Changing the Game (14 page)

Gavin had gone one for four on the night, which wasn’t his best, but he did knock in a run. The nail-biter came in the ninth when the bases were loaded and Dedrick was up. The game was tied so if he didn’t bring a run in, they were going to extra innings.

Elizabeth leaned forward in her seat, her fingers clasped together as Dedrick stared down Milwaukee’s closer. Dedrick dug his toe into the dirt, leaned in, and swung. It skidded along the third-base line, and Elizabeth held her breath, certain it was going to slide outside the foul line.

It didn’t. It stayed fair, and the runners took off from first and second. She leaped from her chair and squealed with delight as Jose charged around third base toward home while the right fielder scrambled for the ball. As soon as Jose touched home plate, the game was over. They only needed that one run to win the game.

The stadium erupted into chaos. The Rivers had won.

“That was a great game,” Ty said, turning to her with a grin.

“It was, wasn’t it?”

“Thanks for bringing me. I’m new to the city and haven’t had much of a chance to get out to meet too many people. Since the move to the U.S. after the trade to the Ice, I’ve been busy finding a place to live and playing hockey. And then changing agents, of course. It’s nice to get out and do something for a change.”

“But you like the team change?”

“Of course. I was the one who wanted the change. Davis resisted.”

Elizabeth leaned against the wall and crossed her arms. “Why?”

Ty shrugged. “No clue. He just said I should stay with Toronto, that change was never good.”

Elizabeth laughed. “Your stats were abysmal in Toronto. Since the trade, you’ve been kicking ass on the ice. And with the Ice. Sometimes change is exactly what a player needs.”

“That’s what I thought, too. But hey, that’s why I’ve got you and not him. He and I never saw eye to eye on my career. You and me mesh.”

She grinned. “Yes, we do. And I’m glad you’re happy. Now you can relax, play excellent hockey, and enjoy life in Saint Louis. The guys on your team are great. You should get to know them.”

“I have. A few of us are making plans to go out this weekend.”

“Settle in and make this your home. From what I hear from the team owner, you’re going to be here awhile. He likes you and your style of play.”

“Hey, Ty, want a tour of our fine facility here?”

Ty perked up at Clyde’s suggestion. “Love one. Come on, Elizabeth.”

She shook her head, not wanting to go anywhere near the locker room. “I’ve seen the place, but you go ahead.”

“Come with us, Elizabeth. Afterward, you and Ty can come with Helen and Aubry and me. I’m buying dinner.”

Crap. Schmoozing the owner was on the top of her list of things to do, and she never turned down an opportunity to hang out with him. “What a nice offer. We’d love to, wouldn’t we, Ty?”

“I’d consider it an honor. Thank you.”

Clyde took them on the standard tour of the ballpark, from the executive offices all the way down to the players’ locker room. Elizabeth opted to wait outside the locker room with Helen and Aubry while the guys went inside, but she was certain Ty would get a kick out of meeting some of the players.

Elizabeth preferred not to see Gavin. In fact she hoped like hell she could avoid it.

“That guy is gorgeous,” Aubry said.

“Which guy? Oh, Ty?”

“Yes. Makes me wish I had a nanosecond of free time to date. The only men I get to hang around with are the other medical students.”

“Well, you do have a lot in common with them.”

“True. My mother tells me I’m destined to marry one. She’s probably right.”

“Or a baseball player.”

She rolled her eyes. “The last person I would ever marry is a baseball player. I’ve been surrounded by them my entire life. I think I’ll stick with doctors. Baseball players have entirely too much ego.”

Elizabeth laughed. “And doctors don’t?”

“Okay. Good point. But I think I’ll take my chances with doctors. Their egos I can handle. Baseball players on the other hand? Ugh.”

“You’re right about that, Aubry. We’re horrible.”

Aubry’s eyes widened. “Gavin. You know I didn’t mean you.”

Shit. Elizabeth turned around. Gavin stood outside the locker room door with Ty.

Gavin grinned at Aubry, didn’t even look at her. “Just teasing you, Bree.” He leaned over and kissed her cheek.

Aubry blew out a breath. “You scared me, dammit. You know some of those guys really have inflated opinions of themselves. I might hurt some feelings.”

Gavin hugged her against him. “Not me. I don’t have feelings.”

She laughed and so did Helen. “Gavin, you played well tonight.”

Gavin shrugged. “Not as good as I’d like to, but thank you, Helen. Clyde said to tell you he’d be out in a minute. He’s giving an inspirational speech.”

Helen rolled her eyes. “Oh, Lord. I’m starving. We could be waiting an hour. Do go move him along, Gavin.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Gavin stepped back inside the locker room. In five minutes, Clyde was out. With Gavin.

