Chapter Nineteen Charlotte
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHARLOTTE
O ne hour turned into three, which turned into an early dinner at one of the resort’s cafés. Scratch papers were spread all over the surface, along with two plates of fries and sandwiches. We deserved a drink after the first draft of the interview plan, and two empty beer glasses sat next to two new ones. Of course, this place dyed their drinks red and green. It wasn’t every day I had a red beer.
“How are you feeling about everything?” Hayden wore his glasses because we stared at my screen so much, and every single time I glanced at him, I wanted to kick my feet and squeal. He was so hot it didn’t make sense.
Sitting made me stir-crazy, so I paced to the right of the table as I took in his question. I actually felt good. “I’ve never felt more prepared for anything. I know my plan to stand out and make it about the student athletes and the program. Comparing myself to Chad isn’t conducive, and you helped me remember that I am pretty awesome.”
“Yes, you are.” He sucked in one side of his cheek as he scanned the papers. A wrinkle formed on his forehead as he picked up one sheet, set it down, and repeated the process. “Where is the mock-up of the scoreboard redesign? I liked the way you drew it with the potential sponsorships on it.”
The red ink popped out, and I pulled it from the pile. “Here.”
“You able to digitize this?” His right knee bounced up and down as he took a sip of the green beer. “I think if you can print this out in a 3D rendering with the monetary opportunities with it, you’d be impossible to beat.”
“I’ll work on it. My friend is a designer and owes me a favor.”
Hayden organized all the materials into a nice pile as he said, “Char, hon, I honestly don’t know how they won’t hire you. I want to hire you for our team with these ideas, and let me make this clear.”
I didn’t respond, and he wrapped his fingers around my wrist, drawing my attention. I met his eyes. “I’m listening, Coach.”
“These were your ideas. All I did was help guide you on the best presentation format because I’ve lived through this before. The plan? You. The vision? All yours. Own this shit.”
“You’re quite the motivational speaker.” I blushed at the way he stared at me, so intense and serious. “I’m definitely feeling more confident about this whole thing. Gwen is lucky to have you as her dad.”
“I’ve been low a few times in my life, and loving and believing in yourself is the hardest hurdle. Once you’ve mastered that, everything will work out.” He smiled, but the expression was distant, almost pained. “My mom was the best at that. She’s been so good at teaching Gwen self-worth. I’m good with it on the field with the guys, where I can be more direct and crasser. I want to be there for Gwen too but I’m not… my approach isn’t the best. If I had more time, I’d read more books on how to be that for Gwen.”
“Being direct isn’t bad.”
“Yeah, but I’m worried I’m not always going to be the parent she needs. My dad kicked my ass when I needed it, and my mom was there to pick up the pieces and make me better. I needed both parts, and I can’t play both roles. I can be tough, but Gwen feels so much, and I swear, if I even raise my voice, she cries.” He scrubbed his hands over his face, the glasses rising up onto the top of his head. He placed them on the table and looked so conflicted that I wanted to curl up in his lap and reassure him.
“Being three years old is all about big feelings and learning about the world around them. Didn’t you just tell me not to compare myself to Chad? Why are you comparing your situation to others’? It’s not a competition.”
Screw it. I moved next to him onto the bench and ran my hand over his upper back. He tensed for a beat before he leaned into me. “Do you think the fact that your parents are moving away for a year has you doubting yourself ?”
“I’m gonna need another beer if we’re going to touch that comment.” He barked out a laugh. “Okay, can we go back to your interview prep? I prefer that, rather than where this conversation is heading.”
“Ah, don’t like when the tables have turned, huh?”
“Nope. I’m great at helping with others’ problems, just not my own. Super healthy, I know.” He leaned back into the booth, his hands shoved in the pocket of his hoodie. He tilted his head to look at me, his gray eyes swirling with mischief. “Any chance I can distract you so we don’t talk about this? I have some naughty ideas I think you’d approve of.”
“Not a chance.” I poked his side, a rush of heat making me clench. Naughty ideas? That sounded amazing, but this weight he carried around since becoming a solo parent had only grown in size. I couldn’t fathom the stress he had, having an adorable person depend on you for everything, but not talking about it would make it worse. “Hey,” I said softly.
“Hm?”
“You really helped me with this interview. I appreciate it so much. But if you and I are going to… explore whatever this is, I want it to be reciprocal. Let me help you, and if I can’t, I can listen. You don’t need to carry all this yourself.” I ran a hand over his shoulder and arm, squeezing his wrist. He was so warm and thick. Mm.
He groaned and pinched his nose. “I don’t trust people easily, let alone with my girl, so the thought of finding someone to help watch her causes me so much stress, it paralyzes me. The three I’ve interviewed were all busts. Too immature, not CPR trained, was on her phone the entire time. I want someone who pushes Gwen but keeps her in line and is kind. I’m supposed to travel with my assistant coaches in the next few weeks for some showcases down south, and now I’m not sure I can go.”
