Page 68 of Something Like That

And she wanted him, probably more than she’d ever wanted anyone in her entire life.

She grabbed her keys out of her little—bordering on useless—purse and tossed them to Janelle. Her friend caught them with one hand and a smile.

“I’ll call you tomorrow.” Alex popped a mint into her mouth and hurried over to Nick.

Nick glanced up from his phone. Alex was headed his way. She had the sexiest smile on her face. All the air escaped his lungs on a whoosh.

“Hey.” She stopped in front of him.

“Hey,” he said, and then wanted to kick his ass again for being such a loser. Way to go, Sadler. There’s that suave and witty reply.

She stood there staring at him, the look on her beautiful face both hopeful and unsure.

It took far too long for the pieces to click into place in his brain. He was going to blame it on his history of concussions. “Would you like to come back to my hotel with me tonight, Alex?”

“Yes, Nick, I would.” Her smile morphed into that full on happy one that lit her up from the inside. He needed his sun glasses, she was so luminous. She took his hand. Her skin was warm against his.

He wrapped his fingers around hers and gave a little squeeze. She squeezed back. A little bit of tension he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, melted away.

Unable to resist, he lifted their joined hands to his lips and placed a kiss on the back of hers. Goosebumps broke out on the skin of her wrist. He’d bet just about anything, they’d scattered up her arm.

“I’ll grab us a cab,” he said, getting ready to hail one with his free hand. There was no way he was letting her go until it was absolutely necessary.

“No.” She shook her head. His heart stuttered to a stop, disappointment so acute flooding through him, he couldn’t breathe for a second. “The hotel’s only a few blocks from here. I’d like to walk, if that’s okay.”

The relief that rushed through him was so intense, his fucking knees damn near buckled. Only sheer force of will keep him standing.

“Sure.” His voice came out all weird and breathless. Not wanting to draw attention to said weirdness, he trailed his gaze down her incredible legs. “Although, are you going to be okay in those shoes?”

Her shoes made her legs look incredible—all toned and long—but the heels on them were at least three and half inches high. That she could stand there in them was a marvel.

“I don’t usually wear them, since running shoes are a job requirement, but I think I’ll make it.” Amusement coated her words. “Although, if I don’t, you’d carry me, right?”

He knew she was joking, but the idea of holding her close, having her body pressed against his, sent a bolt electricity straight to his cock.

Good thing the hotel was close. As it was, he wasn’t sure he could last even that long.

“Wildcat, I would carry you anywhere you wanted to go.” He lifted their joined hands again and pressed another kiss to the back of hers.

She gave him another of those sweet smiles. A weird feeling wobbled around in his gut. One he didn’t want to dissect. At least not at this moment.

“Let’s go.” He started walking in the direction of the hotel, her hand still firmly held in his. The night was cold, but clear. He breathed deep, letting the crisp air wash through him.

They walked in silence, but it wasn’t awkward. It was… nice. Although it was chilly, a lot of people were out and about. He and Alex dodged and ducked around folks, never letting go of each other. The closer they got to the hotel, the greater the energy crackling between them. It was invigorating. Exciting.

They rounded the corner, the hotel now in sight. He picked up the pace. She laughed, meeting him stride for stride. By the time they reached the door to the hotel, they were both pretty much power walking.

The doorman pulled the door open for them and gave a nod. They spilled into the lobby, still holding hands, laughing. Whether it was at their eagerness, or the glances from the other guests in the lobby, that had tickled them in the moment, he didn’t know. And he didn’t really care.

His focus was on her, and only her.

Her cheeks were pink, her eyes sparkling. Unable to resist, he leaned down and brushed his lips against hers. It was a sweet, quick kiss—public displays of affection weren’t really his thing, especially considering a lot of times that crap ended up getting tossed around online. Well, at least on the New England sites.

But here, in Seattle, every one of his moves weren’t being scrutinized. Here, he wasn’t Nicholas Sadler, the professional hockey player, the would-be franchise savior, the huge disappointment. Here, tonight, he was just Nick. And she was just Alex.

And they were going to be together, enjoy each other, and make love.

And he was absolutely not going to dwell on the fact he’d just used the phrase make love. Dissecting that was a future Nick problem.