Marrying the Football Billionaire

by Stephanie Street

  Not sorry.

  She shook her head with a little roll of her eyes. “What about you? How’s the house coming?”

  “It’s a mess. I’m almost done with the demo work, then I can start putting everything back together.” The only room he hadn’t touched was a small office on the first floor where he’d been sleeping. He kept the door sealed with plastic to keep the dust out during the day while he worked. It had a bed, a tv, and a recliner in it. He’d left most of his wardrobe at Carter’s apartment in the city, so his clothes never made it out of the clean clothes basket on the floor of his makeshift bedroom until he was ready to put them on.

  Oakley blew out a breath. “That’s a lot of work for one man. Can’t you hire some help?”

  He had to laugh again. He forgot she had no idea who he was. Chris had the funds to hire the work done a million times over, at least. But that wasn’t what this project was about. More than he needed anything else, Chris needed to work, to keep busy. This house was like the best kind of medicine for his anxious mind. He wasn’t used to sitting idle. But now that he wasn’t playing football, where his days had been filled with workouts and practices, Chris had been at loose ends.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry-”

  “No.” Without thinking about it, Chris reached up to rub his left shoulder. It had been hurting more this last week. He should probably go in and ice it. He’d wait until after he was done talking to Oakley. No sense inviting more questions than he wanted to answer, even though he’d tell her anything she wanted to know. He just wouldn’t offer it up willingly. “No, I’m not offended. You can pry all you want. This house is kind of a project for me. I’m doing it on my own because I have the time and the money right now. To be honest, it’d be awesome if it took forever and I never ran out of things to work on.”

  Her eyes widened at his admission and Chris wondered if he’d revealed too much. But he hadn’t lied to her and he really would answer any question she asked him.

  “So, is this what you do for a job? Flip houses or something?” The little pinch between her brows was cute.

  Chris shook his head, but then stopped. “Hmm. Maybe.”

  Oakley blinked at him. “That wasn’t vague or anything.”

  That made him laugh. She made him laugh. “I know, sorry. I’m kind of between jobs right now. This is just to keep me busy until I figure things out.” His answer probably didn’t clear things up for her, but after a moment studying his face she must have decided it was good enough.

  “So, you’re not married?”

  Chris choked on the popcorn he’d just shoved in his mouth.

  Oakley jumped up, pushing the water bottle into his hand. “Take a drink!”

  Chris emptied the bottle. Still coughing, he pounded on his chest, positive his face was deep red.

  “You okay?” Her hands hovered mid-air, presumably to smack his back or give him the Heimlich if he needed it.

  He nodded, clearing his throat and taking a breath so he could talk. “Yeah. Jeez, give a guy some warning next time, will ya?”

  She dropped back down beside him. “My goodness! You’d think I asked you to help me rob a bank.” She pointed at him. “You asked me if I was married.”

  Chris cleared his throat again. He needed more water. Jumping to his feet, he hopped the steps with one leap. “Hang on. I’ll be right back.”

  Right after he retrieved two water bottles and his dignity. His fridge was stocked with plenty of water, but he had no idea where to find a replenishing supply of pride.

  “Here.” Back on the porch, he handed her a cold water before settling in beside her again.

  She uncapped the bottle and took a swig. Just as before, her eyes never left his. Although, this time it was probably so she could make sure he didn’t drown himself.

  “I promise I wasn’t trying to kill you.” She bumped into his side, her head almost coming to rest against his shoulder.

  Did she rest against him? Just for a second?

  “You smell good.” The words were out before he could think better of them. He wouldn’t take them back, however.

  Oakley shied back a little. Her hands reached up to smooth her already smooth hair. “What? Like twenty different kinds of food and hand sanitizer?”

  That wasn’t it. Chris leaned forward until her shoulder was tucked under his. Sitting as they were, her head barely reached his chin. He dipped his head and breathed deeply.

  “No.” He inhaled again. “More like strawberries.”

