The Nice Guy Next Door (When In Waverly 1)

I’m left alone in a blanket fort with the most beautiful man in the world. I never thought I would be in a situation like this. I’ve always been so careful in my interactions with men. Somehow, Jameson is systematically bypassing all of my security measures and breaking down all of my walls. What are we supposed to do now?

“So, do you have any board games?” he asks. That is not what I was expecting. Not even close.

“Yeah, I have Catan, Monopoly, dominoes, and cards. That’s it, I’m afraid.”

“I love Catan. I’m sort of the undefeated champion in my family,” he says with an arrogant smirk. And for that, I have to beat him. I want nothing more than to take that smirk off his face. There’s nothing I love more than defeating someone who thinks they can’t lose.

I go retrieve the game from Lo’s room and climb back into the fort and place the box between us. He narrows his eyes at me and says, “You’re going down, Amelia…” taking another guess at my name.

“Nope, not Amelia,” I say with a raised brow. Amelia is a lovely name. Why would anyone try to keep the name Amelia a secret? He probably did a search online for all the names Millie could be short for. And it’s likely that he saw my actual name on the list and said no, it wouldn’t be that. He’s going to exhaust all of the other names on the list and come to realize that yes, that is my name.

“I’m going to figure it out,” he points a finger at me and says.

“I’m sure you will. Now let’s set up this board so I can beat you at Catan.”

“Those are fighting words, young lady!”

“Oh, are you scared?” I tease him, because I think maybe he is a little terrified of losing his champion title.

He studies me for a second, his eyes roving over me, making my breath hitch in my throat. “I’ve never been more scared in my life,” he finally says in a deep, rough voice.

I shake my head to get rid of the nervous energy and say, “Good, I wouldn’t want you to underestimate me.” I’m not convinced that we’re still talking about Catan. I hope we’re not just talking about a nerdy board game.

He brushes a strand of hair behind my ear and says, “I definitely do not underestimate you.” Okay, no, we’re definitely not talking about the game. Whatever’s happening here has to stop. Jameson’s a great guy—a catch, really. Just not for me. I’m not interested in a relationship, no matter how much he sends my heart fluttering.

“Alright, it’s all set up,” I say in a voice an octave higher than usual. “I’ll be red!”

He looks at me like I’ve lost all of my marbles, and I look down at my hands to realize I’ve grabbed the bag of blue pieces. He swaps them out for the red, and we set them up. We roll the dice to decide who goes first and begin the game.

The first thing I learn about Jameson is he is a smack talker. The second thing is that he is ruthless. He notices my strategies and does everything in his power to stop me. I swear he’s cheating somehow, because every single time I’m about to do something, he rolls a seven, and I have to give up half of my cards. I hate that rule.

I have four of the ten points needed to win, while he has eight. He’s grinning at me like a maniac while I take my turn. He’s trying to not so subtly tell me that I have no chance here, and he would be right. I have nothing in my hand that will help me, but I just can’t finish my turn and let him win. I adjust the cards in my hand yet again and then look at the board. Nope. Still can’t do anything.

“Okay, I’m taking these,” he says and grabs the dice from the floor in front of me.

“I didn’t say I was done,” I grit out through clenched teeth.

“You’ve been staring at nothing for five minutes.”

“Oh please, it has not been five minutes.”

“You started your turn at 7:56, and it is now”—he raises his arm and looks at his watch—“8:01… So, you’re right. It hasn’t been five minutes. It has been six,” he says.

“I’m thinking,” I argue. It’s ridiculous and childish, I know. But I cannot accept that he’s about to win. It’s just a board game. Don’t blow a gasket.

“Yeah, thinking about how sad you’re gonna feel when I beat you right now,” he gloats. I give him the nastiest look I can, and the man laughs. He rolls the dice and plays his winning moves…and the hand of Satan comes upon me, because I throw my cards at that man’s arrogant face. He flinches a little in surprise before bursting out in a belly laugh. I cannot believe my ears.

“We’re playing again,” I demand and begin straightening up the board. I am certain that this is my chance to destroy him. He’s too arrogant. He’ll never see it coming. I am quickly proven wrong. He does have the decency to look a little worried this time.

“No, no, no! You’re cheating! I know you’re cheating,” I yell as I reset the board yet again. He really doesn’t want to play again, but I hold him hostage by blocking the entrance of the blanket fort. Granted, it is just blankets. He can escape any time he wants.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” he asks as we start the third game. I glare at him until he relents and plays the game.

He wins again in the fastest game of Catan I have ever played, and this time, he looks downright tortured by his victory.

“Get out,” I say as calmly as I can muster. It’s taking every bit of self-control I have to not flip the game board over.

“Millie, are you serious?” he asks with barely contained laughter in his voice.