Page 23 of Reputation
“Yeah, saw her on my way in.Dude, she’s so hot,” answered Scottie.
Jax’s hands turned into fists at his side, his usually calm temper flaring.
“Too bad she’s as cold as an ice rink.No wonder they called her the Ice Queen at the Heirs,” laughed Mitchell.
“Her name is Eavie,” Jax gritted out through clenched teeth.“And maybe she wouldn’t be so frosty to you if you spoke to her without hitting on her.”
“Whoa, someone’s pissy this morning,” Scottie countered.
“Know from experience?”Mitchell laughed.“We all saw you chatting with her yesterday, and she didn’t look happy.Does that mean you were hitting on her too?”
A hot rush of guilt pierced his gut as an image of her face yesterday popped into his mind.“All I’m saying is that she’s not here for you to ogle like an object.She’s part of this team and deserves some respect,” he said.
The irony of his words wasn’t lost on him.He also knew that he wasted his breath.He’d heard the comments about her floating around the locker room since she’d joined the team.
The second Jax entered the lounge, his eyes instantly went to her.Her presence was unexpected, and yet he was so fucking happy to see her.She stood in front of the many chafing dishes, chatting with Mandy as she reached forward and scooped food onto her plate, the tight fit of her pants stretching over her perfect, perky ass.
“So much for not ogling her,” Mitchell snickered behind him.
“Fuck off,” Jax growled, only inciting more laughter from them both as they wandered to get food.
Something about her being here felt right.He couldn’t deny she was a beauty.A rose within the sea of ragged, smelly men.He told himself acknowledging that wasn’t as crass as calling her hot.Honestly, that didn’t even begin to describe her.
Today, she was dressed in Royals’ colors—dressed inhiscolors.The idea called to something primal within him.Seeing her wear his team colors was sexy as hell.
As he scanned her outfit, he followed the trail of her back, down her hips, ass, and legs, all perfectly outlined in her fitted pants.He was reminded once again of how long they were.They were built to be wrapped around a man while he pounded into her.
Jesus.That thought sent his rushing blood straight south, and he could feel himself hardening at the image of those legs wrapped around him while he did just that.He snapped his gaze back up before his quickly hardening cock became visible through his jeans.
She must have felt his heated stare because she glanced over her shoulder a heartbeat later, her cool blue gaze zeroing in on him.When their eyes connected, he saw a flash of crystallized heat in hers, and he knew exactly where her mind had gone.
He released the full effect of his smile on her, adding a wink he knew would stoke her fire.Unfortunately, her eyes quickly turned icy, but not before he saw that mesmerizing blush spread up her neck.
Perhaps that wasn’t the best idea, based on the biting look, but at least he knew she wasn’t completely unaffected by him.
Smiling grimly to himself, he took one last perusal of her figure from behind before he headed toward one of the tables.He approached where Graham, Brooks, Alex and Luke lounged, half-eaten plates of food in front of them.Pulling out a chair, he picked up their conversation about tonight’s game and the morning skate they had just come from.
“I think the strategy is sound, pairing our second line to the Volts’ third.The line is weaker for them, but we have strength spread across all of ours,” Brooks said.
“You don’t think it leaves a weak spot in our top line,” commented Alex, “putting our stronger defensive pair on the third line?”
“Jax,” Luke, another winger, said as he sat down, “What’s your take on the roster for tonight’s game?”
“The coaches have been studying the lines all summer.I took part in some of the meetings.Theoretically, the strategy provides strength and opportunity in all lines.I think it’s worth a shot, but Coach isn’t afraid to make adjustments mid-game if necessary,” he finished.
They moved on to other conversations as Jax caught sight of Eavie again out of the corner of his eye.She was still chatting with Mandy in line, and as he watched, Patty walked up behind her, drawing both their attention.
Monitoring the interaction, he saw Patty looked nervous as he spoke to her.He figured the kid was taking a shot at asking her out—that newly drafted, young professional hockey player attitude making him think women would throw themselves at the chance to date a pro athlete.He wasn’t wrong.It happened to all of them.Still, he didn’t enjoy seeing it happen to her.
“Is that Patty talking to Eavie?”Alex asked when he noticed Jax watching the two, his question drawing the table’s attention to the pair.
“Do you think he’s making a pass at her?”Brooks asked.
“Poor kid, he doesn’t stand a chance,” Graham said mockingly.
“For fuck’s sake,” Jax muttered to himself.He’d known his scolding to Mitchell and Scott had been a waste of breath, but he didn’t like having to repeat this conversation.“None of you stand a chance with her,” he shot back, giving the three of them a hard stare before returning his attention to Eavie.
He heard Luke laugh beside him at the hurt expressions on their faces.Married for eight years, Luke was one of a few on the team Jax could take comfort in knowing wouldn’t be constantly lusting after her.
