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“Oh,” she said quietly.
His low chuckle of laughter raked over her sensitive skin, teasing her further.How did he do that?
“Is that a yes, Ashlyn?”
“Um... yes.”
“Great,” he said and she heard relief in his voice. She knew he was probably stressed about making sure he got his pregame kiss. She had to shake her head at him. She knew his routines were important to him, and she’d never argue with him about them, but she also knew he could play just as well without them as with them. They were simply a way to quell his nerves before the game, to steady him. She’d bet her ... well, she didn’t have anything of value to bet, but if she did, she’d bet it that he didn’t really need his routines. Rafe was a damned good baseball player who didn’t need good luck to perform. It was as simple as that.
“Your driver will have instructions for where to go when you get to the stadium. I'll come find you before the game.”
They said a quick goodbye and Ashlyn switched back over to Elise, but it was hard to focus on anything after that. Her body buzzed with anticipation. As much as she loved baseball, she didn’t know if she could focus through the whole game, much less the hours before the game. Her mind was on one thing only.
A night with Rafe Wilson.
Ashlyn couldn’t believe how nervous she felt, standing in one of the tunnels beneath the baseball field, waiting where the security guard had told her to wait for Rafe. The guard stood at the end of the tunnel, his gaze averted, though she knew he was watching her from the corner of his eye. She wondered how often he’d had to escort a player’s—well this was awkward, wasn’t it? What was she? Not a girlfriend. But, that’s probably what the guard would assume. The guard would probably assume Rafe wanted to kiss his girlfriend before the game. He certainly wasn’t likely to guess Rafe wanted to kiss his good luck charm before the game. A good luck charm he’d cut a deal with to be here.
She’d been relieved to see she wasn’t seated with the wives and girlfriends behind home plate. That would be weird. What would she have said to them? How would she introduce herself? Rafe must have anticipated that she’d feel uncomfortable there and had gotten her a ticket that was every bit as good as the wives and girlfriends’ section, but was just behind the team dugout.
A door opened and Rafe jogged down the deserted tunnel toward her, nodding to the guard as he passed him. Ashlyn couldn’t help but notice the raw power he displayed in his uniform—arms pushing at the edges of his sleeves, thighs filling out the tight pants with muscles that made her mouth water. His hair fell onto his forehead in a way that should have saidboyish charm, but on him, it said something more along the lines oflick me.
The ease with which he jogged toward her, completely comfortable and in charge, was sexy as sin. That was her single thought as he approached. Justsexy as sin. He pulled up short in front of her.
“Hi.” His voice was low and quiet, as he leaned into her.
Ashlyn realized she had no idea what they would do. In Elise’s kitchen, the kiss had just kind of happened. There hadn’t been time for her to be nervous or edgy, which was the way she felt now. But, here, in the ballpark tunnels, it was awkward for a split second. And, then, suddenly it wasn’t. Suddenly, Rafe was grinning at her as he cupped the back of her head with one hand, pulling her hip toward him with the other. Her whole body pressed to his and his mouth lowered, capturing hers in a kiss that curled her toes. And, nothing was awkward or uncomfortable about it. It was incredible. And, all too short.
He pulled back and looked her in the eyes. “I’ll see you after the game, Ashlyn.”
And, that was it. He was jogging away and her legs were jelly. Before she knew it, the guard was clearing his throat. She followed him up to the stands where she took her seat and proceeded to watch one of Rafe’s best games ever. Only, her mind was still stuck on the way her lips tingled after that kiss, and she squirmed in her seat every time she looked at him out on the field.
Chapter Seven
“Istill can’t believe you caught that line drive by Myers. You must have dove fifteen feet for that.” Ashlyn looked at Rafe as he pulled into the parking lot of her apartment complex. He grinned at her and threw the car in park, then shocked the senses out of her once again when he pulled her toward him and took her mouth with his.
She’d been antsy, wondering if it would be weird when they got to her place. After all, where do you start with “arranged” sex that’s just part of a deal between two acquaintances? But he swept all that aside with one deep, long, seeking kiss that managed to convince her he actually wanted to be there. With her. Doing this.
She let herself escape into the dream, not allowing herself the reminder that this was only part of a deal they’d struck. His arms came around her, as though he planned to pull her straight across the bench seat of what appeared to be some kind of expensive old muscle car, albeit one that had been restored back to what she assumed were factory specs.
As she thought about him pulling her across the seat, she was surprised to realize, she wanted him to. She wanted to straddle him right there in his car and tear the shirt off his back. She let her hands run down the chiseled muscles of his chest and wanted to feel those muscles and ridges without the barrier of cloth between them.
She reached for the hem of his tee and felt him grin against her lips as he put a hand over hers.
“Inside, Ash,” he whispered and she pulled back, stunned. She had actually been ready to strip down right there in the car with him, in the middle of her apartment complex’s parking lot.
She laughed and nodded, moving back to her side of the car as Rafe ran around to open the door for her. Man, he was taking this whole deal really far, treating her more like a girlfriend than a ... a ... whatever it was they were to one another. She kind of liked that. That he wasn’t just phoning it in for the sake of their agreement. Or, who knows? Maybe he was just in a good mood from the Strikers’ win and didn’t care who he was with tonight. Most likely, he turned on the charm for any woman he was with.
Before she could analyze that too much, they were at her door and he was taking the keys from her hand, opening the door, and pulling her to him as he shut it behind them.
Ashlyn dropped her purse to the floor and then laced her arms around Rafe’s neck, squealing as he lifted her. Her legs instinctively came around his waist and Rafe’s large hands cupped her bottom, pulling her snug against him.
“I can’t believe you can actually do that!” she gasped, looking at him. “I thought men could only lift women like this in romance novels.”
Rafe’s laugh was low as he walked her to the kitchen counter and set her down. God, she loved that laugh. She loved the things it did to her body, the way it made her want to clench her thighs together with only the sound of it.
“I can do a lot of things, Ashlyn,” he said as he tugged her t-shirt up over her head, then lowered his lips to her neck. A delicious shudder ran through her body as his lips caressed her skin. Already, the anticipation, the excited build up, the arousal that coursed through her, was so much more than she’d ever experienced with the other men she’d been with. They had all seemed so intent on simply warming her up as quickly and efficiently as possible, to get to the final act where they could get what they wanted. Rafe seemed focused on her and only her. As though her pleasure was what would bring him pleasure. The very idea of it was erotic and tantalizing in and of itself.
But, Ashlyn pulled back, stopping him with her hands to his shoulders as she tried to catch her breath, to slow things down. His response was immediate, though the heat in his eyes didn’t dissipate when he pulled back and looked up at her.
