Gamed (A Standalone Romance Novel) (Bad Boy Romance) (20 page)

I pulled my shirt
up over my head, then tugged Owen's up the muscular ridges of his back. When
our bare skin met, I let out a groan of pleasure that ended in a deep chuckle. He
caught it in another deep kiss that left me panting.

"How do you
feel?" I asked.

"I can't get
enough of you. I need more. Please more," Owen said.

He fumbled with
the buttons on my jeans as I lapped at his neck. I tried my teeth against the
soft tug of his ear lobe and Owen collapsed over me. The fact that the delicate
touch of my tongue against the curve of his ear caused his whole strong body to
shudder with pleasure stoked a fire in me I had never felt before.

"Roll
over," I said.

Owen complied,
undoing his jeans as he positioned himself against the pillows of the
king-sized bed. I slipped my jeans off and straddled him, watching his eyes
close in ecstasy as I rocked against him. The power made me throb as I teased
us both until we shivered with delight.

One last rocking
rub against his body and Owen sat up. He buried one hand in my hair and the
other arm tight around my waist. Our kiss was more than desire, more than
hunger, it was drawing breath from each other as we were consumed.

He rolled me
beneath him, and I felt the deep contentment of him inside me. We fit together
tight, hard, and locked as a whole. When he moved, my body answered and
together, we pulsed higher and higher.

In the blissful
stillness that followed, I had an epiphany. "Now I know," I
accidentally said out loud.

"Know what? I
don't think I even know my name right now," Owen said.

"Maybe I'll
tell you someday," I said. I did not want to say another word and break
the peace we had together.

Now I knew what it
felt like when something was right, and I was never going to accept anything
else.

CHAPTER
FOURTEEN

Owen

I
did not want Quinn to open the door. We were both starving, but I knew once we
stepped outside her dorm room, things would change. Inside, we were hidden, it
was just the two of us. Inside, there were no other influences on Quinn. It was
too hard to see how she was pulled in every direction.

I knew it was
because she was young. Not that I was much older, but I had gone through the
same thing. The fight between expectations and who I really was. Luckily for me,
my family understood. Sienna had not and that was where we had ended. Severing
those ties that pulled in the wrong direction hurt, but it was worth it.

I hated that my
intuition was right. As soon as we walked downstairs towards the front doors,
Quinn spotted her parents.

"We went to
the lab to find you," her father said, "and instead, found out you'd
made a big scene and run out. Everyone is worried and now we find you with
him?"

Quinn straightened
her shoulders. "I'm quitting the nursing program. What happened today made
me realize I have to stop pretending it is a good fit for me."

"Oh, darling,
you can't let a little scare stop you," her mother said. "Of course,
it was off-putting and, of course, you're a little more sensitive to it than
others, but you're strong. You can do this."

"It’s not
just what happened when I saw a cadaver," Quinn said. "I've been
feeling this for a while and I'm done forcing myself in the wrong
direction."

"What on
earth do you know about direction?" her father asked. "You're a
spoiled girl who's turned into a lazy college student. You have no direction
whatsoever. This program is the only thing keeping you together."

I could see the
painful remark hit Quinn hard. "She's keeping herself together and doing
an amazing job," I said. "You need to listen to her. It’s her
life."

Quinn's father
frowned as if I was a bug buzzing. "You really want to be a quitter? All
your life you've wanted to flit from one thing to another and it’s gotten you
nowhere. Your sister, all of us, tried to push you in the right direction, but
it is exhausting."

"Maybe she's
tired of being pushed around," I said.

Quinn put a hand
on my arm and pushed me back. "I'm quitting the nursing program so I can
find my own way. I'm sorry I don't know what that is yet, but I'm trying."

"Is that what
you call running off to Vegas to play video games?" her father asked. "Don't
think I don't know how many hours you log on that ridiculous game. I bought you
that computer for your studies."

I made a mental
note to change Quinn's privacy settings right away. I wanted to jump in between
her and her father, but all I could do was cross my arms and hope. I hoped she would
fight free. She deserved a chance to find her own way.

"Then take
the computer," she said. "Stop paying my tuition. Cut me off
entirely. That might be the best thing that has ever happened to me."

"Is this his
idea?" her mother asked. "Is he convincing you to ruin your life? Oh,
Quinn, darling, he is only using you. Can't you see that?"

The anger was too
hard to swallow. "I am not using Quinn. I would never stand in the way of
anything she wanted to do. I'm supporting her. Maybe you should try it. She's
playing a tournament in Vegas this weekend. Watch her play, see how talented
she is."

Quinn flashed me a
surprised look. We had not discussed the tournament. Then, I saw a gleam in her
eyes. It dissipated the worry I felt for her.

"I'm not
saying that gaming is my future, either, but I think now is the time to explore
my talents," Quinn said. "You always told Sienna she had all the
options in the world."

"Because she
had always taken advantage of the best ones," her father said. "Sienna
never floundered."

"Call it
whatever you want, but I'm doing it. It’s my life and I'm going to make my own
decisions," Quinn said.

Her father
softened his rigid shoulders. He decided to try another tactic. "Fine. If
you insist on this ridiculous course of action, you are going to need our
support. I will come see this tournament of yours, but only if you come back
home with us."

I opened my mouth
to protest, but Quinn's father shot me an angry look. He held up his hand as if
testifying in front of a court.

"We will not
discuss your future plans. We will not put any pressure on you. All I ask is
that you come home where we can guarantee you will have some neutral ground to
think about all of this on your own."

Quinn's parents
glared at me. Clearly, this was all my fault. Dragging Quinn back to their
house was the only way to break her free from my influence. "You know
their house is never going to be neutral ground," I objected.

