All for You

by Moore, Heather B.

  Nelson had no response, because his mind had already gone to the worst-case scenario.

  “He claims he’d gone in there because he panicked when he heard the door open to the apartment.”

  Nelson exhaled. “Do you think he panicked?”

  “No,” Dawson said. “I think he was there to harm her.”

  Nelson closed his eyes. He felt the same away, and he wanted to throw up. “Damn. What if she’d gone into the condo? What if—”

  “Believe me, I’ve been over and over this too,” Dawson said. “Bottom line is that Paul Locker is in the county jail, no bail set. And I’m going to make sure he won’t be getting out anytime soon.”

  Nelson began to pace his kitchen again. “How’s Lindsey?” he asked.

  “Holding it together,” Dawson said. “She’s seen plenty of desperation in her line of work.”

  “This is personal, though,” Nelson said. “Text me your address. I might be able to get there tonight.”

  “Don’t you have a game—?”

  “Screw the game,” Nelson said. “Send me your address, but don’t say anything to Lindsey. I don’t want her to worry about one more thing.”

  When Nelson hung up with Dawson, he stood in the middle of his kitchen for a full minute, staring at the far wall. He’d never felt so helpless in his life. Lindsey could have been assaulted tonight, or worse. Much worse. And he was sitting in Vegas worrying about a little swelling in his pansy knee.

  He called his teammate Blaine. When Blaine answered, Nelson said, “I need a really big favor, and I need it now.”

  An hour later, Nelson was on a private jet heading out of Vegas. Blaine had called his former college friend Cole Hunter, who was now a pro baseball player but happened to be wealthy beyond the average pro-baseball paycheck. Cole Hunter owned his own private jet and belonged to a club where he had other private jets at his disposal. Nelson was now on one of those jets.

  The flight was quick, yet not quick enough. Nelson hated any delay. And when the plane landed at the closest regional airstrip to Pine Valley, a car was waiting to take him wherever he needed. Nelson sent Dawson a quick text that he was in Pine Valley and would be at his place soon.

  “Thank you, Cole Hunter,” Nelson murmured as he slid into the back seat and gave the driver Dawson’s address.

  Blaine had sent over Cole Hunter’s contact info, and as the luxury car headed into Pine Valley, Nelson sent a text to Cole. Never mind that it was nearly midnight.

  I can’t thank you enough for arranging a charter for me tonight. —Tyler Nelson

  The reply came seconds later. Apparently Cole Hunter was a night owl. When Blaine told me it was to help out your girlfriend, I had no problem. Ladies always come first.

  About the only thing that Nelson knew about Cole was that he’d been part of the famous Belltown Six Pack of college baseball players who all got called up to the major leagues the same year. Also that he was from Texas and now played centerfield for the Los Angeles Sea Rays.

  If you want premium tickets to the Stanley Cup, I’m your guy, Nelson wrote.

  Thanks, man. I’m in season right now, so it would depend on a few factors. But I wish y’all good luck.

  Definitely a Texan.

  The dots on the text app jumped again. Cole was still texting. The jet will wait for twenty-four hours to take you back to Vegas. If you need longer, then shoot me a text.

  This Nelson wasn’t expecting. He’d fully prepared to call Coach and tell him to put Ben in for game two. Thanks, I’ll let you know.

  No problem, Cole wrote. Give your darlin’ my best.

  Nelson smiled at the text. Cole’s Texan endearment had pretty much nailed how Nelson felt about Lindsey.

  He didn’t know what to expect when he reached Dawson Harris’s place, but the lights were on inside his condo.

  Did that mean Lindsey was awake too?

  Nelson thanked the driver, who gave him his cell number so that Nelson could call for a return ride to the airstrip. Then he headed to Dawson’s front door and knocked softly.

  Dawson opened the door almost immediately. Nelson had never seen the guy dressed down, but now Dawson wore a simple T-shirt and athletic shorts. He was also barefoot, and there were tired lines around his eyes. So the guy could be stressed and wasn’t all suave all the time.

