Take the Chance (Top Shelf Romance #9) - Brittainy Cherry Page 0,381

for a very long time.

Jesus. I’m so emotionally stunted by my fucked-up family, I couldn’t even recognize love until it punched me in the face.

I rub circles on Charlene’s back with one hand and smooth my free palm over the back of her head. “Breathe, baby,” I murmur in her ear and press my lips to her temple. “Let me make it better.”

She sucks in a high-pitched breath, and I worry I’m making it worse. Eventually she seems to calm, and then her lips find that sensitive space behind my ear. She trails kisses up my neck and along the edge of my jaw.

For a moment I’m confused, until I realize her mouth is meant to be a distraction. It almost works.

I cup her face in my hands and lift, forcing her to look at me. Charlene’s eyes are red rimmed, her cheeks flushed, and her expression is pure panic.

“What’s going on?”

“Nothing. I’m fine. I want you again.” She tries to come back to my mouth, but I hold her still.

“What is this about?” I smooth away her tears.

“That was intense. Today was intense.”

“And that’s the only reason for the tears?” I press. “I need you to talk to me, Charlene.”

“I waited all day for you.” She sighs and lifts her gaze, vulnerability leaking through. “I know the game was stressful for you, and it’s the same for me. You wanted me on edge, and I was. I was worried and anxious. It was a lot.”

I still think she’s leaving things out, purposely or not, so I try to pull them out of her however I can. “What exactly are you worried about?”

“I don’t know. Everything? You? What you’re not telling me.”

I sigh. I’m going to have to give to get here. “My stats are too high, and I’m getting too much attention. I don’t like it, and I don’t want it. But I don’t have a choice, and I won’t tank our team because I dislike the press I’m getting.”

She blinks a few times, maybe stunned that I’m being so forthcoming for once. It’s about fucking time, I suppose. Buying her new clothes and nice things only goes so far. I have to let her into my head if I want her to let me into hers.

“Now can you tell me why you’re so upset, other than the fact that I’m an asshole for having kept you on the edge all day?”

Her fingers go to her pearls. “Now I feel stupid.”

“What? Why?”

“Because you’re worried about your team, and I’m worried about myself.”

I want to erase the sadness that pulls her mouth down. I want to take the ache away. “Trust me when I tell you it’s not just my team I’m worried about, Charlene. I’m not that selfless.”

“What else are you worried about?”

I shake my head, aware this is yet another diversion tactic. “Not understanding why you’re so upset.”

She runs her fingers through my hair, eyes fixed there, maybe so she doesn’t have to look directly at me. “It feels like I’m losing things that are important to me.”

“How do you mean?”

“Violet’s always been my best friend. And maybe it’s petty and stupid, but she’s going to get closer to Sunny because they’re both pregnant, and Sunny and Lily have always been close, and now Violet and Lily are actual sisters, and I feel like I’m on the outside with no way in. And then there’s this whole expansion draft, and what if you’re traded and I . . .” She sucks in a deep breath, trying to keep herself in check. “I don’t want to lose all the people who mean the most to me.”

I skim the hollow of her eyes, brushing away more tears. As much as I don’t like to see her upset, I’m almost relieved we’re on the same page, at least about not wanting to lose the people we care for. I can’t control what’s happening with Violet or Alex, but I can try to keep hold of what we have.

“Whatever happens with everyone else, I’m in this with you. We can be on the outside together.”

She drags her fingers along the edge of my jaw, eyes sad. “Everything’s changing, and I want it to stay the same. I need this to stay the same.”

My stomach bottoms out. “This?”

“Us. How we are.”

Is it a warning? Was tonight too much for her? The closeness is something I want more of. And it has to be gradual, something that happens so slowly she won’t even recognize