Intercepted by Love: Part One: A Football Romance (Playing the Field Book 1)

by Ayala, Rachelle

  Renting a room in Itasca had also been a piece of cake. His landlord, an Indian gentleman, had been more interested in rugby than football. He’d kept commenting on his build and asking him if he knew a slew of British rugby stars.

  Foreign students abounded at the university, and even though Miss Wales spoke with a bland, Midwestern accent, her interest in ancient Israel and the horny King David meant she never followed real life plays on the playing field. He doubted she’d even know a tailgate if she ran into one.

  Cade stalked around the campus store and parked himself within view of the library exit where he’d left his dog, Red, who was at this very moment engaging in a hot round of sexual intercourse. From the tangled leashes and the tongues lolling, there’d be a load of puppies this coming spring, not that he or Red would be around to worry about them.

  “Hurry, boy.” Cade crossed his arms and laughed. The female golden retriever seemed more interested in scarfing up a hamburger than what as going on at her rear end.

  “Oh my!” a female human screamed. “Get away from her. Get. Get.”

  A blur of red hair wrapped in a heavy scarf flashed by him and Andie was kicking and prying his male Irish setter off the back of the golden retriever, presumably, hers.

  Both dogs squealed and whined, but Red wouldn’t let go. He kept pumping and gripped on tighter. Besides, it would be damn painful for the dogs if Andie were to pull them apart.

  “I think he’s stuck.” Cade placed a hand on Andie’s shoulder, restraining her. “You’ll hurt them both if you separate them.”

  “What do you know? I don’t want puppies. I just got her for my dad. She’s too young.”

  “It’s too late now.” He rubbed circles over Andie’s back. “Keep her calm or they’ll both get hurt.”

  Red unmounted the female, but they were still stuck together, back to back. One of his hind legs was angled over the female’s hindquarters, and the two dogs licked their chops and lolled in the canine equivalent of an after fuck smoke.

  Andie bent toward her dog, hugging her. Her dog licked her in a sweet and endearing way. Oh well, there’ll be more cuteness in a few months.

  “How long are they going to be stuck together?” Andie asked, glancing up at him. “Can you check the tag of the male? I want to know who to hit up for puppy support.”

  “Seriously? Puppy support?” Cade almost rolled his eyes. Typical female. You knock them up, and they take you to the cleaners. “Look, if you didn’t want puppies you should have had her spayed.”

  “Excuse me?” She narrowed her eyes. “How come the girl’s always to blame? Whoever owns this mutt should have had him neutered.”

  “Ouch.” Cade winced as if a pair of snips had clipped his balls. “Actually, he resents being called a mutt. His name is Red and he comes from prime stock.”

  The two dogs were still tail to tail, looking like best friends. The same couldn’t be said for the ice between him and Andie.

  “Your dog? You shouldn’t have let him loose. You should have tied him up if he’s so dangerous.”

  “I did, but he obviously broke his leash. Can’t help that your dog’s such a raging beauty.” Cade shuffled his gloved hand over Red and scratched his ears. “Seriously, does he look dangerous to you? Red’s a good, loyal dog, and a prize-winning stud. You should see the Westminster champs he’s sired.”

  “How long are they going to be stuck? You didn’t answer my question.”

  Cade glanced at his watch. “Anywhere from twenty to forty minutes.”

  “Twenty to forty?” she shrieked. “Does this mean I’m stuck with you that long?”

  “Would it be so bad?” He leaned in close to her and flashed her his most disarming grin, the kind that had women worldwide dropping their panties.

  Her breath clouded the space between them, and he could tell she tried not to pant as hard as her dog. Clamping her mouth tightly, she said between her teeth, “I’ll expect you to share the veterinarian costs, as well as help me find homes for these puppies. They’re not likely to be AKC Westminster champs, since Gollie here is a gollie.

  “Gollie?” He quirked an eyebrow.

  “Golden retriever and collie.”

