“Eyes up here, buddy.” I snap my fingers in his face, drawing his attention away from the girls. I know they look good, but they are not for his eyes.
His gaze returns to my face. Without an ounce of shame for blatantly ogling my chest, he grins widely at me. “Just appreciating the view,” Nico practically purrs as Roberto smothers a laugh.
“Well, don’t.” I turn on my heels and stomp towards my mailbox. I will not give in to that smug jerk’s charm.
“Damn, vicious. I think the rearview is even better.” Nico releases a low, complimentary whistle.
Heat burns my cheeks as I put my best acting skills forward and ignore him. I open my mailbox and pull out the stack of letters. When I close the box, Nico is leaning against the wall with his arms crossed and that cocky smirk of his.
“Don’t you have a game to play or something?”
“Nah, day off,” he says casually.
Continuing to ignore him, I head for the elevator and wave goodbye to Roberto. Our portly doorman smirks as he watches us like his new favorite soap opera.
“What about you, Doc? Are you on shift today?” Nico swipes his black card, and the elevator appears as if by magic.
“No. I worked all night.” I roll my eyes at myself for answering his question and step into the elevator. He follows me inside, swipes his card again, and presses the silver PH.
The doors close, and the air in the elevator grows thick with tension. I take a deep breath, but that’s a mistake. His manly scent hits me again. Out of the corner of my eye, I stare at the intricate details of the ink on his stomach. A Roman warrior with a spear in hand, wearing a gladiator helmet, riding on the back of a Pegasus, covers his entire abdomen. The tattoo looks like it was carved from marble and glued onto his skin.
It’s a gorgeous piece of art.
“Want to hang out?” he asks, breaking me free from the trance his body has on me.
“Definitely not.”
He chuckles at the hostility in my tone. “Come on, I know you want to. I saw the way you were drooling over my naked chest.”
“I was not.” I so was.
But screw him. He doesn’t need to know that. His head is big enough. Besides, I’m not the kind of woman to just fall to my knees because he’s a sexy-as-sin, super famous baseball star. Please. I’m stronger than that.
His breath takes me by surprise as he whispers into my ear, “No need to lie, kitten. I was drooling at the sight of your tits in those scrubs.”
The elevator dings, and the doors slide open. Without another word, Nico exits and disappears into his apartment, leaving me out of breath and alone with this crazy haze of lust.
The heat between my legs comes back hotter and wetter. I bite my lower lip and trap the moan tickling the back of my throat.
That bastard.
twelve
Nico
Asthepitcherforthe Chicago Grizzlies winds up for the pitch, I sense the catcher adjust his position behind me.
It’s a tell.
The pitcher is about to throw some serious heat.
I tuck the wad of cinnamon gum between my teeth, in my cheek, and take a deep breath. My blood pressure spikes as I watch the fastball rush towards me. Weight in my back leg, I eye the ball, timing it just right, and swing.
The ball hits my bat with a crack. The vibrations radiate through my forearms, and I can feel it…
That baby is gone.
As I knew it would, the ball soars over the right field fence and into the stands. The stadium erupts in cheers at the two-run homer I just hit.
