Chapter 4
Chapter Four
That was a narrow escape.
If they’d stayed in Diana’s condo for fourteen more seconds, they would not have left for a very long time.
Probably morning, when they both had to report to the practice facility.
After they’d both been sated. More than once.
Hell, more than twice.
The way Amil looked at her when Diana walked out of her bedroom was the way every woman wanted a man to look at her. Not just a man but the man. Like Dante was to Allison. Pedro to Jillian. Royce to Morgan. Even the way goofy-ass Broderick was to Kate.
Like no one would ever be to Diana.
Which was her choice, so she should not be lamenting this.
But damn, that look had sizzled her skin. And other places that were still on fire. She could practically see the vision in his head, like he wanted to drop to his knees and worship her for as long as she could take it.
God, she wanted to take it.
No, no, no.
The only way she could maintain her one-night stand lifestyle was if she kept Amil at arm’s length. That man was the kind who changed a woman’s mind.
Diana could not change her mind. It would never work out. She had seven hundred ex-stepdaddies to prove it.
Hell, her mother was still chasing men like it was an Olympic sport, and she was in her sixties.
Diana would normally have no issue with that, except her mother did not believe in the one-night stand rule. The moment she slept with a man, she was convinced she was in love with him.
Newsflash: she never was. They had sex, she told him she loved him, they got married, one or the other lost interest.
Every. Single. Time.
The worst part was, her momma had once been fairly wealthy, but she’d let husband after husband take her money in the divorce, until she was so poor she’d had to ask Diana to finance her last divorce. Now, she sought out wealthy men only, thinking she was going to do the same to them.
Yeah, her mother had issues. And Diana did not want to inherit those issues. Sure, you could say that bad relationship choices were not hereditary, but where was the proof? Her grandma had been just like her mom. Her sister, at thirty-five, was in the process of divorcing husband number two.
There was a curse on the Jenison women, and damn it, Diana was not going to succumb.
Once they were in her car, Diana called Allison. “Hey,” she said when her friend answered. “Are you busy this evening?”
“Still at work,” she responded. “Probably won’t be home until after seven. Why, what’s up?”
“This is going to sound crazy, but I have Amil with me, and he is house hunting. I was thinking I could bring him by to see your place, since you guys are planning to put it up for sale soon.”
“You really are the best real estate agent in Portland,” Allison said with a laugh. “If he’s with you, I assume Dante is done with practice. He’s probably home. Give him a call. I’m sure he won’t mind. I think he’s cooking tonight, so you might get lucky and get an invite to dinner.”
“Thanks. If that’s the case, I’ll see you later then.”
She disconnected the call and paused before dialing Dante.
Dinner at their house, the four of them…this scenario had date night written all over it.
“Maybe we should wait for another day,” she suggested.
“Why? If I can find a new house and get a home-cooked meal all at the same time, that’s a win in my book,” Amil replied.
Well, if he didn’t see it as a date, maybe she was reading into things. Maybe it would be okay. Allison and Dante were casual people, after all. And Amil was supposed to be bonding with his new teammates. Having dinner at one of their houses certainly counted as bonding.
She called Dante.
Who, of course, told them to come over.
She clutched the wheel and stared straight ahead as she drove to Dante’s house.
She knew Amil would love Dante’s house. Which was crazy because she didn’t even know Amil.
Not really.
And yet, she was convinced.
“How did you feel about the trade?” she asked into the silence that had descended.
“Are you asking me how I feel about being on the same team with the guy who is keeping you and me from hooking up again?”
“No-o-o-o,” she said. “And Jalen isn’t the reason we aren’t going to hook up again.”
“No? Who is?”
“It’s not a who,” she said waspishly.
“Good to know. What, then?”
“It’s none of your business.”
“Oh, I think it very much is my business.”
She gave him a swift glance before refocusing on the road. “How do you figure?”
“Because the attraction between us is palpable, and yet you refuse to do anything about it. Why?”
She did not want to have this conversation. “You should be bonding with your teammates.”
“All the guys on this team seem to be bonded, and I’m pretty sure most, if not all of them, get laid on the regular.”
She gave him the side-eye and pursed her lips.
He sighed. “It doesn’t matter. I’m the kid who starts school in his junior year, after all the cliques were formed, and nobody wants me.”
That analogy sounded like it might be a real-life scenario. “These guys aren’t like that, Amil. They’ll warm to you. It’s literally been a single day of practice.”
“Yeah, I know. I just hate this part. The starting fresh, not knowing where I fit in. I just want to jump ahead to where we’re all one big happy family.
” He flapped his hand, much like she had been doing earlier, when she kept putting her foot in her mouth.
“That’s the vibe I got when I researched the team, after I was approached about the trade. They’re like a family.”
“We are a family,” she corrected. “You’re part of that family now.”
“And we’ve come full circle to the Jalen situation.”
She could feel him watching her. She refused to shift her gaze away from the road.
“Okay, I’ll admit Jalen has some issues he needs to work through. But I need you to understand that if I wanted to carry on an affair with you, I would do it despite Jalen’s feelings on the matter.”
“But you don’t want to.”
She opened her mouth. Closed it again. The problem was, she did want to. Which was scary. And was not something she was quite ready to analyze. Especially with him.
“Oh, look, we’re here.”
