Hard Tackle: A Bad Boy Sports Romance

by Jessica Ashe

  “Why did you even go up to the mountains anyway?” Lois asked. “It almost sounds like he was taking you on a romantic getaway.”

  “Oh, no, it was nothing like that,” I insisted. It had nearly ended up that way, but we kept things strictly platonic. That hadn’t been easy.

  For most of the evening, Denton had sat there without a t-shirt on, his ripped muscles, and tattoos on display for me to stare at. I barely watched any of the movie. My eyes spent the entire time straining to the side desperate to get a better look at his arms. And his chest. And his abs.

  The only bad thing about his body was how damn self-conscious it made me feel about mine. Denton didn’t appear to have any body fat whatsoever. I wasn’t exactly overweight myself, but I had plenty of pinchable bits of skin. Denton was about as soft as a stone statue.

  I also took every opportunity possible to stare at the scar on his back. A visible, and permanent reminder, of how he’d saved his friend’s life.

  Kara had just been a friend. I hated how relieved I’d been to hear that news. She was dead, and there I was happy to find out Denton hadn’t been in love with her. What kind of person did that make me?

  The kind of person who betrays the confidence of a man who has done me no harm, I suppose.

  “Does Denton just like to abandon the office once in awhile?” Lois asked.

  “Yes,” I replied.

  Especially when he’s been up to something dodgy and is covered in blood. Okay, so the blood was his own, but he must have done something strenuous to tear through his stitches like that. He never did tell me, but it seemed safe to assume that someone had been punched. They probably deserved it. That’s what I had to tell myself.

  “What happened just before that?” Lois asked. She sensed I was holding something back.

  Lois would be able to find out where I’d been through the tracker on my phone, and that would lead her to the factory. I might as well tell her. At least that way I might not completely lose her trust and confidence.

  “We drove by a factory,” I said, before giving Lois the address. “Denton just popped in to make a delivery.”

  “I’ll check it out.”

  Lois went silent, but she didn’t hang up. I sensed another lecture coming on and sure enough…

  “Did he try anything?” she asked delicately.

  “No. Nothing like that. He was actually quite the gentleman.”

  Lois snorted in disbelief. “I expect that’s just part of his plan to get you into bed. He thinks you like the mature type and is playing the game. Don’t fall for him, Chloe. He’s experienced with women and knows how to play them.”

  “You sound like you’re talking from experience,” I joked.

  Lois laughed, but it sounded forced. “Not exactly. But I have spoken to women he’s been with and none of them have a positive thing to say about him. He’s dangerous, and you can’t trust him.”

  “I know,” I said softly. I hoped my words sounded at least vaguely convincing, but I doubted it.

  Denton didn’t seem dangerous--not to me anyway. To his enemies… well, that was another matter entirely. I wouldn’t want him coming after me that’s for sure.

  Lois checked the time on her phone. “You should be heading to the office.”

  Thank God for that. I couldn’t wait to get away from Lois now. Hearing her talk so harshly about Denton was painful, and I was beginning to dislike her, even though I knew she meant well.

  Just before I walked away, Lois handed me a jewelry box.

  “What’s this?” I asked, taking the box from her hands.

  “A necklace.”

  I opened the box and pulled out a rather bulky looking brown necklace that looked like the sort of thing I wouldn’t even go near at seventy-five percent off in a sale. I never wore much jewelry anyway, and if I did it tended to be petite and delicate, not large and heavy.

  “I assume this isn’t just an early birthday present from everyone at the office,” I remarked.

  “It can be if you like. But it also records audio and video, although the quality isn’t great to be honest. Better than nothing though.”

  “Do I leave it on all the time?” I asked. “How much can it record?”

  “You can get a couple of hours on there.”

  Lois took the necklace from me, and pulled the back off of the hideous brown gem and revealed a mini USB connector. The necklace was activated by squeezing the sides together for a second. I should be able to do that discretely enough. It would just look like I was fiddling with it because of nerves or boredom.

  “Hook this up to your laptop every night,” Lois instructed. “Then wipe it clean for the next day. Only use it when you go off the premises with him. I doubt he does anything particularly incriminating in the office. That way, you should have enough space to get through the day.”

  I took the necklace from Lois and put it on. Denton might as well get used to seeing me in it, even if I did look ridiculous.

  “Alright, I’d better be going,” I said. I didn’t start work for another thirty minutes, but I needed out of this conversation and that was as good an excuse as any.

  I used the time before work to give Mom a call. She’d been ringing my normal cellphone and never getting through because I always left that at home. I now had a number of irate voicemails and emails from her demanding I call her back.

  I rang the number for the house and nearly hung up, but she answered just in time. Wasn’t I lucky?

  “I told you, I don’t need any life insurance,” Mom said angrily into the phone as she answered.

  “Uh, okay. Hi Mom.”

  “Oh, it’s you. Hi sweetie. What’s this number you’re calling from?”

  “I, uh, lost my phone and had to get a temporary replacement.”

  I probably just should have told her that in the first place, but I’d been so anxious about starting this undercover operation that my mind had been all over the place.

