Page 15 of Overtime
“Yes, but this time you’re older and wiser. You’ve loved and lost. You know the difference between the jerks and the good ones now.”
“I’ve always known the difference, just sometimes the jerks were better in bed. Also, loved? Let’s not get carried away with ourselves,” I scoff, but the word pings around inside my head, rattling against my insecurities and better judgment and then landing hard. Did I love Colt? I was pretty sure I was incapable of the emotion. I mean, I loved him. The same way I loved Ben and Violet—but love, likein love? That’s not an emotion I’m capable of. I might still have strong feelings about the sex we had though. That couldn’t be helped.
“Are you saying he was bad?”
“No. Not at all. Just a general observation.” Because anywhere Colt had been inexperienced, he’d been very eager to learn. But I don’t share that. Not even with Violet because he was and is a very private person, and despite my loud mouth and our bad blood, I do try to keep his confidence.
“Okay then. You could give it a second try. Maybe it’d work out better this time.”
“I’m not trying to give anything a second try. Other than maybe the sex.Maybe. But that will only get me in trouble. Also, I’m fairly certain if you want to give someone a chance at things you don’t ask them for nudes.”
“In his defense, you asked first.”
“Touché. But still…” I fiddle with a piece of string on the edge of the blanket.
“So are you going to do the photos?” Violet asks.
“I mean, have you seen him? Are you aware of my inability to say no to him?” I raise a brow at her. “Plus, I told Harper I’d help. If helping means I trade nude photos with the hottest man on earth, that’s just what I have to do. It’s a sacrifice, but what choice do I have?”
She laughs and shakes her head. “You just want to see him naked again.”
I pretend to glare at her until we both break out in laughter. I take a sip of my drink as we stare out into the night.
“This is all your fault you know. ‘Come see me, Joss. You can stay with us, Joss. It’ll be like old times, Joss.’ Making me forget that he was here, and I’d have to see him five million times thanks to Ben.”
“Well, we’ll still have fun. Just get the photos and get out, like you do with any other client. Then maybe you two can learn to get along, be friends again.”
“Maybe.”
EIGHT
Colt
Benand I have just finished up drills and are on the sideline recovering and getting some electrolytes back into our systems.
“We gonna talk about what I walked in on?” Ben asks, not bothering to look at me.
“I don’t need a lecture if that’s what you’re asking.”
“So it was what it looked like?”
“Did it look like we accidentally got locked in a shed, and she’s terrified of spiders?”
“It looked like she was terrified, and you found a pretty specific way of distracting her.” Ben smirks to himself and then squeezes a stream of water out of the sports bottle.
“I plead the fifth.” I roll my head back and forth over my shoulders, trying to keep my muscles loose.
“And you’re sure you don’t need the lecture?” he asks, giving me a quick sideways glance.
“I know who she is.”
“And yet you still walk straight into the fire.”
“Do you lecture her like this?”
“Yes. I gave her specific directions to not start shit before she ever came here. That we love her but that I didn’t want to see any bloodshed between the two of you.”
“I’m trying. She just pushes every fucking button I have. Like she knows every single code and the exact order to push them to get maximum efficiency out of her torture. Staying a step ahead of her is exhausting.”
