Page 87 of Cheap Shot

He stared past me, over my shoulder, and I peeked back to see what caught his attention. A group of women, around our age, were watching us.

“Are they bugging you?” I asked.

He shook his head. “No, I just don’t want them to come over.”

I grinned at that. It was so different from going out with Ethan or any of the guys from the team. It was like they had a sensor for female fans and would take off as soon as there was a chance they could get attention.

Reid was gracious when people approached him, thanking them for their support and well wishes, but was always quick to dismiss them.

It was only of the many reasons I loved him.

I smiled at that.

We were right. Finding time to be together was a challenge. Our schedules didn’t usually sync up, but we made the best of it. Going into things with the understanding that this was temporary and we would eventually have more time for each other made it all much more bearable. I’d broken my own rules and attended some of his practices when I had a break and dragged the girls with me to the games. I missed him during the week, but it was worth it when we had nights like this to look forward to.

I reached across the table, and his hand found mine. The waitress appeared and set down two glasses of water before lowering a white plate between us. A tall slice of chocolate cake with a red sauce made my mouth water.

“Oh, we didn’t order––” I stopped as soon as I read the words spelled in the red sauce. Happy One Month Anniversary.

My jaw dropped, and I looked across the table at Reid. He was grinning back at me, and the waitress stepped away.

“Reid,” I gasped.

“I thought tonight was one of those times that dessert should come first,” he teased.

I shook my head and covered my gaping mouth with my hand. How had a month already passed since the night he first told me he loved me? How had I forgotten?

“This is the sweetest, most romantic thing anyone has ever done for me.”

He cocked a brow. “That’s a very low bar then.”

I giggled and lifted a fork to take a bite of the delicious-looking cake. The moment it touched my tongue I let out a sigh. “This is so good.”

Reid took the other fork and claimed a piece. After chewing, he nodded slowly. “Oh yeah. That lives up to the hype.”

I took another bite and let it melt on my tongue. “I can’t decide what I like better, this cake or being with you.”

His eyes narrowed, and he slid the plate toward him.

“Hey!” I reached out and stabbed another piece.

He chuckled and let it go. “I don’t want to lose you to cake, Haley.”

“Who says I can’t have both?” I winked at him.

“I’m not sure how well I can compete against it,” he joked.

I pretended to think about it. “You win. Every time.”

He smiled, and I felt my phone vibrate in my purse. I ignored it. This was our time, and I didn’t want to let anything interrupt that.

As soon as it stopped, the buzzing started again. None of the girls would call me back to back, even in an emergency. They all knew where I was. That left my parents or Ethan.

“You okay?” Reid asked after swallowing another bite.

“Someone’s calling me.” I waved off my curiosity and focused back on him, but my phone didn’t stop.

“Just check it.” He nodded in the direction of my bag.