“Whoever made you feel that way was a fool,” he said firmly.
God, he was killing me here. I wanted to believe him, to soak in that scent for a little longer so I could commit it to memory.
“I have to go,” I said quickly, not even a lie. “I’m meeting someone for lunch.”
“Is it a work meeting?” he questioned carefully.
I found I couldn’t lie to him, and I shook my head.
His grin was back instantly, like nothing could faze this delta at all.
“Perfect. Then can I tag along?”
At least he was asking instead of telling me he was coming. That and he wasn’t sitting here trying to tell me I shouldn’t have written off hockey players.
Maybe Kota was doing the same thing in his own way, but I just… wasn’t intimidated by him.
Honestly, doing my homework and researching each player on the team leveled the field.
Although, him being my scent match complicated it right back.
It was going to be difficult to remain impartial. I wasn’t going to avoid him because of what we were, but that wouldn’t be able to come between me and the writing.
I was already fighting my internal bias against the sport as a whole.
There was a reason I’d been so eager to help Lana get her story out, to give her a voice I didn’t have as a kid growing up without a dad because he was too fucking full of himself to do more than sign a single, large child support check.
“So, where are we going for lunch?” he questioned, grinning back at full force.
I hesitated and his expression softened. His hand shifted like he wanted to reach for me but stopped himself.
“Look, it doesn’t have to be anything more than friends for now. I can’t say I won’t try to charm you in the meantime, but I have respect and no intentions of making you uncomfortable,” he promised.
He was so serious now, imploring me to believe him. Somehow, I found myself telling him where I was going.
“Do you want to ride with me?” he asked. “I can bring you back for your car.”
“Sure,” I said, mainly because I barely knew my way around. “You probably know North Crossing a whole lot better than I do.”
“I’ve been here a while,” he agreed. “I can definitely help show you around later if you want.”
“My roommate’s given me a couple tours,” I said carefully.
“Is that who we’re meeting for lunch?” he asked, not looking put out at my hesitation.
“Yes.”
And he’s your scent-match.I found the words on the tip of my tongue to tell him that Rylan wasn’tjustmy roommate.
Fuck. ‘Complicated’ didn’t even begin to describe the shitshow that was my life.
There was no time to warn him and that wasn’t something you simply texted, so I followed him out to the parking lot.
I was genuinely surprised when Kota led me to his car. It was a nice pickup truck. I’d expected something that flaunted his money a bit more.
Especially because I’d done my homework. This man was known for his style and position.
There was far more to this man than I realized.
