by Taylor Hart
End Zone
Book 7 Last Play Romance Series
Taylor Hart
Contents
Free Last Play Romance
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Free Last Play Romance
Rescue Me: A Park City Firefighter Romance
Also by Taylor Hart
All rights reserved.
© 2017 ArchStone Ink
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews. The reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form whether electronic, mechanical or other means, known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written consent of the publisher and/or author. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. This edition is published by ArchStone Ink LLC.
First eBook Edition: 2017
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the creation of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Free Last Play Romance
You can get a free copy of The Rookie, A Last Play Romance by Taylor Hart by clicking here.
As an added bonus, you’ll also receive updates when the next Taylor Hart Romance is released so you don’t miss out on one of these sweet romances.
Chapter 1
Addison stood on her neighbor’s porch with cookies in her hands. The neighbor she’d hardly ever spoken to, except the one time she’d had he and his wife over for dinner two years ago. He played football for the Denver Storm and it wasn’t like they hung out in the same social circles.
But, Addison felt bad for him. It’d been all over the press; his wife had cheated on him. Even though she didn’t know him well, she wanted to help in some way. They hadn’t been close as neighbors, but she had witnessed several different men come and go from their home during the day when he wasn’t home. Addison had seen his wife, Stacy, walk them to their cars and kiss them. Somehow, it made her feel like an accomplice to the affairs, which, Tim, her husband, thought was ridiculous. He’d told her to mind her own business.
Stoically, she knocked on the door. Everybody needed some kindness, she reasoned. Cookies were kindness.
After a couple of seconds, Jace Harding flung back the door, looking confused. “Hello.”
She pushed the chocolate chip cookies forward, feeling like an idiot, wondering if he even remembered coming to their home. “I just thought you might need cookies.”
Jace seemed to jerk awake and focus on her. “Oh, thanks.” He took the cookies with both hands. His eyes looked bloodshot in the sunlight. “I’m sorry. Do you want to come in?” He stepped back.
It was in Addison’s nature to empathize with others, feeling their pain as if it were her own. It could be overwhelming, but over the course of her twenty-five years, she’d learned techniques to manage it. Right now, though, all techniques had flown from her mind. “No, thank you,” she said lamely, as she stumbled down the steps and started across the road back to her home. When she got there, she turned back.
Jace was still standing in the middle of the open door, holding the cookies in both hands. His eyes were locked with hers as he waved.
“Don’t be a stranger.” She called out, instantly regretting how cliché the words sounded. She opened her front door and gave him a little parting wave. When she was safely inside, she pushed the door closed and leaned against it, feeling even worse then before. He didn’t look good at all. The strain he must be experiencing was etched on his face. Unfortunately, he was also having a bad football season. She thought of the last catch he’d dropped and the clip of Cameron Cruz and Hyde Metcalfe chewing him out on the sidelines. There were rumors he might be traded at the end of the season. She sighed and went to her home office.
Picking up the teddy bear Tim had given her for Valentine’s a couple of months ago, she sat at her desk, her mind flitting to marriage problems, in general. When Tim had given her the bear, they’d been talking about having kids and he’d told her she could cuddle the bear instead of a baby. He’d made it clear he didn’t want babies yet, saying he was on the verge of making his computer company the next Apple and didn’t have time for a family. She wondered how Tim would look if she were to leave him? Would he have the shell shock thing going on that Jace did? Or would he just keep working? She threw the bear to the floor. She didn’t want to cuddle bears instead of babies.
Addison went back to thinking about Jace because it was much easier to think about someone else’s problems. She wondered if he had even suspected Stacy was cheating. Her own father had cheated on her mother when she was young, making her a bit distrustful of men in general. When she’d met Tim, on the campus of CSU in Fort Collins, Colorado, it’d been his gentle way that had attracted her to him. He was shy, introverted, and devilishly handsome. Granted, he was a total computer geek—tall, lanky, and only paid attention to having his hair combed when Addison reminded him. His clothes never matched, and he biked to work with his computer bag slung over his shoulder. He was the picture of a yuppie millennial. Even with all his odd quirks, he was still a good guy inside. She knew that. It had just been the past year of feeling neglected and playing second best to his business adventures that was upsetting her.
That had to be it. Things would get better. They would.
She picked up the bear and refocused, placing it next to her computer and trying to think of all the reasons she was grateful for Tim. It was a game she played with herself when she was fixated on something that caused her discomfort. She sucked in a breath. He worked hard. He was tidy. He … she broke off, beginning to feel even worse.
She picked up her telephone and called Laura, her closest friend and her boss at the nonprofit company she worked for.
