Page 40 of Make the Play

Corie giggles, and it does something to my heart. It makes it feel lighter yet squeezes it at the same time. She hits Play, and it takes the group a few moments, but as soon as the beat changes and the chorus hits, they all start to sing.

“All hail the queen of Name that Tune,” Reid says, pointing at Corie.

My queen.

My body stills, because I don’t know where that thought came from. Corie isn’t my anything. She must feel the change in me because she turns to face me. There’s worry in her eyes.

“Are you okay?”

Am I? I’m not sure. So that’s what I tell her. “I don’t know.”

“What’s wrong?” She leans in close, making sure the conversation is just between us. She’s so close, it would take very little effort on my part to close the gap and kiss her. Thankfully, everyone is still singing off-key as they laugh and belt out the words. They’re not paying a bit of attention to us.

I chuckle under my breath. “What’s wrong is that you are all I can think about these days. Do you know what my thought was just now?” She shakes her head. “That you were my queen. Not the queen of the game, but mine. What am I supposed to do with that, Corie?”

“I don’t know,” she whispers.

“I really want to kiss you. I want to feel your lips pressed to mine like they were earlier, but longer this time.” I lift my hand to trace her lips and curse under my breath. I can’t do that. We’re surrounded by people, her brother—my best friend—in particular. I have to get my shit together, but fuck me. I can’t do that with this woman on my lap.

“You want to kiss me?”

“More than I need to breathe,” I confess.

“What are you two scheming over there?” Foster calls out. “Corie, you’re not allowed to help him. That’s cheating,” he grumbles.

“I need something sweet,” Landry says, standing from his chair and heading to the back porch.

“I guess the game is over,” Sloane says. “Anyone up for a night swim?”

“Let’s do it.” Reid stands and stretches. Baker, Sloane, and Foster do the same.

I know that means I can’t keep her on my lap any longer, and I hate that. Corie stands and links her arm with her best friend’s, and they make their way inside.

“Come on, Cap,” Baker says. “Nothing in our contract says we can’t swim,” he teases.

“And we’re all sober,” Foster adds. “You should smile. You’re keeping our asses in line.”

“Well, all except for Landry. Dude really needs to lay off the sweets,” Reid jokes.

“This time, we can finally place the blame on Beckett.” Baker laughs. “You’re the one who bought the entire bakery.”

“They were closing, so I just bought what was left. I knew Landry would consume half of them.”

Foster points his index finger at me. “You’re enabling him.” He smirks.

“We all know that nothing would keep Landry away from food. Any kind of food, whether I brought it to his doorstep or not,” I tell them, and they all laugh because it’s the damn truth.

The back door opens, and we all turn to see Corie and Sloane, followed by Landry with a donut in his hand. My eyes scan back to Corie, and my breath stalls in my lungs. She’s in a modest one-piece bathing suit, but it does nothing to hide how fucking gorgeous she is.

I can’t do this.

I can’t sit here, watch her swim, breathe in that suit, and act as if she means nothing to me.

I have to go.

The words are on the tip of my tongue when she and Sloane stop next to me. Sloane links her arm through mine and nods at Corie. I watch Corie’s throat bob with her swallow, and she steps to my other side, mimicking her best friend and linking her arm with mine. I lean into her just a little because I can’t seem to control myself where she’s concerned.

“You’re swimming with us,” Sloane announces.

---