Playing Games (Endgame Series Book 3)

by Cara E Holt

  After taking a minute to compose myself, I head back out into the kitchen and search for the girls. Unfortunately for me, I find them sitting with Jake and Tyler and a group of other people outside. Tyler’s eyes meet mine briefly and he winks at me.

  “There you are!” Courtney exclaims. “Where on earth did you get to?”

  “There was a big queue for the bathroom,” I lie. I feel Tyler’s gaze on me and I chew self-consciously on my bottom lip. My phone comes to life, playing my ringtone from the greatest showman, and I blush with embarrassment as I fish it out of my pocket and move away to answer it.

  “Hey there, sweet cheeks.”

  I smile on hearing his voice. “Hey baby, how’s the party?”

  I hear him release a weary sigh. “Boring and tedious. What are you up to?”

  My eyes glance over to where my friends are and I find Tyler watching me. “I’m at a house party. It’s pretty boring, but it’s been nice to see people from home.”

  “Has anyone hit on you?” he asks possessively and with a nervous chuckle, I reply.

  “No, don’t be daft. What about you? Is the place crawling with pretty rich girls?”

  Grayson snorts. “Rich girls, yes, but pretty, no. I only have eyes for my girl.”

  I roll my eyes, even though he can’t see me. “Always the charmer.”

  “You know me, Manchester,” he replies dryly. “Seriously though, are you doing okay? I mean, it can’t be easy, being back home.”

  “It’s weird. It hurts, but at the same time, it’s oddly comforting. I feel closer to her here.”

  “That’s understandable Ev. I’m gutted I didn’t get to come with you. I want to see where you grew up.”

  I smile at his cuteness. “Next time, I promise. I love you.”

  “I love you too Manchester, never doubt that.”

  I scrunch my forehead at his reply. Why would I doubt him?

  He groans. “Shit, I got to go my dad’s beckoning me over. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”

  “See you tomorrow.”

  Gods, I miss him and it has only been one day. I know it sounds pathetic, but since we got together I haven’t really gone a day without seeing him, even if it was sometimes only brief.

  I WAKE UP IN THE MORNING with a splitting headache and the sound of my phone pinging non-stop. Groaning, and with my eyes still half-closed, I search the floor for my phone. Finally locating it, I lift it to my face and scan all the notifications. I sit up straighter when I see post after post of a photo of Grayson with his arm around the waist of some tall blonde girl. What the fuck? It’s Paige’s post, though that pisses me off more than the rest. She has shared the photo of Grayson and the mystery girl with the caption ‘couple goals.’

  My swearing and huffing must wake Izzy. She sits up and rubs her eyes. “What’s got you swearing like a sailor at this time of the morning?”

  I hold out my phone to her, and she takes a minute to look. “Who is she?” she asks me.

  “You tell me,” I growl with a dramatic shrug of my shoulders.

  “It’s probably nothing, Everly. You know what it’s like at these business networking parties.”

  “No, actually, I don’t,” I tell her angrily.

  Izzy sighs and waves her hand. “They’re full of pretentious people, and it’s all about being seen with the right people. Some press guy probably asked them to stand together and took the photo.”

  I huff and throw my phone down on the sofa. “Well, he better pray you are right because I am not happy.”

  I switch my phone off because I am too angry to deal with him right now. I decide to get up and cook a full English breakfast for us all.

  I hear Izzy on the phone talking in hushed tones to Dom, and I know they’re talking about the photo that is plastered all over social media.

  “What crawled up your arse this morning?” Courtney asks me as she devours the food on her plate like she hasn’t eaten in days. Her bed hair is all stuck up at funny angles and she has black panda eyes from leaving her makeup on last night.

  “Don’t ask,” I tell her, wanting to change the subject.

  Izzy sighs and holds out her phone to Courtney. “Oh, I see.”

  She and Izzy share a look.

  “Don’t do that,” I hiss. “Don’t have a silent conversation with your eyes.”

  Izzy offers me an apologetic smile and puts her hand over mine. “I just think you’re making much more of this than then you need to. Grayson adores you, Everly. He would never cheat on you.”

