The Love Game (14 page)

“You'll stay?”

She nods once and moves her face into my neck. “I'll stay.”

“Good.” I rest my cheek on top of hers, and I'm happier than I should be.

~

“She's staying, here?” Ryan's eyes bug out of his head.

“You deaf? That's what I said, isn't it?”

“You're skipping the party for a fucking sleepover?” Aston raises his eyebrows and sits back, laughing. “Fuckin' hell. You want in her pants, bad.”

“So what if I do? That's the whole reason for this, isn't it?”

“That it is,” Ryan agrees, taking the Xbox controller off Aston.

“Then don't sound so fuckin' surprised.”

“This gonna be over tomorrow then, Braden?”

“Chances are, no,” I answer. “I'm not forcing her into anything.”

“Since when did you give a fuck?” Aston half-glares at me.

“Since Maddie isn't like the girls I usually fuck around with, all right?” I drop my controller on the floor.

“Don't tell me you're starting to fall for her.”

“Fuck off, Aston.” I shake my head. “You know as well as I do I have to be careful with Maddie. Mess her around too much and Meggy will kick my ass.”

“You can handle Megan.” Aston smirks. “Never thought I'd see the day Braden Carter was controlled by a girl.”

I lean around Ryan and punch him in the arm. “Fuck
off
, Aston! Don't be a prick.”

“I was just sayin', man.”

“Well, don't,” Ryan interrupts. “I'm already in a relationship, and it's perfectly normal to have your girl stay over,
without
sex, Aston. It's hard for your playboy mind to comprehend, but it can be done. If that's how Braden wants to play it, then that's how he's gonna play it.”

“He's getting so caught up in being the perfect boyfriend he's forgetting about the sex.”

I snort. “You've seen her, right? If you think I forget about sex around Maddie, then you're more stupid than you look.”

“Oh, so you're not falling then?” He smirks, amused.

“Not a fucking chance, man.” I smirk back. “The only thing on my mind around her is when I'm gonna do her, where I'm gonna do her, and how many times I'm gonna do her.”

I hope.

“Forget your pajamas.”

“Why would I forget my pajamas?”

“Because then you either have to sleep in your underwear, nude, or in one of his shirts,” Megan explains.

“And there's nothing sexier than a girl in a guy's shirt,” Lila adds. “I wear Ryan's all the time. It's guaranteed sex.”

“I'm not at the sex stage yet, Lila.”

“So? It's almost week three, right?” She looks up at the poster on the wall, tracing her finger along the steps. “So that means sexual seduction can commence.”

I dump my bag on my bed and sit down on Kay's opposite it. “You pack my bag then.”

“Yes!” Megan scrambles up from my pillow and attacks my dresser, pulling drawers open. “Oooh! This!” She turns, holding up a black silky underwear set I bought months ago, yet never wore. She tugs off the labels and Lila empties my bag. The underwear go in, along with my make-up, hairbrush, and clothes for tomorrow.

Lila zips it up. “Done.”

“Really? Underwear, clothes, and minimum toiletries? That's it?!” I shriek.

“Yes!” Megan turns to me with her hands on her hips. “Seduction not comfort, Maddie! You need to tease him, so that when it comes to you giving your hot ass up to him he's not gonna resist.”

“He wouldn't resist anyway,” I say dryly, the memory of us in his room flashing behind my eyes. Nope, he wouldn't resist.

“Yes, but like you said, he's not in love. Yet.” Megan smiles slyly.

“Whatever,” I huff and grab the bag. “Can we go now?”

“Yep!” Lila grabs her purse, and the three of us file out of my room. “Hey, is Kay going tonight?”

“She is…” I trail off. “Wait, I don't even know where she is.”

“If we don't know, it probably means we don't want to,” Megan summarizes.

“And that's the truest thing I've heard all day.” Lila snickers. “Do you think she's with Darla?”

I shake my head. “Since when did Kay go back for seconds?”

Lila shrugs, and we leave the main campus, crossing the road to the frat house. A few people are milling around outside, and Lila pushes straight through the girls huddled on the porch to inside. Megan grabs my hand and pulls me through. I ignore the dirty looks several of them give me.

I'm not surprised that most of the people downstairs are girls. I'm also not surprised that one is trying her best to rub up against Braden. I
am
surprised at how he's pushing her away.

Woah.

He glances up and catches my eye. I lean against the banister of the staircase and raise an eyebrow. His face breaks into a grin, and he pushes around the girl throwing herself at him, much to her disappointment, and stalks towards me. He's eating the room up as he moves, and I find myself swallowing at the look in his eye.

He stops in front of me, sliding his hand around my neck and into my hair. His lips meet mine, slowly, softly, and I'm momentarily taken aback by the tenderness there. I put a hand on his waist and move closer to him, rubbing his back slightly with my fingers.

“Hey, Angel,” he whispers against my mouth.

“Hey, Braden,” I whisper back. “Miss me that much, huh?”

His blue eyes twinkle down at me. “Maybe I did.”

I smile at him.

“Hey, Braden, are you down here tonight?” A low voice purrs behind us. Seriously? Still?

“Nope.” He turns, still holding me tightly. “I'm spending the night with my girl.”

“Maybe some other time, then?”

“Or not.” I smile sweetly at the dark-haired girl and curl into Braden's side. He chuckles quietly.

“Come on, tiger, let's get you upstairs,” he says into my ear.

“Is that an invitation?” I flirt.

He smiles against me. “Maybe later.”

I laugh quietly, and he leads me up the stairs. His room is still as clean as ever, and I'm actually surprised. I thought all guys had messy rooms.

I put my bag on the floor at the end of his bed and lie down on it, rolling to my side. “What?”

