Player's Challenge

by Koko Brown

  “Shut it. One of us has to be an adult.” He pulled her into his arms and ran his lips along her jawline to her lips. “This time, this is going to work.”

  His declaration caused sparks to run along Gemma’s skin and she melted into him. She wanted this…him…as much as she needed her daily cup of Illy coffee.

  “I hope so,” she confessed, “I’m not ready to go back to how we were before.”

  “Where’s your bedroom?”

  “Upstairs to the right.”

  He slid his hands under her butt and lifted her. “I’m going to make love to you until your eyes cross. Afterward, we’re going to pack up whatever you need to function.”

  “Does that mean I’m not staying?”

  “Or I can move in here with you?”

  “A two-bedroom flat in Camden or a three-thousand square foot penthouse with a view of London…hmm,” Gemma tapped her chin with her index finger. “I rather like your place…and you.”

  Their gazes locked and held, and then Devin pressed his forehead against hers. “I rather like you too, babe.” He cocked his head. “I like you a lot,” he said.

  It wasn’t the three words Gemma desperately wanted to hear, but it still made her melt all the same. “Take me upstairs.” She pushed her fingers into his hair and pulled him down for a kiss. They came together so fiercely their teeth clicked.

  Getting to her bedroom wasn’t easy. Devin stumbled a few times or fell against the wall, but they eventually tumbled into bed without any broken bones.

  They rolled across the mattress in a snarl of arms and legs, the cool sheets a startling contrast to his burning touch. Feeling a spurt of inspiration, Gemma threaded her legs with his and pushed with her upper body. He accommodated her by rolling onto his back, which turned into an opportunity to divest her of the rest of her clothing. He tugged at her bra until it snapped open, and her breasts spilled into his hands. He plumped and squeezed one before taking a chocolate-tipped nipple in his mouth. Gemma cried out at the hot lash of his tongue, her belly quivering in excitement.

  The sudden realization that she’d almost lost this…him…goaded her into an odd urgency. Hands shaking, she helped him tug off his jeans and boxer briefs. She palmed his cock and his hips shot from the bed.

  “Christ!” he grunted, thrusting into her hand. “Protection is in the back jean pocket. Hurry! I don’t think I can hang on.”

  One hand still holding his shaft, Gemma plucked the condom from his pocket and ripped into it. She couldn’t wait much longer either. His fingers were tweaking her nipples and driving her bloody crazy.

  With a little bit of handling and patience, she rolled the condom over him then rose onto her knees. He sat up as well and slid his hands to her lower back to give her support. Beyond wet, she sank down with ease.

  “Gemma,” he grunted. “You feel so good.” He wrapped his arms around her, and pulled her closer. “If you have second thoughts about us, say so now. I’m a one-woman man and I’m never letting go.”

  Cupping his face, Gemma slowly rocked against him. His green gaze met hers and her heart contracted like someone reached inside and squeezed it.

  “I’m on board because there’s never been anyone else, but you.”

  Eyes locked with hers, he grasped her hips, helping to control her rhythm. “I’ve never deserved you. From here on out, I’m going to prove I do.”

  His commitment was like kindling to her libido. Gemma slid her hands down to his buttocks and squeezed. “How about starting right now?”

  Devin’s eyes darkened with lust, his pupils dilating. “I’m going to prove it to you over and over and over again.”

  Each time he uttered ‘over’, he jerked her hips against him. Gemma’s eyes lost focus and oxygen wedged in her lungs. “Harder,” she gasped as she gripped his buttocks, her fingers digging into his firm flesh.

  “I aim to please…” Nostrils flaring, veins bulging in his arms, he rocked in and out of her wet pussy with demanding strokes. His cock made her damn near come with each stroke, yet left her wanting more.

  Gemma’s head fell back onto her shoulders. He was going above and beyond just proving a point. He was showing her he owned her and always would.

  “My pussy,” he ground out as he moved her over him like some malleable sex doll, “Mine, mine, mine.”

  Breathing harshly, their bodies slippery with sweat, they clung to each other.

  “I’m so close,” she panted. With pleasure knotting her core, she slipped her hand between her legs and touched her clit, increasing the friction.

