UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT (Gods of the Gridiron Book 1)

by Shanna Swenson

  She tried to recall the night prior and remembered being carried into the bedroom. She jolted and felt a hand squeeze her breast, an arm covering her chest.

  “Travis! What the hell?”

  “Five more minutes,” he grumbled and gave her breast another squeeze. “Mmm, so soft and firm at the same time.”

  “You bastard! This is sexual harassment, assault, and battery.” She smacked at the hand on her bosom, but the big palm grabbed hers and she scoffed.

  “Oh, just relax, baby. Isn’t this comfy?”

  She felt a nose nuzzle her jawline, right below her ear, and shivered as his hot breath fell on her neck, aware of how her entire body tingled.

  “Comfy isn’t the word I would use to—” The palm at her breast suddenly covered her mouth and she felt his other arm pull her closer into his chest, the sharpness against her ass digging in deeper. She gasped even as a moan died in her throat. Holy shit! If that was his erection, he was hung like a freaking mule. She tried to calm her pounding heart and swooning sex as her body absorbed the feel of his muscles on her back and his hard member shoved into her ass cheek.

  “This feels so good, Sky,” his voice sounded equal parts playful and aroused. “Imagine how much better, if only my cock was just a few inches down and to the left.”

  The thought of feeling that hard shaft buried deep inside stilled her thoughts—and her protests. God, how enticing it was. The temptation of letting his hand fall back to her breast, letting his fingers bring her nipples to even harder peaks than they already were, feeling his lips on her neck as he plunged deep inside her and unleashed the inner sex goddess lurking just beneath the surface. God, how she wanted it. Wanted him. Had always wanted it to be him who’d unlock the side of her she’d never fully exposed to anyone.

  His hand suddenly moved off her mouth, and she fought the urge to rub her bottom against his rock-hard member. All it would take would be one movement, one moment to lose her inhibitions, one glance back into those captivating eyes of his to let the vixen loose. His nose touched her earlobe with such tenderness that she sucked her breath in. She bit into her lip, fighting hard not to cry out in pleasure. Her entire body quivered in unrequited lust, and her womanhood screamed at her to move his hand down to quiet the ache he’d awakened inside her.

  Oh Travis, how I’ve died inside waiting for this very moment, the teenager inside her blubbered. But the mature woman stood solid as a rock, daring her to give in. Go ahead, idiot. Let him use you and discard you like his former lovers. He won’t stick around, and I’ll be the one left to lick your wounds clean, only this time it might just kill you.

  She gasped and pulled away quickly as if she were escaping quicksand. He released her and let her stand up. She turned, planting her hands on her hips, and wasn’t prepared for the drop-dead gorgeous sexually-primed god who lay in the bed she’d slept in. Her senses reeled at the man who’d mastered the word sexy, unsure how she wasn’t melting into a puddle of desire right onto the old wooden floor at that moment.

  Dear God, have mercy on me, she thought as her eyes betrayed her.

  Travis lay bare-chested with the sheet and quilt covering his hips, brown hair all mussed, looking as if she’d just rocked his socks off in every sense of the word. His sensual grin was devious and his eyes did things to her insides that she hadn’t known were possible without having sexual relations beforehand.

  “Wh—” her voice wavered, giving her away; Travis’s smile deepened. She cleared her throat and tried again. “What are you doing in my bed? I thought we agreed—?”

  “We did, doll, but I got cold out there by myself.” Oh God, his pouting lips might just give her an orgasm.

  “Well…wh—why are you naked?”

  “Oh, Fireball, I ain’t naked.”

  She closed her eyes against the body that set her own aflame in scorching hot lust. She pointed to his naked torso. “Y—you’re half-naked!”

  “Sorry. That’s how I sleep, darlin’. In my skivvies.” Damn him and his sexy as sin grin and fuck, his dimples. “I can take ‘em off, if you prefer.”

  “Tr—Travis,” Sky cleared her throat again, attempting to control the thoughts running through her mind was impossible. “You can’t do things like this.” She got out finally.

  “And why not, baby?” he cooed, knowing exactly what he was doing to her starved sex. “Why not indulge?” He said the word indulge as if his voice were made of straight satin. If she wasn’t jumping right into bed and kissing the sugar right off his sinful lips, she was dying.

