Playing to Win

by Jaci Burton

Page 14

  Author: Jaci Burton

  Elizabeth elbowed him in the ribs. “And here I thought he’d be charming for the rest of the night. ”

  “You know me better than that. ” Gavin wandered off to talk to his teammates and Liz took a seat in one of the vacant chairs next to Savannah.

  “I love designer shoes and all, but my feet are killing me. All those pictures. ”

  Savannah laughed. “I’m sure the photographs will be awe-worthy. I love the purple dresses on the bridesmaids. ”

  “Totally Tara’s idea. ” Liz looked over her shoulder at Tara, who was talking to someone across the room. “Isn’t she adorable? And that baby bump. I’m not even a baby person and it makes my biological clock do a fast tick-tock. ”

  “Do you and Gavin want to start a family?”

  Elizabeth nodded. “We will be eventually. The poor kid. Me for a mother. ”

  Savannah grasped Liz’s hand. “You’ll make an amazing mother. ”

  “I hope so. Now that Tara’s pregnant, and Jenna’s planning her wedding to Tyler—it’s like the whole Riley crew is fast-forwarding into family mode. I can’t believe I’m thinking about making babies already. If it was up to Gavin I would have been pregnant already, but we decided to wait until after the wedding so his parents wouldn’t kill us. ”

  Savannah laughed. “Sometimes doing it the old-fashioned way is fun. ”

  Liz shrugged. “I guess so. But I’m throwing my birth control pills away after this month. I couldn’t care less if I’m pregnant on my honeymoon. ”

  Liz was positively glowing. “You sound so happy. And so relaxed. ”

  “I know. If you would have told me a year ago I’d be married and talking about making babies, I would have laughed in your face. I guess the laugh is on me now. ”

  “Love changes you, I guess. At least that’s what I’ve heard. ”

  “Oh, you just wait, Savannah. When you meet the right guy, it’s like an explosion. It knocks you back on your heels. ”

  “What are you girls gossiping about?”

  Savannah looked up to find Tara leaning over. She was so beautiful, and pregnancy only added to the glow on her face.

  “Men. Marriage. Babies,” Liz added, rubbing the slight bulge on Tara’s lower stomach.

  “Oh, god. I don’t look pregnant. I look like I ate too much pasta. ”

  Savannah let out a laugh. “You totally look pregnant. You’re glowing all over with it. ”

  Tara cupped her cheeks. “Do I? I feel all glowy. It’s wonderful. After Nathan—” She shifted her gaze to Savannah. “Nathan’s my son. ” She pointed him out in a group of teens across the room.

  “He’s so handsome,” Savannah said.

  Tara grinned. “Thank you. He’s seventeen and mortified that his mother is—how did he put it?—oh, yes. ‘Knocked up when you’re so old, Mom. ’ ” She laughed.

  “Anyway, after having Nathan so long ago, it’s like starting all over again. ” Tara looked at both of them, then shrugged. “Hell, it is starting all over again. What was I thinking?”

  “That you love Mick and want to have his babies?” Elizabeth asked.

  She sighed. “Yes. That’s what I was thinking. And I’m so happy to be doing it all again. ”

  Savannah pulled out a chair. “Sit. Tell me all about babies and doing this twice. ”

  “Thank you. I like this spot in the corner. I can hide from my husband and my son. ”

  “I doubt for long. I imagine Mick is very protective of you. ”

  Tara grimaced. “It’s horrible. He watches what I eat, monitors where I go, what I lift. He treats me like I’m fragile and I’m going to break. I’m glad football season’s starting and I can get him out of my hair. Though Nathan is just as bad keeping his eagle eye on me. You’d think this was the first time in history that a woman had been pregnant. I’m hardly an egg. I’m very healthy, the doctor says everything’s fine and I can go about my business like normal as long as I don’t plan on doing any bungee jumping, which wasn’t on my upcoming agenda anyway. ”

  Liz laughed. “Damn. And I was so going to get you that for your birthday. ”

  “Har-har. Soon I’ll be as big as a house. I got huge right away with Nathan, and his father—though tall—wasn’t nearly the size of Mick. I’m doomed. ”

  “I can’t believe you’re all hiding out here. ” Jenna came over and pulled an empty chair over. “No one told me we were having a girl meeting. ”

  “It’s impromptu,” Liz said. “I’m resting my feet. ”

  “I told you those were going to hurt,” Jenna said, pointing to Liz’s shoes. “But no. You insisted they were gorgeous. ”

  Liz lifted her dress. “They’re not just gorgeous—they’re fucking gorgeous and I’ll deal with sore feet. But right now I’m taking a few sit-down minutes with the girls. ”

  “They are beautiful shoes,” Savannah said, admiring the silvery stilettos adorned with Swarovski crystals. “Well worth a few blisters. ”

  Liz lifted her chin and glared at Jenna. “See?”

  Jenna rolled her eyes. “I’d rather be barefoot. ”

  “You would. You’ll probably get married at some park, or in a meadow, or something disgustingly bohemian,” Liz said with grimace.

  “Likely. I’ll be sure to add ‘barefoot’ to my wedding list, knowing how much you’ll love that. ”

  “Bitch. ”

  Savannah laughed. This must be what it was like to have sisters and a close-knit family. She ached for the camaraderie, the sharing of secrets, and the familial bond she’d never had. It must be a pure thrill for Tara, Liz, and Jenna to have this.

