Saylor

“You saw a bunch of bullshit, Saylor,” he corrects me, rubbing his hand across his face. “She and I were never a thing. She asked to come as my date because she liked being arm candy and said I owed it to her. The only reason I played nice was because she was going to be the mother of my child, and I didn’t exactly feel like having casual sex after I knocked someone up at a frat party.”

I lick my lips and prod, “Did she know that?”

He nods. “Yeah. I made it clear that I didn’t want a relationship with her, and she was cool with it as long as I paid the bills and wound up on an NFL team.”

“Then, why would she want to come to these banquets?” I motion to the giant building glowing with lights on my right.

“Like I said, she liked the attention. She liked seeing her face on TV and in the sports section. But as soon as we’d walk into the building and the reporters were out of sight, she’d disappear for a few hours, and then I’d drive her home. That’s it. And everyone at these gatherings knew it too.”

“You promise?” I whisper.

He exhales and looks over at me. “Yeah, Say. I promise. Please trust me.”

“Okay,” I whisper. “I trust you.”

The silence is torture as I stare up at the gorgeous glass building that looms in front of us like it could swallow me whole. But Owen waits patiently for me to really be okay, not just say it. He squeezes my knee to let me know that I’m not alone. That I can take my time. That he’s here for me. And I appreciate it more than anything else in the world.

With a deep breath, I force myself to blink and focus on the man beside me instead of the butterflies assaulting my stomach. “I love you, Owen Daniels.”

The car idles as he lifts my hand and kisses the back of it with a gentleness that seems to settle my nerves.

“Love you, too, Saylor. Thanks for coming with me.”

“Thanks for inviting me.”

“I know it’s scary.”

“Yup.”

“And that there are a lot of places you’d rather be,” he continues.

I shake my head. “That’s where you’re wrong. I want to be wherever you are, even when it’s scary. Come on. Let’s get inside.”

His grip tightens on my hand before he lets go and cups the side of my face. I can feel the valet watching our exchange, but I don’t even care. I’m too distracted by those same cool blue eyes and the way they manage to warm anytime they’re directed at me. With a soft, sweet kiss to my lips, his mouth curves upward.

“What’s so funny?” I ask though I can’t find the discipline to pull away as I let the mint from his breath tease me from our close proximity.

“Nothing.”

“Liar. Tell me.”

He smirks. “I was just thinking about when I got hurt, and I had to announce my early retirement from the game. Afterward, I hated attending these kinds of things because everyone would look at me with pity. Like they felt sorry for me.” He shakes his head. “I hated those looks of pity.”

“And that’s amusing?” I ask, noting the mischievous smile still etched into his handsome features.

“Yeah.”

“And why is that?”

His grin widens. “Because I can guarantee that I won’t get a single look like that tonight.”

“Why not?” I ask.

“Because they’ll all be staring at you. Wishing they were the one to bring you here.” He kisses my nose, then adds, “I’m the lucky one tonight. I get to call you mine. And those sorry bastards might have football, but they’ll never have you. And that makes all the shit worth it.”

My mouth is on his in an instant, my heart pounding so hard I’m sure we could hear it if it weren’t for our heavy breathing. The kiss is laced with a desperation that makes me dizzy as I push my tongue between his lips and claim him the same way he claimed me all those years ago in high school.

A brash knock echoes from the passenger window, making me jerk away from Owen like a girl who just got caught making out with her boyfriend.