Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 122219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
She snickered and flipped me off before she reached toward me, grabbed my shirt, and pulled me closer to her. “Kiss me, corny Coach,” she whispered.
“Is that an order or a request?”
“An order.”
“God…” I shook my head slowly, moving closer to her mouth. “I love it when you boss me around.”
I kissed her, and she leaned into it, kissing me back. My hands fell to the sides of her face as she tilted her head toward me. I loved this part of us. The part where we kissed and made up. The part where I was able to taste her lips against mine. The part where I could daydream about more when our mouths touched.
Oh, how I wanted fucking more.
“I’m having a case of déjà vu,” someone said behind me, breaking up the connection between Avery and me.
She stepped back and gently brushed her hand against her mouth.
Don’t brush away my kisses, Avery Kingsley.
I turned around to see Evan standing there with his arms crossed over his broad chest. “Sorry to interrupt,” he said with an almost-smirk. “I didn’t know you two were…you two again.”
“We aren’t,” Avery and I said in sync.
I smiled at her, and she smiled at me, growing shy.
Evan narrowed his brows. “Then what was that?”
“Oh. That was just two friends who sometimes…kiss…” Avery said, her cheeks rising high. She looked down and shook her head bashfully.
“We were going over plays,” I said.
“With your saliva?” he questioned. “Is that a baseball technique?”
“What’s up? What do you need?” I asked, shifting the awkwardness.
Evan still looked confused, but he went with the shift. “Priya is baking and needed some almond milk. You got any?”
“We do!” Avery exclaimed. “I’ll go get it.” She darted off as if she were running from the police. I could tell how embarrassed she’d been as she hurried into my place.
Evan glanced toward my back door. “So you and Avery, huh?”
“It’s nothing serious. We’re just friends.”
“Friends who kiss?”
“Yeah.” I shrugged. “I guess it’s a thing.”
His brows lowered, and he shook his head. “I remember how heartbroken you were when you ended things with her, Nate. It will always be serious with that woman for you.”
I didn’t reply, knowing he was right.
“Just do me a favor, will you?” he asked.
“What’s that?”
“Pri and Avery have been hanging out together around the farm. Avery’s been a good role model for Priya. She doesn’t have many female role models outside of Mom. Avery’s a good addition around these parts. So don’t fuck this up.”
I smirked and nodded. “I’ll do my best, brother.”
“Do better than that.”
Avery came hurrying out with the carton of almond milk. “Here you go, Evan!”
Evan took the carton from Avery and thanked her. He gave me a nod and a slight smile, then wandered back toward his house.
“Oh gosh, how embarrassing. We have to be more careful about that,” Avery mentioned, moving closer.
“I’m not too worried about it. It’s probably for the best that he interrupted. I was starting to think you liked me.”
She leaned in and whispered, “If you’d like, I could call you a shithead to balance it out.”
I inched closer, my eyes falling to her full lips. “That would probably help.”
Her hand fell against my forearm, and her mouth slightly brushed against mine. “You’re such a shithead, Nathan Pierce.”
I smiled and kissed her gently. “Thanks, Avery Kingsley.”
“Anytime.” She pulled back and took her warmth with her.
What I wouldn’t give to kiss that woman forever. Yet sometimes the small, playful kisses between banter were my favorites. It made it seem as if what we were doing was simply becoming our new norm. Did I love kissing her all over during the wild makeout sessions? Of course. But kissing her in the quiet moments? During the fleeting seconds? Those kisses fed my soul.
30
AVERY
Nathan Pierce drove me wild. In good, bad, and ugly ways. The good: kissing him. Oh, that was so, so good. The bad: my mind wanted to do a lot more than kiss that man. The ugly: my heart wanted to let him in more than I already had.
As we moved closer to our final series, the series that would make us head to the playoffs, I was a ball of nerves. Yet the team was at their best, and Nathan was a soldier at keeping my panics at ease. I felt as if I had a lot to prove, not only for my team but also for myself. There had been more and more whispering around about how I should’ve allowed Nathan to step up as head coach. That his experience would’ve been a better fit for the guys.
A few coaches even went as far as to call me a stuck-up woman with a resting bitch face. The low blows at times were enough to make me want to rage, but whenever the word “butterflies” left Nathan’s mouth, I’d take a few deep breaths and remove myself from any situation that raised my blood pressure.