by Meghan Quinn
“Your home?” Ryker asked. “I’m pretty sure Hannah lives here more than you do.”
“Yeah, well I pay the rent, so get the fuck out before I call the police and let the media eat you up.”
Ryker got up, not because of Todd, but because Hannah looked visibly uncomfortable. He walked out the door, but not before he leaned into Hannah’s year and whispered to her.
“You know where to find me. I’m not through with you yet, Hannah. If I see that he lays one abusive hand on you, I will not be as civil next time.”
Hannah looked at him wide-eyed and just nodded her head. To Todd, Ryker just said, “Stop wasting her life and let her go, fuckhead. You don’t deserve her.”
“Ha, and like you do? Hannah deserves to be with someone who has class, not some trailer trash who happened to get lucky and is able to catch a football.”
Ryker cocked his arm back to punch Todd right in the face. No one ever talked about his family life or the way he grew up, ever. But before Ryker could introduce his fist to Todd’s dainty jaw, Hannah put a hand on his chest and pleaded with her eyes. Damn her.
“You’re fucking lucky, jack ass.”
Ryker walked out of Hannah’s apartment and straight to his Range Rover. He needed to get the hell out of there before he went ape shit on Todd’s face. The only two reasons he didn’t lose his cool were because Todd most likely would press charges and that wouldn’t suit Ryker well with his coach and because Hannah asked him not to. He would do anything she asked him…except leave her alone. That wasn’t an option. Ryker would never leave her, now that he knew she was the one for him.
He started pulling out of his parking spot when Hannah came chasing after him, waving her hands in the air and asking him to stop. Even with her bruised face and swollen eye, she was still the most beautiful woman he had ever laid his eyes on.
He opened his door and grabbed Hannah’s shoulders that were now slumped trying to compose herself. He titled her chin up so he could look into her eyes. “What is it Hannah?”
“I just…I just didn’t want you to leave mad at me. Things are…moving forward with Todd and I just want you to know I still want to be your friend.
Ryker felt his shoulders slouch in defeat. He pulled her in for a hug. He was still sitting in his car, but was facing her with her little body between his legs. Her hands wrapped around his body and rubbed his back up and down. Jesus, she affected him so much; there was no way he could ever be mad at this woman.
“I would never be mad at you. You hear me?” She nodded as he kissed her temple.
She glanced up at him and smiled. “Why did you originally come over?”
“This seems stupid now, but I was excited about some news I got.”
“What’s the news?” Her face brightened at his statement and he felt himself melt all over again.
He brushed a piece of loose hair behind her ear. “My agent called and told me C.C. Morris wants me to be their new cover model.”
“Really?” Hannah shouted and then hugged Ryker so hard, he thought she was going to squeeze the air right out of him.
“Yeah, it’s going to be their fall and winter line as well as the uh, bedroom line.”
“Ooo,” Hannah smiled. “Does that mean women across the country get to look at your naked body?” she teased, while poking his stomach.
“Well, I wouldn’t say naked, but pretty close. At least I won’t be alone. Ashlin Harris is going to be modeling with me. Apparently C.C. Morris wants things to look real steamy.”
Hannah’s smile faded to a frown instantly. “Ashlin Harris, the super model?”
“The one and only.” Hannah’s face scrunched up at hearing about his co-star which only shot pride through Ryker’s body. She actually cared who he was with; that was a great first step in the right direction. “Don’t worry though, Boo. You’re the only woman for me.”
Hannah pushed him away. “I don’t care what you do with your life. If you want to be with…Ashlin, then be with her. I’m not going to stop you. I have Todd and we’re going to get married.”
“So I’ve heard,” Ryker said sarcastically.
“Maybe this is a good thing. You and Ashlin would actually be perfect together. You’re both gorgeous human beings; it only makes sense.”
“You think I’m gorgeous?”
Hannah rolled her eyes. “I’m leaving. See you later.”
“Bye wife.”
“Don’t call me that.”
Ryker laughed and pulled away from her apartment. It might not have been the best visit with Hannah he ever had, given the fact that Todd was there and her face was all bruised, but he felt good after he delivered his news about Ashlin Harris. It was nice to finally see Hannah a little jealous. He currently liked the way his future was looking for him.
Chapter 14
“Darlin’, this is the best surprise ever, but I highly doubt my men will ever let me live it down.” Piper kissed her way across Jax’s face, relishing the scent that was radiating off of him.
“Mmm, I don’t care,” she continued to kiss his jaw and felt her way up his shirt. “I missed you.”
“I missed you too. Do you want to watch a movie tonight?”
Piper wanted to do more than watch a movie; she wanted to make love to Jax. After the night she had with Mason, she had to spend time with Jax; she had to show herself that Jax was the man for her.
After she sprinted out of Mason’s apartment this morning, she went straight back to her place and cried hysterically in her shower. She couldn’t believe she’d cheated on Jax, after she promised herself to him. What the hell was going through her mind? Oh that’s right…nothing because whenever she was around Mason, everything else in the world disappeared and it was just her and Mason.
