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If I let a guy getting in my face dissuade me, I’d never have survived my childhood, let alone becoming a mechanic, so I moved position, pushing him back from the table with my hip, then settling right in front of him as I bent over. His groan as my butt connected with his crotch made clear he’d realised the mistake he’d made, compounded by the way I spread my thighs wide to improve my stance. Didn’t have him moving out of the way, though, as I forced myself to focus and take my shot. The ball sank into the pocket and I rose up and turned around with a smirk.

“Is this you teaching me a lesson?” If I was hoping to see a suitably chastised Hunter, I was about to be disappointed. Instead, his eyes danced as he grinned down at me. “Then consider me your most diligent student. Nothing I like better than playing dirty.”

My eyes narrowed, but I didn’t deign to reply, moving around the table to set up my next shot. He followed me, and then right as I was about to shoot, he leaned down and breathed into my ear. The ticklish sensation, the intimacy of it, threw me off, forcing me to stand up and push him away. He danced back as I wielded the cue like a weapon, cackling the whole time. I was able to take my shot without interference, but my focus? It was off. I saw balls all across the table, but had to remind myself which ones were mine, let alone which one to aim for next. I messed up my shot, cursing under my breath, only for him to step forward.

There were a whole lot of shitty tactics people used in bar games to put someone off. Between friends it could be a joke, between serious competitors it could result in fists being thrown. Not sure if any of them included walking their fingers up the spine of their opponents, though. Hunter froze as I did just that, his head tilting my way, staring as I smiled. He tried to take his shot when I pulled away, but I just grabbed a handful of the most perfectly firm arse at the last minute and his cue struck wild.

“Oh, you are going down…” he growled.

“Playing dirty, that’s what you said, right?” I moved fast, taking my shot before he could rally. To my satisfaction, the ball sank with a thud. “I’m just abiding by the conditions you set.”

“I’m a pretty mediocre pool player,” he admitted, his body shadowing mine. “But this game I know how to play.”

As I leaned over, he followed me, his hands slipping under the hem of my shirt, his fingers splaying across my stomach as I struck the white ball. That was distracting enough to foul my shot, but the kiss he placed on the nape of my neck? Being groped, teased, that I could take, but that moment of intimacy was a step too far. When I pulled away, my heart was thudding far too fast.

“You fuck.”

“Not too late to change the terms of the bet.” Just as I’d fantasised, he picked me up and set me on the edge of the table and stepped into the space between my legs. “I’ll stop playing dirty. I’ll even do every single one of the jobs on my sister’s latest insane DIY list if you agree to just one date.”

“Resorting to blackmail, are we?” I said. “Because you know you can’t win.”

“Because I don’t give a shit about winning.” The smile faded and something vulnerable replaced it. “Just about you. I don’t deserve another chance at this, but if you give me one anyway.” His eyes dropped down, seeming to study the shape of my lips. “I’ll show you that it could be good between us.”

That’s what scared me.

He would never just be some guy who’d appear at my doorstep, looking to get laid. Hunter would want more, somehow I knew that. So this was the moment when I told him that there was no way we could do this. My mouth moved, my throat worked, but instead of me replying, Millie’s voice cut through the haze.

“Soo… are you two gonna get a room, or what?”

Shit.

The pub came back into focus with a snap and I slid off the table, even as Hunter tried to hold me right there.

“Sorry, Mills—” I said.

“Don’t be. The regulars were following everything with great interest. There’s a betting pool running to see if you two kiss.” She produced a wad of money from her pocket. “I might have started it.”

“Put me down for twenty that we do,” Hunter said, pulling out his wallet.

“You can’t bet on yourself, dickhead, but if you could make your move, that’d be great. I’ve got good money riding on a yes.”

“Yes?” Hunter turned to me with a question in his eyes, but it was multi-pronged. To a date, to a kiss, to everything this insane situation entailed.

“I said yes to Brock,” I told him, my words having all the impact of a slap, but he didn’t let them dissuade him. “I said yes to Hayden today.”

This was the moment he got jealous, angry, and pushed himself away from me in disgust, so imagine my surprise when he just grinned.

“So it seems only fair that you say the same to me.”

His hands went to my face, his body hunching over, blocking out everyone and everything, forcing me to just focus on him. Dimly I heard whoops as his lips crashed down on mine, but did they come from the bar or my heart? I didn’t know, just that he was kissing me with lips that tasted bitter from the beer and sweet from him.

“Great work, brother.” I blinked when Hunter pulled away, staring into space, trying to come back down to earth. Millie’s face swam into focus, wearing a knowing smirk. “You made me at least a hundred bucks. The guys were sure you couldn’t seal the deal.”

“Sounds like it’s your shout,” I croaked out.

“And that you need to piss off back home.” Millie cocked a hip as she regarded Hunter. “I told you, Jamie’s my friend and she came here to hang out with me, so once you apologised?—”

“I need to go home and start talking to Hayden about this damn list you’ll have us working on. You remember we renovated your bathroom only a year or so ago?” he said.