Rookie (Playing The Field Book 2)

by Rebecca Barber

  “How’d training go?” Elise asked.

  Trying not to squirm, I stuffed my mouth full of steak and focused on chewing rather than answering. The last thing I wanted to do was disappoint her, and if she found out how bad today had been, there’s no way she couldn’t be disappointed. I was. I was humiliated and dreading having to go back tomorrow. What made it even harder though was living with the coach. Luca hadn’t said a word about it once we’d left the club, which I was thankful for, but at the same time it made it so much harder.

  Silence had fallen across the table, and everyone’s eyes were on me, waiting for an answer. With a half-arsed shrug, I swallowed my mouthful before answering. “Tomorrow’s another day.” I shrugged, hoping my vague answer would satisfy. Tomorrow was another day, and all I could hope was it’d be better. It had to be.

  Today I’d made myself look like a complete tool. I’d gone out too hard in the time trial and faded fast leaving me bringing up the rear along with the old guys. When we were doing match simulation, I’d gotten too cocky and slid in for a tackle almost taking out one of my teammates. Then in the gym, I was trying to show off, I can admit it now, and had doubled my usual weight, desperate to impress and almost busted my shoulder. No one had said anything. No one had made fun of me. Instead, they left me with my thoughts, thoughts which kicked my arse harder than they ever could.

  “I’m sure it wasn’t that bad,” Jax offered, trying to be helpful.

  I risked a glance at Luca. He was stuffing forkfuls of lettuce into his mouth saying nothing, refusing to meet my eye. As awkward as I was feeling, Luca must’ve been feeling it too, ’cause I’d never seen someone focused so intently on a salad.

  “I’m sure tomorrow will be better. It takes time to settle into a new team,” Jax suggested.

  “How would you know?” Elise challenged.

  “What?”

  “How would you know what it’s like being on a team? The only team you’ve ever been on is Team Edward from when you were a Twihard,” Elise called him out.

  “Hey!” Jax protested with a pout.

  These two together were freaking hilarious. Jax was awesome when he wasn’t hitting on me. They reminded me of being home. Growing up, Bryce and I had given each other so much shit, more than once Mum had threatened to bang our heads together. Even though Jax and Elise weren’t related, they might as well be.

  “Anyway, Seth, you’ll be right. I’m behind you.”

  “You wish you were behind him,” Luca tossed out, causing Elise to snort and I had no words.

  “Can you blame me? Seriously, Seth. Are those pants from out of space? Because your arse is out of this world.”

  I didn’t even answer, I just shook my head and started clearing the table. “Who wants ice cream?” I asked, changing the conversation.

  I set the alarm for an hour earlier than normal and was still awake before it went off. I’d slept like shit, and lying in bed tangled in the sheets, I was just getting more and more worked up. I thought about heading back to the beach for another attempt on the board, but I had more pressing matters.

  As quietly as I could, I got up, made my bed, dressed, and snuck out of the house in the dark. Stuffing my earbuds in my ears, I pumped up the music and started towards the beach. I’d thought I was fit and in shape, but yesterday I’d been made to look like a couch potato.

  The car park was still mostly deserted as I bounced down the steps and onto the soft sand. Ignoring the water, I started running across the beach blocking everything out, concentrating on my breathing. When I reached the rocks at the opposite end, I just turned and headed back the way I came.

  By the time I made it back to where I had started, the sun was cracking over the horizon, and more and more people had trudged across the sand before wading out into the water, boards tucked under their arms. Stretching my arms up over my head, I rolled my shoulders as I headed towards the dunes. This was going to hurt like hell, but I remember what Bryce had said about dune sprints. As much as they sucked, as much as they hurt, as much as your lungs burned, in the end the pain paid off.

  I went to push off and my foot sunk into the soft sand filing my shoe. “Shit!”

  “If you’re going to take on the dunes, there’s no point worrying about the sand.”

