The Midnight Groom (Last Play Christmas Romance Book 4)
Page 13
“What?” How had she found that out? Only a few people knew.
She followed him. “If you give me the exclusive on your story, I’ll make sure it goes your way.”
A shot of anger flared inside Evan. “Excuse me?”
His truck stopped a few feet away, and the door swung open. Evan started toward it.
“Oh, come on,” Jackie said behind him, “we both know a story like this about a football player at the top of his game could send not only your career, but also your foundation, spiraling into oblivion.”
Evan took a breath, turning back. “Look, Ms. Smith, I’m not sure what you’re referring to. And I need to be on a plane in a few hours. I hope you have a nice holiday.”
With that, he tipped the valet and hopped in his truck.
Jackie came to the door. “I’m trying to help you. You go with me, and I’ll make sure everyone loves you. I can’t guarantee that with any other reporter.”
“Sorry, have to run.” Evan shut the door, threw the truck into drive, and pulled away.
He scowled at his shaking hands and wondered how in the world Jackie Smith had found out about Blake Jamison. If Landon King and his investors discovered the truth, the solid “maybe” he’d just received would turn into a hard “no.”
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The About Face Groom: Last Play Christmas Romance Karly Stratford
Leon Reyes stared at the angry Tweet.
Rumor has it that you and your football buddies assaulted @Grimmreporter #notcool #freedomofthepress #respect
Leon snorted. This was the fourth guy this afternoon to attack him over what had happened the night before. It was probably a good thing that the Storm’s attorney had given Leon explicit instructions for how to respond to all these allegations.
The incident you’re referring to was resolved without any charges being filed
“Which is a good thing, because property damage—like destroying people’s cell phones—is a crime,” Leon said aloud.
Before he’d finished muttering to himself, three of his followers had replied to the Tweet.
@Grimmreporter is a hack #worstreporterever
If it had been a fight @Grimmreporter would be in the hospital #orworse
We all know @Grimmreporter only uses his job to get women #anditdoesntwork
Leon smirked. Those were his followers: cutthroat and loyal. Both to a fault.
A knock sounded on the door. “Leon?”
Leon glanced up at the clock. How had it gotten so late? He typed one last reply into Twitter and stood.
“Leon, are you awake?”
Leon pulled a t-shirt on and opened the door to find his mom and dad standing in the hallway. His mom, a short woman with shoulder-length straight black hair, wore a little black dress. His dad, a tall man with dark brown eyes and wide shoulders, filled his tux like a model.
Leon faked a huge yawn. “Barely.”
That drew a disapproving frown from his mother, but she let it drop. “Come look in the kitchen. Do you think you have enough snacks?”
“Did you buy out Costco again?”
His mom waggled a finger at him. “You should be grateful. Most other professional football players probably don’t have parents who buy them snacks.”
“You’d be surprised,” Leon muttered as he followed his mother down the hall.
“Now there are chips, guacamole, salsa, a fruit salad...”
“Ma, we’re just going to be gaming.”
“Pizza pockets, juice, milk, and beer in the fridge. But no beer if the other boys are driving.”
“Whatever you say, Ma,” Leon said, trying to conceal his smirk.
His dad laughed. “Maria, we need to go. Leon, have fun with your friends. Please don’t burn the house down.”
“That only almost happened once.”
Leon waved his parents out the door. Then he checked the clock; just after five. He’d slept most of the afternoon away. No surprise, considering he’d been up until all hours of the night with the other guys. In jail.
He was grateful that the team attorney had come to get them out instead of having to call his parents—an actual possibility, since he played in the town he grew up in. Twenty-four or not, his mother would have thrown a fit. In fact, she probably would have left him there overnight just to teach him a lesson.
And he’d only grabbed a guy. A guy who had taken Evan’s phone. What kind of an idiot took on a linebacker? He’d probably saved Grimm’s pretty face.
Leon rummaged in the fridge until he found some leftover tamales and sat at the table. Only then did his phone buzz. It was a message from Jose.
Be there at 6
Plenty of time. Leon pulled up his email and clicked on the top one. A frown tugged at his lips as he saw yet another form letter rejection from the Humane Society about becoming an advocate for them. Apparently they didn’t want controversial people on their rosters.
He snorted and went to Twitter where he found almost two hundred comments on the Tweet he’d put up a few minutes earlier. Grimm had made the mistake of replying that Leon was a bully. Over three hundred people had commented on that, most of them Leon’s loyal followers. A few haters sided with Grimm.
Leon wondered if the guy who had invented Twitter ever imagined that with a single comment, someone using the platform could stir up so much reaction.
An hour later, the doorbell rang. Leon shoved his phone in his pocket and moved to the entryway. His parents still lived in the house he’d grown up in, despite his offer to buy them a new one. His mom liked the neighborhood, and his dad said that nothing could beat the commute to his work. So instead of coming home to some mansion for Christmas, Leon had tossed his bag into his room—the one still decorated with glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling—and now he opened the same front door he’d come and gone through his whole life.
Two of his oldest friends, Jack and Jose, stood on the porch.
Jack’s blond hair fell to his shoulders. He wore a leather jacket, jeans, and a pair of expensive shoes. Jose’s black hair spiked out everywhere, and he wore a turtleneck under a longer jacket. Both grinned like idiots.
“Hey,” Leon said as he opened the screen door to let them in.
“I brought snacks,” Jack said. He held out a bag of cinnamon bears.
“I didn’t,” Jose said.
Leon waved his hand. “You should see what my mother bought. You’d think I had a hundred friends coming over.”
