by Anna B. Doe
“What’s that?” I ask, confused about what all the fuss is about. It’s just a CD. I’m sure he can live without it for a day, right?
Hayden sits next to me and presses his lips against my forehead. A little shiver running through my body at the touch. “Footage of our next opponent. Coach likes to come in early to review the tapes so he can prepare for the practice. See what plays we need to work on, make strategy and stuff.”
Ravens are one game away from the National Championship and all the guys are working extra hard lately. These days I barely see them. If they aren’t on the field running drills and working on the plays, they are either in the gym or reviewing the tapes to get ready for the game. Most of the nights I’d study or sketch while Hayden was still glued to the screen reviewing different tapes.
“I guess I’ll just run by his house and give it back?”
“The dinner won’t be for another half an hour so you should be good.”
He grabs the keys from the little table next to the door. “I’m out, you don’t dare start the show before I get back.” I laugh looking at him. “And before you ask,” Nix points his fingers at his eyes and then at us. “I see everything, I know everything.”
With that, he’s gone.
Hayden’s hands fall over the back of the couch, his fingers tracing the patch of skin where the sweater slipped off a little.
Nibbling at my lower lip, I tilt my head back to look at him. His cheeks are scruffy, giving him a rugged look, but he said it’s a tradition not to shave if the teams enter the playoffs. Not that I’m complaining. The beard has other uses I’m fond of.
“How are we going to pass the time?” Hayden wiggles his brows playfully.
Cupping his cheeks, I bring his head to mine. “I might have an idea or two,” I whisper, pulling him down for a kiss.
NIXON
Killing the engine, I grab the CD from the passenger seat before heading to the door. I’ve been to Coach’s place once, last year for the end of the season party. Even though it’s not our usual hangout place, he always makes a point to let us know his door is open to players whenever we need it.
Taking two steps at a time, I climb to the front door of his massive two-story colonial house. Why a single dude like him needs so much space I’ll never understand, but whatever.
I’m about to press the doorbell when I hear hurried footsteps on the other side. Soon after, the door swings open and I come face to face with…
“Yasmin?” I ask, utterly confused.
Those caramel eyes widen when she sees me, mouth hanging open as the color drains from her face.
“What are you doing here?”
The end
Ready for more of Blairwood University? Stay tuned because Nixon and Yasmin’s story is coming this winter! Make sure to add it to your TBR.
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Playlist
Faouzia - You Don’t Even Know Me
Demi Lovato - You Don’t Do It For Me Anymore
Camila Cabello - Something’s Gotta Give
Anna-Marie & James Arthur - Rewrite The Stars
Halsey - Sorry
Alex & Sierra - Little Do You Know
Billie Eilish, Khalid - Lovely
Jorja Smith - Don’t Watch Me Cry
Fleurie - Hurricane
Fleurie - Breathe
Sam Smith - Fire On Fire
Fireflight - Stay Close
Gnash ft. Olivia O’Brien - i hate u, i love u
Rag’n’Bone Man - Human
Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper - Shallow
Britney Spears - Toxic
Ruelle - Where Do We Go From Here
Jimmie Allen & Noah Cyrus - This Is Us
Did you enjoy Kiss To Conquer?
Turn the page and take a peek into Lost & Found, my NA sports romance about an American football player and Croatian au pair!
Chapter 1
ANABEL
The sound of the doorbell echoes through the house.
A quick glance through the window tells me there is a red Mercedes parked out front, but that doesn’t help me much because I don’t know anyone around here who drives a red Mercedes.
Better yet, I don’t know anyone around here, period.
Taking two steps at a time, I hurry down to open the door before whoever is outside becomes impatient. “Hello. How can I help you?” I ask, trying to catch my breath while looking curiously at the young woman standing in front of me.
She is probably around my age, maybe a few years older, or maybe that’s just what people would assume because she is really tall, like, huge, for a female at least, and that’s without her high heels, which make her tower over me. Apart from her height, there is her posture. Just by the way she stands, you can see that she is confident in who she is and doesn’t care what other people think or say about her.
She looks like a movie star or something, with big, glamorous, black sunglasses covering most of her face. Her long, natural-looking, ombré hair is perfectly curled and falls to the middle of her back. If she removes her sunglasses, I’m sure I will find nothing less than perfect make-up on her face.
As if hearing me, she lifts her glasses, rests them on top of her head, and smiles widely at me, showing off her brilliant, toothpaste-commercial-worthy teeth. Her almond-shaped amber eyes look at me with interest.
“You must be Lisa’s new nanny!” she says cheerfully. “I’m Sienna, Lisa’s younger sister.”
“Au pair,” I correct her, extending my hand for a handshake, but she surprises me when she leans in, her exotic perfume surrounding me as she hugs me tightly. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Anabel.”
