Chapter Two
“Hi. I’m so sorry we’re late. I’m Julianna Perez, and this is—”
“Anthony,” the stunning and poised woman finished as she smiled widely and shook Julianna’s hand. “I’m Olivia Dare, and this is Madison and Riley Dare.”
“Nice to meet you all.” Julianna glanced between the three attractive women. They all shared the same last name, but they did not resemble each other at all. She usually made it a habit to mind her own business, so she even surprised herself when she heard herself asking, “Are you all related?”
“We’re sisters. Well, sisters-in-law,” Madison explained.
“Oh.” That made sense.
Squaring her shoulders, Julianna held her head high, fighting the overwhelming sense of frumpiness she was experiencing due to the fact that she was wearing cut-off jean shorts and a tank top in the presence of these women who all looked and dressed like they could be catalog or runway models. Thankfully, the women were very warm and welcoming, so Julianna knew that any insecurity she was feeling was caused by her own issues and not theirs.
Waving her hand dismissively, Olivia assured her, “Don’t worry about being late. You only missed the breakfast and orientation. The boys are just heading out on the field now to warm up before they get their pads. Come on. We’ll take you both down there.”
The field. Julianna tried not to let her reaction show in her expression, but she had the worst poker face ever, so she was pretty sure she wasn’t that successful. As enthusiastically as possible, she exclaimed, “Great!” hoping to compensate for whatever her unguarded expression had broadcast.
As they walked down a large corridor, Julianna followed behind the three women, who were making small talk with Anthony. She couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride from watching her son. She was a complete basket case, but he seemed as cool as a cucumber. It was obvious he was excited, and she would bet her bottom dollar that he wanted to run out to that field, but he was answering all of the ladies’ questions, even making jokes about the reasons why they were late.
He was such a great kid.
Turning the corner, the group came face to face with two men. One was a tall, clean-shaven man in a suit. He had piercing, gray eyes and could have just walked off the pages of Esquire. The other was an equally tall, muscular man who looked vaguely familiar, dressed in sweats and a T-shirt. Julianna’s body surprised her by responding to the latter.
Since she’d been out of the dating scene for a decade, she would have been hard-pressed to say what her type was—if she even had one. But if she did, the brown-haired, green-eyed, sweats-wearing one of the two hadn’t been the one she would have thought her lady parts would have taken notice of. She, for sure, would have put her money on Mr. GQ to get her engine running. And she would have lost that bet.
Her eyes drifted—independent of her brain—down the engine starter’s gray T-shirt, which was just tight enough to showcase the rippling muscles of his arms beneath the soft cotton. The sight caused a tingling sensation to erupt like a volcano in the center of her body and spread like hot lava from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. As if drawn like a magnet, her gaze was pulled south to his loose-fitting, black sweats, which were in no way revealing but made Julianna’s mouth water like a dam had burst and her heart race so fast that she instantly grew lightheaded.
“Look who finally decided to join us,” the woman who had been introduced as Riley, said in a teasing tone as she gave the heart-stopping, sweats-clad man a hug.
“Sorry, Ri.”
The deep voice that sent a shiver dancing down Julianna’s spine made her eyes snap up to the most perfect pair of lips, which were surrounded by sexy scruff that her fingers were itching to touch.
What is happening to me? Julianna could not believe what she was feeling. It was like her entire body had short-circuited with lust. She needed to reboot her system before she made a fool out of herself.
“Cole Carson,” Anthony said this like she would imagine he would if he’d just came face to face with his favorite superhero, Batman.
Wait…Cole Carson…the quarterback! Right. That’s why the engine revver looked familiar. Anthony had been so excited when the quarterback had been traded to the Miami Thunder last year. He’d talked about it for weeks. She had seen his picture on ESPN highlights—the headshot had not done him justice.
“Hey, bud. What’s your name?”
“Anthony.”
Julianna watched as the football player gave her son a high five. The lines of muscle on his forearm were so perfect that he looked like he’d been carved out of stone. Actually, she was pretty sure that Michelangelo’s David had nothing on this man.