Damn. Elizabeth had hoped he wouldn’t come back outside.

“Finally,” Helen said. “I was about to faint. Gavin, are you coming to dinner with us?”

“Apparently. Clyde insisted.”

“Excellent. Let’s go, then. The limo is outside.”

Well, what a big, happy group this was. Gavin skirted a look in her direction as Ty grabbed her arm and escorted her to the limo. She wondered if Gavin thought Ty was her date for the evening. He didn’t seem pleased by that.

Elizabeth, on the other hand, was wholly pleased by the idea that Gavin looked a little less than his usual overconfident self.

They ate at an elegant restaurant downtown that afforded them privacy and a superb view of the riverfront. Clyde ordered champagne and toasted the Rivers new season.

“Gavin, was your family there tonight?”

“Not tonight. You know my family runs a bar in south Saint Louis, so they packed the crowds in for opening night.”

Clyde smiled and nodded. “Well done. I like your parents. I hope to see them at our opening month picnic.”

“You will. Mick should be in town for that, too.”

“Excellent. I’m sure he’s on cloud nine after his Super Bowl win.”

Gavin grinned. “Yeah, he was pretty stoked about winning the Super Bowl, but I think he’s more excited about planning his wedding to Tara.”

Elizabeth kept her gaze averted, not wanting to listen in or get involved at all when discussions turned to Mick.

“Now, Ty, tell me about yourself. Getting all settled in?”

“Yes, sir. I’ve got a temporary place I’m staying in right now. Just waiting for the season to be over with this month, then I’m going house hunting.”

“I’ll put you in touch with an excellent Realtor we know,” Helen said. “She’ll be happy to help you.”

Ty nodded. “Thank you. I’d like that. Elizabeth has been helpful. It’s obvious she knows the area.”

She smiled. “I’ve got a few clients here.”

Ty grinned at her. “And now you have one more.”

Gavin coughed. Elizabeth ignored him, glad he was sitting at the other end of the table entertaining Aubry, who was shooting interested glances toward Ty.

This whole dinner would be comical if Elizabeth wasn’t acutely aware of Gavin’s gaze on her the entire time. And okay, maybe she had been shamelessly flirting with Ty, who cast her knowing smirks as if he knew exactly what she was doing because she’d treated him completely professionally from the get-go. Until tonight. So she was being blatantly obvious, and Ty wasn’t the clueless type.

Damn men.

Ty leaned in and whispered in her ear. “How badly do you want this guy?”

She turned her face to him. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“I mean, do you want me to kiss you, or would just holding your hand be enough?”

“Neither. I’m not playing games here, Ty.”

“Oh, I think you’re definitely playing games, Elizabeth.” He ran his finger up her bare arm. “And don’t look, but the fish is biting.”

She didn’t look, but felt Gavin’s gaze on her. Instead, she lifted her gaze to Ty. “Stop that.”

“You don’t want me to stop. You want him to watch. You want him to get jealous.”

“No, I don’t. Gavin is a client.”

“So?”

“So, I keep my professional life and my private life separate.”

Ty’s generous lips lifted as he raised his glass and took a drink. “Apparently not.”

“You’re a smug son of a bitch, you know that?”

“So I’ve been told. But your boyfriend over there doesn’t care that I’m smug, only that I’m paying attention to you.”

“He’s not my—” She rolled her eyes and gave up, happy when the food arrived and her argument with Ty ended. Not that it kept him from talking to her, which he did—rather incessantly throughout dinner. And since she’d found him to be mostly quiet during their previous meetings, she chalked it up to him trying to irritate Gavin.

The competitive nature of men and its relationship to women was one she’d never be able to understand. Add men in sports to the equation, and the competitiveness quadrupled. Ty had done everything but haul her onto his lap, and only because he did manage to take time out from his blatant flirting to eat his steak.

Gavin, on the other hand, seemed content to keep Aubry company. He had her laughing and engaged in conversation, so maybe Ty was totally off base, because not once did Elizabeth see Gavin glancing her way.

“He’s not even looking at me.”

“Not when you’re looking at him,” Ty explained. “But as soon as you turn away, he’s looking. Trust me. I’ve got this under control. I know when to turn up the heat. And you know I won’t mind if you want to use me to make your boy toy jealous.”

Trust him? Ha. At this point she’d like to kick him with her pointy-toed shoe. She somehow made it through dinner and the limo ride back to the stadium, thanked Clyde and Helen when they dropped her off at her car, declined Ty’s offer to accompany her and make sure she was safely escorted back to her condo. She opened her car door, slid in, and laid her head against the steering wheel.

