how the two women moved, side by side, their round, perfect asses swaying when they began across the sidelines.
“Fucking perfect,” Pérez said, and Kai knew he was talking about Noble.
“Both of them,” Baker added.
Kai took his chance.
“So damn nice seeing you…Miss Gia. Have a nice night.”
“Dude…” Wilson said, jabbing him in the elbow. “You got a death wish?”
“Maybe,” Kai said, dropping the grin that had started on his face when he noticed Gia stopping, her back going rigid before she turned.
There was a twitch pulsing against her top lip, followed by the slight curl of her top lip before Gia touched Nobel’s arm, taking two steps away from the kicker, folding her arms as she approached.
“And you have a lovely evening as well, Mr. Pukui,” she said, bringing back the attitude that had made his teammates go silent when she interrupted them. “I do hope you enjoyed your extended trip and that you got plenty of time with your family.” She took another step, and Kai would have sworn her eyebrows disappeared behind her bangs when she arched them. “By the way, please make sure your representatives contact me as soon as possible. Mr. McAddams was quite adamant that the penalty applied for missing the beginning of spring training be settled before negotiations are complete.”
Kai dropped his mouth open, meaning to say something like “what the fuck?” possibly, “you can’t be serious” but he couldn’t make any sound leave his throat.
“Hmm, you know,” she started, her voice so low Kai was sure only he could hear her, “I do believe that’s the first time since I met you that you’ve been rendered without a single pointless clapback. Amazing.”
Gia grinned, taking two steps back before she turned to join Noble on the sidelines, throwing a loud, “every infraction has a consequence, Mr. Pukui. Pay your fine,” before she left.
Behind him, Kai heard his teammates howling with laughter, unaware what a problem this penalty issue would be for him. Wilson approached, slapping Kai on his shoulder as both men watched Gia and Noble leave the field. “Don’t worry, man,” he said, seeming barely able to contain his laughter, “I’ll buy you dinner. Sounds like you could use the free meal.”
As beautiful as she was, as much as he’d loved the way she’d tasted, Kai decided right then that watching Gia walking away from him wasn’t his favorite hobby anymore.
4.
GIA
JOE KUPA HAD the second most beautiful naked body Gia had ever seen. She’d seen it every week for five months when she lived in New York. That body had wrapped around her, had climbed inside her. It had loved her and warmed her. It had teased her and tempted her. If Gia could have kept the body and all the wonderful things it did to her and leave the man, or at least, the emotions that were tied up with the man, she might still have that glorious body in her bed.
But Gia had long-since abandoned the ideas of tying herself to someone for more than what they could give her body. She wasn’t interested in what they would offer her heart. That was a cold and dark and empty thing by now. There’d be no reviving it.
Joe couldn’t do it.
So why did he seem eager to try?
The question had taken root in Gia’s head the first time Cat mentioned Joe calling her office to speak to her. That he would call nearly six months after they’d spoken their goodbyes made her nervous. It left her a little more than anxious.
“Take a message,” she’d directed her assistant, not elaborating when the woman had given her a look before muttering a small white lie about Gia being in a meeting.
“He said it was important.”
“Nothing Joe has to say to me is important.” Gia had packed up her bag and started out of her office, almost deciding to log on to her cell provider’s site to change her number when she spotted the 212-area code and knew it must be him calling ten minutes after he’d dialed her office number. “Relentless.” But changing her number would be a hassle, even more so than taking his call, though she hadn’t been ready for that either.
“I’ll work from home this afternoon,” she told Cat, and headed to the elevator, ready for a bite at the small makeshift deli one of the vendors set up in the French Market just a few blocks from her building. Joe gave her a break for two hours after that, relieving Gia,