Page 27

TWENTY-SIX

ELI

I’m not sure how she’s going to react to any of this, but I couldn’t just not see her. I had to talk to her in person. I have to make sure that no matter what her choice is, she knows exactly how I feel about her, that she knows the truth.

It’s a stupid fucking situation, and I should have never agreed to the pictures with those girls, even if they were harmless.

I still shouldn’t have done it out of respect for Wrenly and Ryan. I should have said no thanks and walked away. But I didn’t. I posed for the picture, and I put myself in a situation that hurt Wrenly.

So I tell her that, all of it. And hope like fuck that she accepts my apology, my admittance of a mistake and that we can move forward—together.

Admittedly, I know absolutely nothing about relationships, especially because I’ve never been in one before, so I’m trying to be open and honest. Still, I feel like a pussy at the same time.

Wrenly’s lips curve up into a slight smile, so small that if I weren’t this close to her, I probably wouldn’t even see it. Sinking my teeth into my bottom lip, I worry it back and forth a few times before I let out a grunt. I want her.

I want her so badly right now, but I’m also afraid to make any kind of move that would scare her off. So, instead of saying anything, I wait for her. I don’t want to be accused of talking her into anything, but at the same time, I want to make it clear that she’s the one I want.

“Wrenly,” I finally say.

She sucks in a breath and holds it for a moment before she lets it out slowly. My hands ache to pull her closer. My heart races. My body hurts. I am in physical pain. I need this woman like I need to breathe.

“Let me prove to you that I can protect you, protect us,” I rasp.

Wrenly’s eyes search mine. I don’t know what she’s looking for, but whatever it is, it’s hers. Whatever I have that she wants or needs, it’s hers. Whatever. Just whatever. It’s all hers. Every single thing she could imagine, I will do my best to give it to her, be it for her.

Because she’s the only woman I’ve ever wanted in my life.

She’s the mother to my son, but she’s more than that. She’s motivated, she’s sexy, she’s kind, and she fits me. I want this to work between us more than anything I’ve ever wanted aside from hockey.

“I’m scared,” she says, confessing something that I already know.

Doesn’t she realize that I’m scared, too? Shitless.

Bending slightly, I shift my face closer to hers, dipping my chin before I press my lips against hers, and then I make my own confession. “I’m scared, too, sunshine. Scared to fucking death. Whatever you need from me, any way you need it, it’s yours.”

My words come out as a whisper, even though I wish I could yell them. I want everyone to know just how much she means to me. Which is everything. She means everything. I don’t want to move my mouth from hers.

I want to pull her close, to consume her, to show her just how badly I want this, but we are standing in front of her place of work, so as much as I don’t want to, I lift my head and look into her eyes.

“Nothing happened, Wrenly.”

I feel the need for those words to come out again. I need her to know that they are true. She nods her head once, her eyes never leaving mine. I hold her gaze, refusing to break it until I am satisfied that she believes me.

No more miscommunications.

No more missed time.

No more.

This is for us—for our future.

WRENLY

“I know,” I say. “That woman was outside after the last game I went to. She clearly wanted to hook up with one of you, and she knew your name. I have no doubt that whole thing was planned and orchestrated to look exactly like it did.”

Eli’s eyes widen. But I know that he can’t be surprised by any of that information. Those women wait outside of that arena, and it wasn’t just a one-time thing. They are there every single game.

He drops his arms, his fingers sliding through his hair as he tugs on the ends. “I never want to hurt you, Wrenly. Not again.”

His voice almost cracks, and for some reason, that does something to the deepest part of me. It’s the vulnerability that gets me. This guy, who is a professional athlete, who is cool as hell, who has women falling over him—he wants me .

Smiling, I move toward him, one step, then another. Placing my palms on the center of his chest, I tilt my head backward as I look up into his eyes. It’s at this very moment that I decide that the leap I need to make is to be all in.

As the guilt of leaving Texas threatens to consume me, I tamp it down because my dad made it clear that he’s good with me moving back to Ohio. That he just wants me to be happy. And that he knows it’s time, and he also made it clear that I can come back—always.

“I know you don’t want to hurt me again. Seeing that picture was a shock. You’re right. I probably wouldn’t have answered the phone if you’d called. I needed to think, and today, I was able to do that—a lot of it in silence, which I needed to do to process everything that happened and was happening. But you don’t need to be scared of me leaving you,” I say.

His brows furrow before he clears his throat. “I don’t?” he asks.

“No, Eli. You don’t.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because I love you.”

I simply state it because it’s a simple statement.

The smile that consumes his face causes my heart to skip a beat. I feel it in my chest. And I know that I’ve made the right choice. He lowers his head. His mouth touches mine. I part my lips and wait for his tongue to slide inside of me, but he doesn’t deepen the kiss yet.

Instead, he speaks, and when he does, a thrill of desire slides up my spine. “I love you, too, Wrenly. I think I might have loved you since the moment I saw your picture on social media. It was cemented inside of me when I walked into that club and saw you leaning against the back wall. And then again, when you stood outside of the arena, our son in your arms. So fucking brave and beautiful, all rolled into one little body. I love you, Wrenly.”

“We’ll figure everything out,” I breathe against his mouth.

“Fuck yes, we will.”

Then he kisses me.

It’s a kiss for the ages, at least as much of a kiss that he can give me in my scrubs in the middle of a parking lot after work, but I don’t care—I accept it all, squeezing my thighs together and everything as I do.

Eli nibbles my bottom lip as he breaks the kiss, then places his forehead against mine while we attempt to catch our breaths.

“You’ll come to Ohio with me?” he asks.

“I’ll come to Ohio with you.”

He smirks as he lets out a heavy exhale.

Taking my phone out of my pocket, I start to text my dad when Eli reaches out and wraps his fingers around my device. Lifting my gaze to meet his again, I tilt my head to the side, my brows snapping together with confusion as to why he’s holding on to my hand and phone.

“You don’t need to text your dad. I already talked to him. He’s waiting at home with Ryan for us.”

“What?”

“I wanted to have a man-to-man with him. He doesn’t know anything about me, and I’m going to be taking his daughter and grandson away for a while. I needed him to be able to ask whatever questions he needed.”

“Eli?”

He chuckles and shakes his head once. “We’re good, sunshine. Really good.”

“A while?” I ask, stuck on those two words.

He presses his lips together, trying and failing to fight the smile on his lips. “Yeah, until I can get a transfer to the team in Texas if they’ll take me.”

“What?” I breathe.

Eli lowers his head. His lips touch mine with a brief brush before he lifts his head. His gaze searches mine for a long moment, the silence swirling around us. I want to ask him a million questions. I don’t. Instead, I wait.

“I want to transfer to the Fort Worth Stampede. Your dad is here, and I looked it up. My parents are almost the exact same distance from Ohio as they are from here, plus that’s only a plane ride.”

“Eli, I couldn’t ask you to do that.”

He snorts before I feel his mouth against mine again, his hands gripping my hips as he holds on to me. “Sunshine, you haven’t asked me for shit. I want to do this for our family.”

And my whole body swoons.

I love this man.

Every inch of him.

I can’t wait to start this new adventure with him at my side.