“And what’s your name?” Cole lifted his gaze to her.
When his light green eyes locked with hers, a rush of warmth filled her entire being. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could get any words to come out, Anthony answered for her, still sounding awed by meeting his real-life hero.
“That’s my mom.”
The right corner of Cole’s mouth turned up and a deep dimple formed on his cheek. “Does your mom have a name?”
Between the dimple, the body, the voice, and those eyes, Julianna’s world was spinning out of control like the twister at the beginning of The Wizard of Oz. She had a feeling that in this case, tapping her feet together would not be the magic solution to taking her home.
“This is Ms. Perez.” Riley stepped beside the two men, smiling warmly as she gestured first to the man in the suit, then to the man who was threatening Julianna’s sanity. “This is my husband and president of the Miami Thunder, Ian Dare, and as Anthony pointed out, this is Cole Carson.”
“Sorry.” Julianna shook her head as her cheeks burned with embarrassment. She needed to snap out of…whatever this was and get it together before her behavior shot into the “utter humiliation” range. Reaching out her hand, she gathered her wits as she spoke with a deceivingly strong voice. “Hi. It’s so nice to meet you. Please call me Julianna.”
“Nice to meet you, Julianna, and you too, Anthony.” Ian shook Julianna’s hand then wrapped his arm around his wife’s waist, pulling her close to him protectively.
Riley’s face lit up and her eyes shone with love and trust as she looked up at her husband. Julianna wondered what it felt like to be in the arms of a man she trusted and loved.
Hmmm. Must be nice.
“Julianna,” Cole repeated her name and it spread through her like a shot of whiskey. His mesmerizing, green eyes locked with hers. Reaching out, he shook her hand as his large fingers encased hers, his thumb brushing over her wrist as he spoke. “It’s very nice to meet you.”
Oh boy. If spontaneous combustion were possible, Julianna knew she was seconds away from bursting into flames. Not only was Cole’s touch hotter than anything she’d ever felt before, the look in the vivid, green pools of his heated stare was shockingly possessive.
After pulling (yanking!) her hand away as if she’d touched a hot stove, Julianna anchored herself back in reality by placing her hand on Anthony’s shoulder. Nodding politely, she forced herself to turn her attention to Olivia, Madison, and Riley, hoping that everything she was feeling wasn’t being broadcast in HD on her face. But she found all three women staring at Cole and Julianna with their mouths slightly open, taking in everything that was transpiring.
Looked like her prayers weren’t being answered and her hopes weren’t coming true this lovely Saturday. She mentally made a note not to dream of anything today, because if the pattern continued, her dreams would not come true.
Cole continued directing his intense stare at Julianna. It was bad enough that she could she see him out of her peripheral vision, but she also could feel his eyes on her like a physical caress. Cole Carson was potent with a capital P. How did one man possess so much sex appeal, charisma, and…sex appeal? Did she mention sex appeal?
Ignoring her body’s response to merely Cole’s nearness, Julianna was v
ery aware of the heavy weight of awkward silence as it settled over the group. The only upshot was that she was almost positive her too-perceptive-for-his-own-good son was still in so much shock from meeting his favorite player, that he was unaware of the tension between her and the quarterback.
Ian Dare stepped in and broke the uncomfortable standoff. “You ready to play some ball, Anthony?”
Julianna was so grateful and relieved that, if she hadn’t already named her firstborn, she would have strongly considered naming him Ian.
“Yeah!” Anthony’s earlier excitement had returned in full force.
Finally taking his eyes off her, Cole looked down at her son and tilted his head towards the double doors at the end of the long hall. “Let’s go.”
As they all headed down the hall, Olivia squeezed her arm, her eyes filled with kindness and concern.
“You okay?” she asked.
“Yep,” Julianna smiled, answering with a confidence she did not currently possess.
She was anything but okay.
* * *
“She’s got a kid in the program. She’s off-limits, Carson.” Alex slapped Cole’s shoulder.
