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CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

FORD

I’ve won division championships, had my name announced for prestigious awards, and played with some of the biggest names in baseball, and yet none of them has made me as happy as seeing Juliet sit at my table, surrounded by my closest friends, playing a game I’ve come to love.

What can I say? Dungeons and Drag ons brings people together in the best possible way.

I take my time rolling up the grid mat and putting away all the miniature figures. Usually, I’d leave this shit till tomorrow morning—or even the next morning if I wanted to ride the high from the end of the session. But tonight, it’s a ploy, so I’m not caught outright staring as Juliet chats with Jo and Kiefer by the door. Stone was the first one to dip, our resident old man, while Smitty and Espinoza flew out of here like bats out of hell, hoping to hit their favorite bar up the street before last call.

“Juliet’s something, huh?” Dax asks. I follow his gaze to the woman in question, and while I know damn well Dax prefers men, I still don’t like the way he’s looking at her.

“And she’s off limits,” I growl.

Dax might be Stone’s best friend, the Renegades unofficial tattoo artist, and one of the few people in New York aside from my teammates I’d trust to be my emergency contact, but he is known to be a matchmaker at heart. I’m not about to let Juliet slip into his clutches.

His eyes wrinkle with a laugh. “Oh, I’m aware she’s all yours. I just—I wanted to ask about your friend Mercer.”

I cock a brow and search Dax’s face, as he avoids eye contact and rubs his tattooed fingers over the back of his neck.

Is he…flustered?

It’s a contradiction for the usually outspoken and shameless man.

Gaze narrowed, I prod, “What about him?”

“He came into my shop for a consultation, but we—uh—had a bit of a miscommunication on the time and he sort of walked in on me?—”

“Wait. Back up. Mercer was here? In the city?”

Dax frowns. “Yeah.”

“When?”

“A few weeks ago?”

A knife slices through my chest. “That fucking bastard.”

He’s been ignoring Soph and me for months, and he has the fucking audacity to be in the same city and say nothing? After I’ve been busting my ass to get him reinstated?

“Listen.” Dax throws up his hands as if to say don’t shoot the messenger. “I didn’t mean to cause trouble. I thought you knew.”

“I didn’t.” My hands ball into fists, and I remind myself none of this is Dax’s fault.

“Shit, man—maybe I wasn’t supposed to say anything.”

“No, it’s fine.” I sigh, even though hurt still rages under the surface. “This is between Mercer and I.”

“If you hear from him, can you tell him I—just tell him I have a slot for him when he’s ready?” He lingers next to me, shifting his weight, almost like there’s something more he’d like to say.

“Was there something else?”

“Nah.” He exhales a long, slow breath. “I’ll see ya next session. Unless you’re finally going to let me tattoo that virgin skin of yours.”

“Not a chance,” I mutter with a laugh. “Me and needles are a no go.”

Juliet slides up next to me as Dax heads for the door. It’s only then I notice that Kiefer and Jo have left too, and it’s just the two of us.

“Tonight was fun.” There’s a whimsical air to her voice that warms the deepest part of my heart, replacing the anger that was there moments before.

I bump her with my hip. “Not such a nerdy game, after all?”

“Oh no. It was absolutely nerdy,” she says, playfully bumping me back.

We both chuckle and it’s hard not to get caught up in this moment.

Itfeels good.

Easy.

Comfortable.

“Come here.” I say softly, offering her my hand.

She hesitates but ultimately slips her hand in mine, allowing me to lead her to the couch. I sit and tug her into my lap. She immediately tenses, but then relaxes into my chest and allows me to wrap my arms around her—one around her waist and the other drapes over her lap.

“Is this okay?” I ask, and she nods, but I can tell her thoughts are a million miles away. “You want to talk about it?”

“No.” She shakes her head. “Tonight was a good night, and I don’t want to let thoughts of him ruin it.”

It’s the same answer she gave me on our first date, and while I’d love to push and get her to open up to me, I know it’s got to be on her terms.

“Fair.” I concede, even if it drives me absolutely insane that she won’t let me help her work through it. “Then why don’t you tell me what you learned on tonight's date?”

Juliet grins. “You mean besides the fact that jocks make the most interesting brand of nerd ever?”

I jerk my head back, pretending to be shocked. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You guys have all the confidence and dirty minds that come with being jocks and the absolute unhinged smarts that come with being a nerd. It’s a powerful combination.”

“Hmm.” I tilt my head to the side, considering her observation. “I’ve never thought of it that way.”

“I’ll never underestimate any of you, that’s for sure.”

“And as far as dating goes.” I let my hand drift over the flesh of her thighs, toying absentmindedly with the hem of her shorts that has driven me wild all night. “What did you learn?”

She tips her head back and looks at the ceiling as if it’s somehow going to give her the answers. Or maybe she just needs a moment to find her courage. Which she does.

“I already knew making friends with your significant other’s friends is important because being alone in a relationship can suck the life from you. But what I learned tonight is having a shared interest with your partner that you can share with others as well is worth its weight in gold.”

She hesitates and I give her thigh a gentle squeeze, encouraging her to go on. She surprises me when she drops her gaze from the ceiling and connects with mine.

