and hit the sand on the opposite side. Whooping it up with the rest of Haydon’s Hammers, Chloe rotated to the left front, while Lizzy, one of Eric’s waitresses, stepped back to serve.
Two more of Eric’s employees made up the rest of the team of six, which had managed to win their first two matches. This third game of the third match was the last of the afternoon and would determine the tournament winner.
Having breezed through check-in, though she had no real connection to Haydon’s, Chloe still wasn’t clear on the rules covering what qualified a person to play in a competing team. Who knew what story Eric had told the officials when he’d added her name to Haydon’s roster?
And, actually, she didn’t care how many lies he’d told the tourney organizers because, though she wasn’t about to admit it to Eric and give him any sort of satisfaction, she wouldn’t have missed today for theworld. She was having a blast, more fun than she’d had on a date since, well, since she could remember.
Of course, today wasn’t really a date, because she and Eric weren’t really dating. But, one friend to another, he was definitely showing her a good time. And, damn the man, she thought, catching his wink from across the court, he knew she was enjoying the game and his company.
“Heads up,” Jason called as Lizzy’s serve sailed across the court. Pass, set, hit, and the ball skimmed inches above the net, right into Jason’s block and back down to the sand on the other side.
The Haydon’s team cheered the point and Lizzy readied for her second serve. The opposing forward slammed the return and Eric went flying as he reached for a save. The ball hit his wrist at an awkward angle and popped toward Chloe before she could blink.
Reflexes and adrenaline kicked in and, knees bent, she stepped forward, swung her arms up and jumped, pulling her fist back, swinging her elbow forward, making contact high above her shoulder and… smack!
Awkwardly, she spiked the ball, but spike it she did and, in the next second, she registered the point she’d scored and the cheers going up from her teammates.
Wow! How totally cool was that? Especially since spiking had never been part of her game. Jason met her midcourt for a high five. Lizzy shot her a grin and a thumbs-up.
And Eric. Oh, Eric.
Chloe couldn’t take her eyes off his approach. His smile was crowing and wide. Sweat soaked the neck and chest of his dark navy T-shirt. His eyes flashed with excitement. His stride ate up the ground, long and powerful and determined.
The rush that sent her blood pressure soaring had nothing to do with a player’s high over the point. This was about her body reacting to the look in Eric’s eye, to his predatory approach, to the reality of being his prey, and the wrenching desire to be devoured.
How unfair that he’d discovered her weakness, her longing to be the light at the end of a man’s tunnel. Unaware that he’d done so, he’d tapped into her fantasy of being the only thing a man had eyes for.
She barely had time to catch a breath or wipe the perspiration from her forehead before he was there and his arms were around her waist and she was airborne, her hands on his shoulders for balance as he twirled in a circle.
“Eric! Stop!” She dug her fingers deeper, gouging his muscles and loving the feel of his strength beneath her hands, loving even more the tickle and the warmth of his mouth nuzzling the bare skin of her belly. “You’re making me dizzy. I’m gonna lose my breakfast all over your back if you don’t stop.”
Eric laughed. And he stopped, letting Chloe slide the length of his body to the ground, keeping her close and holding her tightly. “I doubt you have any breakfast left to lose, the way you’re playing. You’ve burned off more than a few stored calories.”
Her hands still on his shoulders, she looked into his eyes of beautiful blue. Her breasts tightened in response to his randy grin and the hunger his
Two more of Eric’s employees made up the rest of the team of six, which had managed to win their first two matches. This third game of the third match was the last of the afternoon and would determine the tournament winner.
Having breezed through check-in, though she had no real connection to Haydon’s, Chloe still wasn’t clear on the rules covering what qualified a person to play in a competing team. Who knew what story Eric had told the officials when he’d added her name to Haydon’s roster?
And, actually, she didn’t care how many lies he’d told the tourney organizers because, though she wasn’t about to admit it to Eric and give him any sort of satisfaction, she wouldn’t have missed today for theworld. She was having a blast, more fun than she’d had on a date since, well, since she could remember.
Of course, today wasn’t really a date, because she and Eric weren’t really dating. But, one friend to another, he was definitely showing her a good time. And, damn the man, she thought, catching his wink from across the court, he knew she was enjoying the game and his company.
“Heads up,” Jason called as Lizzy’s serve sailed across the court. Pass, set, hit, and the ball skimmed inches above the net, right into Jason’s block and back down to the sand on the other side.
The Haydon’s team cheered the point and Lizzy readied for her second serve. The opposing forward slammed the return and Eric went flying as he reached for a save. The ball hit his wrist at an awkward angle and popped toward Chloe before she could blink.
Reflexes and adrenaline kicked in and, knees bent, she stepped forward, swung her arms up and jumped, pulling her fist back, swinging her elbow forward, making contact high above her shoulder and… smack!
Awkwardly, she spiked the ball, but spike it she did and, in the next second, she registered the point she’d scored and the cheers going up from her teammates.
Wow! How totally cool was that? Especially since spiking had never been part of her game. Jason met her midcourt for a high five. Lizzy shot her a grin and a thumbs-up.
And Eric. Oh, Eric.
Chloe couldn’t take her eyes off his approach. His smile was crowing and wide. Sweat soaked the neck and chest of his dark navy T-shirt. His eyes flashed with excitement. His stride ate up the ground, long and powerful and determined.
The rush that sent her blood pressure soaring had nothing to do with a player’s high over the point. This was about her body reacting to the look in Eric’s eye, to his predatory approach, to the reality of being his prey, and the wrenching desire to be devoured.
How unfair that he’d discovered her weakness, her longing to be the light at the end of a man’s tunnel. Unaware that he’d done so, he’d tapped into her fantasy of being the only thing a man had eyes for.
She barely had time to catch a breath or wipe the perspiration from her forehead before he was there and his arms were around her waist and she was airborne, her hands on his shoulders for balance as he twirled in a circle.
“Eric! Stop!” She dug her fingers deeper, gouging his muscles and loving the feel of his strength beneath her hands, loving even more the tickle and the warmth of his mouth nuzzling the bare skin of her belly. “You’re making me dizzy. I’m gonna lose my breakfast all over your back if you don’t stop.”
Eric laughed. And he stopped, letting Chloe slide the length of his body to the ground, keeping her close and holding her tightly. “I doubt you have any breakfast left to lose, the way you’re playing. You’ve burned off more than a few stored calories.”
Her hands still on his shoulders, she looked into his eyes of beautiful blue. Her breasts tightened in response to his randy grin and the hunger his
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