Page 23

Chapter 23

Declan

Hannah’s cheeks burst with blooms of red, starting at the center and rapidly spreading out like wildfire as she squeezes her gym bag to her chest like a safety blanket, and I can’t stop myself from grinning even wider as a sense of heady satisfaction swells in my chest.

I knew it.

I came to the studio early on purpose because I just couldn’t fucking wait to see her again, so I was disappointed when I first walked in and found the place empty. But since the door was wide open, it was a safe bet Hannah was here somewhere. I figured she’d stepped out for a second, maybe to run and get some food or to take a call or something between lessons, but then I heard the soft hissing of the shower in the locker room and the rhythmic patter of water hitting the tile flooring.

I didn’t want to eavesdrop, and I really wasn’t trying to, but as I was walking toward the locker room, I opened my mouth to call out to her to let her know I was here—but heard my name tumble from her lips instead. I froze as those two syllables reached my ear in her breathless, almost needy tone. It wasn’t loud, but it hit me like a ton of fucking bricks.

And it made me pretty damn sure what she was doing in the shower. Why else would my name be escaping her lips like that?

Still, part of me couldn’t believe it at first. For a few seconds, I panicked because I thought she’d seen me and was embarrassed that I was about to walk in on her naked or something, but then I realized she had no way to know I was in the building. There isn’t a bell or anything on the door to let the staff know when someone walks in.

So as much as I tried to think of anything else she might be up to in the shower all alone, there was only one conclusion I could come to about what she was really doing in there. And why my name was on her lips.

The way her face is flaming in front of me now all but confirms it.

“Were you…?” I trail off, arching a brow and fighting to keep my expression neutral.

I don’t know how it’s possible, but the blush on her face deepens even more. She shakes her head, trying to play it off like she has no idea what I’m talking about. But it’s not very convincing.

“Was I what?” she asks evasively, dodging the question. She breezes past me, the scent of her freshly showered body drifting in my nose, and I feel it tugging at my body like a hook, begging me to follow her. “Whatever you think you heard, you’re wrong.”

She stops at the shelf where the studio keeps their sanitized and rolled yoga mats. She pulls two out and tosses one to me, and I catch it easily.

“I mean, sure, I’ve had a concussion or two in my career, but I get regular checks and my hearing works just fine,” I tease her with a crooked smile as I follow her lead, unrolling my mat and spreading it out on the floor in front of me.

“Then maybe you should get it checked again,” she shoots back, narrowing her eyes at me.

She’s trying her best to stay cool, but she’s not very good at it, and the more she pretends, the more obvious it gets that she’s trying to cover up something.

She was definitely getting herself off in the shower, and it’s none of my business really, but part of me wants to hear her admit it. To hear her say that she was thinking of me while she touched herself like that.

Fuck, the thought alone makes my pants feel tighter, but watching her bend over to smooth her mat out on the floor doesn’t help. Her eyes snap to mine in the wall of mirrors in front of us, and her cheeks flame all over again. Pressing her lips together, she straightens and spins to face me.

“Why are you even here this early?” she asks tersely. “You should’ve shown up when your session was supposed to start, not twenty minutes before.”

Irritation is clear in her expression, and as she stands waiting for an answer with her arms crossed over her chest, her stomach suddenly gives an audible growl. She blinks, looking surprised, then rests a hand over her stomach.

I smile knowingly as comprehension clicks into place in my brain, and I hold up a hand to pause the conversation and walk over to the gym bag I brought with me. I tucked a protein bar into its pocket on my way out of my apartment, planning to eat it after our lesson, but she clearly needs it more than I do.

“Peace offering?” I say, holding the protein bar out to her. “I bet you haven’t eaten anything all day, have you? I know you don’t always get the chance when you have back-to-back classes and teaching.”

Something I can’t quite read passes across her face, and the little line between her brows smooths out. She lets out a breath, the irritation melting away from her features as she takes the protein bar from me. She tears it open and takes a small bite, and I start doing some warmup stretches while she eats so she doesn’t feel like I’m watching her. A few minutes later, I hear a crinkling sound as she crumples up the wrapper and tosses it in the trash nearby.

“Thanks. Sorry I got cranky,” she says softly as she joins me in stretching. A few quiet moments pass before she turns to me again as we’re both bent over and reaching for the floor. “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything you want.” And I mean it.

“Why are you so adamant about pursuing me?”

