Page 9 of Offside

I pull back, ready to walk away and in an instant, Karis grabs onto the back of my head and crushes her mouth against mine.

Something inside of me snaps and I waste no time, my tongue raiding in a claiming stroke. I do a mental fist pump and victory lap.

I wrap an arm around her lower back and splay my fingers wide, holding her solidly against me. Her fingers spear through my hair with a savage ferocity.

The kiss is urgent and fiery. Punishing and hostile.

I’m searching for forgiveness. She’s looking for revenge.

Karis pushes on her tiptoes and tugs the strands clasped in her tight grasp. The cruel ravishment and exploration between us is a heady cocktail, quick to ignite my body with needy lust.

I want to serve out my penance between her legs. This woman could make me beg if she wanted to. Beg for forgiveness that I would give her in spades.

But that’s not what’s going to happen.

The knock on the door followed by the sound of her name being called as it opens douses the flames of passion before we can even register the burn. Karis jerks out of my hold and severs our kiss.

With a muffled curse, she flings herself away from my body, only stopping when she grabs onto the back of the visitor’s chair.

I run a hand over my stubbled jawline, then reach for her elbow. She takes another step away, putting more space between us. Her eyes bore into mine, as if deploring me to keep my distance and keep quiet, before she breaks that connection and shakes her head.

Clearing her throat, she smooths a hand over her stomach, gathering her composure and once again reverting back to boss lady.

“Thank you, Ballas. I appreciate you stopping by to check on my uncle. I’ll be sure to tell him you said hello.”

I quirk an eyebrow at her ease in recovery. She’s quick on her feet, I’ll give her that. I’m still lost in the moment, my scalp throbbing where her fingers yanked at my hair.

And that’s not the only thing left throbbing.

I drop my hands in front of my tented pants and ignore the painful ache in my balls as the door opens wider and a young woman pops her head into the office.

“Come on in,” she calls out while I start counting to a hundred in order to calm my body down.

“I’m sorry to interrupt, Ms. Spurlock,” the young woman stammers as she glances between Karis and me with nervous regret. Her cheeks blush to match the oversized pink glasses perched on her nose. “Oh! Hello, Ballas. I didn’t mean to…I just saw Christine and she said I could stop by with the new samples we received for this upcoming season’s team gear.”

Karis nods and returns to her desk, waving the young woman in as she takes a seat.

“Of course, Amie. Come on over and show me what you’ve got. Ballas was just on his way out.” With one raised eyebrow, she gives me a dismissive glance. “We’ll see you when the season resumes, Ballas. Have a nice summer.”

I dip my chin, nodding to both women as I exit the office, pulling the door closed behind me.

I’m not sure if my aborted apology made any sort of progress on smoothing things out between Karis and me or if that kiss only added to a growing list of reasons for her to despise me. Whatever the case, all I know is that kiss will be in constant rotation in my dreams every night this summer.

Who needs rest in the offseason anyway?

4

Karis – August

The summer passed by in a blur of meetings, travel, and the constant checking in after Uncle Marv’s care. I was down in several times a month for said meetings with the Pilots’ team management and would stop by for updates from his private care team.

To say it’s been a difficult task is an understatement.

Add to that all the business and work I had on my plate, I barely had time to eat sensibly and manage some self-care. There was no personal time outside of that, which meant no time for dating, either. And no time to contemplate that kiss Ballas left me in my office the day of his contract extension meeting.

Yet somehow, regardless of my best intentions, he managed to infiltrate my dreams every night this summer. I’d fall asleep, then wake from a fitful sleep, sweaty and horny, wrapped up in a haze of sexy fantasies with the need for that other ‘self’ care time. Arguably, dreaming of Ballas between my legs was never quite as satisfying as the real thing.

Just to make matters worse, my ex-boyfriend, Bradley, the man I dumped back in December because he cheated on me, has decided, after months of playing the field, that he wants to get back together. He’s been calling nearly every day—even though I’ve yet to answer the phone—and sends me texts, emails, floral arrangements, and baskets of my favorite goodies.

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