The Hot Corner (17 page)

My heart leapt and I cursed myself for being ridiculous. “Because I can’t afford to fall for him again, and going out, remembering how we used to be, sleeping with him, for God’s sake, it’s all going to make it hard to resist him.”

“Doesn’t sound like you did much resisting,” she said. I sighed, and she held up a hand. “What would be so bad if you did fall for him?”

“Um, hello, have you heard anything I’ve said? He crushed me back then, and it took me longer than I care to admit to put myself back together. I was supposed to come here, show him that I landed on both feet and that I’m doing wonderful without him, and instead I end up in bed with him within a week.”

Pam listened to my rant with a smile on her face. When I wound down, she leaned forward. “I don’t know what happened with you two back in the day, since you’re both unbelievably closed-mouthed when it comes to the end of your relationship. But I do know you weren’t the only one hurt by it.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but she raised an eyebrow and continued on. “Since he saw you on TV, he’s been even more distant and closed off. My fun friend was quiet and morose and distracted. I haven’t heard him sound happy, the way I heard him sound this morning, in a long time. Maybe ever. I’m telling you, he sounded like he’d won the World Series, been elected President of the United States, and won the lottery all in one go. You did that. You have just as much power to hurt him as he does you. You’d do well to remember that.”

I didn’t know if that was supposed to make me feel better or not. I felt like there was even more weight on my shoulders now.

“Have you talked to him about your past?” she asked.

I shook my head and she sighed.

“You do know you’re both going to have to do that eventually, right? Not just for the book, but to move on, together or alone.”

“I know. I’m just not ready yet. Neither is he.”

“Of course not. He wants to bask in the glow of hot sex.”

I managed a small smile.

She reached forward and took my hand. “You could be very good for each other. I think you will be, which is why I helped you last night and I’ll happily help you again if he steps out of line and does something stupid. But if you hurt him, honey, I’ll take you down. I don’t want to, but I’ll do it if I have to. I want my friend to be happy, and I think you’re the key to that.” She grinned. “I’m giving up the best fuck buddy I’ve ever had, so that shows you how committed I am. The sacrifices I’m willing to make for both of you.”

I rolled my eyes. “Thanks so much for your humanitarian efforts.”

“No thanks necessary. A tasteful gift maybe . . .” She shook her head. “No, screw tasteful. Maybe you could get me a new vibrator since I have to get my rocks off alone now.”

And just like that, she had me laughing again. “You’re incorrigible.”

“Incorrigible, incredible, tomato, tomahto.” She sat back, smiling. “Now, do you want to know what he said?”

“Yes!”

“He thanked me for being a meddlesome bitch, his words, and said I was an evil genius but I wasn’t wrong about your body. And he was sure he’d made you writhe and moan much better than the horny masseur had.”

My mouth dropped open. “What?”

“All right, I may have paraphrased.”

I smacked her arm and she giggled helplessly.

“He did thank me, though, for giving him the push he needed to go and get you. He said you’d argued and made up in the most satisfying of ways, and he didn’t think he could handle a week away from you. I’m supposed to look out for you, by the way.”

“Brad’s clearly lost his mind if he thinks putting you in charge of my well-being is a good idea,” I said.

“Hey, I got you laid and laid well. Stick with me, kiddo. You never know what could happen.”

“I could end up in jail, or worse.”

“But just think what a lovely addition that would be to your story! Anyway, he also told me you’d probably need some fuel after the night of hot monkey sex, so why don’t we go out? Or we could stay here and talk about that hot monkey sex some more.”

I was on my feet before she finished the sentence, and she laughed again. I was at the bathroom door when she called my name, and I turned.

“One thing I’ve learned from recent events is that it sucks being away from someone you care about. Maybe even love. And I’ve only been doing it for a few weeks, while you two have been at it for years. You have a chance to fix that, and I truly hope you’ll take it.”

I had a lot to think about over the next week, or month, or however long I’d be around him again.

Pam smiled. “Now, go make yourself look hot. My lesbian lover headline is coming soon and I can’t have you looking anything but your best.”

Chapter 15

Spending the day with Pamela Baxter was exhausting. The woman was a whirlwind of energy. I was already operating at half my usual speed after my long night and early morning, but I didn’t think I could keep up with her if I’d had a solid night’s sleep either. She’d taken me from shop to shop, two different restaurants, a movie studio, a meeting with her agent, not to mention the billion or so people who approached her for autographs, pictures, or just to tell her they loved her. Everywhere we went people snapped photos of her and me. She might not be too far off on her lesbian headlines. That was why she’d grabbed my hand outside the restaurant, I was sure of it.

I let myself back into my room and let out a sigh of relief as I kicked off my shoes. My feet were screaming, and I wanted nothing more than a hot bath and my bed. I didn’t have to call and give Bec an update of my day because she’d called while I’d been out, and Pam had been all too willing to fill in any details I’d skimped on. I was pretty sure the two of them were well on their way to becoming BFFs by the time we’d ended our conference call in the car.

I filled the tub with water and, just as I was about to sink into the steamy bath, my cell rang. A glance at the caller ID showed it was Brad. He’d called, like he said he would. My stomach flipped as I answered.

“Hello.”

“Hey, Red.” My treacherous heart started beating faster as I lowered myself into the tub.

“Shouldn’t you be in bed right now?” I asked. It was nearly midnight in Atlanta.

He laughed. “Who says I’m not?”

My mind flashed to images of the two of us tangled in my sheets and I shook my head to clear it. “I meant sleeping. You have a game tomorrow.”

