Straddling The Line: Play-By-Play Book 8

by Jaci Burton

  “Ready to get started again?”

  He nodded. “Sure.”

  “I’d like to know about anyone you feel was a mentor to you on your way up the ladder to success. High school coaches, anyone in college.”

  “Your dad.”

  She stopped and stared at him. “You don’t have to say that just because it’s me.”

  “I’m not saying it just because it’s you, Haven. Bill Briscoe saved my ass—more than once—and made it possible for me to have a pro sports career.”

  She felt the twinge in the vicinity of her heart, but pushed it aside and typed the quote into her laptop. “Okay. Tell me about . . . Bill.”

  “He took everyone under his wing. He was more than just our dorm parent. He genuinely cared about all of us guys. It made a difference to him that we were educated and also excelled at the sports we played. You know how hard college was for me. I wasn’t much into the academic part of it. But Bill pushed me to always do better. He said I wasn’t going to play sports the rest of my life, so it mattered that I graduated.”

  She looked up from her laptop. “And you did.”

  He laughed. “Yeah. Barely. Thanks to you. And to your—to Bill. Education was always important to him. He always wanted the guys to see a future beyond just a sports career. We talked a lot about what I saw myself doing after I was done with football and baseball.”

  “Really. And what did you see in your future?”

  “Nothing. Sports was always it for me. I don’t want to own some car dealership or do sportscasting. It’s always been and always will be sports for me. Bill suggested coaching.”

  “At the pro level?”

  “I don’t think so. Maybe working with kids somewhere down the road. I want to mold them when they’re younger.”

  She leaned back in the chair and studied him. “I could see that. Kids would look up to you. You could become a teacher, then do coaching.”

  He laughed. “Yeah, that’s not gonna happen.”

  “Why not?”

  “It’s just not gonna happen. I’m not teacher material.”

  “Why would you even think that? You totally could be. All you have to do is go back to school and get the right degree, then you could teach and coach.”

  “No.” He stood and left the room.

  Haven looked at the empty doorway, sensing she’d just said something terribly wrong. Trevor had been upset. Or angry. Or something.

  But she had no idea what she’d said.

  She set her laptop aside and went to find him.

  TWELVE

  TREVOR LOOKED OUT OVER THE POOL, TRYING TO GET his emotions under control.

  It had been stupid to walk out on Haven like that. She’d made a simple suggestion. She didn’t know about him, so he could have just nodded and said maybe and left it at that.

  Instead, the old insecurities had rushed to the surface. The impatience, the frustration at all the things he couldn’t do—would never be able to do—had gotten a stranglehold on him and had taken over, blotting out all his common sense.

  He closed his eyes and focused on the things he could do well.

  Like play baseball and football.

  He was going to have to be very careful in this interview. Haven had a knack for opening him up, bringing out the past, making him answer questions about things he hadn’t thought about in a long time. Like hopes and ambitions he thought he’d buried deep.

  She was good at her job, probably better than she gave herself credit for. Or maybe it was because the two of them had a natural ability to get into each other’s heads. He enjoyed talking to her about anything, and not just himself and his career. He wanted to know what she thought about a lot of things. He wanted to get to know her better. She was so smart.

  The exact opposite of him.

  He shook his head and stared into the water of the pool, sucking in a deep breath.

  Forget it. Let it go.

  He heard the back door open and straightened, forcing those thoughts out of his head. It was time to put the mask on again, so Haven wouldn’t see, wouldn’t know what he was thinking about.

  She came up beside him and laid her hand on his arm. “Something I said upset you.”

  He turned to face her, planting a smile on his face. “No, you didn’t. I’m sorry I got up and left. I just needed a break.”

  He knew from the look on her face that she didn’t believe him, but she nodded.

  “Okay.”

  “I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling closed in spending the day at the house. Let’s take a trip out.”

  “Sure. Where would you like to go?”

  “I’ll take you around St. Louis. Show you some of my favorite places.”

  “That sounds like a plan. I’ll bring my camera and we can take some stills.”

  “Okay.”

  Their first stop was at the zoo. When they went inside, Haven grinned. “I haven’t been to a zoo in years.”

  “You’re missing out. I love the zoo. Though I don’t like that the animals are caged.” As they walked along, he said, “I took a trip to Africa a few years ago, went on safari. Seeing animals free like that, living in their natural habitats, was amazing.”

  “I can only imagine how spectacular that must have been,” she said as they stopped at the elephant area.

  “The zoo here has excellent conservation programs, though. But there’s nothing like seeing a herd of elephants in the wild.”

  She loved listening to him talk, and wished the camera crew were on board today to film the excitement on his face. She took a few still photos, and she’d make some notes later about their discussion, but the joy on his face as he discussed his trip to Africa was something that couldn’t be repeated. She made a mental note to bring it up again during the on-camera interview.

  “I had no idea you had such an interest in wildlife conservation.”

  “Yeah, it’s a big deal to me. So many species are endangered. Rhinos are on the brink of extinction because poachers kill them for their horns. Elephants are the same. Humans need to do a better job of protecting animals in the wild. We think zoos are cruel, but in many instances, we’re protecting a lot of endangered species that are being threatened. It’d be great if all animals could live free. Unfortunately, that’s not the case.”