  Turning, I saw a sight that had my mouth suddenly drier than the sand in my shoes. Claire was standing there looking entirely too fucking sexy for this hour of the morning. Yesterday she’d looked hot as fuck in her wet clothes, but this morning she was something else. With very short, almost indecent black running shorts showing off her long, tanned legs and a loose grey tank top with a bright purple bra underneath. Her long blonde hair, the hair I’d dreamt about having wrapped around my fist, was pulled back in a ponytail, and her cheeks were flushed pink.

  “Morning, Claire,” I greeted, liking the way her name rolled off my tongue.

  “Seth. Not surfing this morning?”

  “Not today.”

  “Shame.”

  “Shame?” I repeated, wondering where she was going with this.

  “Yeah. I was kinda hoping to see the lime green shorts again,” she teased before bending over and tightening the laces on her runners, dragging a groan from the back of my throat. That arse was going to get me in so much trouble.

  “Sorry to disappoint,” I replied as she straightened and adjusted the straps on her bra. Who knew watching a chick fix her clothing could be such a damn turn on?

  “Well, enough chit chat. We going to run these dunes or are you going to stand there checking me out all morning?” Claire asked, mischief in her eyes.

  Two could play at that game. “Is that an option?” Spending the morning ogling Claire sounded like a workout. The very best kind.

  “Let’s go, Romeo.”

  “Ladies first.”

  At my invitation, Claire turned and with arms pumping, started up the dune, and I realised the mistake I’d made. Watching her butt bounce with every step-in front of me meant not only was I about to take on the dunes with sand in my shoes, but I was also sporting a lead pipe in my pants. Adjusting myself, I shook my head and followed her up.

  Half an hour later I was lying on the sand, staring up at the sky trying not to die. I could barely breathe. I was dripping with sweat and pretending my calves weren’t on fire. When Claire dropped down beside me, I tried to make myself look less pathetic. A thin sheen of sweat covered her skin, but she still looked like she’d just been out for an early morning jog.

  “Have fun?” she asked, pulling the tie from her hair and letting it fall around her face before scooping it back up and piling it up on her head in a messy knot.

  “That’s brutal,” I told her. “Why don’t you look like you want to die?”

  “Oh, come on, Mister Soccer Star. It’s not that bad.”

  5

  Claire

  Shit!

  I hadn’t meant to say that. It’d just slipped out.

  “Soccer star, hey?”

  “Ah…yeah.”

  “You hadn’t planned on that little snippet slipping out, had you?”

  The smug smirk on his face gave away the truth. He was enjoying my slip up. “Fine. No.”

  “How’d you figure out who I was?” Seth asked not looking pissed.

  “Honestly?”

  “Always.”

  “After I ran into you yesterday morning…”

  “You mean after you saved me yesterday.”

  “Well, yeah. After that, I was having breakfast in the coffee shop and saw the new rookie’s face on the back page. Funny thing was, I’d seen that face before.”

  I‘d assumed he would’ve puffed up his chest and started showboating that he’d been recognised, but if anything, he looked more than a bit embarrassed. At least that made two of us. Needing to get out of here, I challenged him to a race to the end of the beach. Seth was exactly the competitor I had him pegged as. Forgetting the fact he was still puffing and panting, he bounced to his
feet and asked what he got when he won.

  “What do you want?” I asked, slightly nervous.

  “Dinner,” Seth replied quickly, sounding sure of himself.

  “Dinner?” I questioned, hating how dumb I sounded.

  “Yep. When I win, I’m taking you out for dinner,” he told me, lifting the bottom of his shirt to wipe the sweat from his forehead, giving me a sneak peek of those abs I saw every time I closed my eyes.

  “And when I win?” I managed to get out through my very scratchy throat.

  “Anything.”

  “Anything?”

  “Yep.”

  Seth didn’t know me well enough to be giving me free rein. Something he definitely shouldn’t be doing. He was playing with fire, and as much as I wanted to singe his fingers, I’d leave that until next time. If there was a next time. Geez, I hoped there’d be a next time.

  “A date. My choice. I plan it, and you do whatever I want,” I threw out there, expecting him to shoot me down.