  “You serious about sharing the bills?” He could care less about the money, but by appearing reluctant, he could hopefully bring out the aggressive streak he detected in her, the one which would make her pursue him for claims.

  “They don’t pay librarians, even the head librarian much, and my father requires long term care. He had a stroke.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. Maybe we’ll get lucky and she won’t have puppies.”

  “Sure, I’ll believe that when dogs wear condoms.” She rolled her eyes, and something jumped inside of Cade—something like interest crossed with the desire to poke into her brain, and other parts, but seriously, he wasn’t as much wanting to bed her as to talk to her and be her friend. Although the bedding part would be a bonus, a big one. He hadn’t had sex since the night of the disastrous Super Bowl two weeks ago.

  “You’re right. I should have been more careful with Red.” He rubbed his hand over his dog’s furry neck. “Since they’re going to be here another thirty minutes or so, shall I get you a latte, hot chocolate, or cup of tea?”

  “Latte, please, with white chocolate and peppermint candy canes.”

  Good. He liked a woman who was specific with her tastes. Detailed and demanding, knowing exactly what she required. Visions of Andie specifying what she wanted him to do to arouse and pleasure her flashed heat through his veins.

  Striving to control his wayward lust, Cade handed Andie the remaining part of the leash dangling from Red’s collar. “I’m trusting you with my dog. Take good care of him.”

  “Sure, I’ll rip his head off after I rip another part of his anatomy. Grrr …” Her lips snarled, but when he glanced back, she winked.

  Cade swallowed the drool collecting in his mouth. What he wouldn’t give to have her rip her fangs and nails all over his body.

  “Wait,” she said. “Let me get my wallet. I’m sure you’re a poor student and since I’m going to hit you up with vet costs, at least let me buy the drinks.”

  Because he wanted her to believe he wasn’t the idiotic quarterback who threw away his Super Bowl ring, and because he desired to owe her something, he accepted the ten dollar bill.

  “Don’t run off with my money,” she quipped. “I have your dog by the balls.”

  He’s not the only male you have by the balls. Cade readjusted his pants and growled into his throat. All the thoughts about ancient and animal sex had him riled up, and since he’d sworn off groupies and trolling bars, and no one in this small town knew who he was, it looked like his balls would be blue for a very long time.

  Unless he got lucky and Red really did knock up Miss Gollie.

  Chapter Four

  “Dad, you awake?” Andie tiptoed into her father’s office which had been converted into a sickroom. A hospital bed had taken the place of his desk, but the rows and rows of books on the built-in shelves remained.

  Not that she expected an answer. Her father couldn’t speak after his stroke, and he was paralyzed on one side.

  Andie’s mother wiped her hands with a towel and looked up. “He’s awake, but he won’t talk.”

  “Here’s the puppy.” Andie tried to squelch the image of her Gollie being mounted by that powerful male. Hopefully the pregnancy didn’t take since Gollie was only a year old or so, according to the lady who she got her from.

  The dog wagged her tail and ambled into the sickroom, sniffing the bedframe.

  “James, look what we got here,” her mother cooed. “I know you miss ol’ Buster, but we have a young lady for you.”

  Her father’s face remained turned toward the wall even when Mom took his good hand and placed it on the dog’s head. His arm muscles tightened for a moment and then as the dog nuzzled and licked him, he grunted and made an effort to pet her.

  “Let’s leav
e them to get acquainted,” Mom said. “You got home late. What happened?”

  “Nothing, just things I had to put away.” Andie followed her mother to the kitchen. “Gollie got in a little bit of trouble today.”

  “Did you keep her on a leash?” Mom donned hot mitts and took a casserole from the oven.

  “Yeah, I did, but, there’s this new guy, and his dog wasn’t on a leash, or at least he broke his leash.” Heat broiled under Andie’s collar and she could feel her face flushing bright red. “His dog’s a male.”

  The casserole thumped onto the dining table. “Don’t tell me Gollie’s unsprayed. I thought Fran said she was all fixed up and ready. We paid for the spaying.”

