“Congrats, babe. That was a great game. Lo siento, Drea. I’m sorry we lost. I’ll practice so I can get better for next time. Congratulations to you too, Blair.”
“Oh, don’t even worry about it. Vera. It was a good game.” Drea smiled and brought Blair in for a sweet kiss.
It was a really good game. I was surprised at how much fun I had. Maybe it was because Blair and I won, but we did have some good competition.
I froze when I felt Vera’s strong arm grip me by the waist and pull me in for a hug from the side. I instinctively braced myself with one arm on her back and the other on her chest.
I looked at her, wondering what she was going to do next. She felt so warm and comforting, I found myself leaning into her touch.
I expected her to place a kiss on my cheek, or try to take a risk and kiss me on the lips, but what I didn’t expect was myself to lean in and touch my lips to reach the corner of her mouth. It was brief, only lasting less than a second, but the spark that it ignited lingered.
I told myself it was the high from winning the game. Spending time with my friends, I just wasn’t thinking clearly.
When I forced myself to tear apart from Vera, she was looking at me, licking her lips.No, no, no. Do not look at her lips, Cara! That is the absolute worst place you could look. Well, not the worst place—Stop thinking about her body!
“We should play again soon. Vera, what do you think?” Blair’s voice broke through my thoughts.
“That sounds good,” she said without taking her eyes off me.
After a few more agonizing seconds of eye contact, she finally turned her attention to Drea and cleared her throat. “Thank you guys again for letting me tag along.”
“Of course, love. Anytime. I’m really glad we could all get together.”
Blair nodded her head in agreement. “Definitely. It was nice to spend time with you two.”
I frowned when I noticed she kept looking between us, like she was looking for any little thing that told her it was all a lie.
I decided to ignore it and we said our goodbyes. I took Vera’s hand and let her lead me back out to my car. She held the door open for me again and I couldn’t help but smile. I definitely could’ve gotten used to the chivalry part of our plan.
Chapter Thirteen
VERA
Cara only lived twenty minutes from me, but it still felt like the longest car ride of my life. I didn’t know why I was so nervous. Maybe because it was my first time seeing her in a private setting. Besides my hotel room, we’ve only spent time around other people. I wasn’t sure what to expect, and I wasn’t sure how I was going to keep my hands to myself.
I really wanted to impress her, so I’d spoken with her assistant to find out her favorite dessert and I’d spent all night trying to perfect the recipe. I hoped she liked it. I made sure to do a taste test so I didn’t kill her.
I felt like our game yesterday was a win for me on all accounts. Her friends got to see us interact together and I felt like we all had a great time. Her almost kiss made it look believable, but it shocked the hell out of me.
If I was a betting woman I would’ve bet against her initiating anything and would’ve gone home broke. I hadn’t expected it at all, and it took every ounce of strength I had not to grab her and finish what she’d started.
I knew it was just for show, but I couldn’t help but hope, if only a little, that it wasn’t completely. If I was delusional, I would’ve thought that the way she looked at me meant something. That the way she lingered wasn’t only for her friends, but for her, too. But I wasn’t delusional, and itwasjust for show.
Thankfully, I arrived at Cara’s before my thoughts could keep going down that dangerous path. If I let myself think about things that weren’t there, it wouldn’t end well.
I couldn’t think of a more fitting house for Cara than what I’d driven up to. It was a single-story modern house with a brown exterior that meshed well together with the surrounding trees and shrubbery.
There were a few stairs leading up to the front door, and I admired how unique they were. They were at least ten feet long, and I’d never seen anything like it.
Okay, so maybe I had it bad if I was falling in love with her front steps. I was a simple woman. It didn’t take much to get me.
I rang the doorbell and a few seconds later, Cara came into view. I blew out a breath. I’d never get used to how beautiful she was. Even in loungewear, she was just so perfect I couldn’t stand it.
“Vera, hi. Thank you for coming. What’s this?” she asked, pointing to the glass container I held in my hands.
I was raised never to go to someone’s house without bringing something. I smiled as I watched her stare at the dessert with hopeful eyes. “Just something small I whipped up. Cranberry white chocolate chip cookies.” I shrugged as if it were no big deal. The fact that I’d stayed up until almost one in the morning to make those cookies perfect was irrelevant.
It looked as if her eyes were glossing over, but that didn’t sound right. No one cried over a simple gesture like making cookies.