  “Says every girl, right before she gets cheated on,” I huff, tearing at my toast a little aggressively.

  “Remember that photo of you and Andrews? That was nothing but it looked like more. Just give him a chance to explain.”

  I sigh. She’s right. Before Grayson and I were official, a photograph was taken of Andrews and me at a club and it looked like we were a lot closer than we were. I pick up my phone and switch it on and message after message comes through from Grayson. All of them telling me the photo is nothing and asking me to please ring him.

  I wiggle the phone in my hand. “I’m going to go ring him,” I tell them, and I head outside into the backyard and sit myself on the bench under the kitchen window. I call his number and he picks up on the first ring.

  “Finally,” he says. “I have been trying to call you for the last hour.”

  “And I wonder why that is?” I reply in a deadpan tone.

  Grayson sighs. “That photo is nothing, Everly. She’s the daughter of one of my dad’s business pals. As a photographer was walking past, she grabbed me and asked him to take a photo.”

  “Mm-hmm.” I reply, picking at the nail varnish on my fingers and trying and failing to sound nonchalant.

  “I’d never cheat on you, Manchester. I adore the fucking ground you walk on,” he says in earnest, and deep down I know he means every word. My insecurities niggle in my head, telling me that everyone I love leaves me and I hate that I’m so needy.

  “You promise,” I whisper.

  “I swear, Manchester. There is nothing going on with that girl. Nothing.”

  I release a deep sigh. “I believe you, but if I see you with your arm around her waist again, then you and I have got problems posh.”

  “I promise,” he says, and I can hear the sincerity in his voice. “I love you.”

  “I love you too,” I reply. Sometimes, I think I love him too much and it scares the hell out of me how I’ll pick myself up if he ever leaves me.

  “How was your night last night?” He asks me, attempting to change the subject.

  I pause for a moment when I think back to that moment in the laundry room with Tyler. Here I am giving him grief for a photo, and I let Tyler touch my lips with his fingers. God, I was such a hypocrite.

  “It was okay. It’s strange being home. So much has changed. I’ve changed.”

  “You’re doing okay though?”

  I nod even though he can’t see me. “I am. I’m glad Izzy came with me though.”

  He sighs. “I wish I could get in my car and just drive to you and ditch this fucking weekend. I’ve got to play golf now with my dad and his business pals. I loathe them, Ev. They’re all pricks who think the world owes them something.”

  ‘Don’t let it get to you. You’re nothing like them so, just hold on to that thought.”

  I can feel his smile even though I can’t see him. “Can you send me a photo of your titties? That might make me feel better,” he asks me in a playful voice.

  “You’re unbelievable,” I laugh. “Use your imagination instead.”

  “Aw come on babe, I miss you. Just one photo.”

  I chuckle, feeling hot and flustered. “I’m in the garden, Grayson.”

  “Well, go upstairs.”

  “No.” I hiss, going red in the face, even though no one knows we are having this conversation. “Go play your golf and maybe, I’ll video call you later when I’m in the bath.”

  �
��Really?” his voice perks up. “I’ll hold you to that Manchester.”

  “Yeah, yeah, go and play with the rich pricks. I’ll see you later.”

  SATURDAY BECOMES A full on girl’s day. We take Izzy into Manchester and we hit the shops, and she gushes over what a vibrant city it is. We take her to the northern quarter and we eat in some cute bar before we eventually get the train back to my house. An hour later we’re all snuggled up in our PJ’s with lots of snacks and watching movies.

  “You have to come down and stay for the weekend, Courtney,” Izzy insists. “I think my brother would adore you.”

  Courtney’s eyebrows jerk up in interest. “Is this the twin brother?”

  “She’d eat Owen alive,” I snigger.

  “I think he’d like to be eaten alive,” Izzy says with a grin and a waggle of her eyebrows. She loads her spoon full of ice cream.

  I shake my head. “I have a hunch that Owen’s interest is already taken.”

  Izzy looks at me, shocked. “You do? Who?”

  I bob my head from side-to-side and shrug. “I don’t know, it could be nothing, but him and Ems seem to get on well.”

  Izzy’s eyes widen. “Well, I hope you’re wrong, because Grayson will murder him and I like my twin alive and breathing, even if he is an annoying dick most of the time.”

