The Barnes Family Romances: (Books 1-3)

by Normandie Alleman

  When Saturday night finally rolled around, Dynassy brought a car to pick me up. She knocked on my door, and I was pleased to see that she was only fifteen minutes late. Normally Dynassy had little awareness of punctuality, but it was something her friends were used to. She wore a smart, white designer bodysuit, which looked amazing against her tanned skin and black hair. Her ears and wrists dripped in gold jewelry and her red lipstick was the perfect touch. I wondered how many stylists it had taken to pull together this look. In any case, she rocked it. “Hey! I’m so glad you’re saving my life going with me to this.”

  She hugged me, and I hugged her back. She smelled sweet and exotic at the same time, probably one of the perfumes she’d had made for her brand. “No problem. But why is your brother having a party tonight that you had to come to all the way from Los Angeles to go to?”

  Dynasty walked past me into the apartment and helped herself to a beer from the refrigerator. “I have no idea, but he insisted I come this weekend. He’s lucky my shoot in Dubai got canceled because I was planning to be out of the country. But that’s been rescheduled for Thursday.”

  I couldn’t imagine living Dynassy’s jet set lifestyle, never having a chance to get used to one time zone before flying into another one, but she pulled it off like the professional that she was. I guessed that Nick had a similar situation, constantly being on the road playing against other teams. Lucinda had trained them from a young age to work hard and be on the go. Mary Lou might not approve, but it was hard not to admire the work ethic of the Barnes family, not to mention all their accomplishments.

  “Let me go put on my earrings, and I’ll be ready to go.” I ran back to my bathroom, picked out a simple pair of gold hoops that looked good with my black top, and put on some lipstick.

  We left a few minutes later and had a cocktail in the limo on the way to Nick’s. I wasn’t sure what kind of place I expected him to have, but for some reason I hadn’t expected it to be so grown up. I’m not sure if I expected it to look like a seventeen-year-old’s apartment, but I was impressed by the luxurious home that didn’t show a single sign of a video game arcade.

  Dynassy and I got out of the car and walked up the drive. When she knocked, Nick opened the door and from the first moment I saw him my stomach erupted with butterflies.

  Eden,” he said, “I’m so glad you could come.” Then he scooped me up into a brotherly hug, and as I hugged him back a part of me never wanted him to let me go. Reveling in the warmth of his huge body, I pressed my cheek against his chest, a combination of woodsy pine and fresh, clean soap drifted up to my nostrils.

  After a minute I realized we were blocking the door and that there were people behind us waiting to come inside. Nick didn’t seem to mind, but it started to feel awkward so I reluctantly slid out of his arms and walked into the foyer. Nick greeted some more people and introduced me to some of his friends and teammates, but the whole thing was something of a blur. Being this close to him was so much more intense than I had anticipated. My skin felt like I developed a fever of a hundred and four. I wanted to fan myself or ask if anyone else realized how hot it was, but I didn’t dare. It had to be just me. Nick led me into the living room where he introduced me to some more people whose names I wouldn’t remember. He offered me a drink, but I was so discombobulated that I opted for a bottle of water. It seemed the safest choice.

  “You’re so good,” Dynassy commented. “So that’s how you stay in such good shape. You’re a good example for us all, Eden.”

  I laughed. “Don’t give me too much credit. I had a drink on the way over. I’m certainly not a model for clean living.”

  “You look pretty good to me on that field last weekend.” Nick winked at me.

  So that’s how he found me. “You were at the Scorpions game?”

  "I was. Imagine my surprise when I looked up and saw you dancing on that field."

  My cheeks warmed, and I could feel redness creeping into them. I didn't know what to say, I just wanted to stand next to him and be in his presence. All the warm feelings I had had for him as a child came rushing back, and yet they were magnified by what felt like a magnetism between us that made me want to touch him again. As if my arm belonged to someone else. I reached out and touched him on the arm.

  "I'm glad you did." The minute the words left my mouth I wish I could take them back. I was terrible at flirting, my skills with men were only one step above abysmal, but Nick didn't seem to notice.

  The one thing I knew about social situations was that people like to talk about themselves, so whenever I felt uncomfortable in a social situation, I resorted to asking the other person questions about himself. In this case it was a win – win proposition. I didn't have to talk about myself, and I got to hear a lot more about Nick.

  "So, before you came to Austin you were in LA?" I acted like I had no idea, though I knew when he was drafted by the team out there.

  “Yeah.”

  “I’ll bet your mom loved that.”

  He made a face, and I laughed.

  “You went to Villanova?”

  He nodded. “But enough about me. What about you? Where did you go to school?”

  “Oh. UT-Austin for undergrad and UT Dallas for med school.”

  “Didn’t Dynassy tell me you graduated early?”

  I blushed, and nodded. “I started early.”

  “Brains and beauty—a lethal combination.” He shook his head. “Where the hell have you been these past eleven years, Eden Evans?”

  Right under your nose, I thought, but I rolled my eyes, making sure he knew I wouldn’t be won over so easily with a little sweet talkin.’ Inside, however, I swooned.

  Dynassy walked over to us. “You didn’t tell me Legion was such a case,” she said to Nick.

