The Name of the Game

by Jennifer Dawson

  His green eyes softened. “I know, Gracie.”

  “You do?” Please let it be true.

  He nodded, and cupped her jaw. “I feel it too.”

  That seemed to be enough for now because she once again settled into his arms, content to let everything else melt away.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “Uncle James!” Two girls with identical blond hair ran up to James, throwing their tiny arms around his legs in sheer delight.

  Gracie’s heart did a strange little thump at the sight and melted into a puddle of goo. An occurrence that seemed to happen at an alarming rate around him. Every moment she spent with James she fell a little bit harder, a little bit deeper. She was terrified, but nothing would get in the way of enjoying this weekend. Not when they had so little time together.

  James leaned down and hugged the twins. “How are my girls?”

  They beamed twin smiles, looking at him like he hung the moon.

  One little girl said, “Lizzy likes a boy.”

  Lizzy scowled at her sister. “I do not!”

  “Now what did I tell you girls about boys?” James asked, his tone serious but his mouth curved in amusement.

  “They’re icky,” the twins parroted together.

  “Right.”

  Lizzy planted her hands on little hips. “I don’t like a boy. I’m just going to marry him.”

  Gracie laughed and the two girls looked at her with big brown eyes.

  James straightened. “Elizabeth and Emma, this is my friend Gracie.”

  Gracie held out her hand for the girls to shake. “Hi. Thanks for inviting me over today.”

  Tiny fingers slipped into hers and the barest whisper of an image she refused to let take hold, flitted into her mind.

  One of the girls asked, “Are you Uncle James’s girlfriend?”

  The question stumped her. She had no idea how to answer. “Umm . . .” She turned to James, hoping for a rescue, only to find him watching her with an interested expression.

  She stared at him.

  He stared right back.

  She licked her lips.

  He quirked a brow.

  Jane came bounding down the stairs and Gracie was saved.

  She smiled at Gracie before giving her daughters a stern look. “Girls, aren’t you supposed to wait for an adult to open the door?”

  Emma pointed at James. “But it’s Uncle James.”

  Jane sighed. “You still wait. Remember.”

  The twins nodded. “Okay, Mommy.”

  “Good enough.” Jane turned and before Gracie could speak, the other woman pulled her into a big hug. “I’m so glad you made it, I was worried James was going to keep you to himself forever.”

  Gracie flushed, although she didn’t know why. Maybe because the last time she’d met Jane the woman had witnessed the marks up and down James’s back.

  Marks she’d put there again last night.

  And she’d been marked just as thoroughly in their insatiable quest to satisfy a hunger that seemed to know no bounds. It was like he’d crawled inside her, leaving her near desperate for him all the time. She wasn’t even exaggerating; she’d take him in the bathroom right now if she could. It didn’t matter how many times they’d already had sex.

  Pulling her thoughts away from bed and James, she smiled warmly at her hostess. “Thanks for inviting me.”

  Jane waved them in. “Come on, let’s go in the kitchen. Anne is dying to meet you.”

  The twins ran down the hall, skipping ahead of them in their adorable little matching jeans with butterflies embroidered down the sides. The only way Gracie could tell them apart was one wore a turquoise top and the other purple.

  James rolled his eyes at Gracie. “I’ll apologize now.”

  Jane rolled her eyes right back. “Don’t let him scare you, we’re actually quite nice.”

  James sighed and took Gracie’s hand as they walked down a corridor in the updated brick townhome. Nerves danced in her stomach, surprising her. She wasn’t prone to nerves, but then again, meeting James’s friends mattered to her. She wanted them to like her.

  They walked into an open, modern kitchen with black cabinets, vintage red appliances, and gray marble countertops. It had to be the most adorable kitchen Gracie had ever seen and she loved it immediately. A cute, very petite strawberry blonde bounced around, singing along as Dusty Springfield’s “Son of a Preacher Man” played over speakers.

  When she spotted Gracie she let out a squeal. “She’s finally here!”

