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“Let’s do it.” I stand and follow him out of the locker room. It’s not that I don’t want to hang out with my teammates. It’s that I want to see her and hear her voice more. I’m slowly becoming addicted. It could be something to do with the “I’m in love with her” revelation I came to not minutes ago. I’ve never been in love, never wanted to spend every waking moment with a woman. Usually, it’s shared pleasure, and we go our separate ways. With Joey, it’s different. I never want to be away from her.
Ever.
The last few days have about killed me. I don’t like leaving her alone. At least when we have home games, I know she’s in the stands watching. Yeah, I’ve got it bad.
“Damn,” Jones says, digging his elbow into my side. “Hottie at three o’clock can’t take her eyes off you.”
I tip the beer bottle to my lips and take a long pull, not bothering to look to my right. There’s no point. I know it’s not going to be my Joey standing there.
“Here she comes, my man,” Caleb says, keeping his voice low. “Watch the master in action.” He nods at me.
I try not to take offense to his words because they are true. Theyweretrue. I’ve been told my dark hair, blue eyes, and killer smile is a panty dropper. I’ve always had a way with the ladies and never regretted enjoying the company they provided, at least not until this minute—my stomach rolls at the thought of touching someone who is not Joey. What’s worse is that I’m going to have to turn her down in front of my teammates. Infront of my best friend. If he didn’t think something was up before, he’s going to know now.
And I can’t tell him.
I know the exact moment the leggy blonde reaches my side, not because of the attraction but because of the panic. Having her so close is wrong. I don’t want her next to me. Hell, I don’t want her or any other woman who is not Joey next to me.
“Hey, handsome,” she says, resting her hand on my arm.
I finish swallowing back my beer and set the bottle on the table. Slowly I turn to look at her, giving her a not interested look. I glance down to where her hand, which has some viper-looking bloodred nails, still rests on my arm. “Not interested.” I hear the shock of my teammates, but I ignore them, taking another drink.
“Are you sure about that? You seem stressed. I can make that all go away,” she rasps. Her voice sounds like she’s smoked one too many packs of cigarettes. Her hand moves up my arm, and I’ve had enough.
Abruptly, I stand and take a step back from the table. “I’m out.” Reaching into my back pocket, I pull out a wad of cash and toss it on the table. I don’t make eye contact with my teammates. Instead, I turn and stalk out of the hotel bar and toward the elevator. My body is shaking from anger. I knew better than to go. My reputation is going to make me lose the best fucking thing that’s ever happened to me.
As soon as I step into my room, my phone is to my ear, and to my relief, she picks up on the first ring.
“Brock?”
“Sunshine,” I breathe, already feeling lighter at just the sound of her voice.
“What’s wrong?” When mine is full of panic, hers is full of concern.
“There was a woman.”
“Okay.” Her tone doesn’t change. She’s giving nothing away.
“She laid her hand on my arm.”
“Okay.” The same one-word reply that still tells me jack shit of how she’s feeling.
“I didn’t like it.”
There is silence on the other end of the phone, and then it’s her soft laughter filling my ear. “Is there any more to this story?” she asks.
I go on to tell her about the locker room, and the guilt Caleb threw on me, and then the woman from the bar. “I promise you I don’t want her. I don’t want anyone’s hands on me but yours.” There’s no humor in my voice, even though I can hear it in hers.
The woman tonight freaked me the hell out. One, it’s new for me not to give a fuck about the random football groupies. I knew I wasn’t interested, but for me to react as I did, that’s a big fucking deal, and I know I’m going to have my best friend to answer to. Speaking of, I get a text and pull my phone from my ear. I hit the speakerphone button and open his message, not wanting to miss a second of my call with Joey.
Caleb:You good, man?
Me:Yeah. Just tired. Calling it a night.
I know I have some explaining to do, and I don’t know what I’m going to say. I can play the exhaustion card, but that’s not going to continue to work. I just hope that Joey decides we can tell him. Soon. I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up. The lies are harder to come by when all I want to tell him is that I’m madly in love with his little sister. Sure, that’s also a new development, but it’s one I’ll gladly latch on to.
“Hang up. I’ll call you right back.” She catches me off guard.
“Jo—” I start, but the line goes dead. “Fuck.” Sitting on the edge of the bed, I grip my phone in one hand, waiting for her call, while my other grips my hair. “She’s pissed, and I need to be there. I can’t—” I start, but before I can finish my thought, my phone rings, and it’s a video call from Joey. I fumble with my phone to hit the green button. “Sunshine.”
