by Sosie Frost
“I’m a disaster now?” Jack grinned.
“The worst kind.” I touched his cheek. “I have no idea what to do when I’m around you. There’s no plan that can guard my heart. I’d have to leave you to protect myself from everything I feel—and, Jack, if I had to spend another moment separated from you, I might’ve lost myself.”
“But I’m here,” he said.
“You’re here. And you have no idea how much you mean to me. You asked me what I thought of you? It’s simple. You’re my world. You are everything I could ever, possibly want in this lifetime.”
His smile warmed me, chased away the fears and stress. “You love me.”
“I love you. How’s that for a headline?”
“Respectable, Amazing Woman Falls For Idiot Trouble-Maker.”
“We can spin it to be something more positive. That’s why you pay me the big bucks.”
Jack mellowed. He stared at me, his breathing still shuddered with adrenaline. “Marry me?”
Call in the paddles; I was going into shock. “Marry you?”
“Yeah.”
“Jack, we’ve only just said—”
“I don’t care. Marry me.”
Wild, foolish, impetuous man.
“It’s a little sudden. Spontaneous.” My lip quivered. “Romantic.”
It was nothing the old me would’ve done, but now it sounded right. For once, I didn’t think about my answer.
“Yes,” I whispered.
“Yes?”
“Yes.”
Jack leapt to his feet. “Now?”
Oh, dear God. My eyes widened. At least he caught himself before he got too wound up.
“Okay.” He laughed. “We can plan it.”
“Maybe just a little.”
“But we gotta do something now. Something…for us.”
Getting out of the hospital would be a start. I rested my hand over my tummy, glancing up at him. “How about we name the baby?”
Jack went still. “Name him?”
“I kinda…have one in mind.”
“Just one? You probably had some spreadsheet set up with a dozen names all alphabetized and color coordinated—”
“Sam.”
It took a moment to sink in. Jack’s expression twisted, aching. He spoke the name silently at first. His eyes rose to mine.
“For my…”
I nodded. “In honor of your little brother.”
He sucked in a breath. “I like Sam.”
“I do too.”
“I…” He approached again, kissing me so gently it was as if he thought I’d break. “Thank you.”
I smiled, and Jack helped me to my feet. His hand never left mine.
“What can I do?” he asked.
Easy. “I want to go home and sleep. Let me give these forms back and we can go.”
The nurses at the station exchanged smirks as I wandered to the desk. The nice brunette in pink scrubs who treated me first took my paperwork with a wink.
“We’ve all been there, honey,” she said. “Especially with our first baby.”
“Thank you.”
“Was that your man who brought in the police officer?”
Police? What the hell...of course it had to be Jack.
I turned, following her nod. I was not at all surprised to see a uniformed police officer shaking Jack’s hand. Jack thanked him for the escort.
The escort?
I crossed my arms. “Jack Carson, can you go one night without someone calling the cops on you?”
He shrugged, slapping the officer’s shoulder. “What can I say, Kiss? Maybe I just like a good pair of handcuffs.”
God. The entire nurses’ station giggled. At least they thought it was charming.
So did I.
I smiled. “Maybe the officer would be kind enough to lend me his—”
The camera flash disoriented me. Two men rushed through the halls of the hospital, chased by a portly security guard who shouted for them to stop. The video camera pointed directly at me, the handheld camera flashed at Jack.
A microphone aimed at my face.
I stumbled, trapped against the counter to the nurses’ station.
“Leah!” The little worm holding the microphone guided his cameraman closer. I recognized his squeaking voice. He was the same slime ball who called me a slut on my first date with Jack. “Leah, couple questions?”
Jack launched, but not before the sleaze edged him out and took another picture.
“Did you lose the baby, Leah?” The reporter shouted it so everyone could hear. “Where was Jack partying when the baby died?”
I clutched at my tummy, suddenly terrified the doctors made a horrible mistake or they refused to tell me some dark and awful secret. My eyes welled with tears and impossibility. I didn’t have time to respond.
Jack charged, his fist connecting with the asshole’s face. The sleaze was fortunate the punch landed while he was in the hospital. He was out cold before he struck the ground.
The camera man filmed it all.
Jack rushing to my side.
The nurses shouting.
The security guard calling for help.
And, worst of all, he filmed the police officer breaking up the chaos. Doctors rushed to the unconscious man, but I didn’t worry so much about the bastard who dared to trivialize my baby’s health. I focused on Jack.
So did the police officer.
The officer apologized as he pulled Jack away.
“I really wish you hadn’t hit him in front of me,” he said.
So did I. So did Jack. But my bad boy wasn’t afraid of a good fight.
Jack grinned. “That was one hell of a hit, huh?”
The officer nodded. “Your lawyer will love it.”
Oh, this wasn’t happening. Again. Jack faced me, shame darkening his gaze. He forced a bit of lightness into his voice.
“Hey, I know I talked a lot about changing. A lot. But…I gotta go get…”
I finished for him. “Get arrested.”
“Yeah.”
“Again.”
Jack took it like a man. “At least you know where to pick me up?”