“Okay.” I ran my finger up and down on the table, tracing an invisible alphabet to do something with my adrenaline. “Are you open to ideas here? Or just wanting to be grumpy?”
“I’m not grumpy.” His gaze flashed to me. “I’m disgruntled. There is a difference, Char.”
I snorted. “You’re cute, and you’re wrong.”
“I like it when you sass me. It’s always been one of my favorite things about you.” He grinned and leaned forward. His lips brushed against mine before he said, “I also like the fact that I can kiss you now.”
“Yeah, big fan of that.” I gripped his chin and kissed him back. It was soft, quick, and gentle, like we’d been doing this for years. My skin prickled with awareness, and heat spread to my thighs, but I pushed his chest with my other hand. “Could you take Gwen with you when you go away? Hire someone to travel with you where she’d be near you. It’s only for one year, right? I think there are nannies who do that.”
“Huh.” He worked his jaw left and right, his eyebrows a hard line. “I’d feel better about it if she was closer to me. I didn’t… how do you find one?”
“There is this thing called Google. We go there and type in—”
“Such a smart-ass.” He laughed, the deep, reassuring sound rumbling in his chest. “I could see how this neighbor’s daughter works out for the short term, the random late nights in town. Then take my time for the traveling nanny. I could ask—”
“Wait!” I smacked my forehead. “My best teacher friend used to nanny and knows a few still working. Worst case, she knows the company and can set up a call for you.”
“That’d be… damn.” Hayden’s face turned serious, his eyes burning into me. “Thank you. That’s a great idea, and I’d be really appreciative.”
“I didn’t even get to the best part yet either. This is where I really look like a hero too.” I clicked my tongue, drawing it out. “I made a spreadsheet for after the holidays, where my parents, Christian and Penny, and I all watch her. We love that girl, Hayden, so it’s not a chore, nor is it a burden. We can handle January for you, so that gives you four weeks to find the right person before the season starts in February. I already asked them, and it’s scheduled.”
“How…” he started, then stopped and swallowed. He seemed torn up instead of the joy I had anticipated.
A lead weight formed in my gut, the sensation of sinking pulling me down. He hated the idea. I shouldn’t have done it. He was the father, not me. I overstepped! I panicked. “I-I shouldn’t—”
“Charlotte. Let’s go to your room.” He nudged me to leave my side of the booth, and I jumped out of there so fast.
His tone was off, and he wouldn’t look at me. My insides were an absolute mess, clenching and twisting. I might’ve overstepped, but I thought he needed help. Would he want to break this off, whatever it was?
He grabbed my laptop and the papers, and jutted his chin toward the hallway. “Walk to your room, please.”
He’d said please . That was a good sign. His body language was stiff and awkward though. Tense shoulders and his jaw flexing every few seconds. The walk to my room took only a minute, and my hands trembled when I unlocked the door. This unsettled, spiraling sensation was horrible. “I can—”
The second the door clicked shut, Hayden set my laptop and papers on the dresser, and he hoisted me up onto the bathroom counter.
“Fuck.” He groaned into my neck and then slid his hands up the back of my shirt. He dug his fingers into my skin as he whispered, “You’re amazing.”
“Amazing?” My mind spun. I thought he was upset with me. “What’s… you were mad.”
“No.” He kissed right beneath my ear and hummed against me, the deep growl sending a bolt of lightning between my thighs. “Overcome with want. I can’t tell you how much your gesture meant to me. It’s too… I want to show you. If you’ll let me.”
He pulled back, his gray eyes heating as he stared at me. He moved his hands to the front of my shirt, dancing along my rib cage as I shuddered. “Please.”
I nodded.
His relief was immediate. He lifted the hem of my sweater, taking his time removing it as he held eye contact. There was something so hot about the confidence emanating from him as he stared at me. He wasn’t afraid of connecting, and that was a huge turn-on.
He set the sweater to the side, his hands running up and down my body as he teased my nipples with his thumbs.
“Oh,” I moaned. I arched my back, the sensation from just his fingers overheating me.
“There you go with that sound again.” His eyes flashed with heat as he pulled the red cups down enough to expose the tips. He kneeled so his face was at the same level as my breasts, and he cupped both of them. “What else makes you do that? Will my mouth?”
I couldn’t even speak seeing him kneeling before me. He licked one pebbled tip, smiling up at me as I bucked off the counter. “Hayden,” I begged. For what? I had no idea. Just more of this, of him.
“Mm, I like hearing you say my name this way.” He flicked the other nipple, not in any rush to take my damn bra off. He blew on each one, the sensation causing them to tighten. Goose bumps exploded down my body, and he chuckled as I squirmed.
My pulse raced as heat overwhelmed my body. Every part of me was attuned to him, and it consumed me. He licked the corner of his lip as he trailed one finger over the waistband of my jeans, dipping into it. His eyes flared. “Your skin is so soft.”
