Penalty: A Bad Boy Sports Romance (Alpha Second Chances Book 3)

by Rowena

  He’s not hurt, of course—it’s clear he’s just being funny or whatever he thinks passes as funny. His eyes are dancing with humor.

  “My girlfriend does actually know I’ve found a new friend,” he says, and before I can retort that I’m not his goddamned friend, he says, “In any case, I’m planning to break up with her.”

  I try really hard to ignore the leap of joy inside me.

  Boy, am I learning a lot of new ways your body can betray you. No matter what my brain says, other parts of me totally ignore it.

  I better learn how to control my reactions to him soon or I’ll be in big trouble in no time flat. Flat on my back too, most likely.

  “And?” I say, hoping I sound dismissive.

  “And I’ll be free soon. Beth and I had a mutually beneficial arrangement, but for me, it’s over now. Despite what you probably think, I’m not a cheater. And I certainly wouldn’t do that to someone I’m actually into, someone I care about.”

  He’s looking at me way too intently. Is he talking about her or me?

  “It’s time for a clean slate,” he finishes.

  Aw, man—his poor girlfriend. He’s so casual about it!

  I stop walking, bringing my fingers to my forehead and making him halt his steps to turn to me.

  “So let me get this straight—you’re saying now that you’ve found new prey—I mean a new challenge… crap, why can’t I get this right? Anyway, now that you’re pretending to be into me, you’re going to dump your girlfriend, who’s been with you for however long, just like that? You think this makes you more attractive the way you’re happy to jump from one to the next? I’m supposed to fall all over you and let you pick me up and run me back to your cave?”

  I think I actually see hurt on his face this time, and I feel a definite pang of regret, deepening with each passing second.

  I can’t handle the guilt—I can’t handle anything he handed me in the past minute or so, so I turn away from him to leave.

  Before I can get far and settle into a quickened gait, I feel a large warm hand on my arm.

  “Maddy,” Abe says in a way that immediately freezes my struggle against him.

  He uttered my name with such warmth, such familiarity, it utterly confuses me for a moment.

  Well, it confused my brain—my body is again in traitor mode, leaning toward him, melting for him, aching for more than just his large warm hand on my skinny arm.

  “You don’t get to call me Maddy!” I manage to say, outraged, finally returning to struggling against his spell while I pull my arm away from his delicious grip. “You don’t know me like that. Only friends and family get to call me Maddy.”

  It angers and frustrates me that he has this much power over me and I don’t know what to do about it!

  I feel so defenseless against him, and that kind of vulnerability is most definitely unwelcome.

  This is the kind of boy my mom warned me about—a guy like this could easily push me off track. I could end up delaying my goals and dreams because my eyes, my arms, my body can’t get enough of him.

  I’d be a slave to my emotions—my addiction to him—until he says it’s over, and then I’d be left to pick up the pieces and try to move on and make up for lost time while he journeys on, unimpeded.

  Men don’t let anyone stop them, my mom’s voice whispers in my head, reminding me.

  Girls usually change their plans for guys, hedging their bets, while men rarely take the same risk. In the end, the guys are still on the same path they meant to be on, with or without you.

  Abe’s about to say something to me while I fight getting trapped in his sea-green eyes again when his gaze suddenly breaks from mine.

  His eyes fixate on something behind me, off to the side.

  I can tell he’s working on masking his true reaction, and he does a damned good job because I certainly don’t expect to see a stunning blonde heading for us as I turn, her dark blue eyes almost murderous.

  I have no doubt this is Bethany, and I take a moment to appreciate her physical perfection.

  She has a symmetrical face, wide blue eyes, and a bow mouth painted red.

  Her makeup is flawless—enhancing her features without overwhelming her face, her long lashes framing her ocean-colored eyes beautifully.

  Her blond hair looks professionally styled—like she has a beauty team with her from the moment she wakes up.

  I wonder how long it actually takes her to get dressed?

