Page 29 of Trade Deadline

We pass through a final set of doors, stopping outside one with Thunder’s logo andLocker Roomwritten underneath.

“If you could wait here, he’ll be out shortly,” she says before walking away.

Nate—being the mischievous fuck he is—goes straight to the door and gently pushes it open. The pumping sound of music and out-of-tune singing comes through the gap. He lets it close softly before turning to face me, wearing a wicked grin. “Wow, there’s a lot of nipples in there.”

My laugh is shaky, and I playfully swat his arm. “Stop it, you’ll get us thrown out.”

“Shame they had their towels on.” He wiggles his eyebrows.

Forty minutes later, the door opens, and Blaine appears wearing a dark forest green suit that fits him like a glove. The color compliments his skin tone, and the crisp white shirt underneath is screaming for me to rip it off him.

His face lights up when he spots me. “You came,” he beams.

“Yeah, thank you for the tickets. It was a really great game.”

I really want to congratulate him and gush over his hat trick and assist, but I’m conscious that I don’t want to seem like a fanboy.

“I know you asked for one goal, but I thought I’d give you three.” He leans in, pressing a kiss to my cheek.

Holy shit.

Blaine Olsen just kissed me.

I sigh happily, my heart swelling in my chest as I practically melt under his touch.

“I was hoping that if I showed you how awesome I am, you might agree to go out with me.”

His eyes twinkle, but there’s a hint of uncertainty. This time, when he leans in, his voice is a seductive whisper. Deep and husky, and it goes straight to my balls.

“There’s something wrong with my eyes.” His lips tip up in a devilish grin. “Because I can’t seem to take them off you.”

A bark of laughter escapes me. “You’re funny.”

“I wasn’t trying to be funny this time, but am I funny enough to go on a date with me?”

Yes, yes, yes!

But I can’t give in just yet. I’m enjoying teasing him far too much.

“Why do you wanna take me out so bad?” I shove my hands into the back pockets of my jeans, trying to act aloof when all I really want is to kiss his gorgeous smile off his face. “You don’t seem like the going-on-dates type.”

He shrugs. “What can I say? You’re hot, I’m hot, we’ve got some serious vibes going on, why wouldn’t I?”

I tilt my head to the side.

Interesting. He oozes confidence, yet there are glimpses of vulnerability.

“He would love to go on a date with you,” Nate interrupts. “His favorite kind of food is Mexican and Italian, so if you take him for tacos, you’re guaranteed a good time, but he also likes walks in the park and does this weird thing where he mixes M&Ms into his popcorn.”

I glare at my soon-to-be ex-best friend.

“Nate,” I curse under my breath.

He shrugs, not giving a shit.

Blaine looks between us, his brow furrowing slightly, like he is trying to work out some crazy mathematical equation. “You two aren’t a thing, right?”

We both answer in tandem in a chorus of “Hell, no!” and “Fuck, no.”

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