What an epic disaster. She hadn’t expected to run into Gavin tonight when she’d brought Ty to the game. It was a big damn stadium. She’d thought sliding Ty into the owner’s box would be a piece of cake. They’d watch the game, slip out, and Gavin would have never known she was there.

Except his SUV was rolling toward her right now.

No. She had nothing to say to him. She started her car up and put it in gear, made a right turn, and headed for the ballpark exit, Gavin’s headlights right behind her. She pulled out of the park, conscious of him following her as she pulled onto the highway.

Okay, so she knew he’d take the same highway going home. No big deal, right? But he stayed right behind her the entire time. Surely he didn’t intend to follow her, did he? What did they possibly have to say to each other? Unless he was trying to find out if she had a tryst with Ty?

A tryst? She laughed out loud.

Yeah, and you watch too many Lifetime television movies, Elizabeth.

She was being ridiculous. If Gavin was at all interested in what she was doing or who she was seeing, he’d have called her after she abruptly left his beach house a few weeks ago.

He hadn’t. Which meant he wasn’t interested. They were over.

Ignoring the hurt, she took the highway exit.

So did he.

Butterflies took up residence in her stomach and stayed there as she pulled into her driveway.

Gavin didn’t, instead driving past her condo entrance as she got out. She waited, wondering if he was going to pull up to the security gate.

He didn’t. She watched him drive to the end of the street and turn back onto the highway, headed in the direction of his house.

Well, son of a bitch.

FOURTEEN

ELIZABETH WATCHED GAVIN’S CAR DISAPPEAR.

What the hell had that been all about? Was he just fucking with her, trying to freak her out?

She went inside, checked her mail, then tossed it on the kitchen table. She walked back and forth in front of her living room window, certain at any minute she’d see Gavin pull up.

He didn’t.

Dammit. She grabbed her keys, got in her car and headed out onto the highway.

By the time she’d made it out to the dark road where Gavin lived, she had second thoughts. What the hell was she doing? What was her plan? To knock on his door and ask him why he’d followed her? She could have called him.

Well, she was here now, heading up the long driveway to Castle Grayskull. The imposing two-story dark brick behemoth stood hidden behind thick, imposing trees that didn’t seem at all welcoming. It looked eerie and foreboding with vines crawling up the front and sides of the exterior.

She shuddered, hating this house and its isolation. She had no idea why Gavin liked this place. It was a mausoleum. When he’d bought it several years ago and showed it to her, she’d pronounced it the house of a vampire and had never come back.

He’d laughed at her. He’d probably laugh at her again tonight when she knocked on his door, affronted that he’d followed her.

Tough. They had a few things to get straight.

As she pulled in front of the house and turned the ignition off, she almost decided to turn around and head back to her place. With a sigh of resignation and just enough righteous indignation left to see this through, she got out, smoothed her skirt, and marched up to the front door. She lifted the hideous gargoyle knocker and rapped three times. It wouldn’t surprise her at all to hear screams coming from the other side since this house was straight out of a horror movie.

The door opened—with a creak, no less—and Gavin stood there, a surprised, wide-eyed look on his face. She helped herself to a scan of the rest of him, since he wore no shirt and a pair of ratty sweats, and he was barefoot. Everything that was female about her went into overdrive, and she had to resist the urge to leap into his arms and lick him senseless.

“Liz, what are you doing here?”

“Followed you, just like you followed me.”

He shrugged and opened the door wide. “Come on in, since you’re here.”

She stepped inside, shadows flicking their menacing greeting from the wall sconces in the entryway. It was cold in this place. She grabbed her jacket and pulled it tighter around her and followed Gavin into the living room.

Dark burgundy paint on the walls only added to the opposing atmosphere.

“Still gloomy in this place.”

His lips curled. “I like this house.”

“It suits you.”

“You want something to drink?”

“I’ll have whatever you’re having.” She looked at his glass.

He went to the bar off in the corner of the living room and poured her a whiskey, added a couple of ice cubes, and refilled his own drink.

“You going to sit down or just glare at me?”

She plopped onto the sofa. He handed her the whiskey and sat in the chair next to the sofa. She sipped the whiskey, grimacing. Not her drink of choice, but as it burned its way down to her stomach, it at least helped warm her up a little.

“It’s freezing in here.”

“Bitch, bitch, bitch.” He grabbed a remote off the table in front of him and clicked a button. The fireplace roared to life, heat blazing forth and providing instant warmth.

“Thanks.”

“Not like Florida here, is it?”

He just had to mention Florida, didn’t he? “Not quite. It was bad here while you were down there. Rained for weeks.”

