The Games We Play Vol. 2 (Riley Grayson) (5 page)

“What are you getting?” Hilary picked up her menu and looked it over again.

“I can’t make up my mind so think I’m going to get the appetizer sampler. We can share if you want.” Ali sipped from her drink. Man, she could drink a dozen of these and not bat an eyelash. They were so good.

“We should get two of the make-your-own sampler platters. That way we can each get different things and share.” Hilary closed the menu and set it on the edge of the table.

“Works for me.” Ali looked around the restaurant. A small part of her hoped she’d see Riley out and about, but she’d had no luck. She fingered her cell phone on the table, wishing it would ring or buzz with a text message or call. Perhaps if she thought about it long and hard the universe would conspire and give her exactly what she wanted.

Ali looked up at Hilary. “Do you think he’s going to call?”

“Ugh.” Hilary groaned and rolled her eyes. “Look, you know I love you, Ali, and I know it was my idea for you to have rebound sex with a total stranger. But the point was for you to get your mind off Pat, not start obsessing over a new guy.”

“I’m not obsessing.” The protest even sounded weak to her own ears. She was totally obsessing but she couldn’t help it. It was just who she was. She gave a little piece of herself away and no matter what Hilary said, it hurt every time she looked at her empty call and text list. “Okay, so maybe I am a little. But Riley is so amazing, Hil. I have to see him again.”

“Yeah, I know. He’s amazing. He’s a rock star surfer, sexy painter and animal in bed. He has a gigantic penis. His lips are so soft.” Hilary waved her hand dismissively. “I get it. Riley is a stud. You’re a broken recorder. Seriously, Ali, can we talk about something else please?”

Ali frowned. She knew Hilary was annoyed with her constant chatter about Riley but she hadn’t realized how annoyed. Fine. She’d stop talking about him. For a while. “All right. Fine. What about you and Jackson? Did you two hook up?”

Hilary laughed. “God no. I mean, we made out a little bit once you and Riley left the party, but it didn’t go any further than that. He’s nice, but not my type.”

“Why? Because he’s smart?” Ali laughed this time and Hilary shot her a dirty look. “Sorry, but let’s face it. You have a pretty consistent track record of hooking up with guys who swim in the shallow end of the IQ pool.”

“Okay, I’ll give you that, but the dumb ones are so much more fun.”

“Hilary!” Ali’s jaw dropped. “That’s so bad.”

“What?” She shrugged. “It’s the truth. It’s not like I need to have deep, meaningful conversations during sex.”

Ali nodded. “True,” she lied. That was the time when she and Pat used to really connect. They shared some of their deepest secrets with each other in bed.

Ali glanced at her phone. Still nothing. Maybe her life and her outlook on relationships would change, be better perhaps, if she was more like Hilary.

A moment later their waitress appeared. “Have you ladies decided what you’d like this evening?” She looked at Hilary first.

“Uh, yeah, I’d like the make-your-own sampler with mozzarella sticks, chicken tenders, and jalapeño poppers.”

“Yum.” The waitress smiled and turned to Ali. “And for you, sweetie?”

“I’ll have the sample platter, too, but with the quesadilla, boneless honey barbeque wings, and loaded waffle fries.”

“Great.” The waitress collected their menus, smiled again, and said, “That will be right out for you.”

When she walked away, Hilary slurped the rest of her daiquiri. “I should’ve asked for another one.” She propped her elbow on the table and dropped her chin into her hand. “I don’t think I could ever be a waitress.”

“Why not?” Ali asked, finishing her drink, too.

“Because, if you notice, waitresses are always so happy and perky. That’s just not me. I don’t like people enough to want to serve them. I’d totally have to fake it.”

“Like that would be a first!” Both the girls burst out in laughter. Hilary nearly spitting her drink all over the table. Once their laughter subsided Ali cocked her head to the side. “But you like them enough to want to be a therapist and help them overcome their mental demons?” She laughed.

