by Violet Paige
He had to shove me out the laundry door and into Linc’s truck. Linc had volunteered to drive me to the airport so we didn’t have to risk a loose-lipped driver telling someone he had driven Lexi Wilde from Luke Canton’s house.
It took a few minutes to get over the awkwardness of how Linc and I met when I was naked, but he was a nice guy. He was a slightly softer version of his brother. Still incredibly good looking and sexy. But I looked at him through different eyes now that I had Luke. Linc was playful and fun, while Luke maintained a brooding edge that I couldn’t help but find irresistible.
Jake was livid I had ignored him all day. I knew he would be waiting when I landed. Fuming. Glaring. Threatening.
I closed my eyes. It was worth it. Another night with Luke was worth anything I had to face when I was in Nashville. For two days I was able to be with him the way I’d always wanted to be with a man. Free. Exotic. Sensual.
I leaned into the leather first class seat. I had a mimosa in front of me, but I sipped it hesitantly. I needed every brain cell firing at full capacity when I faced Jake. He would throw every bit of ammunition he had. He would bring up the beginning. I knew he would.
I wondered what it would be like to show up in Nashville with Luke. One angry glare from him and Jake would back off. But Luke wasn’t my bodyguard. He couldn’t fight my battles. And I didn’t want him to know the secret Jake held over me. It could change everything. How Luke looked at me. How he felt.
I scooted the mimosa to the edge of the tray table. Ginger ale or a lime spritzer sounded better. I waved down the flight attendant and asked for another drink. In two hours I’d be on the ground.
Farther from Luke. Away from his bed. Out of reach of his arms.
I didn’t know if I was landing in the middle of the dream I had spent the past seven years creating, or running from the new one I wanted.
I slid the tortoise brown sunglasses over my eyes as I disembarked from the plane. I carried my guitar and heavy leather bag with me. I hoped it made me look like an up and comer. The way I used to look when I first started playing music.
As soon as I made it to baggage claim I realized my face was too recognizable to get away with that trick. There were a few reporters who staked out the baggage area regularly.
“Lexi! Lexi!”
I shielded my face, smiling as I side-stepped the men.
There was a firm grip on my elbow and I inhaled the strong scent of Jake’s cologne. He pecked me on the cheek.
“Good to see you, babe.”
He waved off the cameras before they took a few snaps.
“Hi.” I smiled sweetly.
“We need to talk.” His fingers dug deeper into my arm.
“There’s nothing to talk about.” I think it was my nonchalant attitude that set him off more.
He practically pushed me in the back of the Escalade.
“Ouch, Jake.” I rubbed my elbow.
The driver stepped out to help with my guitar.
I glared at my manager. “What’s your problem?”
“You,” he seethed. “You can’t decide you aren’t going to fly home. You can’t turn off your phone.” He leaned in next to me. “And you can’t be seen kissing that asshole Luke Canton.”
I laughed. “You need to get laid, Jake. You are way too uptight.”
“Oh, so you got some and now you’re happy and walking on a cloud.”
I looked out the window, ignoring him. “Maybe.”
“Damn it, Lex. You did sleep with that Neanderthal, didn’t you? Look.” He waited until we pulled away from the curb to start his full tirade. I knew this was coming. “I think I have this situation contained, but it could have been catastrophic. Do you remember what happened to Whitney Rivers? Should I remind you about her story?”
“That’s crazy.” My stomach did a flip.
“Crazy? She got pregnant. A single girl pregnant, singing country music? It was professional suicide. That girl had ten number one hits. Ten. And now she has a baby. She’s a walking country song. No man. A baby on her hip. No job.”
I rolled my eyes. “She could put out another song if she wanted to.”
He huffed. “You think she could? Last I checked no label would touch her. This isn’t rock. This isn’t pop. It’s fucking country music, Lex. She is finished. You know it. I know it.”
“Well, last I checked you can’t get pregnant from kissing. And in case you’re wondering that toilet seat thing is a rumor too,” I smarted off.
“This is a joke to you? Your brand is a fucking joke?” Jake tugged on his expensive cufflinks. “I made you, Lex and I can take you down faster than you can strut your little ass on stage.”
“You wouldn’t,” I countered.
“I would and I will if you try this kind of stunt again.”
He was bluffing. There was no way he’d ruin me and lose his golden ticket. It didn’t make sense.
“I think it’s tiring how you constantly threaten me, Jake. We both know it would ruin you too.” I rolled my eyes. “So, we’re stuck. We are fucking stuck. Let me live my life and you can live yours.”
His expression changed. There was a gleam in his eye. A twinkle I hadn’t seen in a long time. There was an uncomfortable nervousness in my belly. He was up to something.
“Jake?” I softened my tone.
“You had your few days of fun. I’m sure he was a good roll in the sheets. Hell, he should be. But trust me, he is dangerous.”
“He is not dangerous.” I didn’t know why I continued to argue with him.
“Oh yeah? What about the bar fights? The hotel suites he trashed from partying? The whores?” His eyes narrowed.
I couldn’t let Jake turn my time with Luke into something ugly. It wasn’t. I’d never seen those things Jake talked about.
