The Game: A Contemporary Sports Romance

by Alexia Chase

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Dani

  Gunner leans against the backrest of the weight machine as his friends gather around him. It’s been three days since I’ve seen him, and it’s harder than I expected.

  Unlike his usual early morning lifting program, he doesn’t come in until the place is packed. When he finally showed up today, I tried to talk to him, and he pretended his music was too loud to hear me.

  Devin swings the door open and gives me a curt nod. Shit. Nothing like being snubbed by all the cool kids at once. This sucks total ass.

  I pivot on my heel and stomp to my office. The hairs of my ponytail swoosh around my shoulders. I’ll give you a hair toss and punch in the nads. Forget the, check my nails shit.

  I jerk up my water bottle and guzzle down half the contents as I imagine tarring his gorgeous abs in honey and blindfolding him. Then, I’d gently hand him a beehive and kick it to stir up the little devils. Yep, I’m totally rational.

  When Dillon steps up to my door, I give him a brief smile.

  “Hey, Dani.”

  “Hi.” Dillon’s a big teddy bear. He’s sweet and kind, but if you saw him on the street, you’d think he was going to squish you.

  “Would you be able to go over my form?”

  “Sure.” I nod and follow him to the Smith Cage. We’re about twenty feet from Gunner and his crew, and I turn my back to them and cross my arms. If we’re back in junior high, I can play that game, too.

  I study Dillon as he moves through his lifting positions and correct him when his form dips below recommended guidelines.

  “Lift your elbows up a little.” I touch the spot an inch above his elbow. His skin is covered in an elaborate cross tattoo.

  “Like this?” His eyes meet mine.

  Is he flirting with me? I don’t have time for this. I groan inwardly. Since when did I become the most popular girl in the room? “Yes.”

  “Thanks.” He closes his eyes, and rhythmically goes through the motions.

  The skin on my neck breaks out in goosebumps, leaving my hair standing on end. Shit. They’re staring at us. I fight the urge to twirl around and flip them the bird.

  “I thought you were dating Gunner.”

  My breath catches. How do I answer this? Everyone saw us together, so there’s no use denying it. “We went out, but it was nothing.”

  “I see.” The weights crash against the back of the machine. “I was hoping it wasn’t anything serious.”

  My mouth dries. Please, don’t ask me out. I don’t have the heart to tell him, no, but I also can’t date anyone else. My heart is broken, and my nerves are wound tight. “It wasn’t serious. We went out on a date. That’s it.”

  “Good.” He smiles. “I was worried when I heard him and Devin talking about going out this weekend while we’re out of town.”

  “Oh, yeah.” Don’t appear concerned. Fuck that. I cross my arms and rotate shoulders. “When was this, and what did they say?”

  “Sunday, before the game. They made plans to pick up some ladies, and…” He wrinkles his nose. “Get laid.”

  “They did?” My jaw is so tight I’m afraid my teeth are going to snap.

  “Yeah.” He leans forward. “Gunner mentioned picking up more than one woman.”

  Motherfucker. “I see.” He’s such a fucking liar. The whole thing was a total play to get in my pants. What a fucking cocksucker. My eyes sting, and I bite down hard on my tongue. The bitter taste of copper fills my mouth.

  My entire body is weak as I try to figure out how to get through the gym without breaking down in a heap. I can’t show vulnerability in a man’s world. If I do, I’m done.

  I try and catch my breath, but it comes out in a low whimper. I can’t stay here in Kansas City. I’m going to have to move. If any inkling of weakness is put out in the open, I’ll never get another job with a pro team.

  I straighten my shoulders. “Thanks for telling me. If he meant anything to me, I would have appreciated the information.” I place a hand on his upper arm. “You’re the best.”

  “Thanks, Dani.” He bites his bottom lip. “Would you be willing to…”

  Oh, shit, here it comes. My entire body tightens as if I’m preparing for another battle.

  “Put in a good word for me with Ashley?”

