Chapter 15

FIFTEEN

Anders

I really want to punch Seth Crandall.

That asshole did a number on Claudia’s self-esteem, and it’s starting to piss me off. I’m not mad at her, but it’s hard to hear her talk about how guys stop paying attention to her once they see Hana.

Or maybe I’m a little irritated at myself because I’d inadvertently been one of those guys.

The moment Johan showed us the pictures of his sister, I’d basically called dibs. I’d staked a claim because she’s extremely attractive, and also because I’d wanted to see Johan’s reaction. It wasn’t a serious thing, though.

Hana is beautiful, no doubt about that, but so is Claudia.

Hana is more striking with her dark brown hair, bright blue eyes, and smokin’ hot body.

Claudia is softer, more feminine.

Exactly what I like in a woman.

She has curves and bigger breasts.

A plump lower lip I could spend hours sucking on.

The thought of pressing her body into the mattress with mine, skin on skin, is all I’ve thought about for two days.

I want to bury my face between her breasts and feast on them.

I also want to hold her hand and feel her relax against me.

I honestly want to gaze into her pretty face from across a candlelit table and listen to her talk about computers and her upcoming job. She’s smart and interesting and, in my opinion, her shyness makes her genuine and endearing. Especially now, because even at night in my peripheral vision, I see that she’s blushing.

“I’m crude sometimes.” I say gruffly. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. I’m beginning to realize I like it.”

“You liked when I talked dirty earlier?”

“Yes.”

“You know that was fairly tame, right?”

“I figured.”

“You’ll have to guide me, because even though I’ll respect your boundaries, I’m not going to baby you, Claudia. You’re a grown woman and I’m a man who intends to touch you, kiss you…teach you anything you want to learn.”

“That’s what I’m hoping.”

We’ve just pulled up to her hotel and I ease the car into a guest spot.

“You sure you want me to come up?”

“I don’t know what time Hana is getting home, but yes, I’d like to spend more time with you.”

“All right.” I get out of the car just as the rumble of a motorcycle engine catches my attention. We both look up as Aiden pulls his emerald-green Harley up to the front of the hotel and Hana gets off the back. They talk as she takes off the helmet and hands it to him, and he leans over, pressing a quick kiss to her cheek.

Then he pulls off down the street, leaving her standing there for a few seconds before she turns and hurries inside.

“That was a quick date,” Claudia murmurs.

“Do you still want me to come up?”

“I do, but…” Her voice trails. “Maybe tonight isn’t the night for that. I don’t know why Hana’s back so soon or if something happened. I feel like I need to be a friend tonight.”

I nod. “Absolutely. We have tomorrow.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize for being a thoughtful friend. Tomorrow we’ll go to Vizcaya and the jungle place, and then tomorrow night maybe you’ll come to my place.”

“Yes. Okay.” She turns to me, and I pull her against my chest, as I lower my mouth to hers. She sighs against me, her tongue coming out to meet mine, and I slide my fingers into her hair. She probably isn’t even aware how much she likes it when I’m a little rough with her. There’s no doubt in my mind she wants me to take charge, guide her, show her what she doesn’t know.

But not tonight.

Tonight there’s some fuckery going on with Felix, Aiden, and Hana, and I plan to have a talk with Felix about it when I get home.

“So…I’ll see you in the morning?” she whispers against my mouth.

“You will. I’ll pick you up around nine thirty.”

“See you then.”

I press my lips to hers one last time and then get back in my car, watching as she uses her key card to get into the hotel.

I’m a little frustrated by the turn of events, but mostly I want to know what the hell is going on. The last thing we need going into training camp is animosity between Aiden and Felix. It could mess up the chemistry of the team, and I don’t know that Coach Petrov will put up with it. He’s got a pretty laid-back coaching style, but he doesn’t put up with any bullshit either. He’ll call out any player, or players, who behave badly. Hell, he sent Jordan Palmer down to the minors after a handful of transgressions regarding his then teenage girlfriend.

I let myself into the apartment and find Felix on the couch, channel surfing.

“Hey.” I put down my keys and join him. “What’s up?”

“Nothing.” He shrugs.

“What’s going on with you and Hana?” I ask bluntly, deciding not to beat around the bush.

“Nothing.” This time he makes a face.

“Did you tell her about Celine?”

He nods.

“Was she pissed?”

