Page 59 of Bad Teammate
Secretly, I was happy he’d said no—I was wiped, and the pull of sleep was becoming more enticing with every passing second. I wiggled deeper into the mattress, like a cat curling up into her favorite spot.
“You’re not mad at me, are you?” I asked sleepily.
“No.”
“Promise me.”
“I promise you, I’m not even closeto being mad.”
“Thank you,” I whispered. “You’re a sweet guy, Derek.”
“You’re a sweet girl.” He wrapped his thick arm around me and whispered in my ear. “Thank you for playing piano for me, Katerina. You play so beautifully.”
I gave a happy whimper.
Thank you for being the guy I want to play for.
20
Derek
I stayed with Katerina, her rhythmic breaths deepening as I held her in my arms, until she fell asleep. It didn’t take long. We’d stayed up so late. I was beat, too; we’d just shared a powerful, emotionally draining night. One of the best nights of my life, but—
Man.
She’s a virgin.
No wonder she seemed so different from other girls. She was waiting for someone special—and she’d chosenme?I almost couldn’t believe it. I didn’t feel worthy. It seemed like she ought to wait for a better man—but the thought of anyoneelsehaving her made me sick to my stomach.
You’re mine,I thought, pulling her against my bare chest.
I never wanted to let her go. I wanted to claim her and protect her for the rest of my life, no matterwhatthe Dallas Devils had to say about it.
I think I’m falling for you,I thought, squeezing her in my arms. Even in her sleep, she gave the cutest little smile in response.
I looked at her pretty face and frowned.
Hell.
How did we go forward? What was the next step? I didn’t know. But it was late, and I wasn’t going to figure any of this out right now. And I had to get out of here before Niko came home and caught us together.
I softly kissed her on the brow and whispered in her ear. “Good night, beautiful.” Careful not to wake her, I slipped out of bed and tiptoed out of the room. Carefully, I shut the door behind me without making a sound.
As I crept down the hallway, my heart beat so hard I could hear my pulse ringing in my ears. I had this ominous feeling I was about to get caught—but that wasimpossible, right? One of us would’ve heard Niko come home. There was no way we’d both miss it …
But I stopped dead in my tracks when I faintly heard the strings of a guitar aimlessly being plucked.
Oh, fuck.
My heart dropped to my stomach.
In the living room, Niko held my guitar in his lap. His eyes, filled with loathing, tracked me as I sulked into the living room like a dog who knows he’s done something wrong. Julia sat next to him, resting her head on his shoulder, her eyes shut.
“Niko,” I said, grimacing at my teammate.
He mumbled something in Russian. He looked like shit—sweaty skin; glassy eyes; his cheeks drooping like melted wax. The buttons of his shirt were undone down to his belly. His hair was more of a haggard mess than usual. A half-full bottle of whiskey sat on the coffee table, the cap left unscrewed.
Julia opened her eyes and sat up. “Oh, hi, Mr. Reaves.”
