10. Brooks #2
My heart lifts just a little, enough that I find myself grinning. “Like it? Honestly, it just slipped out. I can try other names. Sugar? Sweetie pie?”
She smiles up at me, the first one I’ve seen from her since Seb stepped into the restaurant earlier, and she loops her arms around my waist, melting against my chest. “You really want me to be your fake girlfriend?”
No, I want her to be my real everything, but I can’t exactly say that. “Yes.”
She pulls back and studies me, her brows pulled low. “How would it work exactly? I work for the team. Won’t that cause complications?”
“Like my brothers said, it’s fine.” I brush a strand of hair from her forehead. “If it involves us, Liv will handle it. But you know me. You haven’t had to handle a single scandal for me yet.”
“That’s because you’re Good-Boy Brooks. What you’re talking about doing now is very un-good-boy behavior.”
With a low growl, I haul her to me again. “Good. Then maybe you’ll stop with that fucking nickname.”
She laughs and pinches my side. “Aw, you want a new nickname, Brookie?”
In retaliation, I tickle her stomach.
She loses it, practically going limp and tumbling toward the ground, but I catch her.
“Keep it up, and I’ll show you how very bad I can be.” Holding her tight, I go for her stomach again.
Sara sucks in a breath and grasps my hand before I can tickle her. She looks up at me and bats her lashes in a way that practically makes me melt. Then she pops up on her toes and whispers, “First you’ll have to catch me.” Then she pushes off me and rushes to the other side of the room.
A warmth spreads through me as she bounces around on her toes, watching me like she’s trying to predict which way I’ll go, her blond curls dancing withevery move.
The cranberry silk of her dress strains against her curves in the most perfect way as she shifts from foot to foot.
God, she’s gorgeous. And she’s finally fucking smiling. Really smiling.
“You really want to play?” I taunt, taking one step closer.
She stands still and taps her finger against her chin. “Hmm, yup!” Then she scurries around the couch, headed toward her bedroom, but I’ve got longer legs and a determination to win.
Once I’ve got both hands on her waist, I lift her off the ground and pull her to me. The way her legs continue to move even as her ass is glued to my hips pulls a bark of laughter from me.
“Nice try, Pumpkin. Now give me a new nickname, or we’ll be doing this all night.”
With a groan, she drops her head back against my chest. “You gotta give me more time to think.”
Her proximity, the feel of her in my arms, her body pressed against mine, momentarily steals all my sanity, and I find myself dipping in close and sliding my nose up the curve of her neck, inhaling her sugary-sweet scent.
The softest sound escapes her throat, barely a moan. It’s not a sound I’m familiar with, and I’m dying to hear it again. So I do it a second time, then nip at the bare skin of her shoulder.
“You have until tomorrow.” I release her and take two big steps back. If I don’t get out of her apartment, I’ll do something I can’t come back from. Like pin her against the wall and taste other parts of her.
Sara spins, her jaw unhinged. “You’re leaving?”
I swallow past the lump in my throat and give her one subtle nod.
“Okay,” she says, drawing out the word. “So we’re dating?” Her voice is low, unsure.
“Yup.”
She tilts her head and pulls that bottom lip between her teeth. “For how long?”
I keep walking backward until I hit the door. “Till my uncle quits.”
“What?” She presses a palm to her chest. “He’s never going to quit.”
“He will if we play this right. I saw how he looked at you.” I take a deep breath and ignore the ache in my chest. “You weren’t just a fling for him.”
I hate to admit it, but there’s no way he didn’t have real feelings for her.
How could he not care about her? She’s perfect.
And as much as it hurts, I have to believe he did.
Because if he cheated on my aunt with a woman he didn’t really care about, just because he could, well, there’s no way I can reconcile that with the person I thought he was.
But if he did it because he fell for Sara?
I still can’t condone it or even forgive him, but I can understand it.
At least a little.
“What about you?” she asks, crossing her arms over her chest and lifting her chin, suddenly bolder than she’s been all evening.
I lean against the door and grasp the knob. “What about me?”
“The girl you told me about. Won’t this be a problem for her?”
This fucking girl. God. “I don’t date during hockey, Sar.”
She nods. “Right. But you said?—”
“You’re my only girl.” I pull up to my full height and shut her down. “Stop worrying. The only thing you should be concerned about tonight is what you’ll be calling me when you fake scream my name.”
She throws her head back and laughs. “God, with a mouth like that, I should start calling you dirty boy.”
I wink and pull the door open. “Now we’re talking. Night, Pumpkin.”
“Night, Brooks.”