44. Chapter 39 #2
"It’s just Bas," she murmured to herself, taking a deep breath before opening the door. So she tried not to let it show that her heart was beating just a little faster.
"And there he was—standing on her doorstep, looking completely different than usual. A polo shirt and chino pants, his signature smirk in place, making him look straight out of a movie scene. His hair was neatly combed and styled. Still hot—but different.
Her heart skipped a beat.
He didn’t belong here. Not in her neighborhood. And somehow, that only made her more nervous.
It was the first time he was coming over, and even though she knew he probably hadn’t expected anything specific, she still felt a twinge of embarrassment.
There was no hiding the fact that they had just a normal house.
Their entire home could probably fit into the garden of his estate—and still leave room for a tennis court.
"Hey," he said, his voice low, pulling her from her thoughts.
"Hey," she breathed. "Come in."
Bas stepped inside, letting his gaze wander through the living room, which was both cozy and—like always—a little messy. Board games stacked on the coffee table, a throw blanket draped over the couch. His eyes lingered on a few details, and her throat went dry as she tried to read his expression.
"You’re kidding, right?" Bas muttered, his eyes landing on the small deck of cards on the table.
Evin followed his gaze—and instantly turned red.
"What? That? That’s not for you. I just... I play it sometimes to distract myself."
"UNO?" Bas raised an eyebrow, his smirk deepening as he sat down on the couch, looking way too comfortable. "Alone?"
Evin let out a laugh. Okay, that was possibly the worst excuse she could have come up with.
"To keep us from getting any dumb ideas," she admitted, feeling her cheeks grow warmer.
"You don’t need to justify it." Bas reached for the cards, shuffling them with casual ease. "I mean, there are worse ways to spend time together."
Evin grinned. "Just wait until you lose."
Bas cocked an eyebrow. "Challenge accepted. But let’s make it interesting. We play with stakes. The winner gets to make a demand."
"A demand?" Evin repeated, settling beside him. "What kind of demand?"
His playful gaze met hers as he started dealing the cards. "Something that forces the other to step out of their comfort zone."
Evin laughed, her eyes sparkling. "Okay, but no backing out. Rules are rules."
She wasn’t usually one for games. But for him? She’d play every ridiculous game in the world.
Bas nodded with a ghost of a smile. "Let the games begin."
The first round went to Bas. He laid his final card down with dramatic flair, stretching his arms out in triumph.
"So, what do you want?" Evin asked, stacking the cards while barely glancing up.
Bas leaned back against the couch, his gaze challenging. "I want you to tell me a secret. Something you’ve never told anyone before."
Evin hesitated. For a moment, she looked like she was weighing her options, then she bit her lip and looked up at him.
"Okay…" She lowered her voice, as if she were revealing a state secret. "Last summer, I snuck out in the middle of the night and went to the beach alone. I thought it would be… freeing or something to go skinny-dipping. But looking back, I was probably just lonely."
Bas stared at her, the corner of his mouth twitching upward. "Skinny-dipping? Alone?" A mischievous smile spread across his face. "Why didn’t you call me? I would’ve happily kept you company."
Evin raised an eyebrow, her embarrassment fading into playful annoyance. "Oh yeah? I doubt you had time for midnight swims back then." She paused, then looked him straight in the eye. "You were… busy."
Bas’s smile faltered for the briefest second before he recovered, his grin turning cautious. "Busy? What do you mean?"
Evin let her fingers glide over the deck of cards as if the answer was unimportant, but her voice carried a trace of defiance.
"Well, last summer, you were a little preoccupied with… Antonia. Or whatever her name was." She wagged a teasing finger in front of his face.
"Oh." A flicker of amusement crossed Bas’ face. He exaggeratedly scratched his chin, pretending to think. "Antonia?"
Oh, the way his lips twitched in amusement… it was making her blood boil.
"You know exactly who I mean."
"Antonella? Oh, right. That was a thing." He glanced at her raised finger before looking back up at her, his grin widening.
Then, without warning, he laughed. A full, unguarded, heart-stopping laugh. And somehow, that annoyed her even more.
Instead of responding, he suddenly leaned forward, pressed a quick, exaggerated kiss to her cheek, and murmured in a deep voice, “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, you know that?”
Evin jerked back, her heartbeat stumbling, and she sucked in a breath. With a huff, she grabbed the cards and started shuffling, a small smirk tugging at her lips.
Bas leaned back, satisfied, watching her with that look that still managed to knock the ground from under her feet. “Come on, Hayes. Admit it—jealousy looks good on you.”
Evin scoffed, shooting him a pointed look. “You're flattering yourself too much, Montgomery.”
But inside, she battled the warmth spreading through her chest. He could so effortlessly break down the walls she had built around herself—and that scared her more than she was willing to admit.
“Well,” Bas mused with a self-satisfied grin, “you’re the one who started talking about midnight skinny-dipping. Who knows what else I might learn about you?”
Evin froze for a split second, her fingers halting mid-movement. A pang shot through her chest—something she wanted to push away as quickly as it had come.
