The day Sydney waltzed into my life and stole my heart changed my life forever. I am no longer the man I was before. While my bedroom habits haven’t changed much, Sydney has gotten used to my dominance and respects my need to have that order in my life. She loves it. I know she gets off on it, especially when I’m out of town for away games.
“I hope she likes it,” Scully says to me. He shakes my hand, and I get up from his chair, keeping my fingers crossed that Sydney will approve of my choice.
“I hope so, too.”
He walks me out to the front counter, where I expect to see Sydney, but the chair I left her in is vacant. No one is here except for the receptionist. I stroll up to the counter and wait for her to glance up at me.
“Have you seen the dark-haired woman that I came in with?”
“Uh-huh.” She points her finger at one of the closed doors of the shop. “She’s in room number two with Tate.”
“What for?” I am so damn confused.
“Getting inked, of course,” she says as if I asked her a dumb question.
“She wants you to wait out here for her. You can have a seat over there.” She tilts her head toward a row of chairs along the long window that looks out over the busy South Philly street.
“Okay. Thanks.”
Scully slaps a hand on my back and shakes my hand with the other. “All right, brother. I have another appointment. Come back and see me when you’re ready for you next one.”
I shake his hand. “Will do. Thanks again.”
I take a seat and flip through my cell phone as I wait. Sydney doesn’t have any tats, and I never got the impression she wanted one. She’s full of surprises.
After what feels like an hour, the door opens, and Sydney walks out, laughing with a middle-aged balding man with ink from his neck down to his knuckles. She seems so calm and at ease as if she frequents tattoo parlors all the time.
“Hey, big guy.” She holds out her cheek for me to give her a kiss, and I do. “I have a surprise for you.”
“I hope it’s the kind I like.”
She winks. “You know it.”
“Well, let me see,” I say, impatient.
“Not in here.” Sydney rubs her hand up my forearm. “When we get in the Hummer, I’ll show you. Calm down, my love.”
Clutching her hand, I drag her out the door, yelling thank you to Tate and the receptionist. At some point, I will be back. Hopefully, the next one will be to commemorate our team making it into the playoffs. Things are looking up this season now that Alex is engaged to Coach and no longer moping around like he did the last half of our season.
And I sorted out my shit. All it had taken was opening up to Sydney about my past before I was able to let go of it. The dark part of me is still there, and will probably never leave, but with Sydney, I found acceptance and the light I needed in my life.
By the time we get into the Hummer and shut the door, I’m already clawing at her shirt. “Take this off,” I command.
“How do you know where I got my tattoo? For all you know, it’s on my toe.”
I shake my head, smiling. “Because I know you well enough to know that you would want it out of sight so that your parents don’t have a stroke.”
Meeting Sydney’s family was interesting, to say the least. They are the most uppity people I have ever met, and the complete opposite of the type of people I know. The only time I ever meet elitists like that is when we’re dealing with sports team owners or investors. It was no surprise Sydney was such a brat when we first met. But that rebellious side of her was always there, desperate to break free from the mold.
Sydney removes her shirt, like the good, girl I taught her to be. With the dark tint on my windows, no one can see inside. I lick my lips as her breasts come spilling out of a lacy black bra. Deep breath, I tell myself. As much as I want to stick my dick between her tits, I cannot get hard when I want to have a serious conversation with Sydney about my tattoo.
I grip the seam of my t-shirt and tug it over my head, giving Sydney a good look at my chest. While I take my shirt off around her most of the time, she says it never gets old after I hid from her for so long. She’s become obsessed with touching my muscles and running her hands over my tattoos. I like when she does it, something I never would have expected before I met her.
Turning, so my back is facing her, I stare out the window and wait for her reaction. It doesn’t take long before she squeals with excitement.
“Oh, my God, Carter. You…”
As soon as I hear her crying, I shift in my seat, so I can look into her eyes, hold her hand, and tell her it’s okay. “Don’t cry, babe.” I stroke her skin with my thumb, trying to soothe her.
“You have my name on your back. Our names. And…” She chokes on her words.
“Inside the last puzzle piece, I had Scully draw an infinity symbol. You see how the words break up some of the lines?”
“Yes. On the top part of the loop, it says, She’s the light,” Sydney says, tracing it with her finger, “and at the bottom of the loop, to my darkness. It’s in script writing, just like the tat on your wrist.”
“Beneath the symbol, I had both of our names interlinked to show the two of us joining together.”
“I love it.” She wipes her tears with the back of her hand. “You made a perfect choice.”
Some people may think I’m crazy to get the name of the woman I have been with for less than a year inked on me, but I know what I have with Sydney is permanent.
I take her hand in mine and gaze into her big, blue eyes. “You were the missing piece to the puzzle. I was always searching for something, but I never knew what I was looking for until I found you.”
“I feel the same way, big guy. I love you.” Her voice softens to a whisper.
“I love you, too, Princess. You’re the best chance I’ve ever taken.” I rub her jaw with my thumb and bring her face closer to mine.
