The Perfect Play by Cookie O’Gorman

CHAPTER 14: Charlie

The way Chase kept looking at me was promising.

Rule #1 of Seduction: Make him notice you.

It was safe to say I'd accomplished that. Chase had hardly taken his eyes off me since picking me up this morning. Granted my hair had needed a little extra love today, so I'd been late. But my tardiness didn't seem to matter to him.

There was also the little fact that I'd delivered on my promise.

One of my goals had been to fix Chase.

After the first two games back, I'd suspected his performance on the field was tied to his mental state. Now, I had proof. When you took away the stress, pressure and doubt, Chase did awesome. His arm was healed. The beautiful thing was he'd proven that to himself without even realizing it. There was no reason he shouldn't or couldn't play exactly like he used to.

Chase was currently driving me to lunch as a thank you—his suggestion, not mine—which boded well for my other goal.

The kiss.

Rule #2 of Seduction: Hold his interest and let him come to you.

This sometimes required patience. Neither rule one nor two had been easy with Chase. He seemed to look right through every woman who approached him.

Good thing I was a hard person to ignore.

When he pulled into the parking lot of Village Pizza, I was pleasantly surprised. I had to give him props. It was a thoughtful choice since he knew I loved it.

"How'd you guess?" I said. "I've been craving this all week."

"So, you don't think it's too early for pizza?" he asked.

"Please. Anytime is a good time for pizza."

Chase shot me a grin. "Good…now, don't move and stay exactly where you are."

"What? Why?"

But Chase had already jumped out, rounded the front of the car, and come around to my side to get the door. He stood there, holding it open.

I blinked. "Was that really necessary?"

"I feel like it was."

"Well, thanks."

With a shrug, I got out and walked toward the building. Chase somehow got in front of me again to get the door.

As I walked past him, I said, "Alright, I get it. You're a gentleman. You don't have to impress me, you know."

He smiled. "Thought I already did that with my pitching."

"Confidence is a good look on you, O'Brien."

"Thanks," he said. "And isn't impressing you the whole point? I thought we were practicing."

I gave him a nod. "We are. I wanted to introduce something new if you're up for it."

"Sure, I am."

"Awesome. A little foreplay never hurt anyone," I said and saw his eyes widen.

"Foreplay?" he repeated.

"Yeah, it's like next-level flirting."

Looking to the hostess stand, I felt my face break into a big grin.

"Hey Delia," I said as the people in front of us were seated, and we moved to the front of the line. "How's life?"

"Busy," she said on a laugh. "But I can't complain. Good to see you, Charlie."

"You, too," I said. "Can we get a table for two, please? Preferably a booth if you have it."

"Sure, girl. Anything for you."

I knew the exact moment she spotted Chase behind me because her eyes moved up and up, getting wider as they went, a smile sitting pretty on her lips.

"Why, hello there," she said to him.

"Hey," Chase said back.

"Just so you know, Charlie never brings guys here, so you must be special."

He grinned. "Really? I didn't know that."

"Yeah, she usually sits in the corner booth by herself, or sometimes, she'll bring her girlfriends. But I don't think there've been any men."

"Well, isn't that interesting," Chase said.

"She's here a lot, loves the food. She can even eat a whole pizza by herself."

"Oh my God, Delia. TMI," I said which made Chase cough-laugh.

She lifted a shoulder. "It's true. Also, I don't know where you put all that pizza because you and I both know your curves are rocking. If you'll follow me, I'll get you and your gorgeous friend set up at a table."

"This is Chase," I said before it could turn into something. "Don't get the wrong idea. I'm working with him for college credit. He's one of my assignments."

"He's gorgeous," Delia said.

"I know."

Chase's cheeks were red as we settled into the booth, and I decided to help him out.

"He's also very much looking for his soulmate," I added.

Delia was quiet a moment, but then her face brightened.

"Well, who's to say he hasn't found her already?" she said and shot me a meaningful look before shifting her gaze to him. "It was nice meeting you, Chase."

"You, too, Delia," he said. "And seriously, thanks for all the info. Charlie may think of me as an assignment, but I'm hoping to be more to her. In time."

Delia looked like she was about to melt on the spot, and my cheeks were burning.

"That is so sweet," she said. "I'm going to give you guys free drinks on the house."

I frowned at her. "You never give me free anything."

Delia just shrugged. "You're here all the time. You'd put me out of business."

My eyeroll did nothing but make her smile widen.

"I'll send your server over," she said. "You two have fun."

"Yeah, yeah," I said, waving her away.

Chase sat back with a grin. "She's nice."

"You're only saying that because she thought you were hot and gave you free stuff," I said.

"Nah, Delia was cool—not to mention informative," he said. "What's the deal with not bringing guys here?"

"I like to keep certain places I love for myself."

Our server came over to take our drink order then walked away. We studied the menu for a bit, and when he came back, I ordered a small salad and a slice with spinach, mushrooms and four cheeses. Chase got two slices with extra pepperoni. Once the server was gone again, Chase eyed me speculatively.

"I get that," he said.

