Page 103 of Player For Hire

I was halfway around the lake when she texted me.

N: I got the best news. Where are you?

I like the sound of that. Meet me at Velvet in an hour.

N: Oh, off hours? Those velvet couches sure are comfy.

I shook my head. I’d definitely created a monster with our lessons. Pretty sure she was heading for teacher status herself soon.

Then get that perfect ass in gear and meet me at the club.

It took me thirty minutes to get back to the club with the new desk in tow. I had to bust ass to get it inside, but luckily, it wasn’t that heavy, and we had an elevator. The building was two levels with the lobby taking up the bulk of the front of both floors.

The back was completely ours and Cal had soundproofed between the two floors so it would be perfect for Naomi to work on her novels day or night. My girl had workaholic tendencies, but I knew she was busting her ass to get her dream off the ground and I was determined to make sure I gave her all the support in the world.

And with my new job, she had time to make her dream a reality.

Quickly, I set the desk in front of the bay window. She had a shit-ton of room to make a space for herself and we’d finally have some alone time.

I headed down the back stairs and out to the parking lot. As I was coming around the building, Naomi was pulling up in her hatchback. She climbed out and I had to swallow my tongue. Thanks to the August temperatures, she wore short white shorts and a scrap of a tank top.

She was trying to kill me.

And I was so going to marry this girl.

Soon if I had my way.

She pushed her sunglasses on top of her head, her hair in a pair of braids that gave me all sorts of ideas. I met her at the curb and pulled her in for a long, lingering kiss.

“Well, hello there.” She grinned up at me. “What are you doing here so early?”

“Have a little surprise for you.”

“For me?”

I nodded. “Uh-huh.”

“I have a surprise for you too.”

“Who knew a random Wednesday was going to get so exciting?”

She laughed and linked her hands at the back of my neck. “I think we’ll need to do a lot of celebrating.”

I tucked my hands into the back pockets of her shorts. “I like the sound of that.”

She wrinkled her nose. “Duncan landing on your couch tonight?”

I sighed. “I know he’s been a pain in the ass, but things are looking up there. I promise.”

“Thank God. I love him, but he is cramping our style.”

“Tell me about it.” I kissed her gently. “Your news or mine?”

“Yours.”

“Okay.” I eased her away from me and linked our fingers. It was early afternoon, and the sun was blazing, but it would be perfect to show off the apartment.

Instead of going through the front door, I brought her around the back. We had our own entrance with an awning and one of the cool Art Deco doors with stained-glass windows.