  She simply held her breath and counted to ten. Then he did the unthinkable. His hand moved beneath the sheets and he looked to be touching himself. “Look what you did to me, Skyla, you naughty girl.” He moaned and closed his eyes.

  Fuck, fuck, double fuck. NO! Do something, her sex screamed even as her mind screamed the same. But she couldn’t pull her eyes away from the forearm hidden under the quilt, the covered hand doing taboo things as it moved, and the flex of his rigid muscles as he stroked himself beneath the covers. She prayed for the sheet to fall, to expose his member to her, for him to tempt her just a little further, to invoke the sex goddess he was slowly unfurling.

  “Oh, baby, tell me you don’t want this too. Tell me you don’t wish this was your hand on my hard dick right now. Your mouth. Mmm, fuck that feels so good. I wish it was you instead.”

  She fought within herself, a woman torn. One part of her wanted to say fuck it, shuck her clothes and join him, the other wanted to run and cry and hate herself even more than she already did for wanting him as much as she still did. This was high school all over again, nothing had changed. She was still the naïve, scared girl with low self-esteem and the urge to hurt herself as much as others had.

  She turned and fled to the bathroom.

  Travis immediately stopped his movements; bewilderment, embarrassment, and anger set in as Skyla ran to the bathroom. When he heard her hurling into the commode, he added self-loathing and resentment to that list.

  “Sonovabitch,” he swore as his erection waned painfully in his palm. Well, that didn’t go as planned, he thought.

  He hadn’t lied about being cold and uncomfortable on the couch, so he’d thrown another couple logs into the stove and headed into the bedroom around two AM. Sky had been sleeping peacefully there, and he’d decided to join her; it was too inviting for him to resist.

  She’d curled right into his embrace and he’d tucked her sleeping head into his shoulder, falling into the most restful sleep he’d had in weeks. She’d felt soft, and good, and right in his arms.

  He’d woken to his usual morning wood and couldn’t stop the pull to tease her, even as he’d known she wouldn’t acquiesce. But he’d never—in a million years—expected this reaction from her.

  Travis never had a woman run away from him and puke instead of turning in his arms and taking what he had to give. This was a new feeling, and he didn’t quite know what to say or do. He was completely taken off-guard. To say that he was put off was an understatement, to say his feelings were hurt was accurate, and to say he felt degraded as a man was spot-on.

  He made sure he was out of the bedroom when Skyla came out of the bathroom. He was also dressed and ready to go with his mouth shut and his tail tucked firmly between his legs.

  He tried giving her wide berth as he planted his sunglasses on his nose and set his cap on his head, determined to stay to the task at hand.

  Her eyes were puffy and her face red, he noted. He grabbed the keys from the table, mumbling, “I’ll drive.”

  Skyla didn’t argue as she nodded and looked for a house key, finding one in the kitchen drawer and handing it off to him to add to the keyring. He tried not to appear rattled by the feel of her fingers on his, but dammit if he couldn’t remember how good her ass felt against his hungry sex. He could all-out roar, a lion caged against his will.

  Soon, they were out the door and in the car, heading down the road. The silence was all-consuming, the
calm before the storm. Just as Travis was about to turn the radio on to still the insecurities bubbling inside him, Skyla spoke. “I’m sorry about…” Her eyes closed and she appeared to be in deep pain, pain that Travis didn’t understand. And perhaps that was the problem here. He didn’t understand a lot of Skyla’s reactions to him. Maybe it was time they laid some shit out on the table and sorted through it.

  “I didn’t realize I repulsed you quite so much,” he said softly, disappointment lacing his tone.

  “Repulse me? You?”

  “I heard you vomiting, Skyla.”

  “You would make this about you, wouldn’t you? Geez, your selfishness has no end.” She shook her head incredulously.

  Travis braked to a stop, slamming the car into Park and turning to look at her.

  “I was convinced that you were this freaking close to coming back into bed with me,” Travis held his hand up, showing an inch measurement with his thumb and index finger, “then you run off to the bathroom and get sick. What the hell am I supposed to think, huh?” He threw his arms up in defeat.