  Oh, thank God. All the adrenaline rushes out of me, leaving me weak as a ragdoll. I nod. “Sure.” My eyes narrow. The whole thing feels off to me. There’s something going on between them. Is he gauging my reaction to them being a couple?

  “Don’t be obvious about it. Just mention in passing what a good guy I am.”

  “Okay.” I chuckle and step back. Dillon’s not at all her type, but – who knows. Stranger things have happened. Although it would look like they were The Incredible Hulk and Thumbelina.

  “Thank you. She’s been helping me with meal planning, but I’m not sure if she’s noticed – noticed me.”

  “I’ll put in a good word.” I nod. The pulse in my head thumps against my temples. Shit. Not again. “I’ve got to go.” I weave my way through the crowded room.

  When I reach the exit, I can still feel eyes watching my every move, causing me to shudder. As I shove open the door, I twist and scan the back of the room. Gunner’s eyes are tiny slits as he rolls his neck in a circle.

  Damn it. I should have kissed Dillon. That would give him something to stew over. Motherfucker. Glaring like I did something wrong when he’s planning to hook up with some skank, or in this case, skank hoes. Probably planning some orgy. Asshole.

  It’s like an ice pick jammed between my ribs twisting and gnawing at the bones on its way to my heart.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Gunner

  The overpowering sound of rock music pounding through the speakers drowns out almost every conversation in the bar. Not that I want to talk to anyone. I grab the bottle of beer in front of me and drink the entire contents in one gulp.

  “Fuck, dude. You’re going to get sick.” Tony nudges me.

  “Don’t care.” I glare at him and motion to the waitress with a finger for another round.

  “Slow down.”

  “Fuck you.” It’s been the longest week of my life.

  One week ago, I was picking up Dani to go to my cousin’s wedding. I glimpse at the overhead clock. No. About now, she was on her knees, sucking my dick. Fuck her. Fuck everyone.

  The waitress comes over and cocks her hip to one side. The blue jeans look like they’ve been poured over her skin. “Hey, boys. What can I get for you?” She winks and bites her lower lip.

  “We’ll take another round.” I dig into my back pocket and toss down a fifty-dollar bill.

  “Thanks, man.” Devin nods.

  It was his idea to go out for the night, but he’s not made any move to hit up random chicks. Instead, he’s spent most of the night glued to his cellphone. Not that I care. I’m in no mood to hook up with anyone. Let alone talk to a woman.

  “Can I get you anything else?” She licks her thin red lips.

  “No, thanks.” I shake my head and turn away from her.

  “I’ll take your empty one.” She drawls and reaches out.

  “Sure.” When I hand her the bottle, her fingers run over the back of my hand. I jerk away and clasp my hands together. I’m not in the mood to be fucked with.

  “Thanks. Go on.” Jeremiah nods at her and motions for her to leave. His eyes are hard as steel. Obviously, he senses I’m not in the mood.

  “Dude, what are you doing here?” Tony leans his shoulder against the brick wall.

  “I thought it was pretty obvious. I’m getting drunk.”

  “And, getting laid.” Devin smarts off without glancing up from his phone.

  I roll my eyes. “That’s not happening. My dick is staying in my pants. It’s already caused me enough problems.”

  “Thank God,” Devin sighs and leans against the leather booth. “You know I was just talking shit the other day, right?”


  “Yes, dumbass.”

  “I don’t have the energy to pick up a bunch of chicks. I’m too damn old at this point.”

  Jeremiah snorts. “You’re full of shit. You’ve got the hots for Veronica, and you’re afraid Gunner will tell her you were fucking some nameless chick.”

  “Shut up. I don’t have the hots for Veronica.”

  I study Devin. Does he have feelings for my sister? The two of them have always been close, but neither one of them has ever let on it’s more than friendship.

  Would I care? Not at all. Devin’s a great guy. I’d love to see my sister with someone who treats her like a queen and worships my niece.

  Our conversation halts as the waitress brings back our drinks. This time, she’s quick to drop off our order and then slips off to the next booth, where her charm is on full display.

  “What are you going to do about Dani?” Tony asks.

