Collide by Gail McHugh

enough.”
    Placing his hand on the nape of her neck, he drew her face closer to his. “You’re right,” he admitted, his voice lower still. He leaned in to kiss her lips, and she accepted without a second thought as they stole a few extra moments to reconcile.
    Dillon pulled back slowly and stroked his fingers through her hair. “I’ll ease up, I promise.”
    Emily cast a faint smile, hoping that what he said would prove to be true. Dillon playfully smacked her on the ass, gave her another kiss, and let her know that he was going to play a game of pool with Chris and Joe. She watched as he disappeared into the house.
    Emily strolled over to join Olivia and Tina. They were snuggling at the table, overly excited to be around one another. It was then that Gavin tossed a deck of cards onto the table in front of Emily.
    Gavin smiled wickedly. “So Trevor tells me that you enjoy playing poker.”
    Emily looked at Trevor as he pulled up a seat to the table.
    Her eyes flicked back to Gavin. “I play a pretty good game, I must admit.”
    “I see…and your game of choice would be what exactly?” Gavin questioned, placing a mahogany box filled with poker chips on the table.
    “My game of choice would be Texas Hold’em.”
    “Mmm, very good. That’s my favorite.” He took a seat across from her. “Shall we?” he asked, opening the deck of cards.
    “We shall.”
    “We’ll just watch,” Olivia piped up, lounging onto a beach chair with Tina. She shot Emily a teasing grin, and Emily shook her head.
    “Well, you two may think you’re expert players, but I’m pretty damn sure I’m going to clean you both out,” Trevor laughed as he peered at them over his glasses. He then threw a hundred-dollar bill on the table. “I’m a certified pro. But don’t say I didn’t warn you both.”
    Gavin huffed at his statement and laughed.
    “We’re playing for real money?” Emily asked.
    “We sure are.” Gavin tossed two one-hundred-dollar bills on the table. “I just put in for you.”
    “You don’t have to do that,” Emily replied, standing up. “I’ll just get some money from Dillon.”
    “Don’t worry about it. I’ll get it back from him after I wipe you and Trevor out,” Gavin remarked, flashing her one of his dimpled smiles.
    Trevor was too busy shuffling the cards to acknowledge Gavin’s statement, but Emily wasn’t too busy to notice Gavin’s heart-stopping smile.
    She hesitantly sat back down and threw him a smile of her own. “You think you’re going to wipe me out, huh?” she laughed and gave him a questioning look.
    He gazed at her with an arched brow and a wry curve of his lips. “Oh, I’m absolutely positive I will.”
    Grinning, Emily leaned back in her chair, her eyes focused and steady. “We shall see, Mr. Blake.”
    The way his last name slid from her tongue had Gavin trying to contain emotions that were threatening to pour from his body. He slowly licked his lips as he stared at her and dealt out the cards to each of them.
    With cards in hand, drinks flowing, and Olivia and Tina as spectators, the game began. Over the next hour, both Gavin and Emily depleted Trevor of all his chips. They continuously made fun of his earlier statement about beating them both.
    “Okay, okay. But just for the record, I’m pretty drunk right now; that’s why my game was off tonight,” Trevor defended himself and retreated into a lounge chair next to Olivia and Tina.
    Olivia laughed and consoled her brother by doing a shot of tequila with him.
    “The proverbial drank-too-much-and-played-like-an-ass excuse. Classic,” Gavin laughed.
    Trevor shook his head with a defeated look molding his face. “I’m reaching far with that one, right?”
    Gavin finished the last of his beer before answering. “I’d say so. But I’ve experienced the same drunken play many nights before,” he admitted, dealing another hand out to himself and Emily.
    After a few minutes of studying one another’s faces for who might