Page 94 of Worth the Risk

“Focus, man,” Bennett coughs. Yeah, he knew exactly where my mind went. And while I’ve definitely seen many women wear my jersey at games, I’ve never wanted someone to wear it before.

“How do we do this? Should there be an announcement as to why I’ve missed games so far?”

“I don’t think we need to announce anything. If someone asks, we’ll say it was a personal matter. No one needs to know more than that.”

“Will I need to join the team on the trip?” I ask, a pit forming in my stomach. The team leaves tomorrow morning for a ten-day trip. The thought of leaving Hannah for that long makes me feel like vomiting.

“I don’t think that’s necessary. Enjoy your time together before the media really gets wind of it. While Woodward did make a spectacle, it hasn’t yet been made widely known that the two of you are together. Enjoy that last period of anonymity while you still have it,” Mr. Crawford says.

“Thank you, sir. I’d like to make the announcement soon that I will be retiring at the end of the season. Once we have a date set, I’ll tell the team myself.”

“We can work that out next week before the team gets back. I have meetings the rest of the day, but thank you for taking time to meet with me.”

As his phone rings, he waves his goodbye before accepting the call. Bennett, Hannah and I quietly leave the office.

“You guys want to grab a cup of coffee? I’m sure you have more questions,” Bennett says.

Hannah shakes her head. “I don’t want to be in public. If they were arrested this morning, does the media know my name? If Luca and I are seen together, they’ll put two-and-two together.”

“That’s true. Want to go to my apartment? I need to get a bag of clothes to take to the house anyway,” I offer.

“You don’t want to stay at your apartment anymore?” Hannah asks.

“Not if you’re not there. I’m fine with staying at our house.”

Hannah beams. “I like that you call it our house, but that’s a ridiculously long drive to tackle every day. We can stay here too, you know.”

“Okay, Pixie. I didn’t know if you’d feel uncomfortable with knowing your aunt’s apartment was next door …” I trail off.

“No. Not at all. I like to think that everything happens for a reason. If she hadn’t offered up her apartment, I wouldn’t have met you. In a very salacious way, Aunt Caroline and Coach Woodward are responsible for bringing us together.”

“Well, we aren’t thanking them for it,” I mutter. Hannah giggles as the three of us cross the street and head into my building. When we get into the elevator, I chuckle, realizing it’s the same elevator we got stuck in when Hannah blurted out her bucket list. “Did we cross off every item?”

“What?”

“Your bucket list.”

“Oh.”

“You didn’t answer.”

“No, there are still plenty of items on my bucket list. I’ve added more as well,” she says quietly. I sneak a peek at Bennett, who appears enamored by his phone, oblivious to the two of us.

“Oh yeah? Anything I could help with?” I whisper against her ear. She shivers involuntarily.

“Quite a few, actually,” she responds. “Turns out I have a thing for elevators.”

Arriving at our floor, I motion for Bennett to go before us, then call out his name. When he turns, I toss him my keys. “We’re gonna be a minute or two. Help yourself to the good booze.”

Hannah cackles as the door closes. I immediately hit the emergency stop button, and I push her up against the wall. I remember every moment of that unfortunate elevator ride where Hannah told me all of her hopes and dreams. I plan on making every single one of those wishes come true. Mountain climbing, Paris, sushi. All the orgasms. “You gonna come to my place tonight, bella? You gonna let me make you feel good? Say yes, Pix, please say yes. I’ll make you feel so good, baby. Make you forget the rest of the world. Just you and me.”

“Just you and me,” Hannah replies breathlessly as I pick her up, her legs wrapping naturally around my waist. I give her a searing kiss before the elevator alarm goes off.

“Fucking cockblocking elevator,” I mutter. Pushing the emergency button again, the car jerks and stutters before descending. I turn to Hannah, ready to make a joke about performance, but her face is green. “You okay, baby?”

“I don’t think so —” she stops as she swallows harshly. “This is new.”

“What is new?”

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