Page 119 of A Little Crush
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JAXON
All right, Paxton’s place is pretty nice. Beer in hand, I watch the fire crackle on the beach as the waves lap at the shore. The lobster rolls—both cold and hot—were delicious, despite it being Paxton’s and Tatum’s first try making them. They even managed to not burn the butter the second time around.
I sip my drink as Paxton reappears with another six pack, and the girls trail behind after each needing to use the restroom. At the same time. Because some stereotypes are very real, and the girls have no problem embracing them. I have a feeling it’s because Tatum wanted a private check-in to see how her best friend’s doing navigating the new relationship with her childhood crush.
Oh, to be a fly on the wall for that conversation.
I thought it would be weird. Openly sharing our relationship with another couple. Someone who knew us before. Before I saw Rory as a woman instead of the little girl who would follow me everywhere I went. Surprisingly, it’s been refreshing. Not needing to watch my every move. Notneeding to tear my attention from her mouth when she laughs. Fuck, I love her laugh.
Her hips sway, and her hair blows in the gentle sea breeze, making her look like a dream as Rory approaches me.
“Hi.”
“Hey,” I rasp.
“You okay?”
I nod and lift a hand, reaching for her. “Come here.”
As my fingers envelop her wrist, I tug her onto the blanket stretched on the sand, then tuck her between my thighs. She melts against me, molding her back to my chest before stealing my beer from my opposite hand and taking a drink.
“Mmm, you’re warm.” She snuggles against me even more. “So, what game did you decide on, Pax?”
“Game?” I question.
“Blame it on the rockstar,” Tatum replies. “Ever since the bachelorette party, Paxton’s been obsessed.”
“Who am I tonotembrace traditions?” he returns. “Ghost in the Graveyard was awesome, and now that I know you can get group games on your phone, I figured Heads Up is a winner.” He unlocks his phone, opens the app, and tosses it to Rory. “Baby, you wanna go first?”
Baby?
The same flicker of irrational jealousy sparks inside of me, only this time, I’m able to say something about it. “You know, I’m pretty sure that isn’t the first time I’ve heard you call Rory that nickname.”
Paxton turns to me and grins. “When I first met the girls, I caught them trying to sneak into one of my concerts. Called her Baby because of her baby face.”
“And the fact that she was underage in a twenty-one and older venue,” Tatum adds.
“You were a terrible influence on me,” Rory points out.
“You’re the one who didn’t read the fine print,” Tatum argues. “And in case you’re wondering, I regret nothing.” She gives Rory a syrupy sweet grin. “Without me, your life would’ve been very boring.”
“And without me, you probably would’ve wound up as roadkill on the side of the road.”
“Or with a dozen STDs.” Tatum winks. “Now enough chit-chat. You go first so I can see the look on your face when we beat you.”
“Someone’s cocky,” Rory notes.
“Confident,” Tate quips.
“Whatever.” Rory clambers to her feet and moves to the edge of the circle so we can all see the screen. Well, all of us except her. “Are we doing a free for all or teams?” she asks.
“Teams,” Tatum decides. “You and Jaxon against me and Pax. Rules are simple, but here’s a refresher. Rory, you’re not allowed to look at the screen, but you need to use the clues Jaxon gives you to figure out what the word is. Jaxon, your job is to make her say the word by any means necessary without saying the word yourself. To make things harder, you can’t do animal sounds, hum tunes, say any part of the word or make her fill in the blank. Make sense?”
I nod.
“Perfect,” she continues. “If you want to pass on a word that’s too hard, tilt up the phone. Tilt the phone down if you get the answer right. Rory, once you guess the correct word, Jaxon can start giving clues for the next word. The goal is to see how many words your team can guess in sixty-seconds. Got it?”