  Oakley sat frozen, half encompassed by his shoulder and chest. Without moving her head, her eyes shifted. She gazed at him through full lashes.

  A mere four inches and their lips would meet. The moment was charged enough, the temptation to close the distance was almost unbearable.

  But he couldn’t do that. She had a child. She wasn’t like the girls who flocked around the stadium after games looking for a ticket to a life of luxury regardless of who he was as a person. No, Oakley was real. And she would require a real relationship with a man who was prepared to take care of her and her son for a lot longer than a week. A month. Or just a night.

  Reluctantly, Chris pulled away. He cleared his throat again, hoping she’d attribute the action to his recent near death experience with a handful of popcorn and not the emotions being near her provoked.

  She’d asked him a question. “No. I’m not married.”

  It took her several heartbeats to come back to that. “Ever been?”

  Chris shook his head. He’d come close once. Dodged a bullet, thank goodness. “Almost. But that was a long time ago.”

  “Girlfriend?” Oakley wasn’t holding back and for some reason that made him glad.

  He cussed at himself in his head. This girl had him going every which way but up. One second he was convincing himself not to take advantage of her and the next, he was rethinking his entire life plan. A plan that did not include a wife or children.

  Suddenly, that plan sucked.

  “No girlfriend. Not for a while.”

  Oakley cocked her head and studied him. “How is that even possible?”

  “What do you mean?” He turned his head to better see her expression.

  Her head fell back just a little until their eyes met. “Are you kidding? Unless you’ve been living under a rock, there is no way you don’t have women throwing themselves at you every day.”

  He had to grin to himself at what she was implying. Chris wasn’t delusional and he wasn’t so humble he didn’t recognize the effect he had on women. It was incredibly gratifying to know he had the same effect on Oakley.

  Chris made a show of glancing around his yard. “I haven’t seen any lately.” Because Oakley hadn’t thrown herself at him. Unfortunately.

  Actually, he didn’t mean that. It was honestly a huge turn off when women fawned over him. When he was younger, it had been flattering and he was man enough to admit he’d handled a few situations wrong, but now? It just made them seem desperate and that wasn’t attractive at all.

  Oakley jabbed his arm with her elbow and he was glad they were back on friendly footing after that near miss earlier. He was selfish enough to admit he wanted to keep spending time with her even if it wasn’t a good idea for either of them.

  “Very funny. You know what I mean.” What was funny was the way she kept giving him backhanded compliments about his appearance and how it made him want to puff out his chest like the Neanderthal she’d accused him of being earlier.

  “What about you? Surely, you have guys asking you out all the time.” Just the thought felt like a punch to the gut. But he wasn’t kidding. No way he was the only one noticing Oakley.

  “Oh, please.” She rolled her eyes so hard her lashes fluttered. “Even if you and I were close to being in the same league.” She pointed to herself. “Can you say ‘insta-family’? Not too many single guys looking to sign up for that gig.”

  There were so many things wrong with what she’d just said he didn’t
even know where to start. Instead, he sat there sputtering like an idiot, and she just kept going.

  “Kade’s a good boy and so darn cute, but still, he’s another man’s son. I’m divorced and I’m only twenty-four. There are a lot of women my age who’ve never been married and don’t have kids. Even if I wanted to get married again, which I’m not saying I do, what kind of chance do I have in a market like that? And I’m not feeling sorry for myself, I’m not. It’s just the truth.”

  Chris shook his head until he was dizzy. “I- you- there’s no-” He stopped. “Just no.”

  Oakley turned curious eyes toward him.

  Without weighing the ramifications of his actions, Chris took her hands in his. “You can’t possibly believe a word of what you just said.”

  “Of course, I can. I do.” She was so emphatic, Chris was tempted to do something drastic to prove to her how wrong she was, but luckily, he had a few remaining brain cells still functioning and didn’t give into the urge to crush his lips to hers. He was more convinced than ever that Oakley deserved the very best man in her life. He was also just as convinced he could never be that man.