  Fran lived outside of town in a converted barn where she housed rescues and found homes for them.

  “Then maybe she is spayed, but the male’s just extra, I don’t know …”

  She tugged the back of her collar and set the silverware on the table. If his owner, the big man, Cade Preston or whatever his name was, were half as horndog as his stud …

  “I’ll call her after dinner. But it’s probably nothing. Dogs do that behavior even if they’re spayed or neutered. By the way, you got a phone call.”

  “Me?” Call them old-fashioned, but Andie and her parents were one of the few people in town without cell phones.

  Mom slipped her a piece of paper. “The man who called wanted a library pass to the antique document collection. I told him to call you at work, but he left his number.”

  Cade sure worked fast. After he returned with the lattes, they hadn’t been able to sit around and drink them because his horny dog wanted to mount Gollie again, as if he hadn’t gotten enough already.

  Cade had given her his phone number to call in case she wanted him to take Gollie to the vet for an examination. She obviously hadn’t given him her number, although she supposed everything was on the internet these days. By now, Cade knew her name, rank, serial number, okay, maybe not everything, but he’d definitely know she was a college grad with a dead end job and active in the ancient world reenactment guild with special interest in Israel, Philistia, and the Minoans of Crete.

  “Think we should take Gollie to the vet to see if she was spayed or not?” Andie folded the piece of paper into a tiny square and tucked it into the watch pocket of her jeans.

  “I’ll call Fran. Money’s tight now that your father’s on disability. I’m sure she took care of it.”

  “Hope so,” Andie said. Even though her father was a lecturer at the university, he didn’t have tenure, since he’d spent most of his career digging at archaeological sites, most of it volunteer, which meant he had to buy his own medical insurance.

  After dinner, Andie helped her mother clean up, then took a leash and called for Gollie to go on her evening walk.

  “You’ve been a naughty girl today swishing your tail at every male in the vicinity.” She grabbed a baseball bat from the hall closet. “In lieu of a shotgun, this will have to do.”

  * * *

  Cade couldn’t believe his luck when Red barked and strained at his leash. Sure enough, Andie and her dog strolled a block ahead of them on the snow lined street. Except this time, she was armed with a baseball bat, no doubt to beat off any potential suitors.

  There they went, both females swinging their luscious behinds. Red barked and panted next to him.

  “I know how you feel, boy.” He sighed and stared in the same direction. “At least you got yours already.”

  Ever since he met the delectable librarian deep in the antiquities department, he couldn’t help wondering what she’d look like without the heavy sweater and loosely fitted jeans she wore. Unlike California, where the weather year round enticed women to dress sparingly, the winter chill in upstate New York kept everyone’s assets under wraps.

  Even so, he could detect the curvature of her waist thinning from her double handfuls of breasts. And judging by the creaminess of the skin at her neck, she was bound to have the softest, smoothest feel—skin untouched by the sun, warm, and silky, and fragrant, and especially tender between the thighs.

  The beautiful face was a given, yet hers was fresh and wholesome, barely made up, unlike the developing leather of the sun damaged beach bunnies who frequented sports bars and club parties back in LA.

  He couldn’t wait to experience how she’d blossom under his touch, how she’d flush rosy under the bloom of sexual arousal, and whether she was a screamer or a scratcher, maybe both.

  As if sensing his thoughts, Red lunged on his leash, panting toward the direction of Andie and her bewitching female dog.

  “You’re going to have to behave yourself, buddy.” He shortened the lead and commanded his dog to heel before speeding up his stride.

  Andie’s dog noticed them first. She bounced and hopped, turning around and waving her tail like a come-get-me banner.

  “Stay put while I talk to them.” He yanked Red back, sensing the eagerness at which his dog was attracted to hers.

  The dogs greeted each other with sniffing and tail wagging. Red was on a shortened leash so the only thing he could do was slip his long tongue between the female dog’s hind legs.

