Love of the Game - The Complete Collection (Box Set)

by Shayne McClendon

  He was the tallest and most muscular of the three friends, a solid six-seven with black hair and black eyes. He’d been adopted as an infant so no one really knew what nationality he was but Harley always thought he was a mix of Native and African American. He was extremely attractive, whatever his heritage. He never failed to make her heart pound in her chest.

  Until now.

  “Something wrong? You look downright nervous to see me, Dex.”

  “What are you doing here, Harley?”

  “Hmm…no happy to see you, Harley? Whatcha been up to, Harley? Just wondering what I’m doing here. Interesting. Be right back.” With that, she moved to enter the dorm.

  Dex blocked her and she sighed. “Dex, I’m going up unless there’s something you’d like to say, explaining why I shouldn’t.”

  She watched an expression of pain flit across his features then he clenched his jaw. Harley had the insane urge to stroke it.

  “We can go easy or we can go hard, but I’m going up. Move.”

  He shook his head stubbornly and she cup-checked him hard. He dropped to his butt on the steps and Harley stepped past him.

  “Sorry, Dex. You chose wrong. You know me better than that.”

  Climbing to the third floor easily, she stood in front of Beck’s room and counted to five. He shared the room with Dex but his roommate was killing time out front.

  There was likely a reason.

  Harley took a deep breath and quietly opened the unlocked door.

  Surprisingly, there was not a woman with Beck…there were two. All of them were so involved in what they were doing that they didn’t notice her arrival.

  Harley found herself mesmerized by the scene. Her temper was a slow burn as she realized her feelings had never mattered to this man.

  Her boyfriend stood on the floor beside his bed. One of the women perched on all fours at the edge of the mattress as he fucked her brutally from behind. Beck worked his cock into her with an expert rhythm while she moaned and ground her hips back into him.

  The other female was spread-eagled on the bed in front of her friend. She was having her pussy eaten and playing with her own tits for Beck’s viewing pleasure.

  His voice was rough and gravelly. “She making your pussy feel good, honey?” With a nod and a moan the woman whispered that she was about to come. “Squeeze your nipples for me. Come all over her face. Fuck yes…”

  The woman he was fucking reared up so he could play with the front of her body. He took her breasts in his hands with a smile. “While I fuck your friend’s ass, I want to watch you eat her pussy again. You did such a beautiful job making her come. How’s that sound?”

  There was nothing but moans and sighs in response as the friend sat up to stroke her clit. She suddenly came, he went harder, and climaxed with her.

  “Fuck yeah, some nice wet pussy. I needed a hot fuck to take the edge off.” He held her to him by her breasts while he pumped himself dry inside her body.

  “So good, Beck. You always deliver the best fucking.”

  “We’ll go again in a minute. First, we’ll let your friend clean our come off my cock.”

  “I’ll help. We can suck you together. Whatever you want.”

  Beck slapped her mound sharply and she gasped. “I’ll think of something real hot, baby.”

  Harley knocked on the open door and all three participants looked up at the same time. Beck’s hands released the woman’s breasts as if they burned him.

  “A little late for that, Beck. Your dick is still inside her. Don’t let me interrupt.”

  Beck whispered, “Oh fuck. Harley…Harley, wait.”

  Then she was running and she was fucking fast. Over the years, Harley had won her own championships for track and soccer.

  Beck would never be able to catch her…even if he didn’t have to take time to remove his dick from another woman and get dressed.

  Passing Dex just outside, he tried to reach for her. She slapped his hands away, leapt the steps directly to the ground, and didn’t slow.

  “Don’t you fucking touch me, Dex. Two women…god knows how many others. Fuck you all!”

  He shouted, “Harley…Harley, don’t leave like this. I’m sorry, Harley, please don’t go. Harley!”

  She was in the Bug and driving away as Beck ran down the dorm steps wearing nothing but basketball shorts.