  The realization threatened to flatten him.

  Good thing he was stronger than that.

  “I could sit here all day and compliment the heck out of you about how beautiful you are and what a good mother you are and how any man with his head screwed on straight would be the luckiest guy in the world to have you in his life-” Oakley’s mouth dropped open, but Chris didn’t stop there. “But that won’t do any good because you wouldn’t believe me even though I mean every word of what I just said. But someday,” Chris paused. Reaching out, he traced the delicate skin at her temple, tucking imaginary loose strands of her hair behind her ear before continuing softly. “Someday, I hope you realize those things about yourself, because you deserve to have all of your dreams come true.”

  He stopped. Oakley sat frozen, her lips slightly parted and after everything he’d just said the desire to kiss her amplified. He’d almost convinced himself to lean forward and beg for what he so desperately wanted when she pulled her hands from his and jumped up.

  “I should go.” She took one, two steps away from him before she stopped and looked back. “Thanks for the popcorn.”

  And then she was gone.

  He was an idiot. Oakley thought she wasn’t in his league. It was just the opposite. As much as he tried, Chris would never be the man she needed. The man she deserved.

  Chapter Eleven

  Oakley avoided Chris like he was infected with ebola after that. Why had he gone and said all those nice things anyway? She was halfway to falling for him before she ever even sat down on his front porch and ate his stupid popcorn. She didn’t need to get her delusional hopes up that a man like Chris would ever be interested in a woman like her. She wasn’t just a woman anymore. She was a mother.

  She needed to remember that.

  Over the next week, the huge dumpster in Chris’s driveway disappeared. In its place, was a flatbed truck loaded to the gills with sheets of drywall. Each day before she went to work, Oakley struggled to keep from gawking at the man as he hauled sheet after sheet into the house, muscles bulging. It was even more difficult when he wasn’t wearing a shirt. At times like those, she filled up the kiddie pool in her small backyard for Kaden and worked on her tan, completely blocked off from the hunk of gorgeous man working in the front.

  If he thought she was being weird, he was polite enough not to mention it.

  She deserved to have all her dreams come true? Bah! Who talked like that! What did he know anyway? He was just a big, dumb, house-flipper. He didn’t know anything about her or Kaden.

  “Okay, bud. Time to go in. Mommy has to get ready for work.” They’d been in the back yard for more than an hour. She’d reapplied sun screen to his entire body twice already and still, his skin was brown.

  “No. Not yet!” He hurried to jump back in the pool. It only had about five inches of water in it, but he’d been happily splashing around as though she’d taken him to the most amazing water park for the day. It was a blessing he didn’t know any better than what she was able to provide. Hopefully, by the time he got to school and spent more time around other kids, they’d be doing a little better.

  “Sorry, sweetie. I have to take a shower and I can’t leave you out here by yourself.” Knowing it was a long shot that he would go inside on his own, Oakley pulled the little plug on the side of the pool to drain the water. “Come on, bud.” Reaching down, she hooked him under his arms and swung him up and out of the pool.

  “I don’t want to go in!” he yelled, his legs kicking.

  “Let’s turn on a show while Mommy takes a shower. Do you want to eat a popsicle?” Maybe he’d stop screaming if she bribed him with frozen treats. Yep, mother of the year right there.

  “A blue one?” He stopped struggling.

  “Yes, a blue one.”

  Once inside the apartment, Oakley stripped him out of his wet swim trunks and dressed him in dry clothes before turning on his favorite cartoon and fishing a blue popsicle out of the freezer. “Okay. You stay right there and eat your popsicle. I’ll be out in just a minute.”

  Kaden nodded, his eyes already glued to the animated fish babies singing on screen. Reassured he would be entertained for at least ten minutes, definitely long enough for her to shower, Oakley made sure the doors were locked and jumped into the shower.

  Exactly seven minutes later, Oakley, wrapped in a towel, hurried into the living room to check on her son.