  “Lean back…I want to see,” he demanded.

  Head reeling, Gemma planted her free hand on the bed.

  “So beautiful.”

  While he watched, she watched him. The force of his drives and the possessive look in his dark gaze instantly triggered her orgasm. A few more strokes and a convulsive shudder racked his powerful body.

  “Gemma,” he snarled. “Squeeze me. Bite down on my cock. It’ll push me over.”

  Body quaking with the aftershocks of a mind-numbing orgasm, Gemma struggled to comply. She squeezed her inner walls and an agonized groan erupted from his lips as he came.

  Breathing heavily, face damp with sweat, he fell back onto the bed, bringing her with him. In need of a breather, and thinking he was about to give her some respite, if only briefly, she gasped when he rolled to the right, settling her beneath him. The swelling shaft nudged her cleft.

  “You’re insatiable,” she groaned.

  “Got to prove myself.”

  Smiling like a lunatic, eyes slightly crossed, Gemma loved his initiative.

  Chapter Eleven

  “Everything’s going to be fine.” Gemma rubbed her hand between Devin’s shoulder blades, relieving a knot of pressure. In less than two hours, he’d have his hands full with more than a hundred kids who’d signed up for his soccer camp. Devin stopped gnawing on the pad of his thumb to look down at her.

  “Do I look like I’m shaking in my boots?”

  “Quaking.” Gemma smiled. “But it’s perfectly normal. Your name and reputation are on the line. This is your second soccer camp in a matter of weeks, and this time, you’re in the driver seat.”

  Devin started chewing what was left of the hangnail attached to his thumb. What had he gotten himself into? Personally, he hated being labeled a role model just because he was a professional athlete. He just wanted to play the game and be left alone once he walked off the pitch.

  Today, he would be more role model than athlete by hosting the Inaugural Devin Spencer Developmental Soccer Camp.

  Bollocks! What if he said the wrong thing and ruined someone’s dream? Or didn’t provide the right guidance and messed up someone’s form? Even worse, what if none of the players and coaches he’d invited showed up? He couldn’t handle more than a hundred rambunctious kids all alone could he?

  Devin planted his hands on his hips and tipped forward. If he was going to lose his breakfast, he didn’t want to sully the brand new orange and blue kit. He and Gemma spent more than two hours designing the uniform to be worn by all the campers. Who knew picking out the right shade of blue would be so time consuming?

  Gemma smacked his hand out of his mouth. “You’ll be fine, lover boy.”

  In spite of the anxiety curdling his belly, the interjection of his pet name and the way her voice dipped an octave, made Devin’s balls tighten. If they weren’t in public, with four grounds men putting the finishing touches on the field’s chalk lines, he would’ve stolen a kiss.

  “Just go out there and do what you do best. We’ll handle the rest.”

  “Who’s we?” Devin asked but already knew the answer since she’d briefed him a half-a-dozen times in the past week. At the moment, the information evaded him.

  “Burt Merrier, from our Paris office, will handle the rotation of stations. Inga and Wilhelm are in charge of registration. Yvonne and I are handling the parents and the media.”

  “Is her hu
sband coming?” Devin couldn’t remember if he’d personally invited the captain of Roma F.C. or not.

  “If Yvonne will be here, so will Paolo,” Gemma reassured. “The pair is a package deal. Speaking of the devil…”

  Devin followed the direction of Gemma’s gaze. Roma F.C’s, Paolo Saito, and his wife Yvonne Floyd-Saito, were walking across the pitch, toward them. They both carried a young child. Both of them were attractive on their own, but together they made a beautiful pair. Devin glanced down at Gemma. She was practically panting after the Brazilian Japanese football player.

  Blindsided by jealousy, Devin quipped, “Put your tongue back in your mouth. You’re taken remember.”

  Crossing her arms under her ample bosom, she pursed her lips. “A girl can’t look?”

  “Not my girl.”

  Smiling, Gemma ducked her head, as she toed the chalked line. She was so unused to his possessive nature she always blushed or bashfully looked away. He didn’t care. He wanted to remind her every day she belonged to him.

