I MANAGED SOME sleep and feel like a new person. I was just too exhausted to search out dinner and my brain needed the downtime. Luckily, I'm one of the few players without a roomie. Being the only female has its perks.A bus will transport us to the practice field at seven-fifteen sharp. It's already hot outside when I head to the hotel lobby for a quick breakfast before leaving. I jump on the bus with a bottle of water and apple that's half eaten. Most of the players are on board and I'm relieved when I don't see Aiden. I assume he is on the other bus. I take one of two free seats up front and Lane joins me a few minutes later. He looks rested too. Nervous energy is in the air during the short bus ride.Lane doesn't say more than a quick hello. I watch the scenery closely on the way to the practice field. Rolling white sand dunes surround the stadium that we'll be calling home for the next three weeks.The stadium isn't as large as our home turf, but it has the necessities and tha
THE LOOK ON her face pushes my cock harder against the zipper of my shorts. Her eyes are closed and her beautiful lips partially open in ecstasy. I've accomplished everything I set out to do this evening."You're not into him, are you?" I ask as I run my fingers along her calf."Into whom?" she moans.Whom, I love it. "Lane," I clarify."Is that what this is about?" She peels open her eyes and gives me a glare. I dig into a small ball of muscle and her eyes close again.I change the subject. "If Kelson becomes a problem, at least talk to Morely. If I hear through the grapevine that you're putting up with shit and not reporting it, I'll handle it myself.""You will, will you?" She doesn't bother opening her eyes this time.My fingers dig in and travel farther up her leg. She smells heavenly. Once I've reached the stopping point, I skim my fingers across the crotch of her shorts. Her eyes pop open and I lean up and kiss her. Her moan into my mouth is better than the others combine
I NEVER IMAGINED in a million years that this many girls would show up at the airport, and it fills my heart to near capacity. Larry being here is another plus. He sent me a text about the fans with pink footballs waiting for me. I didn't receive it until we landed, so I had no time to mentally prepare.Eventually, the crowd dwindles and I'm able to autograph the last few balls. I give Larry a quick squeeze before joining the team on the waiting bus."Fan club finally thin out?" one of the players asks when I board.For the most part, the players ignore me, so I'm surprised there's no animosity in the words. I offer a faint grin and move to the empty seat beside Lane. He puts his arm up. "No big heads allowed in this section. You might want to move to the back."I bat his hand away and sit down. "This big head needed relief from first-game jitters. Now I feel better and oh so popular.""Pink footballs are something I never thought I'd see."A voice from behind us adds, "Yeah. Wha
THE NEXT TWO weeks are filled with double day practices and the next two preseason games. Pink football-mania is in full swing and so is the number nine jersey, which is flying off the shelves. So far, Jordan is six for six with extra points and field goals.Several nights a week, I join Lane in Jordan's room for dinner. The media is so obnoxious it's impossible for her to go out in public and eat an uninterrupted meal. Things aren't dying down as Jordan had hoped and they're only getting hotter as the first regular season game approaches. The nights I don't eat with Jordan and Lane, I join my teammates to hold suspicions down about me and Jordan. Besides an intense look or two from Mason and Lane, the rest of the team is oblivious. Lane enjoys pushing my buttons and making jokes at my expense, but he keeps his personal opinion about an inter-team romance to himself.The dinners with the two of them have opened my eyes to another side of Jordan. She's smart, funny, and loyal to the P
I mold our lips together and mess up the color. She moans into my mouth as I deepen the kiss. I snake my hand under her top and run the tips over the lace of her bra. Her moan is heavier this time. A second later my hand is beneath the material and I cup her breast and pluck her nipple between two fingers. The soft tip goes hard as I tease it back and forth. Until this moment, I had no idea how much I've needed to feel her body against mine. The only problem is-I need more.I sit up straight and tear my lips from hers. "What?" she asks on a sigh. I turn her and partially lift so she can straddle my hips facing me.I rub the lipstick smudge from the corner of her mouth. She lifts her fingers and does the same to my lips. I smile because I must look like a complete idiot with her lipstick smeared on my mouth. I don't give a fuck. As fast as she can put the stuff on, I can kiss it off."What?" she asks again breathlessly."You." I cup her chin. "Your lips do mad things to me.""It's
I OPEN MY eyes and I'm immediately aware of Aiden's absence. His presence fills a room and the loss of it leaves an empty spot in my chest. So much for morning sex. I hit my fist against a pillow. "Why the hell did I let this happen again?" I mutter. My mad crush is quickly turning into obsession. Poor Aiden couldn't get away fast enough.After a quick shower, I walk down to the bus and try not to think about my aching lady bits. My self-fulfilled shower orgasm only made me crave Aiden more, and I'm not in the best mood. There are also faces missing from the bus. This adds to the empty feeling in my gut. The players who won't be returning have a later bus that's taking them back to Albuquerque.I catch a glimpse of Aiden heading to the bus parked behind this one and I'm thankful I don't need to face him. Lane's head sticks through the door and he spots me. I scoot over and make room. Each day I'm more and more thankful to call Lane my friend. Without him I'm not sure if I could handl
