The waiter brought the menus, and I ordered a glass of wine for Lennon. I didn’t drink the night before a game. I passed on the beer list. She had spoken less than ten words since we left the hotel.

I leaned across the table. “Did I tell you how fucking sexy you look in that new dress, Doc?”

She nodded. “A few times.”

Something was off. But I didn’t know what. I was in new territory. Truth was, I’d never cared if a woman was upset or preoccupied. The few hours I spent with them weren’t enough to get that involved. But Lennon and I were more than that, and I felt the tightening in my chest every time I looked at her face and saw the worry in her eyes. What the fuck was wrong?

I was craving a glass of bourbon. Something to dull the tension I could feel between us.

“You had fun shopping?” I asked.

“Yes. I went to a few of my old favorite shops.”

“And you got what you wanted?” Women loved to shop. I thought free reign with my credit card would have made her happy. She could have bought out three stores if she wanted and I wouldn’t have cared.

“Just the one dress.” She tipped the wine glass to her lips.

“There’s no limit on that card.”

She eyed me. “I don’t need your money to buy clothes, Wes. I’m a surgeon. I make a pretty good salary. Maybe not millions, but I can afford a slutty dress.”

I don’t know what had happened, but something had changed since I left her in the suite this morning.

“Slutty dress was a joke. You look beautiful.”

She lowered her eyes. Her fingers worked the corners of the linen napkin. “I’m sorry. I just don’t want you to think I need your money or I’m here for the money.”

“When did I ever say that?”

“You didn’t, but it’s important to me you know that.” She looked at me, but I saw her eyes trail over my shoulder and widen.

“I don’t care how much money you have, Doc. I want to give you things. Buy you things. Take care of you.” I leaned closer to whisper, but she clearly wasn’t listening. “You are mine, you know.”

“Shit.” She grabbed the menu from the table and held it in front of her face. “Shit, shit, shit,” she grumbled. “This can’t be happening.”

“Okay, what in the hell is going on?” I turned and looked behind me to see a couple walking through the restaurant, following the hostess to a table next to ours.

I tried to wrestle the menu from her hand, but her grip was strong. “Damn it, Lennon. What the fuck is happening?”

“Lennon?” The couple stopped next to our table as the guy, who was holding the woman’s hand, startled us.

She lowered the menu slowly. “Ben? What a surprise.”

“Yeah, I’d say so.” The guy looked at me and then his date. “I guess the tabloids are true. You’re actually dating this guy.”

Lennon’s eyes narrowed. “Better than the one standing in front of me.”

“That’s not what you said when we were together.” His expression was cocky.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” I stood from the table, feeling an instant surge of jealousy and animalistic need to protect Lennon. “Who the fuck are you?” I poked him in the chest.

“Wes, sit down. Don’t make a scene. People have their phones out.” Lennon pulled on my arm.

“No, I want to know who this jackass is.”

His date had shrunk behind him and pulled out her phone.

“This is my ex, Ben. Dr. Ben Lennox.”

“Your ex?” I glared at her.

I don’t know why I was furious, but I was. My blood was on fire. I wanted to punch the guy, pummel him into the ground, beat the shit out of him. And the only reason was because he used to be with Lennon. My Lennon.

“Yeah, she didn’t mention she dated a neurosurgeon before the Neanderthal?”

That was it. My fist reared back and struck him straight in the jaw.

“Oh my God, Wes!” Lennon’s expression turned from shock to outrage. “What are you thinking?”

I looked down at the man lying on the floor. His date hovered over him as he sat up, rubbing the swollen spot on his chin.

“I wasn’t.” The rage was still spilling through me.

She grabbed my hand. “We have to get out of here. Come on.” She pulled me out of the restaurant and hailed a taxi. We were back at the hotel within minutes.

Once we were inside the suite, she spun to face me. “Let me see your hand.”

“My hand? It’s fine.”

“Let me see,” she ordered.

I extended my left arm. “I didn’t punch him with my right. I know better than that.”

She smiled. “And he thought you were a Neanderthal.” She rubbed her fingers over my knuckles tenderly. “Let me get some ice from the bar. Hold on.”

I sat on the edge of the bed while she tended to my bruised knuckles. Really, it didn’t feel like much. I thought that was one of the side effects of the HGH. I felt almost indestructible. My entire body felt younger and stronger.

“Why didn’t you tell me you had an ex in D.C.?”

“You didn’t ask.” She removed the makeshift icepack from my hand. “But I thought about it.” When she looked at me, I saw the mist covering her eyes and the heaviness of tears brimming on her bottom lids. “Your dad was right.”

