Free For Nick by Taylor Dean Page B

with him and the feeling made her want to laugh, just for the heck of it. What was his excuse?
    Andie studied him as he was lost in thought, deciphering the dice, trying to figure out what would be the wisest move and she didn’t know what came over her, but she reached out and tweaked his nose. It surprised him and without missing a beat, he returned the favor by reaching out and tweaking her nose. She scoffed at him and retaliated by reaching out with both of her hands and running them over his scalp in a fast circular motion until his hair stood on end. His mouth hung open in shock. She reached over and pushed on his chin, closing his mouth. He did as he’d done the first time—he retaliated without hesitation. He did the same to her hair, until it was a snarled mess. Then they behaved as if they were two kids in a fight, each trying to one-up the other, each trying to have the last word or in this case, have the last move. She pushed his shoulder, he pushed her shoulder. She tickled his stomach, he tickled her stomach. She pinched his cheek, he pinched her cheek. By this time, they were laughing along with each attack and eagerly awaiting the next move. She picked up a pillow from the couch and walloped him smack-dab in the face. He retrieved a pillow from the couch and did the same to her. She hit him again and said, “I win.” She then turned and ran up the stairs with Zach hot on her heels. He clobbered her with his pillow while she was still in the hallway. He ducked into one of the bedrooms and she followed only to find he was hiding behind the door and he got her really good right on top of the head. He then said, “I win,” and turned and ran.
    “You’d better run, Zachary Drake,” she said as she walked through the hallway wondering where he was hiding. Cautiously, she entered another one of the bedrooms and found him sitting in one of the overstuffed chairs, fake snoring as if he was fast asleep. His pillow sat on his lap.
    Cocky little sneak .
    She chose to attack immediately rather than wait and ponder her options. She got him four times before he knew what hit him and then it was all out war as they hammered each other with pillows, stealing them from the bed and sending them flying. Their strength diminished with each hit as their laughter increased. In the end, he tackled her to the ground and held her arms down. “I win,” he said, his face close to hers. Andie could hardly catch her breath and she struggled to break free and grab her pillow. As their struggling and laughter faded, they were left with the knowledge that they were in an extremely intimate position. Their smiles faded and for a few moments, they simply looked upon each other.
    Zach broke the unexpected contact and helped her up, the odd moment quickly forgotten. They caught sight of themselves in the mirror and laughed until their faces nearly turned blue. They were a sight, hair and clothing askew, and the room looked as if world war three had taken place. They tidied up together, occasionally smacking each other with a pillow. Finally Zach declared, “I give already. I’m exhausted. How about a movie?”
    They watched another movie, this time snuggled up on the couch together as if it was something they did every night. She was comfortable with him, surprisingly so. Andie hadn’t expected to like him as much as she did. He was easy to get along with, to talk with, and just to be with. She’d thought him daunting and unapproachable and found him to be quite the opposite.
    After slowly climbing the stairs, they stopped at the door to her room. They studied each other for a long moment.
    “Goodnight, Andie.”
    “Goodnight, Zach.”
    He really was going to wait for her to initiate something more between them. He was a man of his word. The thought left her with the knowledge that she had chosen wisely. He wasn’t going to pressure her into a physical relationship with him, even though they were married, even though they were