  “Nothing.” I tilt the bottle to my lips and suck down a third of my beer. Tony’s right. I need to slow down, or I’ll play like shit on Sunday. Hangovers and epic vomit fests are for high school guys.

  “You need to tell her how you feel.” Tony tips his beer in my direction.

  “I don’t feel anything.” Fucking liar. Seeing her move through the gym and not being able to touch her or talk to her killed me. I never expected to get hit in the gut with jealousy over a woman. But seeing her touching Dillon made me livid. All I could see was black, the rage was so intense.

  “Right.” Jeremiah snorts. “That’s why you’ve been staring daggers at Dillon since Wednesday. I thought his head would spontaneously combust on the flight here. You do realize he’s your right tackle, and the only thing between you and a mouthful of broken teeth.”

  “Don’t remind me.” My shoulders sag. They’re right. I’m playing with fire walking out onto the field with so much anger toward Dillon. One wrong move and I could be out of the game for life.

  “You need to stake your claim. Don’t let him weasel in on your woman.” Tony arches an eyebrow and nods his head toward the bar.

  “She’s not mine.”

  “You need to fix that. Tell her how you feel. It’s obvious she’s hurting.”

  My heart skips a beat. Shit. They’re only saying what I want to hear. Don’t ask. Shit. I’m desperate. “How’s it obvious?”

  “The way she looks at you.” Tony stares at me like I’m dumb.

  “The vibe I’m getting is she wants to castrate me.”

  “See. You’ve noticed.”

  I wrinkle my nose and lip. “What?”

  Tony smacks me in the chest. “You’re stupid about women, but it shouldn’t be a surprise, you’ve obviously not gotten laid enough. She looks at you like she wants to kill you. If she didn’t have feelings for you, she wouldn’t care what you do.”

  Fuck. He’s got a point. When I saw her talking to Dillon, I wanted to rip his head off and stab her eyes out with a pair of scissors. Is there a better way to say ‘I love you’ than with blunt force trauma to the face? “Then, why did she break it off with me?”

  “When did she say it?”

  I drift back to the morning when she betrayed me by ripping my heart out and stomping on it with her bare feet. My hand was slipping between her legs. Everything was perfect – until Tony called. Asshole. “After you called.”

  “Dumbass. She probably thought you were mad about being late. And, you did say you were doing something stupid.”

  I study the bottles of alcohol lining the shelves above the bar. Is that why she broke up with me? Fuck. All the blood drains from my face. “I was pissed at myself for forgetting to set my alarm clock. I wasn’t upset with her at all. Hell, I’d choose…”

  Holy hell. I would choose her over football and walk away from everything. Shit. I thought it was the sex talking. Now, I know it without a doubt. I love Dani, and if she wants me to walk away from everything, I will. “What am I supposed to do?”

  “Start by tossing that beer out.” Tony grabs the bottle from my fingertips. “We need you at the top of your game. Then, tell Dillon to leave your lady alone. Once we get back home, lock that shit down once and for all.”

  “Fine.” I don’t see it going as smoothly as Tony implies, but I can begin with the easy shit. Dillon is standing at the bar talking to Clayton. I slide to the edge of the booth and stand.

  “Don’t punch him,” Devin cackles with his attention still glued to his cellphone.

  Cocksucker. “Shut up.” Like I can punch Dillon and survive to tell the story. He’s probably sixty pounds heavier than I am. More like seventy. I steady my shoulders and glare at Devin. Is he talking to my sister? That would explain a lot of things.

  So, not the point. I turn away from the booth and weave past a couple of tables. What the fuck am I going to do if Dillon says he and Dani are dating? Every muscle in my body aches as I walk over the wooden floor. The boards squeak under my weight.

  “Hey, Gunner.” Dillon nods. His expression remains serious as he studies me.

  “Bull, we need to talk.” I motion to Clayton to leave. He grabs his beer and moves away without a word. I don’t foresee too many people stepping between us if fists start flying. I won’t win the battle, but if he sucker punches me, I’ll fight fucking dirty if I need to.

