Chapter 18
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Josie
“I can cancel,” Dane says.
I shake my head, pretending I don’t care. “Have lunch with the girl. You need to eat anyway.”
“You should come with me.”
I laugh lightly, reaching up to fix the collar on the navy polo shirt he’s wearing. “You’d love that, wouldn’t you? A date with two women?”
His expression remains serious. I think we may have reached the point where Dane knows when I’m lying. Or at least bypassing the real issue entirely.
A perfunctory date with a fan seemed like a good idea when I came up with it. And now, I hate it. Even though my feelings for Dane are all over the place, the thought of him on a date with another woman makes me want to crawl into bed and cry.
“It’s just a quick lunch,” he says. “Sandwiches at a deli. Then I’ll head back to the arena.”
“Yeah, I know.”
We’re in our hotel room, which doesn’t help. Traveling everywhere with Dane and sharing hotel rooms with him means we’ve gotten close. We can read each other well. Whether sexually involved or not, we woke up in the same room this morning and went down to breakfast together. He went to the arena after that for pregame stuff with his team while I worked in the hotel lounge.
I’ve been thinking about what Dane said, though I haven’t said a word about it to anyone. Maybe someday I could start my own business. Since I have lots of time on my hands, I’m working on a business plan.
Though I’m trying not to think jealous thoughts, I feel stabby over how good Dane smells right now. The pine scent of his body wash wafted out of the bathroom with him after he showered.
“You could have used the soap the hotel provides,” I mutter.
He knits his brows together. “What?”
“Nothing.”
I busy myself organizing my toiletry bag, wishing I hadn’t said anything. His little hum of amusement makes me cringe.
“Are you saying I smell good?”
His tone annoys the crap out of me. Dane can’t just take a compliment; he has to toy with it. Dangle it. Stretch it out until I’m practically feral with annoyance.
He walks over and stands next to me, his closeness making me warm from head to toe. Still, I refuse to acknowledge him. I am entirely focused on making sure my eye makeup remover container is tightly closed.
“Hey,” he says softly.
I turn and look up at him, my heart racing. Why does he have to be so impossibly good-looking?
“I can cancel.”
I shake my head, not trusting my voice. He slowly runs the tip of his index finger over my jawline, from my ear to my chin.
“I’d rather stay here with you,” he says.
Tension crackles in the air between us. If he stays, there’s no doubt what will happen. I’m slowly losing my will to stay professional and not get my heart broken. It’s been so long since I’ve felt anything for a man, and I’ve never felt anything on the scale of what I feel for Dane. Even if I know there will be a massively hard crash landing at the end, the fall feels so incredibly good that it’s hard to care.
“You’ll be at my game tonight, right?”
I nod.
“I’ll see you there.”
He steps back and I exhale, able to breathe again.
I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up. Even though everything in me knows giving in to my attraction to Dane will end badly, I can only spend so many nights sleeping in the same hotel room with him before I say fuck it and do it anyway.
Dane
I roll my shoulders on the elevator ride down to the lobby, my erection going down now that I’m away from Josie.
The more she resists me, the more I want her. When I got divorced, I wondered if I’d ever be able to want just one woman again. It’s not smart. Keeping my options open means never being hurt and publicly humiliated again.
I never saw Josie coming, though. She started as my annoying overseer, and now? She’s the focus of my every dream—all sexual. I spend more time with her than anyone and I still can’t seem to get enough.
If only I could be what she needs. What she deserves. I’m a ten in the bedroom but about a three in the emotional support department. It just isn’t something I’ve ever been good at. My ex told me that was the reason she cheated with Sam—because our relationship lacked intimacy.
She’ll only be with me for another six to eight weeks, depending on how our season goes. I hate the thought of her leaving and eventually finding some other man who will get to touch her and wake up beside her every day.
It won’t be one of my teammates doing it right under my nose, not after what Sam did to me.
