“We understand your frustration,” she said soothingly. “But we’ve come a long way in a day and a half. Give us a bit longer.”
“How much longer?” He crossed his arms over his broad chest and glared at her. “Training camp is around the corner. Once that starts, I need to focus on my play, not where I’ll be living.”
“You will,” she promised calmly, even as desperation clawed at her insides.
His arched eyebrow said he doubted it.
She couldn’t lose this contract. He had to give them another chance. “Why don’t we meet tomorrow and go through the properties on the system together? That’ll speed up the process.”
“Great idea. I’ll head to the office and get started.” Mimi shepherded them toward the front of the house.
Jake shrugged, then indicated Maggie should go first.
She walked ahead of him down the hallway, aware of his brooding presence behind her. Far too aware. Her body clearly wasn’t on the same page as her brain. His attitude should have had the same effect as the proverbial bucket of cold water. Why hadn’t it?
Jake’s arm brushed hers as he reached past her to hold open the door.
Maggie’s pulse skipped. She willed her body to toe the line. A few more steps and they would be out of this monstrosity.
There was still the drive to his parents’ place. Enclosed in the confines of the car. Inches away from a pissed-off athlete.
Maggie shivered, then told herself to stop worrying. He’d done nothing to suggest he couldn’t control his temper. Still, when his hand touched the small of her back, she flinched.
Jake dropped his hand, his expression stony.
She waved goodbye to Mimi, then got into the car. He joined her and instantly the interior seemed to shrink as his scent—raw, male and hot—filled her nose. His lean, powerful body crowded her, putting his muscular thigh mere inches from hers.
Neither of them said anything. Forget cutting the tension with a knife, an axe would barely make a dent.
They’d almost reached his parents’ place when nerves got the better of her.
“Look—”
“You know—” They both spoke at once.
They stopped, then glanced at each other. The implacable set of his jaw said he’d reached a decision. One she wouldn’t like.
“Go on.” She licked her suddenly dry lips.
“Ladies first.”
She tried to clear the tightness in her throat, but it sounded like a squeak. “I’m sorry we haven’t found anything suitable yet. I’d be grateful, if you’d give us one more chance.”
“Knock yourself out.”
Maybe it was his patronizing tone that sparked off a long overdue show of defiance. Maybe it was that incessant internal voice that had reached deafening levels. Maybe she was just sick of taking arrogant behavior on the chin for the sake of a quiet life. Regardless, before she could censor her words, she snapped, “Grow up.”
“Excuse me?” The chill in his voice sent a shiver skating down her spine.
Instead of being frozen into submission, she seemed unable to stem the flow of angry words. “You’re as bad as my seven-year-old. ‘I want it and I want it now.’” She mimicked one of Emily’s rare tantrums. “I know sports stars are used to instant gratification, but that’s not how this works. If you genuinely want a place to call home, you’ll have to be patient.”
She didn’t know who was more shocked by her outburst.
His eyes widened a fraction. If his jaw hadn’t been so tight, she was sure it would have dropped. “I see.”
Maggie tried to get her runaway mouth to apologize, to say anything that would rescue the situation. But, having done the damage, it seemed her lips were glued shut. The heat of anger gave way to the pain of misery and defeat.
She’d just cost Tracy the Ice Cats’ contract.
CHAPTER THREE
IT WAS THOSE damn buttons.
Why else would he be behaving like a complete jackass?
Jake knew he’d been out of line all day. He’d never been a prima donna; his parents hadn’t tolerated that kind of behavior and the Jelinek brothers had kept his ego in check.
He was frustrated because the day had been a bust and he was ticked off by the lies in the property sheets. He felt cheated. That last place had been the worst, but every house they’d seen had sugarcoated the truth. He hated liars and cheats.
Jake was also nervous about tonight, when he and Tru would start skating and working out at the Cats’ practice rink. The countdown to training camp had kicked up a notch and for the first time since his rookie season, he was nervous. Questions had buzzed around his brain all last night. What if he’d lost it? What if he was no longer good enough to stay in the NHL?
He’d been giving himself a lecture about working harder and sticking to his plan of no distractions when the biggest damn distraction had walked up his parents’ path.
Today’s ridiculously dull dress was beige. Or biscuit. Or whatever the hell they called pale brown. Her short-sleeved jacket left the lightly tanned skin of her arms bare and emphasized her trim figure. Matching beige-slash-biscuit sling-backs covered her toes.
His pulse had raced faster than a player trying to beat an icing call.
He’d managed to greet her without sounding like an idiot. Then she’d turned and he’d seen them.
Buttons.
Bow-shaped buttons that begged to be undone. Starting at her knees, going up over the curve of her bottom and disappearing under her jacket. He imagined them continuing up her back, tracing her spine like a caress.
His tongue had stuck to the roof of his mouth.
The journey to the first house had been torture. Her fresh, clean scent had filled the car. His gaze had slipped constantly to that tantalizing place where her skirt hitched up, showing the smooth skin above her knees. It had gotten worse as the day had progressed, not helped by the fact that she was good company. He’d enjoyed talking with her, even arguing with her.
He’d also wanted to taste those tantalizing lips.
Damn it. That kind of behavior was vintage Bad Boy and exactly what he had to cut out if he wanted to have the best season of his career. Furious, he’d tried to focus on the house-hunting. Easier said than done.
The fire in him had been raging dangerously close to out of control by the time they’d got to the last house. When she’d taken off the jacket, he’d known he was going down for the count. Even the sunken fishpond hadn’t snapped him out of it.
He’d been shocked when Maggie had flinched at his touch and lost it. Her tongue-lashing, though deserved, had surprised the hell out of him. Who knew Miss Prim had so much passion lurking beneath those drab outfits? He gritted his teeth, trying to wipe all thoughts of passion from his brain. As if he wasn’t having a hard enough time...literally.
He owed her an apology. “Maggie?”
She wouldn’t meet his gaze.
“I’m sorry.”
“I beg your pardon?” Her frosty tone made her cute English accent sharp enough to slice a puck in half.
“I’ve been a jerk.”
She lifted her head and studied him carefully, distrust in the depths of her gaze.
Why? His reputation might not be great but