The Troublemaker - Cathryn Fox Page 0,2
she says, dark lashes fluttering over blue eyes.
“What?”
She points to the napkin. “I think you smudged the number.”
I shrug. “I wasn’t interested anyway.”
Her lips pucker as she reaches into her purse. “Maybe you’ll be interested in this,” she says, and discreetly slides her room key into my hand. I shift and shove it into my back pocket for safe keeping.
Kinsley grabs my hand. “Come on, Cason. You are not sitting here all night.”
“I am not singing,” I groan in protest.
“Fine, then you can dance with me. This is Vegas baby. You’ve been doing nothing but mope since we got here.”
“I am not…” I let my words fall off because it’s possible she’s right. She pulls me from my chair, and the second I stand, asshole and fellow teammate Liam, drops into my chair and turns his focus to Emily.
Motherfucker.
Where the hell is bro code? We don’t hit on another guy’s woman. Not that Emily is my woman. She’s not. But still, I was just sitting with her, and Liam is breaking bro code rules. I shake my head. I guess that’s why his on ice handle is the Rule Breaker, and I should probably cut him some slack; he recently lost his dad, and there was a huge scandal, and has been drinking steadily since arriving. I’m a bit worried about his mental state to be honest. I’m glad he’s here with us this weekend. I think he needs his friends around.
Kinsley drags me onto the dance floor just as those working the karaoke machine change to a slow song. I pull her into my arms, and her sweet vanilla scent fills my senses. I put my nose to her hair and breathe her in.
“Did you just smell me?” she asks.
“Why do you always smell so good?” I ask.
She laughs, and the sound curls around me. “Because I own a food truck. No matter how many times I shower I still smell like street tacos.”
“You think you smell like street tacos?” I chuckle at that.
“Yeah, I’ve been thinking of bottling the scent. Talk about an aphrodisiac for men, huh? They’d be coming at me from miles.”
I put my hands on her hips as she sways. What the fuck? Is that my dick twitching? Yeah, maybe I really am in bad shape if my dick is standing up and taking notice. Not that Kinsley isn’t hot, it’s just that she and I are friends. We go way back, and I eat at her food truck every chance I get.
My dick should not be moving.
“First, you smell like cupcakes, and second you don’t need to smell like a taco to attract a guy, Kins. I’m sure they’re lining up for you.”
She snorts and looks at me like I have a brain tumor. “Oh, they’re lining up all right. I own a food truck remember?”
Wait, does she think that’s the only reason a man would be interested in her? Fuck, she’s hot with her wild pink hair and numerous piercings, not to mention the abundance of curves any guy would be lucky to sink his teeth into. She’s completely different from the puck bunnies who line up to meet us after a game, but that’s why I like her. Like I said, she marches to the beat of her own drum and cares little about social norms.
A round of cheers erupt from behind us as the gang all do another shot. This time Liam is putting a lime to Emily’s lips and she sidles closer to him. He can flirt with her all he wants. I’m the one with her room key in my back pocket. I’m just not sure I want to use it. Maybe all this pumped in oxygen is messing with my brain.
“You like her, huh?” Kinsley asks, and lowers her head. While I can’t see her expression, I hear a hint of dejection in her voice. I must be mistaken. Why would she be upset that I liked her friend? Before I can say anything, she says, “She likes you, too, Cason. Then again, who doesn’t?”
“Are you saying you like me, Kins,” I tease. “You think I’m a big fat snack you’d like to bite into?”
Her face crinkles like she’d just tasted something sour. “And my snacking stops today,” she says with a laugh.
She’s a joker, a teaser, but for some reason those words hit like a punch. I smile to hide the blow and say, “Always good to know where I stand with the ladies.”
“I’m not one of