Through Rosie-Colored Glasses: Book Three in the Game Winner Series

by Nicole, Angela

  Through Rosie-Colored Glasses

  Copyright © 2020 Angela Nicole

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, in or introduced into retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

  Editing— Kim Lubbers of Knox Publishing

  Proofreader— Natasha Carrere

  Cover Design—T.E. Black Designs; www.teblackdesigns.com

  Interior Formatting & Design—T.E. Black Designs; www.teblackdesigns.com

  Photographer—Reggie Deanching of RplusMphoto.com

  Cover Model—Ryan Stanton

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  Other Books By Angela Nicole

  Von

  I can’t believe today’s the day I’m going to marry Mia. If anyone had told me this sweet woman would want to be with a moody guy like me, I would’ve laughed. But since the day I asked her out our junior year of high school, we’ve been inseparable.

  Now, one week after we both graduated from the University of Florida, we’re going to spend the rest of our lives together.

  Her parents aren’t thrilled of course. After all, I won’t be making much money playing soccer. At least not until I can get a chance to go pro, but my job at a local hardware store and Mia’s job at the bank will be enough for now.

  The wedding isn’t for another two hours. I’m finishing up my vows…Mia wanted us to write our own. I’m okay with it because I can tell her how much she means to me, how I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to make her happy, and how I wish for a lifetime of love filled with a big family.

  I tap the pen on the desk in my bedroom while I wonder what Mia’s vows will say. I’m sure whatever she says will be from her heart just like mine is. And in just a few hours, our life as husband and wife will begin.

  I’m a fucking lucky guy.

  Von

  Twenty-one years later

  To say that I’ve been an asshole the last two years is an understatement. I know I have, but when your wife is killed in an automobile accident, and you carry a lot of guilt, being an asshole seems reasonable.

  Mia, my wife of twenty-one years, died on an icy road while she was in Upstate New York supposedly just visiting her parents. I wasn’t with her when it happened. Instead, I was on the road with my soccer team, the Clearwater Rebels.

  Guilt.

  The guilt I feel for not being with her is only matched by the guilt of not putting her first in our marriage. Perhaps had I done that, Mia wouldn’t have had an affair. Fuck! I rub my hand over my face.

  I didn’t know about the affair until after Mia died-a year after she died as a matter of fact. Once I got the courage to go through her things in her home office, I found emails Mia and her lover, Jake had written to each other. I was gutted all over again. This time by the sting of betrayal. And so the drinking began. I’m trying to stop but sometimes the pain is too much to take.

  My team, God love em, they try and make my life as normal as possible. But until they’ve experienced what I have, they don’t know the pain I’m in. I hope to hell they never do.

  Looking around, I see the happy party-goers. It’s Chris and Brenda’s wedding, and that asshole asked me to be a groomsman. I don’t know what the hell he was thinking. I’m a cranky old man who doesn’t have much faith in love. Of course, I wouldn’t let him down though, so I said yes.

  I need to fake a migraine or something so I’m not stuck late into the night with a bunch of lovestruck people. It’s been two hours of love songs, guests clanking their glasses demanding kisses from the bride and groom.

  Memories of my wedding come back. They’re unwelcomed. I want to bury them deep in the ground with Mia.

  “I’ll have a double shot of Jameson’s please,” I ask the twenty-something bartender. I’m not even sure he’s old enough to drink himself.

  “Make that two,” I hear from behind me.

  “Hey Von,” Carol says as she hops up on the chair next to me.

  Christ. I really didn’t want company. I won’t be able to wallow in my self-pity if she’s here.

  “Hey,” I mutter without any eye contact.

  “You okay?”

  Fuck. “Yeah just feel a migraine coming on.”

  Lie one.

  “Ouch,” she says as she glances at people on the dance floor.

  The bartender fills the shot glasses, sliding one in each direction. The amber color is my security blanket. But damn if I can’t feel Carol’s eyes on me.

  “What should we drink to?” She asks and then answers. “How about to Chris and Brenda who found their way to each other?”

  My stomach tightens. I don’t really know why I’m annoyed by her wanting to toast Chris and Brenda. We’re at a wedding for God sake. But still, if anyone is anti-love, it’s me.

  I raise my glass anyway and drink my medicine down. Carol does the same.

  “Two singles this time,” she winks at the bartender.

  Now I don’t know why it pisses me off that Carol is flirting with the young, blonde-haired, blue-eyed guy. I can barely stand her company but damn if she isn’t cute as hell.

