"Thea's got her game face on," Nicole said, eyeballing me as a few of my teammates stared at my hunched posture, head in my hands, sitting in the airport lobby and preparing for our flight to North Carolina.

"Yeah," I replied, burying my head deeper in my hands to cover my blush. "Gotta focus."

Reese clapped her hand on my shoulder. "Feeling ready?"

I nodded.

"Thanks, guys. Yeah, I'm feeling one hundred percent better than I did a couple of weeks ago."

The team seemed satisfied with my response, and I retreated back into my fantasies of Keaton and the items I bought at Scarlett's shop. I couldn't get him out of my mind. Those baby blue eyes, that rogue smile, and the things we did in that closet. I crossed and uncrossed my legs. Damn, the effect that man had on me. I just wanted to know for sure that I'd be able to see him while we were both in North Carolina. My phone buzzed and I nearly jumped out of my skin.

Pull your head out of the gutter, it read. I looked up across the lounge and saw Callie staring at me, making kissy faces.

Go fuck yourself, I typed back, hiding my smirk. I wondered how she'd react if she knew about my purchases.

I just know that we're going to win both games and you're going to get your little tryst! she texted.

I'd be going to Miami if we won twice in North Carolina. Was Keaton just coincidentally correct about Miami? And why didn't he imply we'd be hooking up in NC instead of Miami if he knew we'd both be there at the same time? Why the teasing?

"Miss Papas?" a lilting voice asked. I looked up and saw a gorgeous flight attendant, pristine in her skirt and neckerchief, not a hair out of place.

I raised my hand. "Present." While most people couldn't pronounce my last name, very few actually truncated it the way my teammates did.

The woman waved a long, thin piece of paper in front of my face. "Here is your new seat," she said and walked away without further discussion.

"Are they moving us?" Reese asked from the row behind me, peering over the seat to look at my reprinted ticket.

I shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe they need someone shorter by the exit," I joked, considering I was nearly six feet and those weird bulkhead seats always made me scrunch up like an accordion.

"Thea, that says first class," Donelle said, snatching the ticket out of my hands. "Coach, you playing favorites?" she called across the row. Dunkilson just shook his head.

"Dunks wouldn't move just one of us," Reese said. "Does your mom work for the airline or something?"

I shook my head. "She's a social worker and dad owns a pizza shop."

"Well you've got a fairy godmother, girl," Nicole replied with a squint. The other players' faces echoed her jealous expression.

"Now boarding First Class," someone said over the loudspeaker.

All eyes on me. "Yeah, I know," I said and got up, leaving my team in the airport lobby as I boarded the plane. Things had happened so fast that I didn't have time to wonder what was going on. Which made it especially surprising when I rounded the corner into first class and saw whom I'd be sitting next to.

"Fancy meeting you here," Keaton said, sunglasses obscuring his eyes. He leaned back in his seat and groaned, clearly hungover.

"Rough night?" I asked.

"I'm better now," he said, lowering the glasses and giving me a once-over. "Get comfy."

I put my leg up on his seat and his eyes went wide. "I need to stretch before a flight," I said, not wanting to give him the upper hand ever again. I like how he made me feel. Powerful. In charge. Perhaps it was because he was used to calling the shots and being the big ego. Either way, I loved not following along with his plans. Part of me wanted to reject the seat.

The other part of me remembered I had never flown first class. She won.

"Are all these people with your band?" I asked. There were a few slick executive types who were conferring with the band members I had met briefly. A few roadie-looking fellows, a few burly security guards. That guy Rex that Callie liked so much was sitting next to us. He saluted me.

Keaton nodded. "It takes more than us four to put on a show," he replied. I finished my right leg, kicked up my left and stretched. He licked his lips and this time I didn't hide my blush. We were, after all, going to be in Miami soon if we won both games this weekend. And if his premonition were right, I'd have little time to get rid of my remaining shyness.

More passengers boarded and found their seats, and I finally relented and sat down next to Keaton. He smelled like hair gel and spicy cologne. I eased back into the seat and sighed loudly.

"You ever fly first class?" he asked.

"No," I replied, fully extending my legs and finding they didn't even touch the seat in front of me. All tall people should automatically fly first class. "But I think I like it."

He put his hand on mine. "I'm glad."