Just then, her phone dinged. Ali’s heart leapt into her throat and her hand trembled as she swiped her finger across the screen.

Please let it be Riley. Please let it be Riley
.

It wasn’t Riley. Her entire body slumped and her smiled faded.

“Not him?”

“No.” Ali shook her head. “It’s my mom. Checking in to make sure I’m okay.” With a heavy sigh, she replied:
Everything’s fine. Having dinner with Hil. Love you
.

She was beginning to think Riley was never going to call. But why not? Surely he’d had a good time the other night. He sure acted like he had enjoyed every moment of it. It just didn’t make any sense to her. If he had fun, if he liked her enough to have sex with her, then he should just call. These stupid games drove her nuts.

Then it dawned on her. Maybe the reason he wasn’t calling her was because he was with the blonde bimbo. That would totally blow. Ali’s jealous thoughts convinced her that, yes, that was the reason he hasn’t called.

“Yes,” Hilary said, jumping back into their conversation as if they hadn’t been interrupted, “being a therapist is easier than being a waitress. I can choose who I want to work with.” She laughed.

“You’re something else.” Ali motioned for the waitress, and when she returned, she ordered two more strawberry daiquiris. “So, what are we going to do after this? Go shopping? Or maybe catch a movie or something?”

Hilary shrugged. “I don’t know. I wouldn’t mind going to see that new horror flick. The one that’s absolutely ridiculous, but I’ve heard it’s super scary.”

“Sounds good to me.” Ali smiled. She loved scary movies. Besides, after the amount of work they’d done the past few days, she deserved a break. And there was no better break than sitting through a mindless movie that was so scary she would think of nothing else. Of course, another round with Riley would be an awesome break. And just like that, her mood dropped again. She checked her phone. Still nothing.

“If he doesn’t call by tomorrow, you should call him,” Hilary said.

Ali perked up. “Yeah?” Finally. That was what she’d been waiting to hear.

“Definitely.” Hilary nodded. “I know I’ve been kind of cranky about listening to you talk about him. I’m kinda sorry about that.” She gave a short laugh. “I mean, you have been droning on and on about him, but if you really like him that much, you should totally call him.”

“Thanks, Hil.” Ali smiled. “And I promise to try not to talk about him so much. But no guarantees. He’s pretty friggin’ awesome.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know.”

Their food arrived a few moments later, along with their new drinks, and they fell silent. Eating and sharing, people watching and laughing. It was shaping up to be a good night. In only a few short hours, Ali could call Riley.

No matter how hard he tried, Riley could not get Ali off his mind. Every time he turned around he thought he was seeing her, thought he smelled her vanilla lotion, heard her laugh. It was fucking torture. And it pissed him off that he was so obsessed with a girl who was only supposed to be a quick fuck.

What was it about this girl? It was clear she didn’t want to see him again. She gave him a fake number. She had some serious balls to do that to Riley Grayson.

“What about her?” Jackson nudged Riley’s shoulder and pointed to a petite redhead across the bar.

Riley shrugged. “She’s not too bad.” But she was a tad on the short side. It made certain positions awkward. He really liked girls who were a bit taller.

“Dude.” Jackson smacked Riley’s arm this time. “She’s fucking hot!”

Following Jackson’s gaze, Riley’s eyes settled on a tall, thin brunette who
was
, as Jackson said, “fucking hot.” He let out a low whistle. From the side, she looked an awful lot like Ali. He knew it wasn’t her but the resemblance was close enough to make it worth his while to go talk to her.

“Want me to see if she has a friend?” Riley asked, standing.

“Nope. I’m good tonight, man.”

Nodding, Riley weaved through the mass of bodies in the bar and positioned himself near the brunette. He took a few minutes and eavesdropped on her conversation. She was bitching about some guy—he guessed her boyfriend—who’d cheated on her with some skank from their chemistry class. Perfect. She was just the kind of woman he needed tonight: drunk, angry, and in the mood to get revenge on her boyfriend. Easy pickins.

He “accidentally” bumped into her, causing her to spill her drink.