  I noticed it when we had to walk down the aisle together earlier today. It’s the first time I really got a good look at her even though I met Carol and her daughter a year ago when her brother was on my soccer team.

  “That headache must be pretty bad. You’ve got a pained look on your face,” she says as she shoots the second shot down.

  I deflect not wanting to lie again. “You’re making short work of that whiskey Carol. You drinking to celebrate or forget something?”

  She gives me a smirk. “That obvious huh? Don’t get me wrong, I’m so happy for my brother and his family, but I can’t help think about my own disaster of a marriage,” she winces.

  Ah! Perhaps we’re two kindred spirits tonight. I slam my shot down, making her giggle.


  “Do you really have a migraine?” She asks quietly, leaning over in my direction but not looking at me.

  She’s calling me out on my shit. I like it. “It’s gone. Must be a miracle,” I smile for the first time in a long time. And that won’t be the last time I smile tonight.

  Carol

  Two Months Later…

  I’ve been watching my niece, Ellie for the last two months while my brother was playing soccer and Brenda went back to work. Yesterday was Brenda’s last day of the school year so she’ll be off with Ellie for the summer.

  I’m so happy she and my brother got married a few months ago. Brenda was already my sister in every way possible but it’s nice they made it official. My daughter Rosie just adores Brenda and her cousin Ellie too. She helps me babysit when she’s not in school. She acts like a little mama hen to her cousin.

  I cringe when I think about the party after the wedding though. I may have had way too much to drink, and kinda threw myself at Chris’ former coach. Von Sellers, aka Coach Cranky and I decided it was a good idea to make out in the coatroom at the reception.

  What the hell was I thinking? Not only is he Chris’s friend but now I have to work with him. That’s right, the man is my damn co-worker, kind of.

  “Are you ready for your first day at work?” my brother asks as I check out my reflection in his hallway mirror. My white button-down blouse pairs well with my navy-blue pencil skirt. I know these high heels are going to kill my feet but they make my legs look slimmer.

  “I’m ready. Thank you for watching Rosie for me. And thank you for getting me this job at the stadium Chris.”

  My brother shakes his head. “Rosie’s never a problem. I love her and as for the job, I just told you about the open position. You applied, interviewed and got the job.”

  My brother has always been my biggest supporter. Ever since my ex abandoned me and Rosie, Chris has stepped up as a male role model to my daughter. But now he has his own family so I don’t want to rely on him anymore.

  I kiss everyone goodbye, tell Rosie to be good and head off to the stadium. Today I begin my new career as the Director of Guest Relations. My job is to make sure the patrons who attend events at the Clearwater Rebels stadium have positive experiences.

  Since it’s not quite soccer season, the stadium is busy with other events such as concerts, monster truck shows, and things like that. Our first event isn’t for another two weeks so that gives me time to get my feet wet.

  After a short fifteen-minute drive, I pull into the stadium parking lot and find my designated space. It gives me goosebumps when I see my title on the parking spot placard.

  I check myself in the rearview mirror. “Alright, Carol. You can do this.”

  Grabbing my bag, I exit my mom van and head down the winding path to the building that houses the administrative offices.

  I’m almost to the door when I hear a noise to my left. As I turn to see what it is, I’m hit square in my chest with water from the lawn sprinkler.

  “Oh my God,” I yell as I run to the door.

  I can’t run fast because of these damn heels Brenda made me wear.

  Once I’m in the building I look down at myself. Just freaking great. My white shirt is soaked through and is clinging to my white lace bra leaving nothing to the imagination.

  Tears start to well in my eyes. I’m probably going to be fired before I even clock in.

  Looking down the hall I see a restroom. Hoping there’s a hand drier and not a towel dispenser, I make my way to the door.

  As my hand reaches for the handle, the door opens.

  “Carol? What the hell?” Von asks as he stares at my chest.

  I’m mortified. The object of my late-night fantasies can see my boobs through my shirt. Even though he almost saw them the night of Chris and Brenda’s wedding this is embarrassing.

  “Von, I um got caught in the sprinkler. I don’t have time to go home and change,” I say as I swallow the sudden lump in my throat.

  “Shit, come on,” he grabs my hand and leads me to his office.

  “I have a dress shirt you can wear. It’ll be big on you but at least it’s dry.” He opens a closet door in his office where I see several clothing items. Does he live here or something? “Here,” he hands the pale pink shirt and a towel to me as I cover my chest with one hand.

  “Thanks.”

