Scoring Position (Daytona Fury #2)

10. Ace

TEN

ACE

“Excuse me?” Lark says, looking at me like I just told her I wanted her on her hands and knees, legs spread wide on my bed. Which I fucking do, but she doesn’t have to know that. She yanks her arm from my hand, confusion written all over her face as I chuckle.

“You promised me a night of fun for every assignment I passed. My essay grade just posted while you were in the bathroom, and I got a B, so I’m cashing in.”

She eyes me like she doesn’t believe it. I turn, swiping my laptop off the bed and opening the student website, where my most recent grade is front and center in bold black font. As soon as her eyes home in on it, a bright smile blooms across her face. “Oh my God, Ace! That’s amazing!”

God, she’s fucking pretty. I could look at her all day.

I nod, a cocky grin tugging at the corners of my mouth. “Time to pay up, Sweets.” She rolls her eyes as I bend down, digging out the large bag I had delivered during our game. I knew that essay was good enough, so I made sure to prepare. Holding the plastic bag from the toy store out between us, I wiggle my brows.

“You’re scaring me,” she jokes. “What are you going to make me do?”

I reach in, pull out the contents, and lay them on the mattress while she watches.

“Board games and a video game console?” she questions. “I almost forgot how young you are.”

I scoff sarcastically. “At least I know how to have a good time, granny,” I quip. “I’m aware that it’s past your bedtime and all, but you made a deal. Now you have to play with me.” As soon as I say it, I realize how dirty it sounds, but I don’t take it back. I want us to be able to joke around with each other. It feels natural for me, and I want it to be the same for her. We may not be able to date, but a little harmless banter and flirting won’t hurt.

“Oh my God,” she says. “One game. Then I’m leaving.”

I throw my head back in mock exasperation. “Fine. But I get to pick, and you can’t complain.” She scans the options, finally relenting by sweeping a dramatic arm out as if to say Be my guest .

I appear as though I’m thinking carefully, tapping my bottom lip for a little extra razzle-dazzle as she waits, shifting from one foot to the other impatiently. The truth is, I know exactly what I’m picking. My hip is going to hate me for it later, but I really want to get close to her again, and this might be the only way.

I reach forward and pick up the winner.

“Twister?” she says with a laugh. “Ace, you can barely walk. We’re not doing this. Let’s hook up the PlayStation instead.”

I look down at her, shaking my head confidently. “Nope. I worked really hard on that essay, and I deserve my reward. Are you really going to go back on your word, Sweets? That’s not a very redeeming quality. I’m so disa?—”

“Jesus Christ, fine ,” she groans, cutting me off. “One game of Twister—and if you hurt yourself even more, I’m not helping you again.”

Fuck yes.

“You and I both know you’re not saying no to another peek at my ass, but whatever you have to tell yourself,” I reply, making her scowl as I open the box. I walk over to the table, pulling it out of the way before laying the mat down on the floor. It’s definitely a tight fit, but I’m determined to make this work. With any luck, the lack of space will cause us to get tangled up even more. Next, I take out the spinner, and she gives me a smug look.

“So much for your plan, smart guy. If we’re both playing, who’s going to spin for us?”

I hold it up in the air before flinging it over my shoulder. “You really are an old lady, aren’t you?” Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I open the spinner app and show it to her. “This spins once every fifteen seconds and tells us out loud what it lands on, so we don’t have to move once we’re settled on our colors.”

She huffs a resigned laugh, taking the scrunchie from her wrist and using it to pull her hair into a messy bun. Some of the shorter pieces that frame her face fall out immediately, and she tucks them behind her ear. I can’t help but notice the slope of her neck and the smooth skin that’s begging to be licked. I wonder if she tastes as sweet as she smells. Shaking my head rapidly, I try to rid myself of the inappropriate thoughts I keep having about her, but they never seem to go away. Playing a game where our limbs could end up intertwined probably isn’t the best idea, but I can’t think of anything I want to do more right now. Even if I do end up getting hurt further, it would be worth it.

“You’re going down, Mathers. I’ll have you know I’m very flexible,” she says, and my eyes go wide with surprise at the playful look on her face. Apparently, all it took was getting her into a competitive mood to see her sassy little attitude, and I have to say I don’t hate it.

“That’s adorable, Lark,” I mock, fake pouting. “I’m a professional athlete. I don’t think a tiny thing like you is going to be much of a match.” I reach over to the bed, grab the bag of candy, and twist off the tie that’s holding it closed. Dipping my hand inside, I fish out a sour rainbow bite and pop it into my mouth. She watches the movement, swallowing thickly as my jaw works. Pulling out another one, I step closer and hold it up in front of her lips. She hesitates, her gaze landing on my hand. I’m afraid that it’s too intimate of a gesture, but she surprises me by leaning forward, her eyes connecting with mine as she slowly takes it. Her tongue grazes the tips of my fingers, and I have to bite back a groan at the way it feels against my skin. Wet and soft and so perfect.

“Thank you,” she says, not breaking eye contact as she chews and swallows, licking the last of the sour sugar from her bottom lip.

“You’re welcome,” I say softly. “But now I have to kick your ass at Twister.”

