Page 115 of Wanna Play A Game?

The gorgeous woman in front of me shifts. I saw her happy there for a second. The way she looked at us after Sawyer made pancakes in the kitchen. Her gaze softened, and in that moment, she was the prettiest thing I’d ever seen. She looks now like she looked then. Like she stopped running and stopped fighting and let herself actually live.

I freeze. I swallow roughly, then trace my lips across her skin. “Is this what you look like when you feel safe, pretty girl?” I sit in silence for a bit, my chest warm with adoration. “I wish you could look like this every day.”

Chapter 57

Cali

Ihear Miles’ whispered words. I pretend to be asleep, and he continues to trace my face for a little while longer.

A shiver runs up my spine. His words wrap around me in a warm embrace. Does he want me to feel safe? The thought makes the tension in my chest release and a tiny hint of hope bloom. But no. No! They’re torturing Ben downstairs. And I’m next. Right? I try to scream at the sappy voice inside me who wants to melt for their protective behavior.

No. That sappy side will get me killed. I try to squash her.

It takes a while before Miles’ breath also evens out. Thoughts race through my mind. This soft side from both of them is muddling what seemed so clear before.

Is this still the game? To make me fall for them? Because fuck, if I’m not tempted to believe them. They make me want to fall into their harsh but protective storms.

I swallow. Sawyer once said it would be easy to break me after I opened up. In fact, he himself told me it was dumb to open up. Goddamn, I’m weak. Because that’s exactly what I want to do.

It makes an ache form in the back of my throat. Opening up will never be something I can have. It’s cruel to even think I could. God. I need a goddamn drink.

I shift my hands. Neither man moves. I push up slowly. Again, no movement. I’m between them, so I have to scoot to the end of the bed. I do so, laying the blanket back over Sawyer. I pad to the door.

Both men continue breathing heavily in sleep.

I take in a breath and crack the door open.

The house is quiet and dark. I listen for a while. Nothing. I step out. Ryder’s bedroom door is closed. It’s the middle of the night, so he must be asleep.

I move away from the hall and down to the kitchen.

There are no car keys on the hook.

Fuck. They must put those away at bedtime. I remember seeing a computer in the office. Communication with the outside world. My heart jumps at the idea. Part of me is excited. Part of me feels like this is wrong. They’re trusting me, and I’m burning that trust.

The office door is cracked. I slip in, shutting it again behind me. It’s hard to see, but the dark desk is shadowed with things all over it. I slip into the seat, feeling around.

Yes! Holy shit, it’s here.

I pause before opening the laptop. I can’t shake the wrong feeling. I mentally kick myself. I have every right to try and fight for my freedom.

I clench my jaw. Fight for yourself, Cali. You can’t be a victim forever.

I open it, the blue light flaring over me, hurting my eyes for a second and making me blink.

“That’s interesting.”

The deep voice makes me jump. I hurl back in my chair, a small scream escaping me. I desperately search the room for thesource of the sound. To my right, a shadowy shape sits in an armchair that I didn’t notice on my way in.

I take a few steps back toward the door, my heart racing.

“You act like I caught you doing something wrong.” Ryder leans back. I blink, willing my eyes to adjust.

“I…you scared me.”

He says nothing. Then, he asks, “Trouble in paradise?”

“What are you talking about?” I straighten.