“Not pissed. More disappointment. Frustration. Then she said she is not interested to be homewrecker.” He pauses. “But I do not share a home with Celine, so I am confused. As usual.”

“It’s an expression,” I explain. “Like, she doesn’t want to have a part in potentially breaking up you and Celine.”

“If I am not exclusive with Celine, can I not date both women?” he asks.

“Technically, you can, but if Hana isn’t interested in having a non-exclusive relationship, then you can’t do it with her .”

“And then she spends the time with Aiden.” He scowls. “This is to make me jealous?”

Christ, I have no idea what Hana is doing or thinking.

“I don’t know, but it seems to me that she decided she’s not interested in someone who has a girlfriend, so she’s moved on.”

“So fast?” He mutters something in French.

“Dude, you need to make a decision. This is a classic case of having your cake and eating it too. That just means you want everything—the comfortable steady girl at home and the exciting new hottie too.”

He frowns. “You think I need to stay with Celine?”

“I don’t know your relationship with either of them, but I think you need to pick one.”

“How can I pick one if I cannot spend time with Hana to see if she is what I want?”

“I don’t know.”

“This does not help me.”

“Sorry.” I give him a wry grin. “I’m no expert on women.”

“You and Claudia? There is something there?”

“Yeah.” I lean back. “At least…I think so.”

“But?”

“But…she’s on a girls’ trip and wants to spend time with her friend. And she lives in Philadelphia. And she’s really fucking smart.”

“This is bad? That she is smart?”

“Not at all. I love a woman I can talk to. I’m more worried she’ll get bored with me, you know?”

“Why? You think you are not intelligent?”

“I can hold my own, but shit, she went to MIT. She’s, like, super brainy. Maybe she likes guys with brains like hers.”

“I think maybe the opposites attract, no?”

“That’s what they say, but I don’t know who they are or why they say that.”

“They who?” Felix asks, frowning.

I chuckle. “I’m kidding. Ignore me. All I’m going to say to you is, don’t start something you’re not going to finish. If you want to date Hana, date her, but don’t play games with both her and Celine. You’re just setting yourself up for a headache because we both know Johan won’t be happy if he thinks you’re cheating on his sister. Not to mention, Aiden’s sniffing around now, and we don’t need drama on the team.”

Felix scowls and mutters something in French.

“I can’t help you in any language but English,” I say. “Unless you learned Swedish recently.”

“I am unsure what is next. I want to date both.”

“Yeah, well, what you want and what’s realistic are two different things. It’s fine to want to sleep around, date lots of women… I just don’t think your teammate’s sister should be one of them.”

“But is okay for Aiden?”

“Last I checked, she’s not dating him.”

There’s a lot more muttering in French, and I opt to let him get it out of his system. That’s kind of how Felix works. He vents in French, calms himself down, and then can have a more rational conversation in English.

Well, rational for Felix.

He definitely marches to the beat of his own drum.

Normally, I find his quirky personality entertaining, but a situation like this can only mean trouble for the team. I’ve seen this type of thing happen on other teams and it never ends well. Usually, it ends with one or both players getting traded, and that would be a shame considering how much chemistry there is with the current lineup.

“I suck when it comes to the women,” he says finally. “No luck.”

“You make your own luck, my friend.”

More muttering in French.

“Look, do you think you have a future with Celine?”

He hesitates. “I do not know. Is soon.”

“Didn’t you spend all summer with her?”

“Not all of the summer, but yes, a couple of months.”

“And you still don’t know? That might be a red flag, man.”

“Red flag? You mean, a problem?”

“You spent two months with her and instead of missing her, wishing she was here, calling her every minute you can…you’re thinking about this other chick. That tells me she’s not the one.”

This time, there’s not just muttering in French, he’s up on his feet, pacing, waving his hands around as he talks.

I’m about to remind him to speak English when my phone buzzes in my pocket.

It’s a text from Claudia and I smile as I read it.

CLAUDIA: I just wanted to thank you for a wonderful day. Just to be clear, I am NOT thanking you for anything we did that was sexual. That part was awesome, but the rest of the day was pretty awesome too.

ANDERS: You’re welcome. I had a great time too. I’m looking forward to tomorrow.

I close the phone and look up at Felix. “If Celine was the one, you’d be texting her right now.”

He pauses and looks over at me curiously. “You mean, like you are with Claudia?”

Uh oh.

I’ve got it bad.