“A girl’s gotta keep some things to herself.” She murmured, her tone light but laced with hesitation. Instinctively she started shuffling the cards again. Her hands suddenly felt strangely cold. Don’t think, Evin .
Bas watched her with that keen gaze—like he had noticed the slight crack in her armor. But instead of pushing, he let the game carry on.
Still, Evin won the next round. She clapped her hands in triumph. “My turn. I want you to… dance on the coffee table.”
Bas raised an eyebrow, glancing between her and the table like she had just ordered him to run a marathon in shackles. “The coffee table? You’re joking.”
“I’m not.” Evin leaned back, folding her arms smugly. “Rules are rules.”
He hesitated, the corner of his mouth twitching with amusement. “That thing wouldn’t even hold my weight.”
Evin shrugged, a glint of challenge lit up her face. “Fine, we’ll save that for later. On a more… stable surface.”
She winked, feeling a rush from the hint of hesitation in his expression. “Okaay, you’re off the hook. Then answer a question.”
Bas shot her a wary glance, intrigued. “What kind of question?”
“What’s one thing you don’t like about me?”
Bas groaned. “That’s brutal,” he muttered, briefly breaking eye contact, as if hoping she’d ask for something easier. “Can’t I do something else instead…?”
"Are you chickening out?" she cut in, her voice carrying a touch more challenge than before.
Bas let out a dry chuckle, but his amusement faded quickly.
Running a hand through his hair, he met her gaze again.
“Mmh... fine. Maybe it’s about time I say this.
” He hesitated for a second, carefully choosing his words as the room around them fell into silence.
“I don’t like that I still feel like you’re not letting me in.
” His voice was quieter now, more genuine.
“I can’t shake the feeling that… that you won’t let yourself be mine. ”
Evin’s heartbeat quickened, her fingers pausing mid-shuffle, the cards now half-mixed in her hands. His gaze pinned her down—too intense, too honest. It was as if he could see through the barriers she had carefully built, right into the parts of her she wasn’t sure she was ready to face.
“Maybe I do want to be yours,” she murmured, so softly it was barely more than a whisper between them.
Bas’ smirk vanished instantly. For a moment, it seemed like she had struck something in him that he hadn’t expected.
His eyes widened slightly before he caught himself.
His fingers toyed restlessly with a card, his shoulders giving the barest twitch.
A smile returned, but it was softer now—real, without its usual arrogance.
“You’re serious,” he finally said, his voice lower, with a trace of surprise. He paused, his eyes searching her face. Maybe for an explanation. Or for a lie he couldn’t seem to find.
Evin didn’t break his gaze, though every fiber of her being wanted to shrink into the couch and disappear. “I guess you won’t find out in this round,” she deflected, hoping to shift the conversation away from the growing tension.
The final round was quieter, the weight of unspoken words hanging between them. Both played their cards with careful focus, though Bas kept trying to break her concentration with looks that made her stomach flip. But this time, she held firm. Finally, she slapped her last card onto the table.
“Uno!” she called out, leaning back with satisfaction. “I win.”
Bas let his cards drop into his lap, crossing his arms with exaggerated defeat. “Alright, queen of the game. What’s your prize?”
Evin leaned forward over the table, her voice quiet, but full of playful mischief. “Take off your clothes.”
“Excuse me?” Bas asked, though his grin only widened.
“You lost,” she said innocently, leaning back and crossing her arms. “I’m just claiming my prize.”
“Alright then,” Bas murmured, his smile shifting into something slower, lazier—something that made the heat in her cheeks intensify.
He grabbed the hem of his shirt, peeling it off with an almost obnoxious slowness, inch by inch revealing the toned skin beneath.
The fabric slid over his chest, exposing the sharp lines of his muscles and the dips of his abs, catching the dim light in a way that softened the edges of his frame, made him look almost unreal.
Damn.
Evin felt her pulse stutter.
His body was solid and strong, every flex of his muscles visible beneath his skin.
A body made for trouble.
Her eyes betrayed her, trailing unbidden over his broad shoulders, the defined planes of his stomach, lower, lower still.
“Like what you see?” Bas teased, his voice dripping with amusement, as his fingers moved to the buckle of his belt.
Evin grinned right back. “Keep going, pretty boy.”
The soft clink of metal rang through the room.
“ You asked for it,” he murmured, letting the belt fall to the floor with an effortless flick.
He unbuttoned his chinos, pushing them just enough to hang low on his hips. The fabric fell in an unbothered motion—because of course, only Bas could make undressing look so natural.
Evin bit her lip, her heart now hammering in her chest so loudly she swore he could hear it. Her eyes locked on him as he stilled, hands resting at his sides, the barest trace of smug amusement playing at his lips.
“Happy?” he asked, his voice lower now, quieter.
“More…” was all she could manage. The lump in her throat grew as Bas moved his hands toward the waistband of his boxers.
He pulled them down just a little. Just enough. Provocatively slow.
Until… The faint click of heels outside the door.