Page 47 of Reputation (Toronto Royals #1)

Chapter Twenty Nine

Eavie

Eavie sat in her usual spot between Molly and Mandy, sipping on a cold beer. She let the alcohol soothe her inner turmoil as she settled herself in for the game.

She’d woken up that morning feeling guilty. It was ridiculous, she knew. She had nothing to feel guilty about. But no matter how many times she reminded herself of that, her stupid heart refused to let go of the idea that the person she should have been out with last night was Jax.

She let out a sigh and took another sip of her beer.

As she swallowed, the lights in the arena began to flash, signaling the start of the game.

The teams went through the routine of skating onto the ice before the players took their positions.

The loudspeaker boomed as the announcer broadcasted the starting line for each team.

Eavie focused on the game as the clock ticked down the minutes, watching the Royals and cheering them on as they pulled out the win they needed.

The atmosphere in the arena was electric, and the general elation from the players after the final buzzer was easy to see.

With the game finished, the three ladies followed the same routine they always did. Molly went straight to the media room, where she herded the players she needed and gathered the reporters.

Eavie and Mandy waited outside the locker room, as was their norm. When Sam and Jason came out, they confirmed they didn’t need anything, so they walked back to their offices to grab their things. A watermelon-colored Post-it Note caught her eye as Eavie stopped by her desk for her bag.

Quarterly summary to finance today, the note read in Eavie’s neat handwriting.

“Shit,” Eavie grumbled to herself as she tilted her head back to stare at the ceiling. She’d been so distracted today that she’d forgotten to send the notes she had worked through with Sam to the accounting team.

“What?” asked Mandy as she stepped out of her office.

Sighing, Eavie dropped her bag down. “Nothing,” she said. “I forgot to do something before the game earlier. It’s fine. I’m just going to do it now before I go.”

“Do you want me to wait for you?” Mandy asked.

“No, no,” Eavie said, shaking her head. “It’s Friday. You should go home. It’ll take me about twenty minutes anyway. I need to review it before I send it off.”

“Okay, if you’re sure,” she said, shoving her arms into her jacket.

“I’m good, I promise,” Eavie said as she sat in her desk chair. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Okay, good night.” Mandy smiled, waving as she walked down the hallway.

Grumbling to herself, Eavie woke her computer and got to work on the task she had completely forgotten about.

Half an hour later, she finally sent the email containing the document the team needed to prepare their quarterly financials. Leaning back in her chair, she arched her back, stretching the muscles that were tight from such a long day.

Not paying attention to her surroundings, she didn’t hear the footsteps approaching outside her office.

A muffled noise had her glancing to her doorway.

She gasped, one hand flying to her chest. “Jesus, Jax!” she said, recovering from the sudden uptick in her heart rate.

“You scared me. What are you doing here so late?” She glanced at the time on her computer.

It was late enough that everyone should have gone home by now.

She had assumed she was the only one left at the facility—she certainly hadn’t expected Jax to be here still.

Instead of answering, he silently walked into her office, closing the door behind him. In the quiet, she heard the soft click of the lock.

Turning, he slowly approached her desk.

Remaining seated, she watched him draw closer, catching the storm clouds brewing in the gray depths of his gorgeous eyes.

Her heartbeat reacted, beating rapidly in her chest again.

His eyes captured hers and held her prisoner where she was.

She was frozen in her chair, and as he reached her desk, she could feel the sparks of electricity, lit by the fire in his eyes, vibrate across her skin.

Stopping just on the other side, he gazed down at her.

“Jax,” she said breathlessly. “What are you doing here?”

The question was reminiscent of last night, only this time, she had a feeling the answer, and the ending, would be different.

She held his gaze as he stood there looking at her before her eyes flicked down to his chest, clad in a gray dress shirt. The cuffs were rolled up to his elbows, and the skin of his forearms was sprinkled with dark hair. The corded muscles flexed as he clenched his fists.

“I had to see you,” he said, his deep, smoky voice bringing her attention back to his face.

He stepped to the side, making his way around her desk.

Standing on shaking legs, she asked, “Why?”