Our lips brush against each other, and her breath sends a chill through my body. This is what love feels like. And this is what it feels like to have a woman’s love.
“I can already tell by the look in your eye that you’re about to throw me in the backseat and fuck me senseless. But, before you do that, let me show you what I got for you.”
She unhooks her bra, the left strap sliding down her shoulder. Taking her good old time, I get impatient, and zone in on her tits, losing my train of thought. Sydney was right about wanting to plow her in the backseat. That’s happening the minute we finish our discussion. Once she lifts her arm up, I take in the semi colon tattoo she got inked on her ribcage.
“What does it mean?” I ask, confused.
“Since I’m a writer, I wanted to get something that was meaningful to me. But I also wanted it to represent our relationship. Do you understand the purpose of a semi colon?”
“Yeah, I guess. To break up two sentences, right?”
“A semi colon is used when a sentence could end but it doesn’t. It’s also the symbol of our love. It’s a reminder that our love could have ended with my stupid games and that by changing my ways, I found something real with you. I might be the light to your darkness, but you are my voice of reason, the one person who keeps me on track. You have shown me there are more important things in life than money and power. I had both of those things, and I wasn’t happy. Your love healed me, Carter, made me complete.”
“You did the same for me, baby. I was a broken shell of a man before I met you.”
“You were never broken. All you needed was someone you could be yourself with, someone who loves every part of you.”
I press my lips to hers, taking in her sweet scent as I slip my tongue into her mouth. There’s so much passion behind the kiss, animalistic and intense like me, yet soft and sweet like Sydney. She rocked my world the day she had become a permanent fixture in my life. Because of this woman, I am whole again, no longer the shell I once was. But we saved each other, healed each other with our love. There’s no on
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Jameson
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Available July 12th
If you liked Donovan, keep reading for a free excerpt of Jameson, the fourth book in the Face-Off series.
As the man-of-honor in the most anticipated sports wedding of the year, Jameson O’Connor has a problem. He needs a date. But his best friend, who is also the bride-to-be, keeps scaring them away. On accident.
Through the course of planning the bridal shower, shopping for wedding gowns, and hosting bachelorette parties, Jameson finally meets a girl who can hang. Or so he thinks. When he meets Regan Turner at a basketball game, Jameson has no idea she’s hockey royalty.
Because of her upbringing, Regan is through with hockey players and wants no part of them. She assumes Jameson is an athlete because of the company he keeps. But she likes him. And Jameson is persistent. He won’t take no for an answer.
Jameson likes the sporty blonde, wears her down with his charms, and Regan will be his date to the wedding. No matter how much convincing it takes to get her there.
Jameson Excerpt
Jameson
The hum of screaming fans fills the Wells Fargo Center as their cheers bring the event center to life. I get a certain high from being in this environment. But I also feel for Charlie. It reminds me of when she played college basketball for Villanova. Everything I had done or sacrificed to get her there we’d planned around Charlie making it pro until her dream was no longer a reality.
With our lives so intertwined, Charlie’s loss and the pain of her injury were also mine. The day I lifted her off the court and carried her in my arms was one of the most painful experiences of our lives. Luckily, Charlie had met Mickey Donoghue, the famous sports agent. He took her under his wing and gave her the career she has today. She healed on the outside, but I know the trauma of her injury will never go away, like a phantom pain that claws inside her chest.
I feel it, too. As I watch Charlie gaze out onto the basketball court, she sucks in a deep breath, her eyes focused on the players. I’m the only one who knows her well enough to understand the glaze in her eyes and the way she clears her throat to keep herself from breaking down. Basketball will always be her first love. Even Alex hasn’t picked up on her mannerisms. He doesn’t know Charlie the way I do.
“What do you think of the seats?” Charlie asks. “We got the hook up this time. I picked them just for you. Alex wanted a box, but I talked him out of it.”
I nod, unable to take my eyes off the game. “Good call.”
The Chicago Bulls are making the Sixers look like a high school basketball team, and I don’t want to miss a second of it. Charlie hooked us up with courtside seats for the Sixers-Bulls game. It doesn’t get much better than this. And having Rico come along with us only makes it that much sweeter.
“Are you trying to butter me up after a long day of doing women crap?”
We spent the entire day shopping for Charlie’s wedding gown and doing girly things that I don’t even understand. Being the man-of-honor in Charlie’s wedding is still such a foreign concept to me. I have no idea what I’m supposed to do. Instead, I wait for the girls to tell me what’s next on the list.
“Maybe.” I glance over and see Charlie wink at me.
“Jamie,” Rico yells, tugging on my Michael Jordan jersey and diverting my attention. Yup, we wore our Jordan gear to a Sixers game. I guess we should be lucky we made it to our seats without being harassed. Philadelphia sports fans are a little…passionate, to say the least.
“Hey, buddy, stop messing with MJ,” I joke, rubbing my knuckles into his hair. “This is a collector’s item.”
