Chapter 14
I’m a bundle of nerves as I await the team’s return.
I’m surprised I haven’t worn down the carpet in my room as I’ve paced, prowling around the small space like a caged animal.
It’s been quite some time since I’ve had an opportunity to watch a game on television, and I was unprepared for the visceral reaction I had to seeing Max play.
Usually, I’m behind the scenes. I might speak with a player here or there during the game, but I’m focused on liquids, electrolytes, after-game care, and planning for the following day.
Tonight, however, I was able to sit and watch the game.
The glare that Max wore for the majority of the game? Infuriatingly hot. He seemed to throb with tension, and even the announcers commented on how intense he was. They couldn’t understand why Max was so angry, but I did. I knew exactly where his gaze was directed. Straight at Javier.
The moment that Max threw from right field to third base was ridiculous. Not only because it’s a hell of a throw, but they replayed it a bunch of times, even in slow motion, and I was close to coming. Every muscle in his arms flexed perfectly. It was spectacular.
Then they zoomed in as Max trotted past Javier and questioned why Max smiled. If only they knew! If only the media knew it was because of me. How I’ve somehow acquired my own growly knight in shining armor.
“Layla!” someone shouts from outside my door. “Come out here and celebrate!”
I throw open the door to find Jake and Dante, then watch as the rest of the team ambles down the hallway.
“Did ya like that?” Dante asks, making me giggle.
“I did.”
“Did it look like an accident?” he inquires.
“Yeah. Did Max tell you to do that?” I whisper.
Dante shakes his head. “He didn’t tell us to do anything. We protect our own, Lay. You’re one of us, and we don’t allow assholes to fuck with our family.”
He opens his arms, and beaming, I step into them.
Jake throws his arms around me, then another player joins in.
Suddenly, I’m engulfed in a huge group hug, and it is something I didn’t know I needed.
I hear a scuffle, and when I raise my head, I see Max slowly pulling each guy away.
When he gets to me, he smiles. “You good?”
I nod, a bit of emotion clogging my throat. “Thank you.”
He shrugs sheepishly, forking his fingers through his still wet hair. “No thanks needed. It’s been a long day, so I’m going to get some sleep. Glad you’re okay.”
I watch, bewildered, as he enters his room without a backward glance. Seriously? That’s it? I’ve been a bundle of nerves for hours thinking about him, and he’s totally fine?
I shake my head in disbelief as I say goodnight to all the guys, giving Dante another hug in thanks, then unlock my door.
In my room, I shut the door, turning all the locks, then find myself pressed against the wood.
I smile as I remember only closing the interconnecting door, not locking it, an obvious premonition of this exact scenario playing out.
“It shouldn’t make me angry to see you in another man’s arms, but it does,” Max growls against my neck, his voice gritty and downright feral.
“I shouldn’t have to run into my room because my body reacts to yours immediately, and I need to hide a half-chub.
And I definitely shouldn’t want you as badly as I do, Peaches. I fucking need to devour you.”
I gasp as he grabs one of my hands, interlocking our fingers together, and places them above my head. His other hand slides around my waist and under my tank top, his fingers splaying across my abdomen. His hot breath dances along my skin as his breathing matches mine. “Max, we shouldn’t …”
His chuckle sends a shiver down my spine. “On the contrary, sweet girl. We absolutely should.”
I reach up around his head, grabbing a handful of his beautiful curls, loving the groan he makes when my fingernails scratch along his scalp. “What if the team finds out?”
Max kisses my neck softly, then drags his tongue up to my ear. “I’m pretty sure some of them already assume. But I’m sick of fighting this, Lay. This chemistry isn’t going away.”
“I —” I stop, trying to force myself to think. “I don’t want to lose this job. I love it here.”
Max drops his forehead to my shoulder. “I swear I’ll do everything in my power to ensure you aren’t fired.”
Letting go of him, I turn, placing my hands on his chest. “You can’t say that and assume anyone will listen to you. They’ll fire me before they do anything to you. Do you understand what a big risk this is for me? Sex with you can’t be that good.”
He raises a brow. “You’d have to do it to confirm that theory.”
I laugh breathily. “Do you get what I’m saying, though? Is sex worth risking my job?”
“Would it be just sex for you?” he asks hesitantly.
“Well, I assumed that is what it would be for you,” I answer.
Max shakes his head. “If we were to engage in this, it wouldn’t be just sex. I’d never ask you to risk your job for a fuck, Layla. I’m not an asshole. It isn’t just chemistry. We have a connection, and I’d like to see where it goes.”
“But …” I stammer. “It still doesn’t change the fact that I signed a contract stating I wouldn’t do anything with players. Whether it’s sex or a relationship, the facts don’t change.”
Max steps back, grabbing my hands, and pulls me to the bed.
As we sit, he says, “Us being in a relationship gives me time to work on management. I can suggest some changes to the rules. Get the rest of the team to suggest it too. We could date secretly, and that gives me time. Besides, my contract is up at the end of the season —”
“What?” I shriek, interrupting him. “It is? I didn’t know that!”