“Hey! Watch where you’re going, damnit!”

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” he said, smiling. Then he winked and the girl’s anger visibly disappeared. She smiled back at him and even blushed a little. “Did I do that?”

She nodded and blushed some more.

“Well how about I make it up to you and buy you something better.”

She looked back at her friends for approval. They smiled and encouraged her with their eyes.
Go for it!

“What’s your name, sweetheart?”

“Marissa,” she crooned, suddenly completely ignoring her friends.

Riley gently took her arm and leaned in closer. Her breath hitched and he smirked. Picking up girls like her was much too easy. Boring almost. “Well, Marissa, please allow me to buy you another drink.”

“Oh, no, that’s not necessary.” She shook her head.

“C’mon. It’s my fault your drink is half gone. And I just about knocked you over. Consider the drink an apology.”

“But you already apologized.” Marissa leaned closer to him, her breast grazing his arm. That’s when he knew he had her. She was just playing coy, putting on a show for him so he wouldn’t think she was too easy.

But he knew better. He’d encountered her type a thousand times before. She was going to be an easy lay, which was exactly what he needed to take his mind off the one woman who actually seemed to have a brain, Ali.

It was officially the third full day since he’d been with Ali. Despite numerous attempts to call her, he continued to get the same automated message. Last time he’d thrown his phone across the room, like that would help to ease his desire.

Easy lay or not, Riley knew this chick would be just like all the others: easy, semi-satisfying, and an over exaggerator. All the stereotypical dolled up girls were. They had the looks but couldn’t walk the walk. He knew he was hung well, and he knew how to use it, but any woman who screamed at the top of her lungs was faking it. Period. No one would ever be able to convince him otherwise.

Snapping back to the conversation at hand, he said, “Well then, allow me to apologize again.” He slid his arm around her waist, letting his hand settle on her lower back, and then he turned her away from her friends and toward the bar.

“You really don’t have to do this you know,” she whispered against his ear.

“I know. But I want to.” He winked.

“You have the most amazing eyes.”

“Thank you.” Everyone was always telling him he had soft eyes, gorgeous eyes, eyes they could get lost in. He was kind of tired of hearing it but that didn’t stop him from using it to his advantage. In fact, he was going to see just how far he could push it. He needed to move forward and he’d convinced himself early on that he really needed to get laid tonight. If what he was about to say sacred this woman away, then so be it. It didn’t really matter. There was always another one to be played.

Riley trapped her between him and the bar and then he leaned close enough so their lips were almost touching. But he didn’t kiss her. He didn’t want to. In fact, he rarely kissed girls on the mouth. “How would you like to spend the rest of the night staring into these eyes while I make love to you?”

It was the single cheesiest line he’d ever used, and he had zero faith it would actually work. He was waiting for her huff of indignation, for her grunt of disgust, for her to shove him away, maybe even slap him.

But none of that happened. She just stared more deeply into his eyes considering his proposition.

She smiled. “I think I’d like that a lot,” she whispered. Then she surprised him even more by pressing her mouth to his. He really did not want to kiss her, but if he pushed her away now he’d be going home alone. So he allowed her tongue to slip past his lips. God, what a mistake! It was like she was trying to choke him and slobber on him all at the same time. It was god awful, but rarely was a woman so willing to just go along with his shenanigans this easily, so what the hell.

Ugh. Definitely no more kissing tonight. He’d have to find a way to keep her mouth occupied. His cock jerked. Yup. That would be the first thing he’d put in her mouth once he got her back to his place. Hopefully his dad had his new girlfriend out on the town. Or asleep. The thought of explaining to them who this girl was didn’t settle well with him.

Of course, his father wouldn’t ask. He’d been the one to teach Riley the pleasures of various women. But he never knew what to expect from any of his dad’s various girlfriends. Some never recognized Riley, ignoring him completely, others tried so damn hard to be his friend. Riley had seen too many over the years to care. To him, they were all the same. Just like the women he chose to sleep with.