  His knowledge of many animal species was fascinating. As they walked along, he talked to her about reptiles and amphibians. She didn’t think she’d ever enjoyed a trip to the zoo as much as she had today.

  After the zoo, they went over to the Science Center. She really got to geek out there, since they had everything a science nerd would love, from exhibits on math to the human body, fossils, and mummies. She enjoyed the life science exhibits, examining every ecosystem imaginable. She loved that Trevor took his time exploring and seemed to have as much fun as she did. He pored over all the exhibits, the two of them like kids as they stopped and played with everything that was hands-on.

  It was wonderful.

  “Thank you for bringing me here,” she said as, after several hours, they finally left and headed toward the car.

  “I’m glad you had fun. It’s been a while since I’ve visited, so it was like a refresher course. Zane and I have come here before, too. He geeks out over it more than I do.”

  She laughed. “I can imagine. I’m just happy you enjoyed it as much as I did. I felt like a kid again.”

  He gave her a look, then smiled one of those toe-curling, devastating smiles. “Good. Now, are you hungry?”

  “Starving.” They’d had a hot dog lunch at the zoo, but she was ready for something more substantial now.

  “I know an awesome seafood restaurant.”

  They got in his car and he drove them just a few miles down the road. When he pulled up out front, the valet opened her door.

  “Trevor,” the young guy said. “Nice to see you again.”

  “Hey, Chad.” Trevor gave him the keys and led Haven inside, where, once again, ever
yone seemed to know him well. They were seated right away at a table near the back of the restaurant. Very dark, very private.

  “Thanks, Shelly,” Trevor said.

  “No problem.” She laid their menus down. “Lauren just came on duty and she’ll be with you shortly.”

  “Do you know everyone who works here?” she asked him.

  He turned to her and shot her a grin. “Pretty much. I come here a lot. I told you, they have great seafood. Oh, and amazing pasta, too.”

  A petite young woman with short blond hair made her way over to their table. “Hi, Trevor. Great to see you.” She turned to Haven. “Hi, I’m Lauren, and I’ll be your server tonight.”

  “Hi, Lauren. I’m Haven.”

  “Nice to meet you. What can I get you all to drink?”

  “I’ll have iced tea,” Trevor said.

  “Same for me.”

  “Great. I’ll bring those right out.”

  She also told them the specials of the evening before she hurried away to get them their drinks.

  Haven opened the menu, but Trevor put his to the side.

  “I suppose you have the menu memorized.”

  He laughed. “Pretty much.”

  She scanned the menu. There were several items that piqued her interested. “Any recommendations?”

  “The salmon is good. So is the lobster risotto. And you can never mess up by going with the scallops.”

  “Okay. Thanks.”

  When Lauren came back with their tea, Haven ordered the salmon, and Trevor ordered scallops.

  “We need oysters, too,” Trevor said.

  “Of course you do. I’ve already ordered them,” Lauren said with a grin.

  “Thanks.”

  “They do know you well here, don’t they?” Haven asked after Lauren left.

  “They fly the oysters in fresh from the Pacific Northwest. Trust me, you’re going to love them.”

  “I trust you. Mind if I ask you some questions while we’re waiting?”

  He took a sip of his tea. “No. Go ahead.”

  She fished her notebook out of her bag. “What happens when one team or the other says you have to choose?”

  “That hasn’t happened yet.”

  “What if it does?”

  “I’ll deal with it if and when that day comes. But there’s no point in thinking or worrying about something that hasn’t happened yet, or something that may not happen. I’m in good shape and so far I’ve been able to help both teams during the times I’ve played with them. It’s working.”

  “Is it? Don’t you feel a pull to one sport or another?”

  “No.”

  “You don’t have a favorite.”

  “No.”

  She made notes as he spoke, but she set her notebook on the table and looked at him. “But surely these teams suffer having a part-time player.”

  “Have they? Tampa made the playoffs last year. St. Louis won their division. I don’t call that suffering.”

  “But what could those teams do—what kind of player could you be—if you chose just one sport to play? I mean, come on, Trevor. Considering how good you are playing part time for both, if you chose just one you could potentially be a superstar at that one sport. Surely that has to have crossed your mind at some point in your career.”

  She had to wait for his answer, because Lauren brought their oysters right then.

  But she could tell from the smile on his face that he hadn’t taken her question seriously.

  She wondered if Trevor took anything seriously. Including his career. He was so . . . laid back, so easygoing, seemingly enjoying everything about his life and his jobs.

  But her question had been a serious one. And she intended to bring it up again, because she was going to push at him until she got an answer.

  TREVOR ENJOYED SEEING THIS SIDE OF HAVEN, WHEN she put on her journalist’s hat and dug deep into her question box, drilling at him with probing questions.

  Sure, he’d avoided her last question. It wasn’t like it hadn’t been asked of him before, and he’d given his standard pat answer.

  But with Haven, he wanted to think about how to respond, because he wanted to be honest with her. Not with her network, but with her. And he wasn’t ready yet to answer.