  Gracie held out the box of cupcakes she’d made, an assortment of her favorites, as she hadn’t known what the women might like. “Thank you for having me. These are for you.”

  Anne grabbed the box and peered at it with a worshipful expression on her face. “You baked.”

  Gracie laughed, captivated by the woman. “Of course, it’s kind of my thing.”

  “I had the protein bars you made for James and the cake you made for the engagement party. They were to die for.” Anne slid the box onto the countertop and pouted at her significant other. “And you know how it is with these health-food freaks, you can’t have anything good in the house or they start going on about carbs and calories.”

  Gracie experienced a kind of divine, instant kinship with the other woman. “I know just what you mean. It’s so annoying.”

  James pinched her. “Hey, I’ve been on my best behavior. We got pizza last night.”

  Gracie couldn’t help the smile that spread over her lips and she could only imagine how telling her expression was. “Vegetable pizza with light cheese.”

  James slid an arm around her waist. “It was a compromise. If it was up to me I would have gotten a salad. And let me remind you, I ate three cupcakes.”

  Gracie shook her head and looked imploringly at Anne. “He had to run, like, ten miles this morning to make up for it.”

  “God, I know. Give me a nice walk on the lakeshore any day, but all that running. Blah,” Anne said.

  Gracie laughed. “Amen, sister.”

  “Oh no, there’s another one.” Jane sighed.

  Anne clapped. “Now at least it can be a tie. Thank you, Gracie. After all these years I’m finally a contender.”

  Gracie wondered about James’s other girlfriends who had wandered through this door, and figured they’d probably sided with James and Jane. A mental image of the beautiful Lindsey Lord flashed through her mind, setting off an unwelcome stab of irrational jealousy. That woman had exercise fanatic written all over her.

  One of the twins, although Gracie didn’t know which one, tugged on Anne’s tunic top. “Momma, let’s dance.”

  Side by side the girls were the spitting image of Anne, and it occurred to Gracie she had to be their biological mother.

  Anne ruffled her hair. “Not now, sweetie pie, I’m cooking for our guest. You and Lizzy go watch Dora. We’ll eat soon, then we can dance.”

  Emma glanced expectantly at Gracie. “Will you dance too?”

  “I’d love to,” Gracie said.

  The twin in the purple, Lizzy, said, “We take ballet.”

  Very serious, Gracie nodded. “Do you have recitals? With pretty costumes?”

  They nodded in unison.

  Anne pointed toward the living room. “Girls, you can grill Gracie later. Let the grown-ups talk.”

  The twins exchanged glances before skipping off to the couch to watch an animated show playing on the television.

  Gracie smiled at the two women. “Your girls are adorable.” Gracie wasn’t sure of the proper protocol, but she figured she’d say what she’d say to any parent when she met their kids. She shifted her attention to Anne. “They look just like you.”

  Anne’s light blue eyes twinkled. “Yeah, they do. If you saw a baby picture of me, you’d think I was their sister.”

  “It’s hard being the lone brunette in the family,” Jane said, walking over to the cabinet. “What can I get you to drink, Gracie? Do you like mimosas?”
/>
  “Doesn’t everyone? Thanks,” Gracie said.

  “See, I knew I was going to like you,” Anne said, waving at the chairs surrounding the kitchen island. “Sit down, make yourself comfortable.”

  James and Gracie slid onto the bar chairs as Jane got champagne glasses and grabbed a pitcher from the fridge.

  Gracie asked, “Can I do anything?”

  Jane shook her head. “Not a thing.”

  A timer went off and Anne peered into the oven before resetting the timer. “Still not done.” She turned to Gracie. “I’m so glad to finally meet you. You’ve been driving poor James here crazy for months.”

  James groaned and shook his head, looking up at the ceiling.

  Intrigued, Gracie grinned. “Really now?”

  “Really. I thought you were going to give the poor boy a heart attack. I mean, I can’t blame him, as you’re obviously spectacular.”

  “Thank you,” Gracie said, warmed by the compliment.

  Jane shook a finger at Anne. “No flirting.” She shifted her attention to Gracie. “She’s got a bit of a crush on you.”

