Sterling (Carolina Reapers 6)

And two, I was wholly and royally fucked.

Because while all I’d wanted to do was stand on my own and belong to myself, I couldn’t deny that Jansen had succeeded in completely and utterly claiming me.

And realized that I didn’t mind being his.

Not. One. Bit.

11

Sterling

“Someone’s been skipping the carbs,” Briggs said as I finished my squat reps and put the bar back on its stand. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this shredded. You might be giving Demon over there a run for his money.” He nodded toward the corner, where Brogan Grant was benching an ungodly amount of weight.

“Pretty sure that guy could bench a car if he had to,” I remarked, reaching for my water bottle. Any fat I’d lost was probably due to the marathon rounds of sex London and I were having at every possible opportunity.

“True.” Briggs adjusted the weights on the bar next to mine and started his own reps.

I didn’t say a word about the fact that he had about twenty more pounds on his bar than I did. Briggs was just like that. Always went above but never drew attention to it.

We finished our workout, showered, and headed for the conference room, where the rest of the team was already gathering. I sank into the empty chair at Sawyer’s left, and Briggs took the one next to me.

Meeting every month to discuss what team promotional events were going on was a new thing this year, but I liked that it gave the rookies a chance for some face time with fans if they got their hands in the air fast enough. Plus, it gave me an extra hour of staring at London, which was hardly something I’d argue with.

Maxim and Caz took the seats directly across from us, and I did my best to ignore them both—Maxim, because fuck him, and Caz because I was sure he’d take one look in my eyes and know I was carrying on a secret relationship with his sister behind his back.

Not cool.

Necessary, but still.

Not. Cool.

I took the stack of papers Sawyer handed me, kept one, and passed it down, elementary school style. It was an itinerary of the upcoming events and listed how many players they’d need at each one.

My name was already inked on every meet and greet, right next to Maxim’s, and oh joy, there was a TV promo spot coming up for the Ronald McDonald House fundraiser event. Yay.

London came by behind us, handing out bottles of water as Langley took the floor at the end of the table, explaining why two new events had been added. Had to admit, it was hard to concentrate on anything she was saying when I knew London was approaching.

“Sawyer,” she said, handing him a bottle.

“Thanks, little Foster.”

She cringed, but her smile was steadfast.

“Jansen,” she whispered, holding out my bottle.

I turned slightly in my chair and made the epic mistake of looking up into those gorgeous blue eyes of hers. They were pretty much my kryptonite and sucked every thought out of my head. “Thanks, London.”

My hand brushed against hers, my index finger sneaking a little stroke of the inside of her wrist as I took the bottle.

Her breath caught, and we shared a smile before she moved to Briggs.

“Briggs,” she muttered.

“Thank you, London.”

I turned my attention to the agenda in front of me and felt the heat of Maxim’s glare from across the table, which I did my best to ignore. It wasn’t my fault that his side of the table had Sean, the other game day coordinator, handing out their hydration. Too bad. So sad.

“Okay, we have an event at the zoo in two weeks, and they’ve asked for an additional two players for that. It’s basically a meet and greet. Photos. Autographs. Nothing too invasive,” Langley said, looking down the table.

Rookie hands shot into the air, and I let them have it. I was getting more than my fair share of camera time lately.

Seeing that London had finished our side of the table and was walking back to Langley, I took out my cell phone but kept it beneath the table as I texted her.

ME: You have no idea how badly I want to lick you right now.

London slipped out her phone and read the message, her cheeks flushing pink as she quickly typed out a response.

LONDON: You did a thorough job this morning already.

A smile tilted the corners of my lips.

“What about you, Brogan?” Langley asked, lifting her eyebrows at him.

“No.” He didn’t explain or offer an apology. That was it.

Langley sighed.

“He’d probably frighten the kids off,” Briggs joked.

The team laughed.

“He’s not lying,” Brogan replied, completely deadpan.

The laughter only grew louder.

“Oh, come on.” Langley put her hands on her hips. “We’ve had multiple requests for you, and you turn them down every time.”