"You didn't have to do this," I said, focusing on keeping my fingers from trembling beneath his slightly calloused touch. "I feel bad not flying with the team."

His eyes darkened for a moment, and he slid the glasses off his nose and tucked them in his pocket. "Before this weekend is through, you're going to have to pick, you know."

"What do you mean?" I asked, stiffening.

"Me or the team."

I made a disgusted sound in my throat. The nerve of this guy. "I just met you, okay? This is fun," I said, gesturing to my posh surroundings, "but I have a scholarship. I have obligations."

He nodded. "Perhaps that's why I like the challenge."

I shook my head. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Keaton squeezed my hand. "I'm sorry, we got off to a bad start today. How about some champagne?"

I declined. "Too early. Plus, intense practice tonight after we arrive. Bad idea."

"I'm full of bad ideas, especially ones involving tiny closets," he purred, leaning in to my ear. "Have you given any thought to what you'd like to do once we arrive?"

I swallowed, feeling his fingers move from squeezing to stroking. "Win."

He gave his lip a little bite. "Mmm, I like winning. Especially when the stakes are high and the prize is so delicious."

Sitting further up in the seat, I looked at him directly. "I will be with the team most of the time. You get that, right? There are curfews and rules and as much as I want to . . ." I trailed off, searching his face for any sign of disappointment, "spend some more quality time with you, I don't think it's going to happen."

He pulled something out of his pocket. My lucky roll of tape. That was in my suitcase, how did he get it?

"What if I kept this? Could you play without your little charm?"

I narrowed my eyes. "If you think you can hold me hostage with superstition, think again. My future is on the line. I am not to be fucked with right now."

He smiled and tossed me the tape. "I needed to see that fire again, Goddess. Thank you for burning so bright."

"Why do you keep calling me that?"

He shrugged. "Because I can see that you value everything your namesake did. Battle, fair and brutal. Wisdom, to temper the storm inside you. Your parents must have had some oracle blood in them when they named you Athena."

I blinked. "I told you my name was Thea."

He laughed and flicked his eyebrows at me. "Are you denying your namesake, Goddess?"

I grumbled a no. "I still don't know how you know so much about me."

Keaton reached forward and took one of my curls in his hand. "Does it matter?" he asked, voice now soft. "Don't fight who you are, and I won't fight my nature either. Just go along for the ride. You'll learn much and conquer a great deal, oh Pallas Athene." He slid his finger up into the curl suggestively, and pulled it back out. I felt my stomach clench.

"Some say she got that name because she killed Pallas," I noted.

Keaton flagged down a flight attendant and ordered a sparkling water. "Ah, so the classics major finally shows herself."

"Well, since you automatically know so much about me, Keaton, why don't you tell me a little bit more about you?"

He bowed his head. "Anything for you. What do you want to know?"

I was surprised by his answer. Instead of one of his quirky, flippant answers, his face was open and sincere. His round baby blues sparkled and I forgot what I was talking about.

"I lived most of my life in England. Met my bandmates there about ten years ago, and we've been on tour pretty much ever since. We rarely take breaks. These boys live for life on the road."

I listened, nodding. "That must be hard. Not putting down roots."

He shook his head. "It's thrilling. New cities, new faces, and yet they all sing along," he said, leaning closer. "You didn't sing along, though."

I blushed. "I'm sorry. The performance was amazing, seriously. I just, um, never heard of you guys."

He nodded. "I know."

"You don't mind?" I asked.

He sat back in his seat and rested his head against the pillow. "It was a relief, meeting you."

"Why?" I asked.

"Because you didn't sing along. Not from the first note. You looked in my eyes, all fire and curls, and gave me hell. Fuck, Thea, I liked it."

My chest seized and again I felt that familiar feeling he gave me. A breathless, thrilling emotion that felt exposed like raw nerves but smooth and exotic like satin sheets. "You like that I didn't know you."

"I liked that you gave me a piece of your mind. That you stopped me from doing what I wanted. That you treated me like any other punk who stole into the girls' locker room for a cigarette break."

I shrugged. "I just did what I was feeling. I wasn't trying, you know."

This time when he reached out for my hair, he took a fistful of curls and ran his fingers through the bundle of strands. "It's what's most beautiful about you, you know. Not those full lips or this wild mane of yours, Goddess. It's your free, untouched spirit. Bold, honest, and a little naive."