“Yeah, I saw you were getting bad weather.”

They were talking about the weather. Is that what their relationship had been reduced to? They used to be comfortable with each other before sex had gotten in the way.

“Why did you come here, Liz?”

“Why did you follow me to my condo?”

“Just wanted to make sure you got there safely since it was late.”

She took a giant swallow of whiskey. “I’m a big girl, Gavin. I travel all over by myself without a bodyguard and make it home without an escort all the time.”

“I’m sure you do. But if you’re somewhere with me, I’m going to make sure you get back home okay.”

“I wasn’t ‘with you’ tonight.”

“Semantics. You were driving home alone, and it was on the way to my place anyway, so I just made a couple of extra turns to be sure you got home safely.”

“Why?”

He shrugged. “Don’t know. I guess it’s the nature of our relationship. I feel responsible for you.”

“We don’t have a relationship, Gavin, so you don’t need to feel responsible for me.”

He dragged his fingers through his hair. She wanted to run her fingers through the thick dark strands, remembered how soft his hair was, hated that she’d made him off-limits.

He lifted his gaze to her. “Why
don’t
we have a relationship, Elizabeth? What happened in Florida? Why did you leave?”

She shrugged. “Seemed time.”

“Time for what? Time for you to write me some bullshit note and run like hell?”

“You didn’t call me.”

“What?”

She’d said it so low she knew he hadn’t heard her. “Nothing.”

He came over and sat on the sofa next to her. “Tell me what you said.”

She shook her head. This had been a mistake. “Nothing.”

“Elizabeth.” He tipped her chin and forced her to look at him. “Talk to me.”

“I got scared, okay? You didn’t come home and didn’t call that night. I had no idea where you were and what you were doing. And I started thinking about being in a relationship with a guy. I’d never done that before. All the expectations. God, I hate expectations. I didn’t want to be that woman.”

She stood, went to the oversized window, and stared out at the tree limbs blowing in the wind, reaching toward the window, seemingly mocking her, laughing at her.

She heard Gavin approach. He put his hands on her, and she inhaled, breathing in his scent, so crisp, like the wild outdoors battering the window.

A storm was blowing in.

“What expectations? You didn’t want to be what woman? I don’t understand.”

She crossed her arms, hating that she was here having this conversation with him. “I know you don’t understand, Gavin. Because it doesn’t make any sense. I don’t make sense. This doesn’t make sense. I need to go.”

She turned to leave but he grasped her arms.

“Don’t go. I want to talk to you about that night. After the game I got stuck in a meeting and left my phone in my locker. And since I’m a moron and don’t know phone numbers because they’re programmed into my cell, I couldn’t call you. When I got back, you were already gone. I tried calling you after the meeting to tell you I was on my way back. You didn’t pick up.”

“I know.”

“Why?”

Because she’d been hurt and felt stupid for staying as long as she had. Because she’d given him the power to hurt her and make her vulnerable for caring about him. Because she already loved him and it devastated her. She’d spent years guarding her heart around him, and it had been working just fine. Laying her heart open around him had been dangerous. She’d had to run.

“It can’t work between us, Gavin. You know that.”

He arched a brow. “I don’t know that. I thought we were having a pretty good time together. You just got bent out of shape because I didn’t call saying I’d be late for dinner.”

Her lips twitched. Damn him. She didn’t want to cave on this. She wanted to remain firm and distant. But his impish green eyes and his hair falling across his brow were melting her, not to mention the warmth of his hands squeezing her shoulders.

She’d missed him over the past few weeks, more than she wanted to admit. Her body missed his touch. She missed looking at him and sleeping next to him. And despite her resolve to shove him back in the “client only” corner, they’d crossed the bridge into something else, and she wasn’t going to be able to shove him back into where he had been before.

Shit.

“I might have overreacted.”

“Just a little. And so did I. Admittedly, I was pissed off when I came back to the house and you were gone. I should have called you again. And again. Instead, I let the radio silence continue because I was hurt you up and left me.”

“You were?”

“Hell yeah. I liked having you in Florida with me. A warm body to share my bed at night, a sexy, independent woman who has her own career and doesn’t look to me to see to her every need? It’s every man’s dream.”

Her heart did flip-flops. “I hardly qualify as every man’s dream, Gavin. You said it yourself. I’m a pain in the ass.”

“Yeah, you are. But for some reason I like you, Lizzie. Despite your attempts to piss me off.”

He pushed her jacket off her shoulders. It was warm in the room now, and she was comfortable in her sleeveless top. He skimmed his hands down her arms, and he drew her against him.

“I missed holding you.”

“I’m sure you haven’t been lonely without me.”

