Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 67991 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67991 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
As I zip up my duffel, my phone buzzes and a reminder pops up.
Grocery run.
I curse under my breath, forgetting that I’m pretty much out of food except for protein bars, and I need more than that after such an intense practice.
I hate grocery shopping.
Any shopping for that matter, but it’s a necessity in this instance. I make mental calculations on general items I need because I’m not the type to write a proper list, as well as what I’ll eat for dinner tonight. I consider indulging my sweet tooth because I can easily justify it after the calories I burned today. Chocolate chip cookies would hit the spot, but I’ll probably talk myself out of it by the time I’m cruising the aisles. I’m pretty diligent about not putting processed sugar into my body unless it’s a special occasion, and having a really good practice doesn’t pass muster.
In the players’ garage, I toss my bag into the back seat of my Escalade and head toward the grocery store closest to my North Shore condo. The day is fading, the sky a canvas of oranges and purples as the sun sets. It’s beautiful, in a postcard kind of way, and the cityscape across the river is magical.
By the time I walk into the store, my thoughts have left the practice session behind and I’m focused on our home game tomorrow against the Seattle Storm. I stroll the aisles, pulling stuff off shelves without any great thought since I’m so lost in game brain.
I round the canned goods aisle to head into the international foods and nearly collide with a store worker who is stocking the shelves. My cart bumps her flatbed and I mutter a curse. “Shit. Sorry.”
Her head swivels my way and she gives me a smile that pops out a dimple on each corner of her mouth. “No worries. Hard to hurt this thing.”
I’m struck dumb for a moment by the straight teeth and full lips set on a face that is insanely pretty—gorgeous actually. Vivid green eyes set against caramel-colored hair pulled up in a ponytail. Sure, the grocery store uniform is a horrid shade of mustard yellow and made of what looks to be polyester, but it can’t hide a slamming body.
Suddenly, thoughts of the game are gone and I have a strong desire for Thai food, even though I’ve never cooked a Thai dish in my life. I scoot past her and peruse the shelves right beside where she continues to stock cans of coconut milk.
I’m considering how to ask her for help so I can strike up a casual conversation when movement catches the corner of my eye.
I glance left and nearly do a double take at the woman walking my way.
Tansy Carmichael.
Her blond hair is impossible to miss, her stride determined as she makes a beeline right for me. Panic flares in my chest.
This woman has turned from an annoyance to a concern, not just because I slept with her one time over a month ago and have since tried to brush her off, but because she’s Brienne Norcross’s cousin and works for the Titans’ organization as the director of marketing.
I’ve tried to be polite and gentle in making my lack of interest clear to her, but I’ve apparently not been doing a good job. She seems to pop up wherever I go and I’m wondering if I have a real stalker on my hands.
Of course, I can’t go to HR about it because she’s freaking Brienne Norcross’s cousin, and Brienne Norcross is my ultimate boss, given she owns the Pittsburgh Titans.
In a split-second decision that I hope won’t get me kneed in the nuts or arrested, I grab the beautiful store clerk and pull her into me. One hand at her waist and the other to the back of her neck, I see a flash of shock in her green eyes before I put my mouth on hers.
It’s reckless and impulsive, but desperate times call for desperate measures.
She gasps against me, tries to pull away, but I whisper against her lips, “Please… Just go with it. I need to be saved from a crazy woman.”
I lift my head, find her green eyes more confused than anything but then to my surprise, she puts her arms around my neck and kisses me back. I can’t even be impressed that she’s crazy enough to play along because holy fuck, can she kiss. Soft lips, brazen tongue.
I’ve got no choice but to engage back, sealing a blistering kiss between us that has my body reacting embarrassingly, but for the life of me, I can’t care right now.
“Rafferty, who is this?” Tansy’s voice has an edge, her tone penetrating the languid bliss as I explore the stranger’s mouth.
I pull back slowly, staring into the woman’s mossy eyes that sparkle with what looks to be amusement. My gaze drops to her chest and I see that her name tag says Temperance.