“Aren’t you one of the younger guys?” Her brow furrowed.
“Agewise, yes. Gamewise, not really. One of our coaches identified some stuff in the last couple of games that he wants to sort out while it’s all still fresh.” I kept my answer purposefully vague. I didn’t feel like getting into the fucking rookie mistakes, not all of which had been made by actual rookies, that had cost us the season.
“That makes sense. Here I thought all that you did over the offseason was laze around drinking beer and chatting up girls at lavish parties while you waited for your chance to chase after your beloved ball for your adoring fans once more.” Light danced in her eyes, and she wore an easy smile.
She was already starting to look more relaxed.
“We know how accurate your assumptions have been so far. Maybe it’s time to wipe the slate clean and start all over.”
“Isn’t the offseason for you guys like Christmas break for other people? You know, when you spend time with family and just recover and stuff. I swear that’s the way it’s always been. Unless I’ve been living under a rock.” She folded one long leg underneath her and drew the other up to her chest as she tilted her head at me, waiting for my answer with genuine interest.
“No, you’re right. The offseason is like our ‘most wonderful time of the year.’ We’re just coming off a tough season this year. We’re gonna have to make some changes if we want to do better next season. It’s not like we’re seriously training or anything. We pretty much still come and go as we want to. We’re just smoothing some things out when people are available.” There, that was honest and not totally depressing.
“So, in a way, you’re kind of doing exactly what I am?” Well, shit. I hadn’t thought about it that way. “I mean, you know that you’ll be playing football next season, so it’s not exactly the same, but there are some similarities.”
Her tired eyes were sharp as they bore into mine.
“In a way, yeah. Exactly that.” Something else dawned on me as I drew the mental similarities. “Isn’t this time of year sort of your preseason? Why are you the only person in the library?”
“I guess it is, yeah. But the people who will be testing in the next session have mostly got their books and stuff sorted and are studying at home or in study groups at someone else’s. In the month or so leading up to the actual exam, the place will be packed again.” That made sense.
A sexy grin spread on her lips as her eyes lit up in realization. “Wait, we’re the only people in here?”
“Yeah, except for the librarian, I didn’t see anyone else on my way back here.” Mischief glinted in her eyes as she stood up and sauntered over to me.
“You know, we haven’t really done anything since our first date.” Her hands played with the edge of her shirt.
My eyes were pinned to her hands as she lifted her shirt just enough to reveal her hipbones and the bottom of her flat stomach. “That’s not entirely true; I seem to a recall a pretty sexy phone call over the weekend.”
“That doesn’t count, not really.” She lifted her shirt higher and then tugged it completely off. My breath caught in my throat as she revealed the bright red bra that the strap had hinted at earlier. It had black lace trim and pushed her responsive tits into perfectly heart-shaped cleavage.
I was semi-erect, and she hadn’t even touched me yet. I just wasn’t so sure about doing what we both wanted to do in the public library, though.
“Don’t worry about the librarian. Mrs. Dunn hasn’t been up here in years. She has bad knees.”
Her fingers slid down her sides as they danced to her waistline. She dropped her hands to her button and let her jeans slide to the floor as she stepped out of her sandals. Her boy-cut panties matched her bra as she stood before me. Her hair was still tangled on her head, held in place by her pencil, and her lips were slightly parted.
Your move, Skye.
Fuck it, public library or not, I couldn’t stop myself from pushing out of my chair and pulling the pencil from her hair as I claimed her mouth with mine.
Chapter Fourteen
Gabrielle
When I’d put that underwear on that morning, I hadn’t for one second imagined I would be putting in on display for James. In a public library, no less. I’d simply wanted to feel good about myself. A fact that I was infinitely grateful for as James devoured my body with his eyes.
He sat in a threadbare chair and somehow made it look like he sat on a throne. The sunlight filtering in through the window behind him revealed flecks of gold in his dark hair that I hadn’t noticed before.
The corded muscles in his arms rippled as he gripped the armr
ests of his chair, seemingly considering my offer. He rose slowly and strode towards me like a predator stalking its prey. His hazel eyes burned with lust and pinned me in place.
My breathing hitched. For a guy who could be so easygoing and fun, he was an alpha all the way when he got like this. Though, I had no doubt that he was dominant in every aspect of his life. I wasn’t intimidated by strong men and even appreciated his cocksure presence. Give me that over meek and mild any day.
I had asked one of the guys in Heather’s study group about James, and the guy had practically started purring as he sang James’s praises.
The other guys had quickly chimed in, even some of the girls had started raving about him, albeit for completely different reasons than the guys had been. It seemed that James Skye was something of a hero to his loyal fans. The guys wanted to be him, and the girls wanted to be with him.