I quietly opened my window. “Not this again, Parker.”
“Yep, this again.” He went straight for the trellis. I didn’t argue. What was the point? There was clearly no stopping this boy when he had his mind set on something. Instead, I stood back as he climbed through my window for a second time.
As he stood tall my body hummed with a heady rush, and I folded my arms across myself in an attempt to contain it.
He leaned against the windowsill, gripping it tightly as he watched me. He was only wearing a T-shirt, revealing just how muscular his arms were. Even his forearms rippled. “Aren’t you cold?” I muttered.
He didn’t immediately respond, and as my gaze lifted from his arms, my breath hitched. There was something wild about his eyes. “You didn’t say goodbye.” His words seemed to pulse through me.
I tried to laugh them off. “You came all the way over here for a goodbye?”
“No. Yes. I—” He shook his head as though he’d failed to find the answer he was searching for. “We didn’t discuss our plans for training this week.”
“Couldn’t you have just texted me?”
“It’s a little hard when you keep refusing to give me your number.”
I rolled my eyes, but passed him my phone. “Fine. Give me your number.”
When he handed it back to me, I took a look and sighed. “Coach Darling?That’sthe contact name you’re going with?”
“It’s true, isn’t it?”
“‘Parker’ would have been fine. Most Annoying HumanAlive also would have worked.”
He grinned as he looked at his own phone. “If it helps, I’m putting you in as, Second Favorite Foster.”
“And who’s your favorite?”
“Mitts, obviously.”
“Obviously.” Was it weird to be a little jealous of the world’s most obnoxious cat? “Well, we’ve exchanged numbers now, I guess you can go.”
“Is that what you want?” he asked cautiously. “For me to go?”
I swallowed. No, it wasn’t. I didn’t want him to leave at all. Having him in my room felt intoxicating and dangerous, just like the last time he’d climbed up here. Except this time, I was enjoying the risk. Maybe even wanting to risk more.
When I didn’t respond, he took a step closer. My heart pounded. All I could think about was how my body had come alive when I’d fallen on him at the lake today. How my every cell had flickered with awareness while sitting next to him in the den. How my insides had fluttered whenever he’d caught my eye across the table at dinner. Suddenly the fact Parker was in my room wasn’t nearly as dangerous as the way I was feeling.
I quickly turned and headed back to the box I was sorting, saying, “You’re here now. I guess you may as well tell me about training.” I didn’t want Parker to leave, but I needed to keep my hands busy or I’d reach out to him. Seriously, what was wrong with me?
“Right.” Was that disappointment in his voice? He cleared his throat before he continued. “Our homecoming game against the Saints. It’s the biggest of the season, outside theplayoffs. We need to win it.”
“And…”
“And while there are still things you and I can work on, I’ve been thinking about the team a lot since our game yesterday. We all made mistakes. Me included.”
I paused and glanced up from my box. “You probably shouldn’t have hit that guy.”
“No, I shouldn’t have.”
He looked like he wanted to say more, but when he stayed quiet, I uttered the question that was hanging silently between us. “So, why did you do it?”
He let out a breath, and as his blue eyes pierced mine it felt as if the tension between us might snap. “You don’t want to know.” His voice was deep and gravelly, and something about it had my heart pulsing fast once more.
It felt like we both wanted to avoid the answer to my question. It was one of many that were piling up, like the boxes in the corner of my room. But our silence said all the things neither of us wanted to utter aloud. Could we keep ignoring this? Did I even want to ignore it?
“It was one mistake,” I said, finally. “You won’t make it again.”
