30. Reed #2
When we make it back to the lodge, we all filter across the kitchen and living room.
Bobby instantly puts himself on the task of making more drinks, while Matteo and the brunette disappear completely.
Casper drags his girl to the sofa, pulling her into his lap, but then Knox and Beckett sandwich themselves on either side of him.
The woman doesn’t seem to mind, in fact, the second they sit down, she leans into Knox as he sticks his tongue down her throat, while Beckett moves in to drag his tongue up her neck, all the while Casper takes in the view.
“Why the fuck do they always insist on having an audience for that shit,” Bobby scoffs, rolling his eyes at the display, as if it’s something that happens all the time. And considering the lack of the reaction from the other Miles present, I guess it is.
“Let him be, you know he thrives on the attention,” Caden grunts, leaving the kitchen and then returning a minute later with a deck of cards in his hands.
This time Bobby groans audibly at the sight of them. “Really? You couldn’t go one night without gambling?” His question pulls a smirk out of Caden.
“I’m not gambling,” Caden argues, already shuffling the deck, with skillful hands that tell me he does this a lot.
"You always say that when denying your vices," Casper calls out from the sofa, still looking fully immersed in where the woman is now kissing Beckett.
"I don’t have vices," Caden replies, looking over at his twin, and I see the same look in his eyes that I saw earlier when he was watching Wilder.
It’s only now that I realize what it is. He worries about them, both of them, and I wonder if Wilder has ever noticed that fact.
"You literally own an illegal racing network that houses fighting pits," Wilder cuts in, pouring himself a drink that has a healthy amount of alcohol in it, as Bobby watches warily at his side.
"Allegedly," Caden smirks, his stare coming back to his cousin, and it’s the first time since he arrived that he seems genuinely relaxed and at ease.
The one word response from Caden, has Wilder’s stare hardening completely. “Yeah, you do a lot of things allegedly, don’t you, cousin?”
The shift is instant, the smirk is gone from Caden’s face instantly and he sighs as if he is deeply exhausted beyond his almost twenty years.
“Casper,” he calls gently, his eyes never leaving Wilder’s.
“Take the party to your room,” he gently commands.
And to my surprise, Casper obeys instantly, only groaning slightly at the interruption, but he is quick to stand, wrapping the girl's legs around his torso.
Knox and Beckett are quick to follow, both visibly hard and completely unashamed about that fact, as they stand and trail after their best friend, clearly not needing an invitation. Yep, they have definitely done this before.
Once they are out of sight, I prepare myself for whatever is about to happen, the tension more than brimming, but all Caden does is start to deal the cards. “The game is poker,” he exhales, dealing all of us a hand, but still he doesn’t take his eyes off Wilder.
Something has definitely happened, something I have clearly missed, but still I find myself reaching for the cards. “I like poker,” I mutter, hoping to ease the tension and force Wilder’s attention to me, and only then does he pick up the cards.
With Caden and Bobby both still watching him, he moves until he can slide into a stool beside me. “You’re about to lose,” he drawls, leaning in until our arms are touching, and I know it’s down to me to diffuse whatever is going on here.
“To whom?” I ask, taking my own seat, keeping us in full side by side contact, as I flick my stare to Caden, who is now watching us both.
“Me.”
“In your dreams,” I scoff, rolling my eyes, picking up my own cards and assessing them. Wilder might be an infamous party boy, but what does he think I did every weekend when I was at my father’s bullshit parties? I know how to play poker, and I know how to play it well.
Across the island Bobby looks offended, as he hands out the drinks he made to Caden and me, before dropping into a seat facing us. “Wow,” he muses, pulling Wilder’s stare to him.
“What?”
“You’re not even going to pretend I’m a threat?”
“Bobs, we have been playing poker together since we were thirteen and you haven’t won once.”
“I resent that statement,” Bobby snaps instantly and Caden’s smirk returns.
“Don’t be a sore loser, Rocky, we both know you have many talents, but poker isn’t one of them.” Caden’s voice is light and playful, and I don’t miss the unfamiliar nickname he uses for his friend.
Still, Bobby looks at him with nothing but betrayal. “Fucking traitor,” he curses, shaking his head, but still he smiles, and I can tell their friendship runs deep. “Let’s just fucking play,” he adds, downing a shot and pouring himself another.
After that the game begins, and I win the first hand quick and easy, making Bobby groan, impressing Caden, while Wilder accuses me of cheating.
“Beginner’s luck,” he huffs at my side, as I claw back the money we all tossed into the center.
“I’ve been playing since I was sixteen,” I reply, making him look completely outraged, before he huffs again.
“That’s still a beginner compared to me, Blue.”
At that I snort. “Big talk from someone who just lost.”
Across the island, Bobby snickers into his drink, “Oh this is going to be fun.”
The next hour passes in a blur of cards, alcohol, and increasingly ridiculous accusations, and through it all, I become more and more aware of the man sitting beside me.
He’s not touching me intentionally, just a bump of his knee here and a brush of his arm there, but it’s enough to have my entire body on high alert.
Still, I don’t pull away, I don’t stop him, and he knows it too.
“Don’t lose focus, Blue,” he sasses, slurring his words slightly, as more of the drinks take hold of him.
“I’m the only one who has won a hand aside from Caden,” I point out, considering the two of us have won an equal amount of games.
“Maybe I’m distracted,” he tries to claim, but I snort at his insinuation.