Ryan Hunter Read online

  Her shadow moved over the paper when she leaned forward to take a look at what I wrote. Then she straightened with that quirky grin again. “You know, some people say you’re an ass, Hunter. I can’t see why that is.”

  “That’s because they don’t know me.” I winked at her, which made her flash her teeth in a wide smile. Then I headed onto the middle of the field and welcomed the new members. When Liza realized she’d made it, her sweet mouth hung open like she was trying to catch fish with it. Apparently, it took Mitchell a minute to assure her that she hadn’t heard wrong. Happy like a kitten, she hurried to the bench and fished for her backpack.

  I followed her. Step one of courting my dream girl was a success. She was in my team now. Step two: come to my party.

  I wanted to say hi when I stood right behind her, but at the same moment, she whirled around so fast that she bumped straight into my chest, throwing me a step back. Cupping her elbows, I prevented her from tripping. And once again, I couldn’t resist taking a deep breath of the beautiful scent that clung to her hair and body. “Congrats, Matthews,” I said. “You handled the tryouts quite well.”

  She only gave me a mean growl. “Yeah, whatever.” I was so stunned that I didn’t even hold her back when she strode past me, with a piss glare on her face. But then she stopped and spun on her heel, folding her arms defiantly over her chest. “What does Tony owe you for putting me on the team?”

  Whoa. That I sure didn’t expect. Hell, what to do now? Lie to her? Give her the truth? Grab her by her neck and just haul her into me for a distracting kiss? I would so go for the latter, but it didn’t seem like something that would work to my advantage. So I did what I felt like and laughed, deciding for the almost-truth. “You don’t want to know.”

  Obviously, she did, and damn, by the look on her face she was ready to beat it right out of me if necessary. I might tell her why I decided to take her on the team…one day. For now it was better to pull my head out of the noose. I turned around and started walking away, but then I remembered the one thing that had brought me over to her in the first place. I cast her a look over my shoulder that suggested she’d better not say no. “See you at my house, Matthews.”

  She nailed me with her baffled gaze, and that was everything I needed. She’d be there tonight. And in my house it would be my rules. She didn’t know it yet, but she wouldn’t stand a chance. In the end, she’d be mine.

  Smiling to myself like a lovesick fool, I grabbed my backpack and headed for my car.

  I had only reversed out of the spot and turned onto the road, when I spotted Susan Miller walking on the pavement. She was the only new member on our team, who hadn’t been at my house yet, and I had totally forgotten to give her an invitation for tonight’s party. Slowing down to match her pace, I let the passenger window roll down and leaned a little forward, so I could see her face. “Hey, book lover!”

  She didn’t stop but turned her head in my direction. “Hi, there.”

  “Can I take you somewhere?”

  Taken aback, she raised one brow, something I knew I used to do a lot and it was weird to see it on someone else’s face. “Um…no thanks. It’s not that far.”

  “Would you get in, anyway? I need to talk to you.”

  As she stopped, I did, too. She looked up the road then back at me. “I guess that’s okay then.” With her backpack on her lap, Susan sat down in the passenger seat and buckled herself in. “What’s up?”

  “I forgot to tell you something,” I began as I pulled away from the curb and cruised up the street. “Where are we going?”

  “Half a mile this way, then turn into Rasmussen Avenue. So what did you want to talk about? If it’s about the cheating with Liza’s scores, you don’t have to worry. She’s my friend, but I won’t tell anybody.”

  “Okay, that’s good to know then.” This was in fact the other thing I really felt the need to discuss with Susan. “Mitchell asked me to bring her in, so it’s a personal favor. Matthews doesn’t have to know that. I don’t want her to feel bad because of it.”

  She nodded like she totally understood, but then she sucked her bottom lip between her teeth and started chewing on it. I cut her a glance through speculative slits. “What?”

  “Nothing.”

  I chuckled, because it sure wasn’t nothing. “Come on, you can say it.”