  “To what do I owe this pleasure?” Mom asked, as if she hadn’t demanded I call her.

  “Well I was going to try to sell you some life insurance, but I guess that’s off the table. What was all that about?”

  “I’d just had a sales call from someone selling life insurance, and I thought he was calling me back.”

  “Aren’t you on the no call list?”

  “In theory, but they seem to find a way around that. What with life insurance and the scam calls, I’m getting rather fed up with it.”

  “What scam calls?”

  “Oh you know, all that ‘distant relative has left you a bequest. Please get in touch so that we can make sure you get the money.’ I must be getting old if I’m the target for these sorts of calls.”

  “You’re fifty, Mom. I reckon you have another two--maybe even three--years before you completely lose your marbles.”

  “Thank you, dear,” Mom said sarcastically. “You always know how to make me feel better. Anyway, how’s the new job going? I still can’t believe they transferred you to another city after just a few months.”

  “It’s standard procedure,” I lied. “All junior FBI recruits get moved around a lot so they can pick up new skills.”

  That had a semblance of truth to it. New recruits did move divisions quite often, because it’s important to get a good idea how the whole operation works, and not just your piece of the puzzle. However, it was rare for employees to move cities unless they request a permanent transfer. It was too expensive.

  For this operation, the FBI was paying my rent and the hotel bills for Lois’ visits. The Bureau might have billions of dollars in annual budget, but every expenditure had to be signed off, and no one liked doing that. You needed two signatures just to get a new stapler.

  “Do you like it in Chicago?” Mom asked. “I’ve never been, but I hear it’s dangerous.”

  “It’s fine, Mom. And it’s not dangerous. Well, not that dangerous. It’s not like New York is a crime-free zone.”

  I’d
never once felt unsafe walking around the streets of Chicago, but perhaps that was because the real danger lie in Denton’s dad finding out I was an undercover FBI agent. Muggers and thieves would be child’s play compared to what he would do to me if he found out.

  “Well you just make sure you never walk around alone at night.”

  “You do realize I’ve had self-defense training now? I’m capable of looking after myself.”

  “I still want you to be safe. Speaking of which, any chance you have a man around to look after you?”

  Not unless you include the violent, but gentle, gangster I’m currently working for.

  “No, Mom. No man yet. I’ve only been here a few weeks.”

  “Alright, well keep me up-to-date.”

  “You’ll be the first to know.”

  For the second time this morning, I used the excuse of needing to go to work to end a conversation early. By this point, I was looking forward to getting to the office.

  At the office, I could chat to Denton. He didn’t have an agenda. He spoke to me like a normal person, and for the most part, I could be myself around. Except for when I had to get information to use against him.

  How long would I be able to keep this up? At some point, Denton was going to find out. This wasn’t a secret I would be able to keep forever. If the operation went to plan, then he’d find out when he was arrested. If something went wrong, then he would find out when his dad caught up with me and had me killed.

  Neither alternative held much appeal. As I walked to the office, I tried to imagine a set of circumstances where Denton didn’t end up hating me. I couldn’t think of one. Even if I walked away from all this now, he’d never forgive me.

  There had never been any real chance of a relationship developing between us--not a real one--but I could still keep Denton out of prison. That had to be my priority now.

  His Dad could rot in there for all I cared, but Denton didn’t deserve that. Somehow, I was going to help him, even if he never thanked me for it.

  Chapter Twelve

  Denton

  My plan lasted about five minutes.

  Chloe and I had gotten too close over the weekend. Or at least, I had gotten too close to Chloe. There was a chance she didn’t feel the same way. I could usually tell when women were interested in me; for the most part it was women who had a heartbeat.

  But Chloe was hard to read. By all appearances, I never would have thought she’d be the type to volunteer in a hunt for a killer. Appearances could be deceptive.

  I had to detach myself from her before I got too close, but I didn’t exactly have a lot of practice in that area. I’d never been in love before or even close to it. A lot of women had been in love with me, and they seemed to deal with it in one of two different ways.

  Most of them constantly harassed me, thinking that the harder they worked at it, the more likely I was to give in and be in a relationship with them. I was more than happy to let them fuck my brains out while they attempted to impress me, but eventually I’d get bored and move on.

  The other way was to try and ignore me. That had worked for a few women, although most fell off the wagon at some point and ended up chasing me. Not all of them though. Some women had met other men and they seemed vaguely happy now. Not as sexually satisfied, but happy at least.

  So that’s what I resolved to do. I couldn’t ignore Chloe, but I could be stern with her. I could treat her like a temp, as if she were any other employee. I’d be polite, but firm. No laughing or smiling. No cheeky comments. No staring at her perfect little ass, or imagining sucking on her firm tits.

  Most of all, I couldn’t let her help me track down Roddy. That entire subject brought up too many emotions. If she worked with me on that, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself falling for her. That is, if I hadn’t already.

  It was a good plan, all things considered. Or so I thought.

  I heard Chloe come in about nine o’clock. She stopped and greeted every single employee she walked past, and went out of her way to see some of those she didn’t. She’d only been here two weeks, but she was already more popular than me, and I was the one who paid them.

