Played (Playing Games Book 2)

by Rebecca Barber

  His words should’ve scared me. We had shit that needed to be sorted out, but none of it mattered. Right now, I wanted exactly what Bryce wanted. I wanted it hard. I wanted it fast. And I wanted it all-consuming.

  My hesitation must’ve rattled him.

  “Em, I want you so fucking bad…” His voice was desperate and strained.

  “Prove it.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  BRYCE

  Beside me, Emma snored like a freaking freight train, but I didn’t give a toss. She was still here that’s all that mattered. Rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, I crept from the bed and pulled on a pair of shorts. I couldn’t blame her for still being zonked out despite the fact the sun was already high in the sky and the temperature was rising. We’d been at it most of the night and as much fun as I’d had, I was too afraid to look at my dick in case I saw chafing. It wouldn’t surprise me. I’d been the one to throw the challenge out there that I was going to fuck her until she couldn’t walk, but it was a challenge she was more than able to meet.

  After checking she was still out for the count, I grabbed my key card and slipped out the door making a beeline for the buffet. After the amount of calories we burnt last night, Emma had earned a plate full of pastries.

  Trying to be as sneaky as possible, I ignored everyone and started filling plates. Flaky croissants, Danishes, fresh pineapple, strawberries, mangoes, and bite-sized muffins. Anything that could be put aside and eaten later if needed.

  I managed to grab our food and get halfway back to my villa when I was stopped by the happy, smiling newlyweds. They were both beaming so bright I needed sunglasses just to deal with them.

  “Morning,” I greeted them reluctantly.

  As keen as I was to get back to my bed and back to Emma, I’d run into them face to face on a path. It wasn’t like I could pretend I didn’t see them.

  “Hungry this morning, are you, Bryce?” Tash asked knowingly.

  “Starving,” I replied, playing along.

  “Worked hard last night, did you?” Logan joined in.

  “Very hard. Very, very hard. All night long.”

  “And on that note, I’m taking my bride to breakfast. If you can drag yourself out of bed later, join us for lunch by the pool?” Logan offered.

  “We’ll be there,” I agreed.

  As much as I wanted to stay wrapped in my little Emma bubble, I wasn’t going to be a complete prick. The whole reason we were here in paradise was for Tash and Logan. Seeing them so bloody happy made me start to believe I could have that too. It was way too soon to be thinking about diamond rings and happily ever afters – I’m pretty sure Emma would junk-punch me if I dropped to one knee today – but maybe one day soon, it’d be my turn.

  With hope flowing through my body, I hurried towards my villa only to freeze mid-step, the pastries falling to the ground around my feet.

  Standing in front of me with a wide-brim hat, huge dark glasses that covered most of her face, teeny tiny skirt and a bikini top that might have well been nipple covers for all the coverage they provided, was the devil herself…Madeline Higgins.

  “What the fuck are you doing here?” I growled, stepping over the mess and moving towards her.

  “I’m on vacation,” she replied innocently.

  Innocent my fucking arse. There were a million and one other places she could’ve gone . Hell, there were a hundred other resorts in Fiji she could be at. Why the hell did she have to be at mine? Emma was going to kill me if she found out. She couldn’t find out. Not when I’d just got her back. There was no way I was giving her up again.

  “Well, vacate somewhere else,” I snarled as I pushed past her, more eager than ever to get back to Emma.

  “Bryce. Don’t be like that. We were friends once,” Madeline pleaded, and I didn’t know whether to believe her or not. She was an actress after all. She knew how to turn on the waterworks to get what she wanted.

  “No, Madeline, we weren’t. I was friends with a girl I grew up with; Maddy. She was fun. She was honest. I’d be friends with her again. But this version, this manipulative, sly, underhanded Madeline you’ve become... Her I’m not interested in knowing.” I knew I sounded like a down right prick, but she needed to hear it. And if she didn’t hear it from me, then who was going to tell her?

  “Please, Bryce. I have no one.”

  “I’m sorry, Madeline. You don’t have me either.”

  “Oh.”

