Knowing that Carmen is coming to me when she’s ready, I put my iPad back down and turn back to my sister. The Cheshire smile filling her pretty face tells me she is not going to let this little tidbit of information go.
“You were about to tell me all about Carmen and the fact that you’ve, apparently, already slept together. Why haven’t you told me more about her already?” she asks, and I can tell she thinks that I’ve kept things from her.
“It just kind of happened,” I tell her, reaching for my water and taking a quick drink before I continue. “When I first got to Indianapolis, I wasn’t her favorite person. I kept doing shit that she’d have to spin. After the baby debacle, I’ve laid low, as you well know, and did my best to stay out of her radar. When we have been around each other, I’ve tried to make it a pleasurable time. I sat next to her on the flight here and we talked for a good chunk of it. Then, the guys convinced her to come hang out with us last night. I’m confident the attraction goes both ways. So, anyway, the tension kept building last night and, well, I offered to walk her to her room at the end of the night, and let’s just say, we didn’t part ways until this morning. Now, we’re meeting up for lunch once she gets here to my room,” I tell my sister, filling her in on everything that has transpired.
“Damn,” she says, waving her hand in front of her face like she’s hot.
I quirk an eyebrow at her. “Damn, what?” I ask, hoping she’ll elaborate.
“I’ve just never seen you get all dreamy over a woman, and you went dreamy when you just told me all of that. This one has got you all wrapped up and it’s only been a few hours. The fact that you are having lunch today is very telling.”
I hear a soft knock on the door, my eyes going in that direction like I can see through the wall. “Gotta go,” I say. “I’ll call you tomorrow. Give Milo my love,” I tell her as I jump off the bed and head for the door.
“Don’t do anything stupid! I want this one to last long enough so that I can meet her,” she says before I disconnect the call in time to open the door.
I about swallow my tongue when my eyes land on Carmen. She’s obviously gone back to her room, as she looks freshly showered. She has on minimal makeup with her hair pulled up into a ponytail, is wearing some tight ass jeans, a team polo and chucks. If she isn’t the fantasy of every red-blooded male on this planet, I don’t know what they’re thinking, because standing in front of me is the most beautiful woman I’ve laid my eyes on.
“Hi,” she greets, and it comes out a little shy or breathlessly. I can’t tell which one just yet.
“Hi, want to come in?” I ask, stepping back and opening the door all the way. I swing my arm in a welcoming gesture.
She bites her bottom lip as she looks both ways down the hall. I have to bite back a groan at what that lip bite does to my cock. I’ve also never been more jealous of someone biting their own damn lip.
“Sure,” she finally says and steps over the threshold of my room. I normally wouldn’t ever have a woman up in my room while on a road trip. Management frowns on that, but since Carmen has access to this floor, I know I wouldn’t get in trouble for having sneaked a woman up here.
“How were your meetings?” I ask as I move about my room. I slip on some socks and shoes before I grab my phone, wallet and then slide a baseball hat onto my head.
“Good!” she says, lighting up. “We went over everything for this afternoon and evening.”
“Anyone realize that you were coming in at the last minute?” I ask, knowing that she was panicking after waking up late this morning.
“Nope, we actually started about twenty minutes late because a few other people were running late, so no one noticed that I wasn’t ready on time,” she tells me.
“Shall we?” I ask, now that I’m ready to head out.
“Yep, where did you want to go? I’m guessing not the team’s lounge?” she questions as we step out into the hall.
“If you’re okay with leaving, it looks like there’s an Italian place a block or two away that we can walk to.”
“That sounds perfect,” she tells me as we get onto the elevator. I send a quick text to Matt, letting him know I won’t be joining the guys for lunch today.
We walk the few blocks to the restaurant, our conversation flowing easily on our way.
As soon as we’re seated, a waiter approaches and goes over the specials. We end up ordering one of their wood fired pizzas to split.
“So,” Carmen starts to say once the server walks away. She picks up the water glass the young girl set down and takes a sip before returning it to the cardboard coaster it was set on. “About last night.” She worries her lip as she takes her time.
“Was special and a night I’ll never forget,” I interject. I can see the writing on the wall, here, she’s ready to claim it was a mistake and can’t ever happen again. I beg to differ.
“Wait, what?” she asks, the surprise evident in her question.
“Last night was one of the best nights I’ve ever had, and I’m not just saying that to blow smoke up your ass. You can’t deny that there is a mutual attraction between the two of us. I’ve felt it and I’m confident in my assessment that you’ve felt it. Last night was explosive. It was special and something I hope we can pursue,” I tell her, laying it all on the line.
I watch as Carmen opens and closes her mouth a couple times, obviously trying to figure out how she’s going to reply. I give her the time she needs, as she’s obviously struggling with what to say.
She reaches for her glass once again, this time draining half of the glass of water before replacing it on the coaster.
“Talk to me, Red,” I plead, tossing in my nickname for her that I know riles her up.
Her eyes pop up from the table to meet my own. I can see that spark of hers come to life as she straightens her spine and readies herself.
“We can’t do this, Lucas,” she starts, pointing between the two of us. “I won’t deny that I’m attracted to you, and last night was not expected, it can’t happen again.”
“Why can’t it happen again?” I press, wanting to know why she feels that way.
“A few reasons, one, I don’t date players. Especially players it is my job to represent on behalf of the team. Second, we are co-workers, in a sense. Yes, we work in completely different departments, but I still work with everyone on the team on a regular basis. What happens when word gets out and things get weird, who is the team going to replace, the PR person or one of their star players? I cannot lose this job. I’ve worked my ass off to get to where I am. Not to mention that I’m not looking for a good time fling. I’m ready to look towards my future. I want to settle down and start a family. I know I’m only two years older than you, but I feel like that two years makes a difference in where we are at in our lives.”
She pauses again and I look over my shoulder at what has pulled her attention. Our sever arrives at that moment, setting our piping hot pizza down between the two of us, along with two plates. “Can I get you guys anything else?” she asks.
“Can I get a lemonade and a side of ranch, please?” Carmen asks.