Page 66 of Score to Settle
“Jake’s always been good at talking himself out of trouble. You might be blinded by his charm, but I’m not.”
I grit my teeth, forcing my voice to stay low. “You haven’t asked him about it though, have you?”
“No need. Saw it on the news.”
“Yeah, and that’s never wrong.” Sarcasm drips from my voice as I stride across the kitchen. At the doorway I turn back to Dylan. “Maybe it isn’t me who needs to think about how well I really know Jake.”
Dylan opens his mouth like he’s going to fire back another retort, but he doesn’t and I head back to my room and open my laptop, needing the escape of my novel as my heart continues to race. But instead, all I do is stare at the blinking cursor, unable to concentrate. I think back to Dylan’s resentment and misplaced blame. Anyone can see how much Jake is hurting over his brother’s injury. He blames himself as much as Dylan does. But I overstepped just now.
I close my laptop and flop onto the bed. Maybe I’m losing myself in their problems because it’s easier than thinking of my own. Like Tim’s reply to my email this afternoon.
We’ll talk about this the next time you’re in the office.
It’s obvious he’s not happy, but at least I still have a job. For now. But it only makes me feel even guiltier for letting Tim think in the interview that my knowledge of sports included football. Not to mention the small fact I didn’t disclose my previous connection to Jake when he gave me this assignment. Something that seems a lot worse considering we’re now sleeping together.
Then there’s Jake. We need to talk about what this is between us. All I know for sure is however complicated a future with Jake might be, I’ve never wanted anything more.
THIRTY-THREE
JAKE
The weights clang as I place them back on the rack, my muscles burning from the intensity of the workout. Despite the vast space of the gym at Stormhawks Park and the blast of AC, the air reeks of the sweat of my teammates as the coaches push us through a grueling gym routine.
It’s Tuesday morning and even though spirits are high from Sunday’s win, every one of us is focused—our thoughts on five days’ time and the penultimate game of the season against Chase’s Kansas City Trailblazers.
“Looking good, Jakey-boy,” Billy calls from the bench press beside me. “Trying to impress a certain journalist, eh?” He waggles his eyebrows at me and laughs. If there was a bad bone in Billy’s body, I might be tempted to tell him to eat shit, but Billy is all about the fun, so I just roll my eyes.
“Any truth to those luuuurv rumors?” he continues.
I chuckle. “They’re called rumors for a reason, Vargas.” I turn away before he can see the smile I’m fighting. I might love Billy, but he’s as discreet as Mama when someone is stupid enough to be standing in the way of her getting what she wants.
The reality is, I can’t stop thinking about Harper. The way her eyes sparkle when she laughs at one of my stupid jokes.How soft her skin feels under my fingertips. I’m counting down the minutes until I can be alone with her again. It’s great to have Mama and Dylan home, but I wasn’t joking about getting a hotel room. I already miss the feel of Harper naked in my arms. Especially knowing we’ll be apart from tomorrow as Harper spends Christmas with Mia. Maybe it’s time I get my own place in the city again.
I have tonight to make the most of Harper—to show her how special she is before we spend three days apart. It already feels too long. I can’t even think about the assignment ending on Sunday and not seeing each other every day.
It was a struggle to drive straight this morning with how much I wanted to pull over and kiss her. The only thing that stopped me was the knowledge that Harper deserves better than a fumble in my truck. That and knowing she’s packed that red two-piece to join me for a swim later.
Music thuds from the speakers, drowning out the grunts of the team and the light ribbings. I throw myself into the weights, forcing myself to think of nothing but the workout until my thighs and arms burn. Only when Coach Allen calls us for the tactics talk do I catch my breath and grab some water and a towel, wiping the sweat from my face. We might be leading the AFC West, but with two games left, nothing’s locked in. Our playoff spot isn’t guaranteed yet. Coach is straight to business, jabbing a finger at the whiteboard covered in arrows. The passion in his voice is contagious as he talks us through the plays we’ll be running ahead of Sunday’s game.
When Coach wraps up, I lag behind as the team hits the showers, pretending to study the whiteboard as the locker room empties. I spend longer than I need to in the shower, and when I shut off the water, the locker room is silent. This close to Christmas my teammates are all focused on last-minuteshopping and spending time with their families. I throw on a tee and a pair of shorts and go in search of Harper.
I find her in the corner of the empty lounge, sitting cross-legged on the couch, her laptop balanced on her thighs. Her hair is swept up into a loose ponytail and she’s lost in concentration, biting her lower lip, fingers flying over the keys. She looks up as I stride toward her and the smile on her face makes my heart judder.
“Hey,” she says, and I catch a glimmer of uncertainty in her features, like she isn’t sure how to greet me. Is it because we’re in public or because we haven’t defined what this is yet?
“Hey yourself,” I say with a smile. “I really want to kiss you right now.”
She closes the lid of her laptop, a cute little smile touching her lips. “What’s stopping you?”
I arch an eyebrow. “You OK to make this public? Because for the record, I am!”
“It’s already public.” She swipes her phone and shows me another story on the gossip site. It’s my soppy face from the game and beside it is one of Harper in the skybox looking back at me with the biggest grin on her face. “I’m named in it now, too. They know I’m fromSports Magazine.”
“Shit. Are you OK?” I search her face as I drop onto the couch beside her.
Harper frowns. “I hate that people might think I’m sleeping my way to a big scoop.” She looks down, avoiding my gaze.
I gently tilt her chin up so her eyes meet mine. “Harper, why do you care what anyone else thinks? I know the truth. You know the truth. Screw everyone else.”