  “I have to get back…”

  “To her?”

  “Excuse me?” I spun around and pinned her with the harshest glare I could conjure.

  “I saw you last night. Carrying some tart around on your shoulder. You walked straight by me. You didn’t even see me. You were too busy arguing with her.”

  Sighing, I didn’t want to do this. When I’d woken up this morning, Emma naked beside me, tangled in my sheets, I felt something, happy maybe for the first time in months, and I’d been determined not to let anything derail that. I’d fight to hold on to that feeling, no matter the cost.

  “Doesn’t that tell you something, Madeline? I’d rather argue with Emma than see you.” Her overly Botoxed face almost had a movement. Almost. I think if it could’ve, she may have actually frowned. “I’m moving to Sydney. For her. For Emma.”

  “You are?” Came a surprised voice from behind me, and I spun around to see a sight that almost dropped me to my knees. Emma was standing there looking like everything I’d ever wanted. She was wearing a pair of my boxers and my shirt from last night, the buttons misaligned. Her hair was a knotted, matted mess. She had dark rings under her eyes and her lips were still swollen from my kisses. And I’d never seen anything so beautiful.

  Ignoring Madeline, I moved towards Emma, wrapped her in my arms and kissed her. When she pulled back, she giggled and there was no doubt about it. I was done for.

  With her arms clinging to my neck, she looked up at me with wide, tentative eyes. “You’re moving to Sydney?” she asked.

  “I am.”

  “For me?” Emma couldn’t hide her nerves, and the truth was, I didn’t want her to. I liked seeing her like this. Raw. Honest. Real.

  “For us,” I confirmed. “My trade will be announced in a couple of days. I’ve signed a two-year contract and I’ve been looking at houses.”

  Her whole face lit up like a kid on Christmas morning. “That’s why you’ve been in Sydney?”

  “Yep.”

  As relief flooded her, Emma fell against me, using me to keep her standing. Not that it was a hardship.

  “What about me?” Madeline whisper-yelled dramatically, not that you’d expect anything less from a diva.

  “What about you?” I dared.

  “You can’t just leave me for…for her! I mean, look at her. The media expect…”

  I wasn’t about to stand here and listen to this shit and there was no way I was going to allow Madeline to disrespect Emma.

  “The media expect Bryce to be happy. They expect him to play good football. That’s it. And even if they do expect more, who gives a flying fuck? As long as he’s happy, we’re happy, the media can go sit on a cactus for all I care.”

  Seeing Emma go all mama bear was a huge fucking turn on. She may have been on the back foot where Madeline had been concerned in the past, but no more. She wasn’t going to let the little wannabe starlet make her feel like anything less than what she was. And she was fucking fantastic.

  “He’s out of your league,” Madeline tossed back nastily.

  Emma’s hold on me loosened as she moved towards Madeline. They couldn’t have looked any more different if they tried. One looked like she’d just stepped off the page of a magazine, the other looked like she’d crawled out of my bed after a hard night. And for me, there was no question which one I wanted to take home.

  “You’re right. He is. But you know what, Maddy?” Emma asked, poking her finger into Madeline’s chest, making her wince. “He chose me. Maybe he’s nuts. Maybe he likes to s
lum it. Maybe he just likes the way I suck his cock. I don’t know. But I do know, you’re going to turn around and take your self-entitled, fake boobs and get the fuck out of our face. Bryce and I are busy getting on with our lives. I suggest you do the same.”

  I was gobsmacked.

  I was turned on.

  I looked at Madeline who looked like she’d just had the bitch slap of a lifetime as Emma reached for my hand. I didn’t hesitate as she led me back to my room. This was exactly where I wanted to be and who I wanted to be with.

  The moment the door clicked closed behind us, Emma dropped my hand and threw herself on the bed. Covering her face with her hands she started mumbling something completely unintelligible. Pulling her hands away, I heard her mutterings. “I can’t believe I just did that. What the hell have I done?” It was on repeat and cute as hell.

  “You just fixed the only problem we had standing in our way.”