  “I hope you’re ready to wrangle a hundred crumb snatchers,” Yvonne chortled. Her daughter reached for Gemma, who without hesitation, plucked her from her mother’s arms. The child’s mop of silky black curls and chocolate-chip colored skin rolled around baby fat made him want to reach out and tickle her. She’d taken the best attributes of both her parents: her father’s almond-shaped eyes and her mother’s dark complexion and dimples.

  What would his and Gemma’s child look like? Would he or she have his blond hair and her chocolate brown eyes? Or her dark hair and his green eyes? Devin internally shrugged. They could all look like trolls as long as Gemma was the mother.

  Devin frowned. He’d never thought about fatherhood before. Avoided it at all costs, even considered a vasectomy after a particular scare. But watching her rock the toddler in her arms, he was happy he’d changed his mind. As the thought sunk home, the idea of marriage and kids didn’t scare him or give him cold feet. Gemma was his, and if he needed to make things more permanent to keep her by his side, he would.

  “Everything is a green light,” Gemma said, pulling Devin’s thoughts from white weddings and mortgaged receptions. “Devin is fired up and ready to show these kids a good time.”

  Devin grew two inches. She’d always been his cheerleader, had his back and believed in him when very few had.

  “Paolo’s a little nervous,” Yvonne confessed to her husband’s chagrin. He looked as if he wanted to strangle her. “This is his first clinic.”

  Aiming to put the other man at ease, Devin stretched out his hand. “Thank you for coming. I couldn’t have done this without you guys’ help.”

  Paolo visibly relaxed as he returned Devin’s handshake. He even smiled and Devin had to admit the bloke was bloody handsome.

  “No worries,” Paulo said. “Like you, I’ve been thoroughly briefed and Yvonne gave me the drills you sent over. She made me go over them a dozen times.” He touched his temple. “So they’re pretty much cemented.” He suddenly turned toward the practice field. “Can you tell me where my station will be?”

  Devin’s eyes lit up. The pitch was his comfort zone. “Sure thing,” he said, leading the way onto the field. At the last minute, he glanced over his shoulder at Gemma, and reaped two thumbs up.

  Heart thundering, Devin pushed ring shopping to the top of his priorities.

  Hosting a soccer camp for a hundred kids looked much better on paper than in reality, Devin mused several hours later. There were a few rough patches from shirt sizes to two prominent football coaches bowing out at the last minute, but by mid-morning, most of the kinks had been ironed out and forgotten. By lunch, Devin had finally relaxed and started enjoying himself.

  As he sat down on the field, a little boy of about eight sidled up next to him with his boxed lunch. Hurriedly, he tore into the blue box and inspected the contents.

  “Everything looks so good doesn’t it, mate?”

  Nodding, Devin chuckled. Despite being so small, the boy came off like a forty-year-old man in a child’s body. “I hope so. My favorite deli catered the lunch.”

  Eyes glued to his every move, the boy watched him pull out his sandwich and unwrap it. Before he took his first bite, the child did the same, mimicking his every move.

  At closer inspection, Devin suddenly realized the boy had remained in his group through three rotations.

  “The name’s Phillip, right.”

  The boy’s blue-gray eyes lit up. “Yes, Mr. Spencer.”

  “Call me, Devin.”

  The boy’s mouth dropped open as if he’d suggested he go rob a bank. Unable to resist, he reached out and tapped the boy’s shoulder. “Why didn’t you move to the other sessions?”

  Instead of answering him, the boy’s cheeks filled with color. Feeling like a heel, Devin took a bite of his sandwich. Maybe if he filled his mouth, he wouldn’t keep stuffing his foot in it.

  “You’re my favorite player. I want to grow up and become a goalie just like you, only better.”

  Devin almost choked on his sandwich. “You’re going to be better than me?”

  The boy nodded. “How can I be better than you, if I don’t study all your moves?”

  “Makes sense,” Devin acquiesced. “You’re a very clever lad.”

  “My Mum says the same thing.” The boy shrugged his narrow shoulders. “I don’t pay her any mind ’cause she’s my mum and all. She has to say those things to lift me up. Coming from you, I think I’ll start believing her.”

