And there it is.
The step back.
The automatic retreat.
“Fuck no.” I smile, shaking my head. “Sutton this is your home too. You don’t have to go anywhere. You’re free to come and go as you please.”
“Right. I’ll just…” She hitches her thumb in the direction of the guest house. “Get out of your hair,” she adds quickly. “I don’t want to?—”
“You’re not interrupting anything,” I cut in gently.
She frowns. “You sure?” She’s always giving me an out. Always making sure she’s not too much.
“Yeah,” I say simply. “It’s just my brothers and some of the guys. I forgot to tell you they were coming over to play some poker. Want to come hang out? Say hi?”
She hesitates, because of course she does, so I add, “You don’t have to stay long if you don’t want to. They’re just being loud and losing money.”
A small smile tugs at her mouth. “That sounds like a personal problem.”
“It is,” I agree. “For them. They suck at poker and I just happen to be good at it.”
She puts a hand on her hip. “Oh, so you invite them over just to steal their money?”
There’s the witty charm I like so much.
“Hey, I bet you’re good at it too,” I say, watching her eyes flash with curiosity. “You read people for a living.”
She tilts her head, considering this. “I read drunk people. That’s different.”
“Same principles.” I take a sip of my beer, then offer it to her. “Want some?”
She takes it, her fingers brushing mine, sending that familiar electric current through my system. She drinks, her throat working as she swallows, and I try not to stare.
“So,” she says, handing the beer back. “Poker night with the boys, huh? And you do this on the regular?”
“Yeah.” I glance back at the house. “It’s just something we started when we moved here. It was actually our agent’s idea. She suggested we invite teammates over to play as a way to bond off the field. Now it’s a whole thing. Every other Tuesday.”
She winces. “And I’m crashing it.”
“Nah. You’re enhancing it,” I correct her. “Besides, Killian’s been cheating all night. We could use a fresh set of eyes.”
She laughs, the sound warming me from the inside out. “I’m not exactly dressed for poker night.” She gestures down at her bartending clothes, black jeans, a fitted T-shirt, her hair pulled back in a messy bun.
“Fuck that. You look perfect,” I tell her, allowing my eyes to roam her body. It’s all I can do to not picture her nearly naked except for my T-shirt like she was this morning.
When I walked away from her like a stupid ass chicken.
It’s not that I was afraid to kiss her. God knows, I’m attracted to Sutton Price. It was more that she’s been guarded since the day I met her and then basically offered herself to me after I did her a favor. Like she owed me. And that didn’t sit well.
I’ve never been the kind of guy to take advantage of a woman’s vulnerabilities like that and I never will be. That’s not the kind of man I want to be.
Sutton shifts her weight, her eyes darting to the house then back to me. “I don’t know how to play poker,” she admits.
“Even better,” I say. “You can be my good luck charm.”
She rolls her eyes, but I can see her resolve weakening. “Careful, Haynes. That was almost smooth.”
“Almost?” I place my hand over my heart in mock offense. “I’ll have you know I’m very smooth.”
