Page 51 of Pinch

Storms raged in those pretty eyes, and I could feel all the words we needed to say to each other radiating at me with each passing glance. I wanted to slide my hand over hers, but I couldn’t in front of Mav and Gigi.

Mav had whipped up a quick black bean dish with tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, and jalapeños. He served it over pasta and called it “Tex-Mex chili.” It was freaking fantastic, and I have to hand it to him. I never knew my old teammate was such a good cook.

Once everything’s cleaned up, Gina puts on her favorite movie, the Christopher Guest mockumentaryBest in Show, about a fictional dog show (no surprises there).

We all make our way into the living room, where she and Mav take their spots on the couch and get it rolling. Haddy hesitates behind them, holding her little dog, until she makes a quiet excuse about having a headache before leaning down to kiss the tops of their heads.

I let a few minutes pass, watching the zany dog owners with their pedigreed pets get ready for a national show, then I head upstairs as well.

I don’t feel the need to kiss any heads or make excuses.Mav knows how I performed in today’s game, so he can come up with his own reason for my early retirement.

When I make it to the second floor, she’s stepping out of the bathroom, her face freshly washed, and her hair up in a messy bun.

She stops with a little stumble, like she’s startled by my presence. “Gavin…”

It’s a soft exhale that makes my dick twitch. It hasn’t even been twelve hours since I had her moaning my name in ecstasy, and my body remembers so well.

“Hey.” I keep my tone gentle. “I thought we should talk. About last night.”

Her back is to the wall, and I can see her pillow breasts rising and falling with her breaths. Her lips are parted, and mine warm remembering her kisses.

We’re so fucking compatible, it hurts, but we have to talk. We have too much history to ignore.

“Okay.” She leads me to her bedroom, where I see Peepee is in her crate.

Once I’m inside, she closes the door, putting her back to it and facing me. Her eyes blink quickly to mine then away again, and she seems so small in her bare feet in front of me.

“I’m surprised you could walk today,” I say, trying to lighten the mood. “I’ll have to do a better job next time.”

“You did a fine job last night.” She takes a step forward, passing me as she clasps her hands together. “I have a hickey on my inner thigh.”

I lift the hem of my T-shirt, where a large purple hickey is visible on the side of my ribs. “Twins.”

She glances up at me, and I give her a wink, which seems to melt the tension.

She exhales a laugh. “Sorry, not sorry.”

I take a careful step closer. “Talk to me, Hads. What are you feeling right now? Regret?”

“No.” She shakes her head, and relief washes through my chest. “At first I was embarrassed, considering…” She does a little wavey, hand gesture towards my ribs. “Everything we did.”

I can’t help a grin. “Nothing to be embarrassed about. We just did what came naturally.”

“Yeah, but I realized today, I don’t really know you.” Her brow furrows, and her blue eyes meet mine full force this time.

It’s a little breath-taking. “We’re hardly strangers.”

“I know, but we never hung out in college. Then everything happened, and, well…” She seems to be choosing her words. “I’d like to know you better before we… I don’t know. Whatever.”

She presses her lips together like she showed her cards, like she might want to do a little more of what comes naturally.

That little slip is all the encouragement I need. “What do you want to know? I’m an open book.”

“I don’t mean right this minute. I mean, we need to take a step back, take some time to actually talk to each other without all the other stuff clouding the issue.”

I don’t know what brought about this change of heart, why she’s giving me a chance now, but I’m not letting it slip away.

“My schedule is hell right now, and we’re headed to Vegas then Tempe. We’ll be gone more than a week.” My jaw clenches, and I try to think. “Give me your number, and we can text or FaceTime…”