Playing Hard to Get (The Players)

I’M NERVOUS.

I’ve been awake since six in the morning, anticipating meeting Knox’s parents at breakfast. He’s reassured me constantly that they’re nice, they’ll go easy on me, and he’s positive that they’ll love me, but I don’t know.

It’s still such a scary experience, meeting a guy’s parents for the first time, especially since we haven’t been dating for very long.

But it feels serious between us. Far more serious than it ever did with my ex.

Bryan’s parents never really seemed to warm up to me, and I know they weren’t fully supportive of our long-distance relationship. Bryan told me that himself. I tried so hard to prove to them I was a good person, who was worthy of their son’s devotion, but I could never seem to get their approval.

Eventually I gave up and was merely polite to them, just as they were toward me. It was a frustrating experience.

One I don’t want to repeat.

Not quite sure how to dress for meeting the parents over breakfast, plus having to go to work later, so I went with a black dress with tiny golden flowers printed all over it, black tights and my favorite black boots I bought last winter. I’m wearing my hair down with minimal makeup.

Meaning, I’m going as myself. There’s no dressing up or trying to look better just for his parents’ sake. I want them to accept me as I am, and there’s no point in trying to fake my appearance in order to impress them.

Natalie already left for school, so I’m here alone, climbing the walls and second-guessing all of my life choices when finally, there’s a knock on our door. I rush to it, checking the peephole to see Knox standing there by himself. I hurriedly open the door and practically throw myself at him.

“Hey, hey. You okay?” He wraps his muscular arms around me, holding me close, and I snuggle into his chest for a moment, breathing in his familiar scent.

“I’m fine. Just glad to see you. Nervous.” I pull out of his arms, sending him a pleading look. “Do I look okay?’

“You look beautiful.” The appreciative glow in his eyes warms my skin and when he gives me a quick kiss, I’m practically floating on air. “You ready?”

“Let me grab my backpack.”

Once I’ve got my stuff and lock the door, Knox leads me to his car, holding my hand the entire way like a good boyfriend should. I’m just grateful his grip is strong because I stumble twice, like the klutz I am, and by the time his car is in sight, I see that his parents are standing beside it, their heads bent close as they speak to each other.

His father is tall and broad, though not as muscular as Knox, and they share the same color of hair. His mother is much shorter and slender, with dark brown hair similar to mine, though it sits right at her shoulders. The closer I get, I can see the friendly expressions on their faces, their broad smiles. It hits me hard, how attractive his dad is.

How much Knox looks like him.

It’s—jarring. But not in a bad way. More in a, wow, there’s two of them, kind of way.

Knox’s hand tightens around mine and he walks faster the closer we get to them, like he can’t wait to introduce us.

“Mom, Dad, this is Joanna.” I glance up at him quickly, that giant, beaming smile on his face making my heart freaking sing. I always thought that saying was dumb, but I feel it right now.

I so feel it.

“Nice to meet you. You can call me Owen.” His dad thrusts his hand out toward me and I let go of Knox’s to shake it. At the last second, he pulls me in for a hug and I cling to him, feeling thankful he raised such a great guy.

Oh my God, I swear I’m going to get choked up, and I’ve barely met them.

“And this is my mom,” Knox continues, when his dad lets me go and spins me toward his mother.

“Hi.” She’s smiling, her arms extended, and I walk straight into her embrace. “It’s so wonderful to finally meet you. I’ve heard nothing but great things.”

He talks about me to his mom? Oh wow. I mean, I knew he had to but this feels so…real. “I’ve heard wonderful things about you too.”

She pulls away but keeps her grip on my shoulders, her gaze roaming over me as she takes me in. “You’re just as pretty as he said you were.”

“Mom,” Knox protests, sounding aggravated.

“What? You did say she’s pretty. Or was it beautiful?” Her lips quirk up, as if she knows exactly what she’s doing, and I burst out laughing.

“Stop talking,” Knox tells her, moving right beside me and pulling me so I’m standing in front of him, his arms going around my waist. “You’re going to freak Jo Jo out.”

“Jo Jo?” His dad’s eyebrows shoot up.

“That’s a cute nickname,” his mom rushes in to say, “I love it.”

It used to bug me, but I love it when Knox calls me Jo Jo now too. Ugh, I love everything he does.

Because I’m in love with him.

How am I supposed to work up the nerve to tell him that? It feels impossible. I should talk to Leon about it. He’s always good with relationship advice; plus, it helps to get a male perspective on things.

