by Holly Jaymes
“I do,” he said, standing and extending his hand. “Emma.”
I shook his hand, remembering how those strong hands were all over my body in the shower less than an hour before.
“Tucker,” I said, shaking his hand.
“He’s single,” Mary said with a glimmer in her eyes. “And rich too.”
I laughed. “I thought you wanted me to marry Wyatt?”
Tucker flinched, but retained his smile.
“It’s always good to have options.” She turned and headed into the house. “Now, I’ve got the keys to the cabins.”
I heard another car pull up, followed by another.
She stopped at the door. “Who is coming so early?”
The cars parked. Mason and Willa stepped out of the first one.
“I brought reinforcements,” Tucker said.
My gaze shot to his as my heart swelled in my chest. He wasn’t just volunteering his time, but he’d asked his brother to help too. As well as Josh and Allie, and Wyatt. It was so strange to have a well of emotion over this, and yet I did. Despite the warning bells going off in my head, I knew without a doubt I was falling for Tucker.
But then I remembered, we were a secret, so I quickly turned my gaze away to the new arrivals.
“Oh, Tucker,” Mary’s eyes filled with tears. “I’ve so missed having you around.”
“Give me a sign and you and I can run off together,” he said with a wink.
“Don’t give her ideas, son,” Harry said from the doorway.
By the end of the day, we’d scrubbed the four cabins that would be used by my friends. We’d repaired leaking toilets, replaced light bulbs, and remade all the beds with brand new sheets, paid for by Tucker. We’d also cleared the paths between the cabins and to the lodge and lake.
When we finished, Mary had dinner made for us in the lodge, which also could use a little TLC. Tucker must have noticed too, as he volunteered everyone to show up again tomorrow to spruce it up.
“This is a good thing you’re doing here,” Mason said to me as we left the lodge to head home.
“I couldn’t do it without you.”
I looked over at Tucker who was schmoozing with Mary.
“I’m sorry I was hard on you about Tucker. It’s just, he’s got a lot at stake right now.”
I nodded. “I understand. I hope he’s okay.”
“We had a little set back, but he seems to have found a new determination and he’s working hard. Tucker nearly always gets what he wants when he’s focused on the right things. I’m glad he's abiding by the rules.”
“The rules?” I asked, pretending I didn’t know.
“No drinking, no women, no bad press.”
“Ah, yes. Speaking of which, I didn’t post that picture of him.”
“He okayed it and it could be considered good press, which he could use. I suggested he let the publicity people with the team know about this work he was doing here, but he said no.”
“Why?”
“He doesn’t want to exploit the Minors. I told him it could help them by bringing in more people.” Mason looked over at his brother, and I could see pride in his eyes. “He might still, but it makes him uncomfortable,” he finished.
I arched a brow. “He’s not a shy person.”
Mason laughed. “That’s an understatement. But he cares for the Minors and doesn’t want to exploit that. I think he sees it as something that’s just his. A part of him the world doesn’t know about and can’t be a part of.”
I looked over at Tucker, laughing at something Mary had said. I’d never thought about the fact that his life was a fish bowl. For a moment, I wondered if I was part of his special secret that he wanted to keep just to himself. But then I remembered that keeping me a secret was because I was against the rules. I was forbidden to him.
“We’re taking off,” Josh called to Mason. “We’ll be back tomorrow for the lodge.”
“I’ll have to skip it,” Wyatt said.
“Slacker!” Josh teased.
“Someone’s got to keep the riff-raff off the street,” he said getting into his car.
“We should go too,” Willa said. “I invited Tucker to dinner, but he passed. Said he was tired.”
“I hope he didn’t hurt his shoulder,” Mason said, glancing over at Tucker who was trotting down the steps toward his car.
“You’re talking about me again,” he said, jokingly. “Knock it off.”
Mason laughed and helped Willa into the car. “See you tomorrow, Emma.”
I nodded and walked over to my car as Tucker got into his. Since people were around, I didn’t stop to talk to him. I drove to my cabin and waited. And waited. As I waited, I got more uncomfortable by just how much I needed him to show up. This was supposed to be a fun little secret fling. But as I heard his car pull up and my heart did flip-flops in my chest, I realized, I wasn’t just falling for Tucker. I was tumbling head over heels.
Chapter 13: Life Is Good
Tucker
The more time I spent with Emma, the more I wanted to spend time with her. I wanted to tell Mason how wonderful and talented she was. I wanted to take her out on a proper date and show her the respect and reverence she deserved.
At the same time, I liked that she and I were a secret. I didn’t have to share her with the world. With her, I wasn’t Tucker the playboy quarterback. I didn’t have to play the part of feeling confident and successful. I could be me. Small town country boy that likes tossing a ball and hanging out in nature. My time with her was mine and only mine.
Even so, when my probation was over, I wanted to come out to the world that I was with her, assuming she’d be okay with that. Being with me would help her career, but the fact that she hadn’t posted the picture of me with the painting I bought made me think she didn’t want the publicity I could bring her. I wondered if that was because my reputation might tarnish her brand.