  James laughed, and put his arm along the back of Gracie’s chair. “Anne has plans to seduce you.”

  Anne winked at Gracie. “Just once. You don’t mind, do you?”

  Well, this was a strange conversation. And here she’d thought James’s friends would be all stuffy and proper. Like most things regarding James, she’d been wrong; they’d fit right in with their group in Revival, who didn’t know how to keep an inappropriate thought in their head. Herself included. She smiled. “Not at all. I’m flattered.”

  “See,” Anne said, grabbing a spatula and waving it at Jane. “She doesn’t mind at all. I mean, please, we’d be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t want to sleep with her.”

  James curled a hand around Gracie’s neck and leaned in close. “She’s got a point.”

  “That I do,” Anne said, flashing a wide, playful smile at Gracie. “You don’t happen to like girls too, do you?”

  She laughed, charmed and happy, liking and understanding the other woman’s more forward nature. “I’m sure I could work up a little bi-curiosity for you.”

  James groaned. “Don’t encourage her.”

  Gracie grinned at him, falling into his amused evergreen eyes. “I’m being entirely truthful.”

  “Ha!” Anne exclaimed. “So, now all we need to do is convince these two.”

  At the exact same time Jane and James said, “No.”

  Anne’s expression turned hopeful. “Orgy?”

  Her partner shook her head. “In your dreams.”

  “Absolutely not,” James said, his tone deadpan. Not too long ago Gracie would have believed he was serious, but now she knew better. “I refuse to take part in any activity where 66.7 percent of the participants want nothing to do with me.”

  Gracie puffed out her bottom lip in a pout. “They never let us have any fun.”

  “Stupid monogamy,” Anne muttered before turning back to the oven to peek inside.

  Jane sighed. “I don’t know why I put up with her.”

  “Because I’m awesome,” Anne said, donning a pair of oven mitts.

  “Yeah, she is.” Jane’s expression was full of love and affection as she looked at her partner.

  Anne pulled a casserole dish out of the oven and set it on a trivet to cool while Jane moved around the kitchen, pulling plates from the cabinets. They moved in perfect synchronicity, possessing that special something some couples seemed to have. After witnessing it first with Mitch and Maddie, and then with Shane and Cecilia, it was easy to recognize.

  For all her teasing, Gracie didn’t buy for one second that she stood the slightest chance with Anne. She slid a sideways glance at James. Not that she was in any better shape. Right now, the only one she wanted was him.

  “How’d you all meet?” Gracie asked, curious about the origins of James’s friendship with the women.

  Jane grinned. “I met James our freshman year of college. We were in the same chemistry class. Of course, he wanted nothing to do with me, so I had to force him into being friends.”

  That sounded about right, after what James had told her about his adolescence.

  “How’d she change your mind?” Gracie slid a hand onto his thigh and his muscles tensed as though he was surprised, before he covered her hand with his own.

  “Simple. She was the smartest person in class and I wanted an A. When she suggested being study partners, I’d have been a fool to pass it up.”

  Jane laughed and gave James a look filled with affection. “Of course, the idiot had no clue I’d asked him because I had a crush on him.”

  Gracie’s brows rose and she glanced back and forth between the two women. “I see.”

  Anne winked. “I converted her.”

  James squeezed Gracie’s hand. “She didn’t have a crush. I was safe and she didn’t have to think about her real feelings.”

  Jane blew out a long breath. “After all these years, you’re still delusional. Honestly, I thought he was the gay one.”

  “How was I supposed to know?” James asked. “We talked about chemistry and books.”

  “Why do you think I kept asking you to my room?”

  James shrugged. “I assumed you didn’t want to leave your dorm.”

  Gracie could tell by the ease of the conversation this was a subject that had been discussed, and exhausted, many times over the years, with neither party changing their point of view. Although Gracie believed Jane’s version. As a freshman, James had still been heavy, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out he’d probably missed all the subtle girl clues.

