“Hot.Smart.Terrifying.”He ticks them off on his fingers.“The whole package, really.”
I frown, forcing the edges of my lips not to smile.“Flattery won't make me tape you any gentler.”
“Who said I want gentle?”
I pull the tape taut, letting the sharp sound fill the room.He flinches slightly, but that grin doesn't fade.
“Feet apart,” I say, ignoring the heat creeping up my neck.
He shifts his thighs open just enough for me to stand between them, his eyes never leaving my face.
“You know,” he says thoughtfully, “I always wondered what happened at that party.”
“There's nothing to understand,” I mutter, knowing full well this isn't something that's been keeping him up all night.
“You shot me down.”His voice drops lower.“Which was fair, my line was trash, but then you spent years with a guy whose entire personality is his swim times?”
“Derek had other qualities.”The lie tastes bitter on my tongue.
“Name one.”
I spray more adhesive across his thigh than necessary.Better that than looking at him.“He was...consistent.”
“Consistent.”Jay laughs, but there's no humor in it.“That's the saddest compliment I've ever heard.”
“It's not a compliment, it's a—” I stop myself.Why am I defending Derek to Jay Cross?“You know what?This isn't a therapy session for my love life.This is a therapy session for your leg.So can we please focus?”
“I'm focused.”His eyes track my hands as I smooth the first strip of tape against his skin.“Very focused.”
The second my palm makes contact, his muscle tenses.Then he flinches and lets out a sharp breath.
“Easy,” I say.“You'll feel pressure, but I'm sure you've felt worse on the ice.”
“I've felt worse from the way you're looking at me right now.”
“The only thing I'm looking at is your thigh.”
“Sure.”
I work down his leg in silence, wrapping tight, clean bands.Each time I press the tape into place, his muscle flexes under my palm.He bites back a sound that has no business sending heat through my body.
“For what it's worth,” he says quietly, “I would've come back.”
My hands still.“What?”
“That night.”He's not smirking anymore.“I was getting you a drink.When I came back, you were already talking to Derek, and you looked...interested.So I backed off.”
“You backed off?”I stare at him.“Is that what you call going home with the cheer captain?”
“Oh, so you noticed?”He raises a brow.“Funny thing about that.I don't remember her name, but I sure as hell remember yours.”
I don't know what to say to that.Don't know how to process the information that maybe—possibly—I'd spent two years with the wrong guy because of a misunderstanding and bad timing.
No.Jay would've been a one-night stand.He's just acting like this because he's salty.
“Wow, Jay.Your lines haven't improved even after all these years.I never gave you my name that night.”
“Ever thought about how I knew it, then?”