We all pile into Knox’s truck and he drives us to a nearby breakfast café that’s a favorite among college students. It’s crowded, but we’re seated pretty quickly at a table. Once the orders are given and coffee has been poured, the gentle interrogation begins. Where am I from, how many siblings do I have. The usual.

“What’s your major, Joanna?” his mom asks.

“Marketing and public relations, Mrs. Maguire. Though I’m thinking about becoming a writer.” I can’t believe I just admitted that, but I think it’s the Knox Maguire effect. He believes in me so much, I’m starting to believe in myself too.

“Please, call me Chelsea. And that makes sense, considering you’re an English tutor. A writer. That would be fun! He told you I was his dad’s tutor, right? That’s how we met.” His parents share a look, and it’s full of nostalgic love.

“He did tell me. Such a coincidence.”

“When he let me know he was getting a tutor, I said he could be meeting the love of his life and he denied it. Now look at the two of you.” Chelsea beams.

Owen nudges his wife’s shoulder, also looking pleased.

I glance over at Knox to find him watching me, his brows lowered, a question in his eyes. Was it over the use of the word love? That might’ve scared him. I don’t know what his feelings are for me yet, but I do know he likes me. A lot.

Could he be the love of my life?

God, I hope so.

After breakfast, Knox drives over to the campus to drop me off at the bookstore.

“I’m going to walk her to the store,” Knox tells his parents after he parks the car in the twenty-minute loading/unloading zone. “Give me a few.”

Before they can say anything, he shuts the door and smiles over at me. “I have something for you.”

I’m frowning. “What is it?”

He walks to the back of his car and pops open the trunk, pulling out a small gift bag that he hands over to me. “Open it and find out.”

I reach inside the bag and pull out a T-shirt that looks like our football team’s jerseys. On the back it says ‘Maguire’ across the top with his number on it. Eighty-eight.

“I want you to wear it to the game. I know we’re public and everyone knows we’re together, but I want them to know we’re really together.” His expression turns serious. “I want to see you wear my number.”

“I love it.” I clutch the shirt to my chest, overwhelmed at his words. The look on his face. “Of course I’ll wear it.”

“Look inside. There’s more.”

Glancing into the bag, I see that there’s a pack of face paint. Red and white and gold, which are our school colors. “What’s the paint for?”

“I thought it might be fun for you. I got a ticket for Natalie too, and I know Blair is going to the game as well. You can all go together and paint your faces before the game. If you want.” He shrugs, suddenly seeming unsure.

Unsure is not a word I would ever use to describe Knox Maguire.

I shove the shirt back into the bag and wrap my arms around him, squeezing him tight. “I love it. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He hugs me close, pressing his lips to my forehead. “My parents adore you.”

“They’re so nice. I really like your mom.”

“I knew you would.”

I tip my head back, smiling up at him. “For someone who says he has zero boyfriend experience, you do the job pretty well.”

“You make it easy for me. I just want to see you happy. That’s my end goal.” He leans in and kisses the tip of my nose. “You are my end goal, Jo Jo.”

He walks with me to the bookstore and I think about what he said. What the words imply. Am I really his end goal? Or was he just caught up in the moment and he said something he doesn’t really mean? I don’t want to ask him about it.

I’m afraid of his answer.

Most likely I’m overthinking it. When he’s ready to tell me how he feels, he’ll let me know. Knox isn’t one to hold back his emotions, something I appreciate. Too many men out there are repressed creatures who are afraid to be vulnerable, but not Knox. He’s opened himself to me more than once, and I’ve fallen a little more in love with him every single time.

But what if he doesn’t feel the same way? I don’t like giving someone the upper hand in a relationship. The one with more feelings, with more on the line, is always the one at a disadvantage, and I’ve already been there before.

I don’t think I could handle going through something like that again.

“I’ll pick you up later tonight for dinner,” he tells me when we stop a few feet away from the bookstore’s entrance. “Around six-thirty. Is that okay?”

“Sounds great.” I smile at him, holding up the bag. “Thank you again for this.”

“Can’t wait to see you wearing my number tomorrow.” He kisses me, lingering a little too long, his tongue swiping out for a quick lick. “Don’t know why I didn’t ask you sooner.”

“I’m glad you did.” My entire body tingles when he slips his arm around my waist, his hand landing on my ass. “Some girls might get jealous though.”

“Good. Let them be jealous. I want everyone to know you’re mine.” He kisses me again, fiercer this time, as if he wants to leave his mark.

It works. I float all the way into the bookstore. I float the rest of the afternoon, caught up in my feelings for Knox.

If anything bad happens between us, it’s going to hurt so much. But I’m willing to take that risk.

Only for him.