Blog Tour ‘The Hardest Play’ by A.S. Teague

I turned, and my eyes landed on a face that I hadn’t forgotten. “Georgia Reed.”

Her lips parted in a smile that lit up her entire face, and she jumped from the stool she’d been perched on next to where my sister had been sitting and threw her arms around my shoulders. “I thought I saw you walk in earlier!”

I wrapped my arms around her waist and gave a quick squeeze before pulling back and looking her up and down.

I’d met Georgia last year at my best friend, Aiden’s, Christmas party. Her brother was a famous orthopedic surgeon who’d saved Aiden’s knee after a devastating hit. The two of them had forged a friendship, and Dr. Hampton Reed had brought his sister along when he’d been invited to the famous Shaw Christmas Party.

I’d seen her from across the room that night, unable to miss the gorgeous auburn hair that she’d let flow down her back. I’d walked over to introduce myself, but her green eyes had sparkled when she informed me that she already knew exactly who I was.

I wasn’t sure what I’d said after that, probably something ridiculous and cheesy, but we’d spent the rest of the evening chatting.

“How ya been?” I asked.

She stuck the straw that was floating in a pink drink between her pink lips and lifted a shoulder. After a quick sip of a fruity cocktail she said, “Same old. What about you? I heard you’d been traded and was hoping I’d run in to you sometime.”

I’d completely forgotten that the Reeds lived in Atlanta, where my new team was, but suddenly, that shitty trade that I was forced to accept didn’t seem so bad after all.

“Hey.” I glanced over to where my sister was eyeing us, her lips pressed together to conceal what had to have been the biggest shit-eating grin ever and squinted at her before turning and looking back to where Georgia was still sipping her drink. “You know, I don’t know much about this town. You’re a local, right?”

“That I am. Born and bred in the great state of Georgia. You know, my parents, they probably could have been a little more original when they named me.”

“Any chance you’re free this weekend to play tour guide?” I asked, hoping that I sounded fun and flirty and not like the pathetic loser that I felt like.

Jamie choked on a laugh and tried to cover it with a cough. I swung my head in her direction just as she covered her mouth and quickly looked away from my death glare. God, my kid sister was an asshole.

I felt fingertips on my bicep, forgetting my stupid sister immediately when I glanced down to see the perfectly manicured yellow fingernails that were resting on my arm. “Let me make sure I am clear on what you’re askin’.” Georgia’s eyes were gleaming, and she stepped closer to me. “Now, am I going to show you the popular clubs and bars, the parks to take your dog, and the restaurants that cater to locals, and then you’ll thank me and we’ll go about our ways? Or is this tour going to consist of me taking you back to my place, and before I know it, your lips are on my neck and my dress is around my waist?”

My mouth fell open and I sputtered. “I, uh, I, what?”

“Well, you know at Aiden’s Christmas party, after you kissed me­­––”

“Woah!” I stepped back, her arm falling to her side. “What are you talking about?”

Her head shook back and forth. “I’m not sure if I should be insulted or not that you are this clueless. We had a drink outside around the fire pit, and then you leaned in and kissed me, remember?”

“That is not at all what happened!” I fired back incredulously. I’d had a couple of beers that night, but I never let myself get so drunk that I would completely forget kissing the gorgeous woman standing before me.

She frowned, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, and I couldn’t stop my eyes from watching the way she worked it. No, I would most definitely remember if my lips had tasted hers. “It’s not? Are you sure?”

My eyes bugged out of my head. “I’m pretty sure we didn’t kiss. Think I would have remembered that.”

“Oh.” She frowned. “Maybe that’s just what I hoped would happen.”