I take a cab to the downtown deli where I’m meeting Abigail. Even though I’m five minutes early, she’s already there, sitting in a booth for two with a massive smile on her face.
She squeals and stands up when I walk in, hugging me and taking a selfie of the two of us. She’s wearing a jersey cut for a woman with my number on it, her red hair loose around her shoulders. “Thank you for doing this,” she says, unable to stop smiling. “I’ve been a huge fan of yours forever.”
“I appreciate it.”
A server comes over to take our drink orders—unsweet tea for me and lemonade for her. I look over the menu after that, but Abigail looks at me.
“Did you already decide what you want?” I ask her.
“Oh, I’ll just take anything. I don’t want to waste a second I could spend looking at you.”
I cringe inside. I’m just an ordinary guy who happens to be really good at hockey. It’s always weird for me when people are starstruck.
“So I hear you’re in medical school,” I say, closing the menu. “That’s great. What kind of doctor do you want to be?”
“A pediatrician.”
“Wow, awesome. Med school must be super hard.”
She nods. “Some of my classes have been. I like it, though.”
The server returns, glancing between us expectantly. She’s the opposite of starstruck with the deli so busy there’s a line out the door.
“I’ll have the club on wheat with potato salad,” I say.
“I’ll take the special,” Abigail says, her gaze still on me.
The server writes down the order and disappears. I immediately wish she’d come back.
“So, have you been following the datemedane hashtag?” Abigail asks.
“Uh, no...my assistant was actually the one who saw it.”
Her face lights up. “Oh. Well.” She reaches across the table, her fingertips grazing my chest. “The internet is totally shipping us. And I’m free tonight for your game.”
Normally, I wouldn’t turn down an attractive, eager woman. Games end late and it’s hard to find hookups. But Abigail doesn’t do it for me because she’s not Josie.
“I appreciate that, but”
She cuts me off. “I’ll do anal. Or a threesome. Whatever you want, I’m down.”
My lips part because...that was unexpected. I quickly put my game face back on.
“Um...I just want to have lunch.”
Her expression falls. “Am I not pretty enough for you?”
I silently curse Josie for making me do this. It doesn’t matter what Abigail looks like. I was never going to want more than lunch with her. But now, in her eyes, I’m the bad guy because I don’t want to bring her to my hotel room tonight for group sex with me and my teammates.
“No, you’re very pretty. It’s just that there’s someone else I’m into.”
She arches her brows, looking hopeful again. “I said I’d do a threesome.”
I can’t help laughing as I imagine pitching that idea to Josie. “Uh, she wouldn’t go for that.”
Abigail recoils. “So you think I’m a slut for liking threesomes?”
I look around, feeling like I’m being punk’d or something. “I didn’t say that.”
She sneers. “You didn’t have to. You made it clear that your precious girlfriend ”--she air-quotes the word--“thinks she’s too good for threesomes.”
I put my hands up in mock surrender. “Don’t put words in my mouth.”
“You’re an asshole!”
She throws her lemonade at me and slides out of the booth, then stomps out of the deli. People are looking at me, a couple of them recording with camera phones.
Awesome. This PR fail, for once, was not my fault.
I leave cash on the table and get up, lemonade dripping from my shirt onto the floor as I walk out. Once outside, I text Josie.
Dane: That didn’t go well.
Josie: WTF?? How could it have been any easier? You make small talk over sandwiches and leave.
Dane: She wanted anal.
Josie: OMG. I am deceased...
Dane: You may see videos online of her throwing her drink on me.
Josie: Shit. I’ll start damage control.
Dane: This is what you get for asking me to go out on a date with someone else...j/s
Josie: My fault for assuming you could calmly cornhole her and move on with your life I guess...
Dane: Not funny
Josie: Are you going to the arena?
Dane: Yes.
Josie: Meet you there.
Dane: Bring me a meatball sub?
Josie: Okay. Don’t talk to any reporters.
Dane: Ok boss. Wear my jersey.
Josie: I might.