Player of Life (Perception Book 4)

by Shandi Boyes

  “ID” he requests sternly to Penny’s panicked face. Her eyes open wide in shock before she starts digging into her little black purse. When she hands over what I assume is her driver’s licence, her concerned eyes stare directly at me.

  “Jenni Murphy” Travis reads off the licence. Fuck, I was close.

  “Yep, that is what I said” I respond confidently while trying my hardest not to smile.

  “You said Penny” Travis responds loudly.

  “Nah, I said Jenni. You just can’t hear properly with all the loud music that gets blared out of the speakers here every night. You must be starting to go deaf. I said Jenni” I confirm while trying my hardest not to laugh. It would have been a lot easier to hold in my laughter if Jenni wasn’t smirking at me right now.

  “Are you with him?” Travis asks while staring down at the blonde now known as Jenni. She looks up at him and starts slowly nodding her head.

  Travis’s gaze flicks between Jenni and I for a few seconds before he eventually loosens his death grip on her arm. As soon as he releases her, Jenni runs towards me with a cheeky smile plastered on her face. I quickly place my arm around her shoulders and we both dart for the exit with her friend following closely behind.

  “Oh my god Jenni, don’t you ever do that to me again!” her friend requests loudly the instant we exit the clubs large tinted doors.

  “I’m sorry Nicole” Jenni giggles loudly as she pulls away from my embrace and starts quickly walking towards the carpark located at the back of the club.

  “You shouldn’t be laughing, you nearly had a meeting with a mob boss” Nicole exclaims panicked.

  This causes my eyes to open wide in shock as I look over at Nicole. Isaac may be a little sneaky with his business dealings, but calling him a mob boss is a bit of an overreaction. Jenni rolls her eyes at Nicole’s statement before they continue to walk towards a dark blue BMW.

  “You should be more worried than me, considering you were illegally in his club” Jenni replies while giggling.

  This causes me once again to open my eyes wide in shock, Isaac would shit bricks if he knew he had underage girls in his club. I continue to quietly watch the two friends talk to each other, completely unaware that I am still here.

  “Pffttt three months isn’t that far away” Nicole replies while giggling.

  “Did you see the guy Emily was dancing with. Oh my, he was smoking hot” Jenni informs excitedly. Nicole looks at Jenni and starts nodding her head in agreement.

  Just as they were both about to jump into the car, I let out a loud cough signally that I was still in the vicinity. Both Jenni and Nicole’s eyes quickly dart towards me, before they both look back at each other and start laughing. I am so glad that they find me amusing.

  “Give me a minute” Jenni requests to her friend Nicole. Nicole nods her head before she hops into the passenger seat of the car and Jenni hesitantly walks over towards me.

  “I’m sorry about the beer” she apologizes, half sympathetic and half giggling.

  “And the clothes” she continues, her giggles die down when she notices my ruined shirt and jeans.

  “It’s okay, I’ve heard beer is fantastic for split ends” I reply, causing her to smile. She has a fucking stunning smile and I have noticed anytime she gets a little flustered, her neck gets a pink hue.

  “You can make it up to me by going on a date with me” I inform while staring into her blue eyes. She holds my gaze for several seconds before she softly shakes her head.

  “I don’t date players” she replies quietly, before she spins around and starts walking back to her car.

  “Come on, I just saved you from the huge beast inside” I plead while chuckling, making her halt walking.

  “What about just friends then? We could go to the movies or grab a bite to eat?” I continue. I will say anything if it gives me a chance to see if she gets a pink hue anywhere else on her body other than her neck when she gets all flustered.

  She slowly turns back around to face me. Her eyes roam over my face and then slowly down my body, triggering me to stand a little taller. I am definitely not as built as the rest of my band mates, but I wouldn’t be classed as scrawny either.

  “I don’t sleep with friends” she advises while cocking one of her eyebrows like she is able to read my thoughts. I smile while I nod my head, we will soon see how long her defensive wall stays up.

  “You can pick me up next Friday” she continues as she walks back over towards me and holds out her hand, palm side up.

  “I can’t do Friday” I reply, forcing her to drop her hand and narrow her eyes.

  “I’m in a band that performs every Friday night, I can do Saturday” I quickly continue. She smiles before she lifts her hand back up.

  “Phone” she advises to my shocked expression.

  I quickly grab my phone out of pocket, unlock the screen and hand it to her. I watch as she goes into my contacts and stores her number into my phone. I’m so fucking grateful when she doesn’t scroll through the names displayed, since nearly every number in my phone belongs to a girl.

  “Should I put my last name or where you met me so you know which Jenni I am?” she questions sarcastically. Okay, maybe she did notice that nearly every name in my phone belongs to a girl.

  “I’ll know which one is yours” I reply confidently.

