Page 87 of The King Contract
Dan nods. “Yes, sir. Whenever I can.”
“Do us a favour and keep him off the front page, will you?” Rick points his fork at Noah. “I don’t want to have to deal with the fellas from work winding me up again. I’ve reached my limit.”
Jared snorts. “Good luck with that.”
“I’ll do my best,” Dan says dryly. “Although, I don’t know why your son would start listening to me now.”
Noah throws his hands up. “I’m right here.”
“Not now, sweetheart, the adults are talking,” Joan coos, patting him on the hand.
Everybody except Noah laughs, and I tap his cheek. “Poor baby. This is what happens when you act like a jackass, honey.”
The laughter continues and even Noah cracks a small smile, narrowing his eyes at me. “You’ll pay for that,” he taunts, squeezing my thigh again. I swallow down my nerves, averting my gaze to my plate in case his family can see the desire written on my face.
“Maybe I won’t bring you with me,” Noah threatens. “Paying for you, Callum and Mack on every trip won’t be cheap.”
“Don’t act like you can’t afford it, moneybags.” Gabby reaches for Dan’s still unopened beer and pops it open with a bottle opener, placing it back in front of him. “We know you’re claiming the three of them as business expenses.”
“Still not sure if that’s technically legal, but you haven’t been flagged yet, so play on,” Jared muses.
“Please don’t break the lawagain,” Joan sighs, raising an eyebrow at Noah.
“Don’t worry, Ma, we’re all over everythinglegally.” Noah grins, patting her hand. “In fact, we’ll be reining it in after Christmas. No more booze and back into training. Need to get focused for the season.”
My stomach drops at the mention of ‘the season’. The season he’s solidifying his image for so he can climb back to the top of his sport. The one we’re fake-dating for.
The one he doesn’t want a girlfriend for.
The idea of gorging on more food vanishes, and I take a sip of my beer to wash down the sensation of panic in my throat.
“You’re bunking with me tonight, hot stuff,” Gabby says to Dan. “Noah and Millie have the pool house because they’re a sickening cute couple and mum and dad want her to like us.”
Dan’s knife clatters to his plate, but he recovers it quickly. “What about Noah’s room?”
“Willow’s sleeping in there,” Rick answers.
“If she’s in our room she’s up all night,” Emma says apologetically. “And I’m barely sleeping as it is with this bowling ball on my belly.”
“And the guest room no longer has a bed in it, ironically,” Rick adds.
“It’s no problem,” Dan assures them. “I can take the couch.”
“Don’t be stupid,” Gabby dismisses. “You’re the size of a bear. I have a king bed.”
“Maybeyoucould take the couch?” Jared offers innocently.
Gabby scoffs. “Fat fucking chance.”
“Language,” Rick and Joan say in unison. The lack of alarm or concern in their voices show it’s a warning they’re used to throwing out around the table.
“Dan and I have shared beds before,” Gabby points out, draping an arm around Dan’s shoulders. She has to rise out of her seat to reach because he’s so much bigger than her. “You don’t care, do you?”
Dan is speechless, which works, because Gabby speaks for him. “See? He’s fine. I’ll put a barrier between us to make everyone feel better.” She squeezes Dan around the neck, and I grin to myself at the image of the makeshift barrier I created at camping.
Gabby sits back in her seat, pointing a warning finger at Dan. “No messing with my eye mask and no speaking first thing in the morning. Which I figure is perfect, because you speak less than all of us put together.”
The conversation continues with ease, but I don’t miss the way Dan looks at Gabby. She’s affectionate with everybody, especially with him. They have a level of comfortability that is effortless and dare I think it, he has a twinkle in his eye when he watches her.
