Page 37 of Take Her On

She sighed. “Well, we agreed to talk. Fifteen minutes.”

“I’m truly honoured that you spare so much of your time for me, Your Majesty.”

Jesus. This was going terribly.

Maya looked down at the carpet; she knew she needed to do better than that. “Jamie. I’m…I’m sorry. I just…I don’t really know how to feel about any of this.”

That declaration stilled Jamie, and she glanced up at her, a bundle of dirty socks in her hand. An uneasy silence filled the space. Maya scrambled for something else to say. Anything to distract from the nonsensical feelings swirling in her head.

“I…uh, used to live down here.”

What did you say that for?

“Did you?”

Maya scratched the back of her neck. She didn’t mean to keep the conversation on her, but she couldn’t bear the silence. “Yeah. My friends still live there.”

“Why don’t you?”

She swallowed and met Jamie’s gaze. “My, uh, grandpa had a stroke. He’s pretty sick. I moved back home to help out and take care of him.”

For god’s sake, why couldn’t she just shut up?

There was a beat where Jamie shuffled a little awkwardly, but her eyes softened. “That’s really nice of you,” she said. “I bet that’s tough, though. You wanna talk about it?”

Maya shook her head. “Nah, I’m good.” She couldn’t stop her mouth from asking, “Why don’t you live at home?”

“It’s complicated.” Jamie shuffled the clothes around in her bag, evening it out, then tied the top.

Her secrecy surrounding her university move raised alarm bells. What could have happened to make her ditch her last year at the Harriers? Maya felt guilty at assuming she’d slept with her old teammates. Was her reluctance to open up just her way of giving Maya a taste of her own medicine?

Her eyes landed on a notebook on Jamie’s bedside table, with what looked like scribbles inside. Is that a diary?

Suddenly, she was very aware that she was in Jamie’s bedroom. The air stilled, and Jamie’s cedar scent occupied her senses. Had Jamie ever brought anybody back here? Leah? Did she mean what she said about her?

“So, there’s nothing going on between you and Leah?” She cursed herself for voicing that out loud, but she couldn’t help it. Way to be cool and casual, Maya.

Jamie blinked. Then the corners of her mouth quirked. “So, you do like me.” She took a small step forward, that arrogant look back with a vengeance. “I thought I might have got it wrong, but…” She let her gaze dip over Maya, and involuntary tingles spread through her stomach.

“But what?” she asked.

“You’re jealous.”

“I’m not.”

“Then why did you ask about Leah again?”

“Just to…check.”

“Check what?” Jamie’s stupid mouth morphed into a smirk.

Maya hated how much she liked her mouth. How good it felt pressed against hers.

“Nothing.” Maya gritted her teeth, her jaw clenching. “You are so annoying.”

Jamie took another step towards her. “Then why do you want to kiss me?”

Maya’s breath caught in her throat, and she wet her lips. She wanted to deny it, but her eyes dipped, finding the curve of Jamie’s mouth again.