  “I wasn’t sick because I was repulsed, Travis. I was sick… because…because I can’t believe I’m still so damn in love with you, after all this time.”

  Travis couldn’t hide the shock on his face. Did she just say that she was in love with him? He frowned, unable to respond, his brain was frozen, his heart hummed and he couldn’t breathe.

  “Yes, I said it. Please don’t make me repeat it,” Sky whispered and lowered her head, her lips quivering. “I’d hoped I could just suppress my feelings and they would go away eventually. I’d prayed it was simply puppy love, that when I grew up I wouldn’t still feel the same way I did back then. For a time, I thought I’d forgotten all about you, about my love for you…but then…” She gulped hard, and when she looked up at him, a single tear fell down her cheek. “Then I saw you in the bar and…” She covered her face with her hands and sighed heavily, the weight of the world on her shoulders.

  Travis felt a piece of his guarded heart rip away. Had anyone in his twenty-eight years ever cared so much about him? Had any woman he’d had a relationship with, any woman he’d slept with ever shown this much emotion toward him? He couldn’t remember, and the pain of the reality hurt. This woman had pined for him, dreamed about him, adored him, and was in love with him despite that she didn’t even know him, had never shared his bed, felt his passion. He was truly in awe.

  “I tried to fight how I felt. Tried to keep it at bay. But spending this time with you has only solidified my feelings even more. I’d thought it was just a teenage girl phase, but…” She didn’t finish even though Travis knew she would say, “It wasn’t.”

  He was speechless for the first time in his life. How could he possibly respond? He let her sit there in her audible reverie until she looked like she might die from embarrassment, her eyes cowering before his, like a meek servant in the presence of a great king. He had to say …something.

  “Sky, I—”

  “Please, just don’t, ok? Don’t ruin this by saying something stupid back, alright?”

  He frowned. She wasn’t even giving him a chance to speak. He wasn’t gonna say anything stupid. Well, it sounded better in his head. Never mind. She was right. Of course she was. Dammit! He exhaled and looked out the window at the gray sky and brittle bones of the dead trees surrounding them and engaged his heart to come through.

  “I’m flattered, Skyla. Truly, I am.”

  With that, he put the car in Drive and headed down the mountain, feeling a tugging begin in his heart that he’d never quite felt before.

  “Larson! Oh thank God, I was getting so worried,” DA Jeffers said.

  “I’m sorry. I felt compelled to wait until we were safe before attempting to call so I could give you my coordinates.” Sky stated into the phone.

  “Of course. I would expect no less from my diligent girl.” Sky’s boss gave a hearty laugh and she felt an immediate calm.

  “Any news on his whereabouts?”

  “They ransacked Travis’s house in Lubbock. The agents found it torn to shreds. Nothing of value was taken though so the police are aware that something is amiss. Looks good for expunging Redmond’s record. No worries on that end, by the way. We’ll just get this whole thing squared away then he’ll be taken care of. For now, my dear, I want you both to hold fast and bunker down until I can get our boys in place and ready for the showdown. There’s something you’re gonna have to do though, Sky. You aren’t gonna like it, I’m afraid.”

  Her stomach lurched just at the thought of it. “What?”

  “They’re gonna take you, both of you.”

  “What? No! Please?” The thoughts of facing that maniac in person terrified her.

  “We need you. You’re the final piece to the puzzle.”

  “Me? Why?”

  “You’re to interrogate him. The final interrogation, so to speak. Get him to confess to the murders, the fraud, the racketeering, all of it, including what’s been going on with Travis’s brother. We need it all, and you’re gonna get his confession on tape.”

  “But I’m not wired.”

  “No, you aren’t. But our mole is, and he’ll be right beside you the whole time.”

  “How will I know who he is?”

  “He’ll give you the code word ‘angel’ to identify himself and to use for when you’re ready for us to come in.”

  “Sir, with all due respect, these men want us dead. How do I know I won’t be immediately killed?

  “You won’t. Geraci sees you both as viable assets, I’ve been assured. We’ll be live the entire time and if I suspect anything, don’t worry, I’ll pull the plug on those bastards.”

