Page 68 of Offside

WEAR THESE FRIDAY.

—R

I sat with the note for a moment.

Then I got up, closed my office door, and sat back down.

My phone was already in my hand.

Maren: The wrapping was dramatic…

Three minutes passed. I had two patients in an hour and a report to finish and I watched the screen like it owed me something.

Ryan: Too much?

Maren: I didn’t say that

Ryan: So. Friday.

Maren: What’s Friday

Ryan: You’ll find out Friday

Maren: That’s not how plans work

Ryan: It is when I’m making them. I’ll pick you up at seven.

I sat with his words for a long moment. The silk was still draped over my hand, cool and impossibly soft. I loved how take charge he was; it was unnerving in some ways though. I wasn’t used to it, and still afraid to let my guard down long enough to relax and lean into it. Like everything needed my control. But giving up control… It was devastating, was what it was.

Maren: I haven’t said yes yet

Ryan: Is this the game we’re playing?

I put the phone face-down on my desk and carefully refolded the tissue over the lingerie and put the lid back on the box and slid it into my bottom drawer.

I lasted four minutes before I picked the phone back up.

Maren: Okay. Seven.

The response was immediate.

Ryan: Wear them.

Ryan: Please.

I laughed lightly and closed the app and got back to my report and did not think about Friday for the rest of the morning. Obviously, I thought about it constantly for the rest of the morning. I thought about it on Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning and Thursday while I was running through a hip flexor protocol with Cole Westbrook, who looked at me at one point and said, “You okay? You seem like you’re somewhere else.”

“I’m here,” I said, bringing myself back. “Squeeze. Hold it.”

Cole squeezed. Held it. “You look like you’re distracted. Anything you wanna share?” He gave me a knowing smirk and for a hot second I was afraid he was onto me.

“Cole.”

“I’m just saying.”

“Three more seconds,” I said. “And then we’re done. Nothing else to it.”

Cole grinned at the ceiling. “Sure, boss.”