Free Just My Luck (A Shamrock Falls Novel) (Entangled: Bliss) by Kelley Vitollo

was the playoffs, he knew. In fact, he’d recorded the games to watch later, but this? Betsy on edge and shouting at a football game wasn’t something he ever thought he’d see.
    Jace couldn’t stop himself from smiling.
    “Ugh! Stupid kicker.” Betsy shook her head.
    A strange kind of happiness filled him. What a surprise she was. Who would have thought quiet Betsy Harris was a closet football fan? A very passionate one at that. Though he guessed there were quite a few things that surprised him about her. No one read Jace or judged his moods like she did. And recently he’d found out she was a pool shark too. She kept him on his toes.
    The low rumble of a laugh climbed out of his throat. Betsy immediately tensed before slowly turning to him.
    Her cheeks were pink, but obviously for a completely different reason this time. He liked it just as much as he always did. “Enjoying the game?” Jace leaned against her doorframe and crossed his arms. He felt lighter than he had since—well, since he and Betsy had laughed over the cold water incident.
    All the blood drained from her face as she scrambled down off the bed. “I…I…” And then she buried her face in her hands. Jace felt horrible about laughing at her, but damn it, he hadn’t meant it in a bad way. He should have known she would be insecure about it.
    “B—”
    Before he could continue, she started to laugh. Her shoulders shook with it. It was almost as surprising as what he’d walked in on. Jace joined in again, chuckling as he stepped into the room. The laughter made him feel even lighter than before and he couldn’t stop himself from studying the tone and watching her body language.
    “I take it your team is losing?” he teased.
    Two of her fingers parted and she looked at him. “Is there any way we can forget you saw that?”
    Jace enjoyed the playfulness in her voice. She was shy and embarrassed, but he loved that she wasn’t completely cowering away. A few months ago she would have been.
    “Not on your life, Ref.” Jace walked fully into her room and sat on her bed. “You’re a football fan,” he said. “I didn’t know that about you.” Fake wife or not, he felt he should know those things about her.
    “I love all sports.” She wasn’t covering her face anymore, but she also hadn’t moved.
    Jace patted the bed. “Sit with me, please.”
    She took a couple deep breaths, then did as he asked.
    Judging by her reaction just now and the way she hid in her room earlier, Jace wondered if the two things were connected. “Were you watching one of the games when I told you I was leaving?”
    “Yes,” she answered simply.
    “Is that why you held the door closed?”
    Her answer didn’t come as quickly this time, but eventually she gave him another, “Yes.”
    Questions rained down on him, ones he probably shouldn’t ask. Jace always struggled talking emotions or putting himself out there. But then…this was his friend. This was Betsy. He’d talked to her before and this wasn’t any different. “You’re my friend, B. I care about you. I don’t want you to hide who you are from me—especially when it’s something as minor as being a sports fan. Why wouldn’t you share that?”
    Betsy closed her eyes for a few seconds before opening them again. “Because it isn’t something minor to me.”
    Jace ran on logic and there wasn’t any logical reason he could think of for why she would hide something like this. He almost reached over and grabbed her hand, but stopped himself. Looking at her, Jace noticed her lips and how they were slightly pouty. He’d always had a thing for lips. What the hell am I doing thinking about Betsy’s lips again? Jace fought to get back on track. “I just want this to go as smoothly on both of us as it can. The only way that will happen is if we can be honest with each other and talk. We’re friends first and foremost.”
    Jace had no idea if he was saying the right thing here. He ran over her reply