And the girl is a rock star. Olympic world champion, a decorated athlete with the medals to prove it. I have to admit, it’s alluring as hell. Not because she’s well-known, but because of what it says about her character.
Only athletes who are motivated, loyal, and passionate achieve the kinds of things she has.
I also saw that she retired recently. I tried to dig into that more, but all I found was a meet that went poorly. I thought it wasweird since she seemed to be in her prime, but maybe she realized it was her time.
I’ll admit, I was hesitant to give her my number after she rejected and lied to me. While I knew what I was getting into that night, being a one-night stand, it still hurt to put myself out there and to be turned down like that.
But there was something vulnerable in her eyes that tugged at my guarded heart that made me want to hear her out. I figured maybe she wants to apologize for what happened or something along those lines.
“Sir, your guest has arrived,” the server informs me, moving aside as he gestures toward the door.
Teagan walks through the door a moment later, and my mouth nearly salivates at the sight of her. Dark hair in waves, a simple black long-sleeved dress that flows at her waist and reaches her mid-thigh, with boots that go up to her knees.
This. This is another reason why I said yes, because Lord knows I can’t get her off my mind and I’m beginning to think there’s a reason we met each other.
The clack of heels on the wooden floor snaps me out of my haze and I stand, holding my hand out for her to shake. “Hi, Teagan.” I don’t know where we stand after she rejected me at the bar and a hug feels too personal.
The sound of the wooden door closing fills the quiet moment between my greeting and her lack thereof, until she snorts.
It surprises me, making me tilt my head in question.
“You’ve had your mouth on my nipples and you’re holding out your hand like we’re having a business meeting?”
Heat creeps up my spine at her words, my mouth going slack. It takes everything in me not to get fully hard, nor for my eyes to fall out of my head because holy fuck.
“Fair point,” is all I can muster to say as I move to pull her chair out.
She takes a seat, turning to give me a small smile as she says, “Thanks.”
As I take my seat across from her, I ask, “Did you find somewhere close to park? Sometimes it can be hectic finding a spot downtown.”
“I actually found a spot in the lot across the street as someone was pulling out when I pulled into the lot,” she explains.
There’s a beat of silence, and wanting to begin the conversation, I say, “So…”
“I want to start off by apologizing for lying about my job,” she says at the same time.
I gesture for her to continue because she’s the one who wanted to talk.
“But as someone who is also a professional athlete, I think you can probably understand why I did. I never thought I’d see you again, so I didn’t think it would matter.”
Putting my own issues with trust and honesty aside, I reply, “I get it. Sorry if I came off rude the other day. It was…just a surprise to see you and I didn’t react in the best way.”
“Your apology is appreciated, but not needed. Truth be told, I would’ve told myself to fuck off when I asked to see you.” She snickers at the end, making my lips tilt in a crooked smile.
“Sometimes no-namers can turn out to be good guys.”
“The jury’s still out on that,” she teases as she picks up her menu and I follow suit. We take a few minutes to look it over, and as if on cue, the server comes back to take our orders as he places glasses of water in front of Teagan and me. We both place an order for the ravioli, and once the waiter exits the room, Teagan narrows her eyes at me.
“I didn’t take you for a copycat.”
I smirk at that as I relax at the ease with which we’re getting along. “I’m not. It’s my favorite dish here. So technically, you’d be the copycat.”
She rolls her eyes at me, but I don’t miss how she fights to hold in a smile. “So you’re the ace pitcher, huh?”
“I see someone’s been on Google.”
“As if you didn’t google me the second Olivia went to bed last night,” she throws back at me with a knowing look.