Shit. He hadn’t been able to take his eyes off Julianna Perez all day. He’d been actively trying not to look at her, but he’d been failing miserably. Every few seconds his eyes automatically found her, and the second they did, a powerful combination of peace and desire flooded his system. Never before had a woman had that strong of an effect on him.
It wasn’t just that Julianna was the perfect mix of two of the hottest women on the planet: Eva Longoria and Sofia Vergara. She was sexy as hell—there was no denying that fact—but it wasn’t the reason he was drawn to her. At least it wasn’t the main reason Cole couldn’t keep his eyes off her. There was something about her that was so different. She seemed innocent and vulnerable while simultaneously putting off a capable-and-guarded demeanor.
It was driving him fucking crazy.
And that wasn’t even the worst part. When he’d shaken her hand—before she’d snatched it back so fast that he was having a hard time not taking it personally—he’d touched her skin, which was the softest thing he’d ever felt in his life. Then there was her smell. Damn, that woman smelled like an angel, and it made him think of all kinds of ways he wanted to sin with her.
“Carson,” Alex barked.
Cole blinked and turned back towards his friend. “What?”
“Off. Limits,” Alex repeated.
“I know.”
There was only one other person in the world Cole would let talk to him like that: his mother. Alex Dare had earned a place of respect in Cole’s life that only his mom had ever held. For the last six years Alex had been his mentor, and over the time they’d known each other, he’d become one of his best friends. Plus, he was one of the most stand-up guys Cole had ever met.
When Cole had gotten drafted by the Breakers, he and Alex had immediately clicked. Alex had taken him under his wing, shown him the ropes of the game at the NFL level, and described the pitfalls of what came with being a professional athlete.
Alex clapped his hands. “All right. Bring it in and take a knee!”
Cole watched as all the boys, sweaty and out of breath, ran over to the sidelines. He stood next to his friend while Alex told the kids that they’d done a good job today and what to expect from the next five weeks, the camp they’d be going to, and the awards ceremony that would be held a week after they got home from camp. Cole was starting to zone out, his mind drifting to the dark-brown haired, golden-skinned goddess in the stands, when he heard his name.
“Let’s all thank Cole Carson for being here today. He won’t be here for the remaining—”
“Yes, I will.” The words flew out of his mouth like a bird in a cuckoo clock.
Alex’s head whipped around and his eyes narrowed. It was obvious that Alex knew exactly what—or who—Cole’s sudden altruistic volunteering outburst had been inspired by.
Cole knew it was more than likely that Alex was going to block the Hail Mary pass he’d just thrown. His friend opened his mouth in what was sure to be a protest, but before he got the chance to speak, the boys erupted in cheers. Cole grinned, knowing that Alex couldn’t veto his offer now that the kids were this excited about it.
“All right. Well, then, I guess we’ll see you next week!” Alex announced loudly, and the boys all began dispersing. Then turning towards Cole, he stated firmly, “We need to talk.”
As Cole followed behind Alex, he once again glanced up at Julianna, who was sitting in the stands, gathering her things. She’d been typing away on her laptop all day. Whatever she had been doing hadn’t seemed to be keeping her interest though, because every few seconds, her head would rise and her eyes would scan the field.
Even from down on the sidelines, Cole had been able to see the relief on her face every time she’d seen her son. At first, he’d thought she must have been worried that the kid was going to take off or something, but after Anthony had taken a particularly hard hit and Julianna had shot out of her seat, he’d realized that she was just worried her son was going to get hurt.
It reminded him of his own mom, who hadn’t wanted him to play football. She’d even forced him to play soccer until he was ten. But, after begging, getting good grades, and doing every chore imaginable, he had worn his mom down. He’d been playing football for eighteen years now, and to this day, when he watched footage of games, whenever the camera cut to his mom, she still had the same look of worry and pride—the scales tipping heavily towards worry—she’d had from the first day he’d put the shoulder pads on.
