Page 44 of Cross Check My Heart
Not completely convinced, she stays planted in front of me.
“Do either of them know where you’re staying?” I raise an eyebrow at her question, but answer nonetheless.
“I mean, they know I’m living in Florida. But they think I’m living with you. Considering Cam thinks of you as my rabid guard dog, he wouldn’t ever actually try to come here.” That finally brings a smile to her face, she’ll drop it. With a nod, Paige reaches for her drink and heads over to talk with Garrett.
I take a deep breath before turning to face Dominik finally. He’s staring toward the ocean, very clearly lost in thought. After a quick glance around to make sure no one is paying attention to us, I place a hand on his arm to get his attention. When he finally looks down at me, his expression is full of worry. I rub my thumb gently back and forth a couple times, hoping to soothe him as I smile up at him.
“I didn’t know Garrett invited you out today.” His eyebrows are drawn together and his mouth parts as if he still has something to say about Cam texting me. Squeezing his arm, I give him a subtle shake of my head and lower my voice so only he can hear. “Not here. You can ask me about it later when we’re alone.”
He gives a stiff nod before finally rolling his shoulders, forcing a smile.
“Yeah, Gare texted me last night about it. I didn’t think the guys would agree to come out today, so I hadn’t thought to mention it.” He winks at me as I drop my hand from his arm. “Figured it would be a good surprise.”
“It definitely was.” I state with a smile. His heated gaze roams down the length of me, the look alone causing warmth to spreadthrough my entire body. We just had sex last night, yet every inch of me reacts as if it’s been months since he touched me. Clearing my throat, I glance around again with a small smile.
Our group is taking up a big section of the beach, and I now realize why Garrett thought to come ahead. Dominik’s team is fitting right in with the SweetHeart Publishing employees. Landon and Reid have started a game of Kan Jam with two of the women I haven’t had a chance to meet yet. I think Paige had said their names were EvalynandAva. Carter and Dean are helping a few others set up a beach net closer to the water for a game of volleyball. It doesn’t surprise me to see that Greyson is hanging back from the beach games, instead making his way toward Dominik and me.
“I can’t tell you the last time I was at a beach.” Greyson says with a shake of his head. He’s an attractive guy, they all are, but he has that wholestay awayvibe to him. That only makes me more curious about him. Strictly in the sense that I get the feeling he doesn’t have someone to fall back on. I know the feeling.
Dominik laughs as he places a hand on my lower back, gently pushing forward so he can grab a drink for Grey from the cooler beside me.
“Not gonna lie, I’m shocked you didn’t find a way to ditch us after brunch.” He tosses Grey a beer. “Beaches and being around tourists don’t seem like your kind of… scene.”
It almost looks like the corner of Grey’s mouth twitches, hinting at a smile, before he covers it with his drink, shaking his head as he studies our group.
“It’s not. I’m just here for the free entertainment those doofuses will provide.” I turn just in time to see Landon jump up to catch the frisbee, only to miss and go tumbling sideways into Dean. They land hard in the sand, both laughing hysterically as Landon lays defeatedly on top of Dean for a long moment.
Without even realizing it, I find my gaze sliding back to Dominik. After grabbing his drink, he stayed close to me. Not touching, but close enough that if I were to drop an arm to my side, I could easily brush him with my fingers. He’s relaxed, laughing at the chaos around him as he and Greyson start talking about practice yesterday.
Just as I start to think about going to find Paige, she shows up with Garrett right behind her. While Garrett manages to jump right into conversation with the guys, Paige and I move off to the edge of the tent.
“Well, this group showing up is a pleasant surprise.”
“Everyone seems to be getting along though.” Paige elbows me, nodding in the direction of the Kan Jam game going on.
“Especially those two.” I watch as Landon hands the frisbee toEvalyn. She takes it, tucking some of her caramel hair behind her ear.
“Who is she again?”
“Evalyn Moore. Shewas brought on two years ago as a temp, but I refused to let her go. She’s brilliant. I was telling Garrett last week that she would be killer in my position if ever needed.” She rolls her eyes with a small smirk on her face. “Of course, that only triggered him to freak out and ask where I was going.”
“Have you thought about leaving?” She shakes her head, and I don’t miss how she glances at Garrett before continuing.
“No. I love my job. Yeah, there are some days that I feel like I want to be doingmore, but I love the company and the work we do. I’m really excited for things that are in the works and youknowI absolutely love the people I work with.” I nod, knowing she’s telling the truth. Especially considering that every one of her coworkers I have met are super nice.
Before either one of us can say anything more, Garrett yells for Paige just as Landon calls out mine and Dominik’s. Turning, he’s holding up the frisbee, literally batting his eyelashes at me.
“Play a round with us? Reid and Ava want to go in the water. You can be on Evalyn’steam!”
With a glance over my shoulder at Dom, who shrugs his shoulders and turns to grab two more drinks from the cooler, before coming over to me. In a low voice, so only I can hear, he hands me a new drink.
“Whatcha say, Sunshine? Think you can beat me?” Smirking, I raise an eyebrow as I move past him toward Landon.
“Did you not learn from the last time we played a game against each other?” He falls in step beside me, keeping his voice down as he responds confidently.
“What I learned from last time is that, even if I lose, I still win. Considering I get to reward you so thoroughly for winning.”
My cheeks flush as I focus on not tripping over my own two feet. I quickly answer him before we get into earshot of Landon and Evalyn.