  “Yeah, maybe I can. I mean I’m sitting in this hot car with you, something that half of the school will envy me for if I tell them, right? And then I have no idea why that is, but it’s cool so…I’ll be honest. I was wondering if it really was only a favor for Tony.”

  “What, taking Matthews into the team?”

  “Yep.”

  I felt a grin tugging on the corners of my mouth as I quickly glanced at her from the corner of my eye. “What makes you think otherwise?” I looked back at the street, but I knew she was staring at me openly now, because she’d shifted in the seat so that she was facing me.

  “The way you checked out Liza’s butt while she was running for instance.” She made it sound like a suggestion, but then she added quickly. “Unless you were checking out Tony’s butt, which I seriously hope you didn’t do. And then I saw you sniffing your hands in a very weird, very romantic way after you touched her, which made me think you liked how she smelled.”

  The more she said, the wider my smile grew. “Did you spy on me, book lover?”

  “Is it bad to say I watched you?” she whined. “I was just curious what you would do today after you so secretly flirted with her yesterday.”

  I gulped as I turned into Rasmussen Avenue. “It certainly wasn’t that secret if you noticed it.” And then Frederickson and Alex had, too.

  Now she gave a sigh. Something dreamy and longing. “I guess I’m just marred in that way. I read so many romance books that I can smell it from ten miles away when a guy is falling for a girl.”

  “Falling for her?” My voice held a hint of defensive accusation, but I probably sounded caught red-handed enough that she knew she was dead on.

  “Don’t panic. Like I said, I’m not telling anybody. And Liza certainly isn’t aware of it just yet. Could you stop here? The yellow house is mine.”

  Bringing the car to a halt in front of her door, I watched her opening the seat belt and said, “I guess I’ll be seeing you in the evening.” As she lifted her head and gave me a questioning look, I added, “At the party? You’re coming, right?”

  The next second, I realized she was just winding me up again like earlier with the secretary thing, because her expression turned sickly romantic then, and she hugged her backpack dreamily to her chest. “Oh Hunter, I thought you would never ask.”

  Rolling my eyes, I had to laugh about the way she made me look. Crazy chick.

  She climbed out and slammed the door shut then walked up the front steps. “Hey, book lover!” I shouted after her and waited until she turned around. “It’s nice to have you on the team.”

  Susan’s eyes wrinkled behind her glasses as she smiled. Then she walked inside, and I stepped on the gas, heading home.

  All afternoon I was busy with getting the house ready for the party of the year. I didn’t need to wait for answers to my text message. Everyone who had time would come and have a little fun tonight.

  I got all the expensive carpets out of the way, so that only the naked stone tiles were left. From the credenzas and shelves, I removed everything that could get broken, and also Mom’s beloved Chinese Ming Vase that stood close to the French doors leading into our garden. When Dad came in after work, he helped me drape some blankets over the leather couch and replace the glass coffee table with an old chest, that would do the job just as well, before he and Mom gave me the usual sermon on the party rules and then left for Mary Fisher’s house. In the end, our entrance hall and front room looked like the Hunters had moved out, but only until the first bunch of guests arrived. Everyone had free access to drinks and food, and while they made themselves at home and put some music on, I heade
d upstairs to finally change for the night.

  I slipped into my favorite faded blue jeans with the ripped hems and found my tennis shoes under my bed. After styling my hair in a David Backham style Mohawk, I picked a white shirt from the closet, but as soon as I had it on, I unbuttoned it again and threw it on my bed. White clashed too much with my dark hair to look cool. A black dress shirt would do. I let it casually hang out and rolled the sleeves up to my elbows as I stepped in front of the mirror again. Yep, much better.

  The music switched from Nickleback to Bob Marley’s “Stop That Train” as I closed the door to my room and headed downstairs. I smiled at a memory that came up with that song. I believe I was about ten years old when Justin had stolen a cigar from his granddad and we tried to smoke it in the gazebo in our garden. The outcome wasn’t all that pretty. In fact, after the second drag we both went green in the face and puked into my mom’s rose bushes. Yeah, we were so cool…

  I wondered if Justin was the one fumbling with the hi-fi, because the song was suddenly cut off after the first few beats, and Sean Paul came on next. “She Doesn’t Mind.” I liked that one.

