X's and O's (A SECOND CHANCE SPORTS ROMANCE)

by Nikki Wild

  At the last moment, I caught it and kept running as I cradled it in my arms. I reached the end zone fifty steps later.

  That’s what wins games, I thought.

  The next two hours, I pushed myself, trying to play my best and mesh with the other players on the team. By the end of practice, sweat covered my body.

  I hit the showers with the other players. Jason and most of the others were excitedly talking about going to the strip club like they’d never been to one before.

  “You ready for some fun?” Jason asked.

  He stood in front of me, already dressed in loose fitting khaki pants and a white Polo shirt, the collar turned up. Had no one told him high school ended years ago?

  “I’m not going,” I said, sitting on a bench in my underwear.

  “Why not?” he asked.

  I bent down to slip one sock on.

  “Not interested. I’ve got something else going on tonight.”

  “Bullshit,” Jason said. “We’ve got to have team unity. You can come with us for an hour or three.”

  “Look, man, I’m just not interested, okay?”

  After I got my second sock on, I stared up at him.

  “I’m the leader in the locker room, and I say you need to come with us.”

  “Coach doesn’t even want us hitting the strip clubs,” I protested.

  “Damn,” Rodriguez, a defensive lineman, said. “He’s gonna tattle to Coach.”

  Jason stared at me, shaking his head.

  “I’m not a fucking rat,” I said.

  “Great. Prove you’re part of this team,” Jason said. “Come with us.”

  He better not mean that literally.

  “I’ll come for an hour, but I have other stuff going on tonight.”

  “Damn straight you’ll come with us,” he said, turning around. “Go Browns!”

  “Go Browns!” the others repeated, sounding like Spartan warriors instead of football players.

  I finished dressing while listening to the others get psyched up about paying beautiful women to pay attention to them.

  Fucking idiots.

  Haley’s face flashed in my mind and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t push it away. I’d been thinking about her all day. Wondering what she’d been doing with her life, wondering if she ever thought of me. Wondering if she’d married Billy. I didn’t see a ring on her finger, so that was a good sign. Didn’t mean she didn’t have someone waiting at home, though.

  I couldn’t wait to see her again tomorrow and ask her all these questions that had been lingering in my head for years. I’d been so quick to leave her and I’d lived to regret it. In fact, if I was honest with myself, I’d admit that Jessica was just a lame attempt at distracting myself from Haley’s memory. I thought if I married her, I’d be able to move on.

  That plan had failed in more ways than one.

  And now, Haley was back in my life. That had to mean something, right?

  The bass thumped through the club and the strippers sashayed around us as our group sat in the VIP section of Gentleman Johnny’s. I stared up on stage at a young blonde grinding to the beat of the music against the pole.

  “We’re the best!” Jason yelled as the rest of the team cheered and carried on like college kids.

  I loved the female body, but to me a strip club was like going into a chicken restaurant where they paraded a lot of fine birds and dishes in front of you then said you couldn’t eat any of them.

  A big fucking tease.

  They looked nice, but they would not go all the way. Well, some of them would for the right amount of money. Jason had a few on speed dial, I’d heard. Who knew if that was true? Most of these guys were all talk.

  When the song playing ended, the stage went dark, causing most of my teammates to boo and carry on like fucking animals. I sat at a table by myself at the edge of our group.

  I watched as Destiny, the blonde, picked up all the money from the stage. She appeared less sexual and more practical, even with her bare breasts and bikini bottoms barely covering her pussy.

  “It’s that time, fellas,” Jason said as he stood up and raised his arms into the air.

  The others cheered as if he had discovered the secret to the meaning of life and was about to share it with them. I watched as a few more of the ladies walked over and joined our group.

  One of them, a red head with a nice, natural pair of breasts, stopped in front of my table. She looked down at me with a smile on her glitter-filled face. Her nipples were hard and sparkly.

  “Hey, baby. You want a special dance?” she cooed.

  “Nah, I’m good with just watching, thank you,” I said, staring at her face.

  “You sure, baby? I can make you feel good and win your next game. Don’t you know I’m lucky?”

  I chuckled.

  “I’m sure you are, but I’m good for now. Thanks, again,” I said.

  “Okay. If you change your mind, I’ll probably be with someone else, but let me know. I can come back for someone like you.”

  She bent forward and hugged me as I sat, her naked breasts pressing against my shirt. I patted her bare back a few times then smiled as she stood up and walked away.

  One by one, the others made their way to the cramped, curtained rooms in the back for private lap dances. I stood up and walked toward the exit, hoping none of them would notice.

  Outside, the setting sun hit my eyes. I raised my hand to my forehead to block it as I glanced around at all the expensive vehicles in the parking lot.

  The bass faded behind me as I walked to my Maserati.

  Behind the steering wheel, I smiled as I started up the car. Chopin poured from the speakers, sounding crystal clear.

  As I drove to my parents’ restaurant, I thought about Haley. In fact, I still hadn’t stopped thinking about her since I’d practically barreled into her. It was as if the events from ten years ago had just happened last week and everything inside of me felt prickly and raw. I couldn’t make sense of it, really, and the only thing I did know was that it was all because of her.

