Harmony Evans - Stealing Kisses

She crossed her legs to steady her nerves, aware of his eyes on them as he sipped his coffee.

“Actually, we’re going to see your father.”

Derek clattered his mug against the granite countertop. “What are you talking about?”

Her heart lurched at the sudden change in his demeanor. The hard stare he gave her now was a far cry from the way he’d been looking at her moments earlier.

She shifted in her seat. “I’m talking about making things right with your family, especially your dad.”

He flattened his palms on the counter.

“How did you find out about him?” he demanded. “I thought you were a life coach, not a private detective.”

She kept her voice calm. “I do background research on all my clients, and it’s amazing what you can find archived on the internet. The newspaper articles are all there and—”

He cut her off with a wave of his hand. “My dad doesn’t want anything to do with me. Trust me.”

“I think the opposite is true,” she ventured.

His eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”

“I don’t think you want anything to do with him.”

He said nothing, yet something seemed to deflate within him.

“As I was saying, there are tons of articles about your rags-to-riches success story on the web, but your family is rarely mentioned.”

“So?” he challenged. “I thought you were here to help me get off the bench and back on the basketball court where I belong, not poke around where you don’t belong.”

She understood his anger, but she wasn’t going to let herself be deterred by it.

“I’m here to help you in any way I can,” she replied.

Derek walked around the counter, sat on the chair opposite her and crossed his arms. “Well, you can start by leaving my past out of it.”

She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I can’t do that.”

He leaned forward. “Why not?”

She met his eyes and kept her voice firm.

“Sometimes when people have unresolved issues in their past, it can affect their lives in the present, as well as the future. No matter how successful they become, there’s always something missing.”

She knew that feeling all too well. It was something she struggled with every day.

He waved her comment away and crossed his arms over his massive chest. “That sounds like some kind of self-help mumbo jumbo, Dr. Kenyon.”

She took in a sharp breath and brought her hand to her mouth.

“Don’t look so shocked that I did a little investigation of my own,” he advised.

She said nothing for a moment, preferring to forget about that part of her life. A time when she’d tried to start over, and failed miserably.

“Actually, I’m glad to hear that you did a little digging on your own,” she said, recovering quickly. “It shows you’re highly invested in doing things in your life differently.”

“Or it could show that I’m highly interested in you,” he added, watching her for her reaction.

Her heart fluttered, yet she managed to keep her expression calm and her voice light. “I’d heard you were a huge flirt, Derek. You don’t have to prove it to me.”

His brows knit together and she sensed he was disappointed with her response. What had he expected her to say? Her interest in him was strictly professional and her fantasies were hers alone.

“Do you remember Jamal Carter?” The former NBA star turned heroin addict had been her last patient in her short-lived second career as a psychologist.

Her insides quaked at the memory of their counseling sessions. Some of the stories Jamal had told her about growing up in one of the fiercest projects in Brooklyn still haunted her. Despite his wealth and success, he could never get past all the pain he’d experienced as a child.

She’d quit practicing psychology soon after his death from suicide. Even though she knew it wasn’t her fault, not a day went by when she didn’t ask herself if she could have done or said something to prevent it. Questions that would forever remain unanswered.

Derek ran a hand through his locks and looked uncomfortable. “Of course I remember him. He grew up in the same projects I did. I was brought in to replace him on the team after he died. You were Jamal’s therapist?”

She nodded. “I counseled Jamal for a few months before he died. He was an incredibly gifted and successful athlete. But his past ultimately destroyed him.”

He crossed his arms. “That’s not going to happen to me,” he insisted, looking away.

She hated the prideful tone in his voice, yet she knew it wasn’t the result of arrogance. The man was wealthy, yet he didn’t flaunt it like some of her other clients. There was something that mattered more to him than money and whatever it was, she had a feeling it scared him more than he wanted to admit.

“Don’t you see, Derek? It is already starting to happen!”

He lowered his head, refusing to look at her even when she slid off the chair and stood next to him.

“Your playing has been off-kilter for months, you’ve been suspended right before the most important games of the season and your reputation in the media has taken a major hit.”

“I know,” he muttered, running his hand down his face. “I can’t seem to get it together. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

Natalie smiled inwardly, secretly pleased he didn’t deny what was happening to him, even if he didn’t know what it was.

On the flip side, it made Derek even more attractive to her. He was less of an untouchable sports celebrity and ultimately more human.

“Do you really think seeing my family is going to help?” He lifted his head. “I haven’t spoken to my dad or my brother in over ten years. Not since high school,” he murmured. “Can you believe that?”

The shame in his voice curdled in her ear. It was so real and so familiar that she just wanted to bolt. But perhaps it was time for her to stop running. Sometimes her faith and her inner drive to succeed, no matter the consequences, were the only things that kept her going.

She forced her voice steady. “You can do this. I’ll help you.”

He shook his head again. “No, Natalie.” Derek’s voice was firm. “I haven’t seen them in years. It will never work.”

“Only because you won’t let it,” she charged, even though she knew she should be more patient. The stubborn determination in his eyes upset her because it could only mean one thing: his mind was made up.

She turned away and grabbed her purse. Why couldn’t he see that this was for the best? Even worse, why did she care so much? So soon? She had that irrefutable feeling in the pit of her stomach that made her want to dive into his muscular arms and never come up for air.

“Thanks for the coffee,” she snapped. For reasons she knew she’d analyze to death later on, she was deeply hurt by his rejection of her plan. “I’ll let Tony know that we won’t be working together.”

Her heels tapped out a brisk rhythm as she walked to the elevator.

As she was searching for the down button, Derek placed one arm against the wall and turned her around to face him. Her breath came out in a rush of surprise.

“There’s a security code,” he reminded her.

“So why don’t you punch it in, so I can leave,” she retorted.

He didn’t move.

Behind his gray eyes: pure pain.

Between their bodies: pure heat.

“Look. I hurt a lot of people when I was coming up. My family mostly. And you’re right. I need someone to walk through this with me.” He stepped a little closer. “Someone who doesn’t want anything personal from me.”

Natalie’s heart plummeted and bottomed out in frustration. Mostly at herself for thinking the spark she’d felt between them yesterday and this morning was more than just a bunch of molecules colliding together.