  Chloe sat down at her desk, but I resisted the urge to walk out and say hello, or give her a silly assignment just so I had an excuse to talk to her.

  I didn’t need to. She came to me soon enough.

  What the hell was that thing around her neck?

  “Morning,” Chloe said with less enthusiasm than she had to everyone else in the office. I guess she’d used up all her energy before getting to me.

  “Morning,” I replied tersely. She had on a large and slightly gaudy necklace that didn’t suit her at all. I wasn’t exactly an expert on women’s fashion--other than underwear--but even I could tell she didn’t look comfortable in it.

  “You’re staring at my chest,” Chloe remarked. I looked up and saw her smiling. “On this occasion, I think I’d actually prefer it if you were eying up my boobs, but I assume it’s the necklace?”

  “Uh, yeah, the necklace. It’s nice,” I said, trying to sound convincing. “Very… big.”

  “And bigger is always better, right?”

  “So I’m always told.” Sexual innuendo was not part of the plan.

  “You don’t have to pretend you like it,” Chloe said. “I hate it.”

  “Why are you wearing it?”

  Chloe sighed and shook her head. “Mom insisted. She thinks it brings good fortune.”

  “It looks like it’ll bring back problems. What’s so lucky about it?”

  “It was my grandmother’s. Apparently it brought good luck. She died from cancer a few years ago, so I’m not sure how lucky it really is, but I can’t be bothered to argue with Mom.”

  “I’m sorry. About your grandmother. Isn’t your Mom back in New York though? She’s not going to notice if you don’t wear it.”

  “Yes, but she asks me about it. I’m a hopeless liar; she can see right through me.”

  “That’s comforting,” I replied sarcastically. “I hope you never get questioned by the police about me.”

  “Oh, that’ll be okay. I won’t lie. I’ll just tell them the truth. You know it’s illegal to lie to the police, right?”

  I rolled my eyes, and did my best to suppress a smile. I failed. So much for playing the tough guy this morning.

  Chloe ran through my schedule for the day and I asked her to cancel a few meetings and conference calls. Everything non-urgent got pushed to the side. I had more important work to do today.

  One of my sources gave me a lead on a company that Roddy supposedly owned. It wasn’t a lot to go on, but it might lead me back to him. I’d been going at this too casually. I couldn’t just sit around hoping that someone else would find him.

  I wanted Roddy dead. It was up to me to find him. Find him and kill him.

  * * *

  I needed Chloe’s help.

  There was a reason I always had a PA; office work was not exactly my forte. Dad had brought me up as a glorified street thug--it had only been later on in life that he’d decided I needed to help run legitimate businesses to keep things above board.

  I could make decisions. I was good at that. I had to make tough calls every day, but the pressure rarely got to me. It was hard to feel pressure over little things like which supplier to use or which design to go with when you were used to making life and death decisions in the middle of a street fight.

  Administrative work was just one of those things I couldn’t handle. It didn’t agree with me, kind of like an allergy. Maybe I was allergic to admin?

  I had the name of the company Roddy supposedly owned, and I was sure there were online databases that had addresses and information for companies, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. The company name was too generic for a Google search, and if I knew Roddy Barton, he’d want to keep it offline as much as possible.

  Chloe couldn’t get involved in my hunt for Roddy, but if she just helped me with a bit of research on
his company that should be fine. I wouldn’t even tell her what it was about, so she’d never know she was helping.

  I called Chloe into my office and she arrived as promptly as ever. Was it too much to hope that she was just sat out there waiting for me to call her in?

  “Do you need me to get you out of another meeting?” she asked wearily. “I’m still getting grief from the other directors about that last one.”

  “Sorry. Just tell them to discuss it with me. I can handle them. I need your help with some research.”

  “Okay, what is it?” she asked, pen and paper at the ready. At least I’d finally found a flaw of hers--she insisted on writing everything down.

  “Do you know how to get a company’s mailing address and a list of directors? I’m sure it’s online, but I’ll be damned if I can find it anywhere.”

  “What state is it incorporated in?” Chloe asked. I looked back at her blankly. “Okay, let’s start with Delaware. That’s the most common option.”

  Chloe came round to my side of the desk and bent over to use the computer. I gave her the same and she went to the Delaware Secretary of State website to get the information she needed.

  Her necklace hung down and clattered against my desk as she leaned over. Considering it was an old family heirloom, she didn’t treat it with much care. Come to think of it, the necklace didn’t look that old. Either that, or it was well looked-after.

  “It’s not there,” she said. “I’ll try some other states.”

  Chloe twisted slightly to use the mouse, and a tiny gap appeared in her blouse. Peeking through her top was not at all gentlemanly, but few women had ever described me as a gentleman before anyway.

  I could see enough to tell that her pert breasts weren’t the result of padding or a push up bra. They were just as juicy as I’d imagined.

  “Got ya,” Chloe remarked.

  “I haven’t done anything,” I replied quickly, looking away from her breasts.

  “What? No, I mean I’ve found the company. What do you need the address for?”

  “They owe us money. Why?”