“It was so much fun to see you interact with your friends and see you through their eyes. It enhanced my view of you and reinforced that you are a good person, because the people you choose to surround yourself with are genuine, kind and welcoming. And last but certainly not least, I learned that maybe I have a little bit of nerd inside me too.”

“I—” I’m at a loss for words. “And here my only goal was to have you be comfortable with my hand on your knee in a group setting.”

But of course, this beautiful, smart, woman found a way to sink past the surface level lessons and wrap her mind around the deeper meaning of group dates and friendship. It’s just another example of how much she doesn’t need to be taught, only reminded that she already knows everything she needs to date in today's world.

Not that I want her to.

No. Tonight only reinforced how much I want to keep Juliet for myself. I’m well aware it’s selfish and some people might perceive it as wrong or taking advantage of the situation, but to them I say, “thank you for your opinion and kindly fuck off.” Because at the end of the day, you can’t help who you fall in love with.

Her cheeks flush an adorable pink. “I didn’t hate having your hands on me.”

Fuck me.

“No?” My cock twitches, and I pray she doesn’t feel it when I shift beneath her.

She brings her hand up, tracing her fingertips across my chest. “It was nice to have you there. At first for reassurance that I wasn’t alone. And then as a constant.”

“Then I did my job.”

“Thank you, again. For planning these dates and helping me find my confidence.”

“Juliet, I—” Love you. Want you. Would do anything for you.

Whoa, where did that first one come from? The last two make sense, but love? Is that what this is?

She arches her brow. “What were you going to say?”

Nothing I can say out loud. But at the same time, I demanded honesty from her, so who am I to keep secrets? “It was dipping a toe into dangerous game territory.”

She pauses her fingers and splays her hand over my racing heart. “And if I want you to?”

I’m so fucked.

And yet, I can’t stop myself from playing this damn game with her. She’s fire, and I’m a moth caught in her glow.

My throat bobs and I carefully choose my words. “I’d tell you that you need to be very specific about what you want, because when it comes to you, I might get carried away.”

She presses her lips together and her hair brushes her shoulders as she nods. “Then tell me this. If we were in a game of Dungeons and Dragons and you saved me from the terrible ogre king on our second date, what would happen next?”

“You and your hypotheticals,” I jest, but I freaking love the way her mind works. “I suppose, ever the gentleman, I'd deliver you back to your kingdom.”

Juliet shifts in my lap, and for a split second, I think I’ve said the wrong thing as she stands and turns away from me. It’s not until she looks back and holds out her hand. “Then deliver me.”

I arch a brow and play along, sliding my hand in hers. She turns and tugs me toward her door, but my eyes are focused on the curve of her ass and the way her cheeks sway in those damn shorts.

We arrive too quickly, and she spins so fast that I almost bump into her.

Her hand releases mine, and she raises both to press against my chest, her eyes connecting with mine. “And once you safely delivered me home?”

“I’d reassure you that you were safe, and I’m not going to let anything bad happen to you.”

“And if I thanked you and offered you a reward?”

“I’d humbly decline.” I dip my head, making a dramatic show of bowing to the goddess before me. “The reward is taking care of you.”

“But, valiant knight,” she protests, and God, if her role-playing doesn’t send all my blood rushing south. “What if the reward was a kiss?”

She’s trying to kill me.

“You know not what you’re offering me,” I say through clenched teeth, barely holding on to what’s left of my resolve to

“I’m fairly certain you stripped me of my kiss on our last encounter,” she teases with her words, but the heat in her brown eyes tells a different story.

She’s thinking about the other night, and now I am too. The way I wanted nothing more than to kiss her after we got back to the apartment. I’ll never tell her the way I had to force my hands into my pockets so I didn’t tangle my fingers in her hair and crash my lips to hers.

And then when she called me—fuck—I should be nominated for sainthood for staying on my side of the apartment.

But she’s not ready to hear any of that.

I bring my hand to her chin and trace my fingers up to her ear until my hand cups her jaw. “But I gave you so much more. And considering, I now have the knowledge of what you sound like when you come, fair maiden, I’m positive if I kiss you tonight, I won’t be able to stop myself from finding out what you look like in the throes of passion. So, best not to tempt my fragile will.” My response is playful but honest. Normally I’d be the king of ironclad resolve. But after tonight—after seeing her with my friends and witnessing what could be if she were mine—I’m weak. She needs to know that.

“A dangerous game indeed.” Juliet’s lower lip finds its way between her teeth, and I watch as she chews on what I’ve shared. She inhales deeply and nods to herself. “But I think it’s one I’m willing to play if you are.”

I blink. Once. Twice.

I almost consider asking if she has any fucking idea what she’s saying—what she’s offering. Because I absolutely meant what I said. I’m not sure I’ll have any sort of restraint once I touch her. She might call me Hulk, but right now I’m Bruce Banner, afraid of what my alter ego might do.

“Juliet,” I rasp, but it comes out more of a whimper. “This—I don’t want this to be a game. You aren’t a game to me.” I close my eyes and press my forehead to hers, our breaths mingling as I silently will her to understand what I can’t bring myself to say. That I need her to know that even though this is a means to an end for her, if we go down this road, it means everything to me. “I need you to be sure. I?—”

“Ford.”

My eyes flutter open, and I meet her trusting gaze.

“Kiss me.”