The two shared a skeptical look, and I swallowed my laughs.
It was just a friendly gesture, right? There was no way Maxim—dark and mysterious and could have any girl he wanted—was interested in me. It had never been that way whenever between us.
“Sterling, then?” Langley asked. “We’ve noticed how his mood did a one-eighty on his attitude toward promos—”
“No,” I cut her off, but my heart did a little hiccup. Memories of our kiss raced red-hot through my mind. God, I’d lost myself in him like I’d been starved for that kind of kiss. Consuming, slick, and electrifying. He’d brought my body to life in places I hadn’t known existed. With. Just. A. Kiss.
And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want more.
Because I did.
But I wasn’t about to tell my two superiors that.
“No,” I said again because they were staring at me like they couldn’t tell if I was lying to them or myself or both.
“Good,” Langley said, and Persephone nodded. “Because getting involved with players—let alone brothers—is like walking down a spiral staircase in stilettos.”
Persephone laughed, shaking her head. “It’s a hard road,” she added. “And you just started here. Plus with Sean—”
“Aren’t you two married to players?” I reminded them but smiled to show I meant no ill-will.
They both laughed, and Langley rolled her eyes. “True,” she said. “But neither of our marriages started off as legitimate.” I tilted my head, but she hurried on. “It’s a long story. Either way, those brothers are already a lit fuse. Put you in the middle…” She mimed an explosion, and if I wasn’t so shocked about their assumption that not one brother, but both liked me on that level, I might’ve laughed.
I waved her off. “It’s not like that.”
The truth.
Because yes, I’d basically become a sparkler when Jansen had claimed my mouth to distract me in that amusement park, but that’s all it was.
A distraction.
He didn’t want me—he genuinely wanted to help me. And in that moment, I’d needed an epic distraction to stop me from having a fully fleshed panic attack in the very locked and very suffocating ride. He’d provided that distraction, and then some.
“Look,” I said when neither of them seemed convinced. “I’m London Foster,” I said, and they both raised their brows in a where are you going with this way. “I love my brother…most of the time.” I laughed. “When he told me he’d made a deal with Asher Silas to play for the Reapers, I considered applying for a position on another team.” Langley tilted her head, so I hurried to continue. “I’ve grown up with the game. I understand it and the celebrity athlete lifestyle. I love it. Love the challenges, the long hours, the enthusiasm of the fans. But, for as long as I can remember, I’ve been Caspian Foster’s little sister.”
Persephone tipped up her chin, understanding filtering through her eyes. “And you don’t want to be known for that anymore,” she said, and I nodded.
“Like I said, I love my brother. He’s a tad over-protective, but he has his reasons.” Reasons that currently had Jansen Sterling trying everything he could to help me work through my fears. “But I want to stand on my own. Prove myself through my own merit and my own hard work. For what I bring to the team, not my brother.”
“I believe you,” Langley said, an easy grin on her face. “And I have no doubt you’ll be an asset to this team. But what does any of that have to do with Maxim and Jansen?”
“I don’t want to be known as that NHL star’s girlfriend either.”
Langley nodded, and she leaned back in her seat. She propped one red-soled heel on her desk, a canary grin on her face. “That’s smart thinking,” she said, crossing her an ankle over the other. “But best intentions and all that.” She shrugged, then glanced to Persephone.
“Yes,” Persephone said. “If anything does happen, you can come to us. We will understand.”
I smiled at the pair of them and hoped like hell it was convincing. “I appreciate that,” I said, rising from my chair. “I have to get ready for the post-game fan experience.”
“Good luck!” Langley called as I shut her office door behind me.
And I couldn’t tell if she was wishing me luck with the event or with the Zolotov/Sterling brother situation. Either way, I felt like I’d just stepped onto ice so thin, it would shatter with one wrong step.