In It to Win It Read Online Free Page B

rising in her cheeks. She didn’t voice another word, just gave him her back and walked away.
    “ You okay?” Nate asked as she plopped down in the seat next to him.
    Soda splashed over the side of the cup where the lid wasn’t on tight enough and Jane groaned. “Yeah. Fine. Couldn’t be better.” She plucked at the damp denim, brushing at the little brown dots that splattered her jeans.
    “ Jane.” That deep voice saying her name made her insides go all mushy and her irritation spike.
    “ You have got to be kidding me,” she muttered under her breath, then turned and smiled—okay, scowled—at Grayson.
    “ You left your purse in the coffee shop.” He handed it to her. “I figured you’d need it.”
    She thought she heard Nate chuckle, and knew she had when his Sports Illustrated ruffled, covering his face from view. She would get even. Right now though, she had to get rid of Grayson … again!
    “ Yeah. Thanks.”
    “ Does my chivalry constitute dinner?”
    “ No,” she said just as Nate asked, “You buyin’?”
    She glared at the blond photographer—the guy who was supposed to have her back—beside her. Nate darted a mischievous grin at her before looking up at Grayson.
    Totally unfazed by her attitude, Grayson offered his knuckles to Nate. “Of course. Jane, will both of you come to dinner with me? Please?”
    She fought the urge to roll her eyes—and slap Nate silly—and nodded. “Fine. We’ll both have dinner with you.”
    There was an awkward pause, then Nate handed Grayson his card. “My cell number’s on there. Call us with the date and time.”
    Thankfully the flight attendant announced that it was time to board and Jane stood a little too quickly. Grayson reached out to steady her, those chocolate brown eyes of his staring into her Plain-Jane green ones.
    “ I’ll call you,” he whispered, his voice low with promise.
    She couldn’t break the visual contact that had magically turned into something much stronger. Her lungs burned with the need to take a breath. Her eyes burned with the need to blink. And the rest of her burned with the need to touch him, taste him, give everything she had to him.
    “ Thanks, my man.” Nate slapped Grayson on the back, breaking the spell.
    Jane could feel Grayson’s eyes on her until she rounded the corner to board the plane. Then she was able to breathe. All those years ago she’d felt disoriented and flustered when around him, but now it seemed to be worse. And she couldn’t afford that kind of distraction.
    Nate settled into the seat next to her on the plane and turned to look at her. “What?” she grumbled.
    “ What, what?” Nate wasn’t very good at pulling off looking innocent, and this time was no different. “I was just wondering why Grayson Pierce invited you to dinner.”
    “ Us. He invited us to dinner.”
    “ Yeah, I only get to come along because you need a bodyguard.”
    “ No, I need someone to run interference.” The words were out before she could censor them and Nate cocked a brow, his blue eyes suddenly much too knowing.
    Nate was a great guy, but he was a guy. A very manly guy. He didn’t want to hear the girly, emo crap. And she didn’t want to share either.
    “ Look, Grayson and I have a past.” His grin widened and she clarified, “We went to high school together, okay? Nothing more. And I want to keep it that way.”
    “ Cool.”
    He was quiet, his large hands in a death grip on the armrests while the plane took off. His jaw opened wide, cracked and then his head moved on his shoulders, loud pops emitting from his neck. It wasn’t surprising; it was his usual take-off ritual. Next he would stretch his legs—she smiled when he did—and press his arms out in front of him, stretching each out to its limit. Finally, he sighed and closed his eyes.
    “ You okay?” he asked.
    “ Yeah,” she said, surprised. This was a deviation from the norm.
    “ If you don’t want him around, I can make that happen.” It