"What?" I asked.

"What you said about keeping some things just for you and sharing them only with the people you love. I understand."

I took a sip of my water then said, "My relationships with men have always been brief, Chase. I don't get attached, and neither do they. Plus, I turn down a lot of men, and some of them don't like that. I just don't want anything to taint my safe spaces."

Chase's gaze was shrewd. "Ah, so that's why no guys are allowed in Magnolia House."

"Can you blame me? Men can cause a lot of trouble."

"So can women," he said.

His words brought a smile to my face. "Speaking of which, I thought we were here for a reason—besides the awesome food."

Chase sat forward, leaning his elbows against the table.

"Yeah, about that…" he said. "I know what foreplay is in theory. But I've never actually done it before."

"I'm shocked," I said.

"Ha ha, very funny. But seriously, what is it?"

He couldn't have given me a better opening if he tried.

I thought about it for a second before responding. "Foreplay can be a lot of things," I said finally. "It can include touching, sexy talk, kisses. Even a look can convey a heaping dose of meaning."

Chase nodded.

"Honestly, sometimes foreplay can be better than sex."

Our server chose that moment to deliver our food. I couldn’t be sure if he'd heard us, but his ears were red, and he kept throwing weird glances at me and Chase. After straightening, he just stood by the booth.

"Is there a problem?" I asked.

"No," he said suddenly. "I just wanted to make sure...uh, do you guys need anything?"

"Not right now," Chase said, "but thanks."

The guy beat a hasty retreat.

"I think he was waiting to hear more. I know I am."

I rolled my eyes at the grin Chase threw me and the amusement in his voice.

"Foreplay is like a big tease," I said. "The point ofit is to let your person know you desire them. To make them feel good."

"Okay," Chase said. "I think I've got it."

I lifted a brow. "Alright."

He reached across the table and took my hand in his.

A spark raced up my arm—my body was always doing strange things like that when Chase touched me.

"Is this okay?" he asked.

I nodded. "It's fine. Hand-holding is a little grade school. But everyone has to start somewhere."

Chase raised a brow. "I thought most women considered it one of the most romantic gestures. Right next to being a good listener and doing surprising, thoughtful things."

"We're talking about foreplay here," I said. "Not romance."

"Aren't they connected?"

Yes, I thought. But romance was so much more personal, and it would be a lot easier if Chase just stuck to the sexy, no-strings script.

His fingers tightened on mine as I sighed.

"How about this then," he said.

He kept his eyes on mine, bringing my hand to his lips.

The way he kissed each one of my knuckles before laying a last lingering kiss right in the center of my palm sent shivers down my spine.

"That's…really good. Where'd you learn how to do that?" I asked, trying my best to keep my voice steady.

"Read it in a book," Chase said.

He kissed my palm again, this time with a light sweep of his tongue, and my heart skipped a beat.

"It was one of the naughty ones."

He threw me a wink before placing my hand back on the table.

I swallowed, wondering if that would satisfy my bet with Emmy. Probably not. But I wondered if there was anything that could be hotter than Chase putting the moves on my hand.

"Okay," I said. "Moving on, let's see if you can talk the talk."

Chase gave me a challenging look. "I'm ready whenever you are."

"Do you have any experience with dirty talk?"

"No, but I'm a fast learner."

Well then.

Sexy banter was a difficult thing for most people. And Chase had such little experience with women, that I immediately decided to lower my expectations. He'd probably be terrible. No one was ever good on their first time. But I had no intention of making him feel bad about it.

"Okay, pretending I'm the one," I said, "tell me what you'd do to me if we were alone."

Chase slowly shook his head. I took that as a sign that he was having trouble and tried to encourage him.

"Just try it, Chase," I said. "I'm sure you'll be fine."

"I don't think I should," he said.

"Ah, come on, it's easy. Just pretend like you want to get me into bed." I nodded to him. "What would you say?"

He frowned. "I'm not sure where to start."

"It's okay," I said. "A lot of guy's minds would go blank when asked a question like that. Take your time. I'm sure you'll come up with something."

"That's not it," Chase said and met my gaze. "Charlie, I'm not having trouble thinking of things I want to do to you. I'm trying to settle on just one."

I pulled in a deep breath. "Oh?"

"The truth is I've been thinking about you every hour of every day."

He bit his lip, shook his head once before continuing.

"My mind is full of you," he said. "I want to run my fingers through your hair …to know what that feels like. I want to talk to you for hours until we're both too tired to move, and we fall asleep right next to each other. I want to feel you in my arms. And if that sounds too romantic, well, I have other thoughts, too."

"Do you?" I breathed.

Chase nodded, his eyes moving over me with clear intent. "I can't stop wondering if your lips really taste as good as I remember. I want to run my hands over every inch of your body, use my mouth to make you feel good. It keeps me up some nights, thinking about what you'd sound like, moaning my name. I want that. All of it."

My breath caught as he shook his head again.

"I want all of you," he said.

I wasn't sure I was still breathing.

My head felt light.

If this was a test, he'd just passed with flying colors.

