“The more the merrier, TJ. You a big romance reader?” Rose asks.
I side-eye Lucy. “I’ve been thinking about becoming one recently.”
Rose glances between the two of us. “That tracks.”
“You two want to hit up the hot tub?” Anton asks, hooking a thumb over his shoulder. “Looks like it’s empty at the moment.”
God bless him. Maybe he is more of a wingman than I give him credit for. Then again, he’s a man in love, and he’s been harping on me about how great it is to settle down with a good woman for months. Since meeting Lucy, I don’t disagree.
“We were thinking about it,” Lucy says, shooting me a shy glance.
Rose hooks her arm through Lucy’s. “I’ll show you where the bathrooms are so you can change.”
“That would be great.” Lucy looks over her shoulder at me as Rose leads her down the hallway. “See you out there?”
All I can do is nod.
“Dude,” Anton says, laughing. He slaps me on the back, startling me from the trance Lucy put me under. “You’ve got it bad, and I amherefor it. How soon is too soon to say I told you so?”
I shake my head. “It’s too soon. I need to convince her to take a chance on me, Bates. I need to take this slow.”
He nods solemnly. “Let me know if you want any tips.”
“I’m not coming to you for romance tips.”
Anton shrugs. “Your loss.”
“Yeah, yeah.” I make my way around him. “I’m going to change. I don’t want to leave Lucy alone.”
Anton snorts. “More like you miss her already, don’t you?”
Guilty as charged.
I hurry away from the sound of Anton’s knowing laughter.
When I climb into the hot tub a few minutes later, Lucy is already sitting on the far side. I can’t help the groan that escapes as I sink into the bubbly water, closing my eyes. My muscles are knotted and sore from three hours on the field this afternoon. “This feels amazing,” I breathe.
Lucy doesn’t respond, and I blink to find her looking dazed. “You—your tattoos.”
I look down. “Oh, yeah. I have a lot. Is, uh, that not something you like?” That could be a problem. I cock my head to the side. “Wait. Didn’t you do your research on me after we met?”
She swallows and shakes her head. “No, I mean. Yes. I like them. And yes, I did.” Lucy looks away, and my stomach bottoms out, but then she meets my gaze again. “I saw the tattoos in the photos, but I stopped short of studying them. It didn’t feel right to ogle when I knew who you were but you didn’t know who I was.”
In a day and age where pro athletes are objectified for our bodies—and to be fair, I’ve leaned into that narrative in the past—it’s nice to hear about someone holding something sacred or respecting me enough to at least want to get to know me before they examined me. I’m weirdly touched by that.
“Would you like to look at them now?”
She bobs her head, and I slide around to her side of the hot tub.
“I’ve been getting tattoos since I turned eighteen. Gram about had a heart attack when I came home with my first one.” I tip my body to the side so Lucy can see my shoulder blade.
Lucy turns, her bare arm grazing mine. Goosebumps erupt on my skin, which is ridiculous given that we’re in a hot tub, but there’s no stopping it. Lucy is apparently too stunned to notice.
“Wow. It’s … wild.”
I look over my shoulder at her to find she’s trying to suppress a smile. “Was that supposed to be a pun?”
“Would you have preferred me to roar?” Lucy lets a smile break loose on her face, and I laugh.
