Page 6 of Call My Bluff
He shifted onto his knees and leaned his forearms against the couch beside her, intentionally invading her space—just to see. But she didn’t give an inch. “Can I have some of that?” he asked, peering down into her snack bowl.
“No.”
The answer was quick—decisive—and from somewhere behind him, Jake barked out a laugh.
“I’ve seen this on Animal Planet,” he said in a loud stage whisper. “She won’t share resources, so he’ll try to establish dominance... Then, she’ll eat him.”
Noah reached past Olivia and grabbed a throw pillow before chucking it over his shoulder in the general direction of the couch. There was a surprised yelp that must have come from Lexie.
“That’s my cue to take the beast home,” Jake answered, and Noah turned to see Jake and Lexie rising to their feet. Jake looped an arm around Lexie’s shoulders as they made their way to the door. “Five minutes, and then I’m leaving you here,” he added, giving Noah a pointed look, though Noah thought he saw the corners of his roommate’s mouth twitch with barely suppressed laughter. They walked to the door, and Jake held it open while Lexie went out first.
“Liv is serious about her popcorn,” she called over her shoulder. “You’d have better luck laying an egg.”
“Bakaw!” Jake shouted, imitating a chicken, and Lexie laughed as the door clicked shut behind them.
The apartment fell silent, and Noah turned back to where Olivia was still sitting motionless on the couch, her bowl clutched protectively in her lap and a bemused expression on her face. He didn’t know why, but winning a piece of her treasure suddenly felt essential—like earning the trust of a dragon.
“You know, my mama taught me to share,” he pointed out, leaning even closer.
“I asked if you wanted a bowl. You said no.”
“Well, maybe I’ve changed my mind! That’s not impossible, you know.”
Olivia lifted her brow but said nothing, and Noah fleetingly wondered how she could be so unaffected. He was completely inside her bubble now, his face only inches from hers, and yet she barely seemed to notice.
“Here,” she finally said, a trace of laughter in her voice. She retrieved a single fluffy kernel from her bowl and held it out to him, but instead of accepting it outright, Noah opened his mouth and waited. After a moment, Olivia rolled her eyes and tossed the kernel inside. “Now, go home,” she said.
Noah crunched her gift happily before rising to his feet. “You’re somethin’ else, you know that, Pix?”
“Yeah, I’m aware,” she said lightly. “And you’re out of your league.”
Oh, challenge accepted, sweetheart, he thought as he turned toward the door, but his entire body tingled, as if protesting the adding distance. He’d faced the dragon and lived to tell the tale,but he wasn’t totally sure he’d come out unscathed.
He also wasn’t sure she was wrong.
“Alright! Start talking,”Lexie demanded, plopping onto the end of Olivia’s bed only moments after Jake’s truck left the parking lot.
Olivia shook her head, somewhat in awe that her friend had even made it back in the door before starting on the third degree. “What is there to say? I met a guy at the grocery store, he was cute, and it turns out he’s Jake’s roommate. End of story,” she said, fishing through her dresser for a tank top and a pair of pajama pants.
“End of story? Seriously? He has a pet name for you!”
Olivia started to change, not caring that Lexie was still in the room. They’d lived together for four years; there were very few secrets left. “He was making fun of that monster bag of Pixy Stix I bought during the Colt debacle, so, really, that part is your fault,” she pointed out, watching her friend’s reflection in the vanity mirror.
Lexie crossed her arms but didn’t respond.
“Plus, it’s nothing. Is he cute? Yes. Is he fun to flirt with? Also yes, but that’s the end of it. He’s not my type,” Olivia said as she pulled the soft flannel pants up her legs.
“Not your type?” Lexie repeated. “Let’s go through the checklist, shall we?” She began to tick items off on her fingers. “Sense of humor. Unfazed by your attitude. Taller than you. Pretty eyes. Ambitious...”
Olivia lolled her head in Lexie’s direction and raised one eyebrow.
“Shut up,” her friend objected, though Olivia hadn’t said anything out loud. “He’s planning to be a physical therapist. That’s not nothing,” Lexie went on.
Olivia made a noise of concession. Her friend was right, as much as she hated to admit it.
“Plus, he’s got that James Dean look you like,” Lexie said, a teasing note to her voice now. “And there’s no reason you had to sit with your leg against his back all night. You just wanted to touch him.”
“Objection!” Olivia grumbled. “He was also very warm.”