Curious, I asked her about it. “How come you never posted that picture of me with your painting on social media?” We were sitting on her deck as the moon cast a long lovely glow over the lake. I was in the lounge chair with her sitting between my thighs, her back resting against my chest.
“I didn’t want to take advantage—”
“That’s why you do it though, right? Publicity? Why am I different from all the other people you’ve photographed?” I knew why, of course.
“One, you’re famous. Two, you called me on it and I didn’t want to be that woman. And three, your rule.”
“One, my being famous can help you. Two, I only called you on your saying it would be to my benefit, when it could be for you too. And three, the rule is no bad press. In fact, I suspect that good press to push the bad down would be welcomed.”
“That would be nice,” she said.
“It would help your dream,” I reminded her.
She pulled out her phone. To respect her privacy, I turned my gaze out to the lake, wondering why Mason and I hadn’t bought a cabin here when the Minors were selling a few. This was much better than the condo.
“Done,” she said as she put her phone in her pocket. She tilted her head back and kissed my chin. “Thank you.”
“That’s it?” I asked, as I gave myself a mental note to respond and repost on my feed to help her get more exposure.
“What?”
“You’re about to become famous for selling Tucker McLean a painting and all I get is a kiss on the chin?”
“Your arrogance is growing.”
“So’s something else,” I said with a nod to my groin.
“You expect me to pay through sexual favors?” she arched a brow.
“Well, yeah.” I sighed. “But, if you don’t want to. I’ll just head home now and jerk off.”
“I didn’t say I didn’t want to. But if I have to repay all your kindness with sexual favors, I suspect I’m way behind. After all you’ve done for the Minors, and now this?”
“I know we’re kidding here, but in all s
eriousness, I’m happy to help you and the Minors. I want to. I need to.” I looked down as strange emotions swirled in my chest.
She turned in my lap, straddling my thighs. “What do you mean?”
“It’s easy to get lost in the world outside the game. The partying,” I said by way of explanation. I didn’t want to go into the details of that life. “Here with you and the Minors, this feels real. Significant. I need to be a part of that. A reminder of sorts, I suppose. My life can feel hollow sometimes.”
She gave me that lovely smile that always twisted my gut and made me long for something I didn’t understand. “See, there you go being heavy, deep and real, Tucker. It’s so sexy.”
“Oh yeah?” I perked up at that. “You know, there are other ways to be heavy, deep and real.”
She rubbed her cleft over my dick, straining to find freedom from my jeans. “I like heavy, deep and real.”
“Well then,” I said, slipping my hands underneath her t-shirt.
April had given way to May, which meant milder weather and an increase in tourists. The summer season didn’t really start until Memorial Day, but many weekenders would come out to the lake. Fortunately, the Pine Rest area was still relatively unvisited. Emma’s artist friends would be arriving soon, which meant, I’d be going a week without seeing her. I hated that idea, and considered still sneaking over, but the risk was too great. If her friends saw me sneaking in or out of her place, it could ruin all my hard work.
But as my need to see her grew into something as necessary as breathing, I began to panic. Yes, I wanted to continue to see her when it was okay for me to be dating again, but at first, I wanted that because I enjoyed her company and the sex was spectacular.
The part that made me nervous was the necessity of seeing her. It was like an addiction. That couldn’t be good. She enjoyed me as much as I enjoyed her, that I felt sure of. But I was also a playboy still in her mind. She was in this to have fun. She didn’t care for me. Falling for her would be a sure road to heartbreak. So maybe the weeklong break that I’d need to take when her friends were in town for the retreat would be good for me. It wasn’t wise to fall for a woman who’d never love me back.
Until then, I was wholeheartedly involved in our secret affair.
“You’re not bored to death yet over being home?” Mason asked me one evening after we’d finished a workout and we’d thrown the ball a bit. We were sitting on his deck drinking water.
“No. Should I be?”
“You spend a lot of time by yourself in the condo.”
I shrugged, knowing I couldn’t tell him about my secret trips out to Pine Rest. “I keep busy enough.”
He eyed me suspiciously and I worried he might grill me or worse, he suspected my fling with Emma.
“That was a good thing you did for the Minors.”
“They were good to me.”
“And I was glad to see you and Emma weren’t at each other's throats.”
I sipped my water. “She stayed out of my way, and I stayed out of hers.” It was hard to say that because I didn’t like lying to my brother. I especially didn’t like lying about Emma. I desperately wanted to talk to him about all these crazy feelings I was having.
Willa invited me to stay for dinner again, but I declined. I wanted to get home and showered and then head out to Emma’s. I ate dinner with her, and after giving her three orgasms, and taking two for myself, I headed home again, despite the fact that I really wanted to spend the night with her in my arms.
When I reached my door, I noticed a business card in my door. I picked it up and saw Lauren’s name.
“Ah fuck.” I turned the card over and read, I know you’re not out drinking and carousing…right?
Why was my agent here? On a Saturday night, no less. Checking up on me and my not being home would be a red flag for sure.