  Only, he wasn’t there and the front door stood wide open.

  “Kade!”

  Oakley burst through the screen door, frantically searching the front yard for her son.

  “Kade!”

  Please, oh, please!

  She couldn’t even conjure a more coherent thought until she found her son.

  “Kade!”

  “Mommy!”

  At the sound of his voice, Oakley ran, only vaguely registering the tall, handsome man standing beside him.

  She dropped to her knees in front of her baby. “Kade, baby, what are you doing? I told you to stay inside.” She smothered his little face with kisses as she hugged him until her heart rate calmed to something slightly better than a heart attack. “You scared me. Oh, my goodness.”

  “I’m sorry, Mommy.” Kaden framed her face with his small hands, his brow pinching as he noticed the tears streaming down her cheeks. “Don’t cry.”

  “Buddy, I can’t help it. I couldn’t find you. You have to stay inside.”

  She would never take a shower again. When he was a baby, she would buckle him into his carseat while she showered. As he got bigger, she’d set him in his portable crib. Since he began walking, he’d always been content to watch one of his shows. She never forgot to lock the doors, the idea of someone entering her house or Kaden leaving it having traumatized her for months. She even engaged the deadbolt. How had he opened it? How did she not know he could?

  “Mommy, you don’t have any clothes on.” Kaden slapped a hand over his mouth to cover his giggles.

  Oakley, now that the terror of losing her son had passed, became aware of her surroundings.

  Sweet biscuits and gravy!

  She was outside. In Chris’s front yard. Wearing nothing but a bath towel wrapped around her body, her hair dripping down her back. She glanced down.

  Thank goodness!

  At least all of the essentials were covered. However, if she wasn’t mistaken, Chris, hotter than all that was good and right in this world Chris, was standing not more than a couple of feet away.

  She took a deep breath. Gripping the towel to her chest with all her might, Oakley slowly rose. To his credit, Chris’s gaze was firmly fixed on the grass at his feet.

  “Thank you.” Her cheeks burned. This was so much worse than answering the door with toilet tissue in her hand. But it wasn’t like she wasn’t more covered by the towel than she had been in her bathing suit
twenty minutes ago. At least, that’s what she told herself. “I locked the doors. He must have figured out how to open them.”

  Chris lifted a hand to the back of his neck, his eyes darting straight to hers before looking away again. “I’m just glad I saw him.”

  “He has a hammer, Mommy.” Kaden pointed to Chris, who did indeed hold a hammer in his fist.

  “I- I see that, bud.” Oh, she was going to give her son a talking to! Not only had he scared her within an inch of her life, she’d been scandalized just as deeply.

  She should go back inside, but she swore her feet were rooted in the grass. Once she got back in her house, Oakley was sure she’d be embarrassed all over again that she hadn’t rushed out of his sight, but she just couldn’t. Instead, she stood there staring at him.

  Chris’s lips lifted as his gaze settled on Kaden. She realized he asked about her son every time they communicated. She got the feeling that he maybe even liked Kaden a little.

  Then, slowly, so slowly, his eyes shifted. She felt them on her, taking in every inch from her bare toes, up her exposed legs to the edge of the towel wrapped around her from thigh to chest. When his gaze finally met hers, it was almost apologetically. As though he hadn’t meant to caress her with his gaze, but just couldn’t stop himself.

  His admiring stare nearly incinerated her right where she stood. Why was she still standing there?

  Getting ahold of herself, she decided she’d embarrassed herself enough for one day. Or five lifetimes.

  “I should go.” She pulled on Kaden’s arm, dragging him behind her as she marched back to her house. Once inside, she released him and fell back against the door, her legs no longer strong enough to hold her up.

  Holy guacamole!

  “I swear, you have all the fun,” Cam said once Oakley had spilled her guts about the incident over the phone the next day. She hadn’t had time to call after it happened since she had to be at work, but as soon as she had a minute, Oakley called and told Cam everything.