  Legion was the Athletics’ flamboyant point guard. Anyone who had ever seen him play knew he was a grade-A ham, but he was one of the league’s best players and the other half of their dynamic duo that included Nick and had the Athletics on a 27-0 home game winning streak.

  “He’s hilarious,” Nick agreed.

  Legion put on some music, and started doing a brilliant imitation of a local DJ they were apparently all friends with. One of Nick’s teammates tried to get me to do one of the Scorpion’s cheerleading routines. I vehemently declined, and Nick came to my rescue by changing the subject and telling a story that involved Legion and some hair removal cream on their last road trip. Everybody laughed, and I realized I was actually enjoying myself.

  "Hey, you want to help me for a minute in the kitchen?" Nick asked me. "I think we need some more ice."

  "Sure. You want me to fill up these bowls of snacks?" I asked. Picking up a few empty bowls on my way to the kitchen.

  "Sure. Thanks."

  In the kitchen Nick handed me a jug full of nuts and a boxful of crackers, which I proceeded to pour into the bowls.

  He filled up an ice bucket from an icemaker underneath the bar and we carried the things back into the living room. Legion was telling a funny story, and Dynassy was asking him all sorts of questions. An audience had gathered around them, and rather than join them Nick slipped an arm around my waist and whispered in my ear, “Hey, I've got something to show you." He pulled me by the hand into another part of the house. I gulped, wondering where he was taking me. My mouth went dry when I saw he was pulling me into a bedroom—what looked to be the master bedroom.

  "Nick…" I began to protest

  "No, Eden. It's not what you think. Trust me." And for some reason I did. I trusted him implicitly. He walked to one side of the room and flipped on a light switch, illuminating a painting that hung over a fireplace.

  "If I remember correctly, your dad always had a fondness for Vermeer. Am I right?"

  I nodded. According to my mother, my father and Nick's had an ongoing competition to see who could collect the most exquisite artwork. They favored pieces from the Renaissance. Not exactly what you would have expected from an 80’s hair band front man and lea
d guitarist, but they were both more shrewd than most people gave them credit for, and more cultured too. It was rumored that they were fighting over something when they boarded their final flight in Paris. Lucinda insisted it was over a painting, and I wondered if this could have been that painting. If so, I doubted Nick knew anything about it.

  The painting was a large landscape with an unusual perspective, dark colors accented in the front by a girl feeding some geese. There was a cottage in the background, along with a river flowing through the foreground. It was a simple pastoral scene, and not at all what I would have expected for Nick to take me to his bedroom to show me.

  "It's beautiful."

  He took a step closer to me. "I could say the same thing about you."

  Then suddenly his mouth was on me, his arms wrapped around my waist, and mine circled his neck. His mouth was insistent, his tongue sliding through my open lips as I drank him in, my fingers twirling the hair at the nape of his neck.

  Dragging his lips away, brushing them across my throat, he whispered, "Eden," as he nibbled my ear, his pelvis pressing against my abdomen. I could feel him hardening against me, and my mouth began to water.

  "Nick," I breathed. In one swift movement he lifted me into the air, holding my ass in his hands. I wrapped my legs around him and moaned as he left a scorching trail of kisses down my neck.

  I could feel myself growing wet, and a part of me wished he would take and throw me on the bed right there.

  I knew it was wrong, I knew it would be a huge mistake, but that was my brain talking. My body was one hundred percent team Nick. It didn't care about the consequences. It simply wanted to feel his cock inside me, his hands all over me, his tongue in every nook and cranny I had.

  "Damn, Eden. I want you so badly." Then he started walking, carrying me with him. The next thing I knew he pressed me up against the wall. He'd lifted my skirt and pushed my panties to the side. Then his hand was all over me. Stroking me. Entering me. Fucking me. Making me want to explode.

  “You're so fucking wet. God, I love that." Somehow with his other hand he undid a few of the buttons on my blouse and his mouth was on my breast. Licking. Nibbling. Suckling.

  Oh God.

  It felt like my every nerve ending was on fire. I wanted nothing more than to take him inside me and never separate.

  "Damn, I want you, girl." He kissed me again, this time deeper, more intently, and I was completely gone. Every bit of resistance I’d had evaporated. I was his to take. Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew this was not the best idea, but my hormones and my emotions had overtaken my brain. At that moment Nick and I were the only two people in the world, and there was no such thing as consequences other than the pleasure that we would soon be sharing. Then he set me down on the ground, saying in a hoarse voice, "Just a minute. Let me get a condom."

  I watched him walk over to his bedside table drawer, which he opened and pulled out a rubber. But suddenly reality came crashing back to me, and I started buttoning up my blouse.

  "Hey, what are you doing? Don't do that." It hurt to see the disappointed look on his face. The one I’d put there.

  I adjusted my underwear and pulled my skirt back down. "I'm sorry, Nick. I can't do this. I can't be that girl—the one you screw up against the wall in your bedroom then never think about again. I’m sorry, I just can’t do it.”

  Then I ran out, before he could stop me.

  I heard him calling my name as I ran down the hall. Once I got to the living room where everyone else was, I slowed down and whispered to Dynassy, “I have to go. Can I please take your car?”

