MINE FOR THE WEEK

by Kelly, Erika

  More likely Abby had gotten carried away with her best friend’s plans and hadn’t bothered to check her calendar. Abby and Lexi talked every day—Sophie didn’t have that kind of relationship with her sister. So, maybe—

  Yeah, sorry. Nope. She didn’t understand. Abby had a choice to make, and she’d chosen Lexi’s event over honoring her commitment to Sophie.

  Whatever. She was totally overreacting. Two speakers bragging on her seemed over the top anyway.

  Funny, though, how she accused Ryan of living to make other people happy, when her own happiness was so tied to her siblings. If they included her, she soared. When they excluded her, she crashed.

  She had to stop doing that. Letting them make her feel invisible. Inconsequential.

  A memory hit her. Middle school graduation. Not a big deal, of course, but she’d been invited to a couple of parties. She’d turned them down because her sister had graduated college that same week. Her family had a huge event planned at the house.

  Her whole life, her mom would set up balloons and crepe paper for all the family birthdays and celebrations. So she’d assumed she’d come home from graduation to a house decorated in her school colors. But she hadn’t.

  The balloons out front of the house were blue and gold—UCLA’s colors. Abby’s school. Her mom had had the event catered, transforming the backyard into a festival with food stations, a DJ, and a dance floor covering the pool. Presents filled the dining room table—all the cards made out to Abby.

  No one even mentioned Sophie’s graduation. She’d gone up to her room, thinking she’d find a present on her bed. Balloons. Something.

  But, no. Nothing. No acknowledgement.

  The sharpest memory, though? Her brothers had stayed for Abby’s graduation party. At that point, they rarely came home. They were involved in their own post-college lives. But they’d come for Abby’s graduation—and stayed for the party. And she’d been so freaking jealous. And hurt.

  As much as she’d wished she’d gone to Laura’s party that night, some perverse need in her had kept her pinned right there on her balcony, watching the fun below.

  Hoping her brothers, her sister, her parents—someone—would come in and congratulate her. But she’d never even seen her parents that night. They’d gone to their room, leaving the caterers and housekeeper to take care of serving and cleaning up.

  Why was she thinking about that party? She’d been in middle school. Hardly worthy of a catered event. She really had to let this stuff go.

  Steam filled the bathroom, erasing her image in the mirror, so she stepped into the shower.

  She didn’t usually dwell on this stuff. The whole issue with Nestlé had brought it up, throwing her back into those uncomfortable feelings from her childhood. Uncomfortable? Come on. She’d been painfully lonely. Made all the more acute because she’d been surrounded by her large family.

  Tipping her head forward, she let the hot water stream down her body.

  The door opened and Ryan came in, watching her carefully. “What did you mean? Like you talk to me?”

  “You’re keeping something from me.”

  “I talk to you more than anybody.”

  “Oh, cut it out. You’re obviously upset about something. Something happened in the van. I saw your face.”

  He yanked her towards him. “No one pays attention to me the way you do. I don’t know whether I like it or if it drives me crazy.”

  But the way he looked at her, with so much affection, told her how very much he liked her attention.

  “When you keep things from me, I build it up in my head.”

  He wrapped his arms around her, drawing her out of the spray. “I’m not captain of the team anymore.”

  “Oh. Wow. That’s…that’s big.”

  “If I’d taken that flight, nothing would’ve changed. I’d be back for the game, and everyone would’ve forgotten what I’d done.”

  She loved that about him, that he was honorable enough, strong enough to tell the truth.

  “Do you regret it?”

  “No.” He looked completely baffled.

  “So what does it mean? How will it affect you?”

  “I’ve been talking to my dad about that.”

  So, that’s what he’d been dealing with. And why would he share that with her, since she had no frame of reference for it? She couldn’t offer advice. It wasn’t her world. “What does he think?”

  “We don’t know if it’ll affect the draft.” He shrugged, looking a little lost. “We’ll see.”

