Her lips curved, and she snuggled closer in the backseat of the car. The vise gripping his heart tightened a little more.
“We can have an early lunch at a beachside café, just hang out there, sipping sangria and soaking up the sun while we listen to the waves. When our butts go numb, we can take a long walk on the beach.”
She sighed, and her warm breath penetrated his shirt. He bent his head to kiss her temple and closed his eyes, pulling in a deep lungful of her scent. Damn, she smelled like heaven and heartbreak all rolled into one.
“What about practice?” she asked.
“Doesn’t start till three. That will give us time to stop at your apartment on the way back and see Cynthia. And after I spend an appropriate amount of time with the guys at dinner, I’ll sneak back to your room and spend the night with you.” Tangled up in the sheets, naked, making love to her every way he could think of to show her how passionately he felt about her.
“God,” Mia closed her eyes on a soft moan. “That sounds like heaven.”
They fell silent for the rest of the drive, but Rafe’s brain spun for a solution to the distance that would soon face them. He didn’t want to accept that there was no reasonable way for them to be together.
He could wait until June and the end of hockey season to talk to Tate and Joe about his feelings for Mia. But her new job was a real problem. He couldn’t live on the West Coast. She couldn’t live on the East Coast. And neither could ask the other to give up their dream. That wouldn’t be such a big problem if either of their jobs allowed time for leisure travel. But by the sounds of things at the party, Mia would have her nose to the grindstone. And Rafe would be either playing or practicing nearly every day for eight months of the year.
This was screwed, plain and simple.
The SUV stopped in front of the hotel, and reality rushed in. They only had days left together. Once they went their own ways again, everything would change. They’d be friends, but it would be different now. A thin layer of awkwardness would always exist between them. Neither would know exactly where their friendship boundary lay, so both of them would stand back a little further, in fear of stepping over.
Next time he saw her, maybe this summer, she’d be dating some new hot surfer dude, all buff and bronze. Rafe and Mia would pretend their time together never happened. They’d laugh and talk about how they’d been friends forever, how they knew each other inside and out, but they wouldn’t. Not anymore. Because this time together had already changed them both. Rafe would hug her when he left, like he always did. Smile and wave as if he were the carefree bachelor that fit the rumors. But inside, he’d be leaving the most important piece of himself behind.
“God.” She exhaled and covered her eyes. “I just wish time would stop.”
Instead, the car stopped, and they both had to get out and face reality.
Rafe thanked the driver, offered him a tip, and opened the door, offering his hand. He glanced toward the hotel as the wide glass doors opened and a gaggle of his teammates wandered out. Thankfully, Kilbourne wasn’t with them.
“Shit,” he muttered, dropping his hand before Mia had time to take it, then stepped back, putting space between himself and the car.
“Savage,” a few of the guys said in unison. Then Tierney asked, “Where you been, man?”
Before he could answer, Mia stepped out.
All five guys slowed, their gazes a mix of suspicion and you-dirty-dog. Then shared looks to confirm they all believed the same thing—that he and Mia were getting it on.
“Oh, hi, guys,” Mia said easily, as if she didn’t notice. “Where are you headed?”
“We’re going to meet Tate and a few other guys over at Sweet,” Hendrix said, a wicked smile growing on his face. “We’d ask you to join us, but it looks like you already have a private little party—”
“Ty,” Mia cut him off with a don’t-start attitude. “Knock it off or I’ll give Kimberly a call, and she’ll knock it off for you as soon as you get home.”
A couple of the other guys laughed and shoved Ty’s shoulder.
“Lighten up,” Isaac said. “I was just kidding.”
“No, you were being a prick,” Rafe told him. “And if you want to win the Cup, you won’t shoot your mouth off about something you know nothing about to Tate and fuck up the balance we’ve got going.”
That wiped the smile off everyone’s face.
The guys continued on their way, with Isaac offering, “Don’t stay up too late, kids.”
“And you guys stay out of trouble,” Mia said. “You know I’ll hear about it if you don’t. And you know all your wives and girlfriends like me better than they like any of you.”
That brought a little joviality back to the group, and Rafe followed Mia into the lobby. “You are so damn sassy.”
She shot a half smile over her shoulder. “They’ll be so glad when they find out I’m going to be across the country.”
At the elevator, Rafe stepped up close behind Mia and leaned forward to press the button, purposely brushing his body with hers. He slid his hands into his pants pockets but stayed so close at her back, their heat mingled. Their magnetic fields pushed and pulled.