  “Our way of what?” Emma asked as she propped herself up on her elbows.

  “Getting the life we deserve.” I shrugged like it was nothing.

  “Did you mean it?”

  “Mean what?”

  “Are you really moving to Sydney?” Emma asked again. It was almost like she couldn’t believe it was real.

  “Yeah I am.”

  “When?”

  “Keen are you?” Emma didn’t answer. She didn’t have to. The look on her face said it all. “I have to go back to Adelaide when I get home and pack up my shit, then I’m there. Providing you can help me with a little problem I seem to be having.”

  “What’s that?”

  “We need to pick a house.”

  “We?”

  “You didn’t think I was going to move all the way to Sydney and live by myself, did you? Besides, a little birdie told me your lease is up next month anyway. So, what do you say? Wanna be my roomie?”

  Finally, everything was in place. Madeline had been dealt with, in such an impressive fashion even I was in awe of Emma’s smack down. The ink on my transfer contract was dry. And I had the girl of my dreams in my arms.

  “Did you really just ask me to be your roomie?”

  Shit! Did I move too fast? Did I say the wrong thing? Did I just fuck this all up again? Scratching the back of my neck, I mumbled, “Ah, yeah.”

  “And if I say no?”

  “Do you want to say no?”

  “Bryce, I don’t want to be your roommate.” My stomach sank. “But I will be your girlfriend. I mean, if you want.”

  Oh, thank fuck. I was half expecting to be kneed in the nuts. I was relieved but I wasn’t about to make it easy for her. Life with Emma was never going to be boring, thank god. I couldn’t imagine going from a life lived at full speed to wearing matching sweaters, TV dinners and early evening game shows. That just wasn’t us. Thank fuck.

  Climbing on the bed, I hovered over her careful to keep my weight off her. Emma’s eyes widened as she wriggled about. When we were face to face, I leaned in really close. Close enough I could smell her hair and see the way her pupils dilated. “Em, I’d love you to be my girlfriend on one condition.”

  Swallowing deeply, I watched her neck move and it took everything I had not to lean in and lick it. I loved the way she tasted, and I was ravenous for more. “Wh-what’s that?” she stuttered.

  “You’re my live-in girlfriend,” I confirmed strongly.

  “I might be able to arrange that.”

  “Well, sweetheart, you better. Cause we’re either shacking up in your apartment or we can find somewhere together. I’m not sleeping apart from you another night.”

  Emma lifted so I could feel her breath against my skin. Looking exactly like the minx who’d consumed me that first night in a hotel room, Em’s confidence bubbled as she said with a wink, “Who said anything about sleeping?”

  The End.

  TWELVE MONTHS LATER

  BRYCE

  Emma squealed as she threw her wrap dress on the sand and ran towards the water before diving in with a splash. It’d been twelve months since we were last standing on this stretch of sand and so much had changed. I’d played my first season in Sydney and we’d walked away as premiers. What made the victory even sweeter though was we’d taken on Logan’s highly fancied Melbourne team and we’d won. Emma and I hadn’t killed each other yet, which was honestly a bit surprising. Living together had definitely tested us in ways we hadn’t been prepared for. I’d had to learn to live with the pantry being stocked with all the chocolate and chips and cakes I couldn’t have, and she’d had to put up with my late-night video gaming habits. But we’d made it.

  Watching her bounce around in the water in that barely there red bikini wasn’t easy. After dropping our pile of crap on the sand, I followed her in. The water here in Fiji was incredible. Warm and crystal clear.

  “Hey pretty girl. Come here often?” I asked as I wrapped my arms around her waist pulling her against me.

  One thing that hadn’t changed in the time we’d been together was how much I wanted her. All it took was one look, one smile, one sassy comment and she had me eating out of the palm of her hand. Or eating her. Neither of which she ever seemed to complain about.

  “Only with my boyfriends,” she confirmed before popping a kiss on my cheek, breaking my hold and swimming away.

  If I hadn’t thought she could look any sexier, then I was wrong. With her long hair trailing out behind her like a veil, she duck dived poking her butt up in the air. This next week was going to be fun.