  “God, you just wanted a break from your life. Shouldn’t be such a huge price to pay.”

  “Sure it should. I’m in the middle of my season, and I bailed on my team. I fucked up.”

  “I like how you own it.” She turned in his arms, cupping the back of his head. “You say you don’t regret it, but I can see how upset you are.”

  With a stricken look, he sighed. “I needed to walk off that field, but I earned my captaincy. I earned my reputation. And I lost it because I’m not right in the head. It just…it sucks.” His hands slid up her rib cage, cupping just beneath her breasts. “On the other hand, I’m not sure I’m going to feel the impact until I’m back at school on Monday. I’m in a whole other world right now, and I like this one. A lot.” His hands hooked under her arms, slid up her back to her shoulders, and he pulled her closer, kissing the corner of her mouth.

  Why did she find that so sexy?

  He brought his mouth to her ear. “I don’t want to leave it.”

  The look in his eyes made need churn inside her. “Me neither.”

  Abby was wrong. He did feel the same way she did. “Do we have to? I mean, we graduate in two months. And if I take over Crazy Hearts, production is only from October to February. Do we really have to go our separate ways? I’d be willing to see how it goes.”

  “Yeah?” He flashed her that god-awful Hollywood grin.

  Oh, God. Could she be more humiliated? She’d gotten carried away in the moment, with all his panty-melting words. But he obviously hadn’t meant them. Not really.

  And that just gutted her.

  She pushed back. “You don’t have to get all phony with me. I just got excited. I know how impossible it is.”

  But he kept his arms around her. “Of course I want to be with you. But I’m going to be drafted in three months. I don’t know what my life will look like then. We’ve both got a world of shit to deal with.”

  “I understand.” But she didn’t. Not really. Because none of that had anything to do with his feelings for her, and if he felt anything like what she felt for him he wouldn’t even consider all that nonsense. He’d just want to be with her.

  Intellectually, she understood. They’d both done the long distance thing for years. And it didn’t work. Besides, neither of them should be tied down when their lives were about to change so dramatically after graduation.

  God, was that why she wanted to hold onto him? Was she as scared as Kat and Laura? She honestly hadn’t even considered it until this moment. But it made sense. Because the truth was, she didn’t have a job. Her brothers and sister had yet to figure out where she fit in at Valentine’s. And if she blocked the deal with Nestlé, she’d be in for a real battle. One that would hurt her relationship with them irrevocably.

  What relationship? Waiting around the house for the next family party? Hoping they’d find a job for her? Continuing to feel slighted as they negotiated with Nestlé without consulting her?

  She started to pull away. “We’re wasting water.”

  But he held her firmly, not letting her go. “You know I want to be with you.”

  “I know.”

  “Soph.”

  “What? I get it. You just got out of a six-year relationship. You should be single for a while.”

  He didn’t answer, just held her gaze. She had no idea what he was thinking, and she just felt like a fool.

  God, he’d asked for a week, not a lifetime.

&nbs
p; If he didn’t look at her like he…well, come on, like he loved her, it’d be so much easier for her. But he did. Which made it so damn confusing.

  His hands ran down her back to her ass. “Of course I should be single. But, Christ, Sophie, I didn’t know I’d find you. What the hell am I supposed to do about that?”

  That phony smile he’d flashed her? Answer enough. “We don’t have to figure it out right now.” Breaking through the resistance of his arms, she punched the faucet off.

  But he reached for her, turning her toward him. “Fuck, I’m sorry I didn’t give you the reaction you wanted. My life is blowing up, and I’m handling the fall-out as best I can.

  “I know that.”

  “No, I feel like the worst piece of shit for losing my captaincy. I let my coach and my teammates down, and I take their respect seriously. But I did it to myself, and I have to deal with that. I also have a real shot at being a first-pick in the draft—that’s a huge honor—and if the scouts figure out what I’ve done, then I’ll blow that, too. So, I’m fucked up at the moment.”

  “It’s okay. I understand.”

