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The gentle smile tilting her lips felt like a tug on his heart. She twisted her lips into his shoulder and kissed it.
Leaning in, he brushed his mouth across her temple before rolling off. Even though he didn’t want to be one of those guys who talked after sex, practically asking for verification that they’d given a great performance, he needed to know.
“What made you do it?”
She locked gazes with him. “Do what?”
“Ask me to skip the condom.”
The flush in her cheeks deepened to a dark rose. “It was probably you moving on that dance floor.”
Caught off guard by her answer, he barked a laugh. “We can head back right now if it means I get to turn you on again. The restaurant’s still open.”
She threw her arm around him and held on tight. “I’m not up for embarrassing myself any further today.”
He stroked a lock of warm brown hair off her face. “You were great.”
“Now you’re lying to me.”
They shared a quiet laugh. Then he sobered. “The team loves you.”
She blinked. “How do you know that?”
“I know them. They’re like my own brothers. Their wives are my sisters. We’re like a big family. Now they’re your family too.”
She turned her stare up to the ceiling, her smile vanishing and a tiny pucker appearing between her brows. “My brother is all I have.”
“Not anymore, love.”
She stared at him. “I’m not sure what to think of all this. This isn’t any world I know or understand.”
“What do you mean?” He felt the hum of tension brewing just under her silky flesh and locked a hand on her hip to hold her there with him.
“These are your people, not mine.”
“You’re not alone now.”
“The ladies are fantastic, but they were just being nice to me.”
He gaped at her. “You really don’t know how special you are, do you?”
“I’m nothing special, Jennings. I’m a washed-up med student stuck in a dead-end job. I hope that my brother cleans up, but I know the statistics. It can take several stays in rehab to finally get clean. I have no delusions about my brother, and when this is all over, I’m going to leave town. Start over.”
Her words stung, each syllable a slash to his flesh. Blood filled in those cuts.
When he looked at her again, he shook his head. “If you leave town, I’m coming with you.”
Alarm suffused her gaze. “What? No. You belong here with your team and your…f-found…f-family.” The tremor in her voice made him grip her tighter, but she rolled out of bed and strode to the bathroom before he could stop her.
Flopping onto his back, he slung his arm over his eyes. Damn. Five minutes earlier, he decided to embrace this relationship, and he’d already messed up. Thing was, he wasn’t even sure what he’d said to upset her.
A few minutes later, she emerged from the bathroom. She crossed the room and scooped her clothes off the floor. “I need to return to Spring Valley. I have work.”
He sat up and reached for her, but she took a step out of reach of even his long arms. Unsure what to do, he scrubbed his palms over his face.
“All right. I’ll drive you back…but we have to stay at the club. You know that, right?”
A heavy heartbeat ticked by before she nodded in agreement.
