“I think so,” she murmured wide-eyed.

“You get I’m a man?” I asked and Sloane nodded. “No matter I’m not into that shit for two months, three nights a week I’ve been watching what’s essentially live-action porn. But still, that was not why I had you on this bed with my tongue in your mouth and my hand in your panties. Which, baby, I have to tell you, shocked the shit out of me a woman as sexy as you would be wearing granny panties, especially when you were trying to get yourself some. Though I have to admit, I forgot all about how ugly they were when I felt how wet you were for me.”

Sloane’s wide eyes turned to slits and her lips formed this half-smirk half-frown that I wouldn’t believe was possible to pull off—but more, that it would be cute as fuck if I hadn’t seen it myself.

“In my defense, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to initiate my plan. I was on the fence, and I was wearing a dress which meant I needed full-bottom undies. I figured if I got up the nerve to actually flirt with you, we’d make a date and go back to your place. But then you turned all alpha-hero and we ended up back at my place. Then you kissed me and muddled my head and I forgot I was wearing ugly undies until you made my dress magically disappear. But by then it was too late to do anything about it. So you got what you got.”

I wanted to laugh at her “alpha-hero” comment but now was not the time to call her out on being cute. It also wasn’t the time to be thinking about how well she’d get on with my teammates’ women. I could totally picture Sloane sitting in Letty’s bookstore, Smutties, curled up in one of the overstuffed beanbag chairs cackling with Brooklyn and Sadie. Hell, I could see her sitting around with my teammates in Rhode’s backyard enjoying a beer and laughing at Remy as he ran around being his normal amusing kid self. But that was never going to happen. She had a life in California and mine was in Idaho. As much as I didn’t want to think about it, it royally sucked she’d never meet my friends.

I fucking hate I had to ask but I had to.

“Yeah, baby, I got what I got. And since we’re here talking about this I have to ask, you okay with what happened?”

A monumental change came over Sloane. I watched it play out over her features, I felt it sweep through her body, and I heard it hitch in her lungs.

Self-reproach assailed her fast and hard.

“I’m sorry.” Her soft apology wafted between us, making my guilt twist in my gut. “I’m really, really sorry. You probably won’t be able to forgive me for what I did to you, but I hope you understand why. And you have to know that it might’ve started one way but as soon as you kissed me it became something else.”