His expression is cold. “The whole time you knew what was going on, though, about me being traded, and you didn’t say anything?”
I shake my head. I can barely believe this conversation. “I’m not privy to trades before they happen. I’m the attorney, not the general manager. Besides, if I really knew, which I did not, do you think I would have spent the evening with you? I’d have avoided you. I only wanted to help make sure you weren’t hurt.”
Dragging a hand through his thick brown hair, he shrugs. “Fine.”
“And you introduced yourself as Andrew. You didn’t even say what you did for a living. I assumed that meant you wanted to be unknown. Don’t give me a hard time for giving you what you wanted that day,” I seethe, and he sighs heavily. But I’m not done. “And why are you on my case when you didn’t even call me?”
Crap. I want to smack myself. So much for being cool. So much for not letting on. This man rattles me.
But judging from the flummoxed look on his face, I’ve rattled him too. He stares at me, his brow furrowed. “What are you talking about? I stopped by your house the next day. I tried to text you but I didn’t get the last digit down, so I came by the next day to ask you out. I had no idea you worked for the team.”
“And I had no idea—” I stop when my brain snags on what he just said. Making a T with my hands, I call a timeout. “Wait. Did you say you stopped by?”
He nods several times. “When I realized I didn’t have your full number, I wrote a note, and brought it over to your home and left it on your porch. Tucked it right under the plant by your door.”
Butterflies swoop down out of nowhere, landing in my chest. “You did?” I ask, and I can’t mask the hope in my tone. “What did you say in it?”
A grin spreads on his face, a sweet and sexy smile. He licks his lips. Speaks softly. “That I had a nice time with you. That I messed up your number. That I wanted to know if you’d have any interest in giving me a surfing lesson.”
The note must have gotten lost in all the menus and coupons. I bet Mrs. Fitzsimmons picked it up accidentally when she watered the plants. Probably tossed it in the recycling like she does with the flyers.
In an instant my frustration seeps away. All I want to do is kiss the daylights out of him. But I can’t do that. Instead, I meet his hazel gaze and say, “I would have said yes.” Shivers spread across my skin from my own admission.
His voice is soft and smoky when he answers. “I like it when you say that word.”
I say it again, even though it’s far too risky to use with him. But I inch closer and let it fall from my lips in a soft whisper. “Yes.”
He draws a sharp breath. His eyes darken. “Sounds so fucking good on your lips.”
Those shivers turn into heat, like a fire has ignited in my chest, and it spreads everywhere. Filling me with lust and desire all from that one word.
Yes. Yes. Yes.
How I want us to say yes.
“You really didn’t get my phone number?”
He shakes his head. “I really didn’t get your number.” His hazel eyes twinkle. He looks happy, and it’s a look he wears extraordinarily well. I cast my eyes around the room, cataloguing the din of all my colleagues in the front office as well as the guys on the field, chatting, drinking, nibbling on appetizers, posing for photos in front of the banner. I’m glad that the noise and hubbub of the conversations are keeping everyone else busy. “Trust me, Dani. If I had that last digit I would have texted you five minutes after I left, and again that night. And after I got home. And before I fell asleep. I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”
His words light me up. My whole body is humming. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you either, and I had a great time talking to you on the beach and at the bar. I could tell you wanted to just be a regular Joe, so I wanted you to be free to do that with me. But I swear I didn’t know you were going to be traded to Los Angeles. I really do think it’s terrific to have you on the team. I know what you did last year. Top-ten quarterback rating in the league, and only one interception. That was impressive,” I say, and he blushes.
Holy shit. Drew Erickson blushes when I compliment his stats.
“Who would have thought we’d be playing on the same team? But maybe later, we can pick up where we left off?” he suggests. “Or perhaps we can get a Slurpee and test my brain-freeze cure again. Cold heads seem to be our thing.”
That’s when the sexy flirty feeling fades away. The bubble bursts. The awareness of what a mistake this would be sinks down on me like an anvil.
Chuck. Bambi. Sex scandals like they’re a regular daily routine.
“Shoot,” I say, heavily, like it has twenty syllables.
“Shoot?”
I shake my head. “We can’t. With the trouble the team has been through in the last year . . . I can’t take a chance of anything that would be”—I pause, hunting for the word—“inappropriate. Even remotely inappropriate.”
No way in hell would management want a lawyer diddling with a player. I may not be waving pom-poms on the field, and I’m not wet behind the ears like Bambi, but I know a bad idea.
And this is a world-class-variety bad idea.
He strokes his chin. “We don’t want to put the team in a bad light.”
“And it’s your first year here,” I add because I don’t want to seem like the buzzkill. We both have a lot at stake. My job, his job, the team’s reputation.