Crushed (Rushed #2) (13 page)

I stretched my hand. "Morgan."

"Delighted," Zave said. "This party needs more hot chicks." He gave me one of those undressing looks. "Gotta love a woman in uniform."

"Hey!" Dak put his arm around me. "My partner's on duty."

His possessiveness was cute.

"Logan, my other roommate, is around here somewhere." He looked around. "There he is. In the corner. You'll have to forgive him. He's not himself tonight." Collin rolled his eyes. "Girl problems." He shrugged and slapped Dak on the back again. "Help yourself. And liven this party up!"

Dak yelled in my ear over the music, "Thirsty?"

"Terribly. But not for mixers."

He laughed. "Let's get to work." He pulled me into the middle of a group of dancing people. He watched the crowd like he was waiting for an opening. His face lit up. "Our first violators!"
 

He stepped between a dancing couple and blew his whistle. "No personal foul! Ten-yard penalty for dancing too far apart." He stepped out from between them and shoved them together. "Dude, you have a hot—" He looked at her costume and frowned. "What are you supposed to be? A fairy?"

The girl wiggled her shoulders and flapped the wings she wore. "A butterfly!"

He put a hand on the guy's shoulder. "You have a hot butterfly here. Rush her before she flits off and finds another zombie to land on. Do some man-to-woman offensive. Net this girl. Got it?"

The guy nodded. The girl laughed.
 

Dakota slapped the guy on the back and grabbed me. "Let's show them how it's done." He stepped close to me and grabbed my hips as I shook them and shimmied to the music with my arms over my head, laughing.

"Twerk it, baby, twerk it!" Dak's eyes shone.

I caught him staring at my bouncing breasts and felt a tingle all the way to my toes. "My eyes are up here."

"Want to call a foul on me? Take me to the penalty box?"

"Shut up and dance."

I loved dancing. But I was surprised how thrilling dancing with Dakota could be. He was smooth. And sexy to watch and touch. He could be tender. And funny. And totally brutal. He tantalized me with a touch here. A touch there. The whisper and heat of his breath against my neck. A whiff of his cologne. A brush of my breasts against his chest.

Just when I thought I couldn't take it anymore, one more song and I'd have to make out with him in the corner, he leaned in and whispered in my ear, "Enough dancing. Come on. Let's play ref again. Look! Over there. Party poopers. Teetotalers. We can't let that stand."
 

He pulled me toward a coven of slutty witches. "Ladies, you aren't drinking. Am I going to have to put you in the penalty box?"

One of the witches smiled at him through her green makeup. "I'd rather you make me a drink. Before I have to make you a toad. Be a shame to turn a hot guy into something repulsive."

"Overpowered and outranked." Dak grinned at her. "What can I get you ladies?"

I lost him as he played bartender. And let the girls flirt with him. And it looked like he was enjoying the attention. Too much. Green didn't go with my outfit. I wandered off to get something non-alcoholic to drink. I was parched. The guy called Logan sat in the corner next to a table with a bunch of two-liter bottles of pop. He was hot in a helmet and Viking skirt, no shirt, watching the partying. Too hot to be sitting alone. If Dakota was going to ditch me…hey, straight friend, right?

He might have scared the other girls away with his Heathcliff brooding. But not me. I shook my whistle at Logan. "Timeout's over, player. Off the bench. Back in the game with you."

He didn't move, just grinned.

"Are you going to make me blow this?" I shook my whistle and glanced at the heart of the party in the living room and back at him. Dakota was still entertaining the girls with his sparkling wit and referee antics. "Or are you going to get out there and party?"

Logan took a gulp of beer. "I'm an introvert. This is partying."
 

It was hard to hear and talk over the music. I had to yell. "Introvert?" I slid my gaze up him. "Really, Viking? Must be hell during marauding."

"I'm not a Viking. I'm…" He named a character from a video game. He shook his head and smiled sadly.

"Then get out there and kick some butt."

"And leave my post as guardian of the mixers?"
 

Figured. I couldn't tease him out of his mood and into full party participation. He really was heartbroken and unavailable. And adorable. Too bad. Too soon. Timing was everything.

Dakota blew his whistle. "Strike three!" He handed a guy a shot. "Drink up!" He moved to another guy who was hitting on a sexy nurse. "Ball four." He shoved them together. "Runner, take your base. See if you can get to second at least, dude."

Logan nodded toward Dakota. "What's up with you and your fellow ref?"
 

I shrugged. "We're friends."

"Looks like more to me. Why are you letting the other girls hit on him?"

I shrugged. "Long story." I didn't feel like explaining.

"Ah." He sounded sympathetic, like he understood my reluctance. He took another drink of beer. "You look thirsty. Can I get you something?"

"Wow! I've made it past the guardian." I winked at him. "Diet cola if you have it."

"You got it." He grabbed a two-liter bottle on the table next to him and a plastic cup and poured me one. "Nothing stronger? I can add a shot of rum. No extra charge."

I sighed and made a partial confession. "I don't drink. For now."

"MIC?" He grinned. "Don't answer. I get it. Been there myself. When's your twenty-first?"

"January." I liked him, this Logan.

The shrill call of a whistle silenced the party. Dakota jumped up on a chair and looked right at Logan and me, his eyes snapping. "I call a foul on this whole party. Everyone get a drink, or I'm going to have to eject you all from the game!"

The crowd erupted in laughter. Dak jumped off the chair and started toward me.
 