“I know, I know…” She sashays past me, pulling her suitcase behind her. “Lisa told me they wanted help with the girls and that they found you, but I guess I’m little bit surprised. You’re…”
Sienna waves her hand in the air like she doesn’t know which word she should use to describe me without hurting my feelings.
“Young? Small? Inexperienced?” I offer, chuckling. I am well aware that I don’t leave a big first impression on people, not like Sienna does.
She joins in, chuckling too, and we both settle on the couch in the living room.
It’s big room, with a lot of natural light coming from the floor-to-ceiling windows. The walls are painted in a coffee color, the same as the large, comfy couches and remaining furniture, and there are also small red and beige details around the room.
“Petite,” she supplements. Her full, pink lips are pursed, and she taps her chin with her perfectly manicured red finger while she thinks it through. “And pretty, definitely pretty.”
“Oh, come on!” I say in a teasing tone. “I’ve heard all about Auntie Enna, who is a famous supermodel.”
Sienna rolls her eyes at me, but that doesn’t hide the cheesy grin on her face. “I bet you did. Ivy thinks it’s a dream-come-true kind of job.”
“She is proud of you.”
“That she is. But, like we were saying, you are a pretty gal. Beautiful in an unordinary, fairy-like way. I think the camera would love you.”
This time, I don’t just chuckle; I erupt in laughter. “I don’t think so.”
Me? A model? Not in this lifetime, or any other probably.
“Don’t be such a skeptic. You never know; maybe you’d like it!” Her high, melodic laughter joins mine, and her eyes shine with mischief, making her look less poster-girl and more grounded, normal. “Anyway, how do you like it here? How is this au pair, nanny-whatever thing working for you so far?”
“Good,” I answer instantly, without thinking too much about her question. “I�
��ve always known I would like it here in the States, and so far, I’m not disappointed. I like your family. The girls have been amazing. Ivy can be a handful sometimes and, most of the time, she talks your ear off, but she has her sweet moments like Bella.”
Sienna’s face softens at the mention of her nieces. If I were to believe the stories I’ve heard from girls, they are really close, and both worship their aunt. She is their hero and princess in one.
“Yeah, Ivy can be difficult, but she is a good girl most of the time,” she says with a wide grin and continues animatedly without waiting for me to say something. “How is it that you decided to come here, of all places, to be a nanny? There aren’t a lot of jobs for nannies in… where are you from again?”
I sigh.
Nanny or au pair, there wasn’t really a big difference between those two, anyway. “I’m from Croatia, a small country in middle Europe,” I explain, because, let’s face it, most people don’t know where Croatia is. “And no, there isn’t really a big market for nannies there. Most people send their kids to kindergarten, or someone is home with them, usually a mother or grandparents. As for the idea… my best friend’s friend did something similar, but only for the summer. Val knows how much I like traveling, so she suggested I try it.”
I still remember the day clearly.
It was the day I finished my final exam, and I was feeling really down, the pressure of my unknown future hanging over me. When she called and told me about her friend who was an au pair in Germany for the summer and explained what an au pair was because I’d never heard of it before, I actually started to feel hopeful.
Like maybe I could do it. Like maybe it would make me happy. But most importantly, it would give me a way out. It would give me a chance to escape Croatia. Maybe not forever, probably not forever, but some time spent traveling is better than nothing.
“That sounds exciting if you like working with children, of course.”
“It’s a good and cheap way to travel. You meet new people, get new experiences and earn some money along the way. What else can a student ask for?”
Looking at her, I see something pass over her face, but I can’t quite define it. I don’t know her that well, and it disappears quickly, masked behind a carefree smile.
“I guess you’re right. How is the part about new people and new experiences working out?”
For a moment, I wonder if I’m boring her. With the life she is leading as a model, I’m sure she has more interesting stories and experiences of her own. But her interest seems sincere enough, so I continue. “Okay. I’m not here that long, maybe six… eight weeks.”
God, has it already been two months? I guess the saying it true: time flies when you’re having fun.
“I’ve been sightseeing around here, met a few girls who work as au pairs in cities close by. I still haven’t gotten a chance to visit the Big Apple, but…”
“That shouldn’t be a problem.” Sienna winks at me. “I have an apartment there, so you can come with me anytime you want.”
“That’s nice, if I won’t bother you…” I drag out.
It is always more fun when you have somebody you know to show you around, but I don’t want to rush into anything. I don’t really know her. Hell, we met an hour ago!
“Don’t be silly, Bel!” She gives me encouraging smile. “Can I call you Bel? Or do you prefer Ana?”
“Bel is okay.”
“Well, Bel.” We both giggle. “I think we’ll be good friends. And do you know what good friends do?” I cock my eyebrow at her, waiting for her to continue. “They party! And, since you didn’t mention going out at all, I’ll take it upon myself to show you how we party around here.”
“I don’t…” I try to protest, but she doesn’t listen to me.
