Page 5 of Play For Keeps

She cocks her head, and her lips tip up at the corners in a cautious smile before she looks away, breaking eye contact. I take a deep breath, the same spark I felt that night knocking me off kilter again.

“See something you like?” Tucker asks, fixing me with a knowing smirk.

I shake my head. “I just recognized her from Catch 21. She’s a waitress there. I ran into her the other night when I had dinner with Liam.”

“And now your dick wants to run into her,” Grayson says, and I realize that all three of us are staring at her like assholes.

“Guys. Stop fucking staring, it’s creepy.” I elbow Grayson in his side, and he mock-winces.

“Geez, you have a crush on this girl,” Tuck says, swatting at Grayson’s leg. “See that, Gray… our boy has it bad.”

Thankfully, Grayson’s phone lights up with a call and our conversation is put on hold. As Tuck picks up his own phone and starts scrolling, I tell myself to be cool, just act normal. I am not in the mood for an interrogation about a girl I don’t even know. But it isn’t as easy as it sounds. I’m itching to look at her. It takes every ounce of my willpower to keep from glancing back in her direction.

Eventually I crack. I can’t help it.

The breeze coming off the ocean blows her long hair away from her face and I notice the curve of her shoulder, the smooth column of her neck. She’s the kind of beautiful that knocks the breath out of you. She has olive skin, and I remember her eyes being a color I’ve never seen before—like a bright green moss mixed with a precious stone. Her body makes me want to run my fingers over every inch of it.

My pervy thoughts are interrupted when Tuck sits up, stuffing his phone in his pocket. “I gotta run, boys. I’ve got dinner with my dad tonight, which is obviously just an excuse for him to tell me all the ways he thinks I’m fucking up my life.” He rolls his eyes. “Can’t wait.”

Tucker’s dad is hard on him, always has been. Their relationship is complicated, to put it mildly.

“I don’t know why you’re still taking his shit. You’re a grown man. You don’t have to, you know,” Gray says. He stands up, then grabs his board. “I’ll catch a ride with you, Tuck.”

Brushing the sand off his shorts, he looks at me and then nods down the beach. “You should shoot your shot with her, Jake.”

“Maybe,” I say. I know the guys will give me the gears if I don’t man up and at least talk to her. It’s been a long time since I’ve shown any real interest in a girl. Two years and three months, to be exact. But if I do decide to approach her, I’m not stupid enough to do it while Tucker and Grayson are here to witness it. I don’t need to give them any ammo if I go over there and strike out.

Besides, I’m not looking for anything serious so what’s the harm in talking to her? If she’s not interested, it’s no big deal. Right?

I say goodbye to the guys and then knock back the rest of my beer as I watch them head across the beach to the parking lot. Then, before I can talk myself out of it, I stand up and walk down the beach towards her.

When I get closer, her gaze tips up to mine. Damn. She’s beautiful. I force myself to swallow my nerves.

“Hey. I recognize you from Catch 21,” I start. “I was there a couple of weeks ago. I was the guy who almost killed you when I walked right into you. Sorry about that. I should really pay attention to where I’m going…”

My pulse hammers beneath my skin. I walked over here without any kind of a plan, and now I’m standing here blabbering like an idiot. What was I thinking? I’m not a talker. I’m not outgoing. I smile at her, hoping that panic isn’t written all over my face. I take a deep breath, and her scent—something citrusy like oranges or clementines—smells so good that it’s all I can think about.

I crouch beside her, and as she glances out at the ocean, I take note of the thin chain around her neck with a tiny pendant resembling a bird.

A sparrow.

I want to know what it means to her. I want to know everything about her.

She looks at me, her lower lip pulled between her teeth.

“Jake. Jake Matthews,” I say, filling the silence. She nods, absentmindedly twisting her hair around into a knot at the base of her neck. “Hi,” she says, a cautious tone to her voice. “I’m Everly.” She looks back to the ocean, and I wonder if it’s a subtle hint that she wants to be left alone.

I’m deciding whether I should just cut my losses and go when a little girl with blonde hair comes skipping up the sand, plopping down onto the blanket beside Everly. I watch as she slips her arm around the child’s back, pulling her to her side.

“Did you see me jump the really big wave?”

My heart sinks as I notice the clear resemblance between them. She has a daughter? I can’t help but wonder if she has a husband too.

I take in the girl’s olive-hued skin and wide, hazel eyes which look just like Everly’s. She wraps her sandy arms around Everly’s neck and casts a sideways glance in my direction.

“I saw, baby. It was the biggest one yet,” Everly says, grinning at the little girl. Her whole face has lit up. The cautious expression from before is gone. She looks happy, relaxed.

“Can I do it again, Mommy?”

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