Playing the Game (The Renegades) (Volume 3) (29 page)

“
Oh, you were watching?” His
expression perked up.

“
Yes, in my office. Rancy is such a
jerk, and that should’ve been a penalty. When you went down on the
ice, I’ll admit you had me worried. You know, after your concussion
and all.”

“
Yeah, I was a little worried
myself, to be honest. I told Coach that I just had the wind knocked
out of me, but honestly, my vision was a little fuzzy there for a
few minutes.”

“
Then you should’ve got checked
out!” Paige panicked. Head injuries were nothing to play around
with. The words popped out of her mouth before she could think of
how worried she sounded. “What if you had another
concussion?”

Tyler’s smile reached his eyes for the first time
this evening. She didn’t need him to know she was worried about
him, but it was too late. That grin told her all she needed to
know.

“
I didn’t go back out and play, but
I refused to leave my team. Win or lose I wanted to be there with
them.”

Wow, that was commendable. Like the “old” Tyler Kidd.
Well, the stories that she’d heard.

“
I knew I couldn’t risk taking
another hit and I could barely skate straight as it was. They
would’ve just made me sit in the locker room to wait till I felt
better, and that wasn’t anything that I couldn’t do on the bench
with the rest of the team.”

“
But you’re okay now?” She looked
at his eyes. He didn’t look odd, even though she wasn’t sure what
she was looking for. “No headache? And you’re eating, so I guess
you’re not nauseous.”

“
No, I’m fine. I mean, I guess as
fine as I can be, knowing it’s time to go clean out my locker till
next season.”

Paige bit her lip and shook her head. What do you say
to that? She’d still be working for the team this summer, putting
out social media posts just to keep some buzz going about the
Renegades, notifying fans of any news or things going on. But it
wouldn’t be the same not being surrounded by the team, or walking
in on them in the locker room by accident.

A slow song filled the bar. The music was noticeably
louder than it was before.

Paige looked around and pointed to the speakers. “Did
he turn that up?”

Tyler shrugged. Standing up he held out his hand to
her, his eyes still sparkling as he smiled. “Paige, would you dance
with me?”

Silently she stared at him. Her body craved to be in
his arms. What could one dance hurt? She couldn’t very well turn
him down; she’d done enough of that lately. And his poor ego had
taken enough hits tonight.

“
Seriously? You’re going to make me
beg?”

The music tempo changed, and an R & B song
started to play. Lyrics about falling in love for the first time
filled the room. He was still holding out his hand to her, waiting.
“C’mon, please don’t turn me down. I’ve had a rough day. Paige?” He
wasn’t wrong about that.

“
I guess I can’t say no then, can
I? Don’t want to bruise your ego any more than Boston already did.”
She fought a smile as she stood up and met his stare.

He gagged and grabbed his chest like he had been shot
through the heart. “Hurtful!”

“
Aw, did I hurt Tyler Kidd’s
feelings?” Paige pushed her lip out in a fake pout.

Tyler gently grabbed her hand and led her to the
dance floor. The disco ball was spinning and the lights were dim.
When he pulled her into him, a soft gasp escaped her lips. Holding
her body against his, he looked into her eyes.

He softly spoke. “Tyler Kidd’s feelings get hurt
easier than you think.”

With his hand on her lower back he held her close,
and she started to tremble. For as long as she could she had
avoided him, but now being this close scared her. She looked down
at the ground before her gaze met his again.

He was staring hard into her eyes and it made her
heart race. If he tried to kiss her again she didn’t know if she’d
be able to resist. Having him so close, it frightened her how good
he felt against her.

CHAPTER 35

He began to sway to the music, and her body moved
effortlessly with his. After a few moments, she relaxed and rested
her head on his shoulder. He could feel her heartbeat against his
chest. Did she not see him changing right before her?

The music ended, and there was a pause between songs.
He wanted to tell her he needed her. That he found something in her
he didn’t even know he needed. He wanted to beg her to stay with
him. He wanted ask her to be his and only his. But the words
weren’t forming.