  Chapter Two

  The moment Dexter had seen Harley standing in front of their dorm building, he knew all of them had miscalculated the pain and fury they were allowing Beck to cause her.

  He stared at the little sister of one of his oldest friends, the girlfriend of his other oldest friend, and wanted to crawl in a fucking hole to die.

  Harley was beautiful. Tall, athletic, around five-ten, with curves that popped in all the right places. Lean muscle, curly brown hair that fell past her shoulder blades, and bright green eyes. The Jamison kids were half-black and half-white. They were a stunning blend of their parent’s beautiful features.

  After she cup-checked him, he could have powered through it. He could have stopped her from seeing what he knew she would see. He didn’t.

  He was fucking tired of covering for his friend and outright lying to the woman he was lucky enough to call his own.

  The woman Dex loved with everything inside himself.

  Finally, all of it came to a head and when Beck appeared on the steps, Dexter couldn’t contain his fury, frustration, and disappointment with a man he never thought would treat someone he’d known all his life this way.

  That he would consider going after Harley with the bodily fluids of two campus tramps still clearly visible on his skin made Dex physically ill.

  He grabbed him with every intention of beating him the fuck down. Someone called Hart and when he showed up the two of them were bleeding and bruised.

  Harley’s brother pulled them apart, made them clean up, and ordered them into his car. There was no doubt Hart wanted a piece of Beck, too.

  The two-hour drive to their hometown was utterly silent. All Dex could think about was that Harley gave him a chance to tell the truth and he didn’t take it.

  It was a decision he would regret for years.

  As Harley merged onto the highway, her cell phone started ringing. She ignored the call and shut off the phone.

  Bailey asked what happened but Harley didn’t say a word. Her best friend held the oh shit handles as Harley broke every speed limit between the college and her house.

  The humiliation of knowing how stupid she’d been was bad enough. She parked in her driveway and realized she was shaking. Thankfully, no one was home.

  Bailey followed her inside and said nothing as Harley started gathering her bags. She was packed to leave and she was damn well going to do it. She loaded her car with the urgent items.

  It was hard to leave her parents a note; to figure out what to say that wasn’t filled with acid. She asked them to bring the rest of her stuff when they drove to North Carolina and told them she loved them. She let them know not to worry that she might not be able to talk for a couple of days.

  Twenty minutes after pulling to a screeching halt in front of her house, she was back in her car. Bailey held her hand through the window.

  “Please be careful, Harley. I’m so scared for you to leave like this. I don’t think you should be driving. Call me when you get there. If anything happens to you…”

  “I’ll be okay. I have to go and it has to be now. I will not be here when they show up. You know what’s coming as well as I do. Excuses and begging, maybe even tears for good measure.” She pressed her fingers against her temple. “I love you so much, Bailey. We’ll talk more when I can think…when I can process.”

  Bailey nodded. Harley would have to explain to her parents why she left early but in the end, it wouldn’t matter. They knew her well.

  She left her phone off until she got to North Carolina. After she checked into a hotel, she flipped it open with a grimace. There were twenty vo
icemails.

  Despite her intentions, she knew she had to return some of them. No way was she freaking her parents out or letting them worry.

  “Mom, I’m fine. I’m staying at a hotel tonight and I’ll find the apartment tomorrow. I just decided to leave early.” Her mother was quiet on the other end of the line. “I’ll explain it when I see you.”

  “Let me go in my office.” There was the soft sound of a door closing. “Yes, you will explain, Harley. You aren’t a rash person so I know something terrible happened.” There was a short pause. “I find it interesting that your brother and his friends showed up a little while ago. Beck and Dex look like they’ve been beating on each other.”

  “Mom…”

  “We’ll talk when I see you in a few days. I trust you. You’ve never given me reason not to.” Harley pictured her mom staring out her office window with one hand on her hip. If her calm was any indication, she was furious. “Should I give any of these young men a message from you?”