He peered out the windshield at the wine shop she’d parked in front of. “Where is here, exactly?”
She wagged a finger at him. “You never go to dinner at a friend’s house without bringing a bottle of wine. Otherwise you’ll have seven years of bad luck.”
She hopped out of the car, needing space. Being in such an enclosed environment with Amil made her fidgety, produced excess energy that needed to be burned.
And she knew exactly how they could burn that energy.
No. Not happening.
“Is that a real superstition?” he asked.
She chuckled as they entered the shop. “No. But it is bad form. Plus, they are big pinot noir fans, obviously, since Willamette Valley is in our backyard and Allison works at a winery. I, on the other hand, prefer rosé when I drink wine.”
She went straight to the coolers, where she knew her favorite label would be waiting for her.
“You said ‘when you drink wine.’ What do you prefer when you aren’t drinking wine?”
“I was a Captain and Diet Coke girl in college. My tastes have expanded since then, although that’s still my go-to when I’m stressed or frustrated or whatever.”
He nodded like he was mentally taking notes.
“What about you?” she asked as she placed the bottle on the counter for the attendant to ring up.
“I’m a wine person. My father is from Turkey. He has Assyrian roots. There are archaeologists who believe the Assyrians invented winemaking some 2,700 years ago.”
“Turkey, huh?” She took the opportunity to blatantly study him, just because she liked to look at him. He was as beautiful as a waterfall, and she could sit and enjoy a waterfall all day long.
“Like what you see?”
Damn it.
Before Diana could hand over her card, Amil had already handed cash to the attendant. “Hey,” she protested.
“We’re going over there because I’m considering buying their house. Seems like I’m the one who ought to be bringing the wine.”
The cashier handed him his change and said, “You like Assyrian wine? I can get you Assyrian wine.”
Amil’s eyebrows shot into his hairline. “Seriously?”
The guy snagged a notepad and began scribbling notes. “Two weeks. Come back and I will have Assyrian wine.”
“Thank you,” Amil said, and his smile could have lit up the entire Portland skyline. It was the first time Diana had seen him with unadulterated joy on his face.
Outside of that hotel room in Santa Clara, anyway.
A few minutes later, she pulled up to the curb in front of Allison and Dante’s home.
It didn’t look like much from here; a basic ranch surrounded by maples and evergreens, a handful of flowering trees, and, of course, rose bushes.
She waited for Amil to remark on that, but he said nothing as he climbed out of the Equinox and hesitated at the front bumper.
“What’s wrong?” she asked as she stepped up to his side.
“I was going to open your door for you but couldn’t decide if I’m supposed to when you’re the driver.”
She patted his bicep, which was a mistake because now she wanted to squeeze it. To drag her fingernails over all those bulges, see if she could make him shiver.
“This isn’t a date, so no need,” she managed to get out. Mostly to reassure herself.
“Date or no date, it’s the polite thing to do,” he said.
Jeez. Who was this guy? She’d never experienced someone who was so damn…polite. Then again, she rarely spent time with guys outside of the bedroom, unless it was in a strictly platonic way, so she had nothing to base her observations on. Maybe this was perfectly normal behavior.
Was it possible that her mother, her grandmother, her sister were simply attracted to the wrong sort of men?
Yes, that was definitely the case. And if it was the case for them, it was likely for her too. The odds were stacked too high.
“Come on, let me wow you.” She headed for the front door.
“You already do.” The words were so quiet, she wondered if he’d meant for her to hear them.
The distinct smell of the grill heating up hit her before Dante pulled open the door. She’d been to plenty of dinners here, so she knew Dante was a hell of a cook.
“Hey, Diana.” He greeted her with a hug before offering his hand to Amil. “Good practice today.”
The two men shook.
“Thanks,” Amil said.
“Why do you sound so surprised?” Dante asked.
Diana kicked off her shoes, and Amil followed her lead before handing the wine to Dante. “You were working with the receivers. Didn’t figure you’d be paying attention to the defense.”
Dante placed the wine in the fridge. “I always pay attention to the defense. You guys are the ones who are going to keep the other team from scoring, which helps us win games.”
Amil nodded. “Fair point.”
Dante chuckled and patted him on the back. “Do you want a drink first or a tour first?”
Diana raised her hand. “Drink for me.”
“I think there’s still rosé in here from the last time you were over,” Dante said, pulling a bottle with just about a glassful left out of the fridge.
“Excellent,” Diana said, accepting the glass he poured for her.
He glanced at Amil. “How about you?”
“What are you drinking?” Amil responded.
Dante nodded at the steaks resting on the countertop. “Planning to open a cab for dinner, but I have other options too. Pinot. Gin. Vodka. Water. Whiskey. Anything striking you?”
“He likes wine,” Diana answered for him, pointedly ignoring the question she could see in Dante’s eyes.
Dante picked up a bottle of pinot that was already uncorked. “There are probably two glasses left in this bottle. We’ll finish it—how’s that sound?”
“Good,” Amil said amicably.
While he poured, Diana contemplated what Amil had told her in the car. About hating the starting over part of moving to a new team.
She knew he’d spent the better part of his childhood starting over.
And now she had an opportunity to help ease this particular situation, make it not so stressful for him.
The best way to do that was to keep him at arm’s length.
Despite what her heart was telling her.