Page 30 of Worth Every Game
“Oh. Gosh, I only bought enough sushi for two.” Lydia looks genuinely uncomfortable, and she glances to Jack for help. I get a sudden twinge of guilt. She didn’t know I was here, or that I’d cooked. She didn’t mean to sabotage my efforts, and she’s dared to make a huge play for Jack, in her underwear no less, and here I am, laughing at her.
I’d hate it if someone did that to me.
“Relax.” It’s an ironic word choice given that my insides are squeezing together like a concertina, but Jack’s love life is none of my business, and I don’t want to interfere. Maybe later I can source some Tupperware and pack the leftover food away and eat it during the week. I pick up my bowl and walk towards where Lydia is standing in the doorway. “I’ll leave you to it.”
“Wait, don’t go,” Jack pleads. There’s a panicked look in his eyes that almost makes me pause, but there’s no way I’m stayinghere, knowing Lydia is only wearing her underwear beneath that trench coat.
“No, really, I’ll leave,” I say quickly. “Enjoy your dinner.” As I pass Jack, I lean into him and add, “Sushi is a delicacy, after all.”
10
JACK
Aclammy sweat breaks out over my skin as I stare at Lydia, who’s still standing in the doorway. Elly brushes past her on her way out, a tiny, elegant pixie in comparison to Lydia’s statuesque glamour. I’ve never had a particular preference—I’ve fucked all sorts of women—but tonight, there’s a clear winner. I want to rush after Elly and slide my hand against the dip of her waist to pull her back into the room.But I can’t fucking do that, can I?For now, I’m resigned to watching her walk away from me.Again.
Lydia shoots me a ‘thank goodness she’s gone’ look, which I don’t return. Instead, the urge to call Elly’s name swells in my throat.
Lydia steps closer, all black lace panties and bra spilling with soft breasts as she lets the trench coat fall open again. Objectively, she’s hot, and this whole scenario is teenage-me’s wet dream, but right now it leaves me cold. And weirdly clammy.Fuck.
Lydia takes the bag of sushi out of my hands and places it on the island. She sits on the recently vacated seat, where onlyminutes ago El was feeding me that delicious stew she cooked. The eye contact we made over the fork was way more intense than anything I’m feeling for Lydia in her heels and underwear.
“Nigiri or dragon roll?” Lydia says, making herself at home as she takes the plastic boxes, places them on the counter and opens the lids. I recognise the packaging. It’s expensive sushi. She’s gone all out.
“You can’t turn up here like this—”
Lydia turns from the food to me. “You seem a little tense.” She stands and rests her hands on my shoulders, and I immediately want to shrug her off, but I hold still. “Why don’t you take a moment. Have a drink. Whatever you need to—”
“I don’t need anything.” I shift out from under her touch, holding back the impulse to shove her away. “Honestly, it’s so generous of you to bring food, but I’m really busy this evening. I’ve got a load of work to catch up on. You ought to have called first.”
Lydia’s eyes darken, as though some nasty thought is passing through her mind. “Is it her?” She nods in the direction Elly went. “Are you interested in the waitress?”
“Can you stop calling her a waitress? Her name is Elly.”
Lydia stiffens. “Are you interested in her?”
“No. That’s not it. Elly’s… a friend.” My head feels foggy.What is Elly to me?She’s Kate’s friend…my housemate. But isn’t she something else too?Something different. Something that causes a pinching sensation in my heart, like the onset of fucking heartburn. “You’re a beautiful woman—”
“Good. That’s settled then.”What the hell?Lydia sheds her coat, throws it on the stool on her other side, and sits back down, crossing her long, bronzed legs. There’s a seductive look on her face, and sitting there in her underwear and heels, she looks as though she’s sprung to life from a Playboy magazine. “I’m all yours,” she purrs. “Do whatever you want with me.”
She raises one leg and pushes her aggressively pointed high heel against my crotch and rests it there. For a moment, I don’t know what the fuck to do. I could get laid right now, could have my cock inside her in under thirty seconds. I could spend all night fucking this gorgeous woman who’s laying herself out for me. The basest part of me is tempted… very fucking tempted if I’m entirely honest, despite the weird alarm bells ringing in the back of my head that nothing about this scenario is good and that Lydia might, in fact, be slightly out of her mind to turn up like this.
But more important than any of that, if anything happens with Lydia tonight, while Elly is upstairs, then I might as well score out the possibility of anything happening between me and Elly with a big black marker. And there is no way I’m going to do that.Absolutely no fucking way.
I take Lydia’s ankle in one hand and ease her leg off me until she takes the weight of it herself and lowers it to the floor, tossing me a resentful glare. I start packing up the sushi again, pressing the lids into place and thrusting the boxes back into the bag. “That’s generous of you. Very generous, and I’m flattered. But no, thank you.”
I push the bag at her and then lift her coat, holding it out so she can easily slide her arms into it and get the fuck out of here.
Lydia stares at me for a few long, painful seconds, until she gets up,veryslowly, and turns her back to me so she can slip her arms into the sleeves of her coat. She draws it tight with the belt and turns to face me. “You’re making a mistake, choosing her over me.”
“I’m not choosing anyone.”I am.“I don’t think we’d be good together. I’m sorry, but that has nothing to do with anyone else.”
She glares at me like she knows I’m lying. “Big mistake, Jack. Big.” She snatches the bag of sushi and marches out of the room, hips swaying like a runway model.
The thing is, to me, it doesn’t feel like a mistake at all.
11
ELLY