Page 62 of Thunderstruck
“And…and professional athletes are egotistical hotheads.”
“Hey!” a male voice says in the background. Houston, probably. “Youmarrieda pro athlete.”
“Technically, I married aretiredpro athlete,” Darcy counters. “And you are a decent human.”
“Cole is a decent human,” I throw out there. “But I’m still not dating him.”
“Are you sure?”
Of course, Cole chooses that moment to start massaging my hand, which is a ridiculous thing for a guy to do when he is just as adamant about our relationship staying in the friend zone as I am. Then again, he’s the one who was about to kiss me. Never mind I was about to let him.
“Will you stop?” I hiss, tugging my hand free.
“I’m sorry,” Darcy says, probably thinking I was talking to her. “I just know how much power the media can have, and I don’t like that you’ve been dragged into the tabloids. The two of you look seriously cozy in this picture, Rizzo.”
That photo is nothing compared to the way I feel each inch between us right now. Cole is, thankfully, keeping his hands to himself now, but I am all too aware of how intently his focus is on me, like I can feel his gaze more than I can see it in the darkness.
“You don’t have to worry about me,” I say, hoping I sound believable. “I don’t want to be in the tabloids any more than you want me there, and Cole and I were just talking when that photo was taken.”
“Well…” Cole says, the word guttural and low.
I go for a smack again, but he moved farther than I thought, so I lose my balance and tumble forward. Right into his arms.
“How are things going with the job, anyway?” Darcy asks. Thankfully I held on to my phone.
But I can’t answer my sister because I’m currently in a dip, Cole’s eyes sparkling in the dim light from the corridor as he looks down at me. I can almost make out his expression, and the sight of it sparks a fire inside me. “Can…” I swallow and try again. “Can I call you back tomorrow? It’s been a long day.” And I need to address Cole’s apparent lack of control.
“Yeah, of course.” Darcy sounds disappointed. “I want to hear all about your first game. I haven’t had a chance to watch it yet.”
She doesn’t know about Moxie.
The thought sobers me. I make my goodbyes and struggle upright again, tucking my phone away as I find Cole’s face in the darkness. The corridor is quiet now, so it’s probably safe for us to leave without being caught by any of the Thunder.
“We should go,” I tell Cole.
“Yeah,” he agrees.
We move slowly, checking around corners and searching the parking lot for teammates or photographers, but we make it onto the road without incident. Thank the heavens for that. I wasn’t kidding when I told Darcy it has been a long day, and I didn’t need to risk accidentallyadmitting my growing feelings for this man while scrambling to explain to someone why we’re still here so long after the game.
“Okay,” I say when we’re well on our way. “We probably need to make some rules.”
“I’m not always a fan of rules,” Cole replies.
I glare at him. “Work with me, Lemon.”
He chuckles. “Okay. Rules. Like what?”
“I am way too tired to think about that right now.”
“You could come over for lunch tomorrow and we can hash it out. I’m meeting my friends later in the day, but we could…” He stops when I look at him again, his eyes narrowing. “You want to hang out with them again, don’t you?”
I bite my lip. “I didn’t say that.”
“Trust me. You did. You say a lot with your eyes.”
The fact that he can already read my expressions has me squealing internally. This man is dangerous.
“In my defense,” I say, “you are friends with literal movie stars and one of my favorite musicians. And they love me. You know they do.”
