Chapter Fifteen – Noelle #3
“Also involves a team that collectively decided to lose,” I finish for him. “Personally, I don’t see the difference.” Turning my gaze to Felix, the banker himself, I ask, “Is it any different?” I might bat my eyelashes a bit extra at him.
“Well…” I can tell just by the way he says that single word that he’s not going to side with Nico. “No, it’s not that different. I don’t think there’s anything in the rulebook that explicitly says people can’t work together—”
Nico can only stare at his twin from across the coffee table. The three alphas sit arranged on the floor, while Miranda and I lean over from the couch. “Are you saying you’ve actually read the rulebook for this game?”
“Yeah, so?”
“So? So? You admit to reading a rulebook for a board game and all you have to say for yourself is so?” Nico cannot hide his outrage, as silly as it might be. “I had no idea you were such a loser, bro. Who does that?”
“They include a rulebook for a reason” is Felix’s only defense.
“Yeah, they include it so people can choose to ignore it and play by whatever rules they want. You mean to say this whole time we’ve actually been playing the game?”
“Well, yeah, what did you think we were doing?”
Nico shrugs. “I don’t know! Playing a weird knock-off version that has no rules like the wild west!”
Before Felix can respond, Matteo lays down what’s left of his money in the center of the board and says, “I fold.”
“This isn’t poker,” Nico mutters. “You can’t fold.”
Felix nods along with his twin, their argument already forgotten about when he says, “He’s right. You can’t fold.”
“I’m folding,” Matteo says again, firm. “The girls win. We lose.” His green gaze flicks to Nico when he adds under his breath, “Get over it.”
“Fine,” Nico says, tossing his money in the center, too. “I fold, too, but I do need to know something.” He leans forward and sets his hands on the coffee table, like he’s at a desk or something and trying to appear studious. “Have you read every manual for every game in that stack?”
Felix doesn’t say a word, and in doing so, his silence speaks volumes.
“No. No, no, no.” The way the other alpha sounds, you’d think he just found out Felix betrayed him or something, not that he read the instruction manuals for board games.
“Tell me you didn’t. Tell me you’re lying!
You have to be lying! Tell me you’re not a—” He pauses for what must be dramatic effect. “—nerd?”
I giggle. I can’t help it. The way he says that final word makes it sound like he’s saying something else. It’s so over-the-top, so silly, that I can’t take him seriously.
“And if I am a nerd, so what?” Felix shoots back. “One of us needs to pay attention to the fine print, and it sure as hell isn’t going to be you or Matteo.” When he’s brought up, Matteo frowns—but then he must realize he’s right, and that frown gives way to an uncaring expression.
Nico deadpans, “I don’t even know who you are right now, bro. You’re a stranger to me. A stranger!”
While the twins go at it, I whisper to Miranda, “Is this usually how these games go?” It is fun, watching them go back and forth, I’ll admit, but I wasn’t expecting it to devolve into this so quickly.
“Usually not so fast, but yes,” she says. “They’re impossible sometimes, but hey, they’re your impossible alphas now.”
If that’s supposed to be comforting, it isn’t—but at least I know life will never be boring with them.
It isn’t too long before Felix gives up and declares a joint victory in my and Miranda’s names, and he works on putting everything away neatly, including the piles of money that are no longer stacked based on value.
While he does that, Matteo asks, “What do you want to play next, Noelle? Since you won, you should pick.”
I glance at the stack that had been moved to the floor behind Felix so the coffee table would be completely cleared off. There are a few games I’ve never heard of, along with some I’ve only seen played in movies or TV shows.
“Is charades the one where you act out your word?” I ask. The others nod. “Let’s do that one next.”
“Okay, well, there’s five of us,” Felix rattles off. “So we can either have uneven teams, or one of us can sit out and be the timer.”
Nico practically trips over his words when he says, “I want to be on Noelle’s team!”
“That’s not—” Felix pauses and sighs. I’d bet anything he was probably going to say he wanted to be on my team.
“Why can’t it be girls against meatheads?” Miranda asks.
“Nuh-uh. You two teamed up at the last game and kicked our asses. This time, we’re making the executive decision to keep you two apart,” Nico says, lifting two fingers in front of his eyes and then flicking those same two fingers toward his sister, wordlessly telling her he’s going to keep an eye on her.
Matteo grunts, “I’ll keep the time and let you four look like fools.”
Beside me, Miranda frowns. “Fine. Felix, looks like you and me are on the same side. You better not play horribly so your mate’ll win.” When she says that, she gives her teammate a knowing look, and Felix only looks sheepish.
Oh, yeah. I think Nico and I have this in the bag.