Page 48 of Game Changer
I’d give anything to see you right now.
“Yes,” Kip said. “I do. He’s worth it.”
Chapter Nine
Friday finally arrived.
Scott had texted Kip that morning.Getting on the plane soon. See you tonight?
Kip had written back,I can’t wait.
Scott: Me neither. But I need time to cook!
Kip: Ok. When?
Scott: 6?
Kip: Ugh. Ok.
Kip finished work at two. He had an overnight bag packed, and four hours to kill. He had already planned on going to the gym after work, so he did that. After, he could shower there and get all fixed up before going to Scott’s.
He had packed a nice outfit to change into for tonight. He didn’t think Scott expected him to dress up; he’d decided to make a bit of an effort.
When Kip checked himself out in the locker-room mirror before leaving the gym, he thought he looked pretty good. He was wearing his best jeans, which were dark and slim-fitting. He paired them with a deep red shawl-neck sweater he had bought on sale at Old Navy. Nothing fancy, but appropriately cozy for a Valentine’s night in.
And it would come off easily.
He still had an hour and a half, so he decided to go pick up some wine to bring over.
Should I bring a gift?
Jesus.
Kip had never actuallydoneValentine’s Day before. What was an appropriate gesture for the man you had been secretly dating for about a week?
Themillionairehe had been secretly dating for about a week.
A short while later, Kip stood in the wine boutique down the street from his gym, frowning at the bottles he typically purchased—inexpensive reds his parents liked, and eight-dollar whites that Elena had described as “drinkable.” Could he really show up to Scott Hunter’s home with one of these? What did that guy usually drink?
Kip considered a thirty-dollar bottle. Then a forty-dollar bottle. He considered the meager sum that sat in his bank account at the moment.
Maybe he could bring beer. It wasn’t traditional, but...
Or flowers? Would flowers be weird?
Suddenly the seventy minutes he had left to kill didn’t seem like nearly enough time.
* * *
Scott wiped his hands on a dish towel and admired the salad he had made. It was simple, just arugula and cherry tomatoes and pine nuts with a bit of Parmesan, but it was pretty.
He checked the time. Fifteen minutes until Kip would arrive.
He opened a bottle of chilled white wine and pulled out a couple of glasses. He wasn’t even sure if Kip drank wine. There were still so many things he didn’t know about him.
I want to learn everything.
These feelings were all so new to him. He hadn’t had anyone to care for—or to care for him—since his mother had died when he was fourteen. His teammates were like family, and those bonds were important to him, but this all-encompassing desire to be with Kip was like nothing he had ever experienced.
