Game On Christmas - Part 3

Hey guys, just a quick post today to give you the next part of the Game On Christmas Story! Reminder for those who haven't read Game On - this does contain spoilers so please feel free to skip over it if you haven't read the book yet! 

I'll be back with a proper post later in the week!

Game On Christmas Part 1

Game On Christmas Part 2

** 

Miguel

“What in the hell are they doing?” Cody asked, nodding towards the dance floor.

Leah, Bree and Freya were surrounded by people, doing some kind of odd dance that involved their legs darting out sideways while bouncing their hands up and down in front of them as if riding imaginary horses. How they managed not to fall in their killer heels was beyond me. Especially since they were all laughing their asses off.

Bryce, Jude and Radleigh turned so they could see the girls too, and while they stared, Jude said, “Do you ever wonder how we managed to get girls like that?”

“I wonder how you got a girl like that,” Radleigh laughed.

“Me too. Every damn day.”

Jude watched Bree with a mixture of amusement and love in his eyes, while Radleigh drew his beer bottle to his lips and winked at Leah like he couldn’t wait to get her home.

Couldn’t blame him.

Breaking up with Leah was one of the crappier parts of my year. We weren’t together for long but I loved her.

I really loved her.

Right after I found out Leah slept with McCoy, working with him every day was like being kicked in the gut over and over again. Pretty ironic since he actually did that to me once. But I got over it. I probably should have told her to go to hell after what she did but … that’s just not me. I cared about her way too much to push her out of my life.

“How come you never bring your wife to these things, Bryce?” Jude asked, breaking my train of thought. “We’ve been clubbing, celebrated birthdays, Christmases, New Years. I’ve met her about three times. What’s up with that?”

Bryce grinned. “You’ve met her, you should have figured it out. She hates to be anywhere there might be photographers, or … famous people.”

“She knows who you are, right?” I laughed.

“She met me before I became Bryce Warren, soccer star. Back then I was Bryce Warren, college student.”

“And right now,” Cody said, “you are Bryce Warren who is interrupting the fuck out of this little dance show.”

“Sorry,” Bryce said, laughing and turning his attention back to the girls. “They do look good.”

“Good? Leah looks hot,” Radleigh said, a smirk spreading across his face. “Are you insulting my girl?”

“Wouldn’t dream of it, buddy!”

I shifted my gaze from Leah to Freya, because she was the only one whose boyfriend wasn’t standing beside me. She looked incredible, but over and over again, my eyes kept moving back to Leah.

The last time I saw her, she was so unhappy. She’d faked having the time of her life in London, but I knew the truth. Even before she told me, I could see it in her eyes. But things had changed. The woman I first fell in love with - the playful, fun Leah – was back.

I could feel McCoy staring at me as I stared at Leah and I shifted my eyes. He really hated that Leah and I were still so close. I probably wasn’t making it any better by looking at her, but it wasn’t for the reason he was thinking.

I didn’t love her anymore. Not romantically. I was happy with the way things were between us, and even happier to see her back in L.A where she belonged. 

**

Will

I’d somehow managed to get myself stuck in a conversation with Jude’s grandmother. I’m not sure how I did it, but elderly relatives always singled me out at parties and headed in my direction. Grandma Collinson was a sweet old lady, but there was only so long I could listen to tales of Christmases past with her late husband before I needed to get away.

I managed to escape by saying I was in need of a drink. Not strictly a lie. I really wished my glass had been fuller when I first started talking to her.

Making my way towards the bar, I saw Freya waiting in the queue. Some guy’s arm was slung around her shoulders, his face close to hers while he whispered something into her ear.

I rolled my eyes, but couldn’t stop myself grinning a little. When you have a girlfriend as stunning as Freya, it’s pretty normal to see other men hitting on her. Good thing I didn’t get jealous easily or my head would have exploded after the first couple weeks of being with her.

By the time I reached her, she’d successfully untangled herself from him, and he’d walked away looking as if she’d put him in his place.

“I can’t leave your side for a second, can I?” I teased, slipping my arms around her waist from behind. We’d only been together for a little more than eight weeks, and I still wasn’t used to how good it felt to finally be able to touch her that way. I’d spent so long wanting to, thinking she’d never be interested in me as more than a friend. It was crazy to think we were about to spend our first Christmas together. As a couple.

She smiled as she turned to me. “If I had my way, you wouldn’t.”

Yep, I was now one half of the kind of couple who used to make me want to vomit. All cutesy pet names, and gazing into each other’s eyes and all that crap. For the most part we kept the mushy stuff behind closed doors, but sometimes it was hard not to let it out.

“So who was that guy?” I asked, jerking my head in his direction. He appeared to be getting over the rejection by downing a bottle of beer next to the DJ booth.

“Jude’s cousin. He said I have a ‘nice rack.’”

“Charming.” I laughed. “I mean, it’s true but … wow. I wonder what would have happened if I’d hit on you that way.”

“You did hit on me that way!”

“I never said ‘nice rack.’”

Freya giggled, and kissed me on the cheek. “You were looking at my rack.”

“Not the same thing at all,” I told her, twirling her away from the bar and back towards the dance floor. “If you remember, I was a perfect gentleman.”

“I remember,” Freya said. “You almost didn’t even kiss me.”

“I didn’t want to push my luck. After I laid everything out there, I didn’t want to end the night with a slap in the face.”

When she smiled, it was impossible for me not to smile too. “I waited a long time for you,” she said. “I didn’t want to wait any longer.”

It still amazed me that Freya had feelings for me almost as long as I’d had feelings for her. If it hadn’t been for Leah, maybe neither of us would ever have made a move.

“You wanna know what my favourite part of that night in London was?” Freya asked, tightening her arms around me.

“The part where I fell off the bed before I started talking?” I asked, making her burst out laughing again.

“That was a highlight,” she said. “But my favourite part was when you told me you were tired of wasting time being ‘just friends’ when we should be much more.”

“Oh God, did I really say that?”

Did I mention I was hammered at the time? I meant what I’d said, of course, but I might have been less cheesy if I was sober.

“You did,” Freya confirmed. “And it was very sweet.”

“And it worked. Even with strange men hitting on you every time we go out, I still managed to keep you.”

Freya pressed her lips against mine. “I’m not going anywhere.”