  Even after all of these years, I’d never met another girl like her. Jessica didn’t even come close.

  I’d lost way too much money divorcing her, but I loved not having her in my life anymore. She still tried to push her way in, upset even after I had given her half-a-million dollars to go away.

  The sign for Chez Louie appeared down the street. My parents had almost lost their business two years earlier. Sales still weren’t great, but I made sure they had enough money to keep going.

  After I signed my first two-year contract with the Browns, I finally had the money to help them. My father had refused my help repeatedly and he continued to do so, but my mother was good at convincing him it was for the best.

  He hated that I went into football rather than follow in his footsteps. He had dreams of me becoming a successful business man, just like him. But that was his dream, not mine.

  Growing up, his business was booming. Then during the recession, things turned tough for them. I stepped up and helped, as much as they would let me.

  I parked in a reserved spot near the front of the restaurant. I saw only a few other vehicles parked outside, which worried me.

  As soon as I walked through the front door, my mother greeted me with a smile. Her face lit up even more when she realized it was me. I held out my arms as she hurried over and hugged me.

  “Hey, Ma. How are you doing?”

  “Better now that you’re here,” she said with a smile.

  “It’s good to see you, Ma. How’s business? The parking lot looks a little empty.”

  “Not too good,” she frowned.

  “What’s the problem? You didn’t stop the advertising again, did you?”

  “Your father did. He said we don’t need it if we can’t pay for it ourselves.”

  “I don’t mind helping you two out, you know that. You have to spend money to make money.”

  “I know that, but y
ou know your father. He thinks he can fix anything all by himself.”

  “Where is he? You remember I’m bringing someone here for dinner tomorrow night, right?” I’d called her earlier to make sure she reserved a table for us, but by the emptiness of the place now, I probably shouldn’t worry about it.

  “Not another floozy, Toby. Please, tell me she’s not like the last woman, that one you married. She took you for every penny you have, you poor thing.”

  I sighed, already frustrated with her. It would get worse when I got around to seeing my father.

  “Jessica didn’t take all my money. We got a divorce. It’s over, Ma. You need to let it go.”

  “Don’t say that woman’s foul name around me.”

  “Okay, fine. Anyway, you already know the woman I’m bringing tomorrow. Remember Haley?”

  “Haley? From high school?”

  “That’s her. I ran into her the other day,” I smiled to myself at the vision of her again. “She’s a photographer now. We’re going to do some photos and have dinner to catch up.”

  “Well, that’s just lovely! I always liked her. I never did understand why you two split up.”

  “Please don’t talk about that tomorrow, okay, Ma? Listen, I’ll call the newspaper and radio station and start the ads up again tomorrow. Things will pick up again. Just don’t tell Pops I’m paying for it, okay?”

  “You know I don’t tell him everything,” she said. “I had you late in life. It wasn’t like I was born yesterday.”

  “Let’s go see him. Is he in the back?”

  “He’s in the office. I’ll walk back with you.”

  “At least you’ll be able to concentrate on my dinner tomorrow night,” I said as I followed her to the back of the restaurant.

  As we walked past the kitchen and prep area to the storage room in the very back, I wished they would retire early and enjoy the rest of their lives in peace. They drove me crazy, but I loved them.

  “Hey, Pops,” I said as we stopped outside the open doorway of the tiny office.

  Reruns of some celebrity cooking show played on the screen. He sat up and paused the show before spinning around in his swivel chair. I tilted my head back and stared at him.

  “Toby, my boy. What are you doing here?”

  “Don’t either of you listen to anything I say? I told you and Ma I’m bringing someone to dinner tomorrow. I need you to make it special, okay Pops?”

  “Every meal I cook is special,” he said defensively.

  My mother wandered back to the front of the restaurant.

  “I know, but this woman might be special.”

  “Oh? You’re wearing a condom, right? You don’t need children at your age. They ruin your life.”

  I smiled and bit my tongue, letting him rant. His words of regret had affected me at a young age, but in some ways it had made me stronger, more self-reliant.

  While I wouldn’t say my father’s lack of love and affection had guaranteed my success in professional football, he’d had some effect.

  “You know me, Pops. No children. I’m all about football.”

  “And you’re making damn good money. I’m proud of you.”

  I thought about bringing up the advertising and lecturing him on not accepting financial help from me, but it wasn’t worth it. An alarm on my phone buzzed.

  “Busy man has a call,” my dad said.

  “No, but I need to go. Take care of Ma, okay Dad?”

  “I always do,” he winked, then went back to his television show on the computer.

  On the way out of the restaurant, I stopped and gave my mother a kiss on the forehead. A minute later, I was in the Maserati, racing across the city as I made my way home for the evening.

  Five

  Haley

  When he rolled up in his fancy car, I wondered if I had made a mistake agreeing to have dinner with him. The exclusive photo shoot would be nice, but I still had to talk to him. Sure, I was intrigued at what he might have to say, but I couldn’t ignore the fluttering in my stomach every time I’d thought about him today.

