Page 30 of Totally Played
“Tony will be pissed he’s missing this.” Calvin chuckles beside me as Duckie yells “Sheep,” and Ian dips the screen down quickly and tilts it back to display the next animal.
“He’s still sick then?” I ask.
“Yeah, sorry.”
“Not your fault.”
“No, but he was supposed to be your date, and your stuck with me, so…”
“There are worse guys to be stuck with,” I say, and he pauses mid-laugh. Shit. Did I just make things weird?
“I mean, you know, as far as bro-dates go.”
“Sure. Well, I guess you’ll have to wait until you get back from your trip to set something up.”
“Yeah. I guess,” I say, wishing I didn’t bring it up at all. Or did he bring it up? Fuck. I lose all train of thought around this guy.
“Woof woof,” Ian sounds, and Duckie is quick to guess dog before moving on to the next animal.
“Grrrrr,” Ian sounds, lifting his hands like he’s got claws and he’s about to pounce.
“Dog.”
“You already did dog.” Calvin laughs, and Duckie spins in his chair.
“No interfering.”
“Then stop repeating guesses,” Calvin replies, and Ian stands, looming over Duckie and Calvin, fingers like claws out in front of him. Calvin leans back, one hand reaches out and grips my thigh, and holy hell, my heart skips a beat and a surgeof energy rolls through me. I know Ian’s playing, but some neanderthal urge wants me to get between Calvin and him.
“Oh, oh, bear,” Duckie yells, and when Ian sits, the urge settles. I have to get a grip on this. Calvin isn’t my boyfriend, he’s not even my date, and he doesn’t need protecting. At least not from his friends.
Duckie and Ian finish their turn, scoring six correct.
“Okay, B-One, let’s see if you and the bro-date can top six,” Duckie says, grabbing the device and handing it over.
“Tony isn’t here. Do we really need the nickname?” Calvin asks.
“Yep, game on, B-One, let’s go!”
Calvin rolls his eyes and passes the device to me.
“Okay, Ash, we need a seven to beat Duckie and Ian,” Calvin explains.
“So I just dip it forward when it’s correct?”
“Yep, are you ready?” I’m not. I’m not ready for the way he smiles at me, or the way my heart races at his touch. But here goes nothing.
“As I will ever be.”
He taps the screen I’m holding against my forehead, and I listen as the timer chimes to count down to start. My heart is beating hard already, and everyone’s eyes are on us.
“Cluck, cluck,” Calvin sounds.
“Chicken.”
“Yes.”
I dip the screen.