  I hope I’m wrong too, but there was something there. I was sure of it.

  “So, I know you’re all loved up and everything now, but don’t think I didn’t notice how Tyler couldn’t keep his eyes off you all last night.”

  I shuffle uncomfortably in my seat. “You did, huh? Kind of crazy isn’t it that I crushed on him all those years and then when I’m not available he tells me he’s into me.”

  “Shut the fucking front door!” Courtney exclaims, her mouth hanging open. She leans into my personal space, all eager. “Well, spill girl.”

  I sigh and fold my legs underneath me. “Last night he said, and I quote,” I create air quotes with my fingers, “I’ve wanted you for sometime. Then he said he wanted to know what I looked like in a morning wrapped up in his bedsheets.”

  “Holy fucking orgasms,” Courtney says, staring at me. “Wow.”

  Izzy whistles. “You’re not kidding. That is some panty-melting declaration.” Izzy licks her spoon before continuing on. “Who do you think would win in a fight between Grayson and Tyler?”

  “Tyler,” Courtney says straight away, and she shrugs her shoulders when I glare at her.

  “You haven’t met Grayson, so how can you be sure? Beside there will not be any fighting between Grayson and Tyler, because I told him in no uncertain terms that I wasn’t available.”

  “Good girl.” Izzy says with a resolute nod. “Obviously, I’d always be team Grayson because he’s my man’s best friend and I love how he is since he met you.”

  “What do you mean?” Courtney asks her with genuine interest.

  Izzy ponders over her question for a few seconds, twirling her ponytail around her fingers. “It’s hard to explain, but he’s lighter, he’s more relaxed and he smiles and laughs a lot more than he ever did. Grayson hasn’t had many people rooting for him in life, but he knows he has Everly now, and it’s made him a better person.”

  Courtney sighs and puts her hand over her heart. “Young love, hey!” Before she is distracted by the movie. “Okay, shush now, this is Swayze at his best.”

  WE’RE ALL SETTLED IN and about to start our second movie when there is a loud knock at the door. I look at Izzy and Courtney, puzzled.

  “Are you expecting anyone?”

  Both of them shake their heads and I climb up off the sofa and pad in my slipper socks to the door.

  “Jake, Tyler.” I say in total surprise when I find them on the doorstep.

  Jake grins and rocks back on his heels with his hands in his pockets. “We were at a loose end and thought we’d call and see what you girls were up to.”

  I feel Tyler’s eyes scan my body from head to toe and I blush slightly when I remember I’m in short bed shorts and a vest top.

  “Who is it?” Courtney asks as she comes up behind me and peeks over my shoulder. “Oh, hey, guys. This is a surprise. Well, don’t just stand there, Everly, let the boys in.”

  I guess it looks like they were coming in. In stunned silence, I step back and hold the door open. Jake walks past me and gives me a cheeky wink.

  Tyler stops as he passes me. ‘Is this okay, because we can go if it’s not?”

  I shake off my surprise and smile. “No, honestly, it’s fine. Go through.”

  I mean, it was fine, right? Tyler and I can be friends.

  Taking a deep breath, I close the front door and follow them through into the front room.

  Jake has already thrown himself down on the mattress beside Courtney, and he cracks open a beer. Tyler is half sitting on the arm of the sofa and it’s then I notice the massive shiner over his right eye.

  “What happened to you?” I ask him, staring at his swollen eye.

  I see Tyler exchange a look with Jake. “Nothing I can’t handle.”

  I gesture to the door. “Come on, you need ice on that.”

  I hear his footsteps behind me as I walk through to the kitchen and pull the bag of ice out of the freezer.

  “Sit.” I tell him and he jumps up and sits himself on the kitchen worktop. I decant some ice into a tea towel and I secure it inside by knotting the towel. Tyler watches me in silence.

  “Here,” I stop in front of him and hold it up to his eye and he hisses. “Sorry,”

  He smiles then, his blue eyes sparkling with warmth. “Thanks.”

  “Who’s responsible for this then?”