  I fully plan on adding a little note the instant she leaves. Jenni the firecracker with the knock out smile will be her new display name.

  Chapter 6

  Jenni

  Is there such thing as a taste for players? If so, I must have it. Why do I always find myself attracted to guys who happily admit that they are players? You think I would have learnt my lesson with Christian and now I’m lying awake in my bed trying to work out how I ever agreed to go out with guy who still remains nameless. It was only after I left him standing in the carpark at the ‘Dungeon’ did it dawn on me that I never asked him his name. I don’t even have any of his contact details. I guess it is lucky that we are only going out on a date as ‘friends’.

  I lean over and grab my phone off the bedside table to send another message to Emily. When I arrived at Nicole’s house last night, neither Nicole or I had received a message from Emily to say she had arrived home safely. Nicole ended up calling her and we found out that she was with Noah, the guy she has been lusting over the past few months. I knew there was something more going on with her last night. I don’t know why she felt the need to be sneaky though. She could have just admitted that she was leaving the club with Noah and Nicole and I would have been fine with it. She is nearly an adult and is capable of making her own decisions.

  Not long later my phone dings with a message. When I peer down at the screen I notice it is from Emily.

  Going on a date with Noah. I will call you and give you all the details tonight. My phone is nearly flat. Love you xx

  Love you too, have fun xx

  I’m glad Emily seems to be having a little fun. She hasn’t dated anyone since her disastrous date with Zander nearly three years ago. Could you imagine giving your virginity to a guy and then having it shared around the whole school. Emily was called every name you could possibly think of in those three months we had left at school before summer break. One time I even found her name and cell phone number scribbled on a door in the girl’s bathrooms. As much as Christian was a player, he at least never treated me the way Zander treated Emily.

  When my alarm on my phone starts sounding, I throw off my large comforter and start reluctantly walking down the stairs.

  “Good morning Princess” my dad greets kindly as soon as I hop off the bottom step. My dad is the number one man in my life. He reminds all the kids in my neighbourhood of Father Christmas. His hair is all silver in color and his has a silver beard that fully covers his jawline. He doesn’t like to admit it, but his rounded belly also adds to his Santa appeal.

  “Good morning daddy” I reply as I walk over and give him a quick hug. After I finis
h greeting my dad I notice my mom in the corner of my eye walking towards the kitchen.

  My mom would be more described as having a barbie doll look. She has long blonde that sits half way down her back. She is four inches taller than my five-foot-four-inch height. She is also eighteen years younger than my dad. It doesn’t take a genius to work out that I was born only six months after they were married and only eleven months after they first met. I was the very definition of a shot gun wedding baby. My dad has often told me the story of how they met. He was a partner at the law firm my mom did her internship at. My dad spent eighteen years of his life working his way up the ladder at a very lucrative law agency in Hopeton. He said my mom was a shy twenty-year-old clerk typist that made his heart flutter every time she walked into the room. He asked her out several times over the period of three months and every single time she said no. One late Friday afternoon, after my dad had just won a very impressive case, he decided to try his luck one more time and that time she said yes.

  Once their courtship started, my dad helped my mom to apply to university and even being pregnant and raising a small child, my mom graduated from university with a distinction and was accepted to attend Law School. She is now a partner at the same law firm that my dad gained his partnership at over nineteen years ago. They have what I would describe as an odd relationship. They communicate every day but when you watch them interact, it is more like watching long-time friends, more than husband and wife.

  “Good morning Jenni” my mom greets as she walks into a large eat in kitchen.

  My parents definitely aren’t short of money. Our large house sits on over an acre of manicured lawns in the middle of town. I think we have seven bedrooms, actually it may be eight. I can’t fully remember as I have never needed to use any other room than my own. I’m an only child so I find it a little strange that we live in such a large house. Even when Emily and Nicole sleep over, we all sleep in my room.

  “Good morning mom” I reply before making my way around the kitchen bench to serve myself a cup of coffee.

  “Let Maria get that for you” my mom instructs firmly. Maria is our housemaid. She is the sweetest little old lady you will ever met. She used to be my dad’s nanny when he was a child and became his housemaid before my mom was even in the picture. I have always seen Maria as more of a grandmother figure, where my mom still sees her as a maid.

  “It’s fine mom, it’s just a cup of coffee” I reply sarcastically, while rolling my eyes, causing my dad to snicker at my response.

  When my mom notices my dad snickering, she narrows her eyes at him. He quickly lifts up the newspaper and pretends to read it. My mom has requested for dad to get a new housemaid a few times the past couple of years. Maria is starting to get a little old, but neither dad nor I want anyone else. If Maria is still happy to live with us, Dad and I are more than happy to pretend she is still doing all of the tasks she is required to do as part of her employment. Normally when mom leaves for the day, dad and I do the washing and vacuuming and pretend that Maria has completed them. My dad only works part time now that he is hitting retirement age. He prefers to spend more of his time on the golf course than in the court room.

