Page 84 of Midnights
She bends forward, lining up her shot. The oversized hoodie she’s wearing rides up just enough to give me anunfilteredview of the curve of her ass. My fingers twitch at my sides and I inhale, trying to tear my gaze away before I do something stupid.
Unfortunately, not soon enough.
Cam notices, but he’s smart enough to keep his mouth shut. Rachel, on the other hand…not so much.
“Maybe if you take a picture, it’ll last longer.”
I drag a hand down my face, already regretting every choice that led to this moment. But before I can say anything, Raven straightens, rolling the stick between her hands as she saunters past me.
She leans in just slightly, and whispers, “Excuse me,sir,it’s not polite to stare.”
Then she keeps walking, completely unbothered, and high-fives Rachel like she just scored a winning shot.
And I’m standing here, gripping my cue stick way too fucking tight, caught between wanting to throw her onto table and making herpayfor every single one of her smartass remarks. I'm getting tired of pretending like none of this is getting to me.
I shake my head, trying to clear the haze of frustration and lust clouding my judgement. But then Cam leans in, whispering something in Raven’s ear and she laughs like it was the funniest thing she's ever heard. She’s enjoying this way too much.
I line up my shot, forcing my focus back on the game. Just as I’m about to take my shot, Raven casually strolls by and perches right on the edge of the table, directly in my line of sight.
I miss.
The grin tugging at her lips tells meexactlywhat she’s doing. She's playing dirty.
Cam whistles under his breath. “She’s got you wrapped, mate.”
I glance at him, then back at Raven, who’s doing a piss-poor job of pretending to be innocent. “Oh, you think this is funny?”
Raven tilts her head, the picture of innocence. “Got to use all my resources to win, and it looks like it’s working.”
She spins on her heel, walking past Cam and giving him a high-five like she just won the bloody Olympics. Cam practically doubles over laughing, shaking his head in admiration.
That little brat.
My cock twitches in response. Ireallyneed to get a grip. This is getting ridiculous.
At least Cam is entertained. “You have to hand it to her, man. That was a solid move. We’re going to crush you.”
Raven leans on the edge of the couch. “What does the winning team get?”
“What do you want? A gold star? Or maybe a cookie?” I deadpan, still annoyed that I fell for her stunt.
Her grin widens and I can see her eyes glistening with the challenge. “I, for one, would like both a gold staranda cookie, since you asked so nicely.”
Cam lines up his shot, and at this point, I almost hope he just puts me out of my misery and finishes the game. He could try to lose and still manage to pull off a win.
The sound of the final ball sinking is quickly followed by an ear-piercing scream.
“AHHH! We won!!”
She bolts toward Cam, jumping into his arms, and he catches her effortlessly, spinning her around.
A sharp, unwelcome pang of jealousy flares in my chest. I shove it down, telling myself it’s just because I haven’t been laid in a while. My body’s just reacting, nothing more. I don't get jealous.
Raven brushes past me and her arm grazing mine, sending a jolt through me like a live wire.
“I’ll take my gold star now, if you don’t mind. And as for my cookies, I like chocolate chip,” she purrs, throwing a look over her shoulder.
She’s teasing me, waiting for me to bite. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay? I'm sure losing was hard for you.”
