Chapter 42 - Playing to Win



Jon was surprised by Mandy’s reply. He hadn’t expected such a direct answer. After all, weren’t girlfriends supposed to keep each others’ secrets? But then again, neither Cate nor Mandy were like any other women he knew.

“Me?” he asked, wondering how much Mandy would tell him. “I don’t think so… she’s made it pretty clear that she’s the teacher, I’m the student.” He raised his eyebrows at Mandy, daring her to respond.

Mandy gave Jon a long look. She knew exactly what he was up to… and she was on his side. “Really?” she asked coyly. “Is that why the two of you keep sneaking your hands under the table? And why you can’t take your eyes off each other?” She raised her eyebrows back at Jon. “You know she’s attracted to you, and you are to her. I saw the way you looked at her today.”

Jon nodded. “Okay. You’re right….I am attracted to her. I think she’s amazing. But she’s the one keeping me at arm’s length.” He leaned forward and gave Mandy a direct look. “So, how do I get her to let me in?”

Mandy thought for a moment. Cate would probably kill her if she knew what Mandy was about to tell Jon. To hell with it. Mandy thought. If she won’t help herself, then I’m gonna do it for her. A naughty smile curved the corners of Mandy’s mouth. “Be her fantasy.”

“Oh?” Jon said coolly, though inside his pulse raced. Danny had helped him set up his surprise for Cate for tomorrow night, but he had a feeling Mandy had a different perspective on Cate’s fantasies than did her male best friend. “And just how would I do that?”

Mandy glanced out at the dance floor, watching Danny and Cate continue their promenade around the floor as another song began. “Well, you’re gonna need a few props…” she grinned.

She watched as Jon’s expression turned from surprise to delight as she described, in detail, just what he could do to turn Cate to putty in his hands. By the time she finished, Jon was practically salivating.

Mandy chuckled as Jon pulled his Blackberry out of its holster. “Gonna get on that right away, I see?” she asked teasingly.

“Yes, Ma’am,” Jon answered. “I can pick up a few things tomorrow in Philly…” His fingers moved rapidly over the keys of his Berry as he typed a text message to his pal.

[10:18 pm] Obie – need a favor. U awake?

Jon grinned at Mandy. “Sometimes it’s good to have minions,” he joked. He chuckled at what Obie’s response would be to Jon calling him a “Minion.” He waited for a minute, then felt the Berry buzz in his hand as the reply came in.

[10:21 pm] WTF? Fuck yeah I’m awake! Shit don’t mix itself! What now?

Jon laughed out loud at Obie’s reply. He could even be a grouch in text. Jon moved his fingers over the buttons again.

[10:22 pm] Need u to bring some stuff to Soul office tmrw. Go 2 my house...

Jon prepared detailed instructions for Obie regarding what he was to collect from Jon’s house, and where to find the items he needed. He had to send three different texts to sufficiently cover the issue, since he kept running out of characters in the text field. But he wanted to be sure this was done right. When he was finished, he received the expected reply:

[10:29 pm] R U Drunk? WTHell you need that shit for?

Jon smirked and hastily typed his reply as he saw Cate and Danny making their way back to the table.

[10:30 pm] Tell U about her tmrw. Thx -JB

“Hey!” Jon jumped up from his chair as Cate returned to her seat, flushed from dancing. She grabbed her beer and took a long drink, then gave Jon a quizzical look as she saw the Blackberry glowing in his hand.

“You’re not working, I hope?” she asked, a slight accusing tone in her voice.

“Naw, just got a text from Obie,” Jon answered. “He just needed some…instructions.” Jon winked at Mandy as she giggled. He felt the Berry buzz in his hand again. “In fact, there he is again.” Jon looked at the screen and chuckled at Obie’s response.

[10:31 pm] U R 1 Sick Bastard! See ya tmrw. -OB

Jon quickly hit the button to dim the screen and slipped his Blackberry back into its holster, then sat beside Cate. He gave her a saucy little grin, then looked at Danny. “You guys are really good together,” he nodded toward the dance floor. “You’ve obviously been doing that for awhile.”

“Since college,” Danny answered. “Cate’s boyfriend back then had two left feet, so she and I took lessons together out at the saloon we used to go to. It’s fun.” He took a gulp of beer. “Chicks dig guys who can dance,” he grinned. He turned and looked over his shoulder at Charity, who gave him a little wave.

“Ya don’t say?” Jon laughed. His own dancing skills weren’t quite on par with Danny’s, but he did just fine. All he had to do was shake his ass and thousands of women would fall at his feet.

