Game On(56)

“A-ha!” She looked triumphant. “Does this mean you’re his girl?”

“Stop it.” I nudged her in the ribs, but couldn’t deny that I got a mushy feeling in my chest at the thought of being referred to as such.

Mandy grinned at me. “For the record, I haven’t heard of him bringing any girl here. And he’s a regular.”

“Yet you’re not surprised.”

“I told you.” She took a quick shot of me, acting too quickly for me to put my hand up. “He likes you.”

“Yeah, well, maybe I like him too,” I finally admitted out loud, though I wasn’t going to say how much because honestly it was starting to scare me how quickly I was falling for him.

“I knew it!” Mandy crowed and snapped a few more, hopefully not too unflattering, pictures of me. “I knew you guys were perfect for each other.”

“Don’t get your hopes up,” I said as we took a seat near the window. “It might be over before it’s even started.” I told her about last night, skimming over the more salacious details (the ones, of course, I was replaying in my mind over and over again). I told her about Tim coming over and how Nathan had avoided my question about potential secrets. “Do you know if there’s anything to be worried about?” I asked Mandy.

She frowned. “I don’t, but even if I did, you know I couldn’t say anything. They’re not my secrets. And if Nathan wants to keep them that way, I’m sure he has a good reason to.”

“I know,” I chewed at my lip. “I just don’t want Tim to ruin everything.”

“Then don’t let him,” Mandy urged. “This article, about the shelter, is going to be ten times more interesting than the one Tim writes on Nathan. And I like Nathan an awful lot.”

I laughed. “Thanks, Mandy.” I gave her a hug. “I hope my editor likes the piece, but I think you’re right, I think it’s the pictures that are going to really make it special. When do you think we can get the guys here?”

“Well.” She put her camera away. “You know the game is in a few days, so as soon as they win, we can get them here in their uniforms and maybe even the trophy. People will eat it up.” She cast a sidelong look at me. “You’re going to the game, right?”

“Of course,” I said, though I really didn’t want to sit in the press box for that one. The less time I had to spend with Tim, the better. I pulled out my phone and frowned at it. No word from Nathan today. “That is, if Nathan even wants me there.”

Mandy shook her head. “Of course he wants you there. I’m sure he’s just busy. I’ve barely seen Chris all week. Between practice and class, he doesn’t have a lot of free time.”

“I hope you’re right,” I said, but I couldn’t help feeling nervous as I stared down at my phone and its blank screen.





Chapter Twenty-Five


I was starting to think that my mother had hired someone to watch me; since she had the unpleasant talent of calling me at exactly the moment I did not need her specific brand of motherly advice. At least that morning I wasn’t hung over.

“Get a good handle on that cute butt?” was how she started the conversation.

“Mama,” I warned, half embarrassed that if Tim hadn’t interrupted us the other night, I would have gotten a rather good handle on Nathan’s cute butt. Just like he had gotten an exceptionally good handle on mine. Among other things. I could still feel his mouth against my breast, hot and wet, and his fingers, confident and capable, making me scream. The very thought of him touching me there again, or anywhere, really, made me shiver.

Since that night, however, contact with him had been scarce. The final game was tomorrow and I hadn’t heard much from him except the occasional text telling me he was thinking of me and he was sorry he was so busy. I was starting to worry that I been right to be so cautious—that this was just a fling to Nathan, nothing serious. That I had allowed myself to get distracted by a guy who was only looking for his own distraction. Mandy kept assuring me things would change after the game, and I wanted to believe her, but I was having a hard time believing in anything these days.

The only silver lining, of course, was that Tim had been having a tough time with his project as well. We had interviewed almost a dozen of Nathan’s old classmates, but none of them had anything negative to say about the star player. I knew Tim was getting frustrated.

“There’s no way this guy is as nice as everyone says he is,” he kept saying.

I kept my thoughts to myself, but remained pleased that there was no dirt to find on Nathan. I hoped Tim’s trail would go cold before the majors made any decisions about the draft. My own article about the animal shelter was coming together better than I had expected. It had everything—cute kids, adorable pets, all-American sports stars and of course, a community-run organization that needed help. People were going to love it. And with Mandy’s photos, well, it could definitely go viral. I knew that I’d definitely be saving some of those shots as my screensaver. On my computer and my phone. Maybe even keep a picture in my desk. Or two.

“Are you listening?” a voice in my ear asked, and I remembered that I was still on the phone with my mother.

“Uh-huh,” I said and she picked up right where she had apparently left off.