Page 41 of Winning Match
I turn toward him. “I do. Thank you.”
“My pleasure,” he says easily. “And, I mean, I’d like us to be real friends. Not counting my sisters, there aren’t any women I’m…even friendly with. When I meet women now, there’s an expectation there, a motive. And with you…”
I hold my breath, waiting for his words. They don’t come. “What?”
“I can be myself.” The words are soft and quiet and tie my stomach in knots.
“We are friends,” I repeat, even though I’ve only known him for a handful of days. “I don’t have a lot of friends, Ale. But I already consider you one of them.”
He stares at me for a long beat. “I start training camp next Monday. They’re doing it differently this year, with one week in Valencia followed by one week in Portugal, so we can have some friendly matches.”
“Portugal?” My brow furrows.
He nods. “Everything between us happened so quickly, I forgot that you wouldn’t know…wouldn’t even realize…” He glances around my new bedroom. “I want to make sure you’re settled in before I go.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“I know you will. You’re stronger than you look.”
I smile but he doesn’t return the gesture and my nerves spike. “What’s wrong?”
Ale sighs and sits on the edge of my bed. He reaches for my hand and plays with my fingers absentmindedly as he collects his thoughts.
“Ale?” I press, the same unease spreading through me that I felt in Gerard’s hotel room. Like I’m on the verge of being blindsided. My heart rate jumps and my hands grow clammy.
Ale holds my fingers in his fist. “I want to help you, Marlowe. I want Prescott Sail to boom and expand. I want you to spend as much time with your dad as possible. I don’t want you to worry about finances during your time here. When I asked you to be my fake girlfriend, I didn’t realize how much you would have riding on this.”
“How could you?”
“This…” He pauses to gesture between us. “This is different. I’m attracted to you. Like really fucking attracted to you.” He snorts, dropping his hold on me to grip the back of his neck, embarrassed. “And not just because you’re gorgeous. But because you’re honest and sincere. You’re hardworking and ambitious. And the way you care about your family, the way you love with your whole heart…”
My nervous system nearly short-circuits. My mouth dries. My fingers tremble. No man has ever spoken to me like this. In five years, Gerard never admitted half of what Ale just said.
For the first time, it’s as if a man truly sees me. And it’s the most terrifying yet incredible feeling. It’s like free-falling. Face first. Into an endless abyss of…possibility.
I’m wildly attracted to him, but I don’t voice it. Instead, I hold my breath and wait to see what he reveals next.
“The way we danced in the club, the way I kissed you… Marli, I don’t want to ruin this.”
I dip my chin, acknowledging the meaning woven through in his words. Awareness rolls through me as hope flickers in my consciousness.
Does he want to try for real? To make the fake portion of our arrangement real?
“I’ve never known a woman like you.”
Desire blossoms and excitement thrums in my bloodstream, zipping through my veins like a shot of espresso.
“And I don’t ever want to lose your trust,” Ale continues.
Oh my God! What is even happening right now? I roll my lips together, my body drawn tight in anticipation. Giddy; I feel giddy.
Ale stands and takes a step closer to me, his hand lifting to cup the side of my face. His thumb brushes over my chin as he lifts my face to meet his. Even though I haven’t torn my eyes from him since the second he started speaking.
I pull in another breath, praying I don’t hyperventilate, as my heart squeezes with expectation.
“There may be times when we’re out and we’ll have to hold hands, hug, or even kiss.”
I nod. God, I hope every single kiss is as heated, as hot, as the one from the club.