Laura answered on the first ring. “So you ended up taking the cookies over, didn’t you?”
Letting out a light laugh, Addison leaned back in her chair. Of course she’d told her friend what she’d planned on doing. “Yep.”
“So, what happened?”
“He looked like crap.” She reported trying not to sound like she was justifying taking him the cookies. “It breaks my heart for him.” It did.
Laura sighed. “That’s too bad. That boy needs help if the Storm are going to pull it out the rest of the season.”
“True. He looked … broken.”
“Hmm.” Laura sympathized. “Poor guy.”
Addison thought of his super model wife. “Do you think he had an inkling she was cheating?”
“How could he not know?” Lau
ra asked. “You said there were a bunch of different men at their house at different times.”
Addison felt guilty for even noticing all the cars in front of their home. One of the side effects of working at home in her front office was she noticed the neighbors probably too much. She opted to change the subject. “How are you and Sam doing?”
Laura let out a light giggle. “Good.”
They had only been married six months and were still in newlywed bliss. Addison could picture the smile on her face. It made Addison happy for her.
Laura cleared her throat. “Hey, have you told Tim the other thing we were talking about yesterday?” She kept her words cryptic and Addison knew she was trying to talk softly in case someone was listening in.
Addison sighed, angst washing over her. “No.”
“Hmm.” She replied again in that disapproving way.
“I will.” Addison assured her. “Soon.”
The voices in the background sounded louder. “I gotta go,” Laura said.
“Okay. Bye.”
Addison pressed end on the call and stared at her computer screen. Without meaning to, she glanced out the window, which gave her a clear view of the front door. He’d gone back inside, so there was nothing interesting to see anymore.
Turning back to her computer, she picked up the bear and strategically placed it onto her couch, out of her line of sight. She had to focus on a business presentation she had to give in two days to CSU’s department of Business. They’d asked her to possibly help teach a social media seminar. Inhaling a breath, she opened the document on her computer and forced all thoughts of marriage problems and babies out of her mind.
Chapter 2
Jace stood in line at Cubbies, a hip yupster restaurant he was fond of. His mind flashed to his cheating wife, Stacy, and anger surged through him. It’d been one of the things Stacy constantly complained about, his love of Cubbies. He liked to come here whenever he could, and she hated it. Over the course of their two-year marriage, it had actually gotten to a point where he didn’t even ask her to come with him. He would just come here by himself.
Jace had lost some weight since she’d announced she was divorcing him, and his trainer was on him about eating. So here he was. Luckily, the press hadn’t made too much of a fuss about the divorce. Or maybe that wasn’t really lucky, because it just proved how much Jace didn’t matter at the moment.
It was October, and he needed to focus—on the team, on training, on making himself worth the two-million-dollar contract he was getting. Currently, he wasn’t doing very well. In the last game, he’d dropped a touchdown, and some said it had been the reason they lost the game.
As much as he wished he could blame it all on Stacy and her childish ways, he knew that wouldn’t do. He had to find a way to deal with all of this.
When he’d met Stacy at a party after a game two years ago, when he’d first come to the Storm, she’d been completely mesmerized by him. Clearly, now she’d found others to be mesmerized by. It stung, but if he were honest, he’d felt an emptiness between them for a long time.
He stared up at the menu, already planning on ordering his usual: the avocado cheese sandwich with sweet potato fries and a Coke. Yeah, he still drank Coke, so what? Stacy hated that too. She’d gone completely “clean” in her eating the past year, and he always came home to a fridge full of chicken feed. Where was the meat? Where were the cookies? Something? Anything substantial?
He thought of the cookies the neighbor across the street had brought over a couple of days ago. It was silly, but the cookies had felt heaven-sent. He hadn’t had a homemade chocolate chip cookie in as long as he could remember, and he’d felt a twinge of guilt after seeing her on the porch—some blonde angel sent from heaven whose name he didn’t even remember. He’d seen her and her husband every now and then, and when he and Stacy had first moved in, she and her husband had reached out and asked them to dinner. Of course, Jace and Stacy had never reciprocated. Part of it was his work schedule was so crazy; the other part was Stacy didn’t cook. She pretty much lived off of cardboard protein bars, always worried she would gain an ounce. Sure, he appreciated a woman who took care of herself, but c’mon! Stacy had made herself so miserable in regards to food.
He thought of all the missed calls from his mother. He hadn’t spoken to her in person about the divorce yet, which was killing her. He would have to talk to his parents soon. The problem was that they had never liked Stacy anyway. His mother had always said Stacy never liked them, pointing out that she never asked them over or came to family dinners. He had denied it, constantly making excuses for Stacy, but his mother had been right. Stacy didn’t like them. Just thinking about it made shame chew through his gut.