  When I came down, Claudia Wesley ran into me. Narrowly escaping getting splattered by the drink in her hand, I steadied her by her elbows and her face lit up. “Ry, you come late to your own party? This is so much like you.”

  “You know me. I can’t be on time to save my life.” I had been out with Claudia in tenth grade, and if it had ever worked with a girl and me, then it was probably her. The only downside—she wasn’t Liza. But she made a fantastic wine cooler, and the glass in her hand was most likely filled with the stuff. I took it out of her hand and tasted the berry mix, then arched a brow at her. “That grog could kill an elephant.”

  She shrugged it off with a grin. “Yeah, it’s a little strong. But the strawberries make it perfect.”

  It tasted delicious, but I didn’t intend to get drunk tonight, so I gave the glass back to her. The house was already bursting. I had to fight my way through all the kids to get into the kitchen and grab a beer from the fridge. The lights had been dimmed and the music was on maximum volume, just what a good party needed. I popped the cap of the Corona and headed back to the hall, taking a swig.

  In the arch between the hall and the kitchen, Tony bumped into me, dragged by a very excited Cloey. “Hey guys, what are you up to?” I asked, amused about how they held hands like preschoolers, and seriously enjoying the fact that Tony seemed totally into that girl.

  “I want to show him the gazebo,” Cloey cheered. “You don’t mind, Hunter, do you?”

  I shook my head no, but caught Mitchell’s arm before Cloey could pull him away from me. Leaning in closer, I gave him a concerned look. “Did you come with Matthews?”

  “Yes.”

  My eyes widened as I glanced from him to Cloey and back. “And she knows you’re going to make out with someone else in my garden?”

  Tony sucked in an uneasy breath through his teeth. “No.”

  Yeah, that was to be foreseen. “Where is she?”

  “Somewhere back there.” He nodded over his shoulder toward the entrance door. “A friend held her up. Look, I won’t be out with Cloey long. Just a minute. Don’t tell Liza when you see her, okay?”

  Cloey impatiently blew a strand of her blonde hair out of her eyes, but I made a point of not letting go of Mitchell’s arm just yet. “You will have to tell her at some point.”

  “I know.” He grimaced. “I will.”

  “All right. Get along with you,” I growled. “I have you covered for tonight. But make sure to come clean with her soon. I hate lying.”

  “Thanks, man.” We bumped fists before the two of them slipped out into the garden through the back door.

  I wondered how he’d gotten Cloey to agree to hiding their relationship for now. She wasn’t usually one to keep a low profile and it must annoy the hell out of her. But then, our garden was a perfectly romantic place for some kissing under the moonlight, and she would probably get her money’s worth with Mitchell tonight.

  A little frustrated at how Tony messed with Liza’s feelings, I slumped against the wall inside the arch, dragged a hand over my face, and took a long sip from my beer. Gaze skating over the crowd, I wondered where she was. There were close to three hundred people in this house. Looking for her might turn out to be a problem. But then there was no need to. The little hairs at the back of my neck bristled when she emerged from the mass, glancing around like a shy little doe.

  Her super short, black pants took a millisecond to make my eyes go wide and my mouth water. A moment after her gaze met mine, I turned toward her fully and only leaned with one shoulder against the wall. She fumbled with the hem of her gray tank top as she glanced to one side and back at me. From years of charming girls, I knew what I was doing. Since she had my direct attention now, she had no other choice than come over and say hello. I took another swig as I watched my plan work out.

  Near enough to grant me a close-up of the pendant on her necklace dipping into the valley between her breasts, she stopped and lifted a greeting hand instead of speaking.

  I cocked my head and gave her the lightest smile I could manage. “Hi.”

  “You have a nice place. So full of—”

  Testosterone?

  “—people.”

