Page 47 of Conflagration
“Yeah, but even in their wildest imagination, they’d never get close to the real thing. I pity them, really.” Before I can respond, she moves past me then turns around to see me still standing here. “Come on, babe. I want to see what else is here.”
I follow and watch as her eyes light up when we come upon Donkey Kong.
“Oh my gosh! This was my favorite game as a kid. My parents didn’t think video games were suitable for children and the only time I could play it was in the summer when we went to my uncle’s house. Do you mind if I play?”
Shaking my head, I lean up against the arcade machine and watch as she tries to navigate herself through the round. She keeps getting stuck at the same part, dying time after time. Finally, she gives up and then catches me trying not to laugh.
“Hey! It’s been a long damn time since I’ve played this game. Don’t laugh at me!”
My laughter only deepens, and she huffs. “Come on, babe. Time to see how good you are with a basketball,” I tell her.
We make our way to the Super Shot game.
“You ready?” I ask, my hand hovering over the button. We’re about to play one-on-one to see who can get the most buckets in the basket in the allotted amount of time. I don’t tell Ariana that I was the starting point guard for three out of my four years of high school.
“Ready,” she says, and the game begins.
Even though it’s been a while since I’ve been on the basketball court, I start sinking buckets with ease. After hitting ten in a row, I look over to see Ari struggling, barely hitting the rim. I take one for the team and let my time keep going as I stand behind her, pressing my front against her back. I show her how to fix her stance and line up her arm in order to make a basket. After she makes a couple, she pushes her ass back against me, telling me that she’s ‘got this.’
“That round didn’t count since you stopped to help me,” she says, and we start again.
Even though I win the next two games, she keeps wanting to play, so we decide to go best three out of five. When I glance over at her, I can tell she’s getting frustrated as more balls fall short of the bucket. She glares at me when she sees me watching and turns back to the game. She lets the next one fly a little bit harder, and it hits the rim hard, bouncing back.
I watch in slow motion as it comes back and hits her on the top of the head before falling to the ground. She looks at me, her eyes wide, her face flushing red, and I have to bring my fist to my mouth to keep myself from laughing. She blinks a couple of times, and I drop my own ball and pull her into me, my hands coming up to cup her cheeks as I inspect the top of her head. I place a kiss on the spot where she hit then another one on her forehead before tilting her face up so she’s looking at me.
“Does it hurt anywhere?” I ask, and she shakes her head.
“Just a little bruise on my ego,” she says, laughing it off. “I think I’ll live.”
“Air hockey?” I suggest.
She arches a brow at me. “I think I’ve had enough of sports. I never was very athletic,” she admits. “I’m much better at things like Wheel of Fortune, where I can use the vast amount of knowledge in my brain.”
After placing one more kiss on her forehead, I point a crutch out in front of me. “Lead the way,” I tell her.
She gives me a beaming smile, making her way to the Wheel of Fortune game, where she really is in her element. Looking around, I see the giant claw machine and can’t pass up the chance to win Ariana a memento to keep from our first date. With a kiss on the cheek, I tell her where I’m headed, but she’s so focused on the game that she barely notices.
After failing to capture anything the first few times, I set my crutches aside and take my time, studying the layout of the machine, walking around the sides, and bending down to check each angle until I’m satisfied I can get a win.
My hand’s working the joystick and I’m completely focused on my target when I feel a hand slipping around my waist, causing me to jump. My thumb slips and accidentally presses down on the trigger, and I watch as the claw comes up empty.
“Goddammit,” I mutter, turning to see Ariana looking up at me with amusement, a shitload of tickets in her hand. “I was just about to win that fucking blue bear,” I grumble.
She looks from me to the side of the machine, where my winnings have piled up. Okay, so I may have hit a lucky streak and have been able to get four various stuffed items out of the machine, but I was on a roll and didn’t want to stop.
“I think you’ve won enough, babe,” she laughs.
“Anything else you want to do?” I ask, watching as she loads her arms up with my winnings.
“No, I’m good. Tonight’s been so much fun, Branson, but I think I’m ready to see what comes next.”
“Baby, the last few weeks have been a preview of what comes next,” I tell her, though I’m just as anxious to get this date moving right along.
She pats my cheek. “Oh, Branson, you’re so adorable. You haven’t seen anything yet.”
I raise an eyebrow, challenging her. Then I let my eyes sweep down her body, because, hell yeah, I’ve seen it all.
“Tonight, you’re giving up control, and I can’t freaking wait.” With that, she turns on her heel and starts walking towards the door, leaving me standing here with my dick hardening as the ideas of what she plans on doing roll through my mind.
