Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 124494 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 498(@250wpm)___ 415(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124494 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 498(@250wpm)___ 415(@300wpm)
“I would love that so much.” And because she’s eight, Callie throws her arms around Roman’s neck.
His smile is soft as he squeezes her back. I’m pretty sure I just ovulated. Why does he have to be such a good guy? My heart clenches at how sweet he’s being with her.
He’s this massive, imposing man, a legend in his sport, someone so many look up to. That I spent a weekend with him, that he was mine so completely for that time, still feels like an impossible dream.
And to see him hugging my little sister, knowing what she’s lost, being a role model and someone she admires, while also being the man who was viciously, ruthlessly thorough in his quest to bring me to orgasm any and every way possible… Well, that’s a lot for any woman to handle.
He is the perfect man. I had him. And now I see his beautiful face every day, remember all the ways he made me feel so good, and watch him be this awe-inspiring father, player, goalie, peer, mentor, and friend. It’s agonizing. Especially now that I know our time together meant something to him too. More than something, even.
When Callie finally releases him, I’m grateful that she grabs my arm and drags me over to where Fee chats with Tally, Rix, Essie, Dred, and Tristan. It almost looks like Fee and Tristan are having a moment. What’s even more astonishing is that she’s smiling and laughing and having a good time with surly as fuck Tristan. He’s usually so serious all the time, but here he looks relaxed and happy.
How much do I want to embrace this team like the family they are? Become fully part of it. It’s already happening.
I suddenly find myself on the edge of emotion, which occurs at the most inopportune times—like when I’m in a room full of my players. I can’t afford weakness when I’m surrounded by the team and management.
“Are you okay with the girls for a minute?” I ask Dred. “I need to use the bathroom.”
“Yeah, of course. You go ahead. They’re in good hands.” Dred squeezes my arm.
The signs for the bathroom lead me through the kitchen. I take a moment to collect myself. I don’t know how to classify my emotions. There’s real grief, in part over the loss of my mom, but beyond that, my chest aches at having had someone so wildly flawless and never being able to fully appreciate him for longer than a couple of days. Would things have been different if I stayed? I was so young. In my mid-twenties to his mid-thirties at the time. Green. New. How would he have taken me seriously? Why am I entertaining this when it’s in the past?
I wet a paper towel and dab cold water on my neck. I’ll go back out there and stay close to Dred. She’s a safe space. I’ll keep my distance from Roman. I have to.
But I run into him as I pass through the kitchen. Every private moment with him feels dangerous. He’s chipping away at my defenses, leaving me naked and vulnerable in a way only he’s capable of. Every part of me yearns for him. For the easy smile that was once directed at me, for the feel of his body wrapped around mine. What I wouldn’t give to be his again for one more night. But more than that, I long for the other parts of him too, for the intelligent player who so easily shares his experiences, who guides and encourages. I want that man, too.
He stops arranging broccoli on the veggie platter and plants his fists on the counter. “I shouldn’t have offered to come to Callie’s game. I wasn’t thinking.”
“She would love for you to come.”
His jaw works. “And what about you? Would you love for me to come?”
My brain interprets that not at all the way he meant it, and before I can stop myself, I murmur a horribly moany, “Yes, please.”
The right side of his mouth curves up. He picks up the veggie tray and heads straight for me. He bends until his lips are at my ear. “You’re a little too tempting for your own good, Coach.”
He leaves me standing there, wishing, not for the first time, that our paths had crossed again a year from now, after he retired—when wanting him wouldn’t compromise everything I’ve worked for.
CHAPTER 13
ROMAN
Despite the ups and downs of our exhibition games and the tension between Grace and Madden, by some miracle we manage to get our feet under us during the regular season. We’ve been on a winning streak, riding the high. But tonight that broke, and we lost. It would have been fine if I’d been in net the whole game, but Ryker played the final period and let in two goals. I’m owning it, because it’s on me to be a good mentor.