Page 73 of The Game

“It’s all good. I didn’t want to wake you, but the car is getting chilly. Let’s get you inside and you can get a proper sleep.”

I hop out, tracing a path around the front to open her door.

She reaches out, twining my fingers through hers as if it’s the most natural thing in the world as we pass under the dim light on the side of her building. I don’t love this place. The thought of her coming home here at night by herself sets me on edge. Anything could happen, especially if her ex decides that my lesson wasn’t enough of a deterrent.

“Good night, Jazz.” I mumble into the top of her head as she opens the front door. I don’t want to leave, but I should. She’s exhausted. I am too. Plus, I really don’t want to be alone. I’ll only dwell on my future date with Charlene. I don’t even know if I’m angry with her anymore. Just tired and numb.

She turns to me with wide eyes. “Come up with me.”

My heart skips a beat or three. I want nothing more than to come up with her, but only if she’s saying it for real. Not because she’s tired, and a little vulnerable from sleep. “Are you sure?” I should ask her the question I’ve been thinking about since Halloween. Ask her if she’ll be my girlfriend for real. But I’m scared of the answer. What if she says no? I don’t want to risk that hurt. If she doesn’t let me in. If she does let me in, and then destroys me.

“I’ve never been more sure of anything. I want you to come upstairs with me. I want you to stay the night and I want to wake up next to you.”

Sounds fucking amazing to me. “Okay.”

I’m still scared to touch her. If I lay hands on her on the way up, I don’t think I’ll be able to let her go, and she said nothing about wanting more than just my company. It wasn’t exactly a blatant invitation for more. Besides, I don’t think I want to go any further with this if it’s just for the night.

She pulls me through the front door, and my fingers trail through hers, sliding along her palm until the tips slip off.

“Make sure you lock the door.” I can’t help the request, even though I know she’s been looking after herself for years. But after Darryl invaded her space, I’m a little paranoid for her.

“Oh, don’t worry. I’ve been on hyper alert since you were here last.” I resist the urge to reach out to smooth the lines of her scrunched up forehead.

Now I’m doubly sure I shouldn’t have broached the subject. Now she’s remembering the last time I was here when I made her ex bleed, when I said she was mine. It might have been effective, but I scared her, and that’s the last thing I want to do.

“Maybe I should go.” I don’t want to, but I also don’t want to be the one who puts that look on her face.

“No.” She shakes her head, straightening up. “I don’t want you to go, Cole. I want you to stay the night.”

“It’s been a long day. You must be exhausted.” Not sure why I’m trying to cock block myself, but there it is.

“Listen.” She steps into me, placing her hands on my chest. “I don’t know exactly how you feel after a game. But I imagine you’re all hopped up on adrenaline, heart racing, energy coursing through you that you need some sort of release for.”

Her head tilts to the side as she studies me.

“Yeah. That sounds about right.”

“Well, that’s how I feel right now. I did this huge thing. Despite a few hitches, everything went smoothly. We raised a bunch of money for a great cause. Now I’m restless. I need to work this off. I need you.” As if to emphasize her point, she trails a hand down along each ridge of my abdomen.

I want that so much, but not like this. My palm closes over her wayward hand, and I lift it to my mouth in an apology. I don’t want her to feel rejected, but I can’t do this. At least not like this.

“I can’t, Coffee Girl.” I swallow hard and glance at my feet to avoid the disappointment in her eyes.

“Sure looks like you can,” she says, undeterred, and I can feel my cock twitching under her speculative look.

“It’s not that I don’t want to. Just not like this. I don’t want to be a release for you. I want to be more, because this thing we’ve got going on...” I step closer to her until we’re a hairsbreadth away from touching. I want nothing more than to close that last slim gap between us, but I resist. “This relationship is a lot of things. It’s fun, and easy, and challenging. It’s become so much more to me.” I take a deep breath, closing my eyes, but I can still feel the heat from her body, and it drives my words. “The next time my hands are on your body, I want you to know whoyou belong with. I want you to belong with me. I want to kiss every inch of you, touch every curve, and know that you’re mine and I’m yours and we’re in this together for real. Because you want to, not because you’re trying to scare off your ex, or keep mine away. This is real for me, and I can’t sleep with you again if you don’t feel the same way. It would hurt too much.”

Everything about her softens, her mouth goes slack, eyes wide and shoulders sinking. Even her proximity isn’t enough to warm my numb fingers. Great, this might be it for us.

“Yes.”

What does that even mean? “Yes?”

“Yes. I’ll be yours for real.”

Hope swells in my chest like an over-inflated balloon. “Really?”

“Yes. I want you too. After I saw you with Charlene. I wanted to rip her hair out.”

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