He stopped and pulled her back. “There hasn’t been anyone since I was with you. Believe that. All I did after you left was play ball and brood a lot.”

She stared at him, unable to believe the bad boy of baseball would go almost a month without a woman. She wanted to believe him, but the men in her life had never been honest with her.

Gavin, however, had never lied to her. Why would he now?

“The brooding part I can definitely believe.”

He smiled and grazed his knuckles across her cheek, then leaned in and brushed his lips across hers. “Hey, I’ve been busy. It’s not like I go out and randomly pick up women.”

She craved more of his mouth on hers. “Neither do I.”

His lips lifted. “You don’t randomly pick up women?”

She laughed. “No. That’s not what I meant. I don’t randomly pick up men.”

“Not even Ty Anderson?”

She laid her palms on his bare chest, loving the feel of his skin. “He’s a new client and nothing more. Wanted to see a game tonight.”

“He seemed to want to see more of you.”

She lifted her gaze to his. “Jealous?”

His gaze narrowed. “Hell yes.”

When he kissed her this time, his lips were firm and possessive. He wrapped his arms around her and crushed her to him. His tongue slid inside her mouth and sucked on hers, demanding she surrender.

No problem there. She’d missed him so damn much. Being in his arms still felt like a dream to her. Being with Gavin felt forbidden, as if he was something she wasn’t supposed to have. And no matter how many sweet things he said to her about how he missed her and how it felt right between them, she knew what they had was always going to be temporary, for so many different reasons. So every moment they had together felt stolen, and she was going to enjoy every second.

He swept his arms down her back and cupped her ass, bringing her closer to his erection. She whimpered, needing him inside her right now, feeling a burst of primal hunger and a desperate need to be satisfied.

He backed her up against the wall next to the windows and tore her top from the waistband of her skirt. She kicked off her shoes and held up her arms while he lifted her blouse over her head.

Lightning flashed outside. She felt the electricity inside, too, when Gavin swept his hands over the bare flesh of her belly, then around her back as he unzipped her skirt and pushed it to the floor. She brushed the skirt to the side and reached for his sweats, pushing them down his hips. He stepped out of them, and she couldn’t help but look down and admire the power of his body.

His eyes were heavy lidded with passion, which fed her own need. She thrust her fingers into his hair and pulled him toward her for a kiss that blazed as hot and furious as the growing storm outside. Thunder rolled outside and rain lashed the windows. Lightning lit up the living room like daylight and the power flickered.

Gavin pulled back only long enough to sweep his hand over her bra-clad breasts while she was illuminated by the lightning.

Elizabeth took a few moments to catch her breath, to watch Gavin’s face as the lightning bathed it in on-and-off shadow. She gasped when he released her bra clasp and held on to the cups to pull her to him, then bent and sucked a taut bud between his lips.

The power of the storm outside only intensified her arousal, made her grab his hair and draw him closer to her breasts. Watching him lick and suck and bite her nipples made her clit and pussy tingle, made her want to feel him inside her pounding away.

God, she really needed him to fuck her, wanted to come so badly she could touch herself right now and go off like the lightning arcing across the dark skies.

“Gavin, fuck me.”

He lifted his head and bent to remove her panties, sliding his hands slowly down her hips, her thighs, her calves. She shivered at the feel of his fingers on her skin. And when he kissed his way up her legs, she parted them, knowing where he was going and wanting him there so desperately.

“Lean against the wall, Elizabeth.”

She leaned back and spread her legs. Gavin kissed her thighs, cupped her butt cheeks, and put his mouth where she needed it—right on her pussy. Seeing his lips on her clit made her shudder. Feeling his tongue rolling over the bud made her legs weak. She palmed the wall for support, closed her eyes, and let the sensations wash over her.

It had been so long since she’d had a climax, she came with a wild, surprising rush, letting out a cry and tightening her hold on Gavin’s hair. He rose and slid his cock inside her while she was still coming, intensifying her already insane orgasm.

Elizabeth laid her hands on his shoulders and dug her fingers into his skin, focusing her gaze on his eyes. She couldn’t even come down off the high of her climax, because he thrust into her, rolling his hips over her already sensitized sex and taking her right back to a fevered state. She wound her fingers around the nape of his neck and drew his lips to hers.

He kissed her, and thunder rolled outside, shaking the foundation and the walls, making her crazy as the storm intensified inside her again, too. Gavin didn’t stop, just continued to pummel her with the slow, steady slide of his shaft in and out of her. It was the sweetest torture, and the way he kissed her was maddening, taking her breath away with his lips and his tongue, nipping at her, licking at her, demanding she give him all she had.