Pulling back, Paige bit her lip as she looked into
his eyes. “Tyler—”

Watching her nibble at her lip was all he could take.
It was now or never. He tenderly took her face in his hands and
kissed her soft lips. They were more delicate than he remembered as
he ran his tongue over them until she opened to his kiss, letting
him inside. He’d missed how sweet she tasted.

Her hands traveled from his shoulder into his hair,
sending chills through him. Pulling away for a breath, he rested
his forehead against hers. “Paige, I—”

“
Dinner is serv—Oops. Sorry, didn’t
mean to interrupt.”

“
Marco…” Tyler grumbled, still
leaning his forehead against Paige’s.

She pulled away, her face pink and turning darker by
the minute. She flashed him a small smile. “Looks like our dinner
is ready.”

Dammit, Marco!
Tyler followed Paige to the
table where Marco set down their food. He flashed Marco a pointed
look, but the bartender just shrugged with a grin before he walked
away.

“
Perfect timing.” Paige sat down
and dug into her salad.

“
What? Perfect timing? You mean you
weren’t enjoying yourself?” Was she serious?

“
That’s not what I meant.” Her face
reddened again. “You heard my stomach growl before. I’m
hungry.”

Why didn’t he believe her? Maybe it was the way she
was looking down at her salad and not up at him. He thought he had
finally broken through those walls.

“
Paige, talk to me.”

She let her fork drop to her plate and looked up at
him. “You know we can’t do this. Melanie has rules, and you of all
people know that. I know the rules kind of seem silly, and it’s
driving me crazy working with you and not being able to… but I’m
not willing to risk my job while I’m working here.” She bit her
lip, pausing before she continued. “If I could find another PR job
locally, so there wasn’t this conflict of interest, then
maybe—”

His heart was pounding. Had he heard her right?
“You’d take another job so we could be together?”

“
I just meant, if we… Tyler,
I—”

“
I already told her.”

She was silent for a few moments. Paige simply stared
at him, her mouth open. “You what?”

“
I told her everything. I told her
that I’m crazy about you and want to be with you, that we spent the
night together and I’ve been hiding it from her all this time. That
all those flowers were from me, trying to get you to admit that you
have feelings for me. Do you know what she said?”

Her face dropped as she looked down at her food.
“That I’m fired.” She closed her eyes for a long blink, and with a
sigh she pushed away her plate.

“
No Paige. She said, ‘What took you
so long?’”

Paige looked up at him. “Wait, what?”

“
She asked what took me so long to
go after you.” Tyler bit into his sandwich, but he wasn’t hungry,
not for food anyway.

She picked up her fork and poked at her food. “I
think she set us up. That meeting she couldn’t make…”

He shrugged. “Apparently she thought you and me would
be good together right from the start.”

Paige looked like she was trying to understand and
make sense of it all, so he was quiet and let her. No one could
make her do anything she didn’t want to do, she’d already proven
that. So he waited patiently and ate his sandwich.

Eventually she started to pick at her salad and eat
again. He took a large sip of beer and decided to start the
conversation again.

“
So if Melanie is okay with this,
with us, and your job is safe, then there’s nothing standing in our
way. Is there?”

Paige looked up at him, biting her lip. “Speaking of
my job, did you contact that journalist about meeting up with you
during your off-season training?”

He let out a sigh. “I really hate when people do
that.” He was growing tired of the games. He just wanted her, why
was she being so difficult?

“
Do what?”

“
Change the subject like that.” His
eyes held hers. “I asked you a question, Paige.”

“
Oh Tyler, you sound like such a
girl.” She was back to her strong will and puffed out chest. She
was hiding the real Paige from him again.

He pushed his empty plate aside and grabbed her hand
from across the table. “Paige, come home with me tonight.”

“
Oh, I don’t know, Tyler...” She
tried to pull her hand back but failed.

