Page 6 of A Game Plan for Love

There’s a glob of sauce on Addie’s cheek, and the sight is incredibly charming. The last half hour with her has been more fun than my last ten days combined. She reminds me of my friends—down-to-earth and teasing.

“Wanna do something fun?”

“If it requires moving, I’m going to pass.” She pulls out a wipe from her purse and hands me one. “You have sauce on your nose.”

I scrub the sauce from my face and fingers as she does the same. Keeping wipes in her bag is genius.

“No moving required.” I pull out my phone and aim it at her face. “Smile!”

She’s stunned, so instead of a smile, her face is a half snarl. I quickly send off the photo.

“This is going to be great…” I mutter, staring at my phone. “Now, we wait.”

Addie scoots closer, a waft of sweet, tart fruit perfume filling the air between us, and I lay my phone face up on the blanket. The photo of my friends and me at Christmas fills the lock screen.

Birds chirp, and I steal a moment to search for them, finding a cardinal sitting high on a branch above us.

“What are we waiting for?”

Addie pulls my attention back, but I make a mental note to post in my ‘Birds of Seattle’ Facebook group that I spotted one in the park.

“For Deon to freak out.”

Addie cackles, the sound striking my chest and leaving a warmth behind.

Thirty seconds later, Deon Adams’ name lights up on my screen. If the quarterback is anything, it’s predictable, both on and off the field.

“We should make him sweat a bit,” Addie says before hitting ‘deny’ on FaceTime.

He calls again, and she giggles as she denies him a second time. When it rings a third time, she finally picks up the phone to answer.

“Hi, Deon!” she says, a shit-eating grin on her face. “What’s up?”

I lean back, letting Addie take the lead. One of my favorite pastimes is messing with Deon. In the locker room, on the plane, at his house, when I’m hanging out with his girlfriend. Doesn’t matter where, I’ll never pass up the opportunity to make his life a bit morefun.

“Why are you with Declan?”

She looks at me from the corner of her eyes, lips tilting up in a mischievous smile. Oh, I like that smile. It screamslet’s fuck some shit up.

“He didn’t tell you?” she asks, the question full of innocence.

“Tell me what?!” Deon yells, and I choke on laughter.

The rest of Book Club is going to love this. It has four members, myself included. The other three are the significant others of my teammates. I weaseled my way in, and what started as a way to talk about books has become a way to make sure we spend time with each other.

My favorite meetings are when the girls test the validity of a scene using themselves as the test subjects.

“I’m Declan’s new personal chef!” Oh, shit. Addie went straight for the jugular. “I just wanted to let you know I can’t make your smoothies anymore.”

I would think he hung up if I couldn’t hear the labored breathing through the phone.

“Give the phone to Declan,” he demands.

Addie hands me the phone, her face a flaming red as she fights laughter. She’s wheezing, clutching her sides like this is the funniest thing she’s ever experienced. Her reaction is making it difficult to school my features as I hold the phone up to my face.

“Hi, Deon,” I purr, offering him my most charming smile, the one I’ve used to get out of speeding tickets.

“You poached my girl?!” Deon screams, face inches away from the camera. “I called dibs on her at the last meeting. The oath is sacred.”

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