Zach shook his head. “Unless you have the power to stop a storm.”
“What about our clothes?”
“I have clothes here. You can borrow mine. I’ve got a stock of new toothbrushes too and clean towels. If you’re hungry, I’ve got enough food here.”
He went to the double-door fridge and opened it for me to see. He had beers, Breezers, milk, fruits, ice cream, and ready-made foodstuff.
“I can stay here for days and never go hungry,” he said.
I reached forward and touched the bottle of watermelon Breezers and smiled to myself.
“There’s a bathroom upstairs. You might want to take a shower. My clothes are in the cabinet. You can borrow whatever you want. When you come down, we’ll play some pool and drink some beer.”
He led me upstairs. There was a canopy double bed and matching gray-wash bedside table and wardrobe cabinet. Seeing the bed made me gulp. It brought back a lot of memories of that night I spent with him. I quickly shut the memory out of mind. I can’t think about him that way!
Even after having a hot bath to cool my senses, my heart started pounding against my chest uncontrollably. I chose a pair of long-sleeved brown sweater that ended a couple of inches above my knees. I wore one of his boxer shorts.
When I went downstairs, he had already changed into a pair of pajamas and a white shirt. He took a look at what I was wearing. Suddenly, my heart felt like it was going to leap off my chest. He liked what he saw, and he wasn’t shy to show it. For a moment, I saw not Zachary, my brother, but Zach, the guy I met at the concert… the guy who had awakened the dormant passion living within me.
“I hope you don’t mind,” I said.
He shook his head. “I don’t.” He opened a bottle of Breezer and handed it to me.
“You play pool?” he asked.
I shook my head.
“Let me teach you,” he said.
I had always wanted to play billiards. But I only had girlfriends, and they did not know how to handle a stick.
Zachary took a shot. I watched as four balls immediately went into the corner pockets.
“Take a pick,” he said. “Stripes or solids.”
I saw three solids already went in, so I said, “Solid.”
He smirked. “As if that’s gonna stop me, baby girl. Now, it’s your turn.”
I shook my head. “I don’t know how.”
He came over to my side, teaching me the correct aim. I could feel him behind me. He held my stick on the edge, just below my palm. Then he stretched his hand in front of me, showing me how to position my left hand and aim. He was giving me instructions, but I could barely hear him against the pounding in my chest.
I felt electrified, but he was barely touching me. The air around us was charged, and yet he was completely being a gentleman.
“Are you ready to give it a go?” I heard him ask, his breath against my skin.
I slightly nodded because I couldn’t find my voice.
Shit! This is not right! My big brother is not supposed to make me feel like this! My head was spinning, my heart was fluttering wildly inside my ribcage, and my breathing was getting out of control. I could feel desire pooling between my thighs.
“Go ahead, baby girl. Let it go. Trust me. Hit it.” His voice was sensual. I knew he was talking about the game and the ball, but somehow, I couldn’t help thinking that he meant something else.
I closed my eyes and hit the cue ball as hard as I could. I hit it, and then it hit another solid ball and sent it spinning toward the right corner pocket.
I nearly jumped for joy. I hit my first ball of billiards.
“You’re a fast learner, baby girl,” Zachary said, smiling. “Another shot. All by yourself.”
I took aim at another solid. I tried to recall what he told me and forget the fact that he was watching me intensely. I took a deep breath, and then I hit the ball again. It went in all right. However, the cue ball also got in.
“Scratch,” Zachary said. He took the cue ball out and the solid ball that went in. “Remember not to hit it too hard. A scratch can cause you the whole game, baby girl.”
Now it was his turn to hit the ball. Zachary was good. In that turn, he was able to shoot five stripes. He only had one left.
It was my turn to shoot. As I aimed, I felt him behind me again, adjusting my stick, standing close to me. I could barely breathe.
“You’re ready, baby girl. Don’t be scared. Go for it,” he said.
Shit!
I did. I made the shot. I smiled smugly back at Zachary.
“All right, try to make the next shot by yourself,” he said. “You’re not getting any help from me!”
“Spoken like a real big brother!” I muttered. He didn’t say anything. When I looked back at him, he was staring at me with a hard expression on his face. “What?” I asked back innocently.
“Shoot,” he said in a low voice, void of any emotion.
I took a deep breath before hitting the cue ball. I hit the cue ball, then it hit the solid ball going straight for the hole. I held my breath as I watched the cue ball follow suit, stopping a few inches in front of the hole.
“Yes!” I screamed happily.
Zachary grinned at me. Then he motioned for me to shoot the next.
I concentrated. It was extra hard since he was staring at me with those mesmerizing blue eyes of his, but I tried my best to ignore the feeling coursing through me. I aimed, held my breath, and then took the shot. The cue ball went across the table, hitting the solid ball and sending it straight to the pocket.
I jumped for joy and smiled at Zachary smugly. His smile was full of challenge.
“Go ahead, baby girl. If you win this, you can ask me to do anything your heart desires.”
“Be my chauffeur for a week?”
“Anything.”
“Accompany me to London to see my friends?”
“Anything.”
I smiled excitedly. I took a shot nervously, aiming for the eight ball. I held my breath.
“Baby girl…” I heard Zachary say. “If I win…” he paused for a moment, and I stared back at him, “…you’re going to let me do whatever I want.”
Fuck!
Just like that, I lost my focus. I took a shot and hit the cue ball, sending it toward the eight but missing it by a millimeter.