Barely suppressing a laugh, I give him an innocent look. “I can’t believe you’re still blaming Betsy for your stomach issues... and you were the one sleeping in her room.”
“A dog shouldn’t have its own room, LT.” With a shake of his head, he mutters, “Rich people.”
I don’t bother to point out that his net worth is probably more than my parents will spend in two lifetimes. “Queen Betsy got whatever she wanted.” That aggravating cocker spaniel got whatever she wanted because my dad adored her almost as much as he did my momma.
“Do I detect a note of jealousy?”
Twisting my lips, I scoop up some eggs and almost all the bacon he’s left on the serving dish. “Nope.”
He grunts. “Eat the last two pieces, LT. This is second breakfast for me.”
“Impressive. Guess you already worked out this morning, too.”
“Yeah.” He leans back in the chair, shoving his hands behind his head, and I’m momentarily hypnotized by the flex of muscles. “Listen, I was short with you earlier and I want to apologize.”
“We don’t have to talk about it. In fact, I want to forget what happened.” I bite into a piece of bacon. “Obviously, it was a bad move on my part.”
His light eyes study me. “Obviously.”
“I’m not even divorced.”
He frowns. “That didn’t occur to me.”
“Please. You were judging me the entire time. You always do.” I finish off the bacon, and then drink down a glass of water that he thoughtfully poured for me. I’m not a coffee drinker, and I hate the taste of milk, except in milkshakes. “It’s our thing. I say something, you say something crass to prove a point, and then we go on with our lives.”
His lips flatten. “Is that really how you see me?”
“That’s really how you act. It’s like... it’s like you decided you weren’t going to be my friend anymore, and then became a major jerk so I’d be okay with it... I guess.” A twinge of hurt runs through me. “You hurt my feelings a lot, over the years.”
“Maybe I had a good reason.”
“There’s never a good reason to hurt someone.”
He laughs, but it almost bitter-sounding to me. “You don’t wanna hurt Joe for the stunt he pulled?”
Pain claws at my heart. I loved Joe. “That’s not fair and you know it.”
“What’s not fair is you acting like I’m supposed to go along with whatever you want at the time... and what you want right now is revenge sex.”
I’m really going to have to talk about this conversation with Paige, because according to her and Dallas, guys don’t care what kind of sex a woman offers. “You promised to help me.” The ultimate proof is in my binder. The same stupid binder where I planned a marriage that didn’t even last a week.
I’m such a failure.
His jaw works. “I also promised to do ya one better by marrying you. Ready for that ring, LT?”
I can’t help but stare at my bare finger. “I threw my wedding set into the ocean.”
“Damn, that’s pretty fucking ballsy.” Aiden laughs. “I bet he dove in after it, didn’t he?”
“At least he proved that was real.”
“C’mon, Layton. Don’t think about that.” His gaze softens. “I know you think I’m a hard ass who has no feelings, but I wouldn’t do you like he did.”
“I never said you didn’t have feelings.” I take a deep breath. “I don’t want to argue anymore. I want my old life back. I want my old job back.” I want the old me back, the one with her entire future planned out.
Aiden leans forward, placing his elbows on the table. “You know... I felt the exact same way when the Patriots traded me to the Renegades.”
I blink at him. “I thought you wanted to play for Raleigh?”
“Of course you did, and so did every fan out there. No way was I going to tell them different—that I was wicked pissed they were letting me go. The only person who had permission to make me a failure or a success was me.” His phone buzzes, and he takes a few seconds to read whatever pops up on his screen. “Damn it,” he mumbles.
“Everything okay?”
“It’s my ma.” He grimaces. “Mind if I take you home now? I got shit to take care of.”
Take me home? “Thought you had an Uber coming for me?”
He smirks, his gaze dropping to my lap, then returning to my face. “Not wearing that I don’t. Besides, your brother would kick my ass for sending you home half-dressed.”
