Bait & Switch (Alphas Undone #1)(20)

I agreed, my “yes” sounding just as breathless. My heart was still pounding wildly. Or else we’ll end up back inside, humping like bunnies.

As Nolan drove, his hand found my knee and rested there casually. It was crazy how that one small touch both heated my blood and made me feel safe. We made small talk, and he pointed out some landmarks as we drove to the stadium.

When we arrived, we parked in the large lot and walked quite a distance toward the stadium. We climbed the stairs almost as long to reach our seats. Center field, twelfth row up. They were excellent, with a clear view of the field. But when we took our seats, Nolan’s hand once again rested on my knee, making it hard to concentrate on anything else.

“You doing okay?” he asked, sending me a sideways glance.

“Fine.” I cleared my throat. Get it together, Lace. He’s as hot as a July day in Texas, but that’s no reason to clam up.

He waved over a vendor and pulled a stack of bills out of his pocket. “What would you like?” he asked me.

“Whatever you’re having is fine.” He’d already treated me to the game, and I didn’t want to be picky.

He ordered us two beers and stadium dogs, tipping the vendor well. The man’s eyes widened and he thanked Nolan profusely.

Nolan was a man of few words, but it was in these quiet moments that I learned the most about him. Not only was he a tough, kick-ass ex-SEAL, but he was kind, generous, and warmhearted. The combination was enough to kick-start my libido and dampen my panties without even adding in his rugged good looks.

Being around him was easy, and once I had a cold beer and a warm hot dog in my hands, I began to relax a little. I took a big bite of my food and settled into my seat.

“So, what made you want to become a SEAL?” I asked, expecting that it had been a lifelong dream from the time he was just a little boy with a toy gun strapped to his waist and a fort in his backyard.

Nolan looked down at the field, his expression stark, his dark eyes blank. “I grew up a rancher’s kid, and I wanted to see more of the world than the flat prairie inside our four fence posts.”

I nodded along, afraid I’d struck a chord that would sour the playful mood. “Fair enough.”

“But it turned out that was pretty f*cking selfish of me. My dad had a massive heart attack in the field one day while he was working, and with no one there to help, no one to call 911 . . .”

He let out a deep sigh and his eyes shifted away, taking several moments before he continued. “I still ask myself if I’d been there that day, maybe he’d still be around. Maybe my mom wouldn’t look at me with those blank, haunted eyes, like she was wondering the exact same thing.”

I reached over and silently placed my hand on his knee, hoping the touch had the same calming effect it had had on me earlier.

“My mom sold off all the land he loved so much. I don’t think she liked the thought that the land was ultimately what took him from her.”

Something tugged inside my chest. I wished like hell I could fix this for him, but deep down, I knew nothing ever would. Sometimes our greatest scars are the ones we don’t wear for the world to see. They’re buried inside our hearts.

I gave him the only comfort I could. “I know your dad would be very proud of you. If he’d known what a successful and courageous man you’ve become, he never would have wanted you to stay home. Just think of all the things you couldn’t fulfill if you didn’t leave.”

Nolan smiled at me, but his thoughts still seemed faraway. “Maybe. Enough about that, though. I meant today to be fun.”

I squeezed his thigh in silent understanding. “Another beer?” I waved down the vendor again. “My treat this time.”

“Did I tell you that you look beautiful today?” he asked, leaning across the space to place his lips at my neck.

My throat tightening, I shook my head. “Not yet anyway.”

“Because you look f*cking stunning,” he whispered against my skin.

Maybe sex was his way of dealing with the demons of his past. A distraction, a release. Is that what his arrangement with Daniella is about? Or is he just too much for one woman to handle? A rush of warmth settled in my chest at the thought.

With our second drinks in hand, the earlier lighthearted mood returned. Soon we were cheering and trash-talking the athletes on the field, enjoying each other’s company and the crisp fall day.

? ? ?

Arriving back at my place after the game, Nolan parked under the awning that stretched alongside the building. We sat quietly and watched the sun sink low in the sky. The atmosphere around us took on a hazy glow as day slowly transitioned into night. The warm cab of his truck was scented lightly with the dark notes of his cologne, swamping the space with sexual undertones.

I couldn’t remember ever having more fun. But when I turned to tell him so, the deep, penetrating look in his eyes stole my breath. It was almost like I could read his every thought—and they were searing. His gaze was filled with a dark, primal urge that called to something inside me.

“I’m running from something.” The words sprang from my mouth without warning. And once they were out—hanging between us in the silent cab of the truck—my heart started to pound.

“Care to tell me what, sweetheart?”

I shook my head. “I can’t tell you. I’m sorry.”