Wicked Game - James Vincent McMorrow
ISABELLA
The way Harry spoke fascinated me. His voice slow, his accent accentuated by his low, raspy tone. I could tell that he was careful when choosing which word he said. He didn't speak to speak. He would mull over the words that he would say, each one being an open window to his mind and soul.
I could watch his lips move every minute of the day and not once be bored. His mind and thoughts had a way of captivating me. He was captivating. I was hooked.
It was now the end of the day. The store had been relatively busy, but still slow enough to sit and read with Harry. He had made it a routine to come by from eleven in the morning and stay until four in the evening; an hour after opening and an hour before closing. I wasn't sure why he would always choose those hours to stop by. He never really spoke to me about it. Granted, I never asked. But I wasn't going to complain about it, that was for sure.
The summer sun had begun to lower in the sky, it's warm rays down casting over the vacant roads. I enjoyed this time of the day. It wasn't hot out but it wasn't cold. It was the perfect weather. The sun was still out, making it easy to walk back home. I loved it.
I quickly locked the door, double checking that everything was safely shut. I began to walk down the street until I heard my name being called. I quickly turned around, straining my eyes to see who that voice belonged to.
Behind the glare of the sun, a quiff of blonde hair began to make it's way over to me. Chase. He ran over to me, a big smile plastered on his face.
"Izzy! I thought it was you." He pulled me into an non-expectant hug. I quickly reciprocated it by wrapping my arms around his medium build.
"Hey," I pulled back and flashed a small smile. "Fancy seeing you around here."
He returned my small smile and quirked one of his eyebrows, "Do you work around here?" He asked.
"Yeah. Hemingway Books." I pointed to the small bookstore. He hummed in response and turned back so that he was facing me once again.
"I didn't know that place existed."
"Not many do."
"A hole in the wall," he stated.
"That would be it." I shifted from one foot to the other. I stuck my hands in my jean pockets and looked around. I wasn't sure what to do or to say to Chase. I hadn't seen or talked to him since the small get together that Jaz had thrown a few weeks before. I had forgotten how attractive he was. His Irish-British accent sending the familiar chill down my spine.
"Say, I've been meaning to ask you something since that first night we met." He stepped closer towards me, "Would you like to go grab a drink? I'd love to get to know you better."
I hesitated, unsure of what his intentions were. "I don't know-"
"It's only a drink Izzy." He laughed, cutting me off.
"Right." I looked down at my feet once again and ran a hand through my messy curls. "I guess a drink would be fine."
"Great!" He flashed a rather charming smile and grabbed my arm gently. "This way then."
Chase led us down the road towards a small bar. It wasn't too packed but still quite busy. "This way." He led us towards a waitress, flashing her his charming smile.
"Hello! How can I help you." The blond waitress asked. She flicked her eyes up and down Chase's body, not being obvious at all. She looked over at me and quirked an eyebrow.
"Hello love. A table for two?" He asked, his voice laced with charm.
She giggled and looked down at her book. How typical is she? I couldn't help but ask myself. She was being ridiculously stereotypical. "Right this way."
Blondie led us towards the bar, setting two menus on a high table that was sat close to it. Chase slid my stool out for me and I carefully jumped up, care to not fall. He sat down at his own and pulled a menu up. "Have you had dinner?"
"No, but I'm not hungry."
"You have to eat, Izzy." He laughed.
"Right." I looked over the menu quickly and decided to order a plate of hot wings and a beer.
"A woman after my own heart," He joked, ordering the same thing.
"I like food, what can I say." I laughed back.
-
The night was pleasantly delightful. Chase was a real gentleman. He was also rather charming and quite the flirt. I wasn't sure how I felt about it, but at the same time could not deny the attraction I felt towards him. He was intelligent, majoring in Philosophy, but also quite clever. He loved soccer, ("Football, love." He laughed at my American accent and poked fun at my American pronunciation. If he wasn't so attractive, I'd be slightly offended.) and was quite the sport enthusiast.
He had paid for the meal, even though I had insisted that we split it. But he had won our little argument by seducing our waitress. Even though he claims that he was not. I called bullshit on that one!
The night was cool but not too cold. The streets were still busy with people. For a Thursday night, I was surprised by the many people that surrounded me.
"Are you enjoying good ol' London?" Chase asked. We had been walking towards my apartment while talking about random things. I really enjoyed talking to him.