  Takes me about twelve minutes to shower, moisturize, and get ready—if I don’t count doing my hair. I don’t have to bother with my hair the majority days anyway—I just brush the sides and top, maybe tighten the bun or twist a little. I try to deal with the entire length of my hair once a week or less.

  But this girl—she probably rivals my longest time, even without having as much hair.

  Her nails are in a clean French manicure, not a wrinkle to be seen on her clothes.

  For some stupid reason, my eyes scan her fingers for a ring.

  She’s wearing one, but on a finger that doesn’t matter.

  Her gaze locks on me for what feels like an uncomfortably long time, and though her impossibly straight, white teeth are bared in a smile, it doesn’t get anywhere near her eyes, making her look sort of demonic.

  “Hi!” she says brightly, her voice a contrast to her glaring eyes, and she breezes past me to grab for Abe, pulling his head to hers for a kiss.

  She makes weird, annoying sounds as she does it, and though I can see Abe trying to pull away, jealousy rages through me.

  When he finally disentangles himself from her, his face revealing distaste and disapproval of her actions, she misses it because she has already turned back to me and stuck her hand out.

  “I’m Beth,” she says. “Abe’s girlfriend.”

  As if it needed to be said. She very clearly just marked her territory. If she were a guy, it was like watching her whip her dick out and pee on her property.

  Heck, from the moment she was in my sight, giving me a death glare, her message was clear—he’s mine.

  “I’m Madison,” I say, taking her hand. “Look, I’ll leave you guys to it—I’ve gotta run to my next class.”

  “Definitely keep running, bitch,” I think I hear her say, but I choose to ignore it, blaming my sometimes overly active imagination.

  At this time, however, imagination is no match for the real thing—the slap of reality has quite a sting.

  Seeing Abe’s girl in the flesh puts things in perspective again.

  The girlfriend about to be dumped isn’t just an idea—she is very real, and I get the sense she’s nowhere near on the same page as Abe.

  That girl is not going to take Abe’s news very well—if he even goes through with it, and I don’t see why he would.

  She’s into him, she’s gorgeous, and she’ll cut a bitch.

  Abe might have a crazy effect on me, but no matter how much I want to be able to take him up on his offer, the last thing I need is to deal with a jilted girlfriend, one who is clearly the epitome of drama.

  Parts of me want to explore things with Abe, but I don’t think it’ll be worth it.

  My peace of mind is worth a whole lot more; those two can keep each other.

  I can’t help throwing a glance back at Abe, and his light green eyes are intently on me, sending a thrill shooting throughout my entire body, zapping around until it hits my core.

  4

  Abraham

  The kiss has forced my hand.

  I watch Madison take off, willing my feet to stay in place and not go after her because Bethany has become a problem that needs to be dealt with immediately.

  I’ll return to Madison soon enough.

  I make sure to inform Maddy of this with my eyes as she turns back to look at me, and I’m pretty sure she got the message.

  I am coming for her.

  “What the hell was that about?” I ask, finally concentrating on the quietly seething blonde in front of
me.

  “What?” Beth responds innocently, widening her eyes for effect. “I can’t say hi to my boyfriend? You have something against PDA now? You didn’t have an issue slapping my ass in front of your teammates last week, or… ”

  “I get it,” I say, holding up a hand. “You’re right—you did nothing wrong; nothing out of the ordinary, at least. But you were definitely sending Maddy a message… ”

  “‘Maddy,’ huh? Hmm. You know I thought I heard you call her that on my way to you. You guys must’ve been pretty close back in the day or something. It seemed you were more than ‘just neighbors’ with the body language.”

  “Is that why you felt compelled to tell her to keep running?”

  She sort of chuckles then shrugs, obviously not regretting a thing.

  “Well, I meant it, babe. She’s clearly into you and I am fully within my rights to tell her to back the fuck up off my man.”

