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“Uh-huh. Sure you can.”
“Are you doubting me?”
“Oh, no. I don’t doubt your multitasking skills. They’re just very, very specific. They usually involve me being naked.”
Jace chuckled, kissing the back of my hand again.
“And as much as I’m thankful for you defending my honor, you shouldn’t have hit him. It’ll make things difficult for the team.”
“The team was the last thing on my mind. I’m your person, Brooke.”
“You are,” I whispered, barely able to refrain from kissing his cheek again. I wasn’t going to be able to stop just at his cheek this time, but I really needed to be patient and wait until we were not on the road to reward him and take care of him.
We’d agreed to spend the night at his house, because he was leaving tomorrow morning. Once we arrived, I went directly to the freezer, taking out some ice. Jace had insisted he didn’t need it, but I had a hunch his lips might disagree tomorrow.
He was waiting for me sprawled on the bed, wearing only boxers. Feeling overdressed, I took off my dress, remaining in my underwear.
He scrutinized me for a few seconds before ambushing me. The man moved so fast, I didn’t realize what he was up to at first. He clasped a hand around my wrist, an arm around my waist, and tackled me until I was on the bed, under him. The bag of ice slipped from my hand, landing on the floor with a thump.
He nestled his hips between my thighs. I sucked in a breath when I felt his hard-on press against my pubic bone. Jace smiled cheekily before leaning in for a kiss. He captured my mouth without hesitation.
As we paused for breath, though, I saw him grimace. He tried to school his features, but he wasn’t fooling me.
“Lie on your back,” I instructed, pointing a finger at him.
He reluctantly rolled onto his back. I picked up the bag of ice from the floor, holding it to the corner of his mouth. I also lowered the cover to his middle, inspecting the general area where I thought Levi’s punch had hit.
“Does it hurt?” I asked softly, trailing my fingers between his navel and his stomach.
“No, but you can kiss it anyway.” He grinned.
“What?”
“You could play nurse.”
I rolled my eyes. “I can’t believe I didn’t see this coming.”
I straddled one of his legs while I held the ice on the corner of his mouth.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“Yes.”
Truthfully, I was worrying about the repercussions of tonight’s incident. I was sure things wouldn’t be easy for me at the club on Monday. I was also certain some of the sponsors were having second thoughts, but I didn’t want Jace to worry about that. He had a string of important games to concentrate on.
“You’re not going to get much sleep tonight,” he informed me.
“Don’t you need rest?”
“I’ll sleep on the plane. It’ll give me an excuse to ignore Levi.”
“You think this will affect the game?”
“He’s a pro. I’m a pro. My wanting to break his nose won’t be good for the team dynamic though. Just what we needed with the semifinal coming up.”
My stomach rolled with a bout of anxiety. I wanted to put him at ease, but I didn’t know how. Any reassurances would be empty words, since I knew he had a point. Winning wasn’t just about technique, it was also about state of mind. I hoped with every fiber of my being that Jace wouldn’t resent me for his friction with Levi. I knew he wouldn’t do so consciously, but sometimes when things went awry, we couldn’t help needing to blame someone, even if it was someone we cared about.
Jace must have sensed my unease, because he rested his hands on my thighs, pulling me a notch closer.
