Free Player's Challenge by Koko Brown Page A

sealing the deal. Before she pulled away, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against the corner of her mouth. The kiss was casual and brief, but it sent an electrical shock through her body, wrapping her in a sizzling web of want and desire. And the ache between her legs was so palpable she wanted to rush into the bathroom and take care of it personally. It wouldn’t be anything like banging the hell out of Devin, but it would be much better for her well-being.
    Stick to the boundaries!
    ***
    After breakfast, Devin made a pit stop at a supermarket around the corner from his flat. Since most of his food was organic and healthy, and Gemma subsisted on artificial flavors and fillers, he decided to be a gracious host and pick up a few more staples.
    “You don’t have to do this,” Gemma pointed out as she walked beside him. He’d taken complete charge of the shopping cart and was now guiding them through the produce section. “I’m only staying a few days.”
    “One look at my cupboards and you’re going to thank me for this. Even when the season is over, I stick to a pretty strict diet with an occasional cheat day thrown in here and there.”
    Gemma eyed his trim waist. “Maybe I could adopt your habits.”
    “Ready to take up my wheatgrass and green algae smoothies?”
    “That sounds like a science project gone horribly wrong,” she retorted, her nose scrunching up in disgust.
    Devin chuckled. “What about egg whites with spinach and a side of carrot juice?”
    “Equally uninspiring.” She affected a yawn.
    “Grass-fed beef with brown rice and broccoli?”
    Gemma pursed her lips. She absolutely detested broccoli. “I’m seeing the light. You lead and I shall follow.”
    For the next thirty minutes, they walked up and down the aisles. Like on the football pitch, Devin didn’t play around. His approach to shopping kept them moving and Gemma focused, which was good since she tended be rather scattered when she shopped and tended to forget something.
    “Do you remember the time when we played that practical joke on your neighbor, Mrs. Hadley?”
    “You have to be more specific. I pranked the poor dear more times than I could count.” So much so, Mrs. Hadley barely acknowledged Gemma when she visited her mum.
    “When you told Mrs. Hadley her lawn was on fire…”
    “And she ran outside in her nightgown and rollers, carrying a pitcher of water,” Gemma finished.
    Devin doubled over in laughter. “And…and she stood there about ten minutes trying to figure out if her lawn was really on fire.”
    “That was so wrong of us,” Gemma said through fits of laughter. She would never forget poor Mrs. Hadley standing in the center of her yard, completely befuddled, wearing a floral muumuu and a headful of pink sponge rollers. “I laughed so hard I think I peed on myself.”
    “You didn’t.”
    Noticing the sudden change in his voice, Gemma stopped dead in her tracks. Green eyes darkening to almost black, he stepped closer. Choosing flight over fight, she retreated backward and slammed into the grocery shelf. Seizing upon the opportunity, Devin placed his hand above her right shoulder. With the cart to her left, a shelf of canned fruit at her back, she was caged in on all sides.
    “Remember what happened after Mrs. Hadley went back inside?”
    “I-I think we resumed our studies.”
    Edging closer, Devin shook his head. “No. We were laughing so hard we collapsed on the couch. The sun was streaming through the bay window in your mum’s living room and lit up your eyes, turning them a golden brown. I leaned over and kissed you.” He curved over her until he was only inches from kissing her. “I took your knickers off and licked you until you came all over my face.”
    Face flushed and feeling like one huge throbbing hormone, Gemma tried to tamp down a sudden surge of desire.
    “I want to—”
    “Devin Spencer!”
    Both of them looked toward the end of the aisle. Some bloke in a soiled mechanic’s