  She smiles sweetly, and it’s so weird to see the juxtaposition of her vulgar words and her pretty face sporting an innocent smile.

  “About that… ” I begin.

  “Oh, no you don’t,” she says in a slightly different voice, her face seeming to darken as her smile drops. “You better not be about to say what I think you are.”

  “I’m afraid I am. Look, Bethany, I think we’ve run our course… ”

  “Don’t you dare go there, Abraham Stone. Don’t you dare try to break up with me.”

  “There’s just nowhere else for us to go… ”

  “You’re telling me you got an eyeful of some ugly transfer and you just have to have her? You’re throwing away everything we’ve done, everything we’ve been to each other for some nerdy skank?”

  “She’s not ugly, and she’s not a skank. Come on, now—don’t be petty.”

  “How do you know she’s not a skank? Anyway, look,” she begins in a quieter voice, “if you just need to get it out of your system because of some unfinished business between you two from back then, then go ahead and sleep with the hideous whore. It’s not like I haven’t let you fuck someone else before.”

  “It’s not just that, Bethany… ”

  “Okay, so what the hell else is making you want to turn your back on me without a second glance? What the heck did I do to you to make you so cold? You know I’ve been making anniversary plans and everything! We’ve been together nearly three years and you want to throw it all away because of… what? How long have you actually known this girl? What is she really to you?”

  Everything, comes to my mind, but I obviously can’t say that.

  I consider how to answer her question, then decide it’s none of her business.

  Why bother explaining my brief history with Madison? Beth wouldn’t understand.

  Mostly, it’s not something I want to share with Bethany—it’s precious to me, and letting Beth in on it would be like offering up a lamb to a lion.

  Besides, it doesn’t really matter in the long run, does it?

  Even if I hadn’t met Maddy back then, I probably still would have been drawn to her. I think.

  In any case, it’s too late; I’m pretty sure our destinies are entwined. Something in me refuses to give up on Maddy now that she’s within my reach again; it would be a losing battle against my feelings for Madison Mills.

  Besides, what would I actually say to Beth? That I basically stalked Maddy when she and I were teens?

  Maddy doesn’t even have a clue who I am, and here I am, upping my stalking game.

  “Beth, I’m sorry—I’m really not sure how to explain this other than to say you and I aren’t right for each other, and I think you know that. Madison aside, you and I never really connected the way we should have. I always knew we’d break up someday; I just didn’t know it would come sooner than later. I figured by the time we were about to graduate… ”

  “Wait,” she says in a dangerously low voice, “so all this time, you knew how committed I was, and you couldn’t tell me this before? You didn’t even give me a chance to consider someone else who might take me more seriously? How selfish can you be? How dare you treat me like this? You’re gonna fucking pay, Kevin Abraham Stone unless you take it back!”

  Okay, her voice is starting to carry far and wide, shrill and yet so very clear. And I hate that she just used my full name.

  I don’t need this conversation to be a part of the gossip tomorrow, word for word, so I put my hands on her upper arms in a calming gesture.

  It seems to work; I can feel her breathing slowing back down.

  “Abe,” she says softer, “I can be very understanding about this. You don’t have to do anything rash. How about we take a little break without it being openly official? You can be discreet in your exploration of… whatever it is you think you feel for this Maddy. But you and me… we have too much history. Just don’t be so impulsive, okay? We both have reputations to preserve.”

  I had been lulled into briefly considering her perfectly reasonable proposition, but her last words get my attention.

  It’s not so much what she said but how she said it.

  On the surface, her words sound innocent enough, but I know Beth well enough to sense a threat.

  “What do you mean?” I ask.

  Her face is still relaxed out of her offensive mode, and she practically purrs while molesting my chest briefly before she says, “Who knows what could happen to your promising career? I would hate to see things ruined for you because horrible rumors start making rounds. You don’t want to appear as a liability of any sort at this crucial time, and I can help you keep a clean image.” She smiles widely. “Come on, Abe. We just make sense.”