After ordering, he surveyed the crowded tables. There wasn’t a seat in the place. A lot of people liked Cubbies. It was filled with professionals from the university, college students, and a plethora of other people.
Then his eyes found the neighbor from across the street. She was dressed to kill, wearing red-bottomed black heels that more than complimented her nice legs. She looked nothing like she had yesterday in jeans and flip-flops. Her long blond hair was pulled smoothly back. She was pretty. Seeing an empty seat next to her, he walked toward it.
When he reached her table, she stopped mid-chew and looked up at him, holding her sweet potato fry in the air. She blinked. “Hi.”
He plastered on a smile, already regretting this meeting. “Hi.”
“Uh.” She dropped her fry and went white. “What are you doing here?”
“Can I sit?” He gestured to the open seat at her table. “There aren’t any open tables.”
She hesitated.
“You said not to be a stranger the other day, right?” Why did he feel the need to explain himself?
“Uh …” She sucked in air. “No.” She looked befuddled. “Sorry. I mean, I would, but …”
He felt stupid for even asking. “Sorry.”
“Wait.” She pointed to the table right next to her that two people were just clearing out of. “Why don’t you sit there?”
Maybe this was a mistake. “It’s okay,” he said, turning away.
“I mean it,” she said, “I think it’s fine if you sit there.” She gave him a tentative smile and gestured to his lunch, which matched hers. “You obviously have great taste in food.”
Seeing the flustered way she was acting kind of made him smile. Sometimes people got intimidated around him.
Again, she pointed to the chair on the other side of the small aisle at the two-person table. “Sit.”
Unsure if he was doing the right thing, he put his tray down and sat. Situating the food, he glanced at her. She was no longer eating, just watching him.
He felt like he needed to explain. “I really appreciated the cookies the other day, and I didn’t even say thank you. I thought I could say thank you now.”
“You’re welcome.” She gave him a placid smile.
Awkward. He hadn’t really talked to anyone about his divorce and now it felt like he should. “The press has put it out there, but I haven’t told anybody directly about Stacy. Yesterday, when you came over, it was kind of a relief to know you know, and it was nice that you brought cookies. Good cookies.” He picked up his Coke and sucked down a mouthful.
She nodded. “Right. Sure. Yeah. I mean, why haven’t you told anybody?” Then she put her hand to her mouth like she could shove the words back in. “I shouldn’t have asked that. Tim says I ask too many questions.” She nibbled at her fry, avoiding his gaze.
Her husband’s face flashed through his mind, a memory of him typing in a garage code while holding his bike. “Right, Tim.” Now he did feel like a fool. He touched the edges of the tray. “Look, I should just go.” His words hung in the air, followed by sound of the chair scraping on the cement floor.
“No.” She shook her head and waved a fry at him. “It’s fine. We’re not sitting at the same table. Plus, I’m almost done.”
> Staring into her sky blue eyes, he felt guilty. He shouldn’t notice how beautiful she was. Should he? She was married. Still, he stayed, taking a big bite of his sandwich to prove to himself it was fine.
Picking up her drink, she took a sip, and then the side of her mouth quirked up. “Now, I can see we have the same thing to eat, but what are you drinking?”
“Coke,” he said almost proudly.
She grinned. “That’s the best. Cubbies has the best of everything.”
“Right?”
“Plus, it goes with the fries.”
It was stupid, crazy, and completely unreasonable, but he’d just fallen in love again. “Exactly!”
They smiled at each other and then concentrated on their food. It was almost a relief to be sitting at the other table with a little distance between them.
“Sorry about asking to sit,” he said after a few minutes.
“No.” Her tone was sharp. “It’s fine. I was just being—”
“Weird?”
She smiled. “But you’re smart. Hey, as a husband who had a wife cheating on him …”
A pang of sadness washed through him.
Then her face fell. “I cannot believe I just said that. Sorry, shouldn’t have kept talking.”
He shrugged. “It’s fine.”
“No, it’s not.”
Trying to be casual, he leaned back in his uncomfortable seat. “Thanks. I appreciate that. You know, I think I’m going to find the courage to go over and face my parents today.” He let out a laugh. “I feel like a little kid again who is about to confess a big secret to his parents.”
Her brow furrowed, and she tentatively took a small bite, half hiding behind her sandwich.
Why was he acting so weird? This was beginning to feel really awkward to him.
Hesitating, she held his eyes then watched as he stuffed a bite into his mouth.
“It’s delicious, right?”
