For the Win (12 page)

Lainey braced herself for what was coming.

But the last thing she was expecting him to do was pull the rough blankets up over her and walk out of the room.

“Good night, Lainey. I'll take the couch.”

“That's it?” she called out in the darkness after a few seconds of lying there.

She heard the faucet in the bathroom turn on.

He came back into the room and set a glass of water on the bedside table. He settled himself on the bed next to her and wiped her eyelids with a damp washcloth. “I seem to remember most women don't like waking up with makeup on.”

She felt like a five-year-old as he gently cleaned her face and loosened the braid in her hair. After the evening of champagne and impulsiveness, she wanted to close out the night as a woman, not a child. “What about your superpowered penis?”

He laughed. “Good night, Lainey.”

“Are you rejecting me because my breasts are small?” she asked, feeling self-doubt creep upon her.

He leaned over her until their noses were nearly touching. “Your breasts are a shrine to all that is holy in this world and I cannot wait to get my mouth all over them. But you've been drinking, and I refuse to be a regret.”

Gabe stood up and walked out of the room.

“The couch folds out,” she called after him. The telltale creak of the rusty frame unbending echoed through the cabin, letting her know he got the message.

“I wouldn't regret you,” she whispered to herself. With a groan, she pulled the blankets all the way over her head and tried to ignore the aching between her thighs.

IT WAS RARE IN
the Pacific Northwest for a burning ray of sun to streak through the window in April. The fact that said burning ray of sun managed to sneak past the dark curtains and land directly over her eyes was the kind of goddamn miracle that Lainey could've really done without that morning.

Every bone in her body felt like it was encased in cement as she rolled onto her tummy. Memories of the previous night infiltrated her brain like a slow-building deluge. The champagne. The donation. Making Gabe drive fifty miles to Uncle Walt's cottage and propositioning him. Even worse, his rejection.

Knowing he was probably asleep just outside her door, she slowly peeled off her dress and heels as quietly as possible and found the spare clothes and running shoes she kept stashed in the closet. She did not want to face him right now, but her need to escape this small cabin and the memories of last night was esclating. She shoved her feet into the sneakers and pulled the laces tight.

Gingerly, she opened the door, tiptoed into the living room, and tamped down her panic when she saw him on the couch with the afghan pulled up to his bare chest. If she ever forgave herself for the embarrassment of begging him to sleep with her, she had no doubt he'd rub it in her face for the rest of her playing days in Seattle.

In times like this, she needed to run. Literally. Her head was pounding, and the toxins coursing through her body were making her jumpy. Hitting the pavement, or in this case the muddy trails, was the only way she could center herself. The clock on the stove read 5:57 in the morning, which made sense considering Lainey's internal clock never let her sleep later than six. It would've been nice for that particular mechanism to be a little flexible on the night she stayed up late and drank too much, but Lainey was nothing if not consistent.

Figuring Gabe would sleep in at least another couple of hours, she crept to the front door.

“Running away?” he asked just as she pulled open the door, causing her to jump.

“Just running,” she croaked, her mouth raw and dry.

“You were a fun drunk, but you're sucking at the hangover part of it. Most people stay in bed until four in the afternoon, watch bad sitcoms, and eat a greasy breakfast.” Gabe grunted as he swung his legs off the couch. Lainey's heart skipped a beat when she saw his tight navy boxer briefs detailing every line of his rock-solid body.

“Give me a break, it's my first hangover.”

“Hold on, I've got some gear in the car.”

Within minutes, Gabe reemerged wearing a hoodie, track pants, and sneakers. He handed her a bottle of aspirin. “Take a couple of these first. Trust me on this.”

“There's a trail that leads up through the hills, about four miles,” she said, swallowing the pills dry. The point of this run was to distract her from how miserable and awkward she felt, but with Gabe tagging along, she'd be forced to think about him the entire time.

She led him down the narrow path at the back of the cottage, picking up her pace as they hit the steep incline. The misty air was cold and abrasive on her throat, but her head was starting to feel better from the strained yet rhythmic movement. They crested the first small, verdant hill after about twenty minutes.

“Stretch?” she asked as they hit a clearing. There were easier trails in the area, but Lainey loved the serene view of endless blue water framed by deep green hills from this spot. Growing up in Nebraska, she never knew such wondrous places existed until she visited her aunt and uncle here for the first time. This view was the only thing in the world that made her almost as happy as soccer did.

Gabe nodded, a wide smile on his face. “That's quite the pace you're setting,” he said while pulling his ankle back to stretch his quad.

“No point in doing it if you're going to take it easy,” she answered, reaching her arm over her head and leaning to the side. She still couldn't look him in the eye. Sharing this spot, her favorite place in the world, with Gabe made her feel more vulnerable than she could ever imagine.

“I think you're just trying to prove yourself after the last time we raced.”

“You wish,” she said, feeling a bit more relaxed as he reassumed his trademark competitive personality. That was the Gabe she knew how to deal with. She bent over with her legs apart and stretched her tight hamstrings.