“I am pretty hungry,” Jose said, sloughing off his coat and tossing it onto the couch.
“Me too,” Jack said, following suit.
“Come on in,” Leon said. “Let’s get this party started.”
They followed him into the kitchen, and Jose’s jaw dropped open when he saw all the food. “You weren’t kidding.”
“Did she get pizza pockets?” Jack asked.
“She made some from scratch,” Leon said. “They’re in the fridge, ready to be baked.”
Jose clasped his hands in front of him. “Tell her I still love her the most.”
Leon pointed to the counter. “Plates are there.”
It didn’t take them long to gather mounds of food and move into the basement. They sat around the huge flat-screen television mounted on the wall and played games for several hours.
“Where are you?” Jack asked.
“Sniffing flowers,” Leon said, frantically pressing the fire button on the controller.
“Hurry up, I’m dying here,” Jose said.
Leon’s screen started to fade out. “No, no.” Leon stood up, still pressing buttons. “No!” he yelled as his screen went red, then black. He slumped back onto the couch.
The other two laughed.
“Looks like we have to start again,” Jose said.
“I need a break first,” Jack said as he stood and stretched, then headed for the bathroom.
Leon restarted the level and pushed pause. He glanced at Jose. “So, how’s Betty?”<
br />
“You mean Barbara?”
“Yeah, her.”
Jose shook his head. “She’s great.”
Leon narrowed his eyes. “You broke up.”
Jose shot him an annoyed look. “No.”
“Then she broke up with you.”
Jose sighed. “We’re seeing other people.”
“Hah,” Leon said. “I warned you she wouldn’t commit.”
“Isn’t it usually guys who have that problem?” Jose asked. “Guys like you.”
“Me?” Leon pointed at himself. “Naw, I don’t have a problem with commitment. I just won’t do it.”
“What do you mean, you won’t do it?”
“I mean that I’m a free man right now, and I’d like to keep it that way.”
“Until when?”
Leon leaned back. “Until I’ve lived, you know? A girl will just put restrictions on me.” He spoke in an almost perfect imitation of his mother. “‘Take your shoes off in the house,’ ‘brush your hair,’ ‘we have to go to a family party,’ ‘no, you can’t skydive. Or get a motorcycle.’” Leon held up the controller. “Or even play a video game without getting special permission.”
“Barbara isn’t like that,” Jose said.
“Yes she is,” Jack said as he returned. He jerked one thumb over his shoulder. “I suggest no one goes in there for a minute.”
“Understood,” Leon said.
“Barbara isn’t like that,” Jose said again.
“Sure she is,” Jack said. “Remember when you couldn’t come to my birthday party because her niece was turning eight or something?”
“It’s a big deal in their religion.”
“But that party was in the morning, and mine was at night.”
Jose’s shoulders slumped. “She’s not always like that.”
Leon pointed at his friends. “That’s why I’m a free man.”
Jack sat and held up a finger. “The right girl is a totally different animal.”
“False,” Leon said.
“Oh yeah?” Jack asked.
“Yeah,” Leon said. “And you know what? Will Kent, our quarterback, actually challenged five of us to a bet.”
“What kind of bet?” Jack asked.
“I guess his brother just found true love or whatever, so Will bet us to go back to our first love and try to woo her. If she’s available.”
“Seriously?” Jose asked.
“Yup, and the loser has to tell Cameron Cruz that we got into a fight with that Grimm guy.”
“The same Cameron Cruz who smacked the paparazzi around the other day?” Jack said.
“Yeah.”
“So who’s your first love?” Jose asked.
“Shelia Carson. Met her in college. She’s married with kids, so I agreed to the bet knowing I’d already won.”
“Clever.” Jack grabbed his controller and sat back down. As he did so, a fart ripped through the air.
“Dude!” Jose said, throwing his elbow over his nose.
“What? It’s natural.”
“You shouldn’t have had that many pizza rolls,” Jose said.
The stench hit Leon, and he recoiled. “Oh man, that calls for an evacuation. Open the window, Jack. I’m going upstairs for more snacks.” Then he grinned, and farted too.
“You guys are sick!” Jose said, jumping up and running up the stairs.
“Coward!” Jack called.
Leon grabbed a bag sitting on the floor. “Let’s take this outside.”
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Also by Taylor Hart
Texas Titan Romances
The Tough Love Groom
The Second Chance Groom
The Dream Groom
The Fake Fiance Groom
The Prince Charming Groom
Bachelor Billionaire Romances
The Football Groom
The Country Groom
The Unfinished Groom
The Barefoot Groom
The Masquerading Groom
The Christmas Groom
Rescue Me: Park City Firefighter Romance (A Bachelor Billionaire Companion)
The Lost Groom
The Undercover Groom
The LoneStar Groom
The Redeemed Groom
The Last Play Series
Last Play
The Rookie
Just Play
A Player for Christmas
Second String
End Zone
Hail Mary
Snow Valley Series
A Christmas in Snow Valley: The Christmas Eve Kiss
Summer in Snow Valley: First Love
Spring in Snow Valley: The Bet
A Return to Snow Valley: The Christmas Boyfriend
About the Author
Taylor Hart has always been drawn to a good love triangle, hot chocolate and long conversations with new friends. Writing has always been a passion that has consumed her dreams and forced her to sit in a trance for long hours, completely obsessed with people that don’t really exist. Taylor would have been a country star if she could have carried a tune—maybe in the next life. Find Taylor at:
www.taylorhartbooks.com │ Twitter: @taylorfaithhart │ Facebook: Taylor Hart