Chapter 16 - 16 16 Code

Words : 1241 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

16: Chapter 16: Code 16: Chapter 16: Code Seeing Jonathan with a big grin on his face, it seems that his argument with his wife was actually a premeditated act – one was playing the good cop, and the other the bad cop. Emily had seen through it all long ago. At that moment, she burst into giggles, while Gina was somewhat helpless. She was well aware of her parents’ antics, but if she didn’t agree, the topic would be incessant. So, it was better to agree for now and claim a breakup with James Brown after the New Year; thereby, the marriage prospect would vanish, and she could fend them off for another year. The New Year was a time for family gatherings and fun, so Emily suggested playing poker, an excellent opportunity for the youngest sister to win some money from everyone. The poker table was set up with Jonathan and his wife, Emily, and James Brown playing, while Gina opted not to play. She usually played reluctantly each year, but with James present, she was freed from the obligation. After watching a few hands, she went to her room to work on her computer, as she was quite the workaholic, already planning for the next year. Everyone was having a great time, and no one paid attention to Gina. After playing a few hands, James suddenly felt a sharp pain in his thigh. Turning his head, he caught Emily giving him a secret wink from the seat next to him. Before James could figure out what was happening, he felt a warmth on his thigh – it was Emily’s left hand. This startled James. What was this all about? The mischievous sister-in-law was stealthily touching his leg, an incredibly provocative act. It didn’t matter that he was a fake brother-in-law; even a real brother-in-law would be tempted by such a move. And now things got even more outrageous. Emily’s fingers began drawing on his thigh, the seduction intensifying. This situation would be different if it were just the two of them, but they were in front of Emily’s own parents – wasn’t she being a bit too bold? “Six Bam!” shouted Emily as she discarded a tile with her right hand, pinching James again with her other hand. “Why so loud? Got a good hand?” Emily’s mother chided her daughter. “Lisa, not really, but you’ve got to show some spirit when playing poker, or the good tiles won’t come,” Emily replied, while her fingers drew upon James’s thigh again. James finally understood what Emily was up to – she was sneakily signaling him for specific tiles, not trying to seduce him. This put James in an odd position, but when his playful sister-in-law made such a request, he couldn’t help but indulge her. Sensing that Emily indicated she needed “two of characters,” and having it in hand, he played the tile. “Pung!” Emily called out with eagerness, patting James’s leg gently underneath the table as a sign of gratitude. With James’s help, it was nearly impossible for Emily not to win. She won several large hands in a row and ended up over a thousand dollars richer. But for James, having a beautiful woman’s hand on his leg, moving back and forth, was a test of endurance for any normal, robust man. “Look here, Little Lee,” Jonathan began while shuffling the tiles, eyeing them suspiciously. “Why is it that whatever Emily lacks, you give her?” “Yeah! Whatever card Emily needs, James provides. You two must be up to something,” Emily’s mother now suspicion aroused. “There’s no such thing; I only met my brother-in-law this morning. How could we conspire? Don’t make excuses just because you’re losing,” Emily retorted, naturally denying any wrongdoing. “That won’t do; we need to switch places. There’s definitely something fishy between you two.” “Fine, I’ll switch, but I’ll still win,” Emily had to stand up at this point. With her parents suspecting, not switching would definitely give the game away. After settling back down, Emily’s mother said with a laugh, “James, don’t mind this girl. She will tease anyone she can. Now, there’s no need for you to feel awkward.” She knew her daughter well; such a sneaky plan must have been Emily’s idea. She didn’t know how Emily had pulled it off, but she was sure trickery was involved, and certainly, James Brown wouldn’t have done it on purpose. James Brown chuckled and said, “Emily’s not bullying me.” “Alright, let’s continue. Emily, you don’t have your brother-in-law to help you now. Let’s see how you can win this time.” “Hmph, I’ll still win just the same.” Emily, even when called out, wasn’t embarrassed in the slightest. She had no qualms about being sly and taking advantage of her parents. After a few rounds, Emily hadn’t won a single one. Without James’s help, her luck really had run out. Pouting, she was unwilling and frustrated. James found it somewhat amusing. Emily could be quite childish at times, definitely not as mature as her sister. Win or lose, James had never experienced such a familial feeling growing up. At this moment, he was very grateful for Gina hiring him to pretend to be her boyfriend; this meant he wouldn’t have to spend the New Year alone and bored. As they were playing happily, someone stepped on James’s foot. He didn’t mind, thinking he had stretched out his foot too far and quickly retracted it. But then he saw Emily giving him a look and realized that the step was no accident—it was intentional. Since she couldn’t cheat with her hands, now she was resorting to playing footsie. This reminded James of the delightful sensation of holding Emily’s small foot in the shopping mall, and his foot involuntarily reached out again. Suddenly, a foot was pressing on his, and he could even feel that it was bare, the soft sole resting on his, warm and somewhat thrilling. He wondered when Emily had taken off her socks. “Don’t start any mischief now,” Jonathan said with a smile, reminding Emily who seemed to be up to something. Emily huffed and sat up straight, saying, “What mischief can I pull? Sёarᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. I’m directly across from my brother-in-law now.” “Then why are you fidgeting?” “My back itches, just scratching it.” “You, always so precocious at this age.” “I’m at home, aren’t I? Do I have to be so proper at home too?” James could tell from Emily’s posture that her feet wouldn’t reach his if he didn’t stretch them out slightly. Now that his little sister-in-law had expressed her wish, as her brother-in-law, he had to oblige, so he extended his foot forward. Emily’s foot immediately pressed down on James’s, and although she didn’t show much emotion, she was clearly pleased with his cooperation. The poker table was a standard square one, with a cloth under the poker mat. The cloth was long, hanging over their legs, so any leg movements would go unnoticed by the others as long as they weren’t too obvious. The main thing was, Emily’s parents would never suspect that their daughter and son-in-law were signaling to each other with their feet under the table.

Chapter 16 - 16 16 Code

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