by J. H. Croix
“Did you miss me?”
I felt ridiculous because I’d seen her every day, but the days between the sparse nights felt like walking for days through the desert without water.
“Harper, the only time I don’t miss you is when you’re right beside me.”
My words came out rough, almost harsh sounding. But the feeling behind them was so powerful and so true, that’s all I had.
A smile flashed across her face. “It’s nice to know I’m not alone,” she whispered.
Then, she stepped closer and slid that wandering hand of hers down over my cock, the towel between her hand and me feeling rather insubstantial. “We can talk more later, right?” she asked, her voice breathy.
I didn’t answer. I crushed my lips to hers and forgot everything else. In a tangle of rough, messy kisses, I managed to get her clothes off, groaning when she was finally bare against me, her skin slightly chilled from being outside. I cupped my hand between her thighs and found her hot, slick and ready. She yanked my towel out of the way, just as I lifted her against me. Her legs curled reflexively around my waist as I straightened and started walking with her held high against me.
With her lips meandering down my neck, her nips and kisses electrifying me, she murmured, “Where are you going?”
“Bed,” I choked out when she shifted so her wet pussy slid against my cock with every step I took.
She lifted her head, her eyes colliding with mine. “What for?” she asked, her tongue darting out to lick her lips.
I doubted she meant to make me lose it, but she nearly did. The only thing that kept me from fucking her senseless standing right there was I didn’t want to rush.
“Because I’m not stopping until neither one of us can walk.”
We tumbled together onto my bed. Her legs never uncurled from around me. A subtle adjustment of my hips, and I sank home inside of her. Because that’s what she’d become to me—home.
Chapter 24
Harper
Alex pounded into me—fast and slow, rough and gentle—every stroke sending me higher and higher. Pleasure rolled through me in breakers, the build up to a crashing wave that sent me flying and left me spent and boneless. His body went rigid before he cried out and collapsed against me. With his head tucked into my neck, I could feel his breath gusting against my skin. His weight felt good because it reminded me in every cell of my body that he was there with me.
He started to pull away, and I hooked a foot around his calf and held him tight. “No. Don’t get up,” I mumbled against his skin.
His low chuckle rumbled through my body. “Wasn’t going anywhere. Just trying not to crush you.”
He lifted his head, his warm brown gaze meeting mine. Emotion rocked me and my chest tightened. I had to force myself to keep my eyes open and not shy away. I hadn’t really thought much about what I meant to say when I practically bolted to his apartment from the park. I’d only known I needed to see him and needed to somehow set this right. It didn’t change the fact I felt vulnerable as hell. Before I closed myself up behind walls and doors, I can’t say I’d actually experienced intimacy the way I did with Alex. More like a few comfortable, easy relationships with some chemistry thrown in the mix. With Alex, well the chemistry was so hot, it was like walking through flames, and none of it was easy because he mattered way too much.
I looked back at him and felt a smile tugging at the corners of my mouth. I reached up and sifted my fingers through his rumpled curls. He slid further to my side, just watching me, one corner of his mouth hitching in a grin. After a beat, his smile faded. “You know you don’t have to worry, right?”
I wasn’t precisely sure where he meant to go, but I trusted him completely, so I nodded.
He brushed my tangled hair away from my forehead with one hand, propping himself on his elbow. “You worry a lot. At least, I think you do. Of course, I understand why. I wouldn’t tell you not to worry because that’d be a bit bossy of me, but I’m just trying to say you needn’t worry with me.” He paused, his gaze darkening in intensity. “I’m not much for talking, but bloody hell, I got a little lecture from Liam and Ethan about talking to you, so here goes. I didn’t realize it was so important to let you know what was happening with the whole court thing. I figured it would be what it was, and I’d carry on. You were a bit standoffish, so I didn’t want to be pushy and the like.” He swallowed, and my heart squeezed. I could tell this wasn’t his most comfortable way of being, the talking, that is. “I should’ve said something anyway, but I was getting worried myself. You’re it for me, and I wasn’t so sure where I stood with you. I don’t like admitting it, but there you have it. If you hadn’t come here today, I’d have chased you down one way or another, but I’m damn glad you’re here.”
He leaned back, his eyes coasting over my face. “I suppose I should tell you I love you, eh?”
By this point, hot tears were pressing against my eyes and I thought my heart might explode right out of my chest. I couldn’t seem to talk, so I buried my face in his neck, breathing him in until the emotion rocking me had eased. “I love you too,” I mumbled against his skin.
I felt the rumble of his low chuckle again. “Well, good to know then. I didn’t expect…”
I whipped my head up. “I know you didn’t expect me to say it, but it doesn’t change the fact I feel it.”
That dark chocolate gaze of his held mine. For a beat, everything else fell away and it was just us and the shimmering intimacy I felt with him. He trailed his fingers through my hair and down my cheek. “Okay then,” he said gruffly.
Stanley chose that moment to meander into the bedroom and let out a gruff whine. Alex glanced over at him, arching a brow.
“Oh, he must be thirsty,” I said, shimmying out from under Alex.