“At least let me cook dinner for you tonight. As a thank you only.” I cross my fingers so he can’t see my lie. He said he’d have sex with me if I were sober. He also said he wouldn’t do me like Joe did.
Guys who aren’t interested don’t say things like that.
They also don’t kiss like he had either.
“I don’t know...” He wants to. I can see it in his face.
There are boundaries that can’t be crossed, so when you show up, half-dressed, and then kiss me like a fucking angel, I can’t... I can’t deal with it in a thoughtful way that won’t hurt your feelings.
I wonder... “That’s okay. Paige offered to set me up with... Sam, I think, for her couples’ dinner party tonight. He’s a cool guy, right?”
“I’ll be there at six.”
With a smile, I pick up my napkin and wipe off my slightly greasy hands. “Perfect.”
Chapter 10
Aiden
WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING champ Jack Dempsey once said, the best defense is a good offense. Obviously, Jack Dempsey never had to face Layton Price at the breakfast table... or my ma when she’s got it in her head that the man in her life is stepping out on her.
“I can’t come up there right now. I gotta play—”
“Your game isn’t until tomorrow.” She sniffs. “Swear to God, if I were in the hospital, you’d let me die alone just so you could win the playoffs.”
God save me from dramatic women.
I love my ma, really I do, and I would move the earth for her, but her timing is always bad. Just as I was getting through to Layton, making her feel better about herself, and hopefully stopping her from seeing me as the answer to her rebound problem, my ma blows up my phone.
“You know I wouldn’t.” I grip the steering wheel tighter, thankful I already dropped Layton off at her brother’s place. “Try talking to Dom. He’s a good guy.”
“You didn’t see the way he cut a roast for Debbie.”
Dominic Marchetti owns a butcher shop. He and my ma met over veal cutlets. She thought he was charging too much. He agreed with her, just so she’d go out with him.
He’s not married, doesn’t raise a hand to her, and thinks she’s an angel. Treats her like she’s a motherfucking queen.
In my book, that makes him a good dude, but my ma’s judgment is skewed because of my old man’s penchant for cheating. She finally kicked him to the curb about ten years back. Five years ago, he died in his sleep of a heart attack. The fact he took a bullet in the head and heart, courtesy of his latest girlfriend’s husband, didn’t make it any less true.
“Maybe it was good customer service.”
“Yeah, and maybe I’ll get invited to tea with the queen of England.” She sighs thickly. “Aiden, you have to say something to him, or I’m afraid I’ll blow this. I can’t blow this. He’s my ticket to happiness.”
My heart, that stupid muscle I try hard as hell not to let rule my life, cracks a little. “Sure. I’ll call him and say something, but you gotta dial down the crazy to at least a four. Men can handle a four.”
She laughs, making me smile. “Thanks, baby. I knew I could count on you.”
“Forever and always.”
After I end our call, I drive to Kingston’s office, where I know for a fact he’s working for the next four hours at least. He’s one of those work hard, play harder type of guys. Back home, we’d all bust his chops for being a yuppie.
Kingston’s good people, though. He doesn’t cheat me, gets th
e best deals for me, and no matter what kind of shit hits the fan, he stands by me.
When I walk inside his office, he’s hammering away at his keyboard; his face is in crush-the-competition mode. Hell yes, my boy is giving those advertisers hell on their terms and asking for more.
“Have they caved to your demands yet?” I ask, sitting in the chair across from him and propping my feet up on his desk. “Tell ‘em I want twice what was offered.”
Kingston side-eyes me, reminding me a little of his sister. I shouldn’t be surprised; they both have dark hair, dark eyes, and when they set their mind to something, they won’t let go of it until they’re made to, or decide there are better things to achieve.
Apparently, I’m the next achievement level for Layton.
“Give me five seconds to finish this email, then we can talk.”
Okay, so Kingston’s not working on my shit. He does have other clients he has to take care of, so I’ll give him a pass. While he’s finishing up, I go against my better judgment and hop on Instagram to check my feed. I have a guy who manages it for me, but there are times I like to do personal posts.
