Page 10 of The Pass
“Say what?”
“Gotcha! But have you seen her? She’s seriously hot.”
Before I know it, Sydney’s pulled out her phone and navigating to the Valley U athletics page to show me. And damn, Coach Ryan is hot. Not as hot as Sydney, but definitely hot. Somehow that leads us down a rabbit hole of passing her phone back and forth rating the hotness of all the coaches.
“Are you two ready?” Nathan asks.
I glance up and notice the pitcher is empty. Shit, I have no idea how long Sydney and I have been in our own little bubble.
“Yeah.” I look to her. “You want to come back to The White House?”
“Definitely.”
When we get back to the house, we find Datson already back from the Prickly Pear and playing Xbox in the living room.
“Oh, man, that’s old school. What game is that?” Sydney walks right in and sits down on the couch.
“Tecmo Bowl. It’s awesome.” I tip my head at Datson. “I demand a rematch from this afternoon. You want winner, Payne?”
He shakes his head. “Gonna hang with my girl.”
Chloe and Nathan join us despite acting like they want to be alone. I’m seated next to Sydney. She leans forward watching the game with rapt interest. I get a little too distracted with her beside me. The feel of her leg resting next to mine, the smell of her hair—coconut, I think. I’d really like my hands back—they’re itching to touch her.
“Damn. I’ve never seen anyone lose so fast.” Datson punches me in the arm and then looks to Nathan. “You’re up.”
Nathan lifts a hand. “Shaw, toss me the controller.”
I do and then focus my attention on Sydney.
“You’re terrible.” Those dark eyes are lit with laughter at my loss.
“It’s an old game, I’m still getting the hang of it.”
She doesn’t look convinced. I lay a palm on her thigh and squeeze playfully. “Let’s see how you do.”
Her gaze goes to my hand and then back to my face. “Bring it on, Tanner.”
“Me and Sydney have next game,” I tell the guys and then lean closer to Sydney. “You’re the only person who calls me that. Well, besides my family.”
“Should I call you Shaw?”
“Nah, I like it.” I stroke her smooth skin lightly with my thumb, not moving my hand up to creeper level but exploring the chemistry between us. As I expected, it’s off the charts.
* * *
After video games,where I may or may not havelether win (cough, cough, I did not, she beat me straight up), we head out to the pool. Sydney didn’t have a suit so she’s in one of my shirts and boxers. Nathan and I show the girls how to play water ball. What is usually an intense competition between guys is more of a friendly, flirty game. Sydney and I use every opportunity to touch and splash one another. After we score, she throws her arms around my neck and squeals in victory.
We’re killing them. Sydney is as competitive as I am and knowing that every score is another chance that she might hug me in celebration makes me an impossible man to beat. I’m good with incentives.
“All right, we give,” Nathan says after the second game. “We’re going in to watch a movie or something.”
Code, they’re going to make out.
“Thanks for the game.” I wrap my arms around Sydney’s waist underwater and pull her against me. “Are you good staying out here for a while?” I ask her as they climb out and start toward the house. “I love it out here at night.”
“Definitely.” She leans her head back against my shoulder.
The water is perfect in the warm night air. Clear skies mean there’s even a few stars out.