He rolled away as I stood. I glanced back at him and a little zing hit me right in my core. Sweet hell. The man was dangerous. He laid there, his skin damp, his hair rumpled and every inch of his muscled body on display. I’d happily climb back on top of him and spend the rest of the day tangled up against him.
Stanley whined again, snapping me back to reality. I glanced around, realizing I was completely naked and had no desire to put on my sweat-dampened running clothes. As if he could read my mind, Alex stood and snagged a t-shirt from his dresser, tossing it my way as he tugged on a pair of sweatpants. His t-shirt hung halfway down my thighs, but it did the trick. I loved being wrapped in his scent too. I made my way into the kitchen to find he’d already filled a giant plastic bowl with water for Stanley who was lapping it up.
He grinned when I looked over at him. “Stanley drank Callie’s water too. I doubt she’ll appreciate that.”
He strolled past me to cart Callie’s small bowl beneath her window perch to the sink to refill it. Heat rolled through me again. Dear God. He shouldn’t be allowed to walk around without a shirt. His sweatpants hung low on his hips, revealing every inch of his muscled abs. Even his back was sexy, his muscles flexing as he walked back to return Callie’s bowl. I slipped into one of the kitchen chairs while he made coffee.
The morning passed in a lazy, warm blur while we enjoyed coffee together, and Alex surprised me with his cooking skills. He whipped up two omelets for us. I completely forgot it was a workday until my phone buzzed from where it was on the floor with my clothes.
Epilogue
Alex
The distant hum of the crowd barely penetrated my focus as I leapt and swatted the blur of black and white flying into the corner of the net. My deflection landed the ball near Ethan’s feet where he was in the thick of the opposing team. His reflexes lightning quick, he expertly nicked it out of reach from another player and passed it to Liam who set off a series of passes that ended with the ball in the goal on the far end of the pitch. Our offense was crazy-good at moving fast on the heels of a block on our end. Liam enjoyed capitalizing on changing the momentum rapidly. The ref’s whistle blew minutes later. Another game, another wi
n.
I snagged the towel tossed my way as I approached the bench and wiped my face with it before guzzling a bottle of water. The cacophony of the crowd became louder, although I knew the noise level hadn’t actually changed. Not much punctured my attention when we were in play. Precisely the reason I’d fallen in love with the game so many years ago. I was beyond lucky to be good enough to play professionally, but the initial draw had been the escape it offered from my life.
The difference for me now was the minute I finished playing, my mind spun ahead to when I’d see Harper. Home was Harper—heart, body and soul. There were a few minutes of the usual cheers amongst us before Liam was dragged aside with Coach for an impromptu interview. Here and there I had to do the same, although the local sports press here had seemed to figure out I was far less entertaining than Liam and a few other players.
The attention I’d brought upon myself by getting tangled up with Joe had faded. As of yesterday, my full year since the agreed upon plea deal had passed. I’d done my community service at a few different places and at the urging of Zoe, I’d even spent a chunk of that time at a local youth program for lads who’d scuffled with the law. I found out after the fact when I wondered aloud about it to Liam that he’d told Coach about it. Leave it to my chatty best mate. I’d actually enjoyed it and agreed to keep up with a few volunteer hours monthly.
All in all, it was bloody awesome to know I was done worrying about walking the straight and narrow. I’d never worried about staying out of trouble before, but all the way up until a few months ago, I’d worried about crossing paths with Joe. It had never happened and then I found out from Olivia he’d moved. Apparently, she’d taken it upon herself to track him down. According to her, he hid his tracks well online, but she’d discovered he’d moved out of state. That was the best thing for Harper, so I didn’t give a damn if he’d done it for his own self-preservation. The attention he’d drawn to himself hadn’t exactly helped him. He’d lost his job after a few more pieces in the news on raising awareness about sexual assault on college campuses. He might not have the criminal record to fit the crime he’d committed, but at least he’d paid somewhat of a price.
As for Harper…she was great. I still wasn’t sure what it was about that last time she saw Joe in the park, but the brief encounter seemed to have helped her kick off the last of the chains she’d been trailing behind her because of that. I loved that woman so damn much, I was half-crazy if I got worried about her, so it was bloody great to know she was doing so well. Oh, we weren’t perfect. Far from it. The first few months after she decided she’d stop treating me like fling material had a few bumps.
I had a stubborn streak and discovered hers rivaled mine. Stanley and Callie had circled each other for months until they finally got sick of us bouncing between our two flats. Callie eventually started sleeping curled up against Stanley’s chest and paced like a mad cat if he wasn’t there. I cajoled Harper into moving into my place, if only because I already had a kitty door for Callie. We were planning to find a bigger place though. Harper wanted Stanley to have space to run outside. Ever since Liam and Olivia moved into a house in one of Seattle’s lovely neighborhoods with flowers and ferns everywhere, Harper had been dragging me all over looking at houses. Honestly, all I wanted was to be with her, so it didn’t really bother me a whit where we lived.
I headed toward the locker room and encountered Harper and Olivia coming out of Coach’s office with Bentley. Bentley was Olivia and Liam’s little brown dog. He had special privileges to wait in Coach’s office. Stanley had been declared too big, although I doubted he’d care to come to our games.
