Page 29 of Beautiful Harmony

He led her down the narrow steps into the basement, flicking on the light at the bottom. He stepped aside. “Ta-da!”

“Oh my God!” The look of delight on Emma’s face made him ridiculously happy. “Is that… are those…?”

“Original Pacman, Donkey Kong, and Defender full-size arcade machines? You bet they are,” Lucas said.

Emma dropped her bag on the floor and walked toward them, running her hand over the joystick on the Donkey Kong game. “That’s right… your dad kept a few of the machines after he closed down the arcade he owned.”

“You remember he owned an arcade?” Lucas said.

“Yes,” Emma said. “Back in the eighties. Stayed open until ninety-eight until Playstation took over the market.”

Warmth washed over him. Was it stupid to be happy that Emma remembered a small detail from one of the first times they met? Maybe, but he couldn’t help it.

“These are amazing and in incredible condition,” Emma said. She moved to the Pacman game. “I loved Pacman as a kid.”

“Go ahead and play it,” he said.

“I don’t want to break it,” she said.

He laughed. “You won’t. These things are tough as hell, and even if it did break, Dad could fix it. Go on, play a few games.”

“I don’t have any quarters,” she said.

“You don’t need them. Dad rigged them to play without quarters,” Lucas said.

When she continued to hesitate, he cocked one eyebrow. “I have the high score on that machine and have for years. You afraid to play a game you can’t beat me in?”

Her shoulders straightened, and she gave him that look, the one filled with fire and competition that he fucking loved so much. “Oh, you are about to have your ass handed to you, Lucas.”

He laughed. “Is that right?”

She pushed up her sleeves and gripped the joystick. “Be prepared to lose that high score, buddy.”

* * *

“You're not gonna beat it.”

“Shut up. I’m gonna beat it.”

Lucas grinned and leaned against the side of the Pacman game. “I’ve had the high score since I was seventeen.”

“Yeah, because it’s the last time anyone used this machine,” Emma said.

“Ouch,” Lucas said as his grin widened. “Look, we both know my Pacman skills are superior. Ladies don’t have the dexterity that men do when it comes to gameplay.”

She made a way too adorable grunt of frustration before shoving the joystick to the right. “A ghost nearly ate me because of your bullshit. After I beat your high score, I’m kicking your ass for the sexist attitude. Now stop distracting me.”

Lucas laughed and shoved his hands into his jeans pockets. He studied Emma as she played the game. Her entire focus was narrowed in on the game, and she didn’t pay any attention to him. He knew she hated being stared at, and while he understood her reasons, he relished the opportunity to look at her without upsetting her or making her feel self-conscious.

Fuck, she was gorgeous. Lucas stared at her mouth, imagining for what felt like the thousandth time what it would be like to have those full lips wrapped around his dick. How deep would she take him? Would she stare up at him with those beautiful blue eyes while he fucked her mouth?

He resisted the urge to reach down and adjust his dick. Not that he thought Emma would notice, but what if she did? How the fuck would he explain the semi that was obvious even through his jeans? It was getting harder and harder to ignore his attraction to her.

Emma worked the joystick furiously, her face flush with excitement and her entire body swaying and moving as she tried to clear the board. He let his gaze drop to her perfect tits. What would Emma do if he stepped behind her right now and cupped them?

Kick you in the balls so hard, you’d be fishing them out of your throat?

Probably.

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