  Devin reached out and ruffled the kid’s russet curls. Not only was he smart, he was rather cocky. If his dream was to become a professional athlete, he was already off to a good start.

  Devin made sure every child had a ride home and he personally thanked every player and coach for their time. As a result, he was the last to leave the practice field. Filled with excitement, chomping at the bit to tell him the good news, Gemma shouted at him as he walked toward them.

  “What’s up thirty-million euro man?”

  Devin frowned. Gemma smiled. She had a few pet names for him. This wasn’t one of them.

  “Edmonton accepted your terms and then some.”

  Devin scratched the back of his head. “Did you just say thirty million?”

  Gemma exchanged a knowing glance with Yvonne. Her boss had said he would be incredulous of their ability to close such a lucrative deal. Not many women worked in the industry, so she not only had to fight tooth and nail for clients, but also bust a few balls to secure the most lucrative contracts in the business.

  “You heard right. Thirty million big ones.”

  “That’s three times what I’m making now with Croydon. How many years am I locked in? How many loans?”

  “Three years, first refusal of any potential loans to another team, and a quarter of a million in incentives at the end of every season.”

  In spite of the golden egg he’d just received, Devin remained quiet, triggering Gemma’s Spidey senses. She wasn’t alone.

  “If you don’t like the deal we can haggle some more,” Yvonne offered.

  Devin shook his head. “The deal is perfect. I’m just in shock. I didn’t think I’d actually get what I wanted.”

  “You got it and then some,” Yvonne confirmed. “I believe a celebration is in order. Are you free tonight?”

  Devin nodded.

  “Good. Then we’ll meet you two later for dinner and a lot of bubbly. How does the Wake sound? I heard their food is out of this world.”

  “The Wake is lovely,” Gemma said. “Dev…I…I ate there just last week.” Gemma gulped. She’d almost ratted them out. Since they’d dined in the restaurant’s private VIP area, not even the media had learned of their date night.

  Yvonne shifted her daughter to her other hip. “When we get the girls settled, I’ll call and give you the details regarding the limo.”

  “Limo?” Devin asked.

  “When we celebrate we tend to get completely soaked.”

 
“Drenched,” Paolo said, backing his wife up. He leaned forward with his hand blocking his wife’s view. “After having two children in the three years we’ve been married, she tends to live it up when she’s not carrying a bun in the oven. I allow it because I want four more running around the house.”

  “I’m done with having kids,” Yvonne groused, to which Paolo mumbled something to the tone of ‘but you like making them’ earning him a none-too-gentle punch in the arm. “Are you still living in that charming townhouse in Camden?”

  Not for the past month. “I haven’t moved.”

  “Good. We’ll have the limo pick you two up.” Yvonne stepped forward arm out. “Great day, kiddo. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of it.”

  Devin hugged Yvonne back as he stretched his arm toward Paolo, giving the mid-fielder a fist pound. “Thank you two for everything.”

  “Do you guys need a ride back to your hotel?” To keep their secret safe, she’d insisted they drive separately.

  Yvonne shook her head. “Thank you, but no. Our driver should be waiting for us.”

  After saying their goodbyes, her boss and her family meandered toward the entrance. Gemma followed suit, but not before she tweaked Devin’s arm. His lack of enthusiasm was beginning to get to her. As soon as they were alone, she would ask him about it.

  ***

  To maintain appearances and keep their secret intact, Gemma showered and changed at her place. This ended up working in her favor since she hadn’t transferred her entire wardrobe to Devin’s place, and most of her after-five pieces remained at her former address.

  The Wave’s dress code was stringent. No jeans, no flip-flops and definitely no sneakers. Holding two Michelin stars and located in posh Notting Hill, the restaurant boasted a hushed, moneyed feel. Men were required to wear blazers and it wasn’t too uncommon to see a woman in a cocktail dress. Even she’d settled on a blush-colored strapless dress with a short pleated skirt and matching half-boot stilettos.

  Dressy but not over the top, the dress showed off her best assets—her long legs and ample bosom. Even better, Devin had never seen her in it, so she couldn’t wait for his reaction. For some reason, her dressing up turned him on just as much as her birthday suit.