I leaned toward him, boldness and honesty wanting to trump naivete. "That's why you want me to tie you up?"

He nodded. "I want to see you free your goddess."

Damn it. I couldn't pin down a time where I'd be able to see him in North Carolina, but he was here now. Strategy: get him while I can.

"I don't want to see you free at all," I said with a chuckle, pulling the lucky tape out from where I had stashed it.

His expression brightened. "You're thinking of doing something inappropriate, aren't you?"

I nodded with a sharp jut of my chin. "Wait one minute and then come join me in the bathroom on the left," I said and stood, walking on skittish foal legs to the first-class restroom.

I slid the door open and collapsed against the small wall. Jesus! What was I doing in here? I looked in the mirror and hardly recognized myself. My brown eyes were wide with anticipation, and the flush I was feeling had made my cheeks and lips glow. Although I still had no idea who Keaton was, aside from a freaking rock god, I knew he was good for me. Not for the long run, but certainly for right now. I held the tape in my trembling hand as I listened for his footsteps outside the door. I pushed myself further inside as he opened the door.

"So, Goddess, how can I assist you?"

"I-I-" I fumbled, "I don't need assistance. I just . . ."

Keaton held his finger to my lips. "There's that naivete again," he crooned. "Assistance could mean a number of things."

I nodded. "Okay. What did you have in mind?" I had to play it cool, just like in that game of Horse. Make it hard for him, and watch him match my shots.

Easy, right?

Keaton sighed and pushed my hair behind my shoulders. "I like you being in charge, remember? I think you have a few ideas on how I could assist you," he said, kissing my shoulder. I thought I could hear my skin sizzle upon contact. Nobody had ever made my body do that. I didn't know I was capable of feeling so sensitive. My breaths came heavy as he continued sweeping his lips across my collarbone. "So, how would you like me?"

"Well," I said, attempting to turn the tables, "considering we're headed to North Carolina and not Miami, I'd say your knack for knowing things is off." Plus, our first time in a bathroom-no thanks.

He slid the strap of my tank top off my shoulder and kept moving his mouth downward across the swell of skin. I fought a gasp. "Things won't be finished here," he whispered into my skin, "but that doesn't mean I can't make you come again."

I gasped as his fingers clung to the strap, and his kisses softly pattered against the top of my breast. Don't freeze, don't freeze, I told myself. This sensation, so thrilling and new, nearly paralyzed me. I exhaled a soft moan, letting some of the tension out.

"You just tell me what you want. I'm here to serve," he said, slinking his tongue out, leaving a hot, wet trail. "To worship."

I panted, my legs clenched, and I summoned the courage to force the words out of my mouth. "Keep," I breathed, "keep using your tongue." There was no way I'd be able to talk dirty right now, not a chance. Hell, I didn't even know exactly what I wanted. I just knew I needed him to keep going.

He chuckled and nuzzled against my chest, peering up at me with those baby blues. "Where?" he asked, blinking. "To fully please you, I'd like some more specific orders."

I tipped my head back against the wall for leverage. I swear my legs were going to give out. Take control, I told myself. It was what he wanted, and it sure as fuck was what I wanted. I channeled my inner Scarlett and opened my mouth.

"Take off my top," I growled.

He grinned and took my thin tank-top strap in his teeth and pulled down, freeing one breast. His left hand reached for the other side and pulled my shirt all the way around my stomach. My chest heaved as I felt his stubbly jaw scrape against my sensitive skin. His tongue slid between my breasts and his hands stroked gently from my collarbone down to my navel. I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sensation.

"You're gorgeous," he whispered, pushing me further into the wall and taking a sensitive nipple into his mouth. We had bypassed first base today, I noted. Good thing I played basketball and not baseball. While this new sensation made me beyond ecstatic, part of me longed for the sweet and silky kiss like the ones we shared backstage and in the closet.

Then I remembered I was in charge, and if I wanted a kiss, I could take one.

Yanking Keaton by his hair, I pulled him to my mouth. "I want a kiss here first," I breathed, and took a long and deep kiss from him.

Then I pushed him back down to my nipple and he nibbled it roughly.

I gasped at the feeling, and fought the urge to reach for his clothes. I wanted to see him the way he was before, sweaty and shirtless. He sucked harder and I moaned, involuntarily lifting my hips to him.