"Fine. I will
come home. Only if you promise we will not talk about any of this until after
the tournament," Quinn said.

I tried to catch
her hand, but Quinn's mother opened her arms and hugged her. They started back
towards her dorm room to pack. I stood on the steps and flexed my fingers into
tight fists. Watching Quinn be sucked back into her old self was too hard to
see.

She spun loose and
ran back. "We'll meet at your place and drive together to the tournament. Right?"
she asked.

"I'll be
there," I said. "If you need me, just call."

I headed back to
Summerlin
and realized my hands had been clenched
white-knuckled for the entire drive. I sat in the driveway and rubbed the
stiffness from them. Then, I noticed the flash of color in my window. Someone
was inside the apartment.

The door was
unlocked and Anya was posed in the picture window, the bright sun illuminating
her almost transparent sundress. "Your landlord let me in. Nice guy. I
told him I wanted to surprise you."

"This is a
surprise," I said. "What are you doing here? I thought you'd be holed
up in another luxury suite in Vegas."

"I thought
it'd be more fun to visit an old friend," Anya said. She swept across the
room and kissed my cheek. "You know, like old times. We used to have a
great time practicing for tournaments, playing all night, snuggling up on the
couch for a few hours of sleep."

Her smile was open
to much more than snuggling. I peeled her hands off my shoulders and retreated
to the kitchen for a beer. "Sorry, but I'm trying to take these things
more seriously now."

Anya pouted and
leaned across the kitchen island. "I get it. I won't distract you unless
you want me to."

"And who is
this?" Jasper asked. He left the door open as he strode across the
apartment to introduce himself to Anya. "I'm the roommate, Jasper. And you
are?"

She tossed her
silken black hair. "Anya. Nice to meet you. I didn't know Owen had a
roommate. And here I was just begging for a place to crash for the night."

"Well, don't
let me stand in your way," Jasper said. "Can I get you something to
drink?"

He gave me a look
as he came around the kitchen island and opened the refrigerator. I shrugged. If
he wanted to make a pass at Anya, I was certainly not going to stand in his
way. It would be a relief.

"So, enchanting
Anya, what brings you to town?" Jasper asked as he handed her a beer.

"We're
heading to a tournament in Vegas tomorrow morning," Anya said. She toasted
Jasper but licked her lips at me.

It was going to be
a long night.

#

I
felt as if I had just
shut my eyes when my alarm went off. I had set it early so I could spend what
little time I had in the morning getting ready for my tournament appearances. When
I locked myself in the bathroom, I saw Anya had left her black lace bra hanging
provocatively over the shower curtain. I plucked it off and tossed it in the
corner.

She and Jasper had
flirted all night. In order to maintain my facade of amusement, I had drunk way
too many beers. I was exhausted from fending off Anya's many advances. Finally,
I had escaped to my room and actually locked the door. I wondered if she had
ended up in Jasper's bed.

By the time I was
showered and dressed, the blankets and pillow I had left on the couch were
neatly folded. Anya was making breakfast and Jasper was nowhere to be seen.

"Sleep
well?" I asked.

"Wouldn't you
like to
know.
Poor man, drank a little too much?"
Anya asked. "Here. I made you coffee."

Before I could sit
down, there was a knock at the door. I opened it to see Quinn and her father. "Good
morning?" I asked.

"He's just
dropping me off on his way to see a client," Quinn said. She said goodbye,
but her father followed her inside.

"Oh, how
cute! Is your dad driving you to the tournament?" Anya asked.

"Yes. I've
been told I need to see her play," Mr. Thomas replied.

"You can meet
me there," Quinn said. "I don't want to get in the way of your
work."

Her father took
out his phone and sent a quick message. "It’s rescheduled. Now, how about
you introduce me to your friend?" he asked me.

"Mr. Thomas,
this is Anya. She is another player on the gaming scene and one of my oldest
friends in the business."

"Friends?"
he asked.

Anya laughed. "I'm
also one of your daughter's biggest rivals. At the tournament, I mean. I'm the
obstacle she's going to have to defeat if she wants to be anything but a newbie
the rest of her life."

"You
volunteered?" I asked Anya. I ground my teeth as she nodded and tossed her
hair.

"Somebody has
to put the upstarts in their place, don't you think?" she said.

"Can I use
your bathroom?" Quinn asked me.

"Sure,"
I pretended to show her the way. "I had no idea. She just showed up last
night and Jasper invited her to stay."

"
Its
fine. I just need a minute," Quinn said.

She shut the door
in my face. In the main room, Mr. Thomas had taken the coffee Anya gave him and
was looking out the picture window. I went to the kitchen to tell her to back
off.

"It’s so nice
that you are taking Sienna's little sister under your wing," Anya said.

I tried to grab
her arm and whisper to make her stop, but Anya spun away.

"I mean,
Sienna was so distraught when you broke up with her that it’s no wonder you
feel guilty. You have to know it wasn't your fault, Owen. What Sienna did was
her choice. It had nothing to do with your break up," Anya said.

I was rigid with
anger when Quinn reappeared in the main room. "Should we go?" she
asked brightly.

"A go-getter.
Now, that's the right attitude," Anya said. She breezed to the door and
grabbed her things. "I'm ready when you are."

I grabbed my stuff
and headed to the door in a haze. It cleared abruptly when Mr. Thomas grabbed
my arm. He waited until the ladies had disappeared down the stairwell.

"You broke up
with Sienna? Before she died?" he asked. The white clenched lines around
his lips deepened. His grip on my arm was painful. "Does Quinn know?"

"Know
what?" I asked.

"That you
killed her sister," Mr. Thomas said.