  “Done. Now, are we running or am I heading home? I’ve gotta get to training.”

  “You’re training after this?”

  “Yeah. This was just a warm-up.”

  Guy was crazy. He’d just spent half an hour trudging up and down the sand dunes, trying to hold his footing in the soft sand and this was like a pre-training warm-up. Usually, if I felt restless, I’d run up the dunes once, maybe twice just to feel the burn, but I’d never spend any amount of time doing it. I didn’t have the energy or the stamina. Today though, I felt like I had to keep going. I refused to look like a wuss, especially after I’d given him so much shit so I kept pushing, even if my thigh muscles felt like they were going to explode.

  Needing to keep moving, I challenged, “Ready. Set. Go,” before taking off across the sand as fast as my tired muscles would carry me.

  Somehow, I’d never know how I reached the end of the beach first and collapsed onto the sand, rolling onto my back breathing heavily. Seth flopped down beside me, panting just as heavy.

  “I. Can’t. Believe. You. Beat. Me,” Seth complained between breaths.

  “Well. I. Did,” I replied breathlessly, hating the way the stitch in my side had my eyes watering.

  My phone vibrated against my boob, and I dug into my bra and pulled it out. Seeing Vickie’s name flash on the screen, I ignored her call and stumbled to my feet. Just seeing her name was a reality check I wasn’t ready for, it was the last thing I wanted to be reminded of.

  “I have to go,” I said reluctantly. “This was…fun.”

  “Fun? Same time tomorrow?”

  “Sounds good. And about my prize.” Seth groaned. “I’ve got some stuff on tonight, but how about tomorrow?”

  “Give me your phone,” Seth said, sticking out his hand waiting for me to hand it over. Nervously, I dropped it into his outstretched palm and watched as he pressed a bunch of buttons before handing it back. “Now you have my number. See you tomorrow morning, Claire.” He smirked before turning and jogging back down the beach leaving me standing there watching him go.

  Watching the sun sparkle off the water, a seagull squawked as the early morning breeze kicked making me shiver. Wrapping my arms around me, I took one last look at the guy who made my blood run hot and checked my phone. Turns out I had a new contact in there – Sexy Surfer Boy. And I couldn’t wait to see him tomorrow. But for now, I had to go home and ice everything otherwise I wouldn’t be moving at all.

  I made it home and dragged myself up the stairs. It was incredible how quickly your muscles seized after you’d tortured them.

  “What’d you do to yourself, Claire Bear?” Warner asked as I flopped into the lounge with a huge, dramatic sigh.

  “Dune running,” I told him with a groan.

  “Ew! Why? You know that shit’s hard.”

  Warner was one of the four guys I lived with. Being three years younger than Isaac, when I’d decided to leave the farm in the middle of bumfuck nowhere and head for the city, the only way we could convince our parents to go along with my plan was if I moved in with Isaac. Thankfully, he’d agreed and let me move in, not before laying down some very strict ground rules. Rules like what happens in Sydney, stays in Sydney. Not that I could blame him. I could just picture Mum having kittens if she found out how many ‘friends’, he bought home for sleepovers.

  But moving in with Isaac meant moving in with his other roommates too. They were cool most of the time, but going from having one overprotective big brother to four overnight took some getting used to. There was Jason, a mechanic who seemed to be permanently covered in a layer of grease but was a real marshmallow at heart. Alfred, who was definitely not Batman’s butler and was the messiest of us all, but he was a tech wiz so as long as he fixed any of our problems and kept the Wi-Fi running, he was the favourite. Then there was Warner. Warner would’ve been hot if he wasn’t in such a tight bromance with my brother. Both were lifeguards, and for people who spent their working hours saving people’s lives, they were incredibly reckless with their own. Warner was the one who encouraged and dared Isaac to do stupid shit like last weekend’s sky diving adventure.

  “Oh wait, let me guess…there was this guy,” Warner teased, and I grabbed a cushion and covered my face. The last thing I needed to do was confirm his suspicions.

