Page 34 of Game Changer

My ears strain to hear anything in the distance, but mostly I’m dialed into her.

Her scent. Her heartbeat. The feel of her in my arms. I swallow the groan as she shifts against me.

Her hand brushes my abs where my shirt has ridden up. The pull I feel deepens into an ache.

“Nova.”

She tilts her head in the dark, the only indication she heard me.

“How’d you find out your fiancé left?”

“A note in the mailbox the same day as Mari’s wedding invitation.” Her usually bright voice is soft and reflective. “He said our life wasn’t what he wanted, that I wasn’t what he wanted. I found out later he took our joint savings and stole from the company we both worked at. I’ve been on probation from work while they investigate.”

Fuck.

That had to hurt like hell, and she’s trying to stand on her own feet.

I’m a king with no room at my side for a queen. Hanging with me will only mess with her plans.

If I want to protect her, I have to tamp down on this attraction.

I pull back and scan the horizon for any signs of wildlife.

“Come on. I’m taking you home.”

9

NOVA

“You fall asleep on me?” Clay asks as we turn in to Country Hills.

“Maybe.”

The entire drive home, I was aware of him filling the car with his big body and even bigger presence.

“Don’t make me carry you back up the drainpipe,” he drawls.

I laugh in the dark, my wrist throbbing dully in time with the bass from the speakers.

The pain is an afterthought.

Tonight, I ran through Red Rocks with the baddest guy in basketball, and I felt like a wild girl.

With him, I don’t have to pretend. Confessing what I’ve been holding in felt freeing.

Clay’s different than anyone I’ve met. I liked getting to know more about him and sensed he doesn’t talk to many people. For a man who lives his life in the spotlight, he’s so private.

“I’m sure you could carry me before your knee problems.”

“I could carry you now. You’re a hell of a lot lighter than what I lift.”

His gruff response thrills me.

I’m thrown back to when I was nestled between his legs, my hand on his chest through the thin T-shirt under his sweatshirt.

I didn’t realize how long it’s been since I was with a guy, not to mention since I was touched or held in a way that made me feel alive.

He must know the effect he has on me, but I want to believe it’s not one-way. For a moment in the dark, I could have sworn he wanted me, too.

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