Reading Online Novel

The Game Changer(21)



Relief washed over me. Sal wasn’t some creepy stalker; he was just a nice guy. “Thank you. I hadn’t even thought about that,” I said with a smile, tucking the card into my back pocket and making a mental note to call the number later.

“Don’t mention it. You two just make sure you come back in here and visit me every once in a while, OK?” He slid the two large boxes in my direction.

“Sure thing.” I reached out my hand, and he gripped it firmly.

“We’ll see you soon. Thank you.” Cassie smiled before holding the door open for me and our large pies.

See? I catch on quick.

We walked back toward our apartment as Cassie started laughing. “I can’t believe he knew who you were.”

“That was crazy, right?”

“Yes!”

I shrugged my shoulders while balancing the pizzas. “I’ve always heard New Yorkers are intense.”

Cassie stopped briefly, her eyebrows raised. “Oh. You have no idea.”

Her tone made me smile. “Guess I’ll learn soon enough.”

“You just better win your games, mister,” she warned, her tone sounding half-teasing, half-nervous.

We walked into the apartment building where the elevator doors waited in the open position. Cassie pressed the button and as the doors drew closed, I found myself wanting to drop the boxes to the ground and pin her against the elevator wall. My pants tightened as my thoughts took off on their own. In my mind, I’d leaned over and pressed my lips to her neck, licking and nibbling my way up her jaw as moans escaped from her lips. I thought about pressing my mouth against hers, silencing her sweet little cries as our tongues played a game of hide and seek. She cleared her throat, and I looked up to see her holding the elevator doors open.

“Do you and the elevator need some time alone?” she asked, her eyes flicking to the bulge in my pants.

“I was just thinking about all the things I’d like to do to you in here.” I winked and bit my bottom lip, hoping for a reaction from her.

She cocked her head to one side, her lips puckering in that cute little way that always turns me on. “Oh, really? Elevators are nasty. You’re gross.” She turned her back to me and jangled her keys toward the door as I let out a slight laugh.

Once inside, I placed the hot-as-hell pizza boxes on the kitchen table and shook the heat from my hands. “As soon as you sit down, I’ll tell you the best parts,” I shouted at her retreating back.

“Oooh, really?” She looked back at me from the bathroom doorway with a smile. “Just let me wash my hands.”

After a quick search, I grabbed two plates from the cupboard and placed them on the counter before pouring two glasses of water.

Note to self: get some beer.

Cassie walked into the kitchen, her face all smiles. “I’m ready,” she said, grabbing both of the waters as she practically skipped to the kitchen table.




“Who are you talking to?” Dean was sitting on the couch, and I punched him on the arm as I walked past.

“Melissa,” he answered, raising his eyebrows with her name. “Meli, hold on a sec.” Dean covered his cell phone with his hand and lowered it toward his thigh. “She wants to come with us.” I eyed him, my face clearly confused. “To Alabama,” he added.

“Why?” I asked, not understanding why she would possibly want to take that trip.

“She said she’s bored at home without Cassie. And she wants to help. Personally, I think she just misses me.” He laughed.

I thought for a second before realizing that the idea of Melissa coming with us didn’t annoy me. “She can come.”

“Really?” Dean broke out in a big smile.

“Yeah, I don’t care,” I said quickly. It would be fun with her there. And she’d probably be really helpful. She was a girl, after all, and girls like to organize, clean, and take care of shit. Right?




“She did not go with you to Alabama,” Cassie said, her jaw dropping wide open.

“Yes, she did. She even met Chrystle,” I told her with a large grin before stuffing a slice in my mouth.

“What?” Her shoulders dropped. “She didn’t tell me a thing!”

I reached across the table for her, cupping her cheek in my hand. “I told her not to. I made her promise she wouldn’t tell you anything until I could come get you.”

“But she’s my best friend,” she whined. “And she knew how much I was hurting. If she would have just told me what was going on, I wouldn’t have had to go through all of that. The waiting, the not knowing…”

“Trust me, Cass, she fought with me a lot about it. She wanted to tell you every day, and every day I had to make her promise she wouldn’t. I threatened to stop filling her in on things and she said if I did, she’d call you that second and tell you everything.” I half smiled to hide my discomfort. “So basically, we had an understanding. As long as I kept her in the loop, she kept her mouth shut.” It didn’t feel wrong when I asked Melissa to keep all this from Cassie at the time, but sitting here now, saying it all out loud, the fact that I had been a complete dick overwhelmed me.