  “Tell Hart I said thank you.” She started to cry but forced it down, swallowed it down, and focused on breathing. “I’m really tired, so give Dad kisses from me and I’ll see you both in a couple of days. I love you, Mom.”

  “I love you, honey. Whatever it is, you’re strong enough to beat it.”

  She talked to Bailey and with twelve-hours buffering her from the initial shock, she was able to relate what she witnessed in Beck’s room. She cried and yelled while her friend listened, fuming.

  “You must be wiped so get some rest and call me tomorrow. I’m sorry about this, Harley.”

  “Me, too.”

  For a few minutes, she paced her hotel room deep in thought. There was one person she needed to call but she wasn’t sure she could talk to him. He answered on the first ring.

  “Harley…”

  “Hart, don’t say one fucking word. You knew. All this time, you knew and you helped him lie to me. I could have diseases for fuck’s sake. He wasn’t even wearing a condom!”

  “Jesus, I didn’t…”

  “Shut up. You’re my older brother, Hart! You protected him but what about me? Didn’t you think about me…even a little?” She gasped on a sob. “I don’t like you very much and I can’t talk to you for a while. I don’t want you coming here to visit. I don’t want to hear from those two ever again. I’m changing my phone number.”

  “Harley, let me explain…”

  “There is nothing you can say to me to make this right, Hart. In a choice between protecting me or your friend, you picked your friend and left me vulnerable to so many things.” She swallowed hard. “I would never let someone hurt you like this. Not ever. Goodbye.”

  She hung up, turned off the phone, and showered for a long time. Eventually, she felt somewhat clean again and crawled in bed. She cried for hours, wishing she could cry the vision of Beck out of her mind.

  The thing that really killed her, that ate her up inside, was how beautiful he’d looked.

  She took in his six-six body, blonde hair, blue eyes, and felt the pull. Felt drawn to him…while he was fucking two other women.

  How pathetic was she?

  The only two men who ever made her heart race, who she’d literally known her entire life, had hurt her bad. Beck ripped her heart out of her chest and Dex covered for him.

  Her own brother covered for him.

  Three men she loved more than she loved herself and not one of them had thought to question what such treatment would do to her. They didn’t consider her feelings or even her health.

  It was a hard reality to face.

  The next day, she drove to the apartment her parents rented for her not far from campus. It was a pretty little complex made up of several two-story buildings, a clubhouse, a pool, and a gym. There were trees everywhere and jogging paths than ran through them.

  She remembered how happy they were to find the place. As they toured the grounds, she saw her parents’ relief. Making sure she lived in a safe environment had been their only condition to her going to school out of state.

  Harley carried her stuff in from her car in three trips. She dropped it on the floor of the living room and collapsed beside it.

  Her heart hurt and she was exhausted. Sleep hadn’t come easily the night before.

  To take her mind off the very real pain she felt, she thought about her plans. They’d been in place a long time and she worked hard to make them happen.

  She committed to the University of North Carolina on her academic merit, unsure if she wanted to compete in athletics during her first year of college.

  The soccer coaches who came to recruit her applauded her dedication to her studies and said they looked forward to seeing if she could maintain her skills and dedication. Her invitation to try out for the Tar Heels in her sophomore year was an open one.

  Harley needed to work hard, keep her eyes on her goals, and let time take care of the pain.

  Chapter Three

  Two weeks later, Harley was grateful she hadn’t committed to collegiate sports. The last time she’d been with Beck was over his Spring Break in early April. Not by her choice, it had been unprotected.

  As a result of that one very real mistake, she was pregnant.

  Harley was three months along before she figured it out. Her periods were never regular and with the recent stress and upheaval, she didn’t pay attention to her body.

  Without a clue what to do, she called home. The two women she needed arrived the next day and held her while she lost her shit.

  Thank God for her mom.

