When she glanced up at him, still impressed he’d worn a button-down shirt for their date, that same little crease was still on his forehead. Right between his eyes. It had formed in the Wonder Woman room. That was what she’d always think of that room as, now that he’d compared her to a superhero. She whispered, “Everything okay?”
“Yeah. Fine.” He smiled, but it was forced.
Something was bothering him, so she leaned across his chest and found the remote to pause the movie. Then she crawled onto his lap and cupped his face in her hands. “Then why is this worry line still here?” She traced it with a finger.
“I’ve just got a lot on my mind. That’s all.” He kissed her so sweetly it made her sigh.
When he was done and had left her lips tingling for more, he said, “Can I interest you in skinny-dipping in the pool when this is over? I’ve never done that with anyone, and I’d really like you to be the first.”
“I’d be honored to christen your pool with our nakedness.” The frown line had disappeared on his forehead. Had he been worried about asking to skinny-dip? “But how about I challenge you to a Pac-Man tournament first? Loser has to make breakfast in the morning.”
He shook his head. “You don’t want to do that, Lori. I’m damn good at that game.”
“So am I.” She took his hand and pulled him out of the seat. “We were stationed at this base when I was first married to Joe. We were pretty poor, and Joe was overseas, so the only thing the wives could afford to do on a Friday night was go to the rec center. They had free movies, one-dollar beers, and cheap hot dogs.”
When they got to the hallway, she asked, “Which way?”
“This way.” He pointed down a long hall.
It was hard to keep her bearings straight.
He turned her shoulders in the right direction, and when they set out across the travertine-tiled floor, he said, “So back to dollar beers and hot dogs…”
“Oh yeah, well they rigged up the video games to play for free too, but they were all the really old ones. Nothing like they have now, and Pac-Man was one of them. I was the reigning champ for a solid year. And then we moved.”
He swung his arm over her shoulder. “Were you always this agreeable? Happy with so little? I was broke growing up and swore I’d never be poor again. I hated it.”
“That explains this house. But it was what it was. I could mope about it like some of the other wives did, or I could embrace it and become a champion at something.”
He shook his head. “Joe was a lucky guy.”
She sighed. Joe must’ve not felt the same, or why would he have ever cheated on her? She needed to quit having thoughts like that if she was ever going to be able to move on and trust again.
Luckily, they’d arrived at the game room, and Deek was busy turning on lights so she wouldn’t have to comment.
She took in all the different machines as he crossed to the rear. He had Skee Ball, high-tech team driving games, a motorcycle game a person could ride, classic pinball machines, and the dancing one Emily loved to try to keep up with. If it weren’t for the promise of skinny-dipping later, she’d happily spend the rest of the evening in the arcade.
Deek leaned down to turn on the Pac-Man machine. “Be prepared to give up your title, princess. I see bacon grease and egg shells in your near future.”
“You’re dreaming, pal.” She gave him a shoulder bump. “Best two out of three?”
“You got it.” He held his hand out. “Ladies first.”
She pushed the button, and the game began. She was a little rusty at first, but it came right back. Like riding a bike. “I think I’d like my breakfast served to me in bed in the morning.”
“Don’t get too cocky.” Deek snuggled up against her back and watched over her shoulder as she racked up points. When she reached the first bonus round, he leaned down and nibbled on her neck. “Nice. But still amateur level.”
“Yeah. Then why are you trying so hard to distract me?”
He moved his hands to her breasts and squeezed. “You’re the distracting one here. Don’t mind me.”
She smiled while doing her best to ignore his large hands caressing and teasing her body. She was hanging in, until he snuggled his hard crotch against her rear end, reminding her how much she wanted him too.
He whispered, “Watching how intense you are while playing my favorite game is seriously sexy. How about I concede right now so I can have you on top of this machine?”
She was just about to throw in the towel when a feminine voice called out, “Deek?”
“Annie?” His hands quickly snapped to his sides before he turned around. “What are you doing here?”