I needed a second to get my jealousy and anger at him under control. "It's been a pleasure, Logan. Anyone gets out of hand over here and gives you grief about the mixer situation, call me. I have a whistle." I raised my glass to him and headed for the bathroom before Dakota could catch me.

Fortunately, it was empty. Inside, I locked the door and took several deep breaths to ward off a wave of nausea. Crap, I hadn't even drunk anything. When had I gotten so anxious over a guy?

When I came out of the bathroom, Dakota was nowhere in sight. If he'd left me alone here, I was going to kill him. Hey, he'd tried to kill me. It was my turn for a murder attempt.

In the corner, a girl was doing a keg stand, with two buff zombies holding her by the legs. She slapped the keg. Someone pulled the beer hose out of her mouth. The two zombies helped her off. And spotted me.
 

One of them pointed at me. "Human! Must catch and infect her with beer." He lumbered toward me, doing a zombie walk.

For zombies, they were surprisingly fast. I couldn't outrun them. It didn't help that my path was blocked by a couple of football players.

One of them grabbed me. "Hey, ref. We need an official ruling on the keg. Is it regulation?"

The zombies grabbed me and hauled me off.

"No!" I laughed and shook my head, protesting too feebly. Loving the spotlight. "No, I can't." A beer sounded so good.

They overpowered me and pulled me to the keg. "Up you go!" One of the football players grabbed me and threw me over his shoulder.
 

Before I could protest or escape, two zombies were holding me upside down by my ankles over the keg. Someone else was grabbing the spout and the line. I wanted a drink in the worst way. I grabbed the top of the keg and opened my mouth for the spout as the blood rushed to my head.

"Roughing the ref! Automatic ejection." Dak elbowed his way through the crowd, fire in his eyes. He was ready to fight. He grabbed me by the waist. The guys holding me let go as Dakota flipped me over his shoulder.

"Hey, man, we were just helping a lady to a drink."

"Shut the fuck up." Dakota held me tight.

I wrapped my legs around his chest and straightened up, with my arms around his neck. He had the most gorgeous eyes. Flashing with anger, they were as intoxicating as a rush of beer.

I was seated high enough on him that I looked down at him, breathing hard. Wanting him. Happy.
 

I didn't know if he saw it. In that moment, he was my hero.

Stone-cold sober, I leaned down, pressed my lips to his, opened my mouth to him, and kissed him with all the heady passion I was feeling.

Chapter Nine

Dakota

Morgan's perfume filled my senses. Her naked butt cheeks felt round and firm in my hands. My pulse raced. My head spun. I lost my senses and kissed her back. Hard. If she was going to play this game with me, I was going to engage. Her hair tumbled around my face. The tops of her breasts teased my chin. Damn, I wanted to touch and kiss them.

She kept me otherwise engaged, kissing me back, tickling the top of my mouth with her tongue until I shivered with pleasure. Nibbling my lips playfully.

"Referee PDA. Break it up! Break it up!" Collin came out of nowhere, suddenly beside us. "Get a room." He slapped me on the back. "You can use mine." He was laughing.

People around us clapped.

I was breathing hard as we broke the kiss. Morgan slid down me like I was a stripper pole, until her feet touched the ground. Her lips were puffy from being kissed and her eyes round and wide. She looked sexy as hell.

There was a moment where I was tempted to take Collin up on his offer. Then I remembered Jordan. I shook my head and grabbed Morgan's hand. "Thank you for the offer, dude. We'll have to pass. Other parties to referee." I winked at him. "I have my own room."

I pulled Morgan through the crowd to the exit and grabbed my coat out of a pile by the door. At the door, I paused and blew my whistle. "Party on!"
 

I grabbed her hand and pulled her down the stairs and outside the building to the parking lot. It was freezing outside. She immediately began to shiver.
 

I wrapped her in my coat and took her by the arms. "A keg stand in front of all those people? What the shit were you thinking in there?"

"The zombies got me. They dragged me to it. What could I do?" She smiled and made her flirty, pouty face at me.

I swore beneath my breath. She could twist me around her little finger. Make me forget Jordan. Make me do something stupid. "I can't leave you alone for a minute. I'm taking you home before we both do something we'll regret."

She stared at me. "What will we regret, Dakota?"

"Stop it, Morgan." I propelled her through the parking lot. "You know damn well what. I thought you weren't into hookups anymore."

She grinned back at me. "I'm not."

Fickle woman. Cock tease. I could have called her a lot of things. "You're right, Morgan. I'm not boyfriend material."

I sure as hell wasn't being a good one to Jordan.

Morgan

Late. Late. Late. Late! For a very important date—with my period. Where was Aunt Flow? And why wasn't she visiting?

On Sunday morning, I felt hung over and desperately tired. My breasts were sensitive to the touch. The houseboys cooked breakfast on Sunday mornings. Seth made scrambled eggs. His weren't as good as Zach's. But he was a pretty good breakfast cook. I gagged at the site of the eggs when he plated me up a bunch.

"Not you too, Morgan!" Seth shook his head. "Why do I even bother cooking the morning after Halloween?" He handed me a piece of dry toast. He leaned in and whispered, "I thought you were on probation and not supposed to be drinking."

I wasn't in the mood to explain, so I shrugged and let him think what he wanted. For not having had a single drop of anything stronger than pop, I was doing a great imitation of a hangover and keeping up my party rep without any effort.