Page 75 of Reputation
Pushing away from the window, Jax could feel his erection straining uncomfortably against his pants, and he knew that while Eavie wasn’t in his bed, he still wouldn’t be getting any sleep tonight.
Chapter Twenty Nine
Eavie
Eavie sat in her usual spot between Molly and Mandy, sipping on a cold beer.She let the alcohol soothe her inner turmoil as she settled herself in for the game.
She’d woken up that morning feeling guilty.It was ridiculous, she knew.She had nothing to feel guilty about.But no matter how many times she reminded herself of that, her stupid heart refused to let go of the idea that the person she should have been out with last night was Jax.
She let out a sigh and took another sip of her beer.As she swallowed, the lights in the arena began to flash, signaling the start of the game.The teams went through the routine of skating onto the ice before the players took their positions.The loudspeaker boomed as the announcer broadcasted the starting line for each team.
Eavie focused on the game as the clock ticked down the minutes, watching the Royals and cheering them on as they pulled out the win they needed.
The atmosphere in the arena was electric, and the general elation from the players after the final buzzer was easy to see.
With the game finished, the three ladies followed the same routine they always did.Molly went straight to the media room, where she herded the players she needed and gathered the reporters.
Eavie and Mandy waited outside the locker room, as was their norm.When Sam and Jason came out, they confirmed they didn’t need anything, so they walked back to their offices to grab their things.A watermelon-colored Post-it Note caught her eye as Eavie stopped by her desk for her bag.
Quarterly summary to financetoday,the note read in Eavie’s neat handwriting.
“Shit,” Eavie grumbled to herself as she tilted her head back to stare at the ceiling.She’d been so distracted today that she’d forgotten to send the notes she had worked through with Sam to the accounting team.
“What?”asked Mandy as she stepped out of her office.
Sighing, Eavie dropped her bag down.“Nothing,” she said.“I forgot to do something before the game earlier.It’s fine.I’m just going to do it now before I go.”
“Do you want me to wait for you?”Mandy asked.
“No, no,” Eavie said, shaking her head.“It’s Friday.You should go home.It’ll take me about twenty minutes anyway.I need to review it before I send it off.”
“Okay, if you’re sure,” she said, shoving her arms into her jacket.
“I’m good, I promise,” Eavie said as she sat in her desk chair.“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Okay, good night.”Mandy smiled, waving as she walked down the hallway.
Grumbling to herself, Eavie woke her computer and got to work on the task she had completely forgotten about.
Half an hour later, she finally sent the email containing the document the team needed to prepare their quarterly financials.Leaning back in her chair, she arched her back, stretching the muscles that were tight from such a long day.
Not paying attention to her surroundings, she didn’t hear the footsteps approaching outside her office.
A muffled noise had her glancing to her doorway.She gasped, one hand flying to her chest.“Jesus, Jax!”she said, recovering from the sudden uptick in her heart rate.“You scared me.What are you doing here so late?”She glanced at the time on her computer.It was late enough that everyone should have gone home by now.She had assumed she was the only one left at the facility—she certainly hadn’t expected Jax to be here still.
Instead of answering, he silently walked into her office, closing the door behind him.In the quiet, she heard the soft click of the lock.
Turning, he slowly approached her desk.
Remaining seated, she watched him draw closer, catching the storm clouds brewing in the gray depths of his gorgeous eyes.Her heartbeat reacted, beating rapidly in her chest again.His eyes captured hers and held her prisoner where she was.She was frozen in her chair, and as he reached her desk, she could feel the sparks of electricity, lit by the fire in his eyes, vibrate across her skin.Stopping just on the other side, he gazed down at her.
“Jax,” she said breathlessly.“What are you doing here?”
The question was reminiscent of last night, only this time, she had a feeling the answer, and the ending, would be different.
She held his gaze as he stood there looking at her before her eyes flicked down to his chest, clad in a gray dress shirt.The cuffs were rolled up to his elbows, and the skin of his forearms was sprinkled with dark hair.The corded muscles flexed as he clenched his fists.
“I had to see you,” he said, his deep, smoky voice bringing her attention back to his face.