I knew Luke. Yes, he had a rough exterior. But how else was he supposed to act when he had to be the strongest, toughest guy on the field? He was the kind of guy who drank too much. Let off too much steam. But Jake didn’t know there was vulnerability under Luke’s hardened exterior.
He was smart. He was funny.
He was protective. And he brought me back to life.
“Shut up, Jake,” I hissed.
“Don’t cross me, babe.”
I looked out the window. I had to find out what Jake had before he unleashed my past on the world. Because if there was one thing I knew, it was that the secret he had would strip away the fans. It would peel away the accolades. It would steal away the adoration from the press. I’d be left standing alone. Outcast. Shamed. Wrecked.
Twenty
Luke
The sweat dripped from my brow. “Again!” I yelled.
I lined up to take the snap. The ball landed in my hands and I counted back to throw to James. He had run the wrong route again. Damn it. Where was his head today? Up his ass?
“No!” I roared over the practice field. “Do it again.”
Three hours into practice and I refused to let the kid take a shower until he had this right. He had the skills. I had seen them. He was fast. He had the hands. He just needed to take some time to study the playbook.
James ran toward me. He was sweating harder than I was. He gasped, gripping his thighs. “I don’t know if I can keep going. The sun is a bitch today. Can we run it tomorrow? I’ll get it tomorrow. Swear.”
I looked up at the sky as if I hadn’t noticed it before now. “You’re a Warrior.” I smiled. “Warriors play in the Texas heat, son.”
He was the youngest guy out here. He couldn’t be the most out of shape. There were some guys close to thirty not huffing as much as he was. I remembered he wasn’t from the south. He had to get his conditioning under control. Texas was torture, but I wouldn’t live or play anywhere else.
He scowled at me, but took his position behind the line. “On my count,” I ordered. I called for the snap, waiting for him to run the fucking route the way we talked about.
If he wanted to be a blocker the rest o
f the season I could make that happen. I was feeling unusually generous and less dickish today. I’d give him one more chance.
And then I saw him. Wide open. Ready. He cut left then right, throwing the defender off track. My eyes darted to the opposite side of the field before I hurled the ball forward. It was a perfect spiral. Damn, it hit him square in the chest.
“That’s it.” I jogged toward him. “That’s fucking it.” I laughed.
I slapped the back of his helmet with a few taps when I got to him. “Now we can hit the showers.”
James fell to the ground with a thud. His legs and arms flailing in all directions. “Thank God,” he groaned.
I chuckled. “You said you wanted advice, so here it is. QBs throw to the same guys in the game who can catch during practice. There’s some confidence going into Sunday that he’s going to catch the ball. Get it out here and you get it on Sunday. Understand?”
He rolled to his side, beating the ground with his fist. I knew he was hurting. I had run him hard. His eyes were closed. The trainers tried to step in, but I waved them off. Out here was my domain.
“Got it.”
It was the first time I’d actually given him a useful tip. A small glimpse into how I made decisions. I didn’t share often.
I knew I’d throw it to him. If he ran the route like that on Sunday, he would be my first target. I never made promises. The game always changed. Players were injured. Someone always had an unexpected breakout game. The circumstances unfolded like a storm on the field. And I was the one who had to navigate everyone through the lightning and blasting rain. This was my fucking ship.
Today’s grind felt good. Working my body to the point of exhaustion was something I was built for. And I realized how different it was showing up to practice sober. I had more speed. My engines fired with precision.
I walked off the field toward the locker rooms.
The trainer was waiting next to the tub. “I have everything ready for you, Canton. Just like you like it.”
The cold water filled the tub. I could almost feel the water on my skin now. I threw my gear in the equipment bin and plunged one leg and then another into the water. Robbie tipped the bucket and a fresh avalanche of ice floated on top of the water.
I exhaled, letting my head rest on the hard surface behind my skull.
“How are you feeling?” the trainer asked.
“Good,” I grunted. I wanted to let the heat evaporate. I was on fire.
“Your neck isn’t bothering you?”
“No.” I had an injury last season that had irritated me off and on, but it never kept me out of a game. Robbie asked like clockwork.
Somewhere in that twisted head of his he wanted there to be something wrong. Something he could fix. There were plenty of guys on the team who could use help. I wasn’t one of them.
“I’ll check back with you in a few.”
“Hey, grab my phone for me.” I pointed to where it was lying on the top shelf in my locker.
“Here you go.” Robbie passed it over the ice cubes and walked off so I could soak in silence.
There was no one else in the rehab room with me. I pressed Alexa’s number and waited for her to answer.
“Hey.” Her voice was like pure heaven in my ear.
“How was the flight?”
She’d landed this morning and had been in Nashville for the entire day, but this was the first chance I had to call her. Team meeting followed by practice. After showers I had another meeting with Applewhite. It would be ten o’clock before I was at the ranch again.
“Good. Fine.” She sounded stiff.
“Is someone there?” I asked.
“I’m in the studio,” she explained.
“I thought you had a break.” The ice started to melt around me.
