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“I don’t mind.” He looked back at the group of bystanders who now had their phones out and aimed at them. “Besides, it probably looks better if people see us leave together.”
“Sure, thanks.”
“No problem. I’m just over here.” He gestured toward a large black SUV. Ryan shifted his bag up on his shoulder as they walked toward his car. “So about kissing you.”
She’d wondered if he was going to address that elephant in the room. “Mmm hmm.”
“Just lots of prying eyes. I tried to make it as quick and painless as possible.”
“No biggie, I should have expected it.” What she hadn’t been expecting was how that brief touch of his lips had made her feel. How she’d wanted him to sweep his tongue in her mouth and take a deeper kiss. The second his mouth had touched hers, she’d instantly been transported back to the night they’d had sex. Which was weird considering how chaste the peck had been. Why he affected her this way, she had no idea. She watched him as he opened the hatch of his vehicle and threw his bag in the trunk. His muscles clenched and rippled beneath the fabric. Okay, so perhaps she had some idea why she’d reacted that way. Holy smokes.
She slid into the passenger seat. Dang, the leather was soft. There were definitely some perks to a luxury SUV. She ran her hand over the leather seat. Sure was a lot nicer than her fabric seat covers.
Ryan turned on the vehicle and backed out of the stall. “Thanks for coming today.”
“I’m glad I did. That was really sweet what you did for that little boy.”
He shrugged like it was no big deal. “He was pretty bummed he couldn’t throw it over the plate. When I visited him in the hospital, we’d talked about how big the stadium was and how cool it was to hit a home run and have fans cheering for you.” A smile quirked up from the corner of his lips. “I figured the pitch wasn’t what he wanted, but I could at least give him something that was close to the feeling of hitting a home run.”
“I’m sure it meant the world to him.”
He flicked a glance over at her. “I think wearing the jacket was a bigger thrill. I felt a little bad that we didn’t dump the jug over his head. He kept looking over his shoulders, hoping someone would pour it over him.” He laughed. “Somehow, I don’t think his mom would have felt the same. That shit is cold.”
Peyton giggled. “Hard to say. She’d probably deal with pretty much anything if it made her son smile like he did today.”
Ryan’s smile grew. “Yeah, it was pretty awesome.”
He pulled the car into the parking lot of Kidsplay and stopped beside her car, since it was the only one in the lot.
“Thanks for the ride.” Peyton looked over at him. Why did this feel so awkward?
“Yep.” He tapped the steering wheel absently with his thumb. “We’re heading out tomorrow for the next road series.”
“Good luck.” Okay, this was ridiculous. It wasn’t like this was a date, so why was she acting like it had been? How pathetic. She pushed open the passenger door. “Any idea when you might need another fake date?”
His face scrunched up. “Hopefully not anytime soon.”
Peyton’s head snapped back. Ouch. That was kind of brutal.
“Fuck.” He grimaced. “That didn’t come out how I’d intended. I just meant, well, you know what I meant, you’re stuck fake dating me too.”
She stepped out of the car. “Well, keep me posted.”
“Shit,” Ryan muttered. “This is stupid. Do you want to grab some food or something?”
“Umm…” She chewed her bottom lip. Was that a good idea?
“Jesus, Peyton, it’s a fucking meal, not an engagement. This whole thing is so awkward.” He sighed. “Maybe if we hung out a bit and got to know each other it wouldn’t feel so weird every time we saw each other.”
“That’s the problem though. It doesn’t always feel weird.”
His eyes heated as he looked at her. “True. The sex was unreal. That’s been the only good thing about this ridiculous arrangement.”
“Is that why you want to get something to eat? You’re hoping to have sex again?”
He shrugged. “I definitely wouldn’t be opposed to having sex with you any chance I could get, but no that’s not why I asked you to eat.” His muscular forearm flexed as he shifted his weight in his seat. “Coming out of the change room today and seeing you there. I didn’t have the first clue how I was supposed to act. Kiss you, don’t kiss you. I don’t question myself when it comes to women.” He rolled his eyes. “I realize I sound like a dick saying that, but it’s true. As amazing as the whole sex thing was, it kind of fucked up my thought process when I saw you. Maybe if we eat and get to know each other away from prying eyes and obligations things will be less weird.”
“Less weird sounds good.”
