Total pages in book: 49
Estimated words: 46923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 235(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 156(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 235(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 156(@300wpm)
“Whoa. Hold up. I don’t want to talk to Mitch, and I don’t want to tell you anything else. I’m sorry, Chels but…I need this to be mine for now. And it needs to be on the DL. Don’t say a word to anyone. Promise?”
“I promise.” She waited a beat, then said, “You really like him.”
“I do. And I don’t want to mess it up.”
“You won’t. You’re amazing. A real catch. If he’s smart, he knows it too.” Chelsea sighed dreamily. “Now let me go before I get kicked out with wet toes. No one likes a phone talker at a nail salon. Love you, Der.”
She hung up before I had a chance to reply. I paused in front of the aquatic center and shoved my phone into my bag. I nodded absent greetings to a few friends heading toward the pool, but I didn’t join them right away. My head was spinning. I trusted Chelsea. She wouldn’t say anything about Gabe and me. And she was probably right about Amanda. I doubted my ex knew anything, but the thought of her spying on me was creepy as hell. She was right about one thing, though. I had to be more careful.
True to his word, Coach paired Gabe and me together for practice drills and passing exercises. A couple of weeks into our “forced” friendship, he laid off and probably wouldn’t have cared if we switched things up on our own. We were grown adults, and he wasn’t paid to babysit us. He was paid to win. And with Gabe on board, we were a freaking winning machine. Everyone acknowledged that Gabe’s presence in the pool made us all better players. His spatial awareness was uncanny. He knew when to pass and when to hold, and his arm was a damn cannon. Even the best goalies flinched when Gabe cocked his arm back to shoot the ball.
I snickered at Troy’s colorful play-by-play about our last win of the weekend. A few of us huddled around a small low table in the hotel lobby bar, adding commentary where necessary. Troy was our set guard. He was a burly guy with curly brown hair and a contagious sense of fun. Gabe and I were supposed to room with Jason and him tonight. Jason had already gone upstairs to crash. I’d been tempted to go with him, but there was a science to rooming with three other guys. The first person always went for the rollaway and left the rest to fight over who got their own bed. Usually we had three per room, but there’d been a snafu at the hotel and rather than try to find another hotel to accommodate us, we opted for cozy and a big discount.
The moment Gabe realized what might happen, he gave me a knowing look and tapped his bag against my hip in a silent communication that translated to “you and me.” I wasn’t so sure that sharing a bed with two other guys in the room was a great thing. What if we fell asleep with our arms around each other? Gabe was a cuddly person. On the rare occasions he spent the night at my place, I’d wake up with him plastered to my back. It took some getting used to in the beginning. His warmth and size overwhelmed me sometimes. I loved it now. But not with an audience.
“…and then I lobbed it over Taylor’s head. Fuckin’ amazing, dude,” Troy said, stifling a yawn. “How are we working the sleeping sitch?”
“Does it really matter?” Gabe asked before lifting his water glass for the waiter to refill.
“Maybe not. I’m so tired, I don’t think I’d notice if a hot chick climbed in my bed tonight. I’m going upstairs now. You coming?” Troy stood and pulled his duffle bag over his shoulder.
“In a minute,” Gabe replied.
“Same here. I want to finish my nachos,” I said.
Troy made a dubious face at the congealed mess of cheese and sour cream on the plate in front of me, then gave us a peace sign and sauntered toward the bank of elevators near the bar area. When he was out of sight, Gabe nudged my knee and then rolled his eyes.
“You’re the world’s worst liar, Der.”
I chuckled. “I know. God, I wish we could drive home tonight. How are we gonna do this? Maybe if I put a pillow between us—”
“Don’t worry. I can keep my hands to myself for one night.”
I went quiet for a moment. “Do you think they suspect anything? It’s been almost two months. I feel like it’s getting harder to act normal and that I’m going to accidentally give us away. I just really don’t want it to happen in a San Diego hotel room with two teammates. Maybe I should just sleep with Troy tonight,” I huffed.