  I’d been living here almost six months now, and the only one time I’d ever mentioned a guy or a date, the four of them had turned into the damn Avengers. There was no way they were letting a guy get close enough to date me let alone to climb in my bed. Bullshit double standards but it wasn’t a fight I was going to win, so I’d let it slide. Besides, until someone came along who was worth the argument, I’d save my breath.

  “I’m going for a shower.” I avoided rolling off the lounge.

  “Hey, Claire?”

  “What?”

  “Shouldn’t you be racing around like someone set your arse on fire to get to work? You said that bitch wasn’t exactly understanding if you were late.”

  “Yeah, well that bitch fired me yesterday so she can eat a bag of dicks.”

  “Oh, shit, Claire. I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

  Warner looked like I’d kicked his puppy. We might not have known each other long, but when I’d moved in, he’d actually given up his bedroom for me and moved to the other end of the house turning the family room into a bedroom. He didn’t have to, and I never would’ve asked, but he did it without a fuss and wouldn’t even listen if I tried to say thanks.

  “Hey, don’t worry about it. Shit happens. Not much I can do about it really.”

  “What are you going to do?” he asked warily, setting his cereal bowl down on the coffee table.

  “Honestly? Not a fucking clue.”

  “You’ll find something.”

  “You sound really sure of that,” I told him, wishing I had his confidence.

  “I am. But, Claire?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Go shower. You stink.” And it was that easy. Sometimes I wished I was a guy. They could go from sweet and serious to playful in the blink of an eye, where I’d be weighing up and rehashing every word for the next four hours.

  After doing everything that I could to avoid it, including cleaning out the fridge which I’m pretty sure had never actually been done before, I sat down at the kitchen bench and fired up my laptop. Not only did I have job hunting to do but I also had a date to plan. If it was a date. Was it a date? Fuck! I had no idea. I guess it was. I mean, I’d said it was a date so I guess that included activates and food. Shit! What had I gotten myself into? I was in way over my head. Not only had I never been on an actual date, but now I was unemployed and had no idea where the next injection into my bank account would come from, or when. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, Seth wasn’t even some normal guy I’d met down at the pub. He was some soccer prodigy on a multi-million-dollar contract. I couldn’t very well serve him a vegemite sandwich and call it gourmet.

  Grabbing my phone, I picked it up
and text the only person I knew could talk me down from this ledge, my girlfriend, Carly. She was a couple of years older than me and married to the town vet, but she was the one who’d encouraged me to chase my dreams and do what I want. We’d met one night when my appaloosa mare, Alice, had gotten caught in a barbed-wire fence and torn her leg to shreds. Mum and Dad were away at some show, and I was home by myself. I’d rung the clinic in a panic having no clue what to do. All I knew was there was a lot of blood and I couldn’t get her free from the wire. When Gage had arrived, trusty black vet bag in hand, Carly had bounced out of the front seat and come straight for me, wrapping me in the hug I didn’t even know I needed. While Gage saved my horse, Carly saved me from worrying myself into an early grave. From that moment on, she’d become my confidant.

  Carly was everything I wanted to be. She’d grown up in the city and had travelled the world taking some of the most stunning wedding photos you could imagine before finding her happily ever after in the same small town I was desperate to escape. Where she found it comforting, I found it stifling. I guess perspective, time, and experience really were everything.

  Claire: SOS!!!

  Claire: I have a date

  Claire: I think

  Claire: And I’m planning it

  Claire: WTF do people do on a date

  Claire: Help!!!

  I was one of those people who sent seven messages when one would do. It drove Carly nuts, but thankfully she ignored my quirks and just went along with it.

  When she didn’t reply straight away, I knew I’d go insane sitting there staring at my phone waiting for her to talk me off the cliff, so I focused on the other problem at hand. A job. I needed one, and I needed one quick smart. It wasn’t just the money I wanted, it was something to do. I was the world’s worst bored person and I would bet money on it, well I would if I had any, that the boys wouldn’t kick me out cause I couldn’t pay my share of the rent or food, no they’d kick me out because I’d be as annoying as a pimple on your butt.