Page 86 of Defending her Heart

“You didn’t drive here?”

“I’ll tag along with you. Where’s everyone heading tonight?” Nash asks the growing crowd.

Riley and Walker are oblivious to anyone but each other, Declan has his arm draped over Rowan’s shoulder and says something that makes her, Darius, and Mindy laugh, and Miles is flirting with every female in the vicinity.

Dec tips his chin up. “Whiskey Buckle?” Like we’ve gone anywhere else all season.

“That works.” Nash takes my hand and heads toward the parking garage.

“Dude. Your legs are like ten times longer than mine,” I huff as I scramble to keep up with him. “What’s the rush? No one has even left yet,” I say, looking over my shoulder.

Rowan’s the only one who looks our way. She gives me a smile and a wave then returns her attention to Mindy.

Traitor.

When we reach the garage, he finally slows. “Where did you park?”

“Hand me my keys and I’ll show you.”

“Hm.” He presses the key fob, and since he hasn’t released my hand, I’m forced to follow him up and down the rows of cars. “It would be faster if you told me where in this jungle of cars you parked, but I’m in no rush.”

“Could have fooled me,” I mutter under my breath. Because my legs are tired from my morning workout then sitting and standing for three hours during the game, I tug on Nash’s hand and lead him toward my car.

When he spots it, he presses the fob again and smiles. “I knew I’d find it.”

I snort. “Right.” He opens the passenger side door and stands next to it, expecting me to climb in. “It’s my car. I’m driving.”

“It’s your car, but I’ll drive.”

“I don’t think so.”

“Why not?”

I fold my arms across my chest. “Why do you need to? Is this a male chauvinist thing?”

Nash scrunches his brows. “No. It’s a gentlemanly thing.”

“What if I’m not in the mood for a...gentleman?”

If he’s going to stir emotions in my chest, I’m going to stir something of his. Nash’s eyes darken and he stares at me with an intensity that makes me even wetter than I already am.

As quickly as the lust fills his eyes, it leaves. Or at least, it lessens. Nash crooks his neck and motions to the seat. “Please get in the car, Kendall. You’ve been out in the cold all day. You’re going to freeze if you stand out here much longer.”

I don’t point out that he's been in the cold longer than I have. Granted, he was running around making tackles and getting sweaty while I sat or stood in the stands clapping and cheering.

I fix my winter hat, pull it over my ears, and let out a huff. I was cold a few minutes ago until his hand warmed me from the outside in. There’s no need to tell him that.

“You’re an ass.” I drop into the seat and yank the belt across my chest.

“Yeah, but you love this ass,” he says as he closes the door.

It’s not often Nash will flirt like that. He’s always so serious unless we’re both naked. Then his dirty talking mouth comes out and I go feral. No complaints here.

He climbs behind the wheel and adjusts the seat to accommodate his long legs. When he starts the car, Savage Garden comes blasting out.

“Damn.” He turns down the volume and chuckles. “Sounds similar to my pre-game music.”

“Rowan had control of the music on the way here.” It’s my playlist, but Nash doesn’t need to know that.

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