“Bring it,” she replies with a wink, pinching my cheek before walking over to the mat. I laugh, starting the app and setting the phone down on the bed before taking my spot across from her.

“Player one. Right foot, red,” the robotic voice instructs, and I motion to Lark.

“Ladies first,” I say, waving my hand in invitation. She gives me a side-eye, stepping her foot onto the circle closest to her as we wait for my turn.

“Player two. Right foot, green.” I extend my foot to the green dot. We couldn’t be further away from each other, but it’s only a matter of time before that changes. She looks at me, and I wink, making her roll her eyes.

“Player one,” the app continues. “Left foot, yellow.” She steps fully onto the mat, standing on the yellow circle right in front of my green one. I chose one toward the middle of the mat, making it so she’d be right next to me no matter what side she went with. Our faces are so close that I can smell the sour candy she just ate every time she breathes. I do my best to act unaffected as I await my turn.

“Player two. Left hand, blue.”

I choose the circle near her foot, bending down and placing my hand in the middle of it. I’m not sure if it was a dumb idea or the best one I’ve ever had because, my face is right in front of her spread legs. I look up at her, a cocky smile stretching across my lips before I bring my focus to where her thin black leggings cover her core. I honestly wasn’t expecting this to go my way so quickly, but the hours I spent researching and writing that essay are already paying off in spades.

“Player one. Right hand, blue.”

I internally fist-pump as her eyes go wide, realizing that there’s absolutely no other choice but to lean backward. It’ll put her in a crabwalk position, bringing her pussy even closer to my face than it is now. She takes a minute to work out the details, but there’s only one logical way to do this. I’m blocking the rest of the blue dots with my body, and if she uses the one between her legs, our faces will practically be touching.

She bends her knees and puts her hand on the blue spot behind her as I chuckle quietly. “You’re an ass,” she replies, but when I look at her, I notice how she’s biting back a smile.

“Player two. Right hand, green.”

Fucking perfect.

This couldn’t be better if I had rigged it myself. I have two choices. I can either bitch out and choose the green circle directly in front of my right foot, or I can make a move and essentially lay myself on top of her by skipping a couple.

I think for a fraction of a second before throwing caution to the wind and leaning over her, caging her body in with mine while making sure she doesn’t have room to adjust herself too much.

“Oh my God,” she mumbles. “You planned this.” Her tone is playful, so I match her energy as I paste a look of faux shock on my face.

“What?” I gasp. “I would never do that. It’s the way the game works, Sweets.”

“Yeah, okay,” she replies as the voice tells her what’s next.

“Player one. Right hand, blue.” It’s already there, so she doesn’t move. The app is set to spin every fifteen seconds, and I make the most of it, leaning forward just enough to put some weight on her. I can feel her limbs shaking as she attempts to hold herself up, wobbling more and more while I push into her.

“Player two. Left hand, red.”

She scoffs as I bite back a laugh, extending myself wider over her. The stretch forces me to press my body even tighter to hers, and she finally accepts defeat and falls to the floor, taking me with her. We both laugh as we crash down, our limbs a tangled mess until I’m lying on top of her with our faces just inches apart. We stay there for a while as the app continues spinning, unable to tear our gazes away. I know I should get up. I had my fun. I got close to her. But for some reason, I just can’t .

Seconds tick by as we lie there, and I take a chance because she’s so fucking pretty that I can’t stop myself. Bringing my hand up, I push a strand of golden hair from where it’s draped across her forehead. She leans into my touch, and even though I want to kiss her more than I want my next breath, I don’t. I’d be crushed if she rejected me, so it’ll have to be her decision to take this any further than some playful flirting.

“How’s that flexibility working for you?” I mock softly, making her shove me away in fake annoyance. I bark a laugh, pushing back onto my knees and standing before extending a hand to help her. She takes it, and sparks ignite under my skin as I pull her to her feet, stepping away as soon as she’s steady because I need to put some space between us. As much as I want to be close to her, I didn’t anticipate that the urge to press my lips to hers would get stronger the more I tried being her friend. It was already hard to fight before—now it’s damn near impossible.

“Well,” I say smugly, “as long as we’re both on the same page that I’m the superior Twister player, you’re free to go. I’ll let you off the hook on the night of fun business since it’s late, and we have planes to catch in the morning.”

She smiles, walks over to the bed, and picks up the bag of candy before reaching in and popping a piece into her mouth. “Fine,” she sasses. “But I’ll be practicing for next time. You won’t beat me twice.”

I scoff. “The only way you’re beating me is if we play with no clothes on because I’d be far too distracted to concentrate. But since that goes against your wholesome and fully clothed rules on our nights of fun, it looks like I’ll remain undefeated.”

She tilts her head, contemplating before closing the space between us. My eyes widen as she wraps a hand around the back of my neck, pulling me down and pushing to her tiptoes so her mouth is right next to my ear. “You know what they say. You’re only remembered for the rules you break.” She pulls back, smiling sweetly as I sit there gaping like a fish without a single human thought in my brain. “Good night, Ace.”

Sauntering toward the door, she exits the room, leaving me to wonder what the fuck just happened—and how I can get her to do it again.