Arrow to the Heart: A Dark Cupid Romance

Chapter 32

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My previous shot made it in, but this one misses entirely and the white ball nearly falls into the hole instead.

"Dang it!" I curse.

I look up at Dec and Val chatting at the other end of the table. Dec shoots me a sly smile and raises his beer bottle in the air. Val, meanwhile, smiles uncomfortably and swallows hard.

What's up with him?

I walk over to them both with a shrug.

"I tried," I say. "I told you this isn't my game."

I'm not sure what my game is, but it's not this. Or anything requiring hand-eye coordination.

Maybe it's Scrabble.

"You did fine," Val says.

Dec steps closer and wraps an arm around my waist. He pulls me into him with a sharp tug and whispers against my ear.

"I don't need any proof that you know how to handle a stick, Kitten."

My mouth goes instantly dry.

"W- What's gotten into you today?" I stammer.

"Finally pulled my head outta my ass." He rests his hand on the small of my back. His face is inches from mine and a white lock of hair falls onto his forehead.

"I find that very hard to believe," I tease.

The sound of a throat clearing nearby startles me. Dec grits his teeth and rolls his eyes.

I pull back to see Val standing beside us.

"It's our turn," he says, looking perturbed.

"Oh, right."

Val and I switch back and forth each turn until the other team wins. He seems agitated the whole time, but it's his own fault for playing with me when I warned him I had never played before.

"We lost," I tell Dec with a shrug.

"I saw," he says with a glint in his eye. "Next time you'll have to play with me."

"Are you really good at pool?"

"Who said anything about pool?" He laughs and I playfully push his chest.

This man is just full of innuendo today.

"You're in an awfully good mood," I say.

He's been flirtatious all day, but it's more than that. Something about Dec feels different—happier, lighter.

"It's complicated," he says. "But I've recently had a shift in perspective."

"About wh-"

"Hey Bree," Val interrupts, "could I get your help for a minute?"

"Uh, sure. What's up?"

"Just need some extra hands to pick up our order from the bar."

"Oh okay." I turn back to Dec briefly. "I'll be right back."

Val is relatively quiet as we make our way through the crowd and to the bar. When we arrive, he leans on the edge and turns to me.

"Our order should be coming out any minute now."

"Okay."

"So you and that guy, you aren't together or anything, right?" he asks.

"Uh, no. Not really."