Page 53 of Reputation
Based on his recent dates, Jax clearly wasn’t looking for a relationship, and minus the impulsive night at The Spot that almost led to career suicide, she wasn’t the type to do casual sex—which was just another reason nothing would ever happen between them.
Chapter Twenty One
Eavie
The first five days of the trip followed a similar routine for Eavie.The day after they arrived in Vancouver, the team played the Islanders and came away with another win to add to their points.They traveled to Seattle the following day, where the team faced the Thunder the same evening.Back-to-back games on the road were tough on the players, and the Royals winning streak ended with a loss to the home team.
Following that game, they continued their southern route to San Francisco.They had arrived the night after their game against the Thunder, giving the team a full day to recuperate.The rest seemed to be what they needed as they returned to dominate the game against the Rock with a 5-1 win.
Eavie spent her days working on the go or from her hotel room.She watched every game from their assigned box at each arena and kept herself busy during the lulls in her job by helping Molly.She technically didn’t need to attend all the games, especially on the weekend, but since she was there and had nothing else to do, she took advantage of the free ticket and excellent seats.Besides, she genuinely enjoyed watching the guys play, and something about working for the team made spectating more enjoyable.
She and Molly shared a two-bedroom suite at each stop.When they weren’t working, they ventured into the city, searching for interesting local eateries and cafés to enjoy their evenings off.
They landed in Las Vegas the following Wednesday, one week into their stretch, where they had accommodations at the famous MGM Grand.The suite she shared with Molly was twice the size of the last three, containing a kitchen, dining room, office, and two luxurious bedrooms.Last night had been their first evening there, and since there was no game, they enjoyed dinner and a show at the Flamingo Lounge, which was famous for its showgirls.
Their first week had been packed with travel and games, but the schedule stretched out a bit from here.Tonight, they faced the Aces, following which they had a three-day gap until their next game in Los Angeles, the last stop on their west coast trip.With a convenient schedule gap, the team planned to take advantage of their location in Sin City and hit the strip for a night out.Some team members planned to head to one of the many casinos for some gambling, while others planned to let loose at the nightclubs.
Continuing their strong run, the Royals defeated the Aces 4-0, giving Marc his first shutout of the season.As she did after every game, Eavie followed Sam and Molly to the press room, where she waited for the interviews to be completed.The players who made media appearances changed each game, but Sam was always part of the post-game interview group.
After the game in Vancouver, Eavie started positioning herself at the back of the room, behind the cluster of reporters, where she was less likely to be in the way—or noticed.It also ensured that she would not be in Jax’s path if he were part of the post-game interviews as he came in for his scheduled appearance.Not that it was the reason she’d chosen to change her position.She just preferred to be out of the way.
That voice in the back of her mind cackled at the weak justification.Truthfully, she knew it was because the incident from a week ago left her feeling completely out of control.It was not a feeling she was used to, but it was becoming one she recognized whenever Jax was around.He affected her in ways no other man did, and it confused the fuck out of her.
As Sam answered what seemed like the same questions at every post-game session, Eavie’s gaze dropped to the industrial carpet covering the floor, her mind wandering.The red and gray pattern blurred in her vision as her thoughts returned to that first night.
She had been standing just inside the door, to the side of the table and reporters.She’d been watching the interviews when an intense heat penetrated through her relaxed black blazer and white button-down to soak into her essence.She drew in a sharp breath at the flash of desire that slithered down her spine.She hadn’t needed to turn around to know Jax was standing close behind her—too close.
Her heart beat erratically at his proximity.Her pulse fluttered at the base of her throat like a butterfly on crack.She knew she should take a step away, in literally any direction except backwards, and create distance between them before anyone noticed.She had been worried one of the reporter’s sharp gazes would see them standing so close and read into her visceral reactions.
Despite her worry, she couldn’t unstick her feet from the polished concrete floor.The longer she stood with him at her back, the more she wanted to cave to her body’s cravings and close the minuscule space between them until she was flush against him, their bodies perfectly aligned.
While she could not find the strength to move away, she managed to hold on to her willpower, as if by the last vestiges of her control.They remained only inches apart in the room’s dark corner, time seemingly standing still as the rest of the world continued moving.Amid the conversations happening in the center of the room, the only thing she seemed to hear was the sound of his annoyingly calm breathing, while her heart felt like she had just sprinted a mile as fast as she could.
When she felt his fingers brush the backside of her hip, hidden by the heavy veil of her blazer, her lips parted as she sucked in an audible breath.Tingles followed the path as the tips of her suddenly sensitive breasts pushed at the material of her bra beneath her shirt.
Her eyelids grew heavy, and she fought with everything she had to keep them open and focused on an insignificant point in the room.
When Sam wrapped up his last question, Molly turned, signaling Jax to come forward.The brush of his fingers disappeared, breaking the spell that bound them in place.
She’d turned her body slightly to give him room to pass, which brought her face to face with him for the first time.When their eyes connected, she felt a deep hunger in her lower abdomen, answering the look in his stormy eyes.Reflected in the depths of his piercing gaze, she saw a smoldering fire and something resembling…need.
The emotions swirling around them were a heady cocktail that made her head swim and her knees weak.Neither spoke, the rippling of sensations as silent as winter’s night.In the heartbeat it took for her to turn and for him to step past, the myriad of emotions that sparked between them left her reeling.By the time she’d blinked, he was gone, and Sam was standing in front of her.
She’d released a shuddering breath she hadn’t known she’d been holding and tore her attention away from Jax.When Sam passed by her, he gave her a subtle nod to signal she should follow him.
Pasting on a smile that felt more like a grimace, she nodded back and began following her boss.As she exited the room, she couldn’t help but look back one last time.Jax was sitting at the table, looking relaxed and comfortable in his easy manner.A baseball hat with the Royals logo sat backward on his head, likely to hide his helmet hair, which was no doubt sweaty and slicked back.
God, what was it about a backward baseball cap that just looked so damnsexyon a man?
Adding to the already irresistible backward hat, his Royals t-shirt was stretched tight across his chest and arms, where she could see the muscles bunch and flex as he rested his arms on the table in front of him.
In the seconds she turned back, she watched him transform.A cocky,give me your best shotlook settled across his features.She added the perceptible change to her growing list of things she had discovered about him, further solidifying her new understanding of him.
As she stepped out the door and faced the bright gray hallway, she reluctantly accepted her fate.She was in serious trouble.
Once again yanked back to the present, Sam’s thanks to the reporters broke through her daydreaming.Blinking, she pulled her mind back to the room and stood up straight as he stepped away from the table.She followed him out the door and down the hall to wait for the rest of the team.
Thirty minutes later, Eavie and Molly were on their way to where the bus waited following the post-game media interviews.The team was completing their debrief inside since tomorrow was considered a day off.As they approached the door, they could hear the boisterous celebrations and conversations filtering into the hallway.Most of the team would take advantage of the locale by enjoying everything the city had to offer tonight, further fueling their high from the win.Molly’s only rule, delivered as a terrifying order they would be fools to disobey, was no strip clubs.
