Page 31 of Caught Stealing

She releases a little huff and bites her lip before looking away. She’s trying not to cry. I hate it. I want to comfort her, to tell her that if she gave me a chance, I’d protect her heart. But it’s too soon for her to know that. Heck, it’s too soon to know if she would do the same for me, but I’m willing to take that risk. I’m a fool. A glutton for punishment. Who gets so stuck on a woman he hardly knows?

“I don’t mean to dump my whole past on you, but I feel like you deserve to know why I’m so hesitant. It isn’t that you did anything wrong. It’s the lifestyle that I don’t trust anymore. To be fair, I was hesitant to even date Rory, but he pulled me in with promises and pretty words.”

I want to shove this guy’s hockey stick in places where only a proctologist can remove it.

“Lottie, I get it. You’ve been hurt badly. I don’t take offense to anything you’ve said or your reason for not wanting to date me. If being friends is too much, I’ll understand that too.” I’ll hate it. I’ll hate every gruesome second of knowing this woman was right at the tips of my fingers and escaped, but what else can I do? There is nothing about Lottie that makes me believe she’s not worth the fight, but even I know when the fight is lost before it begins.

“I’m really sorry though. I’m not sure how to feel right now.”

“You don’t have to know. We can be friends, and if you decide you don’t even want that, then you tell me and I walk away.”

Her eyes widen a little. I don’t know what spurs it, but I know what fear looks like when I see it. There’s a flicker of it. Something almost imperceptible, but it’s there. She doesn’t want to lose this opportunity, but she’s terrified of keeping it, too. The question is, which is she more afraid of? Diving in head first and giving another athlete a chance, or walking away and missing out on what this could become?

The woman is full of surprises, so when she smiles and says, “You make it hard for a girl to stick to her plan,” I almost lunge across the sofa and kiss her.

I ruffle my hair to rein in my impulses. With a chuckle, I say, “I’m just being as truthful as possible.”

“It’s refreshing. I like it,” she whispers. She glances out the window. “It’s getting late. Maybe I can give you a quick lesson before I head home. Sound good?”

She’s also good at changing the subject. “Sounds good. Show me what to do so I can line up another career.”

Lottie laughs again and stands, leaving me wondering if all she really needs is someone to show her she’s worth fighting for.

Chapter Twelve

Charlotte

Nothing about giving Andrew a drum lesson is easy. From the way he smells like cinnamon chewing gum and spicy cologne to the way his body tenses when I’m close to him. I’ve manipulated his hands into a better position several times, but I suspect the pain in his shoulder might make it difficult to maintain. Even so, he does his best and doesn’t sound too bad.

“I’m never going to understand this,” he admits.

“Stop, you’re doing fine.” I lean around from behind him again and take his hands. My hair falls into his face for the tenth time, so I flip it over my shoulder. This move exposes my neck, inviting his gaze. The flex of his jaw and sharp intake of breath are indicators he wants to sink his teeth into that exposed flesh.

I am definitely not giving off this will never happen vibes. I don’t mean to be this close to him, but I also don’t not mean to. There’s a pull to him I can’t deny no matter how much I want to, but is attraction enough?

Andrew licks his lips and refocuses on the beat. After a few seconds, I realize I’m staring at those muscled forearms like I might want to take a bite of them in retaliation for the neck staring. All in all, sticking around for a lesson was a horrible idea if I want to put some distance between him and my growing attraction to baseball players.

Maybe I can stick to disliking hockey players and make an exception for a different sport? I shake my head and crack my neck, once again exposing the tender flesh. This time, Andrew clears his throat and stands, putting some distance between us.

“Uh, I think I should probably ice my shoulder for a bit.”

He’s lying, but I’m not about to call him on it since his reason for doing so is precisely the same reason I avert my eyes and scratch my neck. But those arms? Yeah, they are the kind of arms a woman can’t help imagining wrapped around her, locking her in an embrace she can’t escape. Not that she’d ever want to. My mind spirals thinking of what it might be like to let him do it. To give in and let him pull me in tight, to kiss me, and let him make me forget why I don’t want anything to do with athletes.

My face warms and prickles. Good gracious. I’ve got to get out of here before I do stupid things like throw caution to the wind and leap into the unknown with Andrew Rossi.

“So,” he says but nothing more.

“So, yeah.” I don’t know what I’m supposed to do. It feels like there is a lot of unfinished conversation between us I’m not about to bring up. The only thing I can think to do is offer another lesson. “Maybe we can have another lesson next week?”

I don’t miss the way his face falls like I just stole his most favorite possession.

“I’d like that. Thanks for showing me the basics. I’ll try to practice this week so I don’t forget what you already showed me.” His eyes wander everywhere in the living room but to me. Eventually, they land on the side table. “Oh, don’t forget Ginger’s leash.”

I accept the purple lead but find it impossible to pull away when his fingers brush against mine. He doesn’t let go. There is no time in which two people holding on to a leash together for this long is normal, but neither of us seems ready to break the slight connection. Finally, he swallows and drops his hand to his side before shoving them both into his pockets.

“It was nice spending time with you.” I don’t know why I say that, but it seems like I need to fill the space while I gather my things. Ginger is asleep on the floor beside Goblin, her new best friend, so I whistle for her.

“I enjoyed it too. I’ll order us some pizza for our next lesson.” He rocks back and forth on his heels a few times.

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