  “Yeah. Thanks.” Hm, was that the right thing to say? I pushed away from the wall and leaned in a little closer, because I hated to shout over the music. Okay, the music wasn’t as loud back here, so it might not only have been that, but I really liked to breathe in the sweet scent of her shampoo. Her hair tickled my cheek when I lowered my head even more to speak into her ear. “It was about time that Mitchell brought you here. He kept you away from this place long enough.”

  Her nose brushed the underside of my jaw, giving me a really good feeling in my stomach. “Do you know where he is?”

  Sorry, baby, but I can’t tell you that. Looking down, I only saw her perfect, apple-shaped boobs and a waist that begged to be hugged against mine. The bottle of beer in my hand gave me a chance to hold onto something as I fought against the urge to grab what I already had determined was mine. “Nope,” I answered her question then washed away the bitter aftertaste of the lie with a swig of Corona.

  Liza had her own bottle of beer and drank when I did, but she looked like it was the nastiest stuff one could have given her. I wondered if she’d gotten it from Tony, but I was pretty sure he made a point at keeping this girl sober.

  Our fridge was stocked with things that tasted better than Corona, and I didn’t like the thought of her getting tipsy at my party, anyway. At least no one had given her a glass of the strawberry wine cooler. That stuff would have knocked her out of her shoes.

  With her wrist in my hand, I pulled her away from the hall and into the kitchen to trade her beer for a soda. Touching her actually felt so good, that I couldn’t bring myself to let her go immediately, so I put my bottle on the counter and worked one-handed to pop a can of Sprite for her. Replacing the bottle with the can, I made an effort to gently close her fingers around it.

  “You shouldn’t drink beer,” I told her and hoped I didn’t sound like her dad or something. “Especially not in this place.”

  Thankfully, she wasn’t pissed at my parenting her. In fact, she looked happy about the new drink and sipped from it while I still held her discarded bottle. I leaned my butt against the counter and crossed my legs at the ankles. “You did really well today,” I offered as an icebreaker for an easier chat.

  She swallowed the hook, but she knew I was being polite and not very honest. “I was lousy. And you know it. I still don’t get why you chose me to play in your team.”

  Yeah, why? I gave a nonchalant shrug and drank from her discarded bottle. Jeez, I just had my mouth on the same spot where her lips had touched. It might be childish, but I enjoyed that moment like nothing else before. Then I drawled, “I don’t know. Maybe I just want you there.” My teasing added a spark to
her shiny apple eyes. I liked how I could give her a coating of goose bumps with just this tiny bit of truth. “Do a little endurance training every day, and you’ll be a capable player.”

  “I guess I’m lacking motivation to do that. I’m like a lame duck at running.”

  Is that so? Hm, what could we do about that? “What you need is a personal trainer.”

  The pretty girl in front of me laughed and took a short step back, studying me with disbelieving eyes. “You want the job?”

  That was why I suggested it. But I played my cool role to perfection. “Sure, why not? If you promise to show some enthusiasm, I promise to be there.”

  She tilted her head and narrowed her eyes a little. I couldn’t blame her for not trusting me just yet. We were only getting acquainted with each other. Liza wasn’t someone you rushed into your bed. She was a gem that you enjoyed marveling at. If you were lucky, you got the chance to touch her delicate surface. A treasure that I’d go any to length to make my own.

  Eventually, she said, “Okay, deal.”

  Deal? That was a fucking yes to a date. I felt like an idiot from one of Susan Miller’s romance books when my heart actually did some sort of backflip in my chest. I struggled to stay cool, but I managed to keep my pleasure under control and just nodded. “We’ll start Monday morning.”

  She didn’t look so happy any more. Hopefully, she didn’t regret her decision already. Anyway, I wouldn’t let her go back on her word, and I made that clear by trapping her gaze with a hot, determined look. If she got her foot into this game with me, she wouldn’t get out of it single. I wanted her to be aware of whom she was dealing with, because I’d never felt as true to the name Bay Shark as I did in this moment.