It was the same look that had been across Julianna’s gorgeous face all day.
The second the two men stepped inside the air-conditioned hallway, Alex stopped up short. “What the fuck, man? Did you seriously just tell those kids that you were going to come here every Saturday just so you can hook up with one of the kid’s moms? Do you know how fucked up that is?”
“It’s not like that.” It was a weak defense, one Cole could not back up, but he had no idea what else to say.
Alex still looked pissed as he stared at Cole for what felt like a full minute before asking, “What’s it like, then? Enlighten me.”
Cole shrugged and answered honestly. “I don’t know.”
Crossing his arms, Alex narrowed his gaze. “Would you have volunteered if you didn’t think that woman was going to be in the stands every Saturday?”
He considered throwing out some bullshit line like how he was doing it for the kids, but he’d always found that lying just made things worse. “No.”
Instead of getting pissed like he’d expected, Alex shook his head as his mouth turned up in a small smile. “Damn. I did not think that I would get to witness the day that the great Cole Carson got knocked on his ass by a female.”
As much as Cole would like to deny that was what had happened, he didn’t. Alex knew him too well to BS his way out of this. Plus, if anyone knew what he was going through, it was Alex. He’d been “knocked on his ass” by his wife, Madison. And although Cole hadn’t been there to witness it, he’d heard that it hadn’t been pretty. For years, he’d assumed that Alex had had a thing for his best friend, Riley. She’d always been around, and Alex had always seemed a little too protective of her. So when he’d heard that she’d ended up with Alex’s half-brother, Ian, it had shocked the hell out of him. But then, the next thing he knew, Alex had eloped with Madison. So he guessed everything had worked out how it was supposed to.
“So, are we good?” Cole asked.
“As long as you show up on time and give a hundred percent for the kids, we’re good.”
He was turning on his heel when Alex stopped him.
“But be careful. She’s got a kid,” Alex warned in a brotherly tone.
Cole nodded and continued back out to the field. He knew she was a mom, that this wasn’t a good idea, and that he should stay away from her. But he also knew that none of
that mattered.
When he lifted his hand to block out the bright rays of sun, he saw that the field was deserted except for the volunteers who were picking up empty water bottles and abandoned towels. While walking over to the bench, Cole glanced over his shoulder at the spot that had drawn his attention all day—the spot Julianna Perez had occupied. It was empty.
Disappointment filled his chest. Which was insane. He didn’t know this woman. She obviously came with baggage and complications—two things Cole was not a big fan of.
He could go after her, make some excuse about wanting to talk to her about Anthony. Actually, the kid had an arm and surprising control for his age and size. Today, he’d shined out on the field, and no one had come close to touching the accuracy and distance of his throws. His mom would probably want to hear those things. Right?
No. He wasn’t going to use the kid to get in with his mom. That was low, even for Cole.
After taking a seat on the bench, he rested his elbows on his knees and dropped his head in his hands, raking his fingers through his hair. His heel hit something solid. When he reached under the bench, he pulled out a black gym bag that had A. Perez sewn into the side.
Talk about catching a break.
Cole grabbed the bag and sprinted out to the parking lot, passing several people who all looked at him strangely on his way. He didn’t make a habit of running down the halls of the stadium, but he figured they would chalk it up to him being late or in a hurry. Without breaking his stride, he simply smiled at them. Then he pushed through the glass doors and ran into Anthony and Julianna, literally, who were headed back into the stadium.
Jackpot.
“Looking for this?” Cole held up the bag, immediately wanting to kick his own ass. That was the smoothest line he’d been able to come up with? What the hell was wrong with him?
Anthony’s face lit up as Cole handed it over to him. “Yeah. I forgot it.”
“Thanks. We were just coming back for it.” Julianna’s eyes didn’t meet Cole’s. Instead, her gaze bounced from the ground to her son and then over her shoulder to the parking lot. Then, with a small wave, she turned to leave after saying a quick, “Thanks again.”
Daring Attraction Page 2
