Page 32 of Cabin Fever Baby
I sat down and dragged my feet under me, settling cross-legged on the pillow. I took my phone out and put on a festive playlist that hummed through the speakers around the room, and then I folded my hands on the table. “Just so you know, I’m relentless and I cheat.”
He threw his head back. “Well, I’m ruthless and love to win. This should be fun.”
NINE
5 Days til Christmas
She hadn’t been kiddingabout cheating at Uno. I had a handful of cards, and it was my turn to hit the button on the fucking launcher.
Ocean had a measly three cards. She’d gathered her wild curls on top of her head with the pencil she’d been wielding to count up our points.
I was losing.
Badly.
I shut one eye and slapped the button once then twice in response to the card she’d placed on the deck. The second one pummeled me with five more cards. This was after the five rounds of pressing the launch button, thanks to her evil cards.
“I don’t think cheating covers how you play.”
She stuck the tip of her tongue through her teeth as she wiggled her shoulders. “Luck of the draw, sir.”
The way she saidsirwith a playful yet husky edge was going to send me upstairs for another shower. Or maybe I’d just go out and shovel off another layer of snow.
Not that it made a difference. The wind off the lake kept drifting the snow right back onto the deck.
I flipped the launcher back her way when she played another double tap card. Lucky me, I actually had something to turn it around on her. She wrinkled her nose and stared me dead in the eye as she tapped, and no fucking cards came out.
“That’s it—you’re definitely rigging that thing?”
Her laugh was unrestrained and throaty, which didn’t help matters. But she couldn’t play a card, and I had another kill shot in my hand.
She pouted as she had to hit the button four times, and this time, the blasted thing went my way. She ended up with so many cards they fell into her lap.
“Don’t you hide any under your legs under there.” I put my fan of cards face down on the table and pushed it aside.
“I would never.” A mock haughty tone laced her voice.
“There is one.”
She shoved it farther under her thigh, and I crawled over to her as she giggled. “You didn’t see anything.”
“We are past cheating.” She yelped as I snaked my fingers under her leg. There were actuallythreecards.
The cards dropped around us as she giggled. “You don’t believe me?”
I pulled three out, and then I rolled her off the pillow and found another one.
She scrambled back and slapped her hand over it. “Nope!”
I wrapped my arm around her middle and lifted her up and she screeched, dissolving into laughter.
“Wait, wait!” She flailed, trying to get to the cards.
“Forfeit. I win.”
She gripped my forearm, her nails digging in and making my heart thud. “No! Wait—I’ll take a penalty. I’ll hit the button another ten times.”
“So, you can shove them down your shirt too?”