Page 20

Chloe

Gunner’s words have the desired effect.

I’m able to relax, and we move into several different poses.

It’s not until she wants me to sit in his lap that I freeze.

“What?”

“Go ahead and sit in his lap,” she says, like it’s the easiest thing in the world.

“Come on, Liessman. Don’t overthink it,” he says in a low voice, tugging me towards him and onto his lap.

“Watch your shoulder,” I hiss.

“I am.”

“Chloe, you look too uptight. Try to relax,” Oliva says in between snapping shots.

If I had a dollar for every time she told me that today, I’d be rich after this shoot.

“Okay, drape your arm over his shoulder and let it hang down so we can see the ring.” I do as she says and stare straight ahead, even though I’m practically cheek to cheek with Gunner.

“Relax,” he says in a low voice next to my ear.

“Okay, Gunner, go throw on your jersey,” Olivia instructs.

I stand up and move away from him, grateful for the reprieve.

“Do you need help?” I ask.

He meets my eyes.

“You trying to undress me, Liessman?”

I roll my eyes.

“I mean because of your injury.”

His smile softens.

“I’m good. I’ll be right back.”

When he comes back a few minutes later, there’s a pinch between his eyebrows.

“You should have let me help,” I tell him.

The fact that he doesn’t deny it makes me know he’s in pain.

“Are you up to date on your pain pills?”

“I’m fine.”

“I know you’re fine,” I retort.

“But are you up to date on your pain killers?”

“No.”

“Coftman.” I shake my head and walk past him to his room where I grab a pack and the water bottle.

When I come back to the living room, I hand both of them to him.

“Take them.”

He doesn’t argue and throws the pills back and chugs the water.

“Thanks.”

“You two are so cute,” Olivia says.

“All right. Gunner, I know you’re probably in pain, so we’ll finish this set and be done. Gunner, turn so your back is to me. Chloe, stand in front of him and wrap your arms around his neck.”

It takes me a moment to do what she requested.

I remind myself to be professional and step towards the large man in front of me.

I don’t meet his eyes as I put my arms up and over his shoulders.

“Chloe, can you let them hang further down?”

“Uh, that’s as far as I can reach,” I tell her, still not looking at Gunner.

“Okay. Then, instead, wrap your arms around his torso.” I inwardly groan as I do as she says.

“Tighter,” she calls out.

“More.”

Gunner wraps an arm around my back suddenly and pulls me to his chest so tight that we’re plastered against each other.

“Perfect,” Olivia says.

“Now, put your ring hand on top of your other.” I try to do as she says, but my brain feels like mush.

All I can think about is the hard body that I’m pressing my entire body against.

Gunner makes a sound, and I can’t tell if it’s a good sound or an annoyed sound.

I don’t look up at him because it would crush me if he had a look of frustration or irritation on his face right now.

I’m a strong, independent woman, but I’m not that strong.

Gunner’s hand moves up and down my spine slowly.

“Relax,” he whispers.

His words and hand should make me relax, but it does the exact opposite.

I feel strung tighter than a bow.

As soon as Olivia says she’s done, I step back from Gunner, putting much needed space between us.

I don’t look at him as I walk over to Olivia, who’s looking at the photos she took.

“Any good ones?” I ask.

“Yes.” She doesn’t offer to show me, and I don’t ask.

“Give me a few days, and I’ll send you a link to look at them.” She stubbornly refuses our help as she packs up her equipment.

“All right, Cousin. It was good to see you. Don’t be a stranger.” She kisses him on the cheek.

“And take care of that shoulder.” Then she turns to me.

“Chloe, it was great to finally meet you. Make Gunner bring you to the next family event.”

“It was nice to meet you too.”

She leaves, and it’s suddenly quiet.

Way too quiet.

“Well, I should get going,” I say.

“Want to stay for dinner? I’m going to order a pizza.”

My eyebrows shoot to my hairline.

“Since when do you eat pizza?” Gunner never eats junk food.

Never .

He scowls.

“Since I can’t play for two weeks.”

I nod.

“So, you want to drown your sorrows in pizza?”

“If I say yes, will you stay?”

I consider it for a heartbeat, but then the rules come back to me—the rules I set so I wouldn’t forget that this isn’t real.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. Rule number four says we won’t seek each other out outside of work. We’re definitely breaking that rule.”

"No, we’re not. We just took pictures for my career’s sake. Right? And now, I’m just doing the polite thing—feeding you at a work event.”

I roll my eyes. “That’s really pushing it.”

“Come on, Chloe. Don’t make me drown my sorrows in pizza by myself,” he says, using my own words against me. I finally cave.

“Fine. I’ll stay but don’t order any for me.”

He pulls out his phone to place an order, and I grab my bag and pull out my laptop. “Do you ever stop working?” he asks a few minutes later as he settles on the couch next to me.

“Nope.”

“You work too hard.”

I snort. “Says the professional hockey player who plays eighty-two games in a season.”