He gave Cate a wink, and was rewarded with a playful smile and a nod of agreement. Too bad it’s not that easy with you… he thought.

Danny jerked his head toward the game room. “C’mon – let’s go play some pool.” He picked up the pitcher and his beer glass and waited as the others gathered their glasses.

Together the group skirted around the dance floor then moved back into the huge game room. They found the rest of the FTB gang at a table and joined them, Cate and Mandy settling on barstools to watch as the guys played. Troy had returned from dropping off Floyd, and he sipped on a Coke and chatted with the girls for awhile, before joining the next game.

The minutes stretched into hours as the gang laughed, shot pool and played air hockey, and drank. Jon had a comfortable buzz going, and he was having a great time just hanging with the guys. He was fairly sure several people in the game room recognized him, but nobody ventured forth to bother him, which suited him just fine.

Every now and again he would wander over to Cate and Mandy to chat, being sure to stand close enough to Cate to brush against her leg or arm. Every touch was electric, and every smile she gave him added to his euphoria. But, respecting Cate’s wishes to try to keep their attraction under wraps, Jon was careful to avoid more overt contact with her. The last thing he wanted to do tonight was piss her off.

Sometime after midnight Danny declared it was time for darts. Cate eagerly agreed, as did Jon and Mandy. The rest of the gang, preferring to keep their money in their wallets, decided to stick with pool. Danny, Mandy, Jon and Cate all moved over to the far end of the game room and took over a pub table near an electronic dart board.

Danny pulled the darts from the ledge underneath the game and handed them to Cate. “So, what rules are we playing?” he asked.

“Well, you two are on opposite teams!” Mandy announced. “So it’s either me and Danny versus Cate and Jon, or guys versus gals.”

“Cate and I will team up,” Jon volunteered.

“Wait – how good are you?” Cate asked.

Jon was taken aback. “What?” he asked. He thought Cate would jump at the chance to be his partner.

“How good are you? At darts?” Cate repeated. “Mandy’s pretty decent, and God knows I hate to lose to Danny.”

“Damn, you take this seriously, don’t you?” Jon asked, his pride smarting a bit. “I’m not bad, but I haven’t played in awhile.”

Cate looked at Danny. “What’s the bet?”

Danny narrowed his eyes a bit, then gave her a smirk. “Well, of course loser buys the round, and…” he paused and looked at Jon. “Winner’s choice at the mic.”

Cate regarded Danny for a moment, then looked at Jon. “Okay, but if we’re gonna do that it’s guys against gals. Can’t have Rock Star over here throwing the contest in your favor.” She gave Jon an apologetic little smile. “Sorry, Baby.”

“What?” Now Jon was really confused. He had understood the part about loser buying the drinks, but what was winner’s choice? And why did Cate think he would throw the contest?

Danny grinned. “This is something you’ll appreciate, Man. Loser sings karaoke. Winner picks the song.”

A slow grin spread over Jon’s face as he looked at Cate. He would love to see her back on that stage. “Game on. Guys against Gals,” he agreed.

“But to make it more interesting…” Mandy cut in. “If you win, Cate sings, solo. If we win,” Mandy paused and gave Jon a daring look. “Jon sings.”

“Mandy, I don’t know if that’s a good idea…” Danny said reluctantly. “We’re supposed to keep him under wraps. Having him sing in front of a bar full of people won’t exactly help us do that.”

“You’re on,” said Jon, looking directly at Cate. He grinned. “You’re goin’ down, Baby…” he taunted with a sexy little growl.

“You wish,” Cate purred in response, giving him a naughty smile to acknowledge that she had picked up on his dirty double-entendre. She looked at Danny. “So, what’s the song you have in mind?”

You know.” Danny grinned at her and winked. She nodded back at him, understanding.

“So, what do you want, on the off-chance that you win?” Jon asked Cate, giving her a little smirk.

God…you on top of me…. Cate thought, almost melting at that smile. Then she saw through Jon’s tactic. Focus…he’s trying to distract you! “I don’t know yet. We can’t really have you do one of your own songs, or we’ll cause some sort of riot.” Cate paused thoughtfully. “Maybe some Elvis?”

“You got it,” Jon grinned.

“Okay, let’s go.” Cate stepped up to the board and threw a dart to determine starting order. She effortlessly hit the tiny ring in the center of the board, for a triple bullseye.

Jon raised his eyebrows in surprise. Maybe I better start warming up the ol’ vocal chords… he thought. Then Danny stepped up and nonchalantly did the same thing.

“Don’t know why we bother…” Cate chuckled. “Just let Mandy and Jon shoot for order.”