I TOSS MY phone on the counter and it slides several feet, almost ending up on the floor. My own family betrays me by taking sides with Jordan. And I sound like a pussy. Watching Jordan's lips cover the bite marks on that apple where Lane's lips had been pissed me off. The juice running down Jordan's mouth turned me the hell on too.I woke up and she was still sleeping. I thought about waking her and making good on my promise but decided she needed the rest. So I let her sleep and I behaved like a gentleman. I regret it now.Jealousy is not an emotion I'm accustomed to. Hell, I know there is nothing going on between her and Lane but damn. I claimed those lips. They drive me crazy and if I'm going crazy over them I know other players have the same thoughts.Lips for God's sake.I pace around my living room for at least five minutes before settling down and flicking through channels on the TV. Two minutes later and I would have missed Mike Goodwyn's diatribe."So, folks, after three
MY SHOULDER IS badly bruised but no lasting damage. My entire body feels like it was mushed beneath three-hundred-pound football players because it was. I enter the locker room after the physical therapist clears me. I have a large icepack wrapped around my shoulder when the team trudges in from the field.Several players ask how I'm doing and I actually think they might care. Then I hear Kelson open his mouth to a few other players. "She had the ball between her tits; it's the only way she could hold on," he says and laughs.Asshole.Two players standing in front of me hear the exchange. Their damn eyes go straight to my breasts and it pisses me off. They turn away and listen as Kelson continues flapping his lips. Eyes shift away from me when I look to other players and that pisses me off even more. What the fuck do I need to do to prove myself?I lift the ice off my shoulder and lay it on the closest bench."Now that we've been laughed out of the NFL by a pair of tits, we need t
I hid in Italy for three weeks. Greg came with me and kicked my ass on the court. He actually made a great practice partner. I was back to clean eating and drinking only water. It surprised me when Greg brought a bottle of wine to my room one night."What's this for?" I asked when he gave me one of his golly-gee smiles. Greg was cute. And, married to a lovely woman who worshipped him."I've been your coach for three months now and I have no idea what makes you tick. It's time for a come to daddy talk. Or in your case, come to coach. I figured the alcohol might make it easier.""You'll need more than one bottle," I told him. He came back to my room ten minutes later with two more bottles in his hands. "Does your wife know you're getting drunk with a slutty tennis star tonight?" I smiled to take the sting out of calling myself a slut."She suggested it. We've had many long conversations about you.""How romantic."He poured our first glasses and tilted the edge of his glass against
I never returned to the hospital, which was entirely unfair of me. My anger at my father carried over to Brack. I was horrible. The man I loved hadn't fully recovered and I left him at the hospital alone. Okay, he had his parents and his team. But, bottom lineI was horrible and a coward. I ignored the calls from Brack and my father. Again- coward.I needed complete control of my life. It took me two weeks to come up with a plan. During those two weeks, I hired a new coach and trained until I could barely walk. I trained with a purpose. I'd had my own money. Not just from tennis but from my mother. I'd never used it. That was the way I punished her and myself. Now, for the first time, I paid for my own coach.I liked him. I could actually smile over the fact that my father paid for Jerry all those years while the two of them hated each other. Greg, my new coach, kicked my ass. I had no idea if I had a chance this season. But, winning the Grand Slam was in my peripheral vision and not
Two days later, the doctors discontinued the medication that kept Brack in a coma. My father showed up the morning after surgery and made me go home, shower, and change clothes. Brack's parents were staying in shifts. His mom promised she wouldn't leave his side until I returned. I hadn't really spoken to them. We stayed relatively quiet in Brack's room. I whispered encouragement and told him I was there. They gave us privacy, too. That's when I told him I loved him. Again and again, I whispered the words.My father and Senator Jacobs were cordial. Brack's mother treated my dad like a family friend. Apparently she'd been friends with my mom. I tried not to think about the ramifications of our two families tied together through me and Brack. It was too much to take right now.Brack still had the ventilator. The doctor reviewed best and worst case scenarios with us. I refused to listen to brain damage, paralysis, learning to walk and talk again, and so on. My focus was full recovery. I
