Chapter 15

fifteen

Olympia

“Do you understand the rules?” Tav asks, and my eyes slide to the pool table again, then to Nevaeh and Kane.

“Is it fair I’m playing my first game against a pro?”

“Self-proclaimed,” Kane teases Nevaeh, earning a gentle swat to the chest.

I roll my eyes, but I’m smiling as I take another sip of my drink—my third and almost empty drink. “Anyway, yes.” I give my attention back to Tav. He’s really so handsome. It’s not fair how handsome he is. “I think I’ve got the rules.”

“Newbie gets the first break.” Kane gives me a wink that makes me blush just as Nevaeh giggles. When my gaze shifts to Tav, it stutters, because I’m pretty sure I caught the tail end of a glare, but I can’t be certain, because Cash is trading my almost empty drink for a fresh one.

“Are you trying to kill me?” I ask sincerely. I only slur a little.

He grins. “Not you, Pippa.”

They’ve all taken to calling me Pippa. Well, everyone but Tav. Not once has he called me my preferred name. Nope, if it’s not Olympia—which he seems to reserve for the frequent moments he’s pissed with me, it’s Princess.

If he called me Pippa, maybe my heart wouldn’t snag on so many beats.

Fixing my attention on Cash, I frown. “Who are you trying to kill, then?”

Cash leans in close, his rumble filled with humor. “Break, Pip.”

“Pip.” My hand lands drunkenly over my heart. I just know my wide smile is filled to the brim with goofy emotion. “No one has ever called me Pip. I like it.”

Tav makes a noise beside me, his hand hooking me around the waist as he tugs me away from Cash, commanding, “Focus, Olympia.” He’s pissed. He must be, if he’s calling me Olympia. “Break.”

“Fine, fine,” I huff, wiggling from his grasp as I grab the stick, lean over the table, and take my shot. I miss by what feels like a mile, and frown as Kane hoots a laugh. “How’d I miss? I didn’t hit even one of those balls.”

“Probably has something to do with Cash’s mixing,” Ian mutters from where he sits on a bar stool, his legs spread around Candace, one arm slung across her chest as she leans her back into him.

I huff at the still perfect triangle of balls. “This is impossible.”

“Tav’s just a shitty teacher,” Kane taunts. “Ilya’s in town. Bet if I called him, he’d come, bend you over the table and really show you how it’s done.”

The sound Tav makes is something I expect from a jungle cat. My head swivels as my brows slam down. His big hand comes out to snag hold of me as I attempt a booze-delayed move to escape him.

“Anyone’s bending her over the table, it’s me.”

Cash claps a hand on Ian’s shoulder. “You owe me fifty bucks.”

Ian shifts, a hand digging into his pocket for the bill he slaps against Cash’s vibrating-with-laughter, chest.

I think Tav’s voice pitches even lower, the tenor somehow seeping danger. “You’re betting, now?”

Kane’s blue eyes glimmer with testy humor as he slides his phone into his pocket. “Ilya says he’s got something to deal with, then he’s on his way.”

Tension erupts in the room. Everyone seems to know what’s happening, apart from me.

Feeling nervous and a lot flushed, I try again to cool myself with a big gulp of whatever Cash has mixed into the lemonade. When that doesn’t work, I shrug out of my cardigan with a, “Whew, anyone else hot?”

Wrenlee looks like she might choke on her laughter. “It’s hot in here, hon.”

“It really is.” I’m waving a hand at my face now. “Who is Ilya?”

“No one,” Tav grits a warning as Kane says, “My brother.” Kane nods to the table. “Beginner gets another shot at break.”

I scowl at the balls but pull in a deep breath as I ready myself for another round of humiliation. What I’m not prepared for, however, is the way Tav’s body bends over mine, his arms coming to rest over mine as he takes control of the stick. In this position, I’ve never been more aware of our size difference. Tav is so much bigger than me, his body able to cover mine completely as he lines up, arms cradling my body, his hand pulling back on mine, moving the stick, stroking. And then he shoots. The white ball breaks the triangle of colored balls, sinking a solid.

“Nice shot,” Nevaeh compliments, but I don’t reply. I’m too distracted as Tav dips his head, the blade of his nose dragging against the bare skin of my shoulder.

A shudder rolls through my body that I can’t hide, not from any of them. It’s no secret that this man affects me. I’ll never be able to hide that. I won’t even try. It would be foolish to try. Besides, it will help me in my quest to win this bet I have with him.

Still, I’m entirely affected.

When his deep voice rumbles a dark warning in my ear, “Stay away from Ilya.” Goosebumps ripple across my flesh.

And then he’s gone, the warmth of him gone, too.

I had been hot. So hot only seconds ago. Now, I just want the heat of him back.

I want to question him about Ilya, but I don’t. Somehow, instinctively, I know better. Besides, I think Kane is playing with Tav. Trying to push him.

I wonder, does he have his own bet running? Is there another fifty floating around, waiting to be won?

Tav moves around the table, taking my stick with him. His dark eyes land on me, and he commands, “Come here, Princess.”

“Why?”

“It’s your shot,” Nevaeh reminds me, and I palm my forehead.

I hurry to Tav’s side, reaching for the stick as he shakes his head, holding it just out of reach. With that big hand on my hip, he lines me up, presses his hand into the space between my shoulder blades, and leans me over the table. It feels incredibly sexual, and my face flushes a brilliant red as his friends watch, studying us. He blankets my body with his a second time in under five minutes, positions the stick in my hands, lines up, and connects with the white ball.

He sinks another solid, but I’m too overwhelmed by him to absorb the techniques he’s attempting to teach me.

When he stands, he says simply, “Mine.”

Pushing my hair over my shoulder, I frown at him. “You mean it’s your shot next?”

His eyes connect with mine, and he just repeats, softer this time, “Mine.”

“Oh boy.” Wrenlee giggles. “This is like stepping back in time.” She turns to face Cash. “Remind you of someone?”

Cash only grunts, but there’s something shimmering in his dark eyes. “Hey, Pip, you coming out tomorrow night?”

I break the hold Tav has on my gaze, shaking my head. “What’s tomorrow night?”

“You haven’t told your woman we’ve got a show?”

Tav’s eyes are tense. “I’ll be on stage.”

“So?” Candace pushes. “We’re gonna be there.”

Nibbling my lip, I look back to Tav. “I’d like to see you play.”

His eyes search my face. “Yeah?”

“Of course.”

“Then you’ll come.”

I can’t help the smile that splits my face. It’s not at all plastic.

And I think it startles Tav when I leap into his arms, throwing my own around his shoulders as I say against his neck, “I’ve wanted to watch you on stage for years.”

“Yeah?” His arms close around my waist.

I pull back to look at him. “My favorite song is Devil in the Dark. I used to listen to it every night while falling asleep.”

His entire body turns stiff. “Why?”

“It’s the only song you sing.” I lay my head on his shoulder, sighing heavily as I give him my weight. “Is the room supposed to spin like this?”