The Sport of Romance: A Multi-Author Box Set

by Cari Quinn

  Opening the fridge, he took out all the makings for a fruit smoothie. After throwing them haphazardly into the blender, he pulsed it on low, hoping he wouldn’t wake either of the ladies of the house. Needing a blast of energy, he gulped directly from the blender’s pitcher. Before finishing it, he decided to start the oatmeal. His body needed fuel for the day ahead.

  “Hi.”

  If the voice hadn’t been so small, Billy might have been startled since he hadn’t heard the little ninja’s footsteps. He turned around and his daughter stood right behind him. She looked up at him with wide eyes, her hair an unruly mass of curls. “Good morning, Gabriela.”

  She frowned at him, her face so serious he thought she might cry. What had he done wrong? The urge to wake Angel had him eying the hallway. He stared down bigger men every day on the field, yet he was afraid to be alone with a five-year-old.

  “Are you mad at me?”

  Billy blinked. “No.” He hadn’t yelled or even scowled at her. “Why do you think that?”

  “Mommy only calls me Gabriela when I’m in trouble.”

  Amused, he asked, “Are you in trouble often?”

  “Oh, no.” she shook her head vehemently, her ebony curls bouncing in all directions.

  Billy laughed. Damn, she had to be the most adorable child that ever lived. She continued to stare up at him. Now what? He eyed the hallway again. Man up, Billy or rather Dad up. “Are you hungry?”

  Gabriela nodded. “Can I have ice cream?”

  Billy grinned. “I know I’m pretty new at this dad stuff, but even I know ice cream is not for breakfast.”

  She pointed to his glass. “Then what’s that?”

  He guessed his smoothie did look like a milkshake. Observant child. He better remember that in the future. “It’s a fruit smoothie. Do you want to try it?”

  “Yes, please.”

  Sorting through his glassware, he selected a mug she’d be able to hold with ease. He transferred a small amount of the liquid and handed her the mug. She took a tentative sip.

  “Yum. It taste like a milkshake!”

  Overly proud of himself for such a minor achievement, Billy smiled. “Do you want me to make you one?”

  “Yes, please.”

  His daughter watched his every move as he put all the ingredients in the blender, which made him nervous, which was ridiculous. He substituted yogurt for his normal scoop of protein powder and flipped the switch. Her hands flew up to her ears as the ingredients mixed together. Once it was done he filled the mug to the rim. “Here you go, Gabby.”

  Billy didn’t know if the wide smile he received from her was for the smoothie or from the use of her nickname. It didn’t matter why, only that he made her happy and damn if he wouldn’t do anything in his power to see that smile again and again.

  “Thank you.” She went to take a sip, but then asked, “Do you have a straw?”

  He didn’t and he wished he could run out to the store and buy some. “No, I don’t, sorry.”

  “That’s okay.”

  Billy breathed a sigh of relief. He made his oatmeal while Gabby happily sipped her breakfast. He hoped he’d done the right thing. Angel hadn’t gone over Gabby’s meal schedule, so he had no idea what she normally ate for breakfast. Well, one time couldn’t hurt and a fruit smoothie was healthier than those sugar-laced cereals.

  Billy noted the time on the oven clock. “Should we wake Mommy up with breakfast in bed?”

  Gabby nodded with excitement.

  Using a baking pan as a makeshift bed tray, Billy placed a cup of tea and a buttered muffin on it and let Gabby lead the way. He couldn’t say who was more surprised, Angel who gushed over the simple fare or him as he salivated over her nipples which puckered underneath the thin, white tank top. What else lay beneath the covers? He instantly regretted his decision last night to be patient. He’d give a whole new meaning to breakfast in bed by feasting on her. “I have to leave for practice but I already made Gabby breakfast.”

  “I had a milk shake,” said Gabby. She climbed onto the bed to sit next to her mother.

  Angel’s annoyed gaze landed on her prey. The mama bear stare was fiercer than any defense he’d played against, he held up his hands in mock surrender before she launched into another tirade. “A fruit smoothie,” he explained. “I swear.”

  Chapter Ten

  “Gabrielaaaa…” Angel stretched out her daughter’s name in a shocked tone that prompted an explanation of Gabby’s white lie.