  Once I have finished having some breakfast with my dad, I threw a load of washing in the washing machine and make my way back to my room. Once I enter, my phone indicates that I have received a text message.

  Is it Saturday yet?

  This makes me smile brightly and my palms to slightly sweat. I sit down on my large king bed to reply to the mysterious stranger.

  Not yet.

  Bummer….do you have any plans for today?

  Normally on Sundays Emily and I just hang out together, but she is a little preoccupied today.

  No.

  Do you want to go out today?

  I stare at my phone while I try and work out what I want to do. I really don’t want another player in my life but I hardly slept last night as I kept daydreaming about his captivating blue eyes and ruggedly handsome features.

  As friends?

  If that is what it will take for you to go out with me, then yes friends!

  I can’t help the smile that forms on my face.

  Okay.

  What’s your address?

  My eyes peer around at my ridiculously oversized room. I don’t normally invite strangers to my house. It isn’t that I’m a snob, I just hate the thought of them treating me different as they assume I am rich. I am not rich, my parents are.

  Can I meet you in town?

  Alright. Where?

  I rack my brain trying to think of somewhere I could meet the mysterious blonde. Somewhere that would be classed as a ‘friendly’ location, but my mind is completely blank.

  I’ll let you pick….

  Bronte’s peak.

  So much for being friends…….

  Oh, so you have been there before. It’s daylight, I am sure your virtue won’t be tarnished during the middle of the day.

  This makes me giggle loudly. Every teenager knows Bronte’s peak, unless you’re living under a very large rock.

  Alright, I will meet you there. But I am parking my car in front of the diner.

  Ha, alright I’ll meet you at the diner in an hour?

  My eyes quickly dart to my clock on my bedside table. I think I should be able to get ready and to Ravenshoe in an hour, just!

  Okay, see you in an hour.

  I look forward to it.

  I spent the next thirty minutes getting ready before I rush quickly down stairs.

  “Bye dad, I’ll be back this afternoon” I advise as I quickly rush to my little blue BMW my dad had gifted to me on my eighteen birthday two months ago.

  I end up arriving at the café located in Bronte’s peak around ten minutes later than we had organised. The mysterious blonde is leaning against the glass window of the café with his knee bent up. As I pull into a spare carpark, I allow my eyes to roam over his body. He has a nice runners build, not overly muscular but not skinny either. He is wearing dark blue jeans, van shoes, a tight fitted shirt and a black jacket. When he notices my car pull into the carpark he smiles, before pushing off the wall to walk over towards me. He appears so confident and slightly cocky in his own skin as he struts over to my car.

  “Sorry I’m late” I apologize as he opens my car door. Because he is wearing aviator sunglasses, I miss out on seeing his captivating blue eyes.

  “That’s okay, I only got here myself” he replies as his head slightly narrows as if he is roaming his eyes over my body, forcing me to stand a little straighter.

  He hadn’t given me much notice, so I quickly threw on the first clothes I stumbled upon in my wardrobe. Now I am worried I should have put in more of an effort.

  “Are you hungry?” he questions as he nods his head towards the café.

  I am not really hungry as I had only just finished eating breakfast an hour ago. But the awkwardness of first dates was already hitting full force that I would happily eat again, just to force my hands to do something other than fidgeting with my floral skirt like they are currently doing right now.

  “Yes, I’m hungry” I reply apprehensively.

  What is it about this guy that makes me fidget and act like a blushing idiot? He is just a guy Jenni, a player that you poured freezing cold beer over his head just last night, I remind myself. When the images of last night start to replay in my head, I can’t stop the smile that forms on my face, while at the same time it settles down my nervous butterflies.

  When he notices me smiling, he looks at my curiously before his own smile forms on his face. He then grasps my small hand in his extremely large hand and starts walking us towards the entrance of the café. Because it is still too early for the lunch crowd, we are promptly seated at one of the window booths that allows us spectacular views of Bronte’s Peak.

  “It’s so beautiful” I whisper quietly while staring out at the dazzling blue ocean.

  “It sure is” he replies.

&n
bsp; When I turn to face him, I notice that he is not even looking at the scenery outside. His beautiful dark blue eyes are staring directly at me. I can’t miss the sexual hunger in his eyes, making my cheeks get a rush of heat to them. Our intense stare off is only interrupted when the waitress hands us both a menu. I quickly lift the menu to hide under, while I try to get my flushed cheeks to settle down. This guy’s sexiness and confidence is off the richter scale and only sitting across from him for five minutes is already making me want to break all of my rules on not dating players.

  He must have noticed that I was using the menu to hide under, as his deep chuckle vibrates through the menu, before he pulls it away from me.