  “Do you? Because I sure as hell don’t. I’m trying to hold it together to pull through this tail-spin, because I’ve never been out of control before. But you know me, Soph. You know me well enough to know when I’m hiding behind a smile. You also know how crazy I am about you. So, yes, of course I want to keep seeing you, but I don’t know how the hell that’s supposed to happen.”

  “I know. I told you I got carried away.”

  “I did, too. I got so carried away I turned down my seat on a flight back to Florida so I could get more of you. So don’t think I’m rejecting you. I’m not. I want to be with you right now. But, honestly, I can’t see beyond that. Can you?”

  Of course not. And, yes, she understood where he was coming from.

  But her gut told her a connection like this didn’t come along all that often. And it also told her that if they didn’t hold onto it they’d fade away from each other.

  And that would be a huge mistake.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Sophie was used to sleeping alone in her king-size bed.

  But sleeping with Ryan—the heat from his big body, his hands always reaching for her, pulling her closer—was awesome. His insatiable need to wrap himself around her made her feel wanted. Loved. Something she’d never felt before.

  And she’d figured something out last night. She needed to pay attention to his actions. Not his words. His actions proved he needed her, wanted her. They did have a chance.

  Like he said, he’d proven that to her again and again by coming after her. He couldn’t keep away.

  She opened her eyes, the room still completely dark, and realized there was no wall of heat. Jolting up, she patted the space beside her and found it empty.

  She didn’t hear him in the bathroom. The dampness and fresh tang of the hotel’s soap permeated the room, so she knew he’d recently showered. She got up and whisked open the curtains. He was gone.

  She spotted something on his pillow. A note. On hotel stationery.

  Back soon.

  The clock on the nightstand read eight-forty-two. Seemed too early to meet up with his hard-partying friends. Whatever. She was just surprised. He hadn’t mentioned his plans last night.

  Ah. The gym. That made sense, actually. He’d want to get it out of the way so they could spend the day together.

  Still, with all the secrecy, she couldn’t fight the uneasy sense that something else might be going on. It pinged her because of King. But Ryan wasn’t King, and he’d told her he’d been talking to his dad about losing his captaincy and his shot at being a first-round pick.

  But Back soon? If he’d gone to the gym he would’ve said so. Whatever. She wouldn’t make a big deal out of it. She had loads of things to do on her own. She’d check her list to see what she had on tap for the day. They’d meet up when they were both free.

  But when she looked at her list, she found she hadn’t made any plans. Her last day, after all. She’d planned on spending it with her friends. It was nice to have a whole day of freedom.

  First up, a shower. Then, she’d head down to the restaurant and have breakfast on the terrace.

  Ryan should be back by then.

  As expected, the dining room didn’t have many patrons at this early hour. Sophie waited for the hostess to seat her, her gaze scanning the pretty room, decorated in pale blues and creamy whites. A woman breezed past her, her long hair streaming behind her, her white shorts highlighting long, tan legs. She joined her companion at a table, leaning down to kiss him right on the mouth.

  Seeing that easy connection, that intimacy, made her miss Ryan. And her heart clutched because this was it, her last day. She’d never in a million years expected to meet someone here, but she had. And, oh, what a someone.

  “Just one?” The hostess appeared at the podium and reached for the stack of menus.

  “Yep. I’d like to eat outside, if that’s all right.”

  “Of course. Give me one second to set a table for you.”

  “Sure. Thank you.”

  She thought about Ryan at the gym, sweating away. Maybe Jake and Dixon were there, too, swapping drinking and hookup stories—which he hated. No doubt he was thinking about her, too, wondering what she was doing and coming up with excuses to end the work-out early so he could get back to her.

  In a corner booth, a man ate alone, scarfing down scrambled eggs. A group of women clustered together around a table, laughing, looking a little drunk. She doubted they’d gone to bed last night.

  And then her gaze swept over—and jerked back to—Ryan.

  No.

  But, of course, it was. How could she mistake that build, that movie star face?