He kissed right below my belly before trailing his mouth up my stomach and between my breasts. Only then did he undo my bra. He watched with a slack jaw as he slid one strap off and then the other. I trembled as he sucked in a breath again.
“You are stunning.” He kissed my mouth as his hands found my breasts again, his fingers making small circles around my nipples.
The teasing sensation had me on the edge of the counter. Rational thought stopped working. “Skin,” I blurted out. I grabbed his sweatshirt and tugged it. “I need this off. I want to feel you.”
“This is about you, baby.” He grinned as I struggled with his hoodie. “I want to make you feel good. Will you let me?”
Who was this man? Would I let him? I’d let him do anything he wanted if he would just touch me. “Okay, but you can do that shirtless.”
He laughed. “Your attitude is so fucking hot.” He whipped the sweatshirt off and tossed it to the side, returning to his position on the floor before I could admire him. “Your turn now. Pants are coming off.”
From this angle, his broad shoulders were sculpted. Each muscle was thick and hard, created from years spent training. I ran my fingers over them, pounding with the need to lick him. “You’re perfect,” I said, my voice all husky.
He stopped running his hands over my waist and smiled. “That’s my line.”
He undid my jeans and shimmied them down my legs, leaving me in just my red underwear. He struggled with the pants, almost like he was as turned on as I was, and basic human functions were off the table. He carried it off better than me though.
The red fabric was soaked. Before I had time to feel embarrassed, he licked his lips and said, “Spread your thighs for me.”
“Oh.” I panted. I did as he said. My arousal was right there for both of us to see. “Like this?”
“Yes. You good girl.” He ran a hand over his jaw, his gaze zeroing in on my pussy. “Look how wet you are for me.”
I squirmed as he lifted one thigh onto his shoulder and then my other. He kissed the sensitive skin by my knee, licking all the way up. My clit pounded with an aggressive, animalistic need. If he didn’t touch me there, I wouldn’t survive. His shoulders were too far out of reach, and I clutched the bare counter for something to ground myself. “Hayden, please,” I begged.
“I’ve fantasized about you for years. I’m taking my time making you come.”
“Oh God.” I dropped my head back. My eyes fell shut as he oh so slowly slid my underwear to the side.
He breathed on me, and I bucked.
“So sensitive.” He slid a finger over me, spreading me wider. “So wet.”
“Hayden.” I trembled. “More.”
“I’ve always wondered,” he said before thrusting his finger into me.
A combination of a moan and desperate cry escaped me. His finger felt so good. “Wondered what?”
“How you would taste.” Then he flattened his tongue against me. Stars exploded around my eyes. My heart stuttered—like it had forgotten how to work. My veins filled with ecstasy, and my muscles clenched with the most pleasurable, explosive feeling.
I came alive under his touch.
He sucked my clit into his mouth before finding the perfect rhythm of thrusting and swirling, and my God, he was the oral king. I’d never come from oral before, but I was only seconds away. He growled against me, the deep vibration causing another sensation over my nerves, and oh my lanta.
“I’m gonna—”
“Come on my tongue.”
“Shit!” I arched my back as the orgasm rammed into me all at once from every direction. My legs shook uncontrollably around his head, but Hayden held on to me. He coached me right through it.
“Ride my face, baby.
“You scream so good.
“You taste like heaven.”
I cried out, hard, as he sucked my clit into his mouth, drawing a few more seconds of pure bliss. My chest heaved as I fell back onto the counter, completely spent. My legs were noodles. He kissed my inner thighs with a tender gaze.
Hayden winked and said, “Big fan of your panties.”
“That’s what…” I laughed, breathless. “You had your tongue on my pussy, and that’s what you say.”
“Mm.” His eyes flashed.
He slid my underwear back into place before massaging my calves. “I love your muscles. Have I ever told you that?”
I shook my head, absolutely melting at the feeling of his large hands on my legs. I’d dreamed of Hayden saying things like this to me. His bare chest glistened with sweat, and I needed to touch him. “I-I need to touch you.”
“This is about you, Char.” He cupped my face and kissed me softly. “To thank you for doing something so kind and thoughtful. I’d never have asked for help out of fear of being a burden.”
“You and Gwen are not a burden,” I fired back.
“I know that now.” He smiled. “Maybe we are good for each other after all.”
My heart skipped a beat. We should talk, but he was shirtless and standing right in front of me. “Hayden.” I ran my fingers down his warm chest, stopping at the waistband of his jeans.
He sucked in a breath.
“Please,” I whispered. His words held the weight of our unsaid things, and if we were communicating with soft touches, it was only fair we both got a turn.
He closed his eyes and took a heavy breath, his grip on my thighs tightening. When he met my gaze, his gray eyes were almost charcoal. His voice was raspy and laced with frustration when he said, “I want this so fucking bad, baby, but we need to talk first.”