Page 12 of Gossip Game

Except this wasn’t the way she wanted to start a relationship. Not when she’d trapped Noah into helping her. Sure, he was the first guy she’d felt secure enough to let down her guard with in a long time, if ever. And he’d laughed and debated with her most of the night. But what if he was just being nice?

Her insecurities quickly snuffed out much of the serenity she was feeling, and her best friend, anxiety, set in. She needed to hurry out of Noah’s room to avoid any sort of walk of shame. No way did she want to saddle him with that kind of gossip. Not to mention the potential wrath of her brother.

The Blaze players were moving to a different hotel today so they could focus their attention on preparing for Sunday’s game. Charlotte would sneak away this morning and come back in a few hours. If she timed it right, she could catch Noah before the buses left and thank him for his help. Maybe with a few of those scones from the corner bakery he mentioned last night. That would be a nice gesture. One that a friend would make to another friend. She was surprised at how much she wanted Noah Hudson as a friend.

If not more.

He groaned softly, but didn’t wake when she slipped from beneath his arm. She gathered up her stuff and tip-toed from the room, thanking the powers that be for an empty hallway and elevator. Three hours later, she made her way back to the hotel, security in tow this time, with the scones and a rehearsed thank-you speech.

“Are those for me?” Sophie asked, startling Charlotte.

All her thoughts this morning had been so centered on Noah that she’d forgotten about the gem show today.

“No,” Charlotte hedged. “They’re a thank-you gift for a friend.” She glanced around the lobby, a lick of panic jumping up her spine. “Has the team left yet?”

“Nope.” Sophie gestured in the direction of the ballrooms. “They are finishing up their morning meeting.”

“Great. Just let me drop these off and we can head out.”

The meeting was breaking up, and the players were milling about, gathering up their luggage before heading to the buses. Charlotte spotted Noah on the other side of the large room. Rather than call attention to herself by cutting through the crowd, she stepped back into the hallway and hurried to the door closest to where Noah stood. He was talking with two of his teammates when she peeked in through the partially open door.

“Where’d you get off to last night?” one of them asked. “You had the high score in darts, but then you vanished.”

“Collins said he saw him getting hot and heavy with some woman in an elevator,” the other one said.

“Whoa, ho!” The first guy slapped Noah on the back. “What do I always say? Ya gotta watch the quiet ones. QB Two is a playa after all. Is there going to be a round two?”

Noah shook his head. “No chance.”

“Dude, I’m sure you can get her a room at the hotel.”

He gave his head another shake. “She’s not worth the effort.”

Charlotte bit back a gasp at the ferocity of his tone.

His teammates groaned.

“Too vanilla in bed, huh?” one of them said.

Noah settled the strap of his carryon onto his shoulder. “Turns out she’s not my type. Not even close.” The bitter way he said the words rattled her.

As the trio of players headed away from where Charlotte was hiding behind the door, she stood frozen, mortified by what she’d overheard. Had the entire night been all an act? She’d honestly believed he was being real with her. Clearly not. The sting to her pride brought on by his words made her woozy.

She’s not worth the effort. She’s not my type. Not even close.

Of course she wasn’t. She was nobody’s type, apparently. And she really couldn’t blame Noah. She’d forced him into the charade. A charade that, from the tone of his voice, he very much wanted to put behind him.

So much for being friends.

Or anything else.

The least she could do was follow his lead and stay out of his life. Gulping a sigh, she tossed the scones she’d brought for him into the nearby trash can. She was grateful to have found out about Noah when she did. Thanking him—especially in front of his teammates—would have been a bad idea. If he wanted to pretend as if nothing happened, she could, too. She’d make do with being grateful from afar.

But that didn’t mean she’d like it. She ducked into the ladies’ room for a quick cry before meeting up with Sophie. After that, she’d simply forget all about Noah Hudson.

Charlotte woke with a start. Light was peeking in through the cracks in the mini blinds. Morning, thank God.

Her road trip down Memory Lane was finally over. Turns out, no matter how hard she tried, forgetting about Noah Hudson wasn’t in the cards. And now that she had a second kiss to torture herself with by replaying it over and over in her mind, erasing him from her conscience wouldn’t be any easier this time around.

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