Vintage Jordan is not easy to replace. Charlie already yelled at me for wearing it tonight. In retrospect, it was a bonehead move, but I got overly excited when I plucked it from my jersey collection.
As far as children are concerned, Rico is the closest to a son Charlie, or I will have anytime soon. Even with Alex and Charlie getting married, none of us are ready for a family yet. With how much Charlie travels for work and Alex for hockey, who would even watch the kid? Me? I’m good with Rico. He’s old enough to take care of himself, but I can give him back to his mother after we’re done hanging out.
“I’m hungry. Can we go get a soda and nachos?” Rico peeks up at me from beneath a chunk of dark brown hair, flashing those puppy dog eyes that make it impossible to say no.
“You just ate a hot dog, kiddo.”
“That was a snack. I want nachos. You promised I could get whatever I want since it’s Coach’s special day.”
I sigh, staring up at the game clock hanging from the ceiling at center court.
There are a few minutes left at the end of the fourth quarter. Even though there’s no way the Bulls could blow this lead, I don’t want to miss the final buzzer. Charlie brought everyone here tonight to celebrate her engagement to Alex Parker, which also added a few of his teammates and their girlfriends to the usual cast.
Kennedy is pregnant and looks about ready to pop any day now. Then, there’s Sydney, who says cock more than normal. I’ve never met a woman as vulgar until Sydney. She’s a romance author, so I guess that’s expected when she writes smutty stories all day.
Both girls provide their own form of entertainment when we’re out shopping for Charlie’s wedding gown. When I’m ready to gouge my eyes out, Sydney usually cracks a joke about monster cocks. Because it’s so uncommon to see a man in a bridal shop, I have a lot of women hitting on me until Charlie pretends I’m the groom and scares them. She always chases girls away.
At the rate she’s going, I will never find a date to the wedding. Any girl I introduce to Charlie has found an excuse to retreat after she gives them her motherly interrogation. No one is good enough for my Jamie, she would say. That’s also what I had told Charlie anytime I met a guy she was interested in dating. I suppose I acted the same way when Alex first showed up in our lives.
Like Alex, Tyler Kane and Carter Donovan mostly give me a hard time for being the man-of-honor. They laugh every chance they get. Sydney keeps telling me that I have to help her make penis cakes for the bachelorette party. That only gets more of a rise out of the guys who take so much joy in pissing me off. I can’t help it my best friend is a girl. Charlie is the only family I have left. She’s like a sister to me.
Now, we’re all one big happy family and part of the wedding party. True to Charlie style, she wanted to commemorate her engagement at a Bulls game. She’s not your average girl. But that’s one of the things I love about her. Plus, she spared me the task of planning an engagement party. Win-win for everyone.
“Jamie,” Rico whines, pulling on my arm to get my attention. “Please. I’m a growing boy. I need to eat.”
He’s too damn cute to resist. “Okay. Let’s go.” I turn to Charlie and tell her we’ll be back, hoping we can hurry up before the game ends.
Following Rico up the steps, we jog up to the top level, and sprint toward the concession stands. With the Sixers getting their asses handed to them, the halls are starting to crowd. People shuffle about, knocking into us as we pass. Once we reach the counter, I shake my head, disappointed. They either sold most of the food or put it away to close up for the night.
“I don’t think they have any more nachos, kiddo. Would you settle for soda and another hot dog?”
Rico folds his arm over his chest and pouts. “But I want nachos.”
“They’re all out.” I clamp my hand down on his shoulder and move him in front of me, so he can get a better look at what they have left. “You can have a hot dog, pretzel, or ice cream. Which one do you want?”
“I think I can help you out,” a woman says from behind me.
At first, I don’t realize she’s talking to me. Not until she strokes my arm with her fingers, commanding my attention. Her touch sends a chill through me. She smells sweet, like honey, and good enough to eat.
I spin around, holding onto Rico. The girl smiles so wide that it reaches up to her bright, blue eyes. Tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear, she moves closer to me. She has a girl next-door look about her, but she’s also sporty, like Charlie, and is in full basketball gear, looking as though she just stepped off the court.
A girl that reminds me of Charlie is never a bad thing. She’s the coolest girl I have ever known. Despite being subpar at most sports, I’ve always loved them and continue to coach youth basketball with Charlie.
Beautiful beyond words, I have trouble coming up with anything decent to say as I take her in, thinking of all the dirty things I’d like to do with her mouth. Her lips part and her breath hitches. She’s about to say something when Rico breaks the silence.
“Nachos!” Rico demands.
I laugh, as does the girl in front of me. Her laughter is soft and feminine and like music to my ears.
“I can help you out with your nacho problem.” She holds out her hand for me to shake. And I do, mostly because I want an excuse to touch her. “I’m Regan, and you are…” She waits for me to stop acting like a moron and get my shit together.
“Jameson O’Connor. Jamie. My friends call me Jamie.” Wow! Real smooth, dude.
“I like Jameson better,” she says, grinning. “The name suits you.”
“Thanks.” I stuff my hands into my jean pockets. “Regan isn’t a name you hear very often either.”
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