Page 61 of Play For Me

I shift again, already knowing I won’t like where this is going. “I figured you’d want to use this quiet time before he gets back to knock out some work.”

“Solomon.”

“Emery.”

She glares at me and I sigh, tossing my pen onto the table as well. “Do I need a beer for this conversation?”

“I don’t know,” she shoots back. “Do you?”

“Just say it,” I mutter, rubbing the back of my neck.

“I saw you at that party.”

I figured this is where she was going. She’s been making little quips about how I seemed off all day and watching me when she didn’t think I was looking.

“It wasn’t a big deal,” I say, trying to believe it myself. “It was one kiss.” Well, two, technically, but I’m not sure it really counted when she kissed me and I stood there like a statue because my mind was too blown to react.

“You kissed her?” Em shrieks. “When? Where?”

Well, shit. “Is that not what you referring to?”

“I was referring to the way you watched her like a sappy love sick puppy the entire night!” she cries. “I didn’t know you actuallykissedher.”

“Em—”

“You know that’s a bad idea, right? Like, a terrible,terribleidea Sol.”

“I know,” I grit out, wishing I could argue with her, wishing I could tell her it was the best kiss of my life—maybe the bestmomentof my entire life—and there’s no way something that good could be a bad idea.

“You’re training her.”

“I know.”

“You could get kicked out of your program, Sol.”

“Iknow, Em.” I’m getting annoyed now. I really do not need this reminder. “We agreed nothing else is going to happen. It will be fine.”

She looks skeptical. “You actually think you can control yourself around this girl?”

Something about the way she saysthis girlhas my hackles rising. “You don’t like her,” I say flatly. Not a question.

Em rolls her eyes. “I have no problem with CeCe Ransome—besides for the fact that she’s a soccer player and I am very familiar with the way they operate.”

I raise an eyebrow. “I don’t think Jenny cheated on you because she’s a soccer player. I think she cheated on you because she’s a heinous bit?—”

“I just mean, that athletes at that level can be very single-minded. It’s all fun and games until they start missing dates because they’re too bogged down in practice and you end up sitting alone at Olive Garden on your anniversary.” She stops her rant and takes a breath. “That’s not even my point. I was trying to say that I have no problem with CeCe, but when I was dating Jenny, I did see her at plenty of parties and team events.”

I make aget goingmotion with my hands. “And…”

“And I’ve never seen her with the same guy twice.”

My eyebrows shoot up. “That’s a problem?”

She’s looking even more annoyed now than she did with her brother earlier. Good. She deserves it for meddling.

“I don’t want you getting hurt because she doesn’t do commitment.”

I narrow my eyes. “You realize that you’re also describing me, right? When haveIever done commitment?”