Page 38 of Game Point
Scottie’s hand landed on my arm, almost turning me around to our left. ‘Have you been introduced to Oliver? He’s tagging along with Jon to help with coaching.’
My stomach plummeted, the room shifting on its axis as my eyes landed on the all-too-familiar face. I’d seen him last through a screen a few days ago, a selfie he’d sent to me, a cup of coffee lifted to his mouth.
He was supposed to be in London. But now he was here. Here. In Beijing. Oliver Anderson’s eyes landed on me, and the world came to a full stop. And with a flash of that sunshine smile, the one I’d found myself daydreaming of, something fundamental inside of me changed forever.
The words fell out of me. ‘What are you doing here?’
His smile didn’t falter, despite my shock; my brain was still trying to process the fact that he was here, in this room, standing in front of me. I tried to wash away the dryness in my mouth with a big sip of champagne, my entire body flushed at the sight of him.
When we’d first met, he’d been dressed in a casual shirt, and he’d looked good. But now, in a tailored three-piece suit that seemed to highlight the line of his strong body, I had to remind myself again that we were definitely, absolutely, firmly in the friend zone.
‘I came to see the competition,’ he answered easily, as if it was a reasonable excuse. I stared at him, my jaw slack, an unsaid follow-up question playing in my head.
Did you come to see me?
Instead, I said, ‘I thought you were going to rest for a bit?’
‘I got bored,’ Oliver shrugged, the smile across his lips turning cheeky.
‘You caught a ten-hour flight because you were bored?’ I snipped, suddenly feeling overwhelmed, the room too hot, the green silk of my dress too tight across my chest, my brain forgetting how to breathe whenever I looked at him.
What did a full breath feel like?
From the side of us, I heard Nico grumbling, ‘We’re going to go somewhere else.’
‘No, we are not,’ Scottie whispered back, her hands clutching at his arm to keep him in place.
Nico leaned close to her. ‘We can go find a closet,’ he said.
Whatever it had meant, judging from the sly smirk that spread across Scottie’s face and the way she dragged him away without another word, I was better off being left in the dark. Knowing them, it was probably kinky.
‘Are you happy to see me or not?’ Oliver’s smile faltered, losing its glow. ‘Because I’m sure there’s still oneplane back to Heathrow. It might not be too late to go back –’
‘No, don’t.’ The words left me involuntarily, my body following suit, stepping forward as my hand stretched out, catching on his arm, gripping so tightly as if I was truly afraid he would leave. ‘I-I just can’t believe you are here.’
His eyes caught mine, something buzzing in the air.Where had all the distance between us suddenly disappeared to?The thousands of miles had shrunk into mere inches, and I was all too aware that I was close enough to smell the same woodsy aftershave he’d worn in New York.
‘I wanted to surprise you,’ he admitted.
‘You did.’ My tone was still sharp as I tried to feel myself around this situation. I had so many questions, but the room was so loud, impossible for anything more than small talk.
‘Clearly.’ And as if he read my mind, Oliver suggested, ‘Can we go outside and talk? It’s loud in here.’
‘Yes, um …’ I looked around, spotting a balcony. ‘Follow me.’ My hand slid into his, the shock of the simple contact overwhelming.
We reached the edge of the room, a large glass window opening up to the Beijing skyline, the evening sky bright orange with the sunset, a rooftop garden before it. I opened the door, allowing him out ahead of me, before following.
Immediately, the volume dropped to only the noise of the city around us. Even with the humid air, it still felt better than being in the ballroom. Walking slowly, I allowed some distance between us, giving myself some time to mentally catch up with what had happened.
He was here.I wasn’t sure if I was happy at the sight of him or … or if seeing him again had made me realize how different things were between us. Last time, he’d been nothing more than a stranger. This time, I almost struggled to place what he was to me. We were friends, but did friends text every waking hour of each day? Did they think about the other as often as I thought about him?Did they notice how good his ass looked in those trousers?
We walked further along the balcony, the path lined with boxes of green bushes, pink flowers on them. A wind blew softly at my dress, tendrils of my hair blowing in the soft wind, forcing me to push it back behind my ears.
I had this feeling, like he hadn’t told me the entire truth of why he was here.Bored? Coming to see the competition?Oliver reached the end of the balcony, his hands gripping at the glass. I took in his perfectly sculpted face, his brown hair disturbed by the breeze.
‘Oliver,’ I pulled his attention across to me. ‘What are you really doing here?’
‘I told you, I came for the competition,’ he repeated, but something in his expression, his wavering gaze, caused a small tug in my gut, as if I wasn’t quite sure if I trusted him completely.
