AllFreeNovel
Share Us
But it did give him a heads-up when she and the others started to gather their things.
Arthur was the one to approach first and clear his throat. Devin turned to find him jacket in hand.
Arthur clapped him firmly on the shoulder. “Good work tonight, Devin.”
“Anytime.” Then he remembered how Arthur had somehow managed to get him to agree to find a crew for this afternoon without his even fully realizing he’d committed until it was too late. “I mean, notanytime, but…”
“I know what you mean.”
Devin nodded at Sherry and Tania, who stood behind Arthur, clearly ready to go, too. “Glad you all could come out.”
Tania grinned. “Any time you feel like footing the bill, you let us know.”
They said their goodbyes, and the three of them made for the exit.
Which left Zoe. He scrunched his brows together. She wouldn’t have just snuck out, would she? He would have noticed.
“Boo,” she said from just behind him, poking his shoulder.
He didn’t jump, but it was a near thing.
“Oh, hey.” His voice came out rough. God, she smelled good. She was doing that thing again, getting up in his space, but unlike the other day, it didn’t feel forced or unnatural. It felt like where she was supposed to be. Half hopeful and half ready to be disappointed, he asked, “You taking off, too?”
She had her flannel shirt draped over her arm and her bag slung across one shoulder, but there wasn’t any sign of her keys. She cocked a brow and glanced behind him. “Actually, I was about to call winner.”
Oh.
Oh, okay. This he remembered.
Devin and Han and some of the other guys used to play pool in Arthur’s basement, days they couldn’t mess around outside. Zoe would hang out there, too, and of course they couldn’t tell Arthur’s niece to scram. They only ever let her play if they needed an even number for a team. She was short and she scratched half her shots, and when she called winner, everybody had to pretend not to groan.
Unconsciously, he flicked his gaze over her form. His throat bobbed.
She was still short, but the confidence in her expression told him she’d learned a couple of things since she was twelve.
It was late. He should probably tell her he was just wrapping up here and ready to call it a night. If he was serious about not jeopardizing his friendship with Han, spending more time with his baby sister wasnota smart strategy.
But there was something about the challenge in her eyes that was too enticing to resist.
For old times’ sake…
Before he could second-guess himself any further, he lifted a brow to match hers. Without a word, he turned. He surveyed the table. His team was in good shape—just the eight ball left to sink, while stripes had three balls on the table. Sucking in a deep breath, he pointed toward the corner pocket.
He could feel her behind him as he lined up his shot. His skin tingled with awareness, but his vision went sharp. He pulled his cue back and nudged it forward, once, then twice.
The cue ball went spinning off across the felt, straight as an arrow. It rebounded, narrowly missing the ten before smacking straight into the eight. The eight shot toward the corner pocket, where it hovered for half a second on the edge before sinking right in.
He couldn’t have done it better if he’d tried.
His partner held out his hand, and Devin slapped their palms together. He nodded at the guys he’d beaten. They shook their heads, but they took it just fine. He grabbed his beer and swallowed the last of it down.
Then he turned. He met Zoe’s gaze again, and the heat in it went straight to the center of him.
“You want winner?” he asked, throat raw.
Her head bobbed up and down, her pretty pink mouth parted just the tiniest bit.
“Well.” He swallowed deeply. This was a monumentally stupid idea. But he was in it now. “What’re you waiting for?”