“My dad? What does he have to do with any of this?”

One tear slipped and it ripped at my chest. Why was she crying?

“I ran into your parents in the lobby today on the way back from shopping. He and I had a conversation. Not a good one.”

I growled. The man never could keep his opinions to himself. “What did he say to you?”

“He said I was a distraction. He said I’d ruin your game. He called me flavor of the week.” And with that, the rest of the tears fell down her soft cheeks. She crumpled against my chest and I wrapped my arms around her.

“Am I expendable to you?”

“What? No. No.”

The rage that had built from jealousy and my dad’s bullish words softened as she sobbed against my chest. I smoothed her hair and whispered in her ear. “My dad is an asshole. You know that.”

“But he’s right.” She gulped for air. “I should have told you about Ben before. Look what happened in the restaurant.” Her mascara was smudged and there were spots on my dress shirt, but I didn’t give a shit. “I wanted to tell you about him. I need to, but I was trying to wait for when the timing was better. Like maybe after the Super Bowl?”

I played with her hair, feeling the silkiness between my fingers. “You might as well tell me now.”

“Now?”

“Yeah. Let’s talk about the bastard.”

“We were in the same residency program. That’s how we met,” she explained. “And eventually we moved in together, but kind of like a roommate thing. And then roommates led to us being together. At least, I thought we were together until I came home and he was screwing someone else.”

“Shit,” I whispered.

“Yeah, shit.” She leaned her head on my shoulder. “It’s the reason I took the job at San Antonio Mission. I wanted to get out of D.C. Away from him. Away from the humiliation. I wanted to start over where there were no lies.”

I felt the knife twist in my gut. Things were coming together. Why she was so adamant about the honesty between us. Why she was willing to give herself to me in the beginning so freely, but needed to know I could be monogamous. Hell, I’d never been monogamous and agreed to it without thinking it through. But holding her like this, knowing what she had been through, I didn’t want another woman. I wanted this one.

But there was a lie between us. My hand. The one thing that had brought us together was the lie I couldn’t tell her.

“What if Ben presses charges? What if those pictures go viral? It’s my fault. You could be fined or suspended.” The sobbing started all over again.

She had a point, but I wasn’t thinking about those things when Ben approached our table. All I could think about was protecting Lennon. I’d protect her from anyone and anything. I’d use my money, influence, power, and body to keep her from getting hurt.

“Give me Ben’s number.”

She sniffed. “What?”

“Give me his number. I’m going to call him and get this taken care of.”

She walked over to her clutch and pulled out her phone. “Here.”

I hit send and waited for the fucker to pick up.

He answered quickly. “You can’t seriously date that monster, Lennon.”

“This is the monster,” I responded.

“You could have broken my jaw, asshole.”

“Yeah, and a lot more.” I had to tone it down. This wasn’t the way out of a scandal. “Look, I’m calling to apologize. And to see how I can assist with your recovery.”

“You mean pay me off?” Ben jeered.

“If that helps your jaw.”

My pockets were deep. Neither Lennon nor I wanted this story getting out. I’d pay whatever the bastard wanted.

“Maybe we should meet again,” he suggested.

“Be in my hotel lobby in fifteen minutes. I’ll text you the address.” I hung up and handed the phone back to Lennon.

“You’re going to see him again? Oh God, don’t break anything. He’s not worth it.”

I kissed her on the forehead. “I’m not going to punch him. But he deserves it for what he said. And for what he did to you.” I stroked the side of her cheek. “I’m not glad he cheated on you. He’s a fucking idiot. But I’m glad you walked away. Because now you’re mine. All mine.” I kissed her fiercely, loving the sounds that she made when my tongue slid against hers.

“Should I go with you?” she offered.

I shook my head. “No. I’ll handle it. Why don’t you break in that huge Jacuzzi tub? After today, you need to relax.”

“It was the worst day.” She sat on the edge of the bed. “I wanted to be here for you. To support you. But I’ve screwed it up. You’ve got the play off game tomorrow, Wes. And now you’re paying off my ex and worried about your dad and me and all of this stupid drama…”

I kneeled in front of her. “No offense, baby, but I’ve been training for this my whole life. One shitty night isn’t going to knock me off my game.” I tilted her chin toward me. “You didn’t screw up anything. I’ve got this handled.”

“Really?”

“Really.” I kissed her full lips, wishing I didn’t have to go downstairs right now. “I’ll be back soon.”

I stood, letting her fingers fall from mine. God, this woman had me. She had taken me when I wasn’t looking. Possessed me when I wasn’t watching. And it was fucking unbelievable.