  Harley listened in a daze as her mother made a doctor’s appointment. Regina Jamison was tall and athletic like her daughter with slightly darker skin. As a strong and independent woman herself, she understood Harley’s need for a sounding board. She didn’t drive to North Carolina to tell her what to do. She showed up to listen and help in whatever way necessary.

  Bailey held her hand and sat with her quietly. She was angry, especially when Harley confessed the circumstances of her last time with Beck.

  “I trusted them…all of them…to treat you better than this.” Out of habit, she followed Regina’s lead, knowing the older woman had Harley’s best interests at heart.

  “Even if it wasn’t too late to end the pregnancy, I don’t think I could do that. I…I thought about adoption. Finding a nice family who would love a baby of their own. I just don’t know.”

  Cupping her cheeks in her hands, Regina said calmly, “The decision is yours and I trust you to know your own mind. I’ll support whatever you decide.” They sent her to shower and insisted she take her time.

  Harley stood under the warm water and let her mind wander over what could have been and what was. The thought of having a baby scared her to death.

  It certainly hadn’t been on her to-do list anytime in the near future.

  Over and over, her mind circled back to Beck. To how much she loved him still, despite the fact that he didn’t deserve it. She remembered clearly every moment they’d spent together and she cherished those memories. Even the bad ones – and there had been more than a few.

  Flattening her palm over her belly, she closed her eyes. “On my side, you were conceived with deep love inside me for your father. However misguided, those feelings were real. As stupid as it makes me, I can’t just turn those feelings off. I don’t think I can give you up.”

  When she came out, her mind was clearer than it had been in weeks.

  Pacing off her nervous energy, she told them, “I’m about thirteen weeks along. I still can’t believe I didn’t realize before now.”

  “It happens, Harley. Lots of women don’t notice if they aren’t feeling sick or missing their periods.” Regina shrugged. “I had periods for a couple of months with both of you.”

  She nodded. “I guess…I thought I would feel different. I don’t feel pregnant.”

  Her mother laughed. “Don’t worry. That’ll change.”

  “I can’t allow Beck to be involved in
this child’s life. He’s far too unstable to be around a child. I won’t allow such at-risk behavior around my baby.”

  Bailey sat up straighter. “You’ve decided then? You’re keeping the baby?”

  Harley pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes. “I am. I thought about the other option but it doesn’t feel right. I’m smart, I come from a strong family, and I can do this.”

  “Damn right you can,” Regina said proudly.

  “You’ll have to deal with Hart, Mom. I’m so angry with men right now I can barely talk to Dad. I might not be able to hide this baby from Hart, but those other two can go straight to hell.”

  “I’ve explained everything to your father, honey. He understands.” Her mother grinned. “You’ll get back on track with your dad and in the meantime, I told him there are too many projects going on right now for both of us to take off.”

  Peter Jamison ran a massive construction company and Regina was his primary architect. It was how they met more than twenty years ago.

  “I can put off college until this time next year, still work for you and Dad. You’ve always paid me well for my drawings. Do you think that part would be alright?” Her mother nodded. “Once the baby comes, I might need help with daycare while I go to school. I can work it off by still doing projects for you guys on the days I don’t have class.”

  “We’ll do anything and everything to help. You don’t owe us. You’re our daughter.”

  “I planned on getting a roommate to keep the costs for the apartment down. That won’t be possible now. I need you and Dad to keep a running total of what you’re doing for me. It’s going to rack up. I’m good for it. I’ll pay you back every dime.”

  “Harley, we set aside money for your college and planned on helping you and Hart as much as you needed. You know that. We love you and we’re happy to be here for whatever you need.” Regina grabbed her daughter’s hand as she paced by and kissed her palm.

  “I’m not budging on the running total. I mean it. I need to know. I’m so mad, Mom. I don’t know when I’ll be able to talk to my brother. I don’t want Beck knowing a damn thing, Dex either. I don’t want them here. I can do this on my own. I can make it work.”