Page 4
CHAPTER 4
Jett
I could feel Damien’s eyes tracking every move I made as I worked my way around the kitchen, trying to throw together a meal that would be easy on his stomach. We both needed to eat, him more so than me since he was not only sick but he’d also played almost half the game that night. I just hoped I had something light enough for him to eat and keep down.
“This is shockingly hot,” Damien suddenly murmured.
I looked at him over my shoulder. He was sitting in the living room on the couch, a blanket wrapped around his bare shoulders. His legs were tucked up under him on the couch, and his damp hair was tousled on top of his head, making him look decidedly ruffled and downright sexy.
“What’s hot?” I asked.
“You cooking for me,” he answered, his voice raspy from being sick. Even that sounded hot as fuck. He already had a voice meant for porn. Adding that raspy note to it had my dick perking back up despite having come not that long ago. “It’s hot.”
I smirked. “No more sex tonight, Damien,” I warned him.
He groaned and dropped his head back to rest on the back of the couch. “That’s not fair.”
I laughed softly. “It’s plenty fair. You’re still sick. Honestly, we shouldn’t have fucked in the first place since you’re so damn sick. That could’ve gone very badly.”
His eyes pinched as he lifted his head to look back at me once more. “But not because you’re my coach… right?” he asked, sounding suddenly much smaller than he ever had before. He sounded unsure and… scared. I didn’t fucking like it. Damien was always cocky and sure of himself. Not… this.
“No, baby,” I assured him as I finally found two cans of soup. I dumped them into a pot and placed the pot on the stove before turning on the eye to heat it up. “That should be my reasoning, but it’s not.” Turning, I rested my back against the counter and crossed my arms over my bare chest as I let my eyes meet his across the space dividing us. “I can’t bring myself to regret what happened between us, even if it might cost me my job.”
“I can’t either,” he confessed, sounding more like himself now that I’d put his fears at ease. “Even if this might cost me my entire future.”
I shook my head. “I’m not going to let it.”
He got that pinched, stressed look around his eyes again, and I could see him tense. “ What ?” he finally said. “You can’t mean we’re going to write this off as a one-off. I can’t do that.” He shook his head. “No. No way in fucking hell , Jett.”
“Calm down,” I soothed, leaving the kitchen and walking toward him. I took a seat on the coffee table in front of him and leaned in, my palms resting on his thighs. I could feel the heat from his fever bleeding through the sweatpants he’d borrowed from me. I needed to get him fed, give him some medicine, and put him back to bed, but I knew he wouldn’t let me do any of that if we didn’t clear the air first.
“Calm down?” he snapped at me, anger burning in his eyes.
“Yes, calm down,” I repeated, keeping my voice calm in the face of his anger and hurt. “You’re getting ahead of yourself and jumping to conclusions, baby.” He frowned, some of his anger bleeding from his expression. “I didn’t say this would be a one-off. I can’t bring myself to just let this be a one and done kind of thing. I’ve wanted you for way too fucking long, and now that I’ve had you, the mere thought of never having you again makes me sick to my stomach.” He relaxed at my confession.
“So… what?” he asked.
“For now, we keep it a secret,” I told him. “It’s March. You graduate in May. Once March Madness is over, you should be receiving offers from different teams. Once you’ve signed a contract and have graduated, I’ll quit the school, and then, we’ll go public. It’s not the best plan, but it’s all I’ve got right now.” I squeezed his thighs. “Sound good?”
“We keep this on the downlow until I graduate but we don’t stop this?” he asked. When I nodded, he blew out a soft breath. “Okay. I can do that.” He smiled a little. “Don’t you go back on your word, Jett.”
I laughed and leaned in, pressing my lips to his in a soft kiss. “I won’t, baby. I promise.”