“Yeah, but my body is still on west-coast time. I never really adjust, but it’s okay because for a night game, it feels like late afternoon to me. Did you have a good day?” he asked with a chuckle.

I groaned and rested my head back against the tile wall. “Did you have to sic Pam on me? She’s absolutely exhausting.”

“Hey, I had to distract her from asking me a billion questions, so I sent her your way. It’s all about self-preservation.”

“Very nice! Some gentleman you are.”

“I’m no gentleman, but I didn’t hear you complaining about that fact last night.”

No, I most certainly hadn’t been. “Pig.”

“Only when it comes to you,” he murmured.

“What?”

“You know, like a hog. I want you all to myself. Speaking of, I talked to Green.”

I had to laugh at the way he said Lance’s last name, almost like it was a curse word. “Did you talk to him or did you threaten him?”

“Maybe a little of both,” he admitted, and I laughed. That was a facet of Brad that apparently hadn’t changed. He’d always been territorial where I was concerned.

“Like when you scared the shit out of Paulie Pasquale?”

I swore he growled on the other end of the line. “I don’t care what you say, he was into you. He stared at your ass every time you walked past, and he practically shoved me out of the way to be near you any chance he got.”

I rolled my eyes. “He might have had a little crush on me—”

“Little, my ass. I tolerated it for as long as I could before I told him to back the hell off. At least I didn’t hit him.”

No, he hadn’t. He’d just spoken in a low, menacing voice with a look on his face that let Paulie and everyone else in the classroom know I was off limits. Maybe it should have upset me, but it had actually turned me on. I couldn’t get him alone and naked fast enough. Then again, I more than understood the need to be territorial.

“So there was one guy who showed interest in me, unlike the hundreds of girls who were after you. I put up with that shit all the time.”

“There was way more than one guy, Dani. You just didn’t notice.”

No, I hadn’t. Foolishly, I’d been all about Bradley Reynolds.

“And you know I never gave any of those girls the time of day,” he said. “I had the girl I wanted.”

Until Omaha, that was. We were getting dangerously close to a discussion I wasn’t ready to have. “So what did Lance say? Why did he send that text?”

“Oh, he was talking about some actress he’d hooked up with. He thought I’d been with her, but I’d never even met the woman.” He laughed. “At least that’s what he claims. I think he was just trying to piss me off and make me think it was you.”

“Why would he do that?” I asked. “All you had to do was talk to me and you’d know it wasn’t true.”

“Lance has always been competitive with me. He wants what I have and it pisses him off that he can’t get it. Once he heard you and I had been involved, I’m sure he thought getting you, or even implying that he had, would set me off.”

“And it did.” Boy had it. My muscles were still sore.

“Well, yeah, in the best possible way.” He laughed. “Speaking of that, what are you wearing?”

He used to ask me that whenever he was away on a road trip. “Nothing, actually. I’m in the bathtub.” Coughing filled the phone line, and I giggled.

“For real?” he asked when he finally caught his breath.

I splashed the water for his benefit, and he groaned. “Now I’m never going to get to sleep.”

“Hey, you’re the one who asked.” My lips stretched in a grin. “I was more than happy to keep that to myself, but since you inquired, I had to be truthful.”

“Hmm, is that what we’re being now?”

My smile slipped away. “What?”

“You brought it up, baby.”

“No, I told you I was naked. That’s all.”

“If only you were.”

I stopped splashing. “What in the hell does that mean?”

“I just remember a time when you were completely transparent to me. Open. Naked, if you will. You’re not that now. You’re very guarded.”

I gritted my teeth. I didn’t have to be open to him. Not after everything he’d done. “You’re the one who’s supposed to be open to me,” I reminded him. “That’s what I’m here for.”

“I have been.”

I snorted, and he sighed.

“I’m working on it, anyway. And I’m more open than you are.”

“This isn’t about me,” I said.

“No, it’s about us.”

“There is no—”

“Don’t even try it, Dani. There is an
us
.”

Damn him. My head was spinning. It was easy to forget how to keep him at arm’s length when everything he said and did reminded me of how we used to be. The touching, the teasing and, hell, even the fighting.

“I slept with you, much to my great regret, but that doesn’t mean we’re an
us
again.”

He laughed. “You don’t regret sleeping with me, Red. And maybe we’re not the way we used to be, yet, but we’re an
us
. You and me. Dani and Brad. That equals us.”

Arrogant son of a bitch. “Don’t tell me what I do or don’t regret. And I’m not even addressing your ridiculous semantics.”

“Good, then we’re agreed on the
us
thing.”

“Fuck you.”

“You already did, sweetheart. Do me a favor. You’re in the tub, right?”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m not touching myself for you.”

He laughed long and loud. “That wasn’t what I was going to ask, but now that you mention it—”

“Not happening.”

“Maybe not yet. But what I was going to ask, before I was so rudely interrupted, was for you to look up and to the left.”

Against my better judgment, I did. And, just like he wanted me to, I remembered that a little over twelve hours ago he’d had me pressed against the shower wall as he’d pounded into me.

“Now tell me you regret the way I made you scream my name last night. And again this morning.”

I wanted to. Because it would knock the arrogant smirk I could hear through the phone right off his face. But I couldn’t. I’d always been terrible at lying to him, except that one time—the last time—when I’d ended it.

“Dani, are you there?”

“You know I am.”

“And are you looking?”

I hadn’t moved my eyes from that spot. “Yes.”

“And are you remembering?”

“Yes.”

“Do you regret it? Be honest now.”

“No.”

“No, you won’t be honest, or no, you don’t regret it?”

He was being a pain in the ass on purpose. “I don’t regret it.”