  As I walked out of the building, he stepped out and walked over to the passenger side, opening the door for me. My heart raced as I saw him. He looked even more handsome than the other day, if that was even possible. He actually had clothes on this time and he still couldn’t manage to pull off looking normal. His movie-star grin lit up his ruggedly handsome face and every muscle that flexed and rippled in his arms as he moved made me want to reach out and run my fingers along them.

  Gone was the lanky eighteen year-old boy I’d fallen in love with.

  Toby Jenkins was now a fully grown man. And my, how he’d grown.

  “You’re on time,” I said, smiling.

  “It’s been a crazy day, but I made it.”

  I got in the passenger seat. He closed the door behind me then walked back around to the other side. The smell of leather and wealth permeated the inside of the car.

  “And off we go,” he said, pressing a button to start the engine.

  “What happened to your truck?” I asked, smiling over at him.

  “My Ford?” he asked, a wide smile spreading across his face. “It’s in my garage.”

  “You still have it?” I asked, my heart skipping a beat.

  We’d fallen in love in that truck.

  I’d lost my virginity in that truck.

  “Yeah, I never could manage to bring myself to get rid of it. It’s fully restored now.”

  “Oh,” I said, disappointment spreading over me as I remembered a particular dent we’d put in the hood one night.

  “The dent’s still there,” he said, as if reading my mind.

  “Oh,” I nodded, heat rising to my face, because I knew he was reliving that night just as I was. His mouth, buried between my legs, the stars sparkling over head as the tall trees of the forest surrounding us swaying in the wind. It had been a magical night, and once we were finished and discovered the dent my ass had left in his hood, we’d laughed all the way home. Every night back then had been magical. I never imagined it would all end. But it had. I had to remember that. I couldn’t let his smile disarm me. I had to keep reminding myself to keep this entire situation focused on business.

  The past was dead.

  Our love was dead.

  Toby had killed it himself.

  “So, where are we going?” I asked, changing the subject. Thinking about being alone in his truck with him was excruciating.

  “Chez Louie. Ever hear of it?”

  “No.”

  “That’s too bad. You’ve been missing out.”

  “They have good food, do they?”

  “I love the owners.”

  He glanced over and grinned.

  “They’re my parents,” he said after a moment of silence.

  “Oh?” I said, another dagger shooting straight into my heart. I’d loved his parents, almost as much as I’d loved him. I hadn’t counted on seeing them. This was going to be a lot harder than I thought. “How are they?”

  “They’re doing good. They opened the restaurant a few years ago, but business hasn’t been great. I’ve been helping them keep it afloat, but my Pops doesn’t like me helping them. You know how prideful he can be.”

  “I remember,” I whispered, nodding.

  He made a left turn onto a side street.

  “I owe them everything,” he said in a serious tone, “I wouldn’t be who I am without them.”

  “They were always very devoted to you,” I replied, remembering the love between them. His father had always been a little gruff, but you could see the kind of man he was underneath it all.

  I turned to him and smiled, forgetting all about the photo shoot.

  “I’m looking forward to seeing them,” I said.

  “My Mom is going to freak out when she sees you,” he smiled.

  “Here we are,” he said as we pulled into a nearly empty parking lot.

  “Not very busy for a Wednesday night.�
��

  He sighed.

  “Yeah, I need to get the advertising going again. There’s just so much going on in my life right now. And Dad won’t budge an inch on taking money from me, so Mom and I have sneak around behind his back just to keep the lights on. It’s absurd.”

  “It’s nice of you to help them.”

  “They’re my parents,” he said, shrugging. I couldn’t help but smile. He’d always been a good guy. He parked the car near the building. I got out before he had a chance to walk all the way over to the passenger side. Together, we walked to the glass front door.

  “Thank you,” I said, as he opened it for me.

  I stepped inside, not sure what to expect. The décor and ambience made an impact on me.

  “Haley!” she cried, rushing over to us and pulling me into her arms.

  “Hello, Mrs. Jenkins! It’s been a long time,” I said, into her shoulder.

  “It sure has!” she said, pulling away and holding me at arm’s length as she looked me up and down. I smiled into her warm eyes, so many memories rushing at me. “You look wonderful!”

  “Thank you, so do you,” I said, smiling at her.

  “I’m so glad you’re here. Toby, sit in your favorite booth. I’ll bring some drinks and menus.”

  “Thanks, Ma,” Toby said, putting his hand on the small of my back and guiding me to a corner booth. We sat down, staring across the table at each other.

  “I told you she’d be happy to see you,” he said, winking.

  His mother soon returned with a pitcher of water, two glasses, and expensive, leather-bound menus.

  “Anything you want, Haley,” she said. “I’ll bring some wine over in a second.”

  “Thank you,” I said, smiling up at her again. She patted my hand and walked away.

  “This place is beautiful,” I said after she walked away.

  “Yeah, I think they did a great job,” he said, looking around proudly. “I just wish there were more customers.”

  “Have you run any advertising in the newspaper?”

  “Yeah, a little, but you don’t want to get me started on your newspaper.”