“Make yourself comfy.” He smirks.

“Oh, I am.” I grin at him sassily.

He shakes his head and comes over to me, bending over me. “Those jeans don't look too comfy. Maybe you should remove those. For maximum comfort, of course.”

“And how long have you been waiting to use that line?” I ask playfully.

“Actually, I just thought it up then.”

“Oh, he's handsome
and
quick-witted. What a catch.”

“Handsome, huh?” He quirks his eyebrow and leans down closer to me. “Tell me more.”

“Is your ego hungry from the female conveyor belt no longer running through the bedroom?”

“No. Far from it.” He touches the tip of his nose to mine. “My ego is delighted that you're still hanging around, actually.”

I close my eyes and smile, ignoring the spark of pleasure that shoots down my spine at his words. I tilt my head and brush my lips across his softly, and he strokes my cheek with his thumb.

It's hard to believe that Mr. Hump 'Em and Dump 'Em can be so tender.

“I'm gonna put the movie on,” he says. “Or it'll never get watched.”

“Fine,” I pout, remembering the game. I feel like I have multiple personalities. A double life – the Brooklyn Maddie and the California Maddie. Yet, the California Maddie has two, maybe three different Maddie's rolled into it. The friend Maddie, the game Maddie and then
... Maybe a Braden Maddie.

I wish I knew what Maddie I really was.

“What movie is it?”

Braden wrinkles his nose. “Uh, good question.”

I laugh, and he pulls a box out from under his bed. “Chances are, most of these belong to Megan, so there could be anything in here.”

I shift on the bed, turning sideways, and I hang my head over the side of the bed. Braden bats my hair away.

“Hey!” I protest.

“It tickles.” He grins, opening the box. He's right. It's full, and at least three-quarters of visible movies belong to Megan.

“Wow.” I look in the box. “What are we watching?”

He shrugs. “I don't know.”

“You told me to come here to watch a movie.” I half-smile at him. “Did you even have anything in mind then?”

“Uh, no?” he says sheepishly. “It was a spur of the moment thing, Angel.”

I sigh and start digging through the box. “Guys. If you want something done, do it yourself,” I mutter.

“Does that account for orgasms too?”

“What?” I stop, blink and look at him.

“The do it yourself thing.” He grins, and I laugh, hiding my face.

“No, they are an exception to that rule.”

“Oh, good.” He kisses the side of my mouth. “Because I'd hate to never give you another one.”

My cheeks heat up and yet again I wonder about his ability to make me blush.

“I like it when you blush.” He presses his cheek against mine.

“Why?” I smile. “Oh wait, let me guess. It reminds you of an orgasm?”

“Mind reader.” He brushes his lips along my cheek, his breath hot on my ear. “It reminds me of when
I
made you come. That's exactly why I like it.”

His hand moves to cup my other cheek, and I tilt my face into his. He moves his face, and his mouth finds mine, taking it in a kiss that damn near takes my breath away. My arm stretches, my hand rests on the side of his neck, and my lips caress his.

I nip his bottom lip and he moves to stand, helping me roll over on the bed. His arms scoop me up and reposition me in the center of the bed, his body on top of me, pressing into me. Hard.

He probes my mouth with his tongue, and I meet his kiss with the same fervor. My free hand snakes to his back and under his shirt as he sweeps his tongue through my mouth, eliciting a silent moan from me. His back muscles flex under my fingers as he shifts slightly, and my fingers dig into his skin.

One of his hands is in my hair, tangled in the curls, and the other is exploring my body. It slides down the curve of my waist to my hip, down my thigh and back up again. His thumb brushes the underside of my breast, and even fully clothed, I feel it as if it was skin on skin.

His mouth travels across my jaw and down my neck, peppering hot kisses across my skin – and suddenly, suddenly it's not enough.

I want it all. Not because of the challenge, or because it's what the girls want.

I want him because
I
want him.

And I don't know what to do about that.

“I could kiss you all day,” Braden whispers.

I smile, unable to form any words, and hold him close to me.

I'm spinning in my own mind. Want is okay. Want is a natural thing, right? Like Megan said – pheromones or something. It's human nature to be attracted to someone, especially someone like Braden. It's okay that my body and my mind aren't on the same page. Yep. Perfectly okay, because want isn't love.

“Shall we watch that movie?” Braden asks.

“Yeah,” I reply. “Whichever one.”

He nods and kisses my temple, getting off the bed, and me. Despite the temperature still being above sixty, I'm suddenly cold.

Braden puts a disk in the DVD player and pulls off his top, giving me a chance to admire his chest. Not that I haven't before, but it definitely feels much more appropriate to do so as his “girlfriend”. He's all smooth, sleek muscle. He's not overly built, but he's lean and defined in a way that would make most girls cry. It probably has made most girls cry.

And I'm back in the game, with just that thought. Operation Play the Player. Everything about him screams player, and every scream just reminds me of why I can't want him. Why I shouldn't want him. Every scream reminds me of Pearce and Abbi.

I drop my eyes as he hands me my bag. “You can get changed here, or in the bathroom across the hall.”

“Umm, I think I forgot my pajamas.” I glance up at him and smile.

“Oh.” He turns, opens a drawer and pulls out a shirt. “Here.” He grins, and I take it from him, sweeping past him.

In the bathroom, I strip and put on the black underwear Megan insisted I wear. I pull Braden's shirt over my head, feeling the tickle of the hem at the top of my thighs. A quick run of my brush through my hair and I step back into the hall – straight into Kyle.

Well, this is awkward. I haven't really spoken to him since last week when Braden ended up pinning him to the wall.

“Uh, hey, Kyle.” I say quietly.

“Maddie,” he responds, his eyes pinned to my legs.