  “I didn’t tell her you were coming,” Dawson said in a quiet voice. “She’s in the back bedroom at the end of the hall. Just knock and announce yourself before going in.”

  Nelson nodded. “How’s she doing?”

  “She says she’s fine, but she’s not fooling me.” Dawson put a hand on Nelson’s shoulder, surprising him. “I’m glad you’re here.”

  Nelson didn’t know if that made him feel better or worse. How upset was Lindsey? He couldn’t imagine what she’d gone through, and he still felt sick about how close of a call it was. Nelson headed down the hallway to the final door. Light glowed beneath the door, but he couldn’t hear anything.

  He knocked, then said, “Lindsey, it’s me, Nelson.”

  He heard a clink, then seconds later the door opened.

  Lindsey stared at him with wide eyes. Her dark hair tumbled about her shoulders, and she wore no makeup, but that only made her look more beautiful and vulnerable. “What are you doing here?” she whispered, opening the door wider.

  Nelson stepped into the room. “Dawson told me what happened, so here I am.”

  Lindsey threw her arms about his neck, and he pulled her close.

  “I still don’t get it,” she said in a trembling voice. “How did you get here?”

  “A friend hooked me up with his jet.” Nelson breathed in her warmth. She was okay. She was here, safe. But he hated that he hadn’t been around when it happened. Or that he couldn’t have found a way to stop it in the first place.

  Lindsey was still clinging to him, and Nelson used his foot to nudge the door shut. He ran his hands up and down her back. “Are you okay?”

  “Much better now,” she said, then she drew away to look at him, although she kept her arms looped about his neck. “I can’t believe you’re here.”

  Nelson lifted a hand and smoothed the hair from her face. “Anything for you, babe.”

  Her eyes filled with tears, and the impact went straight to his gut.

  “Thank you,” she whispered, blinking. “Did you have to miss practice?”

  “No, it’s the middle of the night,” he said.

  The edges of her mouth lifted.

  “That’s better,” he said, running his fingers along her cheek. “Tell me what happened.”

  She swallowed, then nodded. “You know it was Paul, right?”

  “Yeah, Dawson told me.” He tried to keep the steely edge out of his voice. She didn’t need his anger right now. She needed to be able to tell her story.

  Lindsey stepped back from him and grasped his hand. She led him to the loveseat on the other side of the bed. They sat down, and Lindsey leaned against him, then Nelson wrapped his arms about her.

  “When I got home earlier tonight,” she said, “I opened the door, and it was weird, but I felt something was different.”

  Nelson nodded. “Your instincts warned you.”

  “I couldn’t figure it out at first, but then I noticed one of my plants by the bay window had been turned.”

  Goose bumps raced along Nelson’s skin. “That was observant.”

  “That’s what Officer Russo said, you know, the cop who arrived first,” she continued. Then she told him about the rest, about the cops finding Paul hiding in the shower, and how she’d watched him being led in handcuffs to the police car.

  Her tone was matter-of-fact, but Nelson heard the tremor in her voice. Without saying it, they both knew that had Lindsey gone inside her condo, the outcome could have been much worse.

  Nelson rubbed her arm and kissed the top of her head. “Dawson said that he’ll be put away for a long time. And if that doesn’t happen, I’ll come up with somet
hing else that might be a bit illegal.”

  Lindsey released a soft laugh. Nelson hadn’t meant to be funny; in fact, he was dead serious. But hearing Lindsey relax was better than he could have hoped.

  She didn’t say anything for a long moment, and by the way she was fully leaning against him, he wondered if she’d fallen asleep.

  But a few moments later, she said, “Thanks for coming, Nelson. You’re making it really hard not to fall in love with you.”

  Nelson didn’t move, didn’t answer. He was stunned. Had she just said . . . Her breathing evened out and deepened.

  He leaned forward ever so carefully and snagged the bedspread from the bed. Then he draped it over the both of them. With Lindsey’s head on his shoulder and her arms wrapped about his torso, he leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

  He didn’t know if he’d be able to sleep like this, and he should probably transfer Lindsey to the bed, then find a longer couch somewhere. But the adrenaline of the night was wearing off, and Nelson was reluctant to disturb her. So he stayed put, and eventually, his body decided it didn’t matter where he slept.

