Page 3 of Drop Shot (On the Court #2)

Craig’s officially labeled a traitor.

When she starts purring she’s dead to me.

“I didn’t know I was a cat person.” Elias’s smile is genuine as he scratches Craig. “But I think I like this one.”

“It’s only because she’s sucking up to you,” I defend.

He gives a shrug. “Maybe.”

We eat in silence for a few minutes.

“I was thinking,” he begins, and I put down my container of chicken like somehow that will help me listen better. “Since we’ve already established that we know each other pretty well, we should go on a date.”

I stare at him, trying to discern if he’s serious or not. “A date?”

“Yeah, a practice one.” He sets down his empty container of lo mein. He scarfed that down in record time. “I’m sure Jackson and team are going to make us go on dates anyway, so why don’t we get one out of the way that has nothing to do with them? Shake out the first date jitters if you will.”

I mull over his words, my lips puckering as I think. It’s not a half-bad idea.

“What do you have in mind?”

He leans back on my couch, the picture of ease. His fingers absentmindedly stroke Craig’s ears. “I figured something simple like dinner.”

I don’t see any reason to say no, even though I want to. If we’re doing this thing, I’m going to have to get used to more than just dates.

Like sleeping in the same bed as him.

“Okay.”

“You done?” He flicks his fingers to gesture at the takeout boxes.

“Yeah.” I press a hand to my stomach. “I don’t think I’m capable of eating another bite.”

He picks up Craig and sets her down on the couch. His fingers make quick work of picking everything up.

“I can do that.”

“I’ve got it.” He dismisses my help.

I sit there uselessly on the floor while Elias cleans up our mess and disposes of it in the trashcan. He even cleans my coffee table with the spray cleaner I keep under the sink.

“I can go,” he says, plopping down on the couch and promptly picking up Craig and depositing her in his lap. “If you have stuff you need to do.”

Why do I get the impression he wants to stay?

“No, no plans. I was just going to watch a movie.”

His tongue sweeps out, dampening his lips. A small smile then curves those same lips. “Do you mind if I stay?”

“That’s fine.”

Does my voice sound higher than normal?

“What did you plan to watch?”

“Um … probably just a rom-com but we can watch something else. That’s probably not really your thing.”

He cocks his head to the side, fingers absentmindedly stroking my cat. “I have a twin sister who used to punch me in the face so she could control the remote. I’m used to rom-coms.”

“Oh, okay.”

Stop being so awkward! I scold myself.

It’s not like Elias is a stranger, but this whole thing is weird .

He’s been my boss for the past several years.

It’s not like we’ve hung out outside of work and events so having him in my apartment is more than a little jarring.

It doesn’t help that he’s so large, both in size and personality, so I feel like I’m suffocating.

I put on How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and try not to overthink this whole thing, but it’s pretty hard to ignore the hot guy on my couch.

“I don’t bite,” he says when I remain on the floor.

I grimace. It might only be the two of us here but eventually we’re going to be in situations around other people and I need to act like I touch this man on a regular basis.

I slowly get up from the floor and manage to squeeze myself onto to the couch. Frankly, calling it a couch is a stretch. It’s more like a loveseat or an oversized chair. So that means my entire right side of my body is pressed to his left.

“You’re stiff, Whimsy,” he comments. His head lowers, lips grazing the curve of my ear where a row of gold hoops encircle the cartilage. “Loosen up.”

I can’t tell him, but I’m stiff because my nipples are literally trying to escape through my bra and t-shirt. If his eyes drop even a little, he’s about to see them.

Right about now I’m regretting not listening to my mom and dating more, because being around Elias more than usual is going to give my nipples a constant lady boner. Maybe, at least, if I was regularly getting laid, I wouldn’t be so worked up just by his arm touching mine.

Pathetic.

Suddenly, I remember the blanket on the opposite side of the couch.

“Can you pass me the blanket?” I plead.

“Oh, yeah. Sure.”

He grabs it and instead of just handing it to me he spreads it out over both our laps, leaving my hardened nipples still blatantly exposed.

Fuck.

All I can do is hope he doesn’t notice.

By some miracle I manage to make it through the movie but despite it being one of my all-time favorites, it drags. It’s dark out now, the city aglow through the floor to ceiling windows.

Elias follows my gaze to the view. “If you could live anywhere, where would you choose?”

I mull his question over. I’ve been to many places through my travels working for him. Seen some of the most beautiful places I could ever imagine.

“I don’t know. It feels impossible to choose, but I think Florida will always feel like home.”

I grew up not far from Miami. The city isn’t for everyone but I’m familiar with it and there’s something nice about that familiarity. As much as I love traveling, there’s a part of me that always longs to be back here.

“What about you?” I ask.

“Probably the same.” He stretches and I have to look away because I’m scared the arm porn might give me a heart attack. “My parents are here and my sister.”

“It’s nice that you’re so close.”

Elias’s sister, Ebba, travels with him to almost every city. Now that she’s dating someone it’s been less often lately, but at least for the summer she plans to hit all the tournaments Elias attends.

“I’m pretty sure Ebba would club me over the back of the head before she let us drift apart,” he jokes, lowering his arms. “What about your sister? You mentioned she named Craig. Are you close? What’s her name?”

“Juniper,” I answer, smiling at the thought of her. “She’s thirteen now. My parents didn’t think they could have any more kids after me and then surprise here’s Junie.”

“Whimsy and Junie,” he muses.

“What can I say? My parents have interesting taste in names.” I stand from the couch and eye the traitor that is my cat curled fast asleep in Elias’s lap.

With a sigh, he sets her gently aside and stands.

He carefully folds my blanket and returns it to the spot on the couch.

There’s something about the careful care in which he cares for my cat and the blanket that I find insanely attractive.

He’s not just discarding my cat and my stuff like he’s too good for them.

“I better get going. It’s getting late.”

I crack my fingers. “Okay.”

We stand across from each other, only about a foot of space separating us, and neither of us seems capable of looking away, let alone moving.

“I’ll … uh … text you about the date thing.”

I nod. “Okay.”

He nods too, sliding his hands into his pockets. “I’m gonna go.”

“You already said that.”

He laughs and that seems to break the spell as he turns toward my door. “See you later, Whim.”

“Bye,” I say, but he’s already gone.

I lock up the door and turn around to find Craig staring back at me with wide blue eyes.

I wag my finger at her. “Don’t say a word.”

“Meow.”

“Yeah,” I groan. “I like him too. That’s the problem.”