  “Can you stop him?” Andie averted her eyes while trying to drag her dog away.

  Cade couldn’t help wiggling his eyebrows. “He’s not hurting her, and she’s not complaining. If you don’t want her pregnant, we should take her to the vet as soon as possible. I looked it up on the internet and sperm can live up to a week inside of her, so it’s better if we get her some hormonal injections.”

  “You mean, like the morning after pill?”

  “Doggie style.” He cocked a shoulder. “It’ll turn off her hormones, and then they can go ahead and spay her.”

  “My mother says she’s spayed already.”

  “Did you check her private parts to see if she’s in heat? I don’t think Red’s attracted to spayed females.” From the way Red was relishing the female dog’s taste, Cade was pretty sure Gollie was a doggie knockout ready to be speared.

  Andie’s face took on a pinched expression as awareness over exactly what his dog was doing to her dog flooded her. She squirmed in a way that suggested she too would like a male’s tongue between her legs, then purposely fixed her eyes to stare down the street, away from all the heavy panting.

  “Okay, let’s take her to the vet,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “You’re paying.”

  “What happened to splitting the costs?” He dragged Red back when after a bout of licking, he tried to mount Gollie. “I’m going to have to lock this guy up if he’s to have any sperm left for the next client.”

  A gushing snort left her lips and she busted out laughing. “Client? You’re what, a dog pimp?”

  “It’s how I pay the bills.” He pulled his dog along the icy sidewalk. “I’ll write off the vet costs. After all, we wouldn’t want Red to have to pay puppy support for the next eighteen months.”

  “Definitely not.” Andie flipped her scarf at him. “You’re a funny guy. Are you sure you’re not on the FBI most wanted list or an axe murderer?”

  “Seems I get asked that a lot. I travel around a bit, just me and my dog.”

  “Stud fees must pay well.” She winked, swinging her baseball bat like a pendulum.

  “More than you know.” He licked his lips slowly and seductively, pleased to see her blush and swallow.

  What he wouldn’t give to discover the sensitive areas that turned her on, the hollows and curves of her luscious body, and to feel her sweetness around him, on top of him and below him, surrounding him with her own brand of slick, wet heat.

  Oh yeah, this upstate hideaway was turning into the perfect place to lick his wounds, and more.

  Chapter Five

  Andie wasn’t surprised when Cade appeared bright and early the next morning at the circulation desk. All conversation lulled among her fellow librarians, from elderly spinsters to college work-study students.

  The big, bearded man lifted an
eyebrow and sauntered to the counter, stopping in front of her. “Miss, I’d like to apply for a pass to the antique document collection.”

  “A pass?” her boss, Margo, gushed from behind her. “You don’t need a pass. Who told you that? Here, let me give you a map.”

  Elbowing Andie aside, the assertive woman patted her bobbed hair and whipped a paper map from the document holder. She proceeded to invite this handsome hunk of a man, easily the largest man on campus, to sample all their rare document collections, including viewing the originals from cuneiform to first editions of literary works.

  Andie heaved a sigh and found a pushcart full of books. What was she thinking? That because she was the first woman to discover Cade on campus and had her dog mate with his, that he’d pass by all the other women to speak to her? A guy like Cade was sure to have his pick of the litter. Argh, bad pun not intended.

  Margo was an attractive Asian woman and brilliant to boot. She held several PhD degrees from library information systems to classical Chinese music. Obviously Cade found her attractive, because his eyes were focused on her, and he was nodding and grinning like a politician eyeing a campaign contributor.

  Andie had work to do, so she pushed the cart of books into an elevator and closed the door.

  She was busy reshelving books down in the medieval Europe stacks when a large hand plucked a church architecture picture book from her.

  “Hey, fancy meeting you down here. Got that appointment to get your dog fixed?”

  “Is that all we have to talk about? Dog reproductive health?” Andie rushed to grab another book for shelving. Oh crap, had she said that out loud?