Four hours later, I was passed out against Mack's shoulder when his cell rang. My brain registered the noise and I was pulled quickly from sleep."Yeah," he answered quietly. He listened for several minutes before responding. "I have her here with me. We'll be there in a minute." He slid his phone back in his pocket and looked at me. "He's in recovery. It was touch and go, but he pulled through. They have him in a sedated coma. He has a stent in his skull to relieve swelling. The doctor told his parents he came to before surgery and demanded to see you. His mom wants you up there if you think you can handle it."I was up and walking out of the emergency room before he finished, my heart pounding a hundred miles an hour. "What floor? I'm not waiting for you to waddle behind me."Snickers came from several of the guys. "I've got her," Molly said."Second floor."The elevator took so long I almost turned to the stairs. I'd do anything to get to him. Brack asked for me and I had to se
I ran toward Brack, who had fallen to the floor. There was so much blood and I tried wiping it off his face. My hands turned dark red."You did it, baby," he whispered before his body went completely limp.Sander and a woman who must be Molly ran into the enclosure with guns drawn. I could barely hear them. Echoed gunshots continued ringing in my ears."Call an ambulance and please someone check on my father. He's in the van," I said as I held Brack's head in my lap. Blood soaked my panties and covered my legs. Head wounds bleed, I kept saying to myself. Sander practically jumped over us and went straight to Ty's body. He turned back when he had assured himself Ty was no longer a threat."Where were you?" I asked softly. I didn't want Brack to hear me yelling at his team.Sander sat down next to me and took Brack's arm checking his pulse. "The bastard used some kind of scrambler. It took us a while to figure out the van didn't leave the premises. We recovered the phones. Brack had
Kids laughed. A mother scolded a young child for attempting to go under the bar and get closer to one of the cages. Brack and I stood in the center of the primate exhibit. My phone chirped. It didn't startle me this time; I was too numb. "Yes.""Walk over to the primate exhibit sign and you'll find another cell phone behind it. Exchange it for the one you're using. Have Mr. Jacobs leave his phone behind, too."Brack followed me to the sign and I did exactly as told. The phone was there. I picked it up and lay mine down. "He said to leave yours, too." Brack took his from his jeans pocket and placed it beside mine. Thankfully, no one paid attention to us. I had no idea what we needed to do next. The phone in my hand vibrated. This time I clicked the call button without saying a word."Go to your left and keep walking on the path. Did you bring my present?" I carried a bag with the dress inside so both of Brack's arms would be free. He carried a gun in a hidden leg holster."Yes, it's
The inside of my father's home was a crime scene. We sat on the couch in the front room away from the forensic team that arrived a few minutes before. The media camped at the gates added to the growing chaos.Even knowing Ty would eventually call, I jumped when my cell phone chirped. The display read "Unknown." My fingers trembled as I picked it up and answered, "Hello, Ty, or should I call you Leo?"His husky laugh sent goose bumps across my arms. "I told you not to call the police. You wouldn't listen and you'll pay for disobedience."My voice remained steady. "It wasn't me. You killed your mother, so what exactly did you expect? She worked for my dad for over thirty years. One plus one equals two, Leo." Fuller and Brack told me not to push him too hard. I had to make him believe I hadn't gone to the police, though."My mother had cancer and it was eating away at her. I did her a favor. She didn't walk in God's light. By making her repent and then killing her God may show mercy."
My heart stopped. Dread and terror filled me. Colors danced before my eyes making it hard to see. The whoosh of blood traveling into my head made it hard to hear. I had to get control of myself. I gulped in air. "You goddamn son of a bitch. If you hurt my father I'll kill you.""He that blasphemeth the name of the LORD shall be put to death and stoned. Remember that when you feel the pain of my hand, Olivia."Brack startled me by gathering me close and placing his head against mine so we both listened. "Where's my father?" I demanded."That's better. I have instructions for you, Olivia. You will follow them to the letter. Please bring that man with you. The one you've been with lately." His voice took on an eerie quality. "If a man commits adultery with another man's wife, both the man and the woman must be put to death." He breathed heavily and then gave a sadistic laugh. "You may choose your father or lover to pay for your sins. One shall die and the other walks away.""But-"He
I don't know what I expected love to be like. Violins playing, little cupids flying around with bow and arrows, hell maybe just cuddles in bed for hours. That wasn't what happened the following morning. Brack paced across the carpet of my living room with his cell to his ear listening to one of his men on the other end. He cast a glance or two my way. I could tell before the call ended that he would try his non-communication shit with me again.I was right."What's the news?" I asked the second he lowered the phone.He came over and sat beside me. "Nothing to worry about."I gave him my I'm-about-to-slam-you-with-a-tennis-racquet look. "Bullshit." I was beginning to notice his tells. The fingers traveling through his hair was a sign that he didn't want to enlighten me. I waited.He breathed out a slow and steady breath of air. "Mack didn't see his attacker, but he heard him before he lost consciousness."My heartbeat accelerated. "Okay. Spill it.""Mack told Herman that most of