  She nodded and followed me outside. “Hey, are you okay? My brother didn’t do anything to you, did he?”

  I smiled and tried to play it off like it was no big deal. “No, everything’s fine. I just need to get home. Early rehearsal in the morning, that’s all.”

  “All right, if you say so. Hey, you wanna have lunch or something before I go back?” Dynassy asked, giving me a hug.

  “Sure,” I said, bolting for the limo. I waved goodbye to her as I got inside the car, and just as the driver pulled away from the curb, Nick rushed outside. He stared quizzically at the car, and appeared to be giving Dynassy the third degree as we sped away.

  The look on his face made me question the way I’d run out of there.

  The problem was I didn’t trust myself around Nick. He was too tempting, and while my mind was saying “no,” my heart was saying “yes.”

  Exhausted, I slunk down into the plush leather seats, wishing I’d never gone to that damned party in the first place.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Nick

  When Eden ran out of my house during the party, I didn't know what to think. I’ve never claimed to understand women, but that one really threw me. From where I was standing, things were going great between us. She seemed to like me, and it felt like we were connecting on a really deep level. It was more than me just wanting to bone her. I thought we both felt what we had before…

  Goes to show what the fuck I know. I thought things were going well, then suddenly she’s running out the door.

  After going to bed with blue balls that night, the next morning I decided to ask my sister for some help. She was friends with Eden, so I asked her to try to find out what the deal was.

  They went to lunch the next day, and afterward Dynassy called to give me a report.

  “She doesn’t have anything against you, Nick, but she thinks you’re a player.”

  “Do you think she’ll give me a chance?”

  Dynassy paused. “Mmm…probably, but she’s not just any girl. You’re going to have to pull out all the stops. Wine and dine her.”

  “All right.”

  “And Nick…”

  “Yeah?”

  “This is Eden. She’s like family. Don’t do this if you’re not gonna treat her right.”

  “Of course I will.”

  “Okay, I had to say that.”

  I got it. Few people had as bad a reputation for being players as professional basketball players. The only guys who are seen as worse are rock stars, and that would include my father and younger brother Leo.

  So, in all fairness, I understood Eden not wanting to be just another notch on my bedpost.

  I'd have to show her that she was special because as far as I was concerned, there was nobody like her. There never has been. I know I've known a lot of women, but none of them has ever affected me the way she did that day I saw her shaking those pom-poms.

  Eden was probably the type of girl who would appreciate a simple date like going on a picnic or something, but that was a little out of my comfort zone. I was good at choosing a nice restaurant, making a reservation, and hiring a car. If I didn't have a game, I could even take her to Las Vegas or something for the night, but that might seem ostentatious, and I didn't think she would like that.

  So I thought we would start with a meal. With Dynassy’s help, I planned a special date. Now I just had to get Eden to agree to go out with me. I also decided to do it by phone rather than text.

  Honestly, I wanted to hear her voice rather than see her words on a screen.

  I waited until Wednesday and I dialed her number, which I had gotten from Dynassy. I was afraid she wouldn't answer a call from a number she didn’t know so I had originally intended to use Dynassy’s phone to call her from, but my sister had flown to New York today on her way to Dubai, and I had to use my own. So I was pleased when she picked it up on the first ring

  "Hello?"

  "Hey, Eden. This is Nick."

  "Oh, hey."

  "I'm sorry you had to run out like that, I mean leave so early the other night. I hope I didn't do anything to upset you."

  "No, I'm sorry. I guess I just let things get a little out of hand. My bad."

  “No, not at all. It was really good seeing you. I've actually missed having you around. It's been such a long time, but in some ways it feels like it was yesterday that we were hanging out w
hen we were kids."

  "Yes, it was fun to see each other."

  "We have a few out-of-town games over the next week, but I wondered if you might like to go out to dinner with me next Friday when I get back. That is, if you're not too busy." I wondered if this was as awkward for her as it was for me.

  “No, that would be great. I'd love to go."

  I exhaled. "You would?"

  "Yes," she said with a laugh.

  Awesome. "Great. I'll text you the details."

  “That sounds great. And Nick,…"

  "Yes?" My heart hung on her every word.

  "Good luck in your games."

  "Thanks." I closed my eyes and hung up, feeling like I’d be playing with an angel on my side the next few nights.

  ***

  Our out-of-town games that week were brutal. We beat Minnesota, but got killed by Boston and Detroit, making us 1-2 for the week. Legion was fighting back spasms, team morale was low, and the only thing that kept me going was looking forward to my date with Eden that weekend.

  I made a reservation at one of the best restaurants in Austin. It was at the top of a hotel with a great view of Lake Travis and a chef who’d been on some cooking show, so everybody loved him. I reserved a private table where we wouldn't be bothered but would still have an incredible view.

  When I went to pick her up and she opened the door of her apartment, I caught my breath. She wore a blue dress that made her look like a movie star, except I'd never seen an actress as pretty as she was. In the car on the way there I held her hand, feeling as nervous as a high-schooler on his way to prom. When she didn't yank her hand away, but instead squeezed mine back—that put me on top of the world.