  The broody sexy silver fox, nods. “I’ll step outside while you change.”

  My eyes follow the hard-bodied coach as he leaves me to dry off and change.

  My bra is thin and it’s already starting to dry out but my blouse is heavy with water.

  Once I’m dried off, I grab his shirt. But before I put it on, I lift it to my nose and smell him. Von Sellers. God he’s hot as hell but he’s got a chip on his shoulder the size of California. At least that’s what my brother says. But when I was busy making out with him, he seemed pretty at ease.

  Looping my arms into his shirt, I pull it closed as I button it up. I cuff the sleeves and roll them up so I don’t look like I’m swimming in it.

  “Jesus Christ Carol, way to go on your first day at a new job.”

  Getting my shirt wet seems like a tiny obstacle once I realize I’m going to have to spend the rest of the day with the scent of this sexy man all over me. Not only that but how will I be able to work at all with him in the office down the hall?

  I’m forty-five years old, but around Von Sellers, I feel like I’m thirty with all of my body parts on fire.

  Ever since my brother’s wedding, this man has affected me in ways I never imagined. Every time I’m around Von, I get all weird and awkward. And it’s a shame really because the man is not my type. Not that I really have a type but broody and cranky would not be it. But remembering the way he kissed me, all-consuming, has made me feel like a young woman again.

  Whenever I close my eyes his face pops into my brain. And then my imagination would take over. What would it have been like to have slept with Von? Is he as good in bed as he is at kissing?

  Ugh Carol, stop thinking. I need to be professional since he’s now my co-worker. And if today is any indication of how this is going to go, well then I’m screwed.

  Von

  I’m screwed. The one woman, who since the day we kissed in the coatroom at her brother’s wedding, has awakened things inside me. Carol Longford-Hutchison. Shit, she’s the sister of one of my former goalies.

  Carol is gorgeous. Her long black hair paired with her big blue eyes haunt my fantasies. I know I shouldn’t think that way about her, but she’s the first woman to make me feel something since Mia.

  And now this woman, Carol, is changing clothes in my office. Just thinking about what I can’t see makes me crazy.

  I’ve thought about what it would’ve been like to take Carol home with me that night. Instead, someone came in to get their coat, breaking the heated moment between us.

  Once things calmed down and I sobered up, I realized there can’t be anything between us. For one her brother, for two she has a little girl who needs her, and my own past dictates that nothing can happen. I couldn’t burden her with my selfishness and guilt.

  Even though I know that, I can’t stop wishing I didn’t have my baggage, She reminds me of all the good parts of Mia. Carol is kind of awkward and funny. Like today, from what Chris has told me about his sister, things just happen to her. It really does make her adorable.

  See? This is crazy! Von Sellers doesn’t think women are adorable. But somehow Carol is and that’s why I’m in big trouble.

  I move close to the door, not because I’m going to look but I think I heard her talking to herself. She’s mumbling something. I can’t quite make out the words, but she sounds like she’s giving someone a lecture.

  Familiarity hits me square in the chest. It’s her tone-the same one Mia used to use when admonishing me for spending too much time at work and not at home.

  Lost in my thoughts about regret with Mia, it doesn’t register
right away when Carol opens the door.

  I’m brought out of my stupor when she clears her throat. As soon as my brain registers seeing her in my shirt, my dick stirs just like it does every time I’m around Carol.

  “Thank you for lending me the shirt. I’ll be sure to get it dry cleaned for you before I return it.”

  Trying to will myself to reply, all I can manage to do is nod.

  And with that, the gorgeous woman who’s wrapped in my shirt bounces down the hall to her office.

  Once she’s out of sight and I’m back at my desk, I notice the sweet scent she’s left behind.

  “Fuck!” I yell a little too loudly. Thankfully it’s not a busy day so most of the administrative staff isn’t in yet.

  I need to get a grip on my new work environment namely my new co-worker. Needing to feel grounded I make a call to the one person I know has my back.

  “Hi, Daddy.”

  “Hey, sweetheart. Did I catch you at a bad time?”

  “I’m just on my way to Organic Chemistry. What’s going on?”

  My twenty-one-old daughter, Cassidy is a junior at the University of Southern California. Her goal is to become a physical therapist. I have no doubt she’ll accomplish that.

  “Not much. Just making some connections with some prospects for the new season. I lost three guys from last year so my feelers are out for prospects. How about you sweetie?”

  “I’m starting to regret taking summer courses to. All my friends are home enjoying themselves and I have to study. Why did I do this to myself?”