Sweet and Spicy [COMPLETED]

Leona's Date (pt. 4)

Kaya thought they would be done after dinner. She should have known better. Leona didn't let anything stand in the way of taking full advantage of her one day with Ransom Lee. 

Which was how Kaya found herself standing in some high-end billiard hall with a cue-stick in one hand. She didn't even like billiards. It seemed like a snobby game. But she wasn't about to leave Leona alone with Ransom. 

"Have you ever played before?" Leona asked Kaya. 

Kaya shook her head. "No." 

Ransom smirked and, try as she might, Kaya couldn't come up with a reason for the expression. Did something strike him as funny? Kaya couldn't think of anything that might amuse him. 

Leona struck the white ball with the dots (a cue ball, Kaya had been told) and waited for it to send a numbered ball into the pocket. 

Ransom circled Kaya to get to his next shot, pausing only to lean close and ask, "Would you like to learn?"

Not really, but she couldn't be outdone by the perfect little journalist across from her. "I guess I could try." 

"Let me teach you." Ransom crooked a finger at Kaya. "Come here." 

Leona wrinkled her nose, the exact reason that Kaya didn't beg off learning. Kaya's hand-eye coordination had never been fantastic, but maybe she could fake it for an hour or so. 

Kaya tip-toed her way to Ransom's side. Best not to anger Leona, but Ransom had offered to teach first, so Leona shouldn't have any arguments about it. 

As if he knew her hesitation, Ransom reached out an arm, wrapped it around Kaya's waist, and pulled her in to his chest. 

"Here." He held out his pool stick and, with the other hand, removed Kaya's from her hand. "Take this." 

Kaya, fully aware of her close proximity to Ransom, grasped her fingers around his cue stick. 

Ransom set Kaya's stick aside and encircled her in his arms, hands over hers. "Like this." He bent beside her, holding her steady as Kaya aimed at the cue ball for the first time. "Hold it steady. Breathe." 

How was she supposed to breathe with Ransom so close against her side? With his warmth engulfing her muddling her senses.

"Oh, good gosh, just shoot already." Leona propped a hip against the pool table. 

Kaya took in an annoyed gasp, and Ransom chose that time to help her shoot the ball. Kaya frowned as the cue ball rolled between two numbers and stopped. 

"That's not fair," Kaya complained. 

Ransom chuckled and turned his head to kiss her ear. "You've got the hang of it." 

Kaya glared at him. Why did he feel the need to embarrass her in front of her rival? He was supposed to make her look good. 

Leona balanced her cue stick across her shoulders and held it there. "I've got a great idea." 

"What's that?" Kaya and Ransom asked in unison. 

Leona jutted her chin toward their position. "Let's take a step apart first, then I'll tell you." 

Kaya glanced down, just remembering that Ransom's arms still held her tightly. That his chest still pressed against her back as if he belonged there, holding her. 

Begrudgingly, she released Ransom's pool stick back into his own hands. 

Ransom huffed, but he took a step sideways to leave some space between himself and Kaya. 

Leona grinned as if she won the entire war. "Let's make a bet."