He gives me a half-smile. “I like that you’re upset about that, Peaches. Not gonna lie. But it means I might not be here next year anyway. Then we could date out in the open.”
I’m not thrilled about the possibility of a long-distance relationship, but that does give us some clarity for the future. “So you’re suggesting we secretly date.”
“Yes.”
“And you’ll see if management will change the rule on fraternization.”
“It can’t be that hard to do, right?” he replies.
I shrug. “No clue. I don’t understand why they can’t just have us sign a contract or something saying I won’t sue the team when we break up.”
“If.”
“What?”
“If we break up. Give me a little benefit of the doubt here. If we break up.”
“Oh. No offense,” I offer with a sheepish smile.
“Absolutely offense taken,” he teases.
“Okay. So we quietly date, you get them to change the rules, and if you get traded, then we go public.”
“Yeah.”
“What happens if anyone wants to set you up with someone along the way?” I ask.
Max vehemently shakes his head. “Nope. No dating. You too.”
“I think it’s more of an issue for you.”
He looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. “Do you have any idea how gorgeous you are? Men literally do a double-take when you walk past.”
I laugh. I’m not completely ignorant. I know I’m pretty. But double takes? Doubtful. “They do not.”
“They absolutely do. And we had a team meeting the first day of spring training where Coach had to tell us to be respectful, and how none of us better come on to you.”
I snort. “Obviously, that didn’t go far in your brain.”
“It’s not like I went out of my way to be with you. I tried to avoid you at all costs. Coach is the one who threatened to take me off the roster unless I worked with you. Everything else seemed to be the universe working to put us together.”
I think back to that hike, how he followed me home, and the kiss that I can’t get out of my mind. “You’re blaming the universe for you kissing me?”
He smiles. “Among other things.”
“Like what?” I ask.
“The fact that I can’t get you out of my head. How your face is what I see when I jerk off, and how I imagine your body when I fantasize. I hear your voice in my head, too. I definitely blame the universe for that one.”
The room feels at least ten degrees warmer. “What do you fantasize about?”
Max’s eyes grow hooded. “What you like. How you sound. If you like dirty talk, or if you’re okay with a man controlling you — within reason, of course.
I wonder if you like to be edged, and how easy it will be to make you come.
And I spend way too much time thinking of how you’ll feel when I slide inside you. ”
I let out a high-pitched moan. Everything he says turns me on even more. “Talk to me more about the controlling thing. I’m a little unsure about that one.”
He reaches up, dragging a finger along my collarbone.
“I like to control the pace. What we’re doing, and when you come.
I will edge you. I’ll take you to the brink again and again, but you’ll only come when I allow it.
I’ll never force you to do anything you don’t want to do.
I value consent above all else. I may control much of this, but you have the final say in everything.
This is all about your pleasure, Layla. Don’t forget that. ”
I clear my throat, trying to keep my voice even. “And if I say no or stop?”
“Then I stop immediately. No ifs, ands, or buts.”
Closing my eyes, I smile faintly. “And I can make requests for what you aren’t allowed to do?”
“Of course.”
I take a deep breath and blurt out, “I don’t want my hands tied behind my back, and I don’t like a lot of pain. Light spanking is okay, but nothing more. I don’t want to do anal, and you aren’t allowed to cover my nose and mouth, so I can’t breathe.”
“Alright. Thank you for trusting me with your hard limits,” he replies solemnly. He sounds so serious, I burst into a fit of giggles. “Something funny?”
“This is all so weird!” I exclaim, covering my mouth as I cackle. “It isn’t romantic at all. I don’t know how to act.”
“Talking about hard limits shouldn’t be romantic.
This is serious. I don’t want to cross a line where you feel victimized again.
Ever. I can’t take away what happened with Morales, but I can sure as fuck make it so that you don’t experience something similar with me.
” I open my eyes to find his gaze boring into mine.
“I could have taken you against the door. Not asked you one question, and assumed what you liked and disliked. While I can hope that you’d trust me enough to speak up if I did something that upset you, I fear I don’t know you well enough for that yet. ”
“I don’t know how I’d react in that scenario,” I admit, feeling heat rush up my neck and onto my cheeks. “I’d like to think I’d speak up. But I’m not positive.”
“That’s why we’re having this conversation,” he says, cupping my cheek tenderly. “We have to be on the same page.”
“This is a lot, and I don’t know if I’m at a place where I can make a decision about a possible future for us, Max,” I admit quietly.
“One day at a time, Lay. That’s all I can say.”
“None of my other boyfriends are this upfront,” I joke, but Max doesn’t smile.
“I’m going to assume that was a joke, but let me make this clear, Layla. I don’t fucking share. If we’re in this, that’s it. End things. You’re mine from this point on.”
“Wow,” I breathe. “That was way hotter than I thought it would be.”
“You know what else is hotter?” he asks, leaning closer.
“What?”
“You. On your knees. Now, Layla.”
I may have just come.