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Luke and Liam share a maniacal smile at this information.
The boy checks his clipboard. “The teams are as follows…”
Apparently, this has all been pre-arranged, because Luke and Liam step forward as team leaders right away. Luke even jostles Liam a little as they make their way to the front. I’m amazed to see Liam grin at his brother and mutter a few words I can’t hear, but lip-read as something along the lines of “you’re going down” with an unrepeatable expletive thrown in.
Wow. Mr. Donovan is full of surprises today.
Vanessa pouts a little as she’s called onto Luke’s team, but then seems to catch herself, like she’s just remembered her vow to no longer pine for Liam. Luke practically pouts too when he takes in her shoes and short skirt. “Can you run in those?” he asks doubtfully.
Jamal, Barb and a few customer care people also get called to Luke’s team, while Liam gets a couple of the accounting guys, Trevor, Todd, and me.
When I come to stand beside him, he nudges me in the side. “Ready for battle, Jacobs?”
Who is this guy and what has he done with Liam? I blink up at him, and his dark eyes dance all over my face. “Born ready,Donovan.”
“Good.” He smiles that heartachingly gorgeous smile of his again. “Because losing is not an option.”
“Might’ve been a mistake to have the girl who’s never played before on your team, then,” I tease, keeping my voice light.
“Not a mistake,” Liam says, his eyes darker than ever. “A happy accident.”
My heart skips a beat.
“Sounds like you’ve had enough practice for both of us, anyways.” I smirk, trying to make my heart rate return to normal. “You come here a lot?”
“Luke and I must’ve played laser tag a thousand times when we were kids. Mom used to take us.” He smiles softly at the memory, then chuckles. “We were obsessed. So this is quite the blast from the past.”
I see the nostalgic flicker in his eyes. He’s so at ease—loose-limbed, smiling and full of fun competition. Almost like a trip down memory lane, back to a part of his childhood that was carefree and happy, is lifting whatever weight he usually carries with him.
My eyes linger on him as he sidles up to Luke and the two of them start smack-talking each other. Meanwhile, the boy stops checking out Vanessa long enough to count us down.
Our teams are led down separate passageways. Then, we’re in the arena.
For a moment, I’m disoriented. It’s dark, and it takes my eyes a few blinks to adjust. I hold up my gun tentatively, feeling like Katniss Everdeen after she rose on her platform into the Hunger Games arena for the first time.
And that’s when I hear squealing. I catch a flash of laser light streaming across the air, followed by a red flash on a chest nearby.
Someone’s been hit.
Time to get moving.
I use my free hand to hike up my maxi skirt and run as fast as I can. I spot a neon-painted piece of scaffolding and dive behind it. Just as I’m poking my head up, I see a light flicker and I take aim at my target.
The light flashes, and I hear the enemy team member groan.
Yes! A hit.
I could get into this.
A loud curse word, a flashing light, and nearby footsteps tell me I’m not safe here, so I dart forward, brandishing my weapon defensively as I head for what looks like a structure with a second floor platform. I’ll have a good vantage point up there.
I jog towards a ramp, but the footsteps behind me are gaining. All of a sudden, I see a flash in my peripheral.
I look down to see my chest light blinking. I’ve been hit!
I pick up my pace, laughing as I go.
This is too much fun. What was I thinking, not playing laser tag all this time?