  “Spill it.” He cracks his neck, and I question the soundness of my decision. The man is massive.

  “Dani’s mine.”

  “Doesn’t look like it.”

  “She is.” My teeth grind together. As dumb as it is, I’ll fight him for her.

  “If you care about her, why were you talking shit about hooking up with someone else. Dani’s a nice girl. She deserves better than that.”

  His words are like a sucker punch in the gut. “You’re right. She deserves better. We got in a fight. Or something.” I shrug. “I don’t know what happened, but she blew me off, and I got in my feelings.”

  “She blew you off?” The bar is lined with nostalgic alcohol signs and antique bottles.

  Fuck. It sucks to have to admit it. “Yes. She broke up with me, and I was too much of a pussy to ask what was wrong. Listen. Just give me the chance to talk to her before you make your move. If she doesn’t have feelings for me, then you’re free to ask her out.”

  The words kill a part of me, but he deserves that much respect. If she doesn’t want to see me anymore, I have no claim over her. How in the hell will I stomach seeing them together? One touch of her hand to his arm and I wanted to rip his fucking arm off and club him upside the head with it.

  “Dude.” He shakes his head. “I don’t like Dani. Not like that. She’s all yours.”

  “What?” I blink as the words sink into my thick skull. How do I end up reading everything wrong?

  “I’m only looking out for her like a friend. I was worried about her when I heard you and Devin talking about fucking a couple of women on the trip. I wanted to know if you were planning to cheat on her.”

  I swallow, and my heart slams into my throat. Fuck me, running. “Did you say something to her?”

  “Yeah.” He shrugs, and his face squishes together like he’s feeling sheepish for intruding and potentially causing more trouble between the two of us. Or, at least, that’s the story I want to tell myself. He’s my right tackle. I need to think the best of him, or I’m going to be laid flat out on my ass.

  “When?”

  “At the gym, when we were working out.”

  “About the other women?” God, this sucks. She’s never going to forgive me for that comment. Even if I had no intention of following through, it was a hateful thing to say.

  “Sure.” He rolls his neck and stares at the ceiling. “I shouldn’t have said anything. Now, she’s probably back home imagining you getting it on with a bunch of women.”

  “Great.” I clear my throat. “Don’t worry about it. I shouldn’t have said it in the first place. If her reason for breaking up with me was because she didn’t think I was serious about her, I proved
that by acting like an asshole. Damn, I’ve got some major groveling to do.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Dani

  A small box indicating an unread email flashes on my screen. My fingers still as I analyze at the words: Recruiter Interview Information.

  My teeth clench together as I try to swallow over the dryness in my mouth. God, I’m not ready for this.

  I hover over the email and click the mouse.

  Dear Ms. Vaughn,

  Thank you for your interest in our open team trainer position. The opportunity is for an immediate position. We’ve scheduled a video conference call for two-thirty tomorrow afternoon for the official interview.

  This is a competitive interviewing process, so don’t delay if you’re interested in pursuing a career with our professional team. However, we are genuinely impressed with your application and your father’s previous dedication to our team.

  We have no doubt you would fit in perfectly in our family.

  Sincerely,

  Zahira Randolph

  Team Recruiter

  I rub a hand over my face. Am I ready to pick up and move over a thousand miles away? Tears fill my eyes, and I fight the urge to crawl into a ball and weep uncontrollably.

  This is the first time I’ve ever considered moving away from my family and Ashley. I’ve always had them as a safety net. And, it sucks ass to use my dad to get a job.

  Under normal circumstances, I’d balk at the thought, but my need to get away from Gunner is stronger than my moral compass. I can’t see him every day.

  I click the attachment and print out the forms. The heat from the printer warms my fingertips. After I scan through them, I drop the document on the surface of my desk. I can’t do it.

  Panic wells in my chest and my stomach rolls. The intense desire to run until my legs give out is overwhelming. Surely, I can find somewhere in town I can work. There are gyms everywhere. Why would I need to leave the city?

  Fuck. Why? Because I’ve spent years dreaming of being a personal trainer for a professional football team. Not work at a city gym.