Page 122 of The Game We Played

I flick my hand at him. “You don’t understand. The only places you go are the locker room, the gym, and the field. Those are all easy to find.”

“I visit you in the office sometimes.”

He waggles his eyebrows and I hold up a hand. “Don’t go getting any ideas. The last time we got cozy in my office, you broke a lamp.”

“And you screamed so loud in ecstasy, a security guard ran in to save you.”

I glare at him. “I did not scream. They happened to be walking past and noticed my light was on.”

He raises an eyebrow. “From the lamp I broke?”

“Whatever,” I mutter. “Did you come here to tease me?”

“Nope. I came here to escort you home.”

I sigh. “I still need to finish the press release about Nolan.”

He settles into a chair across from my desk. “I’m shocked by his decision.”

“Trust me. Everyone is.”

“But I’m happy for him. He deserves a happy ending.”

“Everyone on the team does.”

He smiles. “Including me?”

“You already have a happy ending. You got the girl – aka me. And I moved to Steel City to be near you.”

“You moved to Steel City for this job.”

I shrug. “I would have moved here eventually.”

“The same way you’ll move in with me eventually.”

I groan. “Tanner, stop.”

He widens his eyes in an attempt to appear innocent. He’s never innocent. He’s always up to something. He keeps me on my toes, that’s for sure.

“Is it wrong for me to want the woman I love to live with me?”

“It’s too soon.”

“I love you. You love me. Time doesn’t factor into it.”

“Charmer,” I grumble. “Yes, it does. I have a brand-new job.”

“Which you’re excelling at.”

“In a brand-new city. I need time to adjust. My entire life is completely different than what it was a month ago when I was bartending atMermaid Karaokeand writing a gossip column for the locals.”

He frowns. “Are you struggling? Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I’m not struggling, but it’s an adjustment. I can’t bike to work in five minutes. The barista at my favorite coffee place doesn’t know my order. She also doesn’t know my name and I don’t think she cares. And the coffee isn’t even as good as atPirate’s Pastries.”

“My sisters don’t drop in a few times a week to scare the mermaid out of me. And everything is now, now, now. Fast, fast, fast. There’s no skipping out of work and going to the beach. The people around here probably don’t even know how to surf.”

He stands and walks around my desk. He pulls me out of my chair and into his arms. He rocks me back and forth.