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this.”
    Her flat tone and stance told him she didn’t agree. Cody wasn’t used to being assessed and judged as insufficient.
    He flicked his wrist and smiled. “I played lots of croquet with my sister.”
    “ Polo is not in any way like croquet,” she shot back at him.
    He bit down his urge to point out the actual comparisons. Every sport had its techniques and challenges, and there were in fact similarities between the two games. He hadn’t meant to offend her. He’d been distracted by his thoughts about tomorrow’s playoff game and now regretted the flip remark. But he’d be damned if he was going to stand there and be judged by a rich, spoiled woman who didn’t know the first thing about his skill or experience.
    He tipped his fingers to the riding helmet he still wore. “I’ll do my best, ma’am.”
    He added the ma’am, knowing it would irk her. He really shouldn’t tease; the game was obviously important. He liked that she had a taste for competition.
    She hugged her elbows in tight. “I appreciate you doing this, truly I do. It’s just that... well, it’s just that—”
    She bit at her lower lip, and in the ensuing silence he couldn’t help but wonder what else she had a taste for. But the anguish Cody saw when he returned his gaze to hers dampened his smoldering desire. Something deeper than concern over this polo game ran lines of worry into her face. She squared her shoulders and hauled in a breath.
    “Yes. Well, thank you. Thank you very much,” she said with an unsuccessful attempt at a smile.
    He preferred her feistier tone to the resigned tone of her thank-you. But her eyes told him her gratitude was real, even if she didn’t think him up to the challenge ahead. And her body told him conflict roiled in every muscle as well as in her thoughts.
    “I need to check on the gate guards,” she said to Alex. She turned an impenetrable glance to Cody. “I need to make sure they have the latest guest list.”
    She stared at him for a moment. Though her eyes were green and not blue like Alex’s, she had a similar intensity to her gaze. Zoe Tavonesi was one hell of an intriguing woman. And one he had better keep at arm’s length.
     

 

Chapter Three
     
    The lilting sound of women’s laughter poured out like sunshine into the dim hallway as Zoe approached the VIP luxury suite in the massive baseball stadium. Lifted by the welcome sound, she hoped she was headed for the right place. The other suites she’d passed were packed with groups of men.
    She wasn’t in the mood for men.
    Although, as she’d stared out at the practice area at the field level before seeking out the suite, Cody Bond had caught her eye. He hadn’t seen her, but she’d watched him. He’d crouched low, catching and returning a ball thrown to him over and over by a pitcher. At one point a ball skidded in the dirt and bounced into the mask covering his face. He’d torn it off and, to her surprise, grinned at the pitcher as he fired the ball back.
    She liked the way his eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled.
    And there was no denying he had a body a woman remembered. In her dreams she’d watched that body... she and he were riding a shoreline somewhere, wild and free and...
    She smoothed a hand along one hip. Maybe she was in the mood for men after all. Or for one anyway. Yet she’d sworn she wouldn’t develop any relationships that would make it harder to return home. But the memory of her dream lingered and wouldn’t be pushed away. If the rumors about single ballplayers were true, maybe she could have a fling with Cody. He’d shown interest... those signals she’d read quite clearly. God, was she actually considering having some light, easy fun with a man she’d met just yesterday? Coco would have a field day if she suspected. Her baby sister had been eyeing Alex’s teammates with designs of her own.
    Zoe paused at the door of the luxury suite. If she’d had a camera, she could’ve captured a scene to