  He didn’t mind her grilling him, though. The fiery passion in her eyes was nice to see. It breathed life into her face, into every fiber of her body.

  Her mother had been right. He could already see a difference in her. When she had focus, when she was fired up about something, she was much happier. He needed to keep that level of drive within her, keep her mind occupied so she wouldn’t dwell on things she couldn’t change.

  “How’s your salmon?” he asked as they ate.

  “It’s fantastic. Thank you for recommending it. I can see why you eat here so often. How are the scallops?”

  “Awesome. Would you like a bite?”

  She glanced over at his plate. “I would, actually.”

  He scooped up a forkful and held it over her plate. She bent and took the fork between her lips. He caught sight of the flick of her tongue underneath his fork. Just a small thing, really, but it made his cock tighten knowing her mouth and her tongue had been on his fork. Her lips were full and pink and he really wanted to see her tongue wrapped around his dick.

  Resisting the urge to groan, he asked, “How is it?”

  Instead, she let out a soft moan, her eyes floating partially closed. “It’s delicious.”

  The sound of her moans, the way her eyes closed in ecstasy, only made his dick twitch and harden more. “Great. That’s great.”

  He grabbed his glass and took a couple of swallows of iced tea, hoping to douse the flames that were burning him from the inside out.

  “Would you like a bite of my salmon?” She held a forkful up to him.

  He shook his head. “No, thanks. I’ve had it before. I know how good it is.” And if she kept leaning into him like that, letting him breathe in her citrusy scent, he was going to drag her off her chair and bury his tongue in her mouth right there in the middle of the restaurant.

  And now he was hard and uncomfortable and thinking about fucking Haven. While she was completely oblivious to his discomfort while she enjoyed her dinner.

  Clearly this whole attraction thing was one-sided, and he was an idiot.

  HAVEN CAUGHT THE NOT-SO-SUBTLE WAY TREVOR had been looking at her over dinner. A woman would have to be blind and stupid not to notice when a man was attracted to her, and Haven was neither.

  In college, she’d have been giddy over the prospect of a guy like Trevor wanting her. Now, it presented a problem. A huge, complicated problem. On the one hand, she’d love to explore a sexual relationship with him. Or, hell, even one night of awesome sex. But that would simply kill her objectivity on this project, and that was what she’d been struggling with.

  Then again, she was ridiculously sexually attracted to him right now. And she could still be objective about this assignment, couldn’t she? So even if they did it, they could still work together. Or maybe she was rationalizing the hell out of wanting to sleep with him.

  She could just go about this in an adult way and have a discussion with him about the pros and cons of them jumping into bed together. Then again, Trevor was a man with a penis, and she was certain he’d want to go for it, damn the consequences. Penises tended to take charge when it came to sex, and everyone knew a penis had a one-track mind. Of course, her vagina was currently doing all the thinking in this situation, and it wasn’t being very rational at the moment, either.

  She was overthinking this. So typical for her. Why couldn’t she just shut down her brain and let herself feel, then go with her feelings?

  Because she’d closed off her feelings, for her own self-preservation. Opening up that wall she’d so firmly shut down was unthinkable.

  Not yet. She couldn’t.

  Sex didn’t have to be emotional, though. It could just be physical. Fun and dirty and a r
elease she so desperately needed.

  “You’ve gone quiet over there,” Trevor said after Lauren removed their dinner plates.

  She finished her tea and nodded. “I’ve been thinking.”

  He smiled. “About more probing questions?”

  It was time to put all her cards on the table. She was tired of thinking and not doing anything about it. “No. Actually, I was thinking about sex.”

  She could have laughed at his stunned expression. He looked around. “I don’t think we’re going to get into my sex life in this interview.”

  Now she did laugh. “Uh, no. That wasn’t exactly what I was thinking about. It was more about—” Now she looked around, then leaned next to him. “You and me having sex.”

  Trevor signaled for Lauren. When she hurried over, he said, “We need the check. Now.”

  THIRTEEN

  “YOU PICKED A HELL OF A TIME TO BRING UP HAVING sex, Haven,” Trevor said, his fingers in a death grip on the steering wheel as he drove the highway toward his house. “I might crash the damn car.”

  She laughed. “You will not. And I didn’t mean we need to have sex right now. I was just . . . pondering.”

  He shot her a quick glance before turning his gaze firmly back to the bridge. “Well, now the idea is in my head. So you need to decide if that’s what you want.”

  “Of course it’s what I want. That’s why I was thinking about it. But we can talk about it, if you’d like.”

  “This is going to be the longest drive I’ve ever taken. And I don’t want to talk about it. I definitely want to have sex with you. Unless you have reservations.”

  “I do have reservations. We’re working together. If we have sex, it could compromise our working relationship.”

  “You think I won’t take you seriously as a journalist if I fuck you.”

  She appreciated how blunt he was. Also, him just saying the words out loud made her body go up in flames. “Yes.”

  “One doesn’t have anything to do with the other. We’re doing an interview together. What we do during our off time is irrelevant. You’re still contracted to ask me questions, follow me around, and do the bio.”