Read The Heart's Game (The Kelly Brothers, Book 4) for Free Online Page B

course, Paul hadn’t been the one who’d slept with Cait.
    The tension started to ease as the game got underway. Everyone at the table was a skilled table-top player, each getting into character without venturing into the annoying territory most n00bs did. As the hours progressed, he could actually imagine himself going on a quest with them. Their skills complemented each other, and the feeling of camaraderie enveloped him as they accepted him as member of their group.
    But every now and then, he caught himself watching Jenny. As soon as the game was over, he wanted answers.
    Unfortunately, she dashed out of the room during the first break, and Paul intercepted him when he got up to follow her.
    “Having fun, Dan?”
    “Definitely.” He glanced over Paul’s shoulder one more time before giving up on going after her. “Do you mind if I ask you a question about Jenny?”
    “She’s not seeing anyone as far as I know, if that was what you were about to ask.”
    He released the breath he’d been holding. “So you two aren’t…?”
    Paul laughed and clapped him on the back. “Me and Jenny? No way! I know better than to date a co-worker, especially one of the most brilliant minds on my team.” He dropped his voice and nodded to the woman in the gown. “Besides, I have my own thing going on with Gretchen.”
    “Good to know.”
    “Yeah, but keep it quiet, okay? I don’t want the others to accuse me of giving her special treatment.”
    “You mean the manticore you charged at her character wasn’t your way of telling her you love her?” Dan teased. Learning Jenny was available gave him a whole different outlook on this game.
    “Shut up.” Paul’s expression sobered as Jenny came back into the room, her face pale. “But if you’re interested in her, don’t treat her like your previous girlfriends.”
    Dan’s spine stiffened. “Meaning?”
    “I know your track record since Cait, and I don’t want you doing the same to her. Jenny’s a nice girl. Very shy. Maybe even a little innocent.”
    Dan resisted a contradictory snort. The woman he met at Comic-Con was anything but innocent. Seductress was a better word. A memory from that night flashed through his mind, and the blood rushed to his dick.
    God help him, he still wanted her.
    But judging by the looks she was giving him, she wanted him as far away as possible.
    It tempered his desire. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
    The game resumed, and he lost himself in the world of magic and mayhem Paul created. One thing he hadn’t expected were the witty exchanges between him and Jenny. When she slipped into character, she became a whole other person. Fun. Flirty. Fearless. Far more like the woman he’d met two weeks ago than the shy girl Paul thought she was. If this was going to be their in-play dynamic, then he was definitely looking forward to each week’s game.
    He just wondered what it would be like if he asked her out after the game.
    By the time the sun had set, his stomach was grumbling for something other than Cheetos and Mountain Dew. A glance around the table told him he wasn’t the only one ready to call it a night. They all waited until Paul snapped his laptop shut and announced, “Till next week, adventurers.”
    Dan rose from the table and stretched, his attention so focused on Jenny that he didn’t notice Paul coming up to him until his friend said his name.
    “We usually head over to a local restaurant for dinner. Want to join us?”
    “Sure.” He watched Jenny out of the corner of his eye as she chatted with Gretchen and Jessie. “Where?”
    Paul gave him the name of the place as he pushed him toward the door. “You can catch a ride with me.”
    He fought the urge to dig his heels in. If he was going to catch a ride with anyone, he wanted it to be her. “I don’t want to be a nuisance.”
    “You won’t be.”
    When they got downstairs, however, he noticed Jenny wasn’t in their group. Dan turned around. “I think I left something