  Skyla was reassured by the fact that DA Jeffers had her welfare in mind and would take care of her. He wanted this to be over as much as she did. He also didn’t want anyone else to die, he’d said it many times. Sky had to trust him, trust his judgement, and do her job to finally get Geraci taken down; she had to be the one to do it.

  “Ok, sir, I’ll be ready.”

  “Trust your gut, Larson. I’m ready for your coordinates. This line is secure.”

  Sky spouted out the latitude and longitude of the cabin and waited for verification.

  “Larson, one more thing. The abort code is Santa. Do you copy?”

  “Ten-four. Abort code is Santa. To justice, may she forever reign.”

  “Good luck, Skyla, and Godspeed.”

  Sky hung up the phone with a sigh and got a crooked grin out of Travis. “I didn’t realize y’all use so much cop jargon.”

  “What, ten-four?” she giggled.

  “Yeah and coordinates. I felt like I was listening in on a military conversation I wasn’t supposed to or something. I kept waiting to hear the terms ‘target’ or ‘squadron’.”

  Skyla couldn’t help but laugh at the handsome stud waiting at the car before her, his hips propped against the driver door and his huge arms across his chest. She wanted to lean in and feel the comfort of his arms around her. But she reminded herself that he wasn’t hers…and probably never would be, so why tease herself? Even if it was awfully inviting.

  He seemed to sense her hesitancy and tilted his head at her. “You’re not gonna let things get weird between us now, are you?”

  She looked at him confused. “Weird?”

  “Yeah, just because you’re in love with me doesn’t mean I’m gonna stop flirting with you…or bantering with you! Because I’ll be honest, I’m gonna be stuck in a cabin with you for a few days and I’m gonna need to pester the shit out of you and attempt to lure you into bed with me before we’re rescued by your people. Consider it a personal goal of mine.”

  She shook her head at him, as if he were the dumbest man on earth, a glutton for punishment. “Travis Redmond. I would expect no less. But don’t think I won’t rebuke you and possibly kick your balls up into your throat if I need to.”

  “Sweetheart, you’ve been in control of my balls for th
e last two days and guess what?” His sexy brows raised in challenge. “I’m taking them back. Starting right the hell now.”

  Suddenly, he grabbed her and pulled her into his chest, enfolding her in his steel-wrapped arms. She whimpered even as one of his big palms slid down to her waist and the other planted in her hair, holding her captive to his sorcerous ways. She was the puppet on his string, a slave to his charm, under his control, and Lord help, she never wanted to be freed.

  He turned them, her back hitting the car even as she shivered from the warmth of his big frame pressing into her own. She looked up into azure orbs that left her immobile before her eyes fell to his lips, lips she suddenly realized he was about to kiss her with. She gasped and began to protest before her remonstrations died, his mouth crashing to hers in a glorious clash of passion, domination, and submission. She grunted as his lips slanted across hers and his mouth opened. His strong tongue slid in as stealthy as the serpent into the garden of Eden, and Sky was spellbound. Her head reeled, her body hummed, and her lips kissed Travis’s back ardently, as if he were breathing life into her. She took it, inhaled it, and gave back, moaning as he deepened their kiss. His lips and tongue tangled with hers in glorious fury, a harmonious dance of lovers old and young, a symbolism as old as time itself; when he pulled back, Skyla’s entire soul vibrated as if struck like a chord.

  She sighed, licking her lips and tasting lust, power, and sweetness, and dammit if she didn’t want more. He sensed this and gave her a satisfied smile, licking his lips in turn and goodness if she wasn’t ready to jump his bones right then, she never would be.

  But there was more that needed to be discussed before she just gave herself to him, she realized bashfully, and looked down.

  “I knew you weren’t all talk, ADA Larson.” He leaned in, moving her hair off her neck with the hand at her scalp and whispered, “I can’t wait to taste your other set of lips and fuel that fire inside you with my own. Maybe tonight you’ll give in?” He arched a brow and pulled away, grinning as he tossed the keys to her. She caught them, even as she felt she was falling into a puddle on the ground. “Here, you drive. I’m afraid my focus won’t be on the road.”