Free Player & the Game by Shelly Ellis Page B

them really felt about her.
    â€œAs far as a lot of people in this town are concerned, we’re all the same and all of us are just getting what we deserve,” Lauren now said, her old bitterness rising to the surface.
    Lauren paused when her husband, Cris, entered the kitchen. Cris had returned from his morning jog around his property and was covered with a fine layer of sweat. His white tank top was nearly glued to his nutmeg brown skin. His numerous tattoos were on full display.
    â€œWho thinks you’re all the same?” Cris asked as he walked across the kitchen toward Lauren and Stephanie. He leaned down and kissed his wife. He then smiled and waved at his sister-in-law.
    â€œThe people in town, honey,” Lauren said to Cris with a chuckle. “You know they think we’re all the same.”
    Cris stared quizzically at them as he walked around the kitchen island and opened one of the double doors of their industrial-sized stainless steel refrigerator. He then pulled out a bottle of Gatorade.
    Watching him, Stephanie wondered if when Lauren had her baby, whether he or she would look more like Lauren or Cris. Maybe the baby would inherit Cris’s Asian features: the dark, almond-shaped eyes and the high cheekbones that came from the Filipino side of his family. Or would the baby get Lauren’s big doe eyes and small button nose and mouth? Whatever the baby looked like, any combination from such attractive parents Stephanie was sure would be beautiful.
    â€œLook,” Lauren said, returning her attention to her sister, “you can’t judge everyone in the world based on those guys at the Sheriff’s Office or this town, Steph. This Hendricks guy isn’t from Chesterton. He’s from out of town so I’m sure his feelings toward you are more . . . more . . . unbiased.”
    Stephanie pursed her lips. She shook her head. “That’s not the vibe I was getting from him.”
    â€œWhat do you mean?”
    â€œI don’t know he just . . . he just . . .” Stephanie shrugged and placed her coffee cup back on the granite island. “He just made me feel . . . uncomfortable.”
    â€œ Uncomfortable? Uncomfortable in what way?” Stephanie shrugged again. “I don’t know. It’s hard to put into words, Laurie. When he was talking to me, it was like he . . . I felt like he was . . . well . . .”
    â€œYou felt like he was attracted to you?” she asked, finishing Stephanie’s sentence for her.
    Stephanie’s gaze drifted to the kitchen’s tiled floor and she slowly nodded.
    Lauren laughed. “Well, what’s wrong with that? So what if he’s attracted to you? Many men are, Steph! He’s human. So what? You’ve never had a problem with men being attracted to you before. Hell, I thought you relished it!”
    â€œI do, but . . .”
    Stephanie paused. She glanced at Cris who was avidly watching them and listening to their conversation. She didn’t want to make this admission in front of him. There was still a strong part of her that believed in the family rules. One of those rules clearly stated that you didn’t show your true emotions in front of men.
    Yes, Cris was her brother-in-law, a member of the family—but he was still a man .
    Lauren followed Stephanie’s gaze. She found her husband leaning against the refrigerator, still drinking from his Gatorade bottle. She loudly cleared her throat and leaned her head toward the kitchen entryway. Then she gave him a wink.
    â€œWell, uh,” he announced, pushing himself away from the fridge after taking his wife’s hint, “I’ll . . . uh . . . go take a shower now. Gotta get out of these sweaty clothes. See you later, Steph.”
    â€œBye, Cris,” she said to his back as he made a hasty retreat out of the cavernous kitchen.
    Lauren grinned. “You were saying?”
    Stephanie took a deep breath. “I don’t mind men