Wolf Untamed (SWAT - Special Wolf Alpha Team #11) - Paige Tyler Page 0,58

she did. If the amused expression on Brandon’s face was any indication, he knew that, too.

“Don’t worry about it,” Diego said. “Your timing is perfect. The previews will start any minute.”

Bree smiled and reached into the bucket for a small handful of popcorn. “What were you two talking about while I was on the phone?”

Diego exchanged looks with Brandon. “Just guy stuff. You know—football, cars, video games. Things like that.”

“Not girls?” Bree asked, laughing.

He and Brandon exchanged looks again before they both shook their heads.

“Nope,” Brandon confirmed, his face suggesting he already knew exactly how much Diego already liked his mother. “Just guy stuff.”

* * *

“You know,” Bree said, trying to hold in the laughter that threatened to have her rolling on the floor. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a person land on Boardwalk five times in a row. Are you doing it on purpose?”

Diego frowned as he counted up the last of his cash, then began totaling up the value of his few remaining properties. Even from where she sat on the floor across from him at the coffee table in the living room, she could see he didn’t have enough.

“Of course, I’m doing this on purpose,” he said. “Because it’s so much fun giving all my money to a fifteen-year-old con artist who tricked me into playing Monopoly with a line about not having played in forever right before he proceeded to wipe me out in”—he glanced at his watch—“less than two hours. I think he set me up.”

Bree couldn’t keep from laughing this time. The indignant look on Diego’s handsome face was impossible to ignore. Brandon started laughing, too, nearly spewing soda out his nose as he continued to count up all his winnings. She hadn’t heard her son laugh so much in years. Seriously, not since he was five years old. Which just happened to be the last time her ex had bothered trying to act like a father who cared about his child.

Brandon had pulled out the Monopoly game within seconds of Diego bringing them home after the movie, asking if he wanted to stay for a while. Bree certainly wasn’t ready for the date to end and had been happy to sit around on the living room floor playing a game that had only good memories for her. Diego eagerly agreed, saying he couldn’t remember the last time he played Monopoly. Then, while Brandon disappeared into his room to grab his ferret, Diego whispered in her ear that if playing Monopoly meant getting to spend more time with her and Brandon, he was all for it.

“Mom, you ready to forfeit yet?” Brandon asked, looking her way as he leaned back on one elbow and ran his other hand over Finn’s fur. The slinky ferret rubbed up against him lovingly. “Since I own pretty much the entire board anyway.”

Bree handed over the embarrassingly small stack of funny money she had left to her son, who’d been performing the job of banker at the same time he’d been kicking their butts. “Okay, you win. Though I think Diego’s right about you playing both of us.”

Brandon laughed but didn’t try to deny it as he started to clean up the board.

Bree motioned him away from the collection of game pieces, plastic hotels, and money. “Leave all that. It’s been a while since we’ve played, but I still remember the rules. Losers clean up and put everything away.”

Brandon had apparently forgotten that, but quickly jumped to his feet, grabbing his glass of soda and his ferret with the other. “Cool. I’m going to go to bed then. I’ll probably listen to some music for a while, so I’ll have my headphones on.”

Bree didn’t miss the pointed look he gave Diego as he headed down the hallway toward his room.

“What was that about?” she asked, eyeing Diego suspiciously.

Diego only shrugged his perfectly well-muscled shoulders and reached over to help clean up the game pieces. Bree studied his face, pretty sure there was something going on. He must be a really good poker player because his expression gave nothing away.

While Diego finished separating the money into the proper denominations, Bree went into the kitchen to get them some more wine. Then she joined Diego on the couch, lifting her long skirt a little so she could curl her legs underneath her. Diego’s eyes flared yellow gold as he followed the movement, watching the flash of bare skin. It was crazy how her stomach fluttered a little at the realization