Page 80 of Playing the Field

“No,” I say, tilting my head. “Because you might.”

And there it is—that flash of something hungry in his gaze.

That push and pull, like we’re both caught in some gravitational force, doomed to collide no matter how many times we veer off course.

I shake my head, stepping back. “I should go.”

He doesn’t hesitate. “I’ll walk you.”

I laugh softly. “Chivalrous.”

He lifts a shoulder like it’s nothing. “I have my moments.”

We make our way outside, the cool night air doing little to temper the heat buzzing beneath my skin. The parking lot is half-empty, streetlights casting long shadows across the pavement.

He doesn’t ask if I want a ride.

I don’t offer to say goodnight.

We stand there for a beat, a moment too long, until Graham shoves a hand through his hair and exhales like a man who’s running out of patience.

“Come back to my place.”

The words are heavy. Loaded.

Not a casual invitation. Not some open-ended suggestion.

This is Graham drawing a line in the sand and daring me to step over it.

I swallow. “I don’t think that’s wise.”

“I’m not asking you to do anything unwise,” he says, eyes locked on mine. “I just want to talk. You, me, no audience, no locker room politics, no PR spin.”

For a second, I want to say yes.

I want to follow him, to step inside his world, to let myself believe for one selfish night that none of this is complicated.

But then I remember⁠—

I remember the look in Brooke’s eyes.

I remember the weight in Graham’s voice when he said my name the other night like it was something fragile.

And I remember that no matter how badly I want this, I need to know that if I get this job, it’s because I deserve it. Not because the team owner decided to make it easy for me.

“We can talk at my place,” I say instead. “My roommate’s gone for the night.”

A flicker of something crosses his face—something I can’t quite place.

Then, slow and deliberate, he nods.

“Lead the way, Doc.”

And as we walk toward my car, I can’t help but wonder⁠—

If I’ve just made the first truly wise decision of the night.

Or the worst mistake of my life.