“It's really beautiful. I can see why you wanted to run this morning,” he whispered from behind her. Lainey's heart jumped as a pair of hands landed on her hips and settled her butt against what she could only describe as a giant heat-seeking missile. “The view isn't the only beautiful thing here.”

She righted herself, causing his erection to slide deliciously between her thighs. He slipped his hands beneath her shirt, fingers grazing along her stomach. Every muscle clenched beneath his fingertips. When his lips found the tender spot at the base of her neck, her body relented to the desire she'd been fighting for weeks. She melted into him.

“You had your chance last night,” she said, gripping his forearms to brace herself against her weakening knees.

“You were drunk last night. Seems to me that if you can run that hard uphill, you're fully capable of consent now,” he whispered in her ear before nipping at her lobe. “Do you want me? Do you want to experience all the indecent things I plan on doing to your gorgeous body?”

Heat flooded her core.

His hand dipped below her waistband, trailing along her hip bones. They stuck out too far and she'd never considered them a sexy part of her body before, but the simple touch of Gabe's fingers changed her entire perception. Chills caressed her skin as her brain retreated into hibernation. Pure physicality took over as his hands dipped lower and lower. She pressed up on her toes and reached a hand behind his neck, desperate for him to make contact where she needed it most. His fingers circled agonizingly close. Just another fraction of an inch . . .

He retracted his hand and backed away, leaving Lainey stunned and breathless.

“You obviously still need time to think it over. I'll see you at the end of the trail. If you can keep up, of course.” With a wicked grin, he took off.

“Bastard!” she called out, sprinting after him on legs that were mush. She refused to let him win on her trail. “I hope you get eaten by a bear!”

BY THE END OF
the run, they were both red-faced and panting. She'd intended to go on a leisurely jog to wake up her achy muscles; instead she'd gotten an all-out race on the overgrown, hazard-ridden path. Once inside the cottage, they collapsed on opposite ends of the sofa. Lainey wished they were breathing heavy from something else, instead of sitting there exhausted and sexually frustrated. But she still couldn't figure out if he was attracted to her or just messing around. When she finally caught her breath, she trudged over to the linen closet and grabbed a couple of towels.

“The hot water is limited, so you should take the first shower,” she said, handing him a towel.

He gave her a stern look. “In spite of what you think of me, I'm a gentleman, and I insist you shower first.”

She'd experienced enough of his resolve over the last few weeks to know there was no point in fighting him on this. Despite the tiny bathroom, the shower stall was full-size. Her uncle was a big man and knew better than to scrimp on the essentials when he built this place. She stripped off her clothes and turned the cold water on. Besides wanting to save the hot water for Gabe, she needed to quench her sexual frustration.

She stepped into the stream of water and let out a small shriek as the cold lashed her skin. She shrieked even louder when the glass shower door swung open.

“A little chilly, huh?” Gabe said, reaching a hand under the spray. Lainey's jaw nearly hit the floor. He was naked. Completely and utterly and beautifully naked, standing in front of her like an Adonis with an erection. He stepped into the stall, cornering her with his powerful limbs, and twisted the tap to full-blast hot. She tried not to stare at his penis, but it was the most impressive thing she'd ever seen. “That's better. Now we can both have a hot shower.”

Apparently, they had different ideas of what constituted a “hot shower.”

Gabe cupped her face and brushed a soft, slow kiss over her lips. Their tongues met briefly before he released her. He spun her around and lathered her hair with the sweet-smelling shampoo. It was the most tender, sensual thing Lainey had ever experienced, and every ache in her body faded. The only thing she could feel was his fingers making contact with her skin and the hungry press of his thick cock into her back. Silently, he rinsed her hair and soaped her body. First her arms, then her chest, placing soft fluttery kisses on her neck and shoulder. Steam clouded the walls, while imprints of their hands and bodies streaked against the condensation.

“This is probably a bad idea,” she forced herself to say, despite her body's protest.

“Do you want me to stop?”

“No,” she said in a shaky voice. “I'm just, uh, stating that for the record.”

“Then let the record show I'm guilty of thinking some very dirty thoughts since the minute I met you at that press conference.” He traced his hands down her body, cupping her breasts and teasing her nipples with delicate pinches, stealing her breath away. Anticipation kindled in her belly as his strong hands massaged their way down to her ankles, and back up again. He gave her a soft, soapy stroke between her legs, caressing her folds like a maestro. Lainey moaned.

“More,” she uttered. He complied, working her clit with slow circles until it plumped, like he had a sixth sense of exactly how to please her.

She was on the verge of climax, but the urge to touch him overwhelmed her. She wanted to explore his taut, powerful body. She wanted to learn how to bring him to his knees and hear his breath hitch.

She wanted to connect with him at every level.

Lainey took the soap from him and placed a kiss on his incredible chest before sudsing it up. She liked how he was built—she was attracted to strength and power in every facet of her life, and Gabe was the walking epitome of that.

She ran her fingers through the patch of hair on his pecs. It was something she'd wanted to do since he'd taken his shirt off at the skills competition. With shaky palms, she worked her way across his body, down the cut line of his hips, to the silky skin of his cock. He shuddered as she eased her hand up the hard, veined length of him until she reached the head.