Big mistake.
As soon as I start reading comments, it’s almost identical to that time I was on Kimmel, reading mean tweets about myself.
“Done,” Kingston announces, none too soon, because my fingers are hovering over my keyboard, read to blast the asshole who said my mom should’ve swallowed. “You still plan on staying with me after the move, right?”
“Yeah.” Reluctantly, I put my phone away. “How you doin’?”
Kingston’s eyes narrow. “What have you done?”
“Not a damn thing.” I take my feet off his desk. “But your sister has.”
“She’s out of bed, at least, and going to job interviews. Thanks for that.”
Would he thank me if he knew his kid sister had show up at my place with her tits on display? “She wants to make me dinner tonight.”
Kingston’s face doesn’t change. “And?”
“Shouldn’t you tell me to stay the hell away from her?”
“Not if it’s only dinner,” he points out, and my fucking ears start to burn at the tips. “Oh, shit. She’s gunning for you, huh?”
“I don’t want to get into specifics, but, uh, she thinks I’m the one to help her get over Joe.” I sit up and lean forward. “If you wanna go ahead and clobber me in the jaw, I’ll let you do it... once.”
Kingston gives me an odd look. “Why the fuck would I want to do that? You have a game to play, and a concussion will bench you.”
Of course the cocky fucker thinks he’d hurt me that bad. “It seemed like the right thing to do.”
“Have you slept with her?” he asks, point blank.
This is not the conversation I want to have with Kingston, much less a guy I do business with. “Fuck no.”
“Good.” He looks me up and down. “She could do worse.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“Seriously, though. I’m not worried about the two of you.” He’s so casual about it that while I do believe him, there has to be something he knows that I don’t. And I don’t like being in the dark.
“Just like that...” I snap my fingers. “You’re okay with us?”
“Damn straight I am.” He smiles. “Layton picked the one guy who can’t sleep with her for at least the next month because he’s too damn superstitious it will mess up his game. She’s not going to wait around that long if her goal is to get over Joe as quickly as possible, so I don’t have to kick your ass for touching her.”
“Try it, pretty boy.” But he’s right. Layton’s goal is to get over Joe by getting under me. I rub the back of my neck. “Dinner is going to suuuuuck.”
“This is priceless.” His smile turns into a full-on belly laugh. “What more could I ask for?”
Kingston might not know what else he could ask for, but I sure as hell know what I’ll be getting.
Fucking blue balls.
I ARRIVE AT THE RENEGADES stadium ten minutes before the players meeting. Since tomorrow is a home game, I feel like I have time to breathe and get my head on straight before we kick the Falcons’ collective asses.
As usual, Coach doesn’t have much to address because he’s damn good at his job, and he makes sure everyone else is on board before shit can go down. It’s one of the reasons why I’ve stayed with the Renegades for so long.
Their system fits me.
Their schedule suits me.
Our wins make me money.
The perfect trifecta of stability for a poor kid who lived hand to mouth growing up.
“You find a date to come to my place for dinner or what?” Dallas asks as we head to the field to go over plays.
“I have plans.” I could tell him they’re with Layton, but he’ll know soon enough since she and Paige are like one brain most of the time. “By the way, don’t ever send me a present like that again.”
Dallas grins. “Is it because you couldn’t play with your present?”
“Dude, I can’t even open my present.” Fuck. I’m done with talking about Layton like she’s an object. “How about you do your job and block for me? Or if I throw you a pass, score.”
“If you will, I will,” he says smartly. “Who are your plans with tonight?”
“None ya.”
“Who’s she?”
I flip him off. “If you must know... Layton’s making me dinner.”
A wide smile splits his face in two. “That’s what I’m talking about.”
“Do you ever think about anything other than pussy?”
He rubs his chin. “Winning?”
“You’re fucking hopeless.”
“And you need to get fucked out of your perpetual grumpy ass mood.”
I jog away, determined to put Layton, Dallas, my ma, and my ma’s boyfriend out of my mind.