  Gabby shrugged. “It tastes like one.”

  Billy laughed. Angel breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn’t mad that she had jumped to conclusions. Hadn’t she learned anything from her little outburst last night? The poor man probably didn’t know what hit him. Here he was trying to do the right thing and she jumped all over him—and not in the jump-your-bones good kind of way that kept her up most of the night wondering what would’ve have happened if the gentle kiss led to more.

  “Lanie will be here around ten to show you Gabby’s new school. Then to the bank to set up an account for you and a college fund for Gabby.”

  Would their daughter like her new school? Would she make new friends? Worried for Gabby she only managed to mutter, “Okay, thanks.”

  Guilt etched his features. “Look I’m sorry. I’d take you myself, but I have practice.”

  “I understand. Really.”

  Billy nodded before bending down to kiss Gabby goodbye on the cheek.

  “Now kiss mommy.” Gabby giggled.

  Where did that come from? Angel turned her head. “Daddy isn’t—”

  Instead of catching a cheek, which Billy must’ve been aiming for, his lips grazed hers. Stunned, she didn’t finish whatever it was she was about to say. Billy leaned back but still remained only a breath away, his blue eyes searching hers. What did he see? Shock? Panic? Desire? All those feelings whirled inside her.

  “Yay!” Gabby clapped.

  She needed to have another talk with Gabby to remind her that Mommy and Daddy were just friends. But with her lips still tingling from Billy’s soft kiss, Angel couldn’t form a coherent sentence. It was just as well since she didn’t trust herself to speak. He backed away with a smile that promised a more thorough exploration of her lips.

  Hell, Angel needed another talk with herself before she started believing Billy really was a knight in shining armor or her very own Prince Charming. Yeah, a real prince all right, one who took his date to a strip joint. But it was becoming increasingly difficult to reconcile the man in the videos with the teenage boy she remembered and the man she was coming to know now.

  With Billy finally out of her bedroom, she could convince herself he was simply a man. A gorgeous hunk of a man, but still a man, and men were selfish creatures designed only to satisfy themselves.

  * * *

  Later that afternoon Angel collapsed onto the couch, not so much physically exhausted as mentally and emotionally worn out. Her worries over Gabby liking her new school were unfounded. Her little one was handling this so much better than her mommy. The amount of money Billy wired to Angel’s new account astounded her. Lanie explained it was for back child support. The legal details would be hammered out later, which only reminded Angel that playing house with Billy had a closing date. With the cash she could move out anytime she wanted and while Gabby napped she planned to scour the Internet for apartments. Once she was settled she could begin researching the nursing license process for New Jersey. Thankfully, for right now, Billy had given her the gift of time.

  She got up to fix a cup of tea and before she could take a calming sip the doorbell sounded. Wasn’t the doorman supposed to buzz the intercom before letting people up? Maybe, it was a neighbor.

  She peered through the peephole. Two beautiful women stood in the hall. The brunette held a bottle of wine and the tall blonde held an infant of about three months. Oh, hell was the baby his? A sick, sinking feeling clawed inside her stomach. Then she recognized the blonde as the supermodel Hanna
h Hahn who’d married one of Billy’s teammates but who was the other one? A girlfriend of Billy’s?

  The doorbell buzzed again. Looking down, she compared the worn jeans and faded t-shirt she wore to the women’s designer versions of the same attire. There was nothing she could do about it now. She squared her shoulders, refusing to be intimidated by a supermodel and whoever the brunette was.

  With the fake, happy waitress smile she perfected over the years she opened the door. “Billy’s not here.”

  “Of course he isn’t,” said the supermodel, breezing by Angel into the living room. “Our husbands are at practice.”

  “We’re the welcoming committee.” The brunette waved the bottle of wine in the air and followed Hannah in. “I’m Samantha Jameson, Ryan Terell’s wife. And that,” she pointed to the other woman, “Is Hannah Hahn, Jake Miller’s wife and her little one is Maxine.”

  She didn’t recognize Samantha Jameson, but Angel knew the name. She wasn’t prepared to entertain an award-winning journalist or the supermodel.