"I am! It's not what I expected but I'm glad it isn't. It's different than New York, but in the best way possible, you know? I really am glad I decided to move here."
"Do you miss home?"
"Sort of. Not really?"
"You don't miss home? Wow." He looked at me skeptically. I only shrugged my shoulders in response.
"My parents and I are very different," I carefully explained. "They are very into the high life, whereas I am the opposite. I rather live in a dingy apartment in Brooklyn surviving on Mac and Cheese, whereas they'd die if they set foot inside the subway."
"There's nothing wrong with that. Subways are disgusting."
"Have you even been on one?"
"Once, while I was visiting my sister at NYU. I went on it once and could not handle the smell of piss. I made sure to get a rental car. Those things are dirty. If you have the money, use it I say."
I cringed at that. I hadn't realized he was into the prestigious lifestyle. "I'd rather use my money for something good and productive. Not waste it on caviar and rental cars." I quipped back.
"You're a strange girl," He laughed.
"I am not strange," I quickly defended myself. Way to lose points, dick head. If he keeps this up there would be no second date. I definitely agreed with my inner voice on that one.
"Sorry! Iz, I didn't meant to offend you." He quickly caught on to my quick change in tone and apologized.
"That's fine. This is my stop." We finally walked up to my apartment door. Chase stood in front of the entrance and blocked me from entering. His bright blue eyes stared into me intently. His lips quirking up into a smirk.
"Thank you for having dinner with me." He lifted his hand up to brush a piece of hair away from my face. I shivered lightly at his gentle touch.
"Thank you for taking me." I blushed.
"Can I have your number? I'd like to do this again." He boldly asked while taking a step closer towards me. I couldn't help but hesitate, a pair of vibrant green eyes appearing in my mind. I quickly shake it away. Harry hadn't shown any interest in me. Why should I pass an offer for a second date with a nice guy if he is too slow to do anything.
"Okay." I pulled out my phone and passed it to Chase. He unlocked it, pressing his numbers into it. He quickly called himself and declined the call.
"There we go." He handed me back my phone, his hand gently grazing over mine.
"Thank you again."
"You're welcome." Chase replies while leaning in slightly. His lips brush against my cheek softly. Butterflies didn't erupt inside of me nor did I feel a burning sensation from his touch. But I still shivered slightly and smiled up at him.
"Goodnight." I say, earning a small goodnight back.
-
"I can't believe you went to dinner with Chase last night and gave him your number." Jaz had been going on and on about my run in ever since I told her this morning. She kept saying how great Chase was and how he was so attractive. "You two would be cute together. But what about that cute guy from the bookstore?" Harry.
"He hasn't shown any interest," which was true. I couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed but brushed it off. Maybe he just wanted to be friends.
"Doesn't he spend every day with you?"
"Yeah."
"And you still don't think he likes you?"
"Like I said. He hasn't said anything." I argued half heartedly.
"He's a guy. They're slow like that. Oh!" Her eyes quickly lit up as she began to bounce up and down. "Why don't you invite him to our dinner tomorrow night."
"I don't know." I hesitated.
"There's no harm in asking him to come join us. Just one more person for the asshole that is Haz to meet." Jaz rolled her eyes annoyed at the mere mention of Ben's brother.
"Okay. I'll ask him today."
-
It had been two hours since Harry arrived at the bookstore. He was sitting in the back, reading Fight Club. I had been debating all morning wether or not to ask him to join us tonight. I couldn't help but wonder if he'd say yes or not. I wanted him to come. Even though I didn't know where he stood feelings wise towards me, I was still intrigued by him.
Just do it, Iz. Go and ask him. I gave myself one more push and walked over to where he sat.
"Hey, Harry?" I softly asked, my voice quivering slightly at the end. The nerves getting to me. Harry looked up from his book, his eyes piercing right through me.
"Isabella." He smirked. I rolled my eyes at my full name and took a seat beside him.
"I was wondering, if you weren't doing anything tomorrow night, if you wanted to come to small dinner party thing at my place. My roommate and I are throwing one and are inviting friends over and stuff. I just figured, we are kinda friends, or I guess more acquaintances, but er- anyways, I was wondering if you'd like to come. Because I think you're cool and would like for you to come?" I smacked myself and internally groaned at my awkwardness. Pull your shit together.
