the only person on the planet he’d ever apologized to and why that was never an easy thing to do. His cheeks rounded with his exhale, and Ryder dragged a hand through his hair. “You don’t owe me anything. I was wrong, like I said. I shouldn’t have…touched you.”
Her arms trembled, and the skin visible below her jersey chilled. She pulled her arms closer across her chest, not an easy task being weighed down with pads like she was. “That was at the beginning of the season…” Ryder nodded, shrugging as though that was explanation enough. Reese nodded, biting her lip. “You regret it.”
Ryder didn’t want to see the tease in her eyes or hear the small flicker of hope he was sure he imagined, but that didn’t stop him from taking a step, coming close enough to her that he only had to bend a little and he’d be at her lips.
It would be soft, he knew that. Her breath would be sweet, it always was. Her lips would be pliant, amenable to his insistence and her tongue would…
Shit, he thought, stepping back.
“I’m trying to be good here,” he admitted, looking down at his feet.
“Okay,” she said, sounding surprised. “And why do you have to put in such an effort?”
“Because,” he said, moving back again when Reese adjusted the elastic holding her hair back and he caught a whiff of her shampoo. “Because this—us and what happened—it’s not good…for the team.” He glanced at her face, frowning when she looked annoyed. “I just want to be a leader, Reesie. I want us to do well, and, fuck’s sake, I wanna stop being the cause of all the shit that gets started around you.”
She reached for him, her irritation gone, as though his confession worried her. “It’s not your fault. Not…”
“Well,” he said, shrugging when the intensity of her words stung him in the center of his chest. She wasn’t letting him take the blame. She was giving him a pass. He had to deflect. “You and Murry, no, I’m not responsible for that shit.”
“No.” She laughed, rolling her eyes at his frown. “It was Gia’s idea.”
“That’s insulting…parading you around like you’re…”
“In a beef cake calendar?” she said, laughing when Ryder shut his mouth. “Yeah, thought so.”
“Glenn. Noble. Ricks wants you on the field,” came a call from the locker room door, and Ryder shot a wave at the guy already disappearing back into the hallway.
“Anyway,” he said, again looking down at his feet. “I’m sorry about…the elevator. I had no business…” Guilt ate at him as he remembered her face when Greer got on the elevator. He should have broken up with her that weekend. Or every weekend since and he had no idea why he hadn’t. Reese nodded, and Ryder realized none of it mattered. Only today did. First Wildcard game. First game where Reese and Ryder would play actually speaking to each other. “Anyway,” he said, rubbing his neck, “I was an asshole.”
“Yeah,” she said, walking backward. Ryder didn’t know what to make of that glint in her eyes. “But then I’d take the asshole if it meant I got a kiss like that again.”
She turned, heading toward the door, Ryder behind her. “From me?” he asked, stopping her at the door. He couldn’t keep from smiling, something he seemed to only do with Reese.
“Didn’t say that, now did I, Ry?”
She pushed him aside and left the locker room with Ryder running behind her, enjoying the view.
18.
REESE
“WHY THE HELL am I here, then?”
“Noble, back up.” Ricks walked away from her, his attention on Ryder as he forwarded the drive against Atlanta.
“This is bullshit,” Reese said, catching Gia’s attention as she walked away from her coach.
“He’s got a point,” she said, the confession sending Reese further down the sideline and far enough away that there was no temptation to lash out at anyone.
“What’s the damn point anyway?” she said to herself, curling her arms across her chest as she watched the offense work their magic.
She shook her head, marching away from Gia. Behind her, Reese made out a few low whistles and one or two signs with that damn picture of her and Lennox locked in a kiss, but she was too irritated at being held out of the game to pay attention to anyone.
Last regular season game. A thirteen and two season.
Reese had been responsible for twenty-eight field goal attempts throughout the season. She’d only missed one. There had been a few hiccups, but that last game