  The jolt to her heart made her limbs go weak.

  She looked across the table to his companion.

  Female companion.

  Ryan was having breakfast with a woman.

  Long buttery hair tumbled down a slender back. They leaned toward each other across the table.

  Heat rushed up Sophie’s neck, her heart pounding so hard it hurt.

  What had she missed? How could he have conned her? It made no sense, for all the time they’d spent together, how could he possibly have been with other women? When would he have been with them? She thought of the dark-haired woman that hung around him, always so comfortable with him. Such an easy rapport. Had he slept with her?

  But, no, no, no. How did that make sense? Even last night, Sophie had encouraged him to go off with Jake, but when she’d gotten off the elevator, he’d already been waiting outside her door.

  When could Ryan have been with other women?

  Had he had unprotected sex with them like he’d had with her?

  She could barely breathe, let alone form a clear thought. Her feet started moving, fear whirling, taking form, whipping into an anger so vicious it shook her whole body.

  He looked up before she reached the table, his eyes going wide. He shot up, knees banging into the table. “Sophie.”

  But she didn’t care about him in that moment. She wanted to know which woman he’d left her alone in bed for. And—no surprise—she was gorgeous, big eyes, plump lips. She looked like a…oh, God. A model.

  This was Ryan’s girlfriend.

  She could scarcely breathe, let alone activate her vocal chords.

  “Sophie, this is Emma. Emma, Sophie Valentine.”

  Eyes glassy, the woman gave her the softest, sweetest smile. “Hello.”

  “I don’t understand.” She had no words. She literally had so many thoughts jamming into her brain she couldn’t read them fast enough to figure out which one to say first.

  “She flew in yesterday.” She heard exasperation in his tone—or was it desperation? Too much noise in her head for her to evaluate clearly.

  This is his secret. “Yesterday?” How could that be? All those hours yesterday she hadn’t heard from him. Oh, God, had Emma
been part of that orgy…Wait. The woman who’d spilled the beer on his chest? Had that been Emma? It had all happened so quickly, the way he’d ushered Sophie into the bedroom. Her stomach balled so tightly she thought she might throw up. “Was she in your suite yesterday?”

  “No. She got in last night.”

  “So you knew she was coming?”

  Color roared up his cheeks. “Yes.”

  “Why would you do this?” He’d played her. No matter what, he’d played her.

  “Hold on.” His hand closed around her elbow. “It’s not what you think. Let me talk to you.”

  She pulled away. “No.” God. “You can’t talk to me now. You’ve had every opportunity. But now?” She shook her head. “It’s too late.” She fled. Literally raced out of the dining room.

  He caught her, of course. Just outside the restaurant, in the carpeted hallway, he grabbed her arm and spun her around. “You’re jumping to the wrong conclusion.”

  “Fuck you.” Her cheeks burned. Her scalp itched from the rush of blood.

  And then the gorgeous model came out, looking concerned. “Is everything all right?”

  “No, Emma, it’s not.” He was clearly irritated with her.

  Those big eyes rounded, that plump mouth formed a pucker, and she looked wounded. “I’m sorry.”

  Sophie glanced at Ryan, who looked like he might jump out of his skin. But she didn’t care what he was going through. “You are disgusting.”

  “No. First of all, I didn’t find out she was coming until yesterday. Secondly, I told her not to come. And, come on, Christ, I didn’t think she’d actually do it. Fly all the way out here for one day, after I told her I didn’t want to see her? I mean, what the fuck?”

  “Ryan, stop.” The woman’s voice sounded so sweet, so gentle. “Don’t drag her into this.”

  “Into what, Emma?” He sounded exasperated.

  Emma turned to Sophie with an apologetic—no, pitying expression. Then she turned the full force of her attention on Ryan. “You have to stop trying to hurt me back. I’m sorry, Ryan. I regret what I did every minute of my life. But at some point you have to let it go. And you can’t hurt other people just to get back at me.”