  The first thing Lindsey heard when she woke up was someone breathing.

  Before she opened her eyes, she remembered that Nelson had shown up unexpectedly last night. And he hadn’t left.

  His chest and torso were warm, and even though his muscles were sturdy, he was surprisingly comfortable to sleep on. She guessed the time to be late morning, which meant . . .

  “Nelson,” she said, pulling away from him.

  He blinked those beautiful gray eyes open.

  “Don’t you have practice or something?”

  His gaze searched hers, and he didn’t say anything for a moment. “I’m not going.” His voice was still raspy with sleep, which made her feel a twinge of guilt.

  Lindsey moved his arm that was around her. “What do you mean? Your game is tonight. Don’t you have team stuff?”

  Nelson sat up more fully and stifled a yawn. Then he drew her back into his arms, which felt pretty great, but she didn’t think he should be delaying so much.

  “Do you always wake up hyper?” he rasped.

  “Nelson, I’m serious, you need to go.”

  His hold only tightened about her. “Mmm.” He wasn’t moving, wasn’t releasing her.

  “Nelson . . .”

  He moved his hand up her back, then over her shoulder, and finally behind her neck, where his fingers tangled in her hair. Being touched by him was like heaven, but she couldn’t give into this. There was a good chance he’d already missed whatever morning workout his coach made the team do.

  “I’m officially kicking you out, Nelson,” she said.

  He chuckled, then he shifted and kissed her.

  Well, good morning. His sleepy kiss was pretty dang sexy, and Lindsey almost forgot why Nelson had come to Pine Valley in the middle of the night in the first place.

  When he lifted his head, he was smiling.

  “You’re trying to distract me,” she said.

  “Is it working?” he said, then he kissed her again.

  Oh, it’s working, her heart sang. She slid her arms around his neck and allowed herself to live in another existence that contained only this man and his body and his mouth. She didn’t even know if Dawson was still in the condo, and she really didn’t care.

  “You being quiet in the morning is much better,” Nelson said.

  Lindsey slapped his shoulder and laughed. “You did not just say that.”

  Nelson gazed at her, his gray eyes full of . . . desire. The kind that made her breathless.

  “How are you feeling?” he asked.

  Of course he’d ask that. Here he was, probably pissing off his whole team, but he wanted to know how she was feeling.

  “I’m okay,” she said, and it was the truth. Where Nelson was concerned, she was better than okay, but the fact that Paul Locker had shown up at her condo last night was something that would take a while to get over. “And I’d be better if I knew you were on your way back to Vegas.”

  “I’ll go back if you come with me,” he said. “You were flying out this afternoon, anyway, right?”

  “Right.”

  The edges of his mouth curved.

  “Oh, all right, I’ll come, but only because it’s a private jet.”

  He chuckled, then kissed her jaw, her neck, and lower.

  Lindsey truly didn’t mind, but Dawson could very well still be in the condo. “Nelson,” she said, disentangling herself from his grasp. “I need to get my stuff at my apartment and shower and stuff. Can you . . . come with me?”

  He didn’t hesitate. “Of course.”

  “Thanks,” she said, and when he stood, she wrapped her arms about his torso and held on for a few moments.

  He obliged her with another embrace that lasted far too long to be anything but innocent.

  “Thanks for coming last night,” she said against his chest. “I hope you don’t get in trouble.”

  “I’m not worried,” his voice rumbled above her. “If Coach decides to sit me, then he’ll be putting the entire game at risk.”

  She smiled, although he couldn’t see it. “True.”

  Two hours later, they’d landed in Vegas, and they were on their way to his condo so that he could get ready for the pre-game meeting and warm-up. In the Uber, Nelson held her hand, and Lindsey felt like she’d lived five lifetimes since her last, carefree visit to Vegas.

  “My sister is coming to the game too,” he said. “And she’ll be crashing at my place, so you’re welcome to stay of course. My sister is good at keeping me in line.”

