“No. That just sounds even more delusional.”
I stand up straighter, looking down to her pursed lips, and then up to the faint twinkle buried in the depths of her eyes. “I’ll call it whatever you want, as long as you admit it.”
She lifts her chin higher, stepping closer to me. “I’m not admitting anything to you.”
“So, you agree—there’s something to admit.”
“Are you always this cocksure?”
My eyes widen as I tilt my head, a playful smile pulling at my lips. “What about my cock?”
She opens her mouth, eyes glaring at me, and crosses her arms just below her breasts, showing off the plump swell. “You’re incorrigible.”
I dip my head toward her slightly. “Yeah, but I’ve got you right where I want you.”
“And where exactly is that, besides annoyed?”
“Ten bucks and a kiss says that by the end of the night, you’ll be eating out of the palm of my hand.”
A party with a blaring sound system and drunk college kids somehow lulls into a near silence when I look at her. Her lips twist, like she’s assessing what her next move will be. The chill of her hand seeps through my skin as she wraps her delicate fingers around my bicep and slowly lifts up onto her toes. Suddenly, I’m right back on my balcony with her. This time, I’m not going to let her get away with just a quick peck on my cheek. I hold still, not wanting to alarm her, and allow her to continue coming on to me. Her sweet, citrus breath dances along my lips, and when I close my eyes, she whispers, “Never going to happen, Golden Boy.”
I almost choke under the bucket of ice water she douseson me, but Savannah only pulls back, smiling up at me with satisfaction.
I crack open a new water and bring the bottle to my lips to hide my smile.
“You’re not drinking tonight?”
I shake my head, close the water, and give her the short answer. “I’ve got a game tomorrow.” I leave out the part where I don’t drink the night before games—not since I went to a party in high school, had a few beers, and only scored one goal the next day. My dad found out and made me do iron cross drills for hours. Every time I stopped, he added an additional hour. That wasn’t a punishment for underage drinking, either. It was a punishment for drinking the night before a game.
She nods her head in understanding. “Lucky for me, I don’t.” She smiles, lifting her chin towards the bottle of Patron beside me.
I grab a tall ‘Alcohol You Later’shot glass and pour the tequila to the rim. I skip the precut fruit on the counter, slice a new lime, and Savannah watches me with her bottom lip caught between her teeth. She can try to deny this thing between us until she’s blue in the face, but I smile to myself, knowing that she’s not immune to me like she claims to be. I’m more determined than ever to prove that this attraction between us isn’t one-sided.
I wrap my hand around hers, turning it over, and place the lime between her delicate little fingers.
“Come.”
Her low, square-cut shirt gives me a head-on view of the way her breath just got caught in her chest. “W—what?”
“To my game tomorrow night.”
She blinks once, and I stare deep into her chocolate-brown eyes, holding her gaze—not allowing her to look away. It takes her two heartbeats to recover, to square her shoulders,lift that defiant little chin of hers, and tease me with her seductive eyes. “What’ll you give me if I do?”
Her taunt goes straight to my head—and then rushes down to my cock. Did she forget thatshe’sthe one who is anti-hockey player? I could play this game with her all night.
I slide my hand from hers, down to her wrist, closing my fingers around her until I can feel her pulse flutter against my thumb. It’s heavy and quick, mimicking the way my blood is currently coursing through my veins. Slowly, I lift her hand to my mouth and lick the space between her thumb and index finger. Her jaw falls and I sprinkle a dash of salt on the now wet spot.
“Anything you want,” I whisper, before letting go of her wrist. My breath stops short, waiting to see if she folds or if her stubbornness will force her to go through with this shot.
With her eyes dead set on me, she swipes her tongue over the spot I just licked, and it’s me who’s in the hot seat now. A feral rumble sounds deep within my chest and I know that image will be forever burned into my brain. I’ll see her lapping up that spot every time I close my eyes now.
She throws the shot back but before she can put her lime to her mouth, I hold another one out in front of her pink lips. A glint of surprise fills her eyes, but as quickly as it comes, she hides it with something more like amusement. Her gaze flirts with the piece of fruit and then back up to me. “Go on, Savvy.”
Eat from the palm of my hand.
For a minute, I think she’s going to remember that she’s holding her own, but to my absolute pleasure, she closes the millimeter of space between us and wraps her mouth around the lime. The faintest touch of her warm lips hits my fingers, and my erection continues to grow against my zipper. She gives the lightest suck imaginable but it’s the way her fiery eyes lock on me that seals my fate.
15
