“Hey, I wasn’t done with that,” I pouted, but I was still smiling, leaning back against the wall and letting my eyes rake over this man who piqued my curiosity so. I was definitely feeling the high now, and I was glad I had company.
Especially of the golden-eyed, dark-haired, muscle-lined variety.
“I could smell that shit as soon as I walked out,” he chastised, his thick brows furrowing. Why was it so hot when this man scowled at me? “Are you trying to get kicked off the team you just busted your ass to make, or are you just stupid?”
“How do you know I busted my ass?”
He flattened his lips. “Call it a hunch.”
“It’s just a little Mary Jane,” I said, my eyelids heavy as I met his gaze. “Which is perfectly legal in the state of Washington, by the way.”
“That may be, but it’s not permitted on the grounds, and I’m pretty sure you already know it’s in your contract that we’re a drug-free organization.”
“Haven’t signed that contract yet,” I said matter-of-factly, and then I pushed off the wall I was leaning on and into his space. “Which means there’s another rule I haven’t sworn to follow just yet.” I pressed my index and middle finger into his chest, and then walked them slowly up the buttons of his dress shirt until I just barely grazed the skin of his neck. “Think you can guess which one I’m referring to?”
His eyes heated, like molten golden pools. He couldn’t hide the way his Adam’s apple bobbed hard in his throat, the way his nostrils flared, his fingers curling into fists at his sides like he was restraining himself.
God, I loved the thought of that — the possibility that this man might be having a hard time keeping his hands off me right now.
Braden took a moment to compose himself before he let out a laugh through his nose, wrapping his hand around my wrist and peeling my touch from him. I swore I felt a little jolt of electricity right between my legs with that grip, with his skin on mine, but he released me so fast I couldn’t be sure.
“You’re trouble,” he said, shaking his head as he took a step back to put space between us.
“Who, me?” I drew a halo over my head.
“Go home,” he said, digging his keys out of his pocket. “And don’t fucking smoke behind the stadium.”
“Mmm, I love when you play the role of Daddy. Or should I call you Boss?”
He shook his head. “You’re almost thirty, right? Shouldn’t you be more responsible?”
“You’re twenty-four. Shouldn’tyoube more fun?”
I knew I’d caught him off guard with that one. What? He thought he was cute because he paid attention when Claire was reading off my stats and proudly boasting about me being the oldest cheerleader Seattle had ever had? Well, two could play that game, buddy.
I studied up on you, too.
And though he was five years younger than I was, there was something about the way he carried himself, the shadows in his eyes that told me he’d lived more than his fair share of life.
Again, I felt that gaze of his boil as he stared at me for a long moment. Finally, he frowned, looking toward the parking lot and then back at me.
“Wait, you’re not driving, are you?” he asked.
“You really do think I’m stupid.”
“How are you getting home?”
“The train,Boss.”
“Stop calling me that.”
“Then stop policing me.”
“Let me give you a ride.”
“Oh, with pleasure,” I said, pushing into his space once more. I reached up to toy with the hair at the back of his neck, reveling in the fact that I elicited a wave of chills over his skin when I did. “Should we go somewhere more private, or should I mount you right here?”
He groaned a bit when those words left my mouth, all breathy and inviting, but once again, his hand wrapped around my wrist and gently removed my touch.
