Page 43 of Off Her Game
“Water is fine.”
He grabbed a water whose designer bottle looked more expensive than the twelve pack of el cheapos in her fridge.
“I have something I want to show you.” He waved her to follow him.
Her mind immediately flashed naked fantasy images.He didn’t say naked. His tone didn’t sound remotely suggestive. This guy was trouble with a capital A for addictive.
She followed him into a back hallway past a restroom and then down several doors into what looked like a studio with a huge TV screen. To a non-gamer the room looked like someone picked up a bunch of exotic chairs and chucked them haphazardly into a room. To her it offered every available style of gaming chair—beanbag, gaming rockers, memory foam, leather office chair or a classic sofa.
He threw her a controller and waved for her to pick her chair of choice.
She put the water on the floor by her feet and settled onto the sofa.
“Put this on.” He handed her a pair of lightweight wrap-around sunglasses and a controller. “Think of this as your living room.”
He pushed a few buttons and the surround sound blasted the intro music toZoneworld Warrior One.The lights dimmed into darkness. “Put them on. Helps get the best visual.”
She slipped the glasses on, expecting some sort of image color enhancer.Holy crap.It was as if she was in the game. Virtual reality.
“Wow. This is incredible.” She removed the goggles to examine them in the dim light. So small and comfortable.
“Let’s play the first level,” he suggested.
A half hour and five levels later she ripped off the glasses. “I love these. Please tell me I can get my own soon.” As she squinted into the room lit by the jumbo screen her eyes adjusted to the light. Her breath hitched when she made out Noah in the gaming chair nearby. He’d rolled up his sleeves and leaned forward as if the position got him closer to the screen while he continued to play, even though he too wore a pair of glasses. His strong forearms mesmerized her. So masculine. Appealing and incredibly sexy.
“You’re quitting?” He straightened but continued to maneuver with the controller.
She rubbed the back of her neck as she watched his hands on the controller. Her body hummed, her need for him becoming all-consuming.
He took off his glasses and faced her. “The limitation to virtual reality has been quality and comfort. The other companies market those bulky goggles. Those who’ve tried to make them smaller lost quality. With this, we have it.”
Was it her imagination or did his gaze just wander to her breasts while spouting that PR mumbo jumbo? She wanted to believe he too felt a little bit out of control by whatever it was pinging between them. “Why’re you showing me these? Aren’t you worried I’ll talk to someone?”
“It’s not like anyone else could design what took us years in development.”
“Someone could reverse engineer them.”
“Not before we launch them. We’re looking for the right new game to release at the same time, something we’ll tweak to impress in virtual reality.” He set down his controller and glasses and moved to sit beside her. He took her hand and smoothed his thumb in circles along the skin of her palm.
His touch was so gentle. It made her feel cherished—such a foreign feeling.
Fiddling with the glasses in the hand he wasn’t holding, feeling a bit off-kilter, the only words that came out were, “All right.”
“I want to see your game, Tori. I’m serious. We’re looking for something new. Something different.”
Tori dragged in a ragged breath, drawing the clean scent of him into her lungs. He was talking about her game, the one he already owned but didn’t realize he owned.Focus.He wasn’t trying to make this physical, although the hand-holding and thumb swirls sent mixed messages.He’skeeping it professional-ish.
He wanted to see her game.Oh. My. God.The possibilities of her game with this system were endless. “I’m not sure it’s what you’re looking for.”
“Let me be the judge.”
Everyone will think I slept my way into getting you to like it.“I’ll think about it. Thanks for the sneak peek. If the glasses are affordable, then it’s going to revolutionize the gaming world. I’ll be first in line to buy it and upgrade every one of my games to be compatible. Everyone I know will want them.” That came off good, relatively platonic. Right?
“I thought you’d appreciate it.” His lips shifted upward into a smile as he released her hand to take the glasses from her, but he didn’t move to stand.
There was nothing platonic about the way he gazed at her mouth. He had to feel the crazy pull between them. She wasn’t a fate and destiny kind of girl, but meeting him in jail and now being here with Noah made her wonder.
She wanted his lips on hers just to experience the earth-jarring connection once more. Deep in her gut the draw to him terrified the bejesus out of her. It was a game changer and she wasn’t sure she was ready for it. She feared what it might mean…where it could go, if anywhere.