I could have been angry. I should’ve cried. Instead, I was just so glad he attacked the asshole before I did or nothing would have remained of that slimy journalist.
I kissed his cheek. “Tell me you don’t want to marry me just so you’ll have someone to bail you out of jail?”
“At least you’ll know where the checkbook is,” he said. “This is the last time. I promise.”
Yeah, old habits died hard. I pulled my cell and prepared to make my usual list of calls. “I’m charging you for overtime on this one, Mr. Carson.”
“That’s why I love you.” Jack’s smile faded as the officer led him to the elevators. “You’re practical.”
“One of us needs to be.”
“I’ll get out of this. Promise.” He held my gaze. “I love you.”
I watched my future husband and father of my child get arrested for the second time in only a few months. My voice was soft.
“Love you too.”
Now how the hell was I going to spin this?
24
Leah
“I’m not doing it.”
I expected Jack’s resistance.
I straightened his tie and brushed the wrinkles from his suit coat. He clutched the speech I prepared in his hand. If he ripped it up, I had spares. A copy in my purse, another in his jacket, and I still had my tablet and phone with copies ready to pull up at a moment’s notice.
He was giving this press conference.
And he was going to read my speech.
Even if he hated it. If he wanted to stay in the league, this was the only way.
“Jack, not every man gets third, fourth, and fifth chances,” I warned. “You got lucky with the judge, but just because he dismissed the case with some silly anger management classes doesn’t mean your fans or the league will understand.”
He
held up the speech. “And this is supposed to fix it?”
“Jack, that apology is the only thing that’ll save your career.”
“How can you be sure?”
“Because I wrote it.” I pulled him close for a kiss. “Read what it says. Mean it, and we’ll see what happens when the league concludes their investigation.”
“But I don’t mean it!” His voice sharpened. “Accepting the four game suspension without question? Fully cooperating with whatever their decision they render? Eating the fine and donating the same amount to charity?”
I arched an eyebrow. “You’re donating to the hospital.”
“Yeah.” He shook his head. “But now everyone’s gonna know. I’ll let my name get shit on, but I don’t want them to say anything about my little brother—”
“They won’t. Believe me, Jack, this will show that you have a commitment beyond yourself.”
He held my hand, kissing the finger that now brandished a beautiful diamond ring. “I already have a commitment. I have you. I have Sam.”
“Charm’s not getting you out of this, bad boy.”
“What if I toss you back on the bench, promise to behave, and give you the licking of a lifetime?”
“In the middle of the locker room?”
“Always been a fantasy of mine.”
“And so it will remain.” I poked his chest. “Speech now. Licking later.”
“Promise?”
“I still got that leash on you, Jack Carson. Tighter than ever.”
His smile only grew. I should have known better than to encourage him, but even in the darkest moments, he was always eager to flirt.
He kissed me and rubbed my tummy. I rested my hands over his. Jack hadn’t yet recovered from our scare, and he spent every waking minute tending to my needs—offering me food, blankets, any sort of fun second trimester naughtiness that tickled my fancy.
But his knee was healed, and training camp was coming to an end. No one knew who would start at quarterback. Jack only hoped he’d have a spot on the team when the season began.
I wasn’t about to let this latest scandal ruin his career. I wrote his speech to show heart, growth, and personal responsibility. It welcomed any of the league’s chosen consequences as fair and just.
But we knew it’d be brutal. They weren’t punishing Jack. He’d serve as a lesson to every other bad boy in the league, but if he could just be permitted to stay…
One of the Rivets’ spokespersons rapped on the door. He waved us forward, and I gave Jack as much of a hug as my baby bump would allow.
“Just be you out there,” I said.
“Irritated and sarcastic?”
I kissed him. “Be the man I love.”
He smirked. “I’m pretty good at that.”
“Don’t get cocky.”
“I’m good at that too.”
And that was what I was afraid of. I tucked the speech into his jacket and let him lead us to the pressroom. The media room was big enough to fit the usual batch of local reporters, but tonight it filled completely, overflowing into the hallways and fit with more cameras and photographers than crammed in during last season’s playoffs.
Jack offered the room a smile, even though I told him to appear as solemn as he could. Wasn’t going to happen. I crossed my fingers.
“Lots of cameras today.” Jack cleared his throat and approached an impromptu podium. “Don’t worry, I won’t break any of ‘em.”
Cripes. Now I crossed both fingers.
Jack unveiled the speech from his pocket. He looked it over and heaved a breath. Appropriately remorseful, but I saw something else.
That defiance.
He hated this so much. My heart ached for him, but it was the only way.
Jack wasn’t a man who’d beg for mercy. He earned the chances he got because he was the best quarterback in the damn league and everyone knew it.
Which meant he already made his decision.
I knew it before he did.
“Good evening.” Jack read from the statement. The cameras whirled and clicked. Flashes of light captured the hard angle of his jaw, his growing scowl. “I wish to take this opportunity to thank the members of the press and my fans for allowing me this moment to express my sincerest remorse for…” He paused. Exhaled. “For…”
I saw it happening. His mind changed.