  Hell, even now he’d probably miss it. Gracie had watched him in public, and what she’d previously perceived as aloofness was in actuality lack of perception. He was good-looking, had a body to die for, and a quiet, compelling presence that made a girl feel like he saw right into her. He listened when people talked, and when he spoke, his words cut right to the heart of the matter.

  She’d witnessed it countless times. In the way the barista flirted when he ordered his coffee. In the nervous fluttering of a woman’s lashes as she spoke to him. In the adoration she’d witnessed on his ex-girlfriend’s face when she’d talked to him in that restaurant.

  It happened all the time, and James seemed oblivious to it all.

  In a moment of absolute clarity she finally understood why, in all the time she’d known him, he’d never made a move on her. Why he’d never hinted at an attraction. It wasn’t lack of nerve, as she’d assumed—he’d really believed she had no interest in him.

  In his mind, it never occurred to him her animosity hid her attraction, because he took everything at face value. Unlike men who’d grown up good-looking, it didn’t occur to James that women might be checking him out, throwing off subtle clues to gauge his interest.

  She smiled sweetly at Jane. “I know how you must have felt. I’ve been baiting him for months, to no avail.”

  He jerked his head in her direction. “What does that mean?”

  She ignored him and focused on his friends, who watched her with a curious anticipation. “I mean, for the love of God, I had to actually proposition the man for sex before he finally made a move.”

  Anne burst out laughing. “Sounds like James.”

  Gracie leaned over the counter, bringing the women into her conspiracy. “And even then he said no.”

  Jane looked at James as though he was insane. “You said no?!”

  “What is wrong with you?” Anne asked at the same time.

  James’s expression turned to utter confusion. “I . . . um . . . well, I’m sleeping with her now. Shouldn’t that count for something?”

  Finally, at long, victorious last, she’d thrown him off his game. The poor guy was actually stuttering.

  Gracie huffed, puffing out her bottom lip in a feigned pout. “I practically had to force him into it.”

  James pinched her. “That is not tru
e. You couldn’t stand me, and don’t pretend otherwise.”

  Gracie sighed, a long, heavy sound. “You know how he is. It’s like all romantic games are lost on him.”

  “I have game where it counts,” James said, looking adorable and disgruntled.

  Gracie gave the two women a sly, satisfied smile. “He certainly does. All that stamina and discipline leads to nothing but multiple orgasms.”

  Jane and Anne burst out laughing while James actually blushed to the tips of his ears. “You’re the most incorrigible woman I’ve ever met.”

  She grinned at him. “But really, would you have it any other way?”

  He brushed a hand over her cheek, his expression softening. “No, not in a million years.”

  And just like that, she teetered on the edge of the cliff, and fell.

  “Jesus,” he groaned, pumping hard into Gracie as he came in a mad, furious rush.

  It had started as a kiss. A simple good-bye that turned hot. Then frantic. Before dissolving into a desperation that ended with him taking her against the door, her bags abandoned at their feet.

  His whole body shuddered, as her inner muscles rippled down him, milking his cock, taking everything from him. He pounded his fist against the wood frame as his vision blurred and he lost himself inside her.

  The weekend had passed in a blur of sex, talking, and Doctor Who. Nothing existed but the two of them. And now it was over.

  “James.” Her voice low and husky, filled with a softness that made his heart skip a beat. Her fingers tangled in his hair as she whispered against his lips, “I have to go.”

  He flicked his tongue over the wet flesh of her mouth, made swollen by his. “I know.”

  In testimony of her reluctance, she pulled him closer, her body still quivering against his.

  He squeezed her tight. Never had he felt this way about a woman, and he didn’t know quite what to do about it. All he could think about was the next time. “I’ll be in Revival a couple weeks from now for Thanksgiving.”

  “That seems like an eternity.” Eyes closed, her head fell back against the door. Her lips were red, her hair a wild mess, her cheeks stained pink. So gorgeous he wanted to take her again. Right here. Right now.

  “I’m not sure I can go on like this.” The words spilled from his mouth before he was even aware he was going to say them.