She pauses. “I knew her. Not well,” she adds at my inhale. “She did the photography for the kids’ yearbooks once a year. I shared half of my BLT with her once when she forgot her lunch. You kept your private life under wraps, and I didn’t realize who she was, not until the papers wrote up the accident. She seemed really sweet.”
“She was.” I met Whitney at a photo shoot for the team. We dated for nine months, then got engaged. She was petite with blonde hair, and I fell in love with her laugh, her bashfulness, the way she curled her hand around her face at night.
There’s a long silence as we gaze at each other.
“Done. Fresh slate,” Nova murmurs, breaking our gaze. “I brought the lightsaber—found it in Sabine’s old toys—as a gift. It’s completely worthless, but I thought it was cute.” Her chest rises. “And perhaps it will soften my answer: I can’t be your fake girlfriend.”
Chapter 9
RONAN
Disappointment slams into me. My gaze drinks in her plump lips, the elegant line of her throat. “Why?”
“It will make things complicated. We have a history.”
“I’m going to change your mind,” I hear myself saying, stepping closer to her. “First, we can keep the arrangement professional.”
She winces. “And when you leave, I’ll still be here dealing with the aftermath.”
I brush a piece of lint off her shoulder, my hand lingering as if it has a mind of its own. “I’ll make sure you aren’t to blame, Nova.”
Her tongue darts out and touches her lip.
“Let’s play for it,” I purr.
“Play?”
“Hmm. You worked in a bar. I’m sure you’ve played pool or thrown your share of darts?” I nudge my head at the back of the room.
She thinks about it. “I’m not great at games. Sabine decimates me in chess. Strategy was never my thing.”
“I’m not good either.”
“Please. I’m not sure this is fair.”
“You don’t seem like the kind of woman to turn down a bet, Nova. I bet you can’t beat me.”
She stiffens, her eyes narrowing. Gotcha.
“Come on.” I take her elbow and guide her to the back.
She picks up the dart shaft and runs her fingers over the flight on the end. “Let’s do darts, then. What are the stakes?”
“If I win, you’ll agree to be my fake girlfriend. You decide what you want if you win.”
Her gaze drapes over me slowly, taking in my loose nylon sports pants and an old Pythons shirt. She cracks her knuckles. “Let’s make this interesting. We throw three darts. The one who hits the closest to the bull’s-eye gets something each time. A boon.”
“Hmm, sounds like you’ve done this before.”
“You have lots of pretty things in this room.” She nudges her head at the big-screen TV. “Very nice.”
“All right. I’m in.” I am so going to kick her ass.
She inclines her head. “We should practice.”
“Please.” I move and let her stand behind the throw line of the dartboard.
She throws one, and it hits the wall.
I huff out a laugh.
“I’m warming up,” she snips.
Her next five darts hit the outside of the bull’s-eye, and my lips twitch.
“Here, let me help.” I move behind her and take her arm. “Don’t put too much weight on the front of your feet, or you’ll lose stability.”
She leans back against me as I hold her throwing hand. My other hand goes to her hip, and her body aligns with mine, fitting. I take a deep breath, sparks flaring over my skin.
I clear my throat. “The way you hold the dart is called the grip. First, don’t apply much pressure. Use your index finger . . . here . . .” I caress her finger, putting it where it goes. “Find where it’s level . . . that’s it . . . support that with your thumb, and then use your other fingers . . .” She moves to get a better position, and her ass brushes against me. I force my cock to settle. We stand there for several moments, neither of us moving.
I step back. “Now, relax your posture, and release the tension. Keeping your eyes on the board, let your elbow be at a comfortable fixed position. Good. When you throw, move your arm, throw like it’s a paper airplane, but don’t change your elbow. Try to release all your fingers at once. If you don’t, you’ll screw up the stability of the dart. Extend your arm as if it’s aiming for the target you want to hit.”
She throws, and it hits the triple-score ring outside the bull’s-eye.
A grunt comes from her. “Dammit.”
She throws several more, missing, then scowls at me.
I take my practice round, being a little reckless with my throws to bolster her confidence.
The contest begins, and I go first, my shot hitting inside the bull’s-eye and to the left.
She steps up to the line and gives me a sweet smile, one that I know is a little sly, then throws her dart and hits the middle of the bull’s-eye. She gasps, then claps, a delighted expression on her face. “Will you look at that? I win the first one!”