  Her smile matches the rest of her face, but it’s a different sort of good humor. No friendliness exists there, no goodwill or charity. Her face reflects the restrained excitement of someone playing a favorite game.

  I feel like, for the first time, despite her fake smile, I’m starting to see who she truly is.

  Clear as if the words were written on her perfect chest comes the message, This girl is evil.

  “Thanks for making it even easier, Bethany,” I say calmly. “I was actually starting to feel bad. You know, you managed to present a reasonable argument—until you threatened me.”

  I lean closer to her, my voice even quieter.

  “You don’t get to threaten me, and you don’t get to threaten Madison. We’re through, Bethany, and you better stay away from both of us.”

  “Or else what?” Bethany says in another voice I’m not sure I’ve heard before.

  I think a chill actually runs through me, almost like some sick sense of foreboding.

  What is this girl actually capable of?

  Still, I need to be clear I won’t put up with any of her games.

  “Don’t find out,” I say gravely.

  I don’t have any particular retaliation plans in mind since, despite the flashes of crazy, I think Bethany is capable of putting on her big girl panties and processing this whole thing like an adult.

  She just needs a bit of time.

  With the anniversary date cancelled, I have no guilt about hanging out with my buds at a bar instead of pretending to have something to celebrate with Bethany on Saturday.

  But in a way, Bethany’s still with me as I fill in my old teammate and close friend, Cody.

  Word will get around by Monday for sure, and I want him to hear it from me.

  “You’re shitting me,” Cody says, his blue eyes way too happy about the news I just delivered. Or maybe he just finds it hilarious. “You dumped Bethany McGrath? Does she know this?”

  “Yes. We’re done for good.”

  He shakes his head. “How did she take it?”

  “Not well. She pretty much threatened to ruin my career before it starts.”

  “Well, not to be a downer, but from what I’ve heard about her, you probably shouldn’t underestimate her.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “She’s hot as fuck, but that girl’s a me
an piece of work. The last thing you want to do is be on her bad side. So I’ve heard,” he repeats. “All I’m saying is there’s a bite to her bark. Don’t take threats from her lightly.”

  “And you’re just telling me this now? You should have warned me a long time ago! I thought you were my friend!”

  “Well, you didn’t tell me she outright threatened you before. Look, I knew you weren’t taking things seriously with her. Why the hell would I stop you from hitting that? And as long as you were with her, you were safe. I just figured she’d get a clue someday and leave you for some other promising football star. Or basketball star. Or baseball star… ”

  “Well, to be honest, I guess I was kind of hoping that would happen too—that I wouldn’t have to be the one to drop the bomb, and she’d latch onto someone with more potential or more established. But she was making me look bad in front of Maddy… ”

  “Okay, back the fuck up. Who’s Maddy? You been holding out on me, buddy? I thought I was your friend! How come I’m just now hearing about her? Have you guys been seeing each other long?”

  “It’s not like that,” I say softly. “Not yet, anyway. Maddy’s new this year—a transfer. I’ve just got my eye on her, and I need to be a free agent to go after her.”

  “So what’s so special about this Maddy that you had to drop Bethany fucking McGrath like a hot potato? By the way, you know she might go for a team gangbang for spite, right? We’re your buds, but… ”

  “I actually don’t give a rat’s ass, which will probably just piss her off more. Besides, she’s too careful about her image; I doubt she’ll risk her reputation like that.”

  Beth wasn’t a virgin when I met her, but she also seemed to be fairly conservative with her goodies.

  Then again, she has her whole act down to a science, so I’m not actually sure if it’s something she’d do, but I truly don’t give a damn. We’re through.

  Not being able to guess whether or not she’d do as Cody suggested is just yet another indication of how little I knew her, and it underscores I made the right decision.

  Cody’s eyebrows come together.

  “Anyway, so about this Maddy—she on the dance team or something? She’s some heiress? Looks like a lingerie model?”