He reached out with one hand, wanting to feel her hair wrapped around his fingers. “Another time.”
“Even if you pull my hair, there’s no locker room banging. I ninety percent mean that.” He tugged just enough to pull her head back so he could nip at the soft skin under her jaw. “Seriously, I eighty percent mean it.”
“Oh, I’m going to take you home,” he promised. “But what brings you into the locker room in this sexy dress with those curves and those legs and the heels?”
“I was out with a girlfriend. Every couple of months we splurge and go to this really trendy, upscale place that makes the best dirty martinis, and to make it extra fun, we dress up.” She cupped the side of his face in her hand. “But I should have been here tonight and I felt shitty about it. I grabbed a Lyft and got here in time to see the last few minutes, and then I figured I might as well wait for you. And wait, and wait.”
“It’s kind of my thing. I like to decompress and let all the adrenaline and emotions of the game and shit work through my system before I shower and head out.” Her brow furrowed as she looked at him thoughtfully, so he shrugged. “Every guy has his own thing. Some guys want to dissect every second on the ice. Some want to leave it behind until it’s time to focus on it again.”
She nodded. “The Burkes don’t leave anything behind. My dad and Erik are pretty intense guys.”
“I’ve heard that about them.” He skimmed his hands up the back of her thighs and then under her dress to cup her ass. “You’re pretty intense yourself.”
“Okay, Lecroix. Hit the shower so we can get out of here. I’ll wait in the hall.” She stepped backward, as if to move out of his reach, but he snagged her hand.
“I won’t be long.” He leaned in to kiss her, doing his best to keep from brushing his body against her dress. “And for the record, I didn’t expect you to come tonight because I know how you feel about hockey, so don’t feel shitty about going out instead.”
She smiled and kissed him again before walking out of the locker room, so he didn’t regret saying it, even if it wasn’t totally the truth. He didn’t want her to feel shitty about skipping the game, so that part was true. But it would have been cool to have her there—to have known she was in the crowd cheering for him.
Earlier in the night, he’d told himself it was a good thing she’d opted out. It was a good reminder that all of this was temporary and it didn’t matter if she was willing to sit through a hockey game or not because when he left Boston behind, he’d be leaving her behind, too.
And that thought had done absolutely nothing to cheer him up.
11
One of Kristen’s least favorite times of day was the fifteen minutes or so she spent in Stan’s office every morning, reviewing anything outstanding from the day before and strategizing current tasks and appointments.
When there was a closed door between them, she was usually able to shove her personal dislike of the man to the back of her mind and focus on the work. But when she was sitting across from him, with nothing but his pretentious walnut desk between them, it was a lot harder to ignore him.
“One more thing,” he said when she closed her notebook and started to get up.
“Okay.” She lowered herself into the chair again, wondering if he was finally going to give her the promotion. If,finally, he was going to acknowledge that she worked her ass off for him and show some gratitude.
That wasn’t likely, she knew, but she didn’t need the words. She just wanted the promotion. Not only was it time, but it was long past due.
“This relationship of yours, with that hockey player…I’ve been thinking about that.” He paused, giving her a look that made his distaste for the situation clear. “How serious is it, exactly?”
Kristen gave herself a moment to consider her answer before speaking. While he didn’t seem to approve of hockey players, hewasa fan of stable and respectable relationships. But she knew she was walking a fine line, too, because if this man thought she was going to be distracted by wedding planning and then babies in the near future, he might pass her over for the promotion on those grounds.
Why the hell she couldn’t get the promotion she’d earned based on nothing but her exemplary job performance was something she couldn’t think about right now or she’d do or say something she’d regret.
“I’m not sure he’s as serious about our future as I am. Was,” she said quietly. Since she and Will would go their separate ways in the future anyway—and holy crap, didthathurt to think about—and her boss was already biased against him, she might as well lay the groundwork for the end of her relationship. She’d also be putting to rest any concerns he had about her ability to focus wholly on work in the near future.
“It’s probably for the best,” he said, not exactly oozing sympathy. “I mean, athletes can be attractive and wealthy, which appeals to a certain kind of woman, I’m sure, but the lifestyle...I expected you to have higher standards.”
No.Not just no, butoh, hell no.
Standing up seemed to happen without her intending to, as if her body realized before her brain that she couldn’t do this anymore. She couldn’t keep selling herself out in the hope of working her way up to a job she could barely stomach.
She was so done with this judgmental asshole, and he could shove his promotion up his ass. “With all due respect, Stan—which is absolutely no respect, by the way—you can go fuck yourself.”
She took great satisfaction in watching him gape and gasp—except for the few seconds he clutched his throat and she was afraid she’d killed him—before he started spluttering. “I beg your pardon?”
“I quit. Effective”—she looked at her watch and then back at him—“now.”
Before he could turn his strangled sounds of outrage into words, Kristen turned on her heel and walked out of his office, pulling the door closed behind her with enthusiasm.
She went immediately to her office and started gathering the few personal belongings she kept there. They all fit in her tote—her favorite pen and coffee mug, along with a framed picture of Erik she’d taken herself when he was in a sweater and jeans, and it was one of the very few photos of him out of his hockey gear.
