Page 48 of Take Her On

The memory of Maya’s fingers was enough to make Jamie’s breath catch. But since she’d not responded to Jamie’s follow-up texts, she supposed she needed space. It didn’t seem the right time to bring her own feelings into it and make it about her.

Jamie knew she should keep her distance from Maya. She’d moved to get a fresh start, not to get entangled in more rumours—but she couldn’t help it.

Her stupid heart always outweighed her head, no doubt about it.

Maya’s face flashed before her. That perfect mouth and those deep brown eyes could render even the most stoic woman a pile of ashes. The way she’d completely owned Jamie in between her own four walls. And how Jamie hadn’t minded at all. She should probably be more concerned with how willing she was to give her—

A ball thwacked Jamie in the ribs, dislodging those thoughts completely. Ouch.

A chorus of laughter broke out across the group, with a red-faced boy at the centre of it.

“Sorry, Jamie. I hit the post and then it hit you.”

She exhaled, picking up the sunglasses that had been knocked off her head. “It’s okay, Sammy. Good shot.”

Jamie brought the session to a close, high-fiving all the kids, then making sure they were collected by appropriate caregivers. When the last one had left, running ahead and giggling away, she collected the cones and stuffed the footballs back into their bag.

The swish of the grass caused her to raise her head, expecting one of the kids to have forgotten their water bottle. Instead, she was greeted by a pair of chocolatey-brown eyes.

She almost did a double-take, her heart jumping into her throat.

“Skip. What’re you doing here?” She shifted the sunglasses up her head, and her gaze drifted over Maya’s running Lycra and her toned thighs. Sweet Jesus. “How are you?” she asked.

“I just needed to get out for a bit. I’m okay.” Maya flicked the last ball towards the open bag with her toe, and Jamie caught it. “What’re you doing here?”

Jamie tightened the strings, securing the footballs, and tied a loose knot at the end. She wasn’t sure how much Maya had seen. Had she been watching her? The thought of that made her uncharacteristically nervous. “I take the little ones on a Saturday morning. Some easy drills and games. Stuff like that. It’s pretty fun.”

A smile fought its way onto Maya’s face, her cheeks pink from the cold.

Jamie looked away to stop herself from saying something stupid like you’re so beautiful or—I can’t stop thinking about you or—thank you for making me come so hard the other night. Fancy doing that again sometime?

Get it together, Jaim. She hadn’t expected to see Maya here, and her libido had skyrocketed out of nowhere. So much for her no-dating rule. She scratched the back of her neck, trying to be more neutral. “How’s your grandpa?”

Maya stiffened. “I don’t really want to talk about it.”

Jamie’s voice softened. “Are you okay, though? I’m worried about you.”

Maya shook her head, turning to watch a Border Collie leap in the air to catch a tennis ball. The dog brought the ball back to its owner, already sprinting off before the woman had a chance to throw it again.

Maya let out a sigh. “You don’t need to worry about me, Jamie.”

Jamie wanted to know where her mind had gone, but she didn’t want to push too hard. She, of all people, knew how it felt to be pushed. Sometimes things were better left alone.

Maya gave her a stern look, making Jamie straighten. She hadn’t realised she was biting her lip.

“I just want you to be normal with me,” Maya said. “Honestly. Be you. Be annoying. Please.”

Jamie chuckled at that, then bent down to swing the bag of balls over her shoulder. “Okay. I’ll be annoying, but only for you, alright?”

Maya’s mouth spread into a lopsided grin, and warmth shot through Jamie’s belly.

“Thank you.”

“Wanna walk?” She gestured towards the car park on the other side of the field.

“Sure.”

She handed her a black bag stuffed with fluorescent bibs and cones, and set off with her across the grass, the sun warming her bare legs.