  “Come on, wife. Time to dance. ” Gavin came over and dragged Liz out of the chair.

  She rolled her eyes. “Look how he thinks he owns me now. ” She might have voiced a complaint, but the warmth and love in her eyes was obvious. She grinned and slid into his arms, gliding out onto the dance floor as a slow song played and the photographer snapped pictures.

  “God, they’re so perfect for each other,” Jenna said. “I’m all teary-eyed. ”

  “Your day is coming. ”

  A tall, gorgeous dark-haired man kissed the back of Jenna’s neck. She turned around and grinned. “Not soon enough. ”

  Jenna introduced Savannah to her fiancé, Tyler, who Jenna said played for the St. Louis Ice hockey team.

  “Sports must be in the Riley family blood,” Savannah said. “You even marry into it. ”

  Jenna laughed. “Believe me. I tried my best to avoid it. ”

  “True, but I wore her down with my charm,” Tyler said. He pulled Jenna from her chair. “Let’s dance. ”

  Mick found his way over and grabbed Tara. “Feel like showing the rest of them how it’s done?”

  “What? You’re going to allow me to dance? Are you sure it isn’t against your mountainous list of things I’m not supposed to do?”

  “Hey, I’m only taking care of your precious cargo. ”

  “The precious cargo is fine. And I’d love to dance with you, as long as you don’t try to carry me around the dance floor. ” She walked away with her arm in Mick’s, winking at Savannah.

  Savannah sighed as the remnants of love and family surrounded her.

  Speaking of family…She searched the darkened ballroom. She spotted Cole, standing next to a couple who must be his parents.

  He’d been avoiding her and she knew why. She stood and headed toward him. His back was to her as he stood with his mother and father and a stunning brunette who looked to be a few years younger than him.

  “Hello, Cole. ”

  He turned and looked decidedly unhappy.

  His parents smiled at her, then looked expectantly at Cole.

  “This is Savannah Brooks. She works for the team, and with me. Savannah, these are my parents, Jack and Cara Riley, and my sister, Alicia. ”

  Savannah shook
their hands. “It’s very nice to meet all of you. ”

  “Nice to meet you, too, Savannah,” Cara said. “What exactly do you do for the Traders?”

  “Public relations. ”

  Cole rolled his eyes at her.

  “Oh. That’s nice. So you’ll be working on some things with Cole. ”

  “Yes, I will. Since he’s new to the team, it’s my job to work closely with him, get him acclimated to the team, associate his image with the Traders. ”

  “Good deal,” Jack said. “He’s a great player, and we’re happy as hell to have him playing for the home team now. ”

  “I’m sure you are. The team is very happy to have him. ”

  His mother put her arm around Cole’s waist. “We’ve missed him since he started playing football. He travels so much and is rarely home except in the off-season. It’ll be nice to have him around for family dinners. You should come, too, Savannah. ”

  “No. ”

  Everyone looked at Cole.

  “Cole, that was impolite. ”

  “Sorry. But you know how I feel about work and home life mixing. ”

  She smacked her son on the arm. “And you know how I feel about you being rude and obnoxious. ” She turned to Savannah. “Since the season hasn’t started yet, do come. Sunday dinner is at five o’clock. ”

  Cole would hate that. What a perfect opportunity to get to know him better through his family. “Thank you for the invitation. I’d love to. ”

  She could feel Cole’s gaze on her, but decided to ignore him. Instead, she turned to his sister. “Alicia, what do you do?”

  “I’m in sports medicine. I’m working with the St. Louis Rivers baseball team. It’s a relatively new position for me, so I’m very excited. ”

  “Oh, what an excellent field. ”

  “We’re so proud,” Cara said, obviously beaming with pride.

  “It’s a great career,” Alicia said with a grin. “Fortunately, my family has always been filled with jocks for me to experiment on. ”

  Savannah laughed. “I’m sure that’s true. And the Rivers. What an amazing team. Congratulations. ”

  “Thank you. I’m thrilled to work with them. They have an excellent team of doctors and therapists. ”

  “And athletes,” Savannah added. “They’re lucky to have you. I’d love to know more about what you’re going to be doing for them. Sports medicine is such an interesting field. ”

  “Let’s dance. ” Cole grasped her arm.

  She tore her gaze away from Alicia. “What?”

  “Dance. Music. Dance floor. ”

  “Oh. Sure. ” She looked at his parents and sister. “Excuse me. It was lovely meeting all of you. ”

  She knew what he was doing. She could have said no to the dance, but that would have been impolite, and he was doing a fine job of that, so she didn’t want to add to it.

  He swept her against him—tight. “What are you doing here?”

  “I was invited. ”

  “You didn’t mention that the other day. ”

  She shrugged. “You just assumed I wasn’t going to be here. ”

  “And so you finagled an invitation from Elizabeth. ”

  She sighed. “I’ve known Elizabeth for five years. She and I have become friends. She invited me to her wedding. Would you like me to dance you over to her so she can confirm that?”

  “No. ”

  His body was tense as they swayed to the music.

  “What was that all about with my parents and sister?”

  She lifted her gaze to his. “I introduced myself to your family. ”