At least he almost made it through the opening paragraph.
Jack’s demeanor shifted. He shook his head and ripped up the speech. The reporters murmured to themselves.
“No.” Jack started again. “I’m not sorry for what happened that night. Yeah, I got arrested. Again. And yeah, I got a massive speeding ticket and nearly lost my license. I regret the trouble it caused the team, league, and my family, but I can’t apologize for the reason it happened. In fact, I’d do it all again if I had to.”
No PR company could salvage this. I waited as Jack faced everyone who would skin him alive for daring to be honest when the media needed a scoop.
“That night, I’d thought I lost my unborn son.” His words darkened. “I thought the woman I loved was in danger. Yes, I sped to the hospital. Yes, we had an issue with a journalist. But I did everything I could to rush to her side. I’m not apologizing for doing what a father should do to protect his baby.”
The room shifted. More lights and flashes. Jack shrugged at me.
“There’s not much else for a man to do while we wait for the kid to be born. I, uh, painted the nursery. I got the late night ice cream. Did the foot rubs. But that’s nothing when you realize how helpless you are if there’s a problem.” His voice hardened, confident. “I can’t do much for him now, but I will always be there if he’s in trouble, no matter the damn consequences.”
I cradled my belly, meeting Jack’s gaze with a gentle smile.
“As for the assault charge.” The devoted father faded, and the hardened lover returned. “No one will ever terrorize the woman I love, especially if she’s in the hospital, fearing for our baby’s life. If defending her, if protecting her makes me some sort of criminal, then I’m a criminal. Cut me from the team. Expel me from the league.”
The room buzzed. Jack didn’t care.
“I might not be a quarterback anymore, but at least I know I’ll be a damned good husband and father. There’s no apologizing for that.”
The press silenced. My eyes blurred with tears, absolutely moved by the man I loved. It wasn’t the apology I wanted him to give, and it wasn’t anything the league would ever tolerate. It didn’t matter. He made a mistake, got into trouble, but this time…it wasn’t something selfish and inconsiderate.
He sacrificed everything for me.
Jack wrapped it up with a nod. “Now, I am sorry for the legal problems this is causing. My driving was reckless, and I did punch a guy out.” He paused. “I know how my behavior reflects on the league and the team. Hell, I know it’s making Leah squirm because I’m going off script. Just let me say, I’ll take a punishment. Whatever the league wants. And I won’t complain because it’s deserved. But I won’t apologize for defending my family. I love her. I love my baby. And I’ll do whatever it takes to keep them protected and safe.”
Jack tucked the crumpled speech in his pocket. The media stood, shouting questions and calling his name. He ignored them, holding out a hand for me to take. He pulled me from the zoo and led me away until we tucked in a quiet, dim corner office. I was lost to his arms.
His kiss stole my breath.
“Marry me now,” he said. “If my career is ending, at least I’ll know I’ll have you, Kiss. Let’s get married now and just be happy.”
I stared into those bandit blue eyes. “You really are bad, aren’t you?”
“Willing to do something reckless?”
“Loving you isn’t reckless.”
“You sure?”
“It’s a testament to my patience, but it’s not reckless. It’s easy.”
Jack smiled. “Is that a yes?”
I kissed him again, easing the worry from his body with a simple brush of my lips.
“I love you,” I whispered. “Let’s get married.”
Epilogue
His crib was warm and comfortable. Sam stared at me with big, mocha eyes, just as expressive as his mother’s. He liked it when I hung around, cooing and kicking his legs so hard I hoped he wanted to play soccer and not become a punter.
I wasn’t sure how many nights I spent watching the little guy. Leah gave me a hard time. She said Sam couldn’t stop looking at me when I was around, and that I wound him up when he was supposed to be sleeping.
Likewise, kiddo.
I couldn’t follow all the rules, all the time. My son was worth breaking them all.
I tucked the little stuffed football under his chin. He smiled. He had my smile. Now Leah had both of us to deal with.
“So.” I set the ball at the bottom of his crib. “You missed the championship game, bud. I mean, you were there, in your mom, but you didn’t have a good seat in there. It was a good game too. I told your momma I’d play for her, and I earned the MVP.”
Sam blew a spit bubble. I took it as a compliment.
“This is your first lesson.” I poked at his chubby tummy. “When you win, you act like you’ve been there before. You hear me, Sam? Always.”
He gurgled and made a little squeal. His toes wiggled, and they were pretty much the most amazing things I had ever seen in my life. I rested my hand over him, amazed how I created something so little and yet absolutely cripplingly frightening and awesome and perfect.
“Last year was for your momma,” I said. “I had something to prove to her. This year? It’s all for you, Sam. Every play, every drive, every win. It’s because of you. You’re my reason.”
I could tell he was my kid because he didn’t have an ounce of humility in those rosy cheeks. I grinned.
“You know, it wouldn’t hurt if you told your mom that…I think hearing it from you would score me some points…”
Leah giggled from the doorway. I winked at her as she waited for me. Her arms crossed.
“He’s supposed to be sleeping.”
Busted. “He’s getting there.”
“Telling him a story?”