Another slow song flowed from the speakers. He stood
up, pulling Paige to her feet and drawing her close to him. He
rested her palm on his chest, over his heart.

“
Can you feel my heart?”

“
Yes.” She gulped for
air.

“
It only beats for you. I was lost,
searching for any kind of thrill, not knowing what I needed until
you stepped into my life. You turned everything upside down, and
yet made me see clearly for the first time. I want you, Paige, only
you.”

“
Tyler, I—” She tried to step back
and pull away, but he held her tight. He wasn’t walking away, not
this time, and neither was she.

“
What are you afraid
of?”

“
You.” She squeaked out.

“
I doubt that. I think I’m more
afraid of you, of how you make me feel.” With his finger, he gently
tipped her chin up towards him. He wanted nothing more than to kiss
those lips, to make love to that body, to make her heart his.
“Paige, I need you. Have I been wrong all this time? Don’t you care
for me at all?”

Her breathing was heavy and quick, and her face was
flushed. For the first time since he met her she looked like she
was speechless. Staring into her blue eyes, he knew what he saw.
She wanted him the same way he wanted her.

“
I do care. I don’t think you
realize how much. But—”

“
How could I, when all you do is
push me away? Why are you so afraid of this?”

A deep sadness clouded her eyes. “I’m afraid this
will end badly, that I’ll lose you, one way or another, just
like...” She shook her head, blinking back tears.

He searched her eyes. “Is this about what happened to
your brother?”

“
He made bad choices, Ty. And I
wasn’t enough to help him. I tried so hard to help him change, but
I lost him...”

So that was it. He understood, because hadn’t he
struggled with the same fear? That the past could repeat, and she
could leave him with a broken heart? “Paige, can’t you see what you
do to me? I’m not the same guy I was when you showed up at that
arena. You did that. Everyone kept telling me I needed a good woman
to save me from myself, and I thought they were crazy. But the
truth is, I changed because I found something worth living for.
You.”

She wiped a tear away and looked down. “My mom left
me.”

He cupped her cheek and gently brought her face back
up. “What? What happened?”

“
When… When I went through those
bad times. Mom couldn’t deal with it. She didn’t want to stick
around and watch me kill myself like…” Paige shook her head. “She
just gave up on me.”

Ty frowned, hardly able to believe what he was
hearing. “How long has it been since you saw her?”

“
It’s been
ten years.”

What the fuck?
“Paige, I can’t even imagine a
parent doing that, and I’m so sorry you had to go through what you
did.” He pulled her close, her head against his chest. “But you
should know me by now. I didn’t get where I am in hockey by giving
up when things got tough. I don’t give up on things I love.” He
swallowed the lump in his throat. “I never thought I’d feel this
way again, and I have to tell you, it terrifies me. But the thought
of not having you terrifies me even more. I refuse to walk away
unless you tell me to. You won’t lose me, because I will stay and
fight for you if I have to.”

Her hair fell into her face, and she looked up at him
through the light strands. “I never said you’d have to fight for
me.”

“
Then what do I have to do?” He
took in a hard breath and then pressed his lips against hers.
Sliding his tongue between her welcoming lips he deepened the kiss
and pulled her willing body against his. She felt so good. He
wanted to touch her skin, but her pantsuit was in the way. It
didn’t have to be if she would just agree to go home with him, but
it was up to her.

He slid his mouth along her jawline and down her
neck, moving her jacket out of the way and hitting the sweet spot
between her shoulder and her collarbone. She gasped. Her body
shivered at his touch and he heard her stifle a moan.

Tyler pushed his groin into her hips, showing her
exactly how badly he needed her. His pants were snug with his
raging hard-on.

“
Paige,” he whispered against her
lips. “Take a chance on me?”

Using every ounce of self-control, he pulled back and
held out his hand to her. She was gorgeous with her face flushed,
and her lips puffy and pink from the force of their kiss. Holding
his breath, he waited for her to take his hand.