Chapter 17
Gage rubbed the back of his neck as he listened to the sound of Carly’s phone go to voicemail again. He’d been trying to reach her since leaving the practice over an hour ago. He knew something had upset her when he’d left the workout room, but for the life of him he couldn’t think of what he might have done. She’d been fine when she’d texted him on her way over to the athletic building.
Worried it might have something to do with her ex-husband, he ended the call without leaving a message and headed up the stairs to let Jonathan know he was going out for a while. If she wasn’t going to answer her phone, he wanted to make sure she was okay.
Raising his fist to pound on the door after no one answered the doorbell, Gage paused when he finally heard Max begin to bark from the other side of the door. He lowered his arm as the whirring of the electronic lock slid open, and the door opened a tiny crack.
“Go away,” Carly’s hoarse voice whispered from the tiny gap.
“What’s wrong?” Gage asked, running his hands through his hair and racking his brain for something he’d done to make her act this way. Coming up with nothing, he pressed a hand to the door and forced it open a little wider. “Did something happen with your ex?”
With the door open a little more, a sharp pain shot through his chest at the sight of tears streaking down Carly’s splotchy face as she shook her head.
“Did I do something?” he asked, sliding his foot between the door and the frame when she let out a sob and tried to close it. He wasn’t leaving until he got her to tell him why she was so upset. “I have no idea what’s going on, Carly. Can I least come in and talk?”
Clenching his fists at his side, Gage stepped inside when Carly gave a slight nod and opened the door. It took everything he had not to pull her into his arms and tell her everything would be all right, but he knew he needed to wait until she let him in on what was wrong. Reaching down, he gave a whining Max a quick pat on the head then followed Carly as she led the way into the living room.
As Gage walked behind her, he grimaced and forced the growing bulge in his pants to calm down at the sight of Carly’s curves filling out the slightly damp robe and the wet tendrils of brown hair trailing down her neck. Shoving the image of her lying naked in the tub out of his brain, Gage sat down on the far end of the sofa.
Remembering her previous attempt to put things to a stop, Gage had a feeling he was going to need to use the coaching skills he was rapidly acquiring to move Carly past her insecurities. He hated what her ex-husband had put her through and wished he could beat the bastard to a pulp. Clearing his throat, he looked over at the trembling woman curled up in the corner of the sofa. “Please, tell me what’s wrong.”
“How long?” Carly’s pained filled eyes flashed to his briefly, causing his stomach to twist before her gaze dropped back down.
“I don’t understand. What are you talking about? How long for what?” Gage scrubbed a hand down his face, once again racking his brain for something that would give him a clue.
“How long have you been seeing her?” Carly bit out while she wiped away a stray tear and pulled the edges of her robe together.
“Who?” Gage asked, genuinely confused. Where did she get the idea I’m seeing someone else?
“Coach Evans,” Carly snapped, a hint of fire replacing the hurt in her eyes.
Gage couldn’t help the laugh that escaped as he fell back against the sofa in relief. “Sweetheart, Kathy is my cousin.”
“She is?” Carly squeaked, a tinge of pink flooding her cheeks as the tight lines in her face eased.
“Yes, and she’s also happily married with a new baby.” Gage sat up and patted the space between them, thankful Carly had only been upset by a simple misunderstanding. “Come here.”
At his command and with a slight tremor in her hands, Carly let go of the edges of her robe and scrambled to his side. Pulling her close, Gage kissed the top of her head and sighed. “I’m not that kind of man, and I never will be. Despite all the pictures of me with other women, they never meant anything. I never thought I’d feel this way for someone until I met you.”
As Carly turned up her sweet face with her eyes shining, Gage’s chest filled with warmth, and he lowered his lips to hers. Pulling her up without any protest on her part, he helped adjust both of her legs, so she was straddling his lap then slid his fingers into the damp hair loosely piled on top of her head. He groaned and thrust his tongue deeper as Carly ground herself against his hardening dick. Reaching down, he put his hand through the gap in the front of her robe and slid one finger through her folds. As she moaned, and a rush of wetness seeped from her opening, Gage threw all caution to the wind. Despite the insecurities he knew she had, he wasn’t going to wait any longer to have her. Maybe once he made love to her–and it would be love, he realized at the heavy thudding of his heart–she would understand she was the only one he wanted.
Dragging his lips away, Gage smiled at the dreamy look in Carly’s eyes. “Do you want me to stop?” At the shake of her head, he pushed her up until she was standing before him the thin damp robe gaping open to expose the neatly groomed patch of hair at the apex of her thighs glistening with desire. His dick stirred back to life and pressed uncomfortably against the zipper of his jeans. Gulping, he forced his eyes up to the warm brown ones staring back at him. Swiftly rising, he stood and cupped his hands underneath her bare ass and picked her up.
As she wrapped her legs around his waist, he carried her back toward the front entrance. “Where’s your room?” He chuckled when she began pressing light kisses on his chest through the open edges of his cotton shirt while pointing down the darkening hall next to the stairs.