  And how should Angel introduce herself? As Billy’s former lover? Baby mama? She simply settled on, “I’m Angel.” She decided to let them draw their own conclusions.

  Gabby ran to greet the visitors, apparently awaken by the commotion or perhaps she’d never been asleep at all. She had to admit her baby was growing up. After all as her daughter argued earlier ‘kindergarteners do not take naps’.

  While the two women fussed over Gabby, Angel escaped to the kitchen to open the wine. And guzzle a glass before facing them again, to hell with the tea. She couldn’t find the wineglasses, which made her insanely happy. No wine glasses, no women. The utensil she used was more of a bottle opener than a corkscrew. Luckily Billy had a well-stocked fridge so she could offer cheese and sliced apples to go along with the wine, though a nice serving platter wasn’t to be had either. So she made due with a dinner plate and beer mugs. All those years of waitressing at O’Malley’s paid off as she balanced the items like a pro. Taking a deep breath she headed for the living room. “Sorry, I don’t know where Billy keeps the good china.”

  “Oh, honey, I’m sure he doesn’t have any,” said Hannah.

  Angel burst out laughing and the two women joined in.

  “What’s so funny?” Gabby asked.

  Hannah and Samantha filled Angel’s head with gossip until her head spun with names and events. She looked down at her mug. Empty. Oh, hell. She hoped they didn’t think she was a lush. Despite practically downing the wine Angel remained silent. What could she say to Hannah, a Supermodel and Samantha, a famous journalist turned author with a controversial bestseller about her time in Iraq? What possibly could a barmaid and pool hustler have in common with them? How could she ever compete?

  Yeah, but I can save a life. Could save a life. Would, once she started working as an ER nurse. Still, knowing Samantha’s husband was Billy’s main competition for the number one tight end spot left her uncomfortable. Angel didn’t know what to think. She expected the third degree from the two wives but they didn’t pry at all.

  “Excuse me, I have to go to the bathroom now,” stated Gabby.

  “She is a very polite child,” said Samantha when Gabby left the room.

  “We’re working on it.” She’d had to remind Gabby not to announce to the world when she needed to use the restroom. Geez.

  “She’s adorable. Billy is so proud of her,” said Hannah. “And I think he still carries a torch for her mother.”

  “Hannah…” Samantha said as a warning.

  “What? We women have to stick together. Besides if we left it up to Billy he’d just screw it up.”

  Angel played it down. “There’s nothing to screw up. This is just temporary. I’ll be looking for an apartment for us once Billy is comfortable with overnight visits.”

  “Honey, he may have lured you here with that nonsense, but he wants a second chance,” Hannah said.

  So much for not prying. Apparently their curiosity was only lying in wait until Gabby left the room. “It’s not a matter of a second chance.” Gabby, hurry up and get back in here. Save me. “Truthfully, I broke it off with him, so I’d be the one asking for a second chance.”

  “Well that explains a lot,” Samantha said.

  “Explains what?” asked Angel.

  “It’s not important.” Hannah threw a death glare at Samantha.

  “Hit on both of you, didn’t he?” she guessed. Both women remained silent, answering her question. She nodded her acceptance of this fact. She wasn’t even surprised. Of course he did, they were beautiful women.

  “Angel, it was a long time ago before we were married,” explained Samantha.

  “And nothing happened,” added Hannah. “Billy is what I call a Lost Boy.”

  “They are all Lost Boys until they meet the right woman,” said Samantha.

  “True,” said Hannah. “Now that we got THAT awkwardness out of the way we can concentrate on being friends.”

  Friends? That would be nice, really nice, but Angel was only living here as a temporary solution. She wasn’t a wife, she wasn’t even a girlfriend. Once she moved out, she’d have no reason to be associated with anyone from the team.

  “And you and Billy can focus on the here and now,” suggested Hannah.

  “But we’re not the same people who fell in love.”

  Samantha held up the mug, gazing into the red liquid. “Do we really change much from who we are as teenagers? We may be older, wiser, and bring our past hurts along with us, but essentially we are either trying to relive our youth or heal our wounds from them.”

