Cash leans against the wall, crossing one ankle over the other. Sweat clings to him, his T-shirt sticking to his chest.
“Think you can make it believable enough, Cash?” I ask him. “We really need to sell this.”
Pushing off the wall, Cash stalks toward me like a lion after his prey. My back bumps into the wall, eliciting a squeak. Cash loops an arm around my waist and I collide with his hard chest. I’m flush against him and all those muscles. Muscles I’ve only seen at a distance in the training room. I want to sink my fingers into the defined pecs. Lick them.
My hands grip Cash’s shirt, holding him to me.
Cash’s eyes darken as they stare down at me. His tongue darts out and licks his lips. His free hand cups my cheek, thumb running along my bottom lip. “You want me to pretend that I like you, Princess?”
Words and all common sense flee my head. I shouldn’t be having a reaction to Cash.
“Yes.” My voice is dry. Scratchy.
“Think this is believable enough?”
His eyes never leave mine. I want to look away, but I can’t. Cash has locked me in his hold and I couldn’t escape. Even if I wanted to.
I’ve never felt like this under another man’s gaze. He’s making me feel like we’re the only two people in the world right now. That we’re not in some back hallway in a hockey arena.
I tilt my head up, wanting more. More of this Cash, right now.
“Piper?” A shouted voice echoes down the hallway.
I shove Cash out of my arms, causing him to stumble over the empty laundry bin.
“Oh God! Are you okay?”
He catches himself against the wall.
“I’m fine,” he says as he laughs. Those eyes of his have locked down again. Just when I thought the two of us were having a moment, it’s gone.
Claire spots me as she turns the corner, seeing the mess I’ve made. “I need you in the physio room. Clean this up and then I need your help with some training.”
“Got it.”
Righting the bin, I start throwing towels into the empty basket before Cash’s hand stills mine.
“Was that believable enough for you, Princess?”
“Yes,” I squeak out. “Yes.”
“We’re doing this then?” Cash tips my chin up to meet his gaze. “I don’t want to drag you into anything you’re not comfortable with just because I helped you out.”
“That’s exactly why I’m doing this.”
“Really?”
I nod. “You showed me a part of you that tells me you’re a good guy.”
“I’m not the good guy, Princess,” he says, shaking his head.
“No?” I stand, throwing a towel into the bin.
“I’m the villain.”
“I think you want to be, but really, you’re Prince Charming.”
“No one sees me that way.”