I had this mental image of her doing the same thing I was. Soaking her tight body in a marble tub. Her hair over her shoulders. Her tits bobbing on the water while the bubbles gathered at her curves. Fuck, it made me hard. I wanted to get in that tub with her and splash the water on her expensive tile floor until she was delirious from my cock pounding inside her. Hell, I had it bad for this girl.
“I sort of burned through it when I took that extra day with you,” she whispered.
“Any regrets?” I grinned. I already knew the fucking answer.
“No. None.”
“Good.” I saw Robbie on his way back. He was just on the other side of the glass window where the other guys were talking about practice. I had to make this quick. “I’ll try to call later. It will be late though.”
“That’s ok. I don’t know when we’re going to finish here.”
I wanted to ask her what she was working on. Was she recording the song she played for me last night in the living room? Had she approached Jake with the idea of expanding her audience? I thought it was a hell of an idea. If she could convert me to a fan, she could hook anyone.
Robbie’s hand was on the door. “Gotta go, baby.”
I tossed the phone on a dry towel folded on the bench.
“More ice?” he offered.
“Nah.” I shook him off. I hauled my large body from the tub. “I’ve got a meeting with Applewhite.”
Robbie handed another towel to me. I draped it around my hips and shuffled to the lockers. A few minutes later I was dressed and ready to run the playbook with Coach.
I headed up to his office with my notepad and the binder for this week’s game. It changed, depending on the opponent. There was a full team roster along with their most popular plays. There was no way to count on the injury report until minutes before the whistle blew. I made my decisions with the information I had.
I rapped on the outside of the door.
“Come on in,” he called.
We did this every week. Three days before the game we sat down and discussed the final strategy. Last time I was in this office he had handed my balls to me on a platter.
I spread my materials out on his desk. “I’ve got my first two drives set.”
We were past pretending we needed to small talk.
“Before we get to that I wanted to ask how things are going with Charlie.”
“You could have fucking warned me she didn’t have a dick.” I eyed him.
He laughed. “Yeah, she’s not a man. She’s the best in the business though. She keeps a low profile, but she has resurrected quite a few AFA careers. You can be sure of that.”
“I’m also sure she’s got her shit in my business.” I glared at him. I wasn’t giving up this fight.
“I’m counting on her to bring us a win.”
“I bring the wins,” I growled. Charlie might be good at her job, but she wasn’t the one the fans rooted for. They didn’t give a shit about a beautiful woman in a designer suit calling the shots on my personal life.
“It’s already working though. Had a call from McCade this morning. He liked the article on your donations to the children’s wing and was impressed with your visit to see the kids. He’s looking the other way right now and that’s what you want.”
“I’m only doing this because you threatened me with a league ban,” I snarled. “I didn’t get that girl pregnant. She played him for a complete fool and took him to the bank.”
As soon as I said it I thought about Alexa. I wondered what she would think if she knew there was some chick out there, claiming I was going to be a dad. And I couldn’t help but think about whether Alexa had gotten on a plane, carrying my child. That one moment of panic when I saw the broken condom had unfurled into dreams that I had planted my baby inside her. I didn’t know if it made me an asshole that it turned me on so much, or a real man who had found the right woman to give him a baby. I shook my head. It was too fucking confusing to sort out right now.
“I was trying to give you a compliment.” Coach pulled on his visor. “Let’s just forget it. I’ll let Charlie handle you where your image is concerned and you and I will focus on football.”
“I t
hink we need to do that.”
We agreed on one thing. Only one fucking thing.
Twenty-One
Alexa
My hands shook. My stomach flipped and tossed with nerves. I didn’t know how I was going to get through this. The doorbell rang and I jumped from the couch.
I rushed through the hallway, almost skating on the hardwoods to open the front door.
“Hey, girl.” Helena wrapped me in a hug. “Cute hair.”
“Thanks.” It was up in my standard ponytail.
I closed the door and set the alarm behind her. “Thank you for coming over. I didn’t think I could do this alone.”
“Sure thing. You know I’m a huge fan. It’s going to be fun.”
She followed me into my den. Her eyes widened when she saw the spread I had made.
“We’re going to eat all of this?”
“Ok, so I don’t know what people eat when they watch football. Did I overdo it?”
She plopped down on the couch. “Slightly overboard, but I don’t care. It looks amazing.” She scooped up some cheese dip on the end of a piece of toasted pita.
I sat next to her. My nerves were completely shot. “I don’t know if I can even watch.”
Helena picked up the remote and turned up the volume. “He’s going to be fine. He’s a big strong guy. Stop worrying. He does this all the time.”
I looked at the screen. Luke was throwing the ball on the sideline. My insides began to melt. He looked irresistible. I felt a sudden heaviness. I missed him terribly. More than I should.
“All I know is that guys play football and get concussions and have career-ending injuries. What if that happens to him? What if they have to haul him off on a stretcher?”
Helena rolled her eyes. “That’s not going to happen. Have you seen the guys paid to surround him? The Warriors’ offensive line is intense.”
I picked at the veggie tray. I was craving cucumbers. “I’m glad you came over. I promised him I’d watch, but I didn’t realize it was going to freak me out. And you know so much more about football than I do.”