I laugh quietly and slowly right myself. She follows and looks into my eyes, watching me and waiting for an answer. I know exactly what I want to say, but I’m not sure how she’s going to take it, so I wait. But she keeps going. “I mean, you lived in San Diego, so I’m sure you went to Opal and Oak more than once. You must’ve met plenty of other women there, so why are you so caught up on me?”

She thinks this is all just about sex .

The realization hits me like a punch in the gut. She must think that’s all I want from her, and that it’s the only reason I’ve been chasing her since we saw each other again in the locker room. But she couldn’t be further from the truth. Would I love to have more sex like we did that first night all those months ago? Abso-fucking-lutely. But it’s so much more than that to me. The more I get to know her, the more she lets me see of who she really is, the more I want her. And I can’t go another second without making sure she sees that.

“You’re right, I did go to Opal and Oak several times after our night together,” I start carefully.

Disappointment flashes on her face, but she tries to hide it by looking away. I duck my head, catching her gaze again.

“It’s not what you’re thinking, hummingbird. I did go back there, but not because I was looking for a hookup. I went because I was looking for you. Hoping to find you, to see you again.”

She stares at me wide-eyed, stunned. “Really?”

“Yes, really.” I reach for her hands and take them in mine. “I never hooked up with anyone else at that club.” I grimace, huffing a laugh. “Actually, I haven’t been with anyone at all since the night we spent together.”

A charged moment passes between us as her eyes rake up and down my face, looking for the smallest shred of evidence that I’m not telling the truth. But I already know she’s not going to find anything, so I just hold her hands and wait for her to reach the same conclusion.

“You’re serious,” she finally whispers, and I nod at her, stroking my thumbs across her knuckles.

“More serious than I’ve ever been about anything, even hockey. I haven’t had any interest in anyone else since then. I knew it that first night we spent together.”

“Knew what?”

“That you were going to ruin me for every other woman. And you did.” I don’t try to hide the rough edge in my voice.

Hannah’s eyes widen, and she inhales softly like she’s struggling to breathe. But I keep her hands in mine and move even closer to her, so close that I can almost feel her heart pounding against mine. I watch her chest rising and falling rapidly, see her pulse racing in her neck, and it takes everything I have not to kiss her there—not to put my lips all over her fucking amazing body. She’s so close now that with every breath I take, I inhale the soft, sweet scent of her freshly washed hair.

And the way she’s biting her lip like she’s trying to hold back the desire that’s burning in her eyes makes my cock twitch. She’s squeezing my hands so tightly that her knuckles are turning white, making me think of how they did the same thing when they were all twisted up in the sheets. Or when they were digging into the skin of my back while I was buried inside her for hours that night.

“You’re incredible, and the wildest part is that you don’t even see it. Or maybe you can’t,” I tell her and her breath catches. “It’s so amazing to watch you teach these classes. The passion you have for it radiates in everything you do, and it lights up this whole room. There’s a reason why all your classes are full.” Hannah laughs, but her cheeks are pink with pleasure. “But it’s more than that for me. So much more. Even the little things about you blow me away.”

“Like what?” she asks with a trace of disbelief.

“Like the way you sang in the car the other night on the way home from the bar. You didn’t give a damn who heard or who was watching, you were just in it and having the time of your life.”

“To be fair, I’d had a couple of drinks,” she counters, but a smile plays at the corners of her mouth.

“That doesn’t change the fact that you were enjoying yourself. And that I loved hearing your voice. So did the driver.”

“Oh, god. I forgot about the driver singing along. That’s so embarrassing.”

“What’s embarrassing about it? You loved that song, and it brought out the real you, the one that only slips out every now and then when you’re disarmed enough to let it. But it’s exactly that side of you that I love seeing, that I love learning more about when you let me. That’s why I’m so adamant about pursuing you.”

She stares at me, her lower lip trembling, and I think she’s going to cry until I bring my finger to it. I drag the tip of my finger across the soft, plump skin there until it stops moving.

“But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t also love the way you gave yourself over to pleasure so entirely with me, and how responsive you were to my touch. The way we seemed to just fit together perfectly.”

Her mouth opens slightly, her eyes locked with mine. She licks her lower lip, and I can feel her swaying toward me like she’s going to kiss me. I want to close the distance so badly, to let my lips say everything in a kiss that a million words never could, but I resist. Because as much as I want to press our lips together, I don’t want her to think that’s all I want from her, now or in the future.

“Do you get it now? I want so much more than sex with you,” I tell her, and she exhales sharply as she stares up at me, her pupils blown wide. “But I promise you this: the next time I fuck you—and I will—it’s going to be because you begged me to.”