Page 14 of Penalty Kick

“With the promise of sex?”

“No! Maybe…”

Avery blushed more, averting her eyes. She was so easy to tease when it came to Liam. They’d been together for months, and she spent most of her nights at his place three floors down, but still, the mere mention of sex made her blush. They were also one of the cutest couples Talia had ever seen.

“Go,” Talia replied. “I’m fine. I’m about to start another episode of How I Met Your Mother, so that’s about twenty minutes. I’ll de-ice when it’s over.”

“Smart thinking! Golden Girls while we eat?”

“I assume if Liam is paying, he’s also joining us to eat? Is he going to watch Golden Girls?”

“He will if he wants payment.”

Talia barked out a laugh, shocked by Avery’s bold statement. Maybe she wouldn’t be able to tease her about sex for much longer.

Careful, or she’ll be the one teasing you…

“Be back soon, promise.”

“I’m fine.”

Avery nodded, turning to leave, but Talia could still see the worry in her face. Letting out a heavy breath, she reminded herself that was just Avery’s nature. She cared deeply for everyone around her, and when one of her people—players, family, or friends—got hurt, she took it personally. It was part of what made her such a good physical therapist and friend.

Hitting play on the remote, she snuggled into the couch cushions, letting the familiar “ba-ba-ba-ba-baba” of the theme song fill the air. There was comfort in the simple, easily recognizable tune. Like she was being hugged by an old friend. Right now, that was just what she needed. It had been a long day—one filled with lots of confusing emotions.

So much of her life these last few years had been unsure. Ever since her mom’s death and the bomb she dropped in her letter, the ground underneath Talia’s feet had felt unstable. Dropping out of college to help take care of her mom when she got sick had seemed like the right decision at the time. Truthfully, to do over again, Talia wouldn’t change that part. The few short months they had gotten together between Elena’s first stroke and the second one, that had stolen her from Talia and her brothers, had been worth the setback. They had never been particularly close before then, but something during those months changed. She just wished Elena had told her about Gunnar face to face, rather than in that letter.

What she would change, however, was not returning to school afterwards. There was so much she wanted to do with her life—things she was really passionate about—and she needed a degree in order to pursue them. She knew she should have done more to push back when Robert said he wouldn’t support her dream of becoming a teacher. That she needed a “real job.” But she couldn’t dwell on it. It was the past. She was on the right track now.

Her phone buzzed in her lap, pulling her from her thoughts. Flipping it over, she was taken aback by the name she saw on her screen. Her heart skipped a beat, betraying her.

Dash: How are you feeling?

Talia: I’m fine

A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. Great, now her lips were betraying her. They’d gotten her into enough trouble where Dash was concerned, and she didn’t need their help now. Still, she couldn’t help it. For as cocky as he was, there was a very sweet side to him too. One that was on display all afternoon as he worked with the team.

When Gunnar and Felicity had first told her that Dash would be joining them as part of his community service, she was sure it would end poorly. There was no way he was going to be patient enough to work with these kids and their disabilities. Apparently though, he was. More than once this afternoon she’d had to stop herself from staring as he played with them. Then there was the fact that he was dead sexy. No two ways about it, the guy was hot.

You are not interested in him. You don’t have time to date. Especially the team playboy…

Dash: Are you being taken care of? Because if not I could come over

Talia: I said I was fine. Avery is the team PT, remember? You think your skills are better than hers?

Dash: Depends on what skills we are talking about

Talia: The only ones needed to make sure that my ankle heals

Dash: Is kissing to make it feel better not a thing here in America?

Goodness, he was relentless. Part of her had to admit though, she liked it. A lot. This wasn’t the first flirty texting session they’d shared ever since he’d put his number into her phone at the bachelor auction—making sure to text himself so he had hers too. They’d shared plenty of banter and innuendo over the last few weeks. All of which was still their little secret—only serving to make her that much more giddy thinking about it. She had no intention of ever letting on to that fact though. Sure, it made her feel special that someone as drop-dead gorgeous as Dash would not only give her the time of day, but continually flirt with her. But she also knew that he flirted with a lot of women.

Talia: *eye roll emoji* The expression is ‘kiss it and make it better,’ not kissing. And that only works with little kids

Dash: I think my version works just fine

Talia: You're not kissing my ankle, that’s weird