like he’s questioning if I’m really asking what he thinks I’m asking. “That sounds like it could be a pretty dangerous distraction.”

“I thought you said it was safe?”

“It’s safe as long as I’m paying attention to my surroundings.”

“Hmm…” I pretend to think. “Maybe you’re right. It probablywouldn’t be a good idea.”

He nods and picks up the controller so he can play his game again. I lie down on the couch and roll to my belly, stretching my body out just enough that my dress rides up and gives Joey a glimpse of my ass. My eyes stay glued to the screen, but I can see him adjusting himself in my peripheral vision. I wiggle a little more, trying to get more comfortable, and he groans.

“You’re killing me over here,” he says.

I look at him over my shoulder, acting surprised. “What?” Then I pretend to realize the state of my dress. “Oh, sorry.”

An innocent smile and a shrug are lost on him; he’s staring at my ass and looks like he’s trying to move the dress out of his way with his mind.

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