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“Thanks. The privacy is nice.”
Privacy… not anymore.
“I’ll give you a tour. You can pick which room you’d like. They all have an adjoining bathroom.”
“Any is fine, really. I’d rather you choose. I’m not sure how long I’ll be in Virginia. You know, because I might stink, and Reese could send me packing.”
That thought suddenly hit hard and saddened me. Granted, I didn’t know any of my teammates or even where the closest grocery store was, but something told me that I’d miss Virginia if I were to leave.
“From what I saw today, you’ll be fine. Smythe was good, but after his injury, he had problems hitting from forty yards out. Townsend was hit or miss. Pun intended, and he’s gone now. DiNardo was third string and was going to take Smythe’s position.”
“Is DiNardo new too?”
“No. As I said, he was the third string. Moved into the placekicker position when Smythe got hurt and Townsend seemed to lose his edge. You honestly don’t know anything about the team?”
What I wanted to say was,Take it down a notch, Mr. Cranky,but instead my sweet retort was, “No, I do. I studied thestartingroster on the way here. I didn’t see his name.” We kept walking until we hit the bottom of the stairs. As if my bag weighed nothing, Collin lifted it and began to ascend the steps. I had only my duffel and purse, and I found it difficult to keep up. Not that I minded, because my view was nothing less than spectacular.
With each step, the muscles in his legs flexed. Even the ones in his calves were sexy as hell. I couldn’t help but wonder what the rest of him looked like. Needing to school my thoughts, I stopped and glanced down and out into the main family room, or, in this house, the great room, where an oversize upholstered navy-blue sectional filled part of the space. A stone fireplace spanned the height of the wall, and a couple of chairs sat empty.
“Are you coming?”
“Yes, sorry. Just looking around.” Once I reached the landing at the top of the stairs, I glanced to my right, where there were two double doors at the end, one ajar. Next to that was a closed door, and to my left were three more.
Collin tilted his head to the right. “That’s my room at the end of the hall.” He began walking toward the other side. “You can pick one of these.”
“Okay, thanks.” Curious, I pointed to the door next to his. “What’s in there?”
“Laundry room. There’s another downstairs off the mudroom. Feel free to use either one.”
Thank goodness it wasn’t another bedroom. No way would I want to be next to his. I could only imagine the women who have crossed that threshold. An odd feeling of disappointment struck me, thinking about all the women I’d be seeing traipsing in and out of there.
“Charlie, did you hear me?”
“No, I’m sorry.”I was imagining your harem.“What?”
“Each room has a stand-up shower, but this one also has a soaking tub. Do you have a preference?”
“Ooh, yes. A tub, please. I’ll probably be sore after practices.”
He nodded and turned the handle on the door to the right of him. When he pushed it open, my jaw dropped. “No way,” I whispered, taking a few steps inside. Everything about the room felt like home. The soft gray walls that almost looked blue, a bed adorned with a fluffy white comforter that could double as a cloud, and the numerous silver throw pillows on the bed beckoned me to sink into them. “That bed looks ginormous!”
“It’s a California king.” His gaze roamed up and down my body, sending a wave of something I’d never felt before through me. “You’ll have plenty of room to roll around.”
With you?I almost blurted out, as a non–PG-13 scenario flashed before my eyes.
He raised his hands with my bags in them. “You good?”
“Yes, more than good.” He set the bags down on the bench at the foot of the bed, while I dropped the ones I’d been holding. Without much thought, I wrapped my arms around his midsection, rested my head against his hard chest, and squeezed my eyes shut. “Thank you so much. I already love it here.”
A few beats later, his hand awkwardly tapped the center of my spine. “You’re welcome.”
I released him and took a step back, ready to apologize.
“There are fresh towels in the linen closet in the bathroom,” he said. “If you need anything else, let me know.”
I nodded, still looking around the room.
“Get settled, and when you’re ready, come downstairs. We can talk and go over some rules.”