  “Hmm, maybe I will then,” Lindsey said. It might be good to get to know his sister better, because it would give her even more insight into this amazing man. Maybe Lindsey would finally crack some of his flaws. “But where will you sleep?”

  “Well, if you won’t let me share your bed, then I guess I’ll take the couch.” He winked.

  “I can’t make you stay on the couch in your own place,” she said.

  He leaned over and whispered in her ear. “Then we’ll share my bed, and I promise I won’t kick you.”

  “Funny.”

  He squeezed her hand. “The couch will feel like heaven compared to that tiny loveseat at Dawson’s.”

  “Sorry about that,” she said.

  Nelson kissed her cheek. “It was the best night’s sleep that I’ve ever had.”

  She swatted his chest, but he caught her hand and held it there. He kissed her again, this time just below her jaw.

  Lindsey wanted to pull him close and kiss him for real, but she didn’t really want to kiss in the back of an Uber.

  “I think you’ll enjoy the couch after all,” she said.

  Nelson chuckled, and Lindsey smiled. The more she was with Nelson, the more she forgot about Paul Locker. Dawson said he was going to figure out how Paul had tracked her down, but in the end, did it matter? He’d shown up, and who knew what his real plans were? Right now, Lindsey was grateful to be in another state, away from Paul, even if he was in jail.

  When the Uber stopped at Nelson’s condo complex, he grabbed her carry-on suitcase from the trunk of the car, then thanked the driver.

  They went into his condo, and the first thing that Lindsey smelled was the scent of old food. A fast-food sack was on the kitchen table.

  Nelson crossed to it immediately. “Forgot I’d left this here last night,” he said. “I’ll just go and dump it in the trash outside. You can open a window if you want.”

  When he was gone, Lindsey opened the windows in the living room, then settled onto the couch. Even though she’d done nothing today, she felt tired. Dawson said he’d handle any walk-ins at the office, and she’d already emailed others to reschedule the morning meetings she’d had that day.

  Nelson came back into the condo. “Sorry about that.”

  “You must have left in a hurry,” she said, knowing it was so.

  “Yeah,” he said.
“Once Dawson called, my mind was on only one track.”

  Those gray eyes of his were gazing at her in a way that made a lump form in her throat.

  “So, uh,” he said, rubbing a hand over his hair. “I’m going to shower, and then I need to take off. Help yourself to whatever you need. Becca should be here in a couple of hours, and you two can ride over to the arena together.”

  “Okay,” Lindsey said. While he was in the shower, she picked up an album on the side table next to the couch. It looked like it was full of pictures from the Falcons. Most of them were from games, but there were some from gala events and what looked to be fundraisers. Lindsey stopped on a particular picture where Nelson had his arm slung over the shoulders of a young woman.

  “That’s my sister.” Nelson’s voice cut into Lindsey’s thoughts. She hadn’t even heard him come down the hallway.

  She looked over at him and wished she hadn’t. He was obviously fresh from the shower, and well, he wasn’t wearing a shirt. He wore athletic shorts and had a towel around his neck. She’d hugged him plenty and had imagined more than once what his chest and torso looked like, but her imagination hadn’t done Tyler Nelson justice.

  “Are you okay?” Nelson asked.

  She was literally staring. “Uh, yes,” she said, trying to focus on something that wasn’t his magnificent body. But there seemed to be nowhere else to look. “Did you forget a shirt?”

  He blinked, then he grinned. “I came out to get some water. Should I go put on my shirt before doing so?”

  She swallowed. Him standing there, leaning against the corner of the wall, his torso practically begging to be touched, wasn’t making her resolve any easier. “Well, I guess it’s your place, so you can decide.”

  He nodded and turned from her, then headed into the kitchen.

  Oh boy. Seeing his bare back was doing even crazier things to her insides. Look at the album, Lindsey. She had to drag her gaze from the man in the kitchen guzzling down a cold water bottle and look at the album in her lap. She only saw a blur of pictures that might have faces and other things in them, but she wasn’t sure.

  “Do you want a drink?” Nelson asked from the kitchen.