Out of Bounds (The Summer Games #2)(103)

I tugged on Lexi’s shoulder and shouted in her ear. “I’m going to go try to find a bathroom.”

She groaned. “No! I don’t believe you! You’re going to sneak out of here, aren’t you? The night is just starting. I already got an after party invite from the British rugby team. BRITISH GUYS, BRIE! WITH ACCENTS!”

I smiled and tried to feign excitement. “That’s awesome, I’ll be there. Honestly, I’m just going to go try to clean up my leg.”

Even to my own ears, I didn’t sound very convincing, but Lexi was too concerned with JT’s onstage gyrations to focus on me. I told the rest of the team I’d be back soon and then I turned and started to slip back through the crowd. The arena was disorienting—dark, loud, and packed with enough bodies to make my skin crawl. I ended up fighting my way through the chaos for what felt like an hour before I finally broke through the last row of people. I inhaled deep, taking in the cool night air. The crowd had been stifling and claustrophobic and I had no desire to slip back into it after I was done in the bathroom. Lexi would just have to take on the British rugby team without me. Somehow, I think she’d manage.

I stepped into an empty bathroom and cleaned up the dried blood on my leg. It didn’t look half as bad as I’d suspected. A quick shower and a Band-Aid and I’d be good as new. I tossed the paper towels in the trash on the way out and felt my phone start to vibrate in my purse. It’d been silent all night—a fact I’d tried hard to ignore—but now that I was out of the crowd, I had reception again.

When I pulled it out of my purse and saw Erik’s name on the screen, my stomach flipped with anticipation. I didn’t give myself time to register how excited I was before swiping my finger across the screen and pressing the phone to my ear.

“Finally.”

“Brie.”

I stepped out of the bathroom and lingered in a no-man’s land between the back of the arena and the crowd of people hovering a few yards in front of me.

“I thought you’d call earlier,” I admitted, holding my hand against my other ear to block the noise from the stadium.

He didn’t sound all that amused when he replied. “It was you that asked for space. I think that means you were supposed to call me.”

I smiled. “Maybe I like to watch you squirm.”

There was a long pause and I pulled the phone away to make sure the call hadn’t dropped. When I pressed it back against my ear, he finally spoke with a low, controlled tone. “I’ll remember that.”

A blush crept up my neck. I tipped my chin down, as though he could see my face through the phone.

“You asked me to give you space until you finished competing,” he continued.

“Yes…”

“And I’m done waiting.”

My heart fluttered in my chest as excitement settled into my body.

“I’m still at the closing ceremony,” I admitted, glancing around to find the nearest exit.

“Walk to the tunnel where you entered.”

Was he there?

I didn’t ask.

I followed his instructions, curving around the back of the arena to find one of the two tunnels that led outside. We’d entered through them a few hours earlier as TV cameras hovered around us, broadcasting our every move to viewers at home. Now, the TV cameras were aimed on the stage and I was all alone wandering along the back wall of the arena.

“Erik?”

“I’m still here.”

I smiled as the wide tunnel came into view. There were a few security guards manning the perimeter, but the lone figure standing in the center of the walkway caught my attention before they did. He dropped the phone from his ear and pushed it into the back pocket of his dark jeans. His bright eyes were pinned on me as I approached and his mouth curved into a panty-melting smile. My body stilled a few feet away. His head tilted as he watched me reach up and touch my hair then smooth down the hem of my dress. I was suddenly nervous to leave with him and he knew it. His eyes smoldered with the intensity of the moment and though I tried to cling to some shred of control, I knew I’d go with him no matter what. My knees trembled with a need to step closer and touch him.

Erik.





Chapter Forty-One


Brie





As I stepped closer, I glanced down his body, taking him in, not as my coach—not anymore—but as the man I was wholeheartedly in love with. His features were always sharp, severe—except his lips. They evened out his intensity, and they were currently unraveled in an expressive smirk. I glanced up to meet his eye, having been caught checking him out. He knew I was already under his spell and wasted no time in reaching out for me and wrapping his hand around my bicep to steady me.

“Have you had a few drinks?”

I swallowed, nervous.

“Yes, me and every Olympian currently on the planet.” I shrugged, feeling as though the world were tipping just a little to the left.

“Are you drunk?” he asked with a gentle tone.

I stared at his chest and swallowed. “No, but this would probably be easier if I was.” I laughed.

“What happened to your knee?” he asked, glancing down.

I’d forgotten about the injury, but when I glanced down and followed his gaze to the cut on my knee, the pain recaptured my attention.