Chapter 11
Layton
“LAST NIGHT WAS A COMPLETE and utter disaster,” I huff as I walk in the kitchen.
After Aiden dropped me off at Kingston’s apartment, I took a shower and made a list of things I needed to accomplish today in order to make tonight’s dinner with him a success.
Only I needed input from Paige, because not only am I novice at dating, I also can’t seduce a supposed manwhore of an NFL player because he has some hang-up about sex being bad luck during the season.
So I offered lunch, and she agreed.
Carefully, I place the bag of avocados, tomatoes, and onions on the island counter, then add a second and third bag. Basically, since I’m craving Mexican food, I had to buy everything at the store because I have no idea what Dallas keeps on hand in his kitchen.
Paige makes a noise, her back to me.
“Apparently, I made such a fool of myself that Aiden had to lock me in my own room so I’d quit bothering him while he slept. Have you ever?” I don’t wait for her to reply. Instead, I unpack the groceries, then wash and dry my hands before settling in to make homemade guacamole that we can snack on while I cook fajitas. “It was so embarrassing, and we really need to talk about what you and Dallas said guys like versus what Aiden likes. I’m pretty sure he’s a unicorn. No pigtails, no cheerleading outfit, and no revenge sex. We’re having dinner together this evening, so I have to redouble or start over... or stalk the crap out of him on social media to make sure he can’t turn me down again.”
“That’s good,” Paige mutters.
“Good?” I stop chopping up tomatoes and slam the knife down on the cutting board. “That’s not good—are you even listening to me?”
Finally, Paige turns around, tears in her eyes and her cheeks flaming red. “As much as I’d love to be super supportive right now, I don’t have time to listen to your problems.”
“Then why did you say it was okay for me to come over and make us lunch?”
“Because I was hungry and couldn’t think straight.” She rubs her temples. “I need to concentrate. While I don’t mind if you talk, I canno
t be held responsible for the quality of my replies if you ask a question.”
“Does Nolan have you working tonight, or is he trying to weasel his way into Dallas’s house?” My old boss has a serious mancrush on Paige’s fiancé. Nolan tries to blame his wife Sarah for his obsession, but we all know the truth.
“If only.” Misery shines in her eyes. “I’m trying to be a great fiancée and have a party for Dallas, and—”
“You’re having a party without me?” I all but screech at her, then modulate my voice. “That’s wonderful. What’s the theme?”
“It’s for couples.” She smiles apologetically. “Sorry, I didn’t want to hurt your feelings.”
“Don’t apologize.” I rush to her, grabbing her in a hug. “I’m the one who’s sorry for not being more sensitive to your needs.”
She squeezes me tight, and it’s then I catch a glimpse of the poor cloth napkin she’s attempting to contort into something fancy. Except it looks like a crime scene made of dead flowers, haphazard glitter, and twine. Paige has amazing taste, but she has no clue how to put it all together so it resembles what’s in her head.
“Oh, what shape is that?” I ask, trying to be positive. It looks like a duck with its neck snapped.
“Rectangularish oval?” She lets go of me and steps back while I move in closer to inspect her handiwork. “I know it’s probably not what you would have picked out, but I think... I think it will work and Dallas’s boss, like the big boss—head honcho, whoever signs his paycheck—is coming over with his wife. It’s horrible, isn’t it?”
“Not at all.” I nibble on the tip of my finger, then pick up the napkin and examine it. “If you... uh, just... um, maybe turn it over and start again—”
“I’ve been working on the stupid napkins all morning.” Paige’s shoulders slump. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her look so defeated in my life, not even when she ordered Dallas to give her space so she could think about their relationship going public or even forward.
And that’s saying something.
“Why don’t you let me see what I can come up with?” I mentally go over the time I have to prepare for Aiden’s arrival and the time I can spend with Paige, cooking and helping her out a bit with her party planning. “Tomorrow, I’m sure we can come up with even grander plans.”
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