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His gaze traveled down my body. “I believe in it, too.”
“Awesome,” I said, blowing out a relieved breath. “So, how much?”
“I have no interest in money,” he said, standing upright and shrugging.
“Yeah, right. Everyone’s interested in money.”
“I’m not.” His cool blue eyes met mine and I knew he was telling the truth.
“How else can I incentivize you? It can’t be something like better housing, because I don’t want the rest of the players to know.”
“You can just owe me one,” he said, walking over to the bookcase and scanning the titles.
“If you think I’m going to screw you, think again.” My tone was the harsh, pissed-off one usually reserved for dressing down business associates. “That’s not the kind of incentive I’m talking about. I’ve got a hell of a lot more self-respect than the groupies you’re used to.”
His expression turned dark. “I’d never want an unwilling woman. Even willing is not good enough. I don’t know if we’ll ever fuck, Sidney, because you’d have to beg for it and you don’t strike me as the begging sort.”
“That’s an understatement.”
He pointed at his chest and then back at me. “This isn’t gonna work if you don’t trust me. When I fuck up, I’ll admit it. But this time, I was defending someone on my team and things got out of hand. Then Brotz wanted more when I ran into him later, so I obliged.”
My anger drained away. I couldn’t deny the sincerity on his face. “Alright,” I said softly. “I apologize for jumping all over you before giving you a chance to explain.”
“You haven’t jumped me yet, Sidney. But you will.”
A thousand butterflies took flight in my stomach as his eyes held mine. His gaze was intense, sexy and sincere. Instinct told me to fight back, to stand up for myself, but the words wouldn’t come out of my mouth.
“You intrigue me like no one ever has,” he said, looking down at me. “So I’m trying.”
I nodded, my skin heating under his inspection. I needed to take control of this conversation but Killian saved me the trouble.
“I have to get to practice,” he said, taking a step back. The spell was broken, and I rose from my chair.
I followed him to the door and he paused with his hand over the knob. I wanted to reach out and touch him. Any part of him would do. I just wanted to lay my hand on his arm and feel the warmth of his skin and the strength of the muscle beneath. It would relax and incite me at the same time.
But one touch would only make me want more, so I stepped back.
“Have a good practice,” I said.
He met my eyes one more time and then turned the doorknob, opened the door and left. I went back to my desk and flopped into the chair with a sigh, wondering how the hell I was supposed to focus on work now.Killian
I signed my name on the check I’d just written to pay for the court costs for the disorderly conduct case I’d just pleaded guilty to. No reason to deny it—I’d pissed in an alley, which was apparently considered disorderly conduct in Pensacola. I was just glad I was able to pay the fine without having to physically appear in court.
This ticket wasn’t a big deal, just the most expensive piss ever. But the one for the fight I’d gotten into with Brotz could turn into a headache. I was hoping to plead guilty, pay the fine and move on with no intervention from the league. But a public brawl between two players that the cops had to deal with was enough to get us both into trouble.
I didn’t want Sidney to see me as an immature asshole with impulse control issues. I’d been that guy long enough, and it was time to grow up, more for myself than anyone else.
I turned to sorting out my clean laundry that was piled up on the couch. As I was folding T-shirts, my front door opened.
“Hey,” Liam said, walking in. “Let’s play Call of Duty.”
“I’ll beat your ass, like I do every time.”
“Whatever, bitch,” he muttered. “Let’s just play.”
We got things set up and it was a while before either of us spoke.
“What was with you and Brotz the other night?” Liam asked.
“He’s a douchebag. That’s about it.”
“He was talking about Sidney, wasn’t he?”
“Yeah. And you know I don’t listen to trash talk about anyone on the team.”
He made a skeptical hmmm sound.
“You got something to say?”
“She’s not on the team,” he said, shrugging.
“Yeah, well neither is Orion and neither is Bruce, but I won’t let anyone talk shit about them, either. They’re all on the team as far as I’m concerned.”
“I think you like her.”
“So what if I do?”
“Doesn’t matter to me.”
“Yeah, I like her. Alright?”