  After the chaos of finals, then grand final week, I’d somehow managed to convince Emma to take a couple of weeks off and come away with me. We’d spent hours going back and forth about where we wanted to go, but in the end, Fiji won out. A week of relaxing on a beach with our only worry being if we were going to be out of bed in time to make it to the buffet for breakfast sounded like heaven to me.

  For the rest of the day we laid on the beach, drank cocktails, well Emma drank cocktails which I stuck to beer. There was something wrong with drinking from a glass that was decorated with flowers and fruit and umbrellas no matter how good they tasted.

  By the time night fell, Emma was so relaxed she was practically purring. I don’t know if it was the drinks, the sun or the sex – it didn’t matter. She was putty in my hands.

  “I don’t want to get dressed,” she complained, rolling over in the bed.

  “Come on! Get your butt up and moving. We have reservations.”

  “But I don’t want to!”

  Grabbing the sheet, I yanked it off her leaving her completely bare and stretched out. Reaching down I adjusted my cock which was finding life again as I tried to remember why I was asking her to put some clothes on. Some days, I really was an idiot.

  “Out of bed. You have twenty minutes.” With a slap on her butt, I watched her sashay across the room before disappearing into the bathroom. Damn woman was going to be the death of me, but fuck me, what a way to go.

  We were late.

  It wasn’t my fault.

  When Emma had reappeared wearing a short blue sundress that barely covered her arse and those pointless spaghetti straps, I couldn’t stop myself from bending her over the sofa and making her scream one more time. Besides, it was her fault. How could she expect me to restrain myself when she accidentally on purpose forgot to put on her underwear?

  “Where are you taking me?” Emma asked clinging to my arm as I led her down the path.

  It’d taken some organising and some sneaky shenanigans, but thanks to Mum’s help, I was assured everything was in place.

  Rounding the corner, I came to a stop and Emma gasped beside me.

  Sitting in the middle of the path was a dining table set for two. Surrounded by lanterns, fairy lights were wrapped around the trees and the white tablecloth danced on the breeze.

  “Wh-what’s this?” Emma asked, unsure.

  “Our dinner plans,” I offered vaguely before leading her to her seat.

  I was nervous as fuck. S
weating bullets. Even though I’d known this was coming, even though this was something I’d planned for, something I’d been thinking about for weeks now the time was here and I was freaking out.

  “Didn’t they have room in the restaurant?”

  Ignoring her question, I leaned over, grabbed the bottle of champagne and popped the cork. It wasn’t my night. Champagne overflowed covering my hand and fingers. Emma, being as unhelpful as she was giggled.

  Setting the bottle back down, I looked down at her and saw a happiness reflected in her eyes. It didn’t matter that I was wearing more of the bubbles than was in the glasses but then again it wouldn’t have mattered if we were sitting at home in our pyjamas, stuffing our faces with popcorn watching a movie. Just us together worked.

  I’d planned to wait until dessert was served.

  I couldn’t.

  Dropping to my knee, Emma squeaked.

  “Em…”

  “You’re not really doing what I think you are, are you?”

  “Well maybe you should let me finish and see.”

  “Oh. Sorry.”

  Em knew exactly what I was up to. She was smiling and her eyes were full of tears. God I was praying they were happy tears.

  “Em, twelve months ago you stood right here and declared we were going to be busy getting on with our lives and we did. I have had the best time getting busy and living my life with you and I can’t imagine you not being a part of it Emma. Twelve months ago, you went from being my friend to roomie to my girlfriend. I want to upgrade that title again. Emma Hardy, from the moment you climbed into my bed, you’ve been it for me. You’re my best friend. You’re my home. Be my wife. Be my life.”

  I pulled the ring out of my pocket and slid it on her trembling finger before leaping back to my feet and pulling her into my arms. I could feel her crying in my arms. Her whole body trembling. I couldn’t judge though. My own cheeks were wet with emotion.

  “You didn’t say yes,” I reminded her as I pulled back and looked into her glassy eyes.