Page 88 of Playbook
“Pay up.” Cody holds out his hand. The guys at the table all hand over cash.
“You cheated,” Merrick says. “Calling them cute together. You were clearly baiting him.”
“And it worked like I knew it would.” Cody arranges his money and then folds it in half, stands, and cuffs me on the shoulder as he walks off. “Thanks, rookie.”
“You fucking played me.” I shake my head at them.
“Sorry,” Tripp says. “The game is boring. Have to get our kicks somewhere.”
He holds up his hand to London. “Nice work, Lo. That laugh was perfection. Every time you did it, your boy looked like he wanted to toss the table at my face.”
“You were in on it too?!” I ask my not-so-innocent girlfriend.
She walks over, looking guilty, but still as beautiful as ever. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think you’d be so easily fooled by a little flirting.”
I grab a fistful of her T-shirt and tug her to me. “You don’t look very sorry, sweetheart.”
She drapes her arms over my shoulders and then lifts up on her toes, bringing her lips an inch away from mine. “I have an idea of how to make it up to you.”
My brows rise with interest and a little surprise. I don’t speak girlfriend well, but I speak sex and that was a clear invitation.
I lean down and take her legs out from under her, then toss her over my shoulder.
“Oh my god, Brogan. Put me down.”
“In time, sweetheart.” I jut my chin at Tripp. “Borrowing your room. Payback’s a bitch.”
He just chuckles as I head toward the stairs that lead to the bedrooms in his place.
“You did not just announce to the whole party that we’re going to have sex in his room.” She wriggles in my hold to get free.
“Well, I hadn’t, but if that’s what you want.” I raise my voice. “I’m going to take my girlfriend upstairs and we’re gonna?—”
She smacks my ass before I finish the statement. “No, we’re not. We’re just going to talk.”
The noise of the party dies off as we get to the top of the stairs. Tripp’s room is open. I walk in and set her down, then kick the door behind us closed.
She smooths her hair down. “You’re a very convincing fake boyfriend.”
“I’m not playing, sweetheart.” I take her mouth and walk her back to the bed.
She kisses me back as frantic and needy as I feel, but then pauses. “Wait. We need to talk.”
My fingers slide under the hem of her T-shirt. “Okay. Let’s talk.”
Her laugh is tight as she sits on the bed and puts more distance between us. “I’m serious.”
“Me too.”
“What are we doing?” she asks. “We are pretending to date, but now kissing for real…I don’t want this to screw up everything else.”
“It won’t. I like you. We’re just enjoying the benefits of our arrangement.”
She wrinkles her nose.
“Yeah, that sounds way too businesslike for the dirty things I want to do to you.”
Her eyes spark with heat. “Are you sure? I like you too, but what if we start messing around and then you get bored of me or decide you want to sleep with someone else? I don’t think I could keep pretending to be your girlfriend.”
