Page 103 of The Baller

“I called in some I.O.U.s from Ben and Henry.” She shrugged, though from the way her eyes sparkled, it took me a second to realize what she meant.

“You snuck out?”

“I did, in the storm. It’s freezing outside.” Her cheeks must have ached from how wide she was smiling. She was smiling so hard at what was a very impressive achievement I couldn’t hold in my own smile, even though I was still kind of stunned.

“You snuck out like a teenager?”

“I’ve never done it before,” she giggled.

This girl. This fucking girl, who’d snuck out of one of the most secure buildings in the world so she could see me… there wasn’t enough space in my chest to stop my heart from bursting. I’d lost count of how often I thanked whoever was listening that I’d been in Brown’s at the exact same time she had, but I did it again just so they really knew how lucky I felt.

We turned to the guys as they stopped in front of us. “We’ll be downstairs.”

“Thank you.”

I eased the door closed and turned to Radley, who was unbuttoningher coat. “I still can’t believe you snuck out. It’s freezing.”

“Believe it.” My dick was hard before her coat hit the floor and she was pulling off her hoodie. “Wanna warm me up?”

“Hell, yes.”

It was the last thing I said before my lips crashed to hers.

“Iknow what I’m thankful for this year.”

“Oh yeah? What’s that?”

It took a second to understand what she was saying through the giggles. “Your tongue.”

I tried to act shocked, but the sound of her laughter only had me laughing too. “Radley Andrews, what in the name of sex maniacs have I turned you into?”

The giggle died down to a quiet pop. “The person I was always supposed to be.”

I hadn’t expected her response to punch me straight in the chest, but it did. She’d taken hold of me, she owned me. Fuck that, I would willingly give myself over to her any day of the week, and I wasn’t ready for her to leave me just yet.

Sliding on top of her, I bracketed her between my arms. I needed a few more minutes of looking at her, searing her into my brain like she was seared into my heart. I’d been without her for twenty-four hours and I’d missed her. I’d felt her absence deep in my bones. And now I wouldn’t see her for a week. I tried not to blink so I wouldn’t miss a single part of the way her big golden eyes were smiling up at me.

As I watched her, I feltit. A physical shift in the depths of my soul making room for her as she rooted into me, confirming what I already knew.

“My mom’s press secretary had a question about us.”

“It was going to happen. We knew she was next after Lowe,” I replied, dropping a kiss to her nose. “How are you feeling about it?”

“I wish I’d got to tell my mom and dad first, but it’s okay. I want to live my life, and you’re part of it. If people see us, then they see us.” She smiled, tracing her finger around the contours of my face. I wanted to stay in this moment forever. “When we get back to New York, can we go on dates? Can we do things couples do?”

“You bet your ass we can,” I grinned, surrounding her mouth with mine before lifting up so I could look at her again. The one thing wrong with kissing – she was too close to look at. “I need to maximize my time before training starts again. We can do Rockefeller Center, and the Empire State. A hockey game, or…”

“Okay, Romeo, one date at a time.” Her eyes widened as she caught sight of the clock on the side table. “Shit, I need to go. The dinner will be finishing soon.”

“Oh man…” Out of nowhere, my lips descended on her neck, blowing raspberries until she scrambled out from underneath me with a squeal, and rushed across the room. “I feel so used.”

I leaned back, positioning myself against the ridiculous amount of pillows so I could watch her get dressed. There was something about the way she eased back into the bra and panties I’d removed that had my dick twitching.

“If I could stay, I would, but I’m on borrowed time. My brothers can only put my mom off from checking on me for so long, and they’re terrible at lying.” She disappeared inside her hoodie,myorange hoodie I had yet to get back from her, and something told me it was unlikely I ever would. I didn’t give a shit. Seeing her in my clothes made her feel mine.

Mine.

“I’ll remember that for when I eventually meet them.”

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