His smirk widened at my obvious rambling. But it quickly wiped away. "Are you sure your boyfriend would mind?" He asked, his voice slightly on edge.
"Boyfriend?" I wasn't sure where he got the idea that I had a boyfriend. Not once did I ever mention a guy in my life or even hinted at one. Before I could tell him that I didn't have one, he quickly spoke up. "Never mind. I can't, sorry. I have plans." My heart suddenly sinked at his rejection. Of course he had plans. He probably had better things to do. He probably had a girlfriend. An attractive guy like him could not not have girlfriend.
I quickly pulled a fake smile, hoping to mask my sudden disappointment. "Okay. Sure, that's fine. Um, well, you just keep reading your book. I'll be over there." I quickly got up and rushed over to the back room, hitting myself in the head for being a complete moron.
-
My phone began to buzz beside me. It was finally Saturday, only an hour until everyone was set to show up. My phone buzzed again, signaling another text. A text from Chase. We had been texting most of the day.
The more that I talked to him, the more lovely he became. I truly enjoyed talking to him. He was different. Sure, he had a pretentious, kinda snobby side to him, but he was still fun to be around. I found myself looking past his snobby comments and focused on his good looks and carefree outlook on life. Was that wrong? Possibly. But honestly, I didn't care. I was here to go outside of my box, to seek an adventure. Hanging out with an attractive man was definitely a side ingredient to a successful adventure.
"I can't wait to see you tonight." He texted. I smiled as I read. A small blush making it's way to my cheeks.
"It'll be nice to talk to you, and not via text message. ;)" I quickly responded.
"Seeing your beautiful face helps too." Again, I blush. He's no Harry though. My mind still drifted off back to Harry. Those piercing green eyes, husky voice, and beautiful mind. I really did wish he was coming tonight.
I put my phone down, not bothering to respond. I pulled out the lasagna from the oven. The mouthwatering aroma of the Italian dish drifted throughout the apartment, making my stomach grumble with hunger. Placing the dish down, I walked over to the side counter where a big salad bowl and vegetables to make a toss salad laid. I quickly chopped the lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, and cheese up, throwing all of it's contents into the bowl.
Everything was set and ready at the table. Jaz had lit a few candles around the apartment and pulled out a bottle of wine. The dining room looked odd with a home cooked meal on top of it. It was weird to not see take out boxes from Brerin's all over the place. I began to feel a bit self conscious as I looked at everything that I made. I really, really hoped that it tasted fine. The last thing that I needed was to give food poisoning to mystery brother and company.
"This looks delicious, Izzy!" Jaz complimented. "You will definitely need to cook more often." She took a deep whiff of the steamy lasagna, making a strange noise.
"We'll see," I laughed.
A few more minutes passed. A loud knock came from the front door, making me jump in my spot, startled. "They're here!" Jaz skipped over to the door and opened it up. Chase and Tiff stood outside with a brown box in hand. "We bring dessert!" She exclaimed as they entered our apartment. "I hope you like cheesecake." She sent a warm smile over to me as she placed the cheesecake box on top of our kitchen counter.
"You can never go wrong with cheesecake," I said giving her a thankful smile.
Chase makes his way over to where I stand. His lips curl up into a half smirk half smile. His blonde-brown hair perfectly swooped up. He is wearing a white shirt and dark grey skinny jeans. My heart begins to quicken it's speed as I check him out subtly. He holds his arms out, welcoming me in for a hug. I step into his arms and return the small gesture. He smelt good, his cologne seeping into my senses. But not as good as Harry. "Always a pleasure to see you." He pulled back slightly, his arms still wrapped around me.
"Yeah. You too."
A cough comes from beside us. I look over at the source. My breath hitches in my throat, my arms quickly letting go of Chase, and stepping away from his grasp.
Bright vibrant eyes look at me, staring. A small scowl touches his lips. "Harry?" I ask, confused to why he was here.
"Isabella," His voice is low with a slight harsh undertone. His eyes don't leave mine. I try to decode his stiff body language, but am too confused by his presence.
"What are you-?" I am quickly cut off by Ben who walks over to where we all stand.
"Izzy, Chase- this is my brother, Haz."
"Harry." He quickly corrects. His voice still low and quite frankly, a bit scary.
"Right. Harry." Ben rolls his eyes and lets out a huff. "This is my brother." Once those four words were spoken, everything began to click. Haz was Harry. Harry was Ben's brother.
Oh shit.