Page 186 of Steeling Her
What does she mean by “The Carter”? I wanted to ask, but I ’don’t need to because Jody answers my question.
“You’re an asshole, Nick! You fucked me but thought of her the whole time, didn’t you?” I gasp and turn my head to face him. He shuts his eyes again. “Didn’t you!” She pushes him.
You would swear that he cheated on her’. Jody is used to getting her way, hence the big blow out, but I didn’t think she’d throw this big of a tantrum.
They’re not dating, thank god.
I knew Nick was single and he can do what he wants, but I can’t lie and say that it doesn’t hurt hearing him going back to his old ways. I wasn’t expecting him to stop sleeping with girls completely, but I’ve heard of rumors in the NFL of him sleeping around like he used to before we met. He’s slipped back into the old player routine.
“Get into my office. Now!” Dallas orders Jody, but first, she has to apologize to Nick for her outburst. Once she finishes apologizing, she pushes a glaring Jody into her office and comes back up to talk to him. “I hope this won’t cause a conflict in our services. Carter is one of the best on our team. You chose the right one to help you.” She smiles at him, trying to smooth over what just happened. “I’m so terribly sorry, Mr. Jackson. It won’t happen again, I can promise you that.” She shuffles back down to her office to keep the demon in her cage.
I’m still in shock, and so is Nick but he nods anyway.
He slept with her? Her of all fucking people in his entire state? Is he—
Why are you mad? I thought you were over him,my subconscious teases me.
I am over him,I tell myself.
Removing ourselves from the hallway, we enter my office and I lean back on the closed door, thinking about what just transpired.
He’s the guy she slept with on the plane journey home. He’s the athlete.
I ’didn’t notice that he was staring at me while I thought about all of this in my head. He clears his throat, and I flick my eyes to the noise. We just stare at one another for an extended period of time. All I want to do is run and be alone, but I have to work. I need to work.
I straighten my shoulders and turn my work mode on once again.
“What can I help you with today?” I fold my arms over my chest and stand as tall as I could, trying to forget the fact that he just slept with a colleague of mine.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for that to happen, Carter. I didn’t know she worked here,” he begins his apology but I don’t need one. We’re not together.
“What can I help you with today?” I repeat myself with a little more of a bite in my tone. I felt a chill from my own words. I’ve never been like this before with someone, let alone a client.
“My shoulder.” He drops it and I nod.
“Sit on the bed,” I order him and he follows. get my tray of tape ready to strap him up in case he needs it. I push it over to where he’s sitting and ask, “Do you have a shirt on underneath?” He nods in response. “Can you take off your top?” I instruct him. I need to feel his muscles to see what’s going on with him. I would usually tell someone to remove their shirt too, but I’m not sure I can handle seeing him like that; not after that commercial.
He peels away his tight, fitting top to reveal his white shirt underneath. I lift his sleeve and feel his skin. I start having flashbacks of us in between the sheets on his old bed haunting my mind right now. The way he ground his hips into me with our heat mixing together.
I had to take my hands off him for a moment to regain my focus.
“Are you alright?” He turns his head towards me, inspecting my face. The truth is, I’m not. I’m the furthest thing from alright. My stomach is in knots. I’m so nervous being around him. I nod anyway and place my hands on him again.
I roll back the sleeve of his shirt to get a better look at it. No visible bruising, and everything looks to be in place.
“I need you to lift your arm up for me.” I tap his arm and he does as he’s told. I press my fingers into his skin to feel for something unusual or out of place internally. His muscles are tense because he has his arms lifted up, but they’re a little too tense. “I need you to relax, Nick,” I ask him. “Take a deep breath in and hold it for three seconds.” He does what I say and holds it in. “Good, now release it for me.” And he does again. His body relaxes but his muscles are still tense. “Do it again.” I instruct him once more and he does it again.
The tension has reduced but it’s still there.
“You’re too tense,” I tell him and he chuckles.
“I think we both know why.” He sucks in a breath and looks away from me. I recognize that, that was another moment that he should have kept inside his mind but he didn’t.
“Why?” I ask.
“It doesn’t matter.” He shakes his head and goes for another deep breath to carry out the routine again.
“No, tell me why you’re so tense. Maybe I could help. Is it Jody? She won’t come in,” I keep asking him, and he slowly but surely turns his head around to look at me once more. That look he’s giving me is making my heart beat erratically.