She felt so guilty that she decided to surprise Jax at the field, completely forgetting about the fact that Mason would be there. The moment she saw the look of betrayal on Mason’s face, all Piper could do was say sorry. This whole time, she never thought about the two of them working together. She never imagined that her choices would affect Mason and his career.
“Hey.” Jax pulled her head up so she was looking him in the eyes, his big puppy-dog eyes. “I lost you there for a second, are you okay?”
“Of course,” she smiled brightly. “A movie sounds great, but I was thinking of doing something that required less clothing.”
He nuzzled her neck while she sat on his lap. She felt how the heat they created stirred his lower half to attention. She rubbed against him, making him groan. Whenever they became more intimate and turned on, his accent grew heavier, turning her on even more. Even his groan was one of a southern gentleman.
When she first walked on the field, she observed Jax in his environment and was instantly fired up and ready to take him when she saw him taking charge on the field and making his men follow his instructions. It was hot. She thought about how she should visit him more often on the field, but then decided that probably wasn’t a good idea, since she would be seeing her boyfriend pushing Mason around. She wouldn’t be able to take that.
“We can always watch a movie naked, you know,” Jax said in a husky tone, while running his hand up the front of her shirt and grabbing her breast in one quick motion, sending her head flying back in pleasure.
“Jax…” She had to catch her breath. She didn’t know why she was so worked up, but she was about ready to explode. “Let’s go home.”
He let go of her breast and caressed her cheek. “I have a couple of things to do around here, but then I’ll be headed to your place. Is that okay?”
She whined like a petulant child; she needed him now. She needed to make herself feel better about what happened between her and Mason. She needed to prove to Jax and her that she loved Jax, more than anything.
“I know, darlin’, but I promise to make it up to you.” He grabbed her face and gave her a long, sexy kiss, sending fireworks off in her belly. He pulled away quickly and gave her a devilish s
mile.
She swatted at his chest. “You’re evil.”
“Yeah, but you love me.”
“I do love you,” she said softly, as she got off his lap and adjusted her shirt. “I’ll see you at my place.” She gave him a wink and he followed her wink up with a smack to her ass. She giggled as she let herself out of his office, glancing back to see him working diligently on his computer.
She was so enamored with Jax and how adorable he looked at work that she ran right into a brick wall on her way to her car. She stumbled back, but was caught by two large hands. She knew those hands, the feel of them on her body, the way they made her skin tingle. She looked up and found Mason, the brick wall, staring down at her with wet hair, a tight T-shirt spanning across his chest and jeans wrapped around his lower half. Damn, he looked so good.
She felt tongue tied; she didn’t know what to say, so she said nothing while he looked down at her, searching her eyes. The stubble on his face was more prominent than normal, he must not have shaved at all this morning, making her feel awful because she knew it most likely had something to do with the way she treated him. He smelled like heaven and she slowly found herself slipping into the world that only Mason could take her to.
“Uh, sorry. I didn’t mean to run into you.”
He smiled at her, actually smiled. She couldn’t believe it. She didn’t deserve his smile, she deserved to be slapped across the face.
“It’s alright, babe,” he said, while stroking her hair. Why was he being so nice to her? What was he up to?
“Mason, I’m sorry about today. I should have told you I was seeing Jax Ryan. I guess it never crossed my mind.”
Mason waved her off, as if the news about her dating his coach didn’t have any effect on him. Did he take some kind of Prozac or something? Why wasn’t he screaming in her face?
“Don’t worry about it. I’m not.”
“What does that mean?” she said, while propping one hand on her hip, slowly becoming irritated with the man in front of her.
“Jax doesn’t concern me. What concerns me is that you didn’t give me a proper goodbye when you left my place this morning.”
“You have got to be kidding me. Are you some kind of masochist? I told you whatever this is between us is over. I can’t do this, Mason. Why can’t you get that through your thick skull? Have you been pounded into the ground for so many years that you’ve lost all ability to absorb information?”
Piper was breathing heavily. The audacity of the man in front of her, she thought. The mere fact that he refused to acknowledge the fact that her boyfriend was his coach and how that was a problem made her irate.
Before she could yell at him more, he backed her up against the concrete wall in the hallway and placed his hands on either side of her head, trapping her from escape.
“Listen up and listen closely.” His low baritone voice shook her to her core and not in a bad way. “What happened between us is not just going to go away. Just because you are ‘in love’ with my coach doesn’t mean that I’m going to stop going after you because what we have together is more than anything you will ever have with that pencil dick.”
Piper’s mouth dropped open. “He does not have a pencil dick, he’s actually quite…”
“Finish that sentence and I will plow into you right now to show you what a real dick feels like.”
Piper shut her mouth because she knew Mason was serious and she didn’t want Jax walking out to see Mason slamming into her, most likely from behind, since he loved taking her that way and if she had to admit it, she loved it too.
“Good girl.” He kissed her from her ear to her jaw and around her mouth but never touching her lips while talking to her. “You are going to see me tomorrow night. You are going to come over to my place and you are going to wear the sexiest lingerie you have. I plan on fucking you until you can’t scream any longer.” He finally kissed her lips, making her moan in the back of her throat. “And if you don’t show up, you are not going to like the consequences, you hear me?” He bit her bottom lip, making her squeal.