  Ouch, but that did hit home. Angel had hurt Billy exactly where it would hurt the most. Billy hadn’t believed she’d break up with him over Vegas. So she lied, telling him she faked it. How careless she had been with his feelings, how cruel. But she had been hurting so deeply that it had felt good in the moment to see his pain.

  “And she would know.” Hannah took a sip of wine before continuing, “It took Ryan ten years to finally hook Samantha.”

  “Yes, but we were lucky.” Samantha placed the mug down and then looked directly at Angel. “Some people never have the opportunity for a second chance.”

  Angel’s gaze fell to Hannah’s baby, Maxine. Hadn’t Angel seen her pregnancy as a second chance with Billy? And even as that hope died, she still dreamed of him walking through the door of O’Malley’s in an Officer and Gentleman type of fashion. In way he had, minus the whole carrying her out in his arms thing. Life wasn’t like the movies. She remembered Hoss’ warning, ‘Don’t believe in fairy tales’.

  “Do you want to hold her?”

  Angel nodded. Had Hannah noticed the longing in Angel’s eyes? When Hannah slid the warm bundle into Angel’s arms she snuggled, cheek to cheek, inhaling the comforting scent babies naturally exuded. Angel had been so scared the first year of Gabby’s life she barely enjoyed a moment of it. Believing she’d be a single parent all her life, she never thought of having another baby. Gabby deserved all her mom’s love to replace an absent father. Holding Maxine stirred up Angel’s hormones. Maybe in a couple of years she’d ask Billy to be a sperm donor so Gabby could have a sibling. Maybe she’d even ask him to donate the old fashion way. Then a hope so small it only had a chance to flicker as a fleeting thought, them as a real family. Perhaps, this was their second chance. Was she going to squander it away because she was afraid?

  Gabby pirouetted back into the room. Upon noticing that her mom was now holding the baby, she stopped playing ballerina and ran over. “My turn,” she ordered.

  Angel shook her head. “She’s not a toy.”

  “If it’s okay with you, I’ll put Maxine on a pillow and help Gabby hold her.”

  “Pleazeeeeeeeeeee, Mommy.”

  “Ok, but you have to sit still. And not the sit in church still and then you fidget like a monkey.”

  “I’ll be as still as a church mouse.”

  Babies are cute, but five-year-olds are cuter. Then ag
ain Angel thought that about every stage of Gabby’s life. Still, she wished she could keep Gabby five forever. No matter, she’d always be her little girl, always be that girl full of life and wonder. Perhaps Samantha was right. Had Angel really changed from that sixteen-year-old girl who fell so hopelessly in love with Billy? Her heart answered, no you haven’t.

  Thrilled with the chance to hold the baby, Gabby buzzed with excitement. As promised when Hannah placed the pillow with Maxine on Gabby’s lap she sat rooted to her spot on the couch. That didn’t stop the talking of course, but Gabby’s sing song voice seemed to soothe the baby.

  At that moment she heard the door open and close. Billy strode in. “Where’s my girl—what the hell?”

  Before Angel could say anything Samantha came to the rescue. “Hannah and I thought we’d welcome Angel and Gabby to the family.”

  Heat bloomed on Angel’s cheeks. Would Billy think she’d given them the wrong impression? Being tongue-tied seemed to be a perpetual state when she was with Billy, except for when she was bitching at him.

  “Look Daddy, I’m holding a baby.” Gabby smiled proudly.

  Angel frowned, disturbed by Gabby seeking Billy’s approval. How many times over the years had Angel tried to win O’Malley’s affections? She’d move heaven and hell before she’d let her little girl be disappointed like that.

  “You’re such a big girl,” said Billy.

  Gabby beamed with pride. How did he know the exact right thing to say? Angel really needed a chill pill or another glass of wine. We bring our past hurts. Samantha’s words echoed in Angel’s mind. Billy wasn’t O’Malley. The sooner she got that through her thick skull the better off they’d all be.

  “Daddy, when can I have a baby sister?”

  Chapter Eleven

  As soon as I can get your mom in my bed, he thought. His gaze landed on Angel, who stared back with wide eyes and cheeks tinged pink. What was she thinking?