Page 57 of Playing For Keeps

“I love you. You lo—you love me. Of course this changes things! You insufferable, wonderful—” She sputtered, seconds away from what he assumed would be an insult, so he closed the distance between them and pressed his lips to hers.

Sebastian’s hand tangled in her hair, the other still cradling her cheek. Farren’s hands were trapped between them, hugging her game to her heart, but she leaned into him, returning his kiss with a passion that seemed to spread through his veins.

He pulled back slightly, breathless.

“I can’t play this. Are you kidding me? Here? There’s no way I can playtest this here,” she muttered against his lips, and he captured hers again to shut her up.

“Farren,” he warned.

“It’s not ready.”

“It’s not supposed to be.” Kiss, lips trailing over her jaw and up to the shell of her ear.

“How do… It’s no good. No one has played it. I have no idea if it even works.” She kept talking, her worry leaking out through her mouth in a stream of words he knew would just keep going.

“It does,” Sebastian reassured, confident.

“How do you know?” she challenged, taking a step back, presumably so she wouldn’t be distracted by him.

“I played it with your friends.”

The words were out before he could even think about it. Farren wasn’t supposed to know about that. He didn’t want her to feel like he’d gone behind her back.

“What?” It dropped between them, heavy, loaded.

“You wouldn’t take my calls, and rightfully so. I was losing my mind. I quit my job. I needed something to occupy my time.” Sebastian shrugged, mentally thanking her friends for helping him through one of the worst periods of his life. They were kinder than he deserved, and all this… Her game… This hobby she loved kept him going and kept him positive, ensuring he could pursue the right path.

“Wait, you quit your job!?” The emotions flitting across her face were impossible to read in their entirety. He guessed there was shock, a little anger maybe. A touch of breathlessness under it all. Sebastian wrapped his hands around her biceps again, needing to touch her, stroking his thumbs across the softness to ground himself.

“Farren. Focus. Playtesting.”

“But…”

“We can talk about it after if you want.” He bent down to pick his backpack off the ground, shoving the bits of gift wrap into it. Sebastian zipped it and slung it over his shoulder as she stood there, slightly dumbfounded. Farren held onto the game like a stuffed animal, close to her breast, and cradled it as if to protect it.

He placed a hand on her lower back, urging her forward, and her feet seemed to obey even though he could tell she was still reluctant. He rubbed soothing circles into the dip in her spine, gently steering her back toward the play rooms. The first one—the one she hadn’t been in—the smaller one was in front of them in no time.

Sebastian pushed on the handle, opening the room up to her.

Corinne kept to her side of the bargain, thankfully. Even though she wasn’t convinced this was the best way to do it, she’d gone along with his plan.

A table was set up with another copy of the game, laid out for people to see. A banner hung off the edge of the table, the design and name boldly displayed. Under it, just as significant, just as bold… Farren’s name.

“Sebastian…” She gazed up at him with tears in her eyes before looking back at it.

Another table was set up behind it, ready for players to jump right in. At the table, standing up when she saw them enter, was Corinne. She rushed toward her friend, her dark bob swishing around her face, and collided with Farren, wrapping her up in a huge hug.

Farren freed one of her arms to return the embrace, a watery smile on her face and a chuckle-sob forcing its way through her lips.

“I can’t believe you did this,” Farren said, and Sebastian wasn’t sure if she was talking to him or Corinne.

“I’m still mad I found out about this through lover-boy,” Corinne said as she pulled away, gesturing at the manifestation of all Farren worked on for so long.

“I’m sorry. It was a pipe dream. I never thought it would ever see the light of day. It always felt so silly, so small.” Farren’s lips folded into a sad line, and the tears she’d kept at bay all this time dripped down her cheeks.

“Babe, I’m so glad to tell you that you’re wrong. We’ve all played it. Heck, I’ve played it multiple times to get ready for today, so I could help with the demonstration.” Corinne elbowed her as if to say, “Look at this. Look at what you’ve done.” Farren’s shy smile made Sebastian fall in love with her all over again.

“I can’t… This is amazing.” Farren sniffled, flicking tears from her face, smiling at them both.

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