  Tyler grunts and frowns. “It’s a long story. My mum’s latest shit-bag boyfriend left. He left my mum to bring up five kids on her own and he also left a load of debt. Moneys been tight, so I’ve been doing some jobs for Doyle.”

  My eyes shoot up. “Doyle! Are you serious, Tyler??”

  Tyler sighs. “Don’t judge me pretty girl. I needed to make some easy money to keep a roof over our heads.”

  “Doyle is bad news,” I tell him, shaking my head.

  “I’m a big boy, Taylor. I can take care of myself.”

  I have seen Tyler get into scraps before and he could throw down. I’ve seen him put more than a few guys on their arses in the past, but Doyle was a known local dealer. He runs most of the doors of the pubs and clubs around south Manchester.

  Tyler reaches out and examines my pendant, turning it over with his fingers. He says the words engraved on the back out loud.

  “Is this a song lyric?”

  I chuckle. “No, it’s a quote from a classic book.”

  Tyler smirks and looks back up at me. “Well, pardon me,” he says in a posh voice. “Did your fancy boyfriend get you this?”

  I gently pull my pendant from his fingers. “Grayson isn’t fancy,” I protest, and he holds his hands out in surrender.

  “Sorry. But seriously, what’s it like, living the rich life?”

  I sigh. “It’s the same shit, just in a nicer house with nicer cars. Life is still hard, people get hurt, families let each other down. Money doesn’t equal happiness.”

  He nods, listening intently to my words. “You belong in this world, Taylor, not that one.” Before I can register what he’s doing, he reaches out and snags my vest top in his fingers and yanks me towards him, his lips landing on mine.

  What the fuck! I take a second to realise what is actually happening, but as soon as I’m over the shock, I yank myself backwards and stagger away from him.

  “What the actual fuck, Tyler?”

  His response is to offer me a lazy, self-assured grin. “I wanted to kiss those pretty lips.”

  My chest rises and falls heavily. “You can’t just kiss someone like that. I have a boyfriend.”

  “We’d have been good together, you and me, Everly Taylor.”

  I sigh and shake my head. “Maybe in another life, but not thi
s one, Ty. My life is down south now.”

  “You could come back home, though. I mean this house is yours, right?”

  “It is. Yes, I could come back, but I’m likely going away to university in September.”

  He grins, running a hand through his bleached hair. “You always were too good for this town. I don’t blame you for escaping.”

  I take the towel from him and empty the melting ice-cubes into the sink. “I didn’t escape Tyler. I lost my mum, and I had no choice but to live with my dad. I didn’t ask to be uprooted half way through my a-levels and to move to a place where I know no one. If you think this last year has been easy for me, it hasn’t.”

  Tyler nods in understanding. “You’re right, but I meant what I said. You were always too good for this town. Not like me, I’ll likely live and die here.”

  I frown. “You don’t know that.”

  “Don’t I?” He asks, one brow cocked. “There’s no university for me. I have to stick around and take care of my mum and my brothers and sisters. Pick up the pieces from my mum’s latest heartbreak.”

  We both remain silent for a few seconds before Tyler cracks a smile. “I need a beer and some weed.”

  “Knock yourself out, Fury,” I say teasing him as I follow him back into the front room. Jake and Courtney are wrestling over the remote as he tries to turn off the chick flick and put on something with more action.

  Izzy is sitting watching the movie, ignoring them like a parent does when they have had enough of their kids fighting. Well, she is staring at the screen, but she looks a million miles away.

  “Earth to Izzy,” I say as I sit down beside her.

  She blinks and shakes her head. “Sorry, I was lost in my thoughts.” Izzy looks at me and then at Tyler, who throws himself down in the seat on the other side of me and opens himself a beer. “Everything okay?”

  I nod. “Yeah, course.”

  Everything is okay. Coming home has made me realise that my life has moved on. Yes, this place is home and I will always have so many happy memories of my life growing up here, but with mum gone, it doesn’t feel the same. There is this huge gaping hole and being here just reminds me how much I miss her. I am ready to go home, to my dad and my family and my guy. If you’d have told me all those months ago as I boarded that plane down to Heathrow that I would be feeling this way, I would have laughed and said that would never happen.