Tracking his approach around the side of her desk, she took a small step backward, away from him. She wasn’t afraid of him, but his words had her body pulsing with a need that matched the look in his eyes, and instinct told her to keep a distance between them.

“I can’t stand this anymore,” he said as he continued to stalk her retreat.

“I can’t stop thinking about you. You haunt my thoughts day and night.

You’re a constant distraction. I can’t focus on what I’m doing on the ice.

You consume me at night. All I see, all I think, all I dream about is you.

Being with you, inside you, making you scream my name. ”

Each one of his words, said in a low and dangerous voice, sent a fire licking down her spine. Moisture pooled between her legs as her heart pounded from his confession.

“I know you feel it, too. I see the look in your eyes when we’re together. You told me last night you wanted me and I can’t stay away from you anymore. Eavie,” he said, continuing to stalk her pointless retreat, “I need to have you like I need my next breath.”

Eavie sucked in a shaky breath as she continued trying to keep a distance between them, never taking her eyes off him. She didn’t make it far. One of his steps was the same as two of hers, and he caught her just as she reached the middle of the room.

He stopped so close, but didn’t touch her.

He just stood there, looking down at her.

Eavie looked back, frozen on the spot by the closeness of his body.

It called to her, made her want to press against him just as she had that night in Vegas.

It took every ounce of strength in her to stay where she was.

“Let me have you,” he said, his breath fanning her face as his deep, sexy voice wrapped around her like dark silk. Her breathing was coming in harsh pants, and brought with it the scent of his soap—the scent of him—with each intake. He smelled so good—musky and so perfectly male.

With a weak shake of her head, she looked up at him.

“Jax, we…can’t. I…can’t,” she sputtered, trying to get her brain to work.

The desire thrumming through her was making it difficult to do anything.

“My job…If anyone were to find out, I could be fired. It’s my reputation, my career, that would be ruined. ”

She hoped the pleading look she sent him conveyed her inner turmoil. She had to stay strong. She couldn’t break and let him through her defenses.

Too late, she realized. Too late because he was already past them. Jax had torn those walls down sometime between Thanksgiving and now, and when she’d built them back up, she had done it with him on the inside.

She continued to look into his eyes as he stared back at her. His eyelids were heavy with desire, hooding the gray depths underneath. His lashes were so thick and long they fanned his cheekbones as he flicked his gaze down to her lips.

“No one has to know,” he whispered, his finger brushing a loose strand of hair off her cheek.

“We’ll keep it quiet. It can be our secret.

” He paused, closing another millimeter of space.

“All I know is that I can’t stay away from you for another minute.

Eavie, I have to have you. I’ll do whatever you want.

” He gazed into her eyes. “Please, say yes. Tell me you need me as much as I need you.”

They were almost touching, but the distance between them was nearly unbearable.

She stood there motionless, unable to move, to think.

All she could do was feel. Feel a need pulse deep in her abdomen.

Feel the shivers of electricity traveling across her skin.

He barely touched her, but she felt hot as his gaze left a burning in its wake.

She looked into his eyes and unconsciously worried her lower lip between her teeth. The movement caused his gaze to flick there again, and she could feel the waves of want vibrating off him.

Could she do this? Could she trust him, let herself go, and give in to their intense chemistry? Eavie lived and breathed by her rules, coveted her reputation above all else, and would not jeopardize it.

But as she reminded herself of that, a small voice in the back of her mind said maybe she didn’t have to.

Over the last few months, she had gotten to know him and learned he was a kind, caring person. She liked him—a lot. She’d learned about how he kept his life quiet. Hadn’t Molly herself confirmed Jax didn’t publicize his private business?

She closed her eyes, taking in a few slow, deep breaths. She felt his forehead meet hers as she stood, at war with herself.

“Eavie,” he whispered, the sound the sweetest worship she had ever heard. The soft sound caused a jolt of longing, like an arrow to the chest, to spear through her.

Maybe she could trust him. Maybe they could keep it quiet, at least until they knew what this was. It could end up being nothing more than a quick infatuation, a fast burn. And if it turned into something, well, she would have to figure out what to do about it.

For now, no one had to know, and she could no longer deny how much she wanted him.