I’ve never been a big party girl. Sure, I went clubbing with my friends back home, but I think Sienna has a different kind of partying in mind.
“I don’t want to hear it,” she stops me. “It’s Friday. Today, we are young, and we are pretty. Also, I know from a one exceptionally reliable source that you don’t work weekends. So, you have to pretty up tonight, and we’ll have fun.”
There is nothing more I can say to that, so I keep my mouth shut and a sheepish grin plastered across my face.
“Now, when are the girls getting out of school?”
“Tell me you are not going out in that,” Sienna says from my doorway.
“What’s wrong with this?” I give myself a once-over in the full-length mirror attached to the inside of my closet.
For tonight, I picked out my tight black jeans and an almost see-through shirt. I look casual, yet sexy. Of course, I’m wearing my six-inch stiletto heels, a bunch of metal bracelets around my wrist and my simple, silver band rings.
They are always on my fingers. From the moment I bought them, I have never taken them off.
I first saw them when I was fourteen, maybe fifteen. I was walking on the streets with friends when I saw this small, cute jewelry shop. Jewelry has always been my thing, so I had to go inside and check it out. In the end, I came out with three new rings on my fingers. After that, each time I had some extra cash, I went and bought new ones. They all looked the same from the outside, but each one had one word engraved on the inside. A word that meant something to me, a word that made them special. Some people put tattoos on their bodies. I put rings. I’m not a big fan of needles, and I don’t want my body to be covered in words.
Sienna doesn’t wait for me to invite her inside. She just enters the room and storms through, on her equally, if not higher, heels to the closet, disappearing behind the open door. She looks possessed, so I decide it’s better to just move out of her way.
My bedroom, which is nice and quite big, looks into the backyard. The walls are painted in a color between champagne and pale pink. In the middle of the room sits a queen-size bed with lots of fluffy pillows on it. To the right is a door that leads to the hallway and my en-suite bathroom, while on the left in the corner is an L-shaped desk. Next to the desk is a big closet that takes up almost half the wall.
Sienna is wearing a very short purple dress that shows every perfect curve of her body with heels that make her legs look like they go on for miles. I know that no matter what I wear, next to her, I’ll look like an ugly duckling. It’s not that I care—what would be the point in competing with a model? But I do like dressing up. While I don’t give much thought to my everyday appearance, I like to play with my make-up and different hairstyles once in a blue moon.
She turns around, holding one of two dresses that I packed for this trip. I don’t usually wear a lot of dresses, so I didn’t see much point in bringing them. I’m more of a jeans and T-shirt kind of girl.
The dress she is holding out for me is simple and black that I know will hug my every curve, and believe me, I may be small, but I have my fair share of curves, maybe even too many of them. The bottom comes a little above my knees, and lacy sleeves cover three-quarters of my arms.
“This will have to do, but next time we’ll have to buy something new. The other one is too casual for a nightclub. I really like the make-up, though,” she says, carefully observing my face. “Maybe I should let you put my make-up on next time. I’m usually too lazy to do it.”
I don’t take it to heart.
My best friend, Valentina, is just the same. Always bossy when it comes to my clothes, but I let her, because, after all, she is the one who knows where we are going and the dress code of the place.
I take the dress and leave for the bathroom.
“You can change here. It’s not like you have anything to hide!”
“Yeah right,” I murmur and shut the door to the bathroom, hiding my giggle.
“Really,” she yells so that I can hear her. “I saw your underwear when I was in your closet, anyway. We won’t have to upgrade that part!”
Want more? One-click Lost & Found!
Acknowledgments
I don’t remember when the last
time was a story gave me so much anxiety as this one, not even finishing my debut novel was as scary as finishing Kiss To Conquer. I’m not even sure why because I clearly remember thinking about it for over two years. Granted, at that time it was supposed to be a standalone, and now it’s become this whole new world in which I know I—and hopefully you—will live in for quite a while.
But for whatever reason, this is one of those books that was all over the place since the very beginning. Chapters were written out of order, there was a lot of editing, rewriting, and, yes, deleting. I usually don’t do that, but I guess there is a first time for everything.
It wasn’t an easy path getting to this point, but all in all, I can say I’m proud of myself for getting here and I’m really excited for you to read Kiss To Conquer and for all the stories that will come in the future.
I want to give a special shout out to my betas. Nina, Carrie, Melody, and Stephanie, if it weren’t for you I’d be bald by the time I typed “the end.” Thank you for sticking by me all this time!
A big thank you to Kate. You always jump in when I need you the most, you’re a real lifesaver!
Thank you to my lovely reader group and street team, you guys rock and I don’t say it often enough.
And finally, to you, my readers, I hope you loved Callie and Hayden’s story! If you have time, please consider leaving a short review.
Until the next book…
Love, Anna
Other Books By Anna B. Doe
New York Knights Series
NA/adult sports romance
#1 Lost & Found
#2 Until
#3 Forever