Harper looked my way, her blue gaze locking with mine. I’d gotten used to it, but bloody hell. All she had to do was look at me, and it was like a bolt of lightning hit me smack in the chest. I ignored everything around me and shifted to a jog, catching her in my arms. She buried her face in my neck, dropping a few kisses there before lifting her head.
Her eyes were sparkling, and her smile was wide. “You won!”
I chuckled and held her high against me. “That we did.”
She wiggled against me, but I held tight. “Were you going somewhere?” I murmured.
Damn it felt good to hold her. She was strong and soft at once. Of course, my body, as usual, forgot I was drained from a tough match, every fiber attuning to her. Her cheeks flushed pink. “Um, no. But there’s people everywhere, and…” I didn’t doubt she could feel how hard I was. Maybe I should’ve cared, but I didn’t.
I shrugged and caught her lips in a kiss. Ethan’s voice came from behind. “Bloody hell, Alex. Did you forget there’s cameras behind us?”
Did I mention I forgot everything when it came to Harper? I truly did. The only press that had gotten any traction about me related to Harper. First, it was my scuffle with Joe. Then, it was that someone had finally stolen my heart. In the one and only interview I’d agreed to answer questions related to Harper, I’d told them she hadn’t stolen a thing. I’d had to win her heart.
I held her fast against me and threaded a hand into the silky fall of her hair. I allowed myself just one kiss and then eased her down, tucking her against my side as we walked down the hall.
***
Harper
My feet struck the pavement underneath in a rapid, even rhythm. My breath came in steady gusts, and I gloried in the subtle euphoria coursing through me. I loved running outside just when dawn was breaking, and I’d had the gift of it back for over a year now. Alex ran at my side. We rarely spoke when we ran. We’d gone from months of easy jogs to using our morning runs for training. As an elite pro soccer player, he stayed in peak condition, so these times with me were just more of the same. For me though, I was training for my first marathon since college, and I couldn’t wait.
Stanley flanked me on the other side, easily keeping pace with us. As we rounded the corner on the path where the trees thinned and a view of Puget Sound opened up, we slowed to a walk. I caught Alex’s hand and stopped. The air was misty and damp with the sun’s rays barely breaking through the clouds here and there. Alex looked down at me, his strong features stark in light of dawn. He arched a brow.
I reeled him closer and reached up, tracing along his jawline.
“What?” he asked, a slight smile curling the corners of his mouth.
His smiles were like little presents—rare enough I loved every one.
“Nothing. Just…this.”
I curled my hand around his nape and tugged him down just far enough to kiss him. He dipped to me easily. The moment my lips dusted against his, he took over. What I’d meant to be a little kiss turned hot and heavy in a flash with his tongue tangling against mine. By the time he lifted his head, I was on fire inside and out. Breathless, I glanced up to find him grinning.
I swatted him on the chest. “You just like showing me up. Race home?”
I didn’t give him a chance to answer and dashed off. I didn’t get far before I heard the sound of his feet pounding the ground behind me. In a flash, he caught me from behind and swung me into his arms. All I could do was laugh.
Thank you for reading Big Win! I hope you enjoyed Alex & Harper’s story. Don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter at http://jhcroixauthor.com/subscribe/ to get a free copy of another one of my books!
Up next is Out Of Bounds - Ethan is one naughty alpha who will bring you to your knees!
xoxo
JH Croix
Out Of Bounds
Brit Boys Sports Romance
By J.H. Croix
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Copyright © 2017 J.H. Croix
All rights reserved.
ISBN-13: 9781546562535
ISBN-10: 1546562532
&nb
sp; No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Out Of Bounds
Player meets virgin.
Game on.
I’m a player. In more ways than one.
I love women and they love me.
The second I lay eyes on Zoe, I know I want her.
Like mad.
She’s nothing but curves, but she hides them behind her oh-so-proper clothes.
That only makes me want her more—and I’m used to getting what I want.
Problem is…she’s supposed to get me out of a bit of a legal jam.
F*cking my attorney is a definite no-no.
Or so Zoe says.
She also says a few other things…
My prim, professional, smoking hot attorney is a virgin.
Game. Set. Match.
I will have her.
Only one thing I didn’t count on.
She might have me too.
*This is a steamy, full-length standalone sports romance with a guaranteed happily-ever-after. No cliffhangers. Nothing but steamy romance & HEA!
Chapter 1
Ethan
A fist glanced off the side of my chin, and I reflexively swung back. I shan’t say I meant to clock the guy right on the nose, but then I’d walked right into this fight. Literally. Blood streaked down the guy’s chin while he kept swinging, swearing a mile a minute while he was at it. I managed to dodge another fist and slip out of the midst of the scuffle. It was in the wee hours of the morning, and I’d meant to just skip out of the bar where I’d gone with a few mates from my football team. I hadn’t been paying much attention and, truth be told, I was a tad sloshed from a few too many beers. I wasn’t prone to drink much as a rule, so when I did, I tended to get fuzzy fast. Hence, I’d been making my way outside and didn’t even notice the guys in the middle of a heated argument.