“To talk.”
“Okay. Go ahead.”
Lia glanced over her shoulder. “In private.”
“I don’t see anyone else around.”
“Do you really want one of our teammates to walk by and overhear us?”
“Fine.” Though her brain screamed at her not to, to keep Lia at arm’s length, Erin waved Lia inside. She closed the door behind Lia and leaned her back against it as Lia stood behind the couch.
Since Lia had left earlier, Erin had changed into her pyjamas. The shorts left her legs bare, the tank top tight enough to make it obvious she wasn’t wearing a bra, and Lia’s eyes traced over her skin before snapping back to meet Erin’s gaze. Even from a few feet away, Erin could tell her eyes were dark. “W-what do you want to talk about?”
“Why did you try and kiss me?”
Erin tried not to wince. Well, at least Lia was being direct. “I told you. I wanted a distraction.”
“And you thought that was a good idea?”
“No. I thought it was a terrible idea.”
“But you did it anyway.” Fingers digging into the fabric of the couch, Lia rested her hands on either side of her hips. “Why?”
“Because I wanted to.” Erin whispered the traitorous admission as loudly as she dared. “Happy?”
“No, Erin, I’m not happy.” Lia crossed the distance between them faster than Erin could blink. “Because I can’t stop wishing I hadn’t stopped you.”
Erin’s heart thudded hard in her chest. This close, she could see the flush on Lia’s cheeks and breathe in the scent of her perfume. “Then why did you?”
“Because I thought it was a terrible idea, too.”
“Why did you come back?”
“Because I can’t stop thinking about it.” Lia loomed closer until she was all but pressing Erin against the door. “Because I can’t think about anything else.”
“Me, either.” It took every ounce of Erin’s self-control to keep her palms flat against the wood instead of curling them around Lia’s hips. “But it’s still a bad idea.”
Lia sighed. “I know.”
Goose bumps rose in the wake of her warm breath on the skin of Erin’s neck. “So where does that leave us?”
“I know you have a rule. No teammates. No relationships. No drama. But what about one night? One night of distraction, to get this out of our system, and then we just forget it ever happened.”
Erin swallowed. The terms seemed simple enough. Easy to stick to, considering how staunch she’d been the last few years. And Lia wouldn’t suggest it if she didn’t think she could stick to it too, right?
“One night, huh? That’s all?”
“I wouldn’t ask you for more.” Lia swayed closer until her chest brushed Erin’s.
Beneath the thin material of Erin’s shirt, her nipples hardened, straining against the cotton. Judging from Lia’s soft groan, she noticed.
“So, what do you think?”
Erin didn’t waver. Her decision had been made the second Lia had opened her mouth. Sure, she might regret it in the morning, but she was thinking with her more basic instincts now. There was no reason she and Lia couldn’t be professional about this. No reason why it had to be a big deal.
No reason why Erin couldn’t get exactly what she needed from Lia and then go back to being teammates.
“I think,” Erin said, finally, finally, curving her hands around Lia’s hips and running her thumbs along the lines of her hip bones, “that sounds like an excellent solution.”
