Page 9 of The Grinder

Like two teenagers, they spread out on the bed with the laptop between them as they Googled Riley and clicked on the first listing for a site called hockeydb.com.

Vivi whistled as soon as the site came up. “Damn. He’s hot.”

She grinned at the breathless appreciation in her sister’s voice.

“And he’s even hotter in person.”

Which he totally was. Tall. Dark. Handsome. Wicked grin and green eyes that made her want to kiss him…which made no sense at all.

She’d gone back and forth all day about accepting the tickets, had tried to tell herself she really shouldn’t accept them.

She hadn’t been kidding when she’d told him she’d never been to a game. And Vivi had every right to be shocked about her wanting to go. It definitely wasn’t something she’d ever thought she’d do. And especially not as the guest of one of the players. Who wanted to take her out for a drink after the game.

She should’ve told him no and stuck to her answer. But there’d been something about him…

She’d already checked out his page on the Redtails site at work this afternoon, but now she read over his stats again.

Riley Hatch. Six-two. Two-ten. Just turned twenty-nine a month ago. He’d played for five different leagues, including Boston University. She hadn’t expected that, which made her wrinkle her nose at her own arrogance.

“This is the guy who gave you tickets to the game? What did he want?”

“What do you mean?”

Vivi rolled her eyes. “I mean, what does he want from you?”

“He wants us to go out with the team after the game for drinks.”

Vivi’s eyes got even bigger. “No fucking way. Seriously?”

All right, now Vivi was starting to get on her nerves. She adored her younger sister but sometimes…

“Hey!” Aly smacked Vivi on the arm. “Why wouldn’t he?”

Vivi knocked her shoulder against Aly’s in retaliation. “You know that’s not what I meant. I just mean, athletes have never been your thing. I can’t believe you said yes.”

“I didn’t exactly say yes. Yet. I told him I might have plans.”

Aly snorted. “Which, of course, you don’t.”

Her sister knew her too well. “I know, but…I’m not sure what he wants.”

Vivi’s eyebrows rose. “He wants what they all want. The question is, what do you want? If you want to go out with the guy, then do it. It’s not like you have to sleep with him. I don’t think he expects sex for a pair of tickets.”

“I know that. He seems really nice. And when he smiles… No lie, I swear my ovaries exploded. Seriously hot.”

Vivi raised her hand as if to testify. “No argument from me. The guy is totally fuckable. You should jump his bones, which I know you won’t, but still.”

Was she really that much of a puritan? No, she didn’t sleep around. Never had. She had to have a connection with a guy before she fell into bed with him. Otherwise, there was no point.

Yes, she’d felt an immediate reaction to Riley, but that didn’t mean she had to jump into bed with him right away.

Then again, Riley probably jumped in bed with every girl he asked out for drinks, and when she told him no, she’d never see him again.

“I’m not going to jump his bones tomorrow night.”

Vivi rolled her eyes again. “Obviously. Just don’t expect to hear from him again when you don’t put out, you know?”

Aly heard the bitterness in her sister’s voice and had the urge to go completely against her nature and beat the living shit out of Vivi’s ex-asshole of a boyfriend who’d crushed her heart and her spirit. Jamie Dunbar might have a multimillion-deal with the NFL, but the prick had made her sister cry for weeks, and if Aly ever saw him again, she’d smack the shit out of him.

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