“Well,” I looked down at my empty hands, “I got this birthday crown?” I said it like it was a question because I wasn’t sure that it counted. “My mom always gets me something elaborate, but her package didn’t make it here today from Aspen.”
Wow, I really did sound pathetic by that point.
He nodded with narrowed eyes, but he didn't respond to the comment. He crossed his arms tighter, forcing my gaze down to his sexy tattoos. They stretched across his bicep on either side, but only the ones on his left arm dipped below his shirt sleeve. It was a tantalizing glimpse, but I wanted to see more. I knew from photos that they drifted up to his chest and back.
"I'll show you mine if you show me yours," I murmured cheekily, referring to his tattoos, of course.
I was seriously playing with fire, but that's what happens when I drink too much and the world puts me in front of the sexiest man alive. No, seriously, I think last year People Magazine named him Sexiest Man Alive.
"I don't think that’s a good idea," he said.
Wow. Completely denied. That stung more than my face smashing into the car console. So why was he still standing in front of me, blocking me from talking to anyone else? It was all too confusing for my intoxicated brain to understand.
"That's good. I couldn't show you where mine is anyway," I answered with a sly grin.
Even he was caught off guard by that comment, but relax, I don't have a tattoo on my who-hah. It's just along my bra line; a simple line of text that runs horizontally under my arm. But wow I was laying it on thick. I glanced down to ensure that I wasn't humping his leg. Nope, but my black dress had ridden up a bit, exposing more of my tanned thighs.
“That’s not the reason,” he smirked. “Starting tomorrow I'll be one of your coaches at ULA, so I think that would violate the rules, don't you think?"
My heart stopped beating at the word "coach".
Chapter Three
I narrowed my eyes. Had my drunken ears heard him right? Coach?
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
His eyes hardened and his jaw ticked once back and forth. "As of tomorrow, I'll be helping out the ULA women's soccer team for a few months."
No. No. No, thank you. That's not possible. He couldn't be my coach. He was too busy licking models to coach a soccer team.
"Kinsley!" Becca called my name from across the room, and I looked up to see her and the sophomore girls waving me over.
I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts, but my head was too foggy. Why did someone put a fog machine in there? I dropped my ice pack in the sink and slunk off the counter.
"Better get some sleep, Kinsley. You have quite an early morning tomorrow," Liam noted with a smile. I stepped to move past him, but then I thought of something.
"How'd you know I was on the ULA team?" I asked.
He grinned, and for a moment I thought I was going to have to pound my chest to make my heart keep beating. He had slight dimples and perfectly straight teeth. That grin should be tucked away and brought out only for special occasions— where heart defibrillators would be present and accounted for.
"You were the top recruit in the country. There's not a person in the soccer world that doesn't know who you are," he answered with confidence.
I’d been featured in a few magazines in high school, but damn. Liam Wilder knew who I was. He knew me enough to recognize me at a party… and tomorrow he would be my coach.
Oh god. I just almost sniffed his shirt and then I asked him if he’d show me his tattoos.
I'm in major trouble.
With that thought, I nodded and turned away from him to find my teammates. I had to fill them in stat. We had a lot of Googling to do.
"Are you okay? And more importantly, were you just talking to Liam Wilder?" Emily asked with wide eyes as soon as I reached them. Becca was standing directly behind her with her mouth hanging open.
"Yes, and you won't even believe what I have to tell you guys, but I should wait until later." The party was still going strong and I didn't want to squeal about what I'd just found out in front of all these people. Word would probably get back to Liam before I even reached the front door.
"Okay, that sounds really mysterious. Now I'm even more curious," Emily answered.
"You should be," I laughed, and then tugged her and Becca through the crowd toward the door. "I'm kind of tired. Do you guys want to share a cab back to the house with me?"