Mandy hit a respectable double 20, then Jon tossed an 18, to settle the starting order. Mandy stepped up to the board to begin the game.

Jon quickly came to understand why Danny and Cate were not allowed to play on the same team against their co-workers. Both were fantastic, placing the darts at will anywhere on the board. As on the firing range and the dance floor, they were evenly matched.

Through his beer-induced buzz, Jon felt a little pang of jealousy as he thought of all the things Danny shared with Cate. He knew it was silly for him to feel that way, but he couldn’t help it. He wanted to be the one to dance with her, to shoot darts with her, to hold her confidence and know her fantasies.

As he watched Mandy take her turn at the board, Jon was struck with a moment of clarity. He wanted to share Cate’s life. He didn’t want to just spend a couple weeks with her; he wanted to be with her as long as she would have him. He didn’t want to leave when his training was finished, though he knew he had to. What the hell am I gonna do about that? he wondered.

Danny called Jon out of his contemplation for his turn at the board. Jon stepped up and tossed two of the scores he and Danny needed to win the game. He gave Cate a smug little look, and was taken aback at the sexy, come-hither smile she gave him in return.

“Don’t fall for it, Man…”Jon heard Danny’s voice in his ear. “She’s messing with you, trying to get you to lose your concentration,” he warned. “Cate plays to win. She’s a bad, bad girl.” Danny grinned to himself. He knew that phrase would send Jon’s mind off into another place, but he couldn’t help himself. He sighed and gave Cate a little smile. The things I do for you, Slick…

Cate and Danny each took their respective turns, bringing the game down to one final dart, the triple 18. Neither Mandy nor Jon could hit the mark, so Cate took her place at the line to try to score. Jon smirked at Danny, then began to sing softly, a song he knew would catch Cate’s attention.

An angel’s smile is what you sell
You promise me heaven and put me through hell
Chains of love got a hold on me
When passion’s a prison you can’t break free

Jon saw Cate’s lips curve upward in a little smile, recognizing what he was trying to do to her. She loved the slinky, bluesy TLFR version of this song that Jon was now serenading her with. She did her best to keep her concentration on the board. She pulled back the dart and flicked her wrist forward, just as Jon crooned,

Ohh ohhh…you’re a loaded gun….

“Shit,” Cate mumbled as the dart dropped below its intended mark. She again focused on the board, trying to ignore Jon’s sultry voice. She saw in her peripheral vision that he was now dancing a little, moving his hips slightly to the rhythm of his vocals. She glanced at Mandy and saw that her friend was completely enthralled by Jon’s antics. Traitor.

Cate looked back to the board and flicked her wrist once more. Again the dart dropped lower on the target. Christ, if he keeps this up I’m not gonna make it to the end of the game… Cate thought. I’ll just jump him right here….

She sucked in a deep breath and shot Danny a murderous look. He grinned innocently back at her. Yeah, like you didn’t put him up to this….

Cate pulled back her third dart and let it fly, just as Jon hit the chorus.

Shot through the heart, and you’re to blame
You give love a bad name…

The dart landed just above the triple ring, off its target. “Fuck!” Cate swore. She fixed Jon with a glare, but couldn’t help herself. She felt her contemptuous look melt into a dreamy smile as he danced slowly toward her, still singing softly.

Danny stepped up beside Cate at the line to throw his darts. Cate was so captivated by Jon that she didn’t move, so Danny shoved her gently toward him. Cate stumbled and Jon caught her arms, righting her balance and giving her a dazzling smile.

Cate stared up at Jon’s gorgeous face as she heard the soft thunk of Danny’s dart landing on the board, ending the game, then Mandy swearing. But at that moment, she didn’t care. She was hypnotized by the beautiful man before her.

“We win, Darlin’,” Jon smirked gently.

4 comments:

  1. OK, 2 questions!!!!
    What will Cate have to sing? and
    What is the fantasy that Obie is getting the props for?????

    NEXT CHAPTER PLEEEEEEEESE!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. OOooh Johnny doesn't play fair! LOL!

    He's lucky. If I'd been choosing the song he'd sing, I wouldn't have gone with something he'd like....I'd have picked New Kids on the Block or INSYNC or something..LMAO!

    I've got several songs in my head for her to sing, but interested to see what they choose.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Definitly not fair, Jon! How should a woman focus with the TLFR version of Bad name in the background lol...remember they way he performed it at the Unplugged session? *sigh*

    ReplyDelete
  4. This is excruciating! I can't take it anymore. Please let the surprise be!!! Johanne

    ReplyDelete

Let me know what you think!