“I am. Just from afar.” I gestured to my empty area of the court, and he huffed a laugh.
“Hey, love birds!” Seb called out from across the court, watching us with the others. I felt my face go red. “You’re adorable, but can you please get your head in the game?”
Dean rolled his eyes and pulled his cap back on as he turned to me.
“You heard him,” I said seriously as I poked his solid chest. “Get your head in the game, Moretto.”
One of his eyebrows quirked up at the mention of his surname and I realized he didn’t know I knew it. So, I grinned quickly — awkwardly.
“Your dad ran a background check, didn’t he?”
“Yep.”
Dean lowered his voice as he stepped closer. “I like how it sounds comin’ from you.”
“Moretto?”
“Uh-huh.”
I gulped and my eyes went to the others waiting at the center of the court. “They’re watching.”
“Let ‘em.” He smirked and ducked his head to lightly kiss the side of my throat, the side he seemed to favor most. As he pulled back, he placed his cap on my head. Adjusting it so it fit before he backed up.
He traced his thumb along his bottom lip, dragging his gaze over me in a way that made me want to squirm. Or run at him to kiss him again. And then he turned around, striding back to the group as if he hadn’t just undressed me with his eyes.
I suddenly found myself feeling...competitive.
I chewed my lip and seized the moment, walking briskly to fall into step beside him. Smiling a little to myself when he cast his eyes down to me, I toyed with the hem of my loose T-shirt and tied it into a knot at my belly button.
He huffed, either from amusement or something else as he rubbed at the back of his neck. The fact his eyes dropped to my waist — the bare skin there — hadn’t gone unnoticed either. He was squirming too.
Two could play that game.
As I joined the group, Seb happily nudged my arm for deciding to get involved. Sergio rolled his eyes, snatched the ball from Seb, and started the game, racing in the other direction.
Dean stepped up beside me and casually peeled his shirt off.
God dammit.
His arms and pecs flexed as he stuffed his shirt into the back pocket of his shorts.
“It’s gonna get hot, Lily,” he said, raising a brow at me. “You sure you wanna do this?”
I rolled my eyes. “Obviously—”
“Heads up!” Seb bellowed.
I immediately ducked behind Dean as the ball flew in our direction. He caught it right away but didn't hold it long, not with the others sprinting towards us, and lobbed it across the court.
When Dean straightened, he raised his elbows slightly to look beneath his arms at me. I was still behind him, holding onto his bare waist. It was the first time I had touched him anywhere beneath his clothes. His body was smooth, warm, and toned beneath my hands, which caused my face to heat.
I tapped his hip awkwardly and pulled up quickly as I stepped away. “Good catch.”
I stayed mostly outside of the game with no idea of how the scoring worked, building up a sweat just keeping up with the fast pace. Whenever the ball was tossed or bounced in my direction, I passed it along quickly. Usually to Dean as he was the closest, making himself into a makeshift barrier to prevent me from getting bowled over in the fray.
Of course, the only time I did fall over was all my own doing.
When the group shifted suddenly, I moved back to give them space. Except my foot caught on the concrete and I stumbled backward, landing on my ass on the side of the court before I lay down completely, laughing at myself as I rested my hands on my stomach in exasperation.