He leans against the back of the couch. “At least my salary reflects it.”

“Ouch, Coftman! That was harsh.”

“I didn’t mean it to be. You just work really hard, and your pay should reflect that.”

I frown. “My pay is just fine, Coftman. Not all of us can be millionaires.”

He goes quiet, and I wonder what he’s thinking. “I didn’t mean to offend you,” he says softly.

I glance over at him. “You didn’t. I know you make a killer salary, Coftman.”

“You should ask for a raise,” he says after a little bit.

“What is your deal with my pay, Coftman?”

He shrugs. “You just should get paid more for what you do.”

“And how do you know how much I make?” I counter.

“I don’t.”

“Then why are we having this conversation. I make plenty.”

“No, you don’t.” Before I can say anything, he continues. “Don’t forget, I’ve seen your condo and your car.”

Indignation rises up in me. “Better watch out, Coftman. You're starting to sound like you think you’re better than me.”

His eyes widen. “No, that’s not what I mean at all. I just mean you should get paid more for what you do for our team. You're an invaluable asset to our team, and you don’t make enough—”

“I’m going to cut you off right there, Big C. I make plenty.”

“Your Grandma.”

I turn to him. “What?”

He studies me. “You pay for your grandma’s care, don’t you?”

I frown and turn back to my computer. “Let it go, Coftman.”

He’s quiet after that, and I’m thankful to be able to work in the silence. I close my laptop when the doorbell rings. “I’ll get it.” I open the door and take the boxes from the delivery man and close and lock the door. “Wow, you weren’t kidding when you said you wanted pizza.” I turn around, and he’s right there. I take a step back. “Where are your plates?”

“I’ll get them.”

“Come on. I’m supposed to be doing this, so you don’t have to.”

The corner of his mouth ticks up. “I think I can manage to get two plates down without hurting myself.”

“I don’t need a plate,” I remind him.

“I got you pizza,” his low voice rumbles. Before I remind him that I can’t have pizza, he adds, “It’s dairy free and gluten free.”

My eyes widen in surprise. “Really? They have such a thing?”

He nods. “It took me a while to find one, but this one had good reviews.”

“Which one is it?” I ask.

“Both of them.”

I turn back to him. “What?”

“I got both of them dairy free and gluten free.”

I stare at him. “Why?”

He shrugs. “I figure we’d try two different kinds. One is barbecue sauce with chicken and pineapple and bacon. The other is red sauce with lots of meats.”

I continue to stare at him. “That’s my favorite kind of pizza. Barbecue with chicken and pineapple and bacon.”

He doesn’t look away. “I know.”

“How?” I can’t help but ask.

“There are a lot of things I know about you, Chloe.”

His words do something to my insides, something I don’t want to put a name to. I turn away from him to give myself some space to try to formulate a thought. I open the box and breathe in the pizza. “It smells good.”

“Taste it and see if it is,” Gunner says.

I take out a piece and hand it to him at the same time. “You try it too. I can’t believe you didn’t get regular pizza for yourself.” I pick up a piece. “Ready?” We both take a bite at the same time. My bite is much more tentative than his. I’ve had dairy free cheese before, and believe me when I say it is often not a good experience. I lift my gaze to his. “It’s actually kind of good.”

“It is.”

I open the other pizza box and take out a piece of the meat lovers. “Let’s try this one.” I nod in approval after I swallow. “Here, try it.” I hold it up to his lips, and he takes a bite. His eyes never leave mine as he chews.

“It’s good,” he finally says.

I turn away from him, busying myself with filling plates for both of us. He grabs water bottles, and I follow him out to the living room. “Want to watch a movie?” he asks.

“Sure.” A few minutes later, he sits next to me on the couch with the remote in hand. “What are we watching?” I ask.

“Whatever you want.”

I wave a hand towards the tv. “I never watch tv. You watch what you want to.” He flips through the channels, and I put my hand on his. “Oh, there’s a game on. Let’s watch that.”

He smirks at me. “I thought you never watched tv.”

“I don’t. This is hockey. Totally different.”

He huffs out a laugh. “Sure.” But he leaves the game on, and we both settle against the couch, eating our dairy free, gluten free pizza. Go figure.

It doesn’t take long before we’re both engrossed in the game. Him because he’s watching his opponents for weakness; me because I love a good game. And this game is an awesome game; the two teams have been neck and neck the entire game. I find myself yelling at the players towards the end of the game. I feel Gunner’s eyes on me, and I turn to him.

He frowns. “You’re supposed to only be a fan of our team.”

I laugh. “Oh, don’t worry. I am. This is just me watching a game of two teams I don’t even care about. You should see me during your games.” The words just spill out.

His eyes light up. “My games, huh?” I bite my tongue at my slip-up but don’t say anything. “You know there’s an entire team, not just me, right?”

I scowl at him. “I was talking about your entire team.”

“Well, that’s disappointing.”