Piper found herself nodding in agreement, but she had no clue why. She had no intention of going to Mason’s place tomorrow night, especially since she was going to make things work with Jax, but she would cross that path when she got to it.
“Good.” He licked her bottom lip before fully taking both her lips with his. He moved his tongue in and out of her mouth, making her do the same. She couldn’t stop, even if she wanted to. One last taste…that was all she needed.
“Now get your sexy ass out of here and I will see you tomorrow.”
Piper tore away from him, but not before he could smack her ass just like Jax. She quickly ran down the hallway and into her car. She buckled up, but didn’t start her engine. Instead she put her head on the steering wheel and started crying. This was all so unfair.
***
“Who was that?” Lexi asked, while rubbing the front of Jake’s chest while he leaned his back against her. Jake would never get sick of the feel of Lexi’s hands across his body. He was beyond lucky that he was not in the same spot as his three best friends.
Ryker had been pining after a girl named Hannah ever since he got to Denver and kept saying she was his future wife. Jake was shocked to hear such words come out of his playboy friend’s mouth. The mountain air must be getting to him.
Parker was having a hell of a time with the ladies over in Atlanta. Apparently, he was the hottest rookie at the moment and couldn’t seem to escape the crowds for some peace and quiet. Any little move he made was either captured in a photo or on film. He kept asking about Margo, one of Lexi’s best friends, giving Jake the idea that Parker was crushing on the gorgeous dark-haired beauty. Jake wasn’t too shocked about Parker’s feelings, since he and Margo had always had a connection, ever since they were freshmen in college. Then that left Mason…poor, poor Mason.
“That was Ryker,” Jake answered his beautiful wife. She moved to his front and straddled his lap. He was sitting on the couch, so he leaned back and enjoyed the view of his wife in her bikini. She spent most of her time in a bikini now that they lived on the beach and her skin did a glorious job soaking up the sun. She had a mouthwatering tan covering her body that made her gorgeous blue eyes stand out even more. Her hair was hanging down over her shoulders, just covering her breasts and was in long waves from the beach water.
He fingered the light blue two-piece suit she was expertly wearing. The fabric barely covered her large breasts and had a really skimpy bottom that he enjoyed. He picked the bikini out for her to wear around the house and that was it. He made sure she wore more conservative bathing suits out in public, but this one, this one was for his own enjoyment.
He played with the straps barely containing her breasts as she wiggled around on his lap making him grow larger by the second. She smiled at him, knowing exactly what she was doing to him, the little vixen. To think she had only barely been with one other man before they met.
“What did Ryker want? Was he trying to trash talk before the game on Saturday? They know they’re going down, right?” Lexi said seductively, making him think differently about the words “going down.” Boy did he want to go down.
He shook his head and thought about what a coincidence it was that he would be playing the Stallions for their first pre-season game. Jake had spent the last couple of months really getting ready for the season and when he was on the field with the rookies, he made sure he worked them and they understood his way of passing. He did that because it was the only way they were going to meld well together. If he wanted a winning season, then he needed to learn how to work with what he was dealt and, after weeks of training, he felt good about the season and their chances.
Lexi kissed his jaw. “Earth to big guy, what did Ryker want?”
“Sorry. You make me forget everything when you wiggle around like that.” She wiggled again, making him even harder, if possible. He gripped her hips to keep her still. “You are s
uch a tease.”
She shrugged her shoulders. “You like it. Now tell me what Ryker wanted.”
“He called to talk about Mason and a new campaign he’ll be a part of.”
“Really? That’s exciting, what kind of campaign?”
“Some bedroom line with C.C. Morris.”
Lexi screeched. “C.C. Morris…seriously?”
“Yeah, what’s the big deal?”
“Jake, you know that black garter you like me to wear with the light pink bows on it?”
Jake thought back to the other night when Lexi came out of their bedroom wearing one of the smallest bras he had ever seen with a matching panty-less garter belt, he nearly exploded on the spot.
“How could I forget? You were so fucking hot in that.”
“Well, that’s from C.C. Morris. It’s a new line they’re starting. I got a free sample the other day. I can’t believe Ryker is going to be a part of their campaign. I heard they are really trying to amp up the sex appeal and steer away from the preppy look. He has a great body for it.”
“Excuse me?” Jake said in a joking tone.
“Oh please. You have the best body I have ever seen…ever, but Ryker has a good body too and he could totally pull off their style.”
“Yeah, well guess who he’ll be working with?” Lexi shrugged, not even trying to guess. “Ashlin Harris.”
“Shut up! Holy crap. That is going to be one hot ad. I can’t wait to see it.”
“It will be nice to look at Ashlin,” Jake said jokingly.
“Watch it, big guy. I can very easily go into our bedroom and change into sweats and a ratty old shirt.”
“I would still want to fuck you up against a wall.”
“Jake!” Lexi squealed. “You dirty man. So what about Mason? Is he alright? I worry about him.”
“Ryker was inviting us out the night before the game to a bar him and Mason frequent often; Ryker thinks it might be good for Mason, since he just found out Piper, who he’s been obsessed with, is dating and in love with, get this, their offensive coordinator.”
