Chapter 29

Chapter Twenty-Nine

DANE

S kipped study hall. Canceled the commercial with the local car dealership I represent. Missed practice. Consequences be damned, I'm going to support Lettie. I won't be able to miss once our season starts. Her first competition is this weekend, and I'm not missing it just to wave to a crowd of seventy thousand Stallions football fans. I'll put out a video saying I'm supporting the equine industry, and that's all it will take to be forgiven, with this being the horse capital of the world.

Pitching some clothes into a weekender suitcase, I call one of the horse farms that I'm partnered with. They have a private plane, and they're more than happy to fly me to Florida. They have one condition, that I let a camera crew follow our reunion weekend. The owner's wife is a sports reporter for the local news and he's anxious for her to get an exclusive story. Right now, I'll do anything to get to Lettie quickly.

Once we arr ive, the two-person camera crew and I get whisked off in a black SUV. To where? Don't know yet.

Me: Lettie Bug, where are you right now?

I text her three more times and since she hasn't answered, I take a chance and head to her hotel. The driver drops me off, and the other two stand behind me as I call Lettie.

"Hey. Sorry I couldn't answer."

"Where are you?"

"Eating dinner."

I glance up at the opulent signs and head toward the restaurant. My stomach flips with nerves. Two weeks ago, I didn't ever get nervous around Lettie, but now I feel like I'm walking on eggshells, waiting for us to crack. I stop before entering the restaurant, pull on each cuff of my button down to straighten the sleeves, and clear my throat.

"Where?"

"In the hotel, why?"

"Cause I'm here." The line goes silent. We walk past the hostess and wind through the restaurant when I spot her on the patio with Jasper Cole. I speak low into the phone. "I love the way your hair is pulled back in that comb. The comb I took from your hair the night we…"

She drops her phone to the table and twists her head in my direction, before picking it back up. She hops up and runs into my arms, giving me a small window to push my cell into my pocket. I swing her around as she tucks her he ad into my neck. "I've missed you so fucking much, baby."

"Me too. I can't believe you're here. How? Why?"

"That's a softball question if I ever heard one," I pretend to scoff.

Her eyes search mine for answers. "Seriously, why?"

"Because you're here… and I couldn't bear being apart from you one more night."

Our lips overlap, smacking gently. Her mouth tastes like an expensive cabernet, delicious, but then I remember who she's sharing it with. This asshole is taking up her private time too, when she's supposed to be off the clock.

Jasper clears his throat. "So, Elizabeth, is this your best friend? The one who's not a distraction."

Elizabeth? No one has ever called her by her given name.

She deadpans on him. No matter how she responds, she knows her trainer has shoved a knife into my gut and twisted. On top of that, Lettie lied and call me her best friend? Of course, I am, but while I've been telling anyone who will listen that Lettie and I are a couple, she's been hiding it from her new trainer. And why did she say I wasn't a distraction, not that I want to be, but it's like she doesn't want him to know how she feels about me.

Unsure of how to react, I extend my hand. I have six to eight inches on him, but he's fit. "Dane Greathouse."

It takes him a moment before I see a flicker of recognition in his eyes. "Jasper Cole. Lettie, just because your best friend is here, doesn't change things. I'll see yo u at five in the morning. If you want what's best for her, you'll head home tomorrow."

He walks off as Lettie nods, then looks at the floor, studying the floral design on the carpet. "Are you hungry?" she asks.

Hungry? Right now, I want to push my fist through Jasper's face. He's known her for a week and thinks he knows what's best for her. Well, fuck him. My jaw tightens, as envy squeezes my throat. "Yeah, a little."

She gives me a ghost of a smile. That's the thing, Lettie and I aren't new to each other. The sex is new, outwardly showing our emotions is new, but right now, she knows what I'm thinking.

I'm pissed off that she's having dinner with her trainer while not having time to talk to me or even Brooke.

And I know what's running through her mind.

What right does he have to tell me who I can have dinner with and when?

Neither of us say what's on the tips of our tongues. Instead, I say, "How about we order room service? Are you done for the night… with your training?"

She bites her lip and nods. The camera crew goes around another table to get behind us and as soon as we make it down the hallway and back into the lobby filled with plush white couches and golden lights, I ask them to leave. They're staying in the hotel and flying back with me on Sunday after Lettie's competition.

"Is there a reason you have cameras following you?" she asks, lacing her arm through my elbow. "Are you on a reality show?"

"No, I flew private, and this was the deal. The wife of the owner of Crown Jewel Farm is a reporter for the Channel 8 News. I agreed to let her capture our meeting. I thought it would be romantic." I press my lips together.

"It was. I'm so happy you're here."

I press the button on the elevator. "What floor?"

"Seven."

The door opens and closes behind us. We're the only ones, and we both cackle, remembering the last time we were in an elevator together. "Fun times," she says with a wink and grin.

"So much fun." My finger hovers over the stop button, teasing her. "Want a second go?" It dings as we get to the seventh floor.

We walk down the hallway hand in hand, and my jealousy has dissipated. She swipes her key card and pulls me inside.

"No, I want to get in my pajamas and talk until I fall asleep."

Some reunion.