Page 13 of Secret Sin

I smirked, knowing he hated to be called by his full name.

“Good to meet you, Gabe,” Bishop said as the two shook hands. “I used to play and thought since I was already here that we could play a round of HORSE or something. We could show your sister how to shoot.”

Gabe’s gaze shot to mine. I quickly hushed him with rounded eyes.

“Yeah, that sounds great,” Gabe said, smiling wide.

“Horse?” I asked. “Why on earth is a game involving basketball calledhorse?”

“That’s just the word that’s used. Whenever someone makes a basket, the others have to shoot from that same location. Whoever misses adds another letter in the word horse to their tally. The first to get all the letters and spell horse loses.”

“Gotcha.” I nodded sagely. “So where do we start?”

Bishop bounce-passed a ball to me. “You pick any spot you think might be an easy shot for you to make. If you don’t make the basket, Gabe here will get to try a shot from wherever he chooses. However, if youdomake the basket, then Gabe and I will try from that same spot. If one of us doesn’t make our basket, that person gets the letter H.”

“Sweet. Okay. Let’s see.” I propped the ball on my hip and wandered the court. First, I assessed a spot a few feet from beneath the basket before migrating a bit farther. And farther. Until I was just beyond the three-point line. I shrugged. “This looks good.”

Bishop’s brows rose to meet his brown curls. “You sure about that?”

“It’s just for fun, right?” I bounced the ball a few times, sighted the basket, then lofted a textbook three-pointer. Nothing but net.

Bishop burst into a fit of laughter. “Oh hell, I’ve been hustled like a chump. I’m surprised you didn’t try to put money on the game.”

“I don’t need your money. Your pride will suit me just fine.” I tossed the ball to Gabe, who was grinning ear to ear. “Your shot. Show him what you’ve got.”

Our competitive natures drew out the game to a solid half-hour affair of heckling and gamesmanship. But in the end, I pulled out the win and relished every second of it.

“How long did you play?” Bishop asked as we collected our things.

“All through school.”

“You should play pickup sometime.”

I shrugged. “Maybe.” The game was fun, but I was trying to get my parents to see me as an adult, and playing basketball didn’t seem like it would help my cause.

Realizing Bishop planned to walk us outside, I paused at the entrance. “You should probably wait here. Our driver doesn’t need to see that we had company.”

“Is my being here a problem?” A shadow of concern darkened his features.

I didn’t want him to worry, but I also wasn’t ready to answer questions about him to my father. “Look, this was fun, but I told you that I wasn’t looking for anything.”

“Neither was I, but sometimes you end up in places you never meant to be.”

Impossible brute. I wanted to slam my fists into his chest and order him to leave me alone while simultaneously kissing him senseless.

Instead, I just shook my head, bewildered. “Good night, Bishop.”

“Night, Pip.” A slow, sultry grin crept across his face. “Sweet dreams.” His words were a dark velvet caress that liquified my insides.

As if he knew exactly how he affected me, his eyes warmed to liquid molasses.

I was in so much damn trouble.

“Hey,Pip. Mind if I come in?” My father stood at my open bedroom door. It wasn’t like him to seek me out. He was a busy guy and not the most hands-on type of father, so his unexpected appearance had me instantly curious.

“Of course, come on in.” I’d been mindlessly scrolling on my phone, trying to ignore the fact that I hadn’t heard from Bishop in two days. Or, more to the point, trying to ignore the fact that part of me was disappointed that I hadn’t heard from Bishop in two days. I wasn’t sure how a person could be so damn conflicted. If any more shots were fired among the voices in my head, I was going to find myself locked up in a cute little padded cell of my very own. “What’s up?”

Dad sat on the edge of my bed, leveling me with a curious stare. “A young man came to visit me today. He said that you two have been seeing each other.”

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