Page 22 of Honey Pot

I stared at the ceiling as the door slammed shut and closed my eyes.

Even without the drugs, I was managing to run everything into the ground.

MATTHEWS

Silas and I stood in the kitchen over two mugs of coffee when a massive blond kid I recognized as Dean Tucker, the first baseman, stomped through the kitchen. His enormous frame swayed out of the way, just barely avoiding slamming straight into me as he made his way to the fridge. He reappeared from behind the door with a bottle of water and, when he finally made eye contact with me, he popped the cap, watching me for a moment as his head tilted to the side.

A tiny venomous-filled laugh ripped from his chest and he nodded.

“Mary, this is Dean Tucker.” Silas introduced us.

“The first baseman.” I held my hand out to him.

He stepped forward, leaning over the island so we were closer than before, and inhaled sharply. His eyes dropped to my wrist before finally taking it.

“Mary's going to stay in the guest room for the duration of her visit, and she's going to conduct her interviews from inside the Nest,” Silas explained as Dean leaned against the counter, his eyes flickering back and forth as he listened.

“Oh.” Dean nodded, and I watched as he masked the discomfort on his face. “You're the fancy reporter.”

“I am,” I said, knowing he recognized me fully.You're close to Cael.

“What's for dinner?” He brushed it off and looked back to Silas.

Dean Tucker was a specimen in his own right. If I had to guess, he was nearly six-three and what had to be close to two hundred fifty pounds. He was pure muscle from head to toe. His jaw ticked tightly as my eyes ran down over his strong neck, traps, and broad chest to his taut, excised stomach, where his sweatshung on his hips just low enough to create a sliver of tanned skin between the band and his shirt.

His blue eyes studied me as I drank him in, but his expression never changed.

“A list.” Silas swiped a piece of paper from the counter. “You and Cael are on duty tonight.”

“I switched my day with Van,” Dean said without skipping a beat. “I have therapy with Ella in an hour, I'll text him this.”

“Seems Ella is a hot commodity this morning.” Silas narrowed his eyes before pressing his lips together in question but didn't seem to sense the tension in the air. “Go and tell her about dinner, please.”

“Mmm,” he hummed and turned to look at me again. “Mary.” He nodded and left the kitchen with not a single‘it was nice to meet you’in sight.

“If you'll excuse me, I just need to make a phone call,” I said to Silas before following Dean's route toward the front door. He was walking out onto the porch as I caught up to him. His long legs carried him much faster than I could walk.

“How do you know me?” I asked, causing him to turn with a sigh.

“You smell like lavender,” he said, jaw tense as he looked me over with disapproval. “It's his favorite.”

“Cael?” I asked, and hurt flickered across his face. He didn't say anything more before climbing down the steps toward a truck parked along the curve of the driveway.

I lifted my fingers to my mouth and my teeth found my nails, worrying them as I spun out with thoughts. I couldn’t figure out if I had screwed this up. Heat licked at my chest and my heart still raced from my run in with Cael.

It was hard to ignore the way he made me feel.

Even worse was the idea that it wasn’t anger that bubbled up.

It was longing.

“Shit,” I swore under my breath and wandered back into the house to find Silas.

“You ready for the rest of the tour?” He asked as I entered the kitchen and I gave him a polite smile and quick nod, unable to think past the image of Cael’s damp naked body.

The rest of the day was spent on the phone with the hotel as I set up in the corner of the Nest that Silas had organized for me. The house was like nothing I had ever seen, and it outdid any other frat house on campus.Not a frat house, Silas had grumbled when I made a comment, brushing my fingers along the dark wood of the banister that led to the upstairs rooms.

He explained that a female medical intern had previously occupied the room I was staying in, so it was cleaner than any other room in the house. He left me to organize but it wasn’t long until he circled back, standing in the archway with his arms crossed.

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