“You’re beautiful, you know that?” I whisper right before I steal one more kiss.
She makes a funny face because she goes nearly shy. “Don’t throw classic lines at me.”
“I wouldn’t dare. I’m just giving you the truth.”
Hadley buries her face against my chest before planting a quick kiss against my skin. “Tell me something that’s true and I don’t know.”
I think for a few seconds. “Even with no Vegas, we eventually would have found our way to one another.”
A sound of doubt escapes her lips. “Why are you certain?”
“Because that’s just the kind of chemistry we have. We’re right for one another in love or hate, and I’m not sure the barrier between us was never going to be long enough to keep me away forever.” I speak to myself more than her, maybe she notices.
“I think we need sleep. You make it sound like I wanted to keep you away, but it wasn’t always like that, and in this very moment, I want you as close as possible.” She snuggles against me, letting out a relaxing sigh, and even though I can’t see, I know her eyes are gently closing.
I stroke her hair and stare at the ceiling, with my thoughts running rampant.
I always knew one of us would have caved at some point, even though I had my own private vow when it concerned her, she just doesn’t know. Now, a knot twists in the pit of my stomach that we’ll be okay because she is taking a step with me, and I broke my internal vow.
17
CONNOR
The way Hadley’s lips twist when she’s watching videos of my old hockey games is spellbinding. Games where I lost my cool seem to be her favorite. Nah, who am I kidding, it’s me in my pre-game suit that she loves the most. A sort of smirk tilts on her lips, as if it’s typical of me, yet she finds it irresistible. The best part is that she has no idea that I’ve caught her yet again watching in what she thinks is secret.
She sits on the couch in the living room with her knees tucked under and ear pods in while she holds her phone screen.
Here comes my favorite part.
Walking on my toes, I sneak up behind her and reach over the back of the sofa to shake her shoulders. Instantly, she shrieks and brings her hand to touch my arm that’s wrapping around her as I playfully bite her cheek.
“Connor,” she squeals my name.
I hop over the back of the couch because I’m smooth like that and land next to her on the cushions, only to encourage her to swing her legs over to rest on my lap.
“This is classic. My very own superfan, and it’s none other than you,” I note.
She pinches my arm. “Simmer down that ego, I’m just… curious.”
“It’s not a little bit that you’re wondering why everyone is obsessed with our team? Or maybe you love that interview I did with a nine-year-old which melted the hearts of many.” I bring a hand to my chest.
She rolls her eyes. “I never realized thatperhapsyou play kind of a cool sport, plus once you watch one video, then the app’s algorithm sends you down a rabbit hole of more videos.” It’s cute the way she tries to play this down.
The last few days we have talked about aspects of our careers that we probably didn’t realize. We went off track when I caught her glancing at photos of me in a suit when traveling between games; her bottom lip always gets attacked when she stares at those photos.
I stroke her thigh with my hand as we just relax together on the sofa. “The guys will be here any second, then I’ll start the grill.” The goal is to hang out, but I’m sure we’ll end up re-watching a few games from last season.
“Cool. I’ll stay for a drink then leave you guys be.” She gently combs the hair behind my ear, a soothing touch that I love.
“We have cake at least. Our moms dropped off a box when I was in the shower and you were at the store.” I flash my eyes at her because I’m entertained.
She giggles. “They did a wedding cake testing without us, didn’t they?”
I grin. “Just in case, plus they’re getting ballsy.”
“But they are happy, and they would shut it down in a heartbeat if we asked them to. I’m convinced they enjoy messing with us.Yet, I really want to see how far they’ll go.” I couldn’t agree more, which is why I smile. Hadley gets more comfortable on her spot. “Which cake are we having?”
“No clue.” I shrug.