"Where did you learn that?" I asked when I could speak again.

Chase cocked his head. "Learn what?"

How to give me hot flashes while making love to me with your voice?

I shook my head. If he didn't know about his sexy-talking superpower, I wasn't about to tell him. He could do major damage with that kind of knowledge.

"Tell the truth, Chase," I said. "Did you come up with that beforehand?"

"I don't know whether to be flattered or offended," he said on a laugh. "No, Charlie. I was just being honest. But it must've been pretty good if you think I rehearsed."

I scoffed.

"You seemed to like it," he said.

"I guess you were okay."

"Just okay?"

I sighed then gave him the truth. "Fine, Chase. You were incredible. To put it in terms you baseball players understand, I think you'd call it 'knocking one out of the park.'"

His smile ate up his entire face, and I gestured to our cold pizza.

"I think maybe we should bag that up and take it to go," I said.

"Sounds good to me," he said.

We didn't talk much on the drive back to Magnolia House, but once we got there, Chase turned off the engine and turned to me.

"Charlie, thank you so much again," he said. "You helped me with my arm and inspired me to talk dirty. It's been a productive day."

I couldn't help but laugh. "Yeah, it has. Even if we didn't get to everything."

He tilted his head. "Was there something else you wanted to do?"

"Yeah, but it's okay."

"No, what is it?"

Now or never, I thought.

"We didn't get to the kissing," I said.

Chase looked like he was trying not to smile.

"Well, I already told you how I feel about that," he said.

"But you were just pretending. For the foreplay exercise."

"Was I?"

For some reason, even though I knew this wasn't for real, my heart started beating faster.

"Weren't you?" I asked.

Chase shook his head as he leaned across the center console. His hand came up to rest against my cheek, and my eyes nearly fluttered closed at the contact.

"You really couldn't tell?" His voice had lowered to a whisper. "I thought you were supposed to be an expert at this."

"I can be dense sometimes," I said, my eyes moving from his eyes down to his lips. "Maybe you should show me this time, instead of telling me."

"As you wish," Chase said.

He leaned in closer, his hands caressing both sides of my face in this soft, hypnotic rhythm. Jeez, he smelled good. My hands, having a mind of their own, ended up on his chest, clutching his t-shirt between my fingers. When he was only inches away, I felt him stop, and I looked up to meet his gaze.

"Charlie," he said, "I really want to kiss you right now."

"Yeah," I said. "I want that, too."

"Seriously, I feel like I might die if this doesn't happen."

"Same here."

Instead of closing those last few inches, though, Chase paused again to lick his lips.

"The thing is…" he said.

I waited.

"This isn't just about that bet you made with Emmy, right?"

I blinked, thinking I must've misheard. "What?"

"The bet," Chase said again. "I don't care if it is about that. I mean, that's a lie because I do. Still, it wouldn't stop me from kissing you. I'm not sure if anything could do that, but I'd like to know."

Leaning back, the moment completely gone, I sat there stunned.

Chase knew all about the bet.

Emmy had told him.

After taking a moment, I said the only thing running through my mind.

"That little cheater!" I said. "I can't believe this. When did she tell you?"

He shrugged. "The night that we went upstairs together at Omega Beta."

"Ugh!"

"I think it made her nervous." Chase laughed. "Don't be mad at her, okay. She was trying to look out for me."

"Yeah, and win the bet," Charlie said. "Answer me this. Did Emmy tell you not to kiss me?"

The look in his eyes was as much of a confirmation as I needed.

"Not in those exact words. She said it would be good if I could hold back a few more days," he said. "I told her I wasn't sure I could do it."

"Unbelievable," I muttered. "Well, O'Brien, the moment has definitely passed and the bet's off. So you don't have to worry about kissing or not kissing."

"Sorry to hear that."

"If you'll excuse me, I need to go inside and kill your little sis aka the cheater," I said. "Thanks again for the pizza. Also, congrats Chase, you're a natural at foreplay."

"Charlie," he said.

Stopping with my fingers on the handle of the door, I looked at him over my shoulder.

"Yes?" I said.

Chase leaned forward.

"Just so we're clear, I will be kissing you again."

I opened my mouth, but he held up a hand.

"It's going to happen. Bet or no bet."

"You sound sure of yourself," I said, giving him my best haughty sniff.

Reaching forward to take my hand in his again, Chase dropped a kiss there then looked up at me from beneath his lashes. Every word he spoke left a little puff of air against my palm.

"That's because I am," he said. "Will you come to team practice tomorrow? I understand if you can't. But I think I'll do better if you're there."

"Sure," I said, having a hard time forming words, still reeling from what he'd said.

Chase didn't seem to have that problem, though.

"You and I are going to happen," he said. "It's not a question of if but when."

My steps were unsteady as I left the car. I almost forgot how mad at Emmy I was on my way to the house, Chase's words ringing in my ears. Once I got the door open, I looked back over my shoulder and yeah. He was still there, waiting to make sure I got inside.

No matter how hard I tried—and believe me, I did—I couldn't stop thinking about him for the rest of the day.