I checked my watch. It was nearly one in the morning. I thought about texting her that I was home and had been at Mason’s but if she called him, I’d be exposed. Then again, if she’d called Mason looking for me, he’d be suspicious about where I was too. Fuck.
I decided to sleep on it and deal with it in the morning. I slept until six and then messaged her, knowing it would probably piss her off to be woken so early, but let her know that I was serious about my training.
Going for run. Back at 8.
I did a trail run and when I got home, she hadn’t responded to my text and wasn’t at my door. I took a shower and was making a smoothie when there was a knock on my door.
I looked through the peephole and then opened the door. “Lauren.”
She studied me closely, probably looking for signs of a hangover. She reached up, pressing her palm to my face, taking a closer look at my eyes.
“You look sober.”
“I am.” I opened the door to let her. “I’m about to have a smoothie. Want one?”
“No. Do you have coffee? That's what I could really use. In fact, I saw a coffee place in town. You should take me there and I’ll forget that you weren’t home when I got here last night. I won’t even ask where you were.”
Ah hell. I didn’t want to take her to Paradise Java. I hated it every time my two worlds, real life and Emma, collided. Then I remembered it was Sunday, and Emma was off. She told me last night she was going to finish up preparing for her mini-retreat and do some painting.
“Let me change and I’ll take you.”
I put on jeans and a t-shirt, and then grabbed my keys.
“You’ll need to explain to me this photo of you on Instagram,” she said as I walked with her to my car.
“Why? It’s not bad press.”
“No. In fact it could be good press. Tucker McLean, a supporter of the arts.”
“You don’t think I can appreciate art?” I decided not to tell her why I’d bought it. Instead, I opened the door of my SUV for her.
She patted me on the shoulder making me wince, more in anticipation than actual pain.
Her eyes narrowed as she said, “You can do whatever you want, Tucker. But sometimes that’s the problem.” Then she squeezed my shoulder.
I gritted my teeth. For the most part, my shoulder was much improved, but that didn’t mean direct pressure on it didn’t hurt.
“Tell me you didn’t hurt yourself again.”
“Small fall. All is well. Mason is confident I’ll be ready.”
She shook her head. “Sometimes I wonder if you’re worth all this effort.”
“I’ll remind you that you said that when you renegotiate my deal after I win the Superbowl.” I grinned.
“You think all I care about is money?” she quipped.
“I know you’re not here for my good looks. Which brings me to my next question? Why are you here?”
She got into my SUV. “I’ll tell you after I’ve had coffee.”
We arrived at Paradise Java, which had the usual weekend crowd. Usually, that wasn’t a problem, but looking up near the front, I could see there was only one person working the counter.
“They weren’t kidding when they said small towns are slower,” Lauren quipped as we inched closer to the counter.
“It’s not usually like this,” I said. When we finally got up front, I asked Janell, “Are you working alone today?”
She blew out a breath. “Charlie bailed today. I have back-up coming, but until then, I’m holding down the fort. What can I get you?”
I ordered coffee for both me and Lauren, who’d gone off to find us a place to sit. Once I had our drinks, I brought them to the table, glad she was able to find one out of the way in the corner.
“So, how goes the training?” Lauren asked.
“I’ll be ready.”
“You sure?” She reached over squeezing my right shoulder. I did all I could to keep from giving away that it was in the final stages of recovery from the contusion. For the most part, it felt a little bruised but wasn’t keeping me from my training at this point.
“I’m sure.”
/> Her hand slid down to my bicep.
“You keep feeling me up, you’re going to make my coach think I’ve broken one of the rules,” I joked, annoyed that she was treating me like a child.
“Just assessing my investment,” she said. Then she leaned to the side, giving me a little shoulder bump. “You’re doing good, Tucker. I wasn’t sure you would.”
I sipped my coffee. “Yeah, you and everyone else.”
“Don’t be like that. It’s your fault that we had doubts. I’m just glad to see the spark back in your eyes. Whatever you’re doing is working.”
I immediately thought of Emma. I loved football. I wanted to keep playing. But I couldn’t deny that part of the pep in my step was from her. I couldn’t wait until my probation was over and I could bring her into the world with me.
“I wanted to show you this email I got about a potential endorsement.” She pulled out her phone and after tapping a few times, pulled up an email.
I put my arm over the back of her chair for support as I leaned closer to her so I could see the screen. “What is it?”
“Not condoms.” She turned her head to grin at me.
I snorted. “But I’d be good at selling those.”
“Not right now, you better not be,” she quipped. “It’s an outdoor sporting goods company. You’d be a good fit, considering you grew up in an outdoor sports town.”
I nodded as I looked over the email. While I tried to keep my cool, I couldn’t help but feel my life was finally coming together. My training was back on track; I had a sexy, fun woman; and now, it looked like I might have a reputable endorsement. Yep, life was good.
Chapter 14: The Bubble Bursts
Emma
I woke early as usual, making coffee and turning on my computer to see about my Etsy sales. I was getting ready to print out the sold items and prepare them for shipping, when my cell phone rang.
