Player's Princess (A Royal Sports Romance)(14)

"Is that good?" Akele asks her.

She blinks. "Maybe?"

By the time they're done and shake on it, Akele and Aheahe both have two monopolies, but they split the railroads. Dee will be out when she starts rolling again; she's only got the light blue ones, and I have the other cards keeping her from getting the purples. Control of the right side of the board is divided between me and Anastasia.

I take the dice.

"Okay, I can deal before my turn. Ana—can I call you Ana?"

"No."

"Sugar Tits, we need to make a deal. A real deal. We've both got nothing."

She glares at me. "You've got nothing. I've got the green monopoly."

"She's going to cheat," I warn the others. "I want her to roll from a cup."

"I roll like you do, and if you call me sugar tits again, I'll emasculate you."

"What's that?" Aheahe asks.

"It's a big word for 'rip my balls off.'"

"That would be 'castrate,'" Anastasia says, her voice icy. "'Emasculate' means I rip your penis off."

"You'd have to touch it in the process."

"I'll use tongs."

"Are we actually playing this game?" Dee snaps.

"Fine. Okay, Ana. You've doomed us both. You can make a deal on your roll, but not after. If you don't make a deal after my roll, no deal at all, got it? You can keep your green monopoly and let the owners of the rest of the board clobber you."

Ana smirks at me. "Roll your dice."

"Fine."

I roll and take a bad hit from Aheahe's hotel. I grumble as I count out the rent money and pass it to him.

Ana picks up the dice and in a single, smooth motion, rolls a seven. She looks at me and grins and moves her token, one step at a time, while the rest of us groan.

"Bro, why did you do that to us?" Akele moans.

"If that was the price I pay for a kiss from the princess's own lips, I'll pay it gladly."

I lean over to Anastasia.

"If you make a trade with me on my next turn," I whisper softly in her ear, "I'll make it worth your while."

She tilts her head to look at me. Her mouth is so close to mine. I can feel her warm breath, taste the scent of her on my tongue. She smells like berries.

"Worth my while how?"

"Toe. Curling."

"I'll make do with my hand."

"Can I watch?"

Dee rolls. She's still in jail. She continues to glare at me.

It's Aheahe's turn. He lands on his brother's monopoly and pays a hefty rent, but I don't think he cares. If he loses to Akele, he'll own half the board and we're all screwed.

"Make a deal," I plead with Anastasia. "I'll owe you a favor."

"What if my favor is 'shut up and never speak to me again'?"

"Then you'll make me dishonest. I want you, from the tips of my toes to the top of my head. Run away with me."

"Roll the dice," she snaps.

I sigh, pick them up, and roll them.

I land on one of her greens, which is now covered in hotels.

I have jack shit, and she just took half my money.

Ana picks up the dice. "I choose to trade."

We all listen.

She turns to me. "These are my terms."



Ana



I must remain calm. I must not let on that my heart is hammering in my chest until it feels like it will crack my ribs, or that the gentle brush of his arm or hip against me as I sit next to him is enough to make heat flood my body, rising from between my legs in a twisting spiral of desire. Despite his unshaven stubble and baggy clothes, he truly is a beautiful man. I could gaze on his face for hours, studying every feature, his solid cheekbones and perfect chin and his sharp, intelligent eyes. Somehow despite all his size, there is nothing brutish about him. He is lithe, almost graceful, and he is warm.

Whenever he looks at me, I can feel the desire well inside me. It brings out strange little tics that I never knew I had. I bite my lip, I sweep loose strands of hair aside, I tug on my shirt because it feels too tight around my chest, or perhaps not tight enough.

I pick up the dice from the board and survey it quickly, sparing Jason the barest glance. I smirk to myself. He probably thinks I am stupid because I have blonde hair. Americans think this, I am told. I weigh them in my fingers, thinking as I survey the state of the board. This game really is trivial, and I am in an excellent position thanks to the foolish trade he made with me earlier.

"I choose to trade," I announce.

I turn to Jason.

"I offer you these three"—I hold up the property cards—"in exchange for those four and that railroad."

The others look at him nervously.

"Dude, you already screwed us," Akele sighs.

Jason evaluates his own meager holdings and counts his cash. He sits back.

"Make your decision," I say, my voice dripping with impatience.

He scratches his chin, and his eyes rake over me from head to toe. I feel like his gaze is peeling back every fiber of cloth until it seems the air kisses my skin and I feel naked. I like the feeling and suppress a shiver, cursing myself for the way I feel my cheeks grow hot. I keep my gaze steady and my lips tightly pursed, willing myself not to bite my lip or stick out my tongue or flutter my eyelashes or some other foolish thing.