Daring Attraction

by Melanie Shawn

  She’d even opened up about her life. Well, at least more than she normally did. They’d covered everything from her childhood, being a teen mom, to the struggles of raising Anthony. The thing that surprised her most was not that she had talked about all of the things she’d never talked about with another soul; it was how natural it had felt to do so.

  “Have you slept?” Megan pulled the belt on her robe tighter as she stepped out onto the porch. “Chloe was up a couple of hours ago and I saw Cole dropping you off.”

  “I napped.”

  Sitting on the swing beside Julianna, Megan clapped. “Okay, spill. I want all the dirty details of all the dirty deeds of your and Football God’s fornications. I’m a married mom with two kids and I am totally, shamelessly going to live vicariously through you.”

  Julianna laughed at how excited her friend’s face looked. “Sorry. I don’t kiss and tell.”

  “Ha! So there was kissing.” Megan pointed her finger in accusation.

  Oh yes! There was kissing, all right.

  Julianna mimed closing a zipper across her lips, locking the key, and tossing it over her shoulder.

  “Oh now your lips are sealed. I bet they weren’t last night.” Megan comically wagged her light-brown eyebrows then sighed and sat back against the wooden swing. “Seriously though. I am so happy for you. You deserve someone amazing to sweep you off your feet and give you your happily ever after.”

  “Whoa.” Julianna set her cup of coffee down and lifted her hands defensively. “Cole and I aren’t… This isn’t a… It’s not like… It’s nothing.”

  Megan laughed and waved her hand in Julianna’s direction The-Price-is-Right-spokeswoman style. Then, in a patronizing tone, she said, “Obviously.”

  “You know what I mean.” Julianna swatted her friend’s hand away, “I meant we’re not together like that. We’re just hanging out. It’s not serious. We’re not anything.”

  “I think thou doth protest too much.” Megan swung her feet out and the swing creaked as it rocked back and forth. “Also, I’m not sure super-hot football-hottie Cole Carson would agree with that dismal assessment.”

  Julianna knew that Megan was not going to drop this. Normally, Julianna was a one-woman show. When she had problems, issues, or difficulties, she handled them with no help. But this situation had her so confused, off-balance, and unsure that she thought she might as well use her resources and talk to Megan. Not joking around. Seriously talk.

  Julianna voiced the cold, hard fact, that she, herself, was having a difficult time coming to terms with. “Realistically, this—whatever this is—can’t go anywhere.”

  “Why not?” Megan asked, as if her statement were ridiculous.

  When Julianna opened her mouth, words shot out of it like racehorses when the starting gates opened. “He’s a professional football player. And not just any football player—he’s the starting quarterback of the Miami Thunder. He’s also a confirmed bachelor with more notches on his belt than Girl Scouts have cookies. He’s rich, drives a luxury SUV, lives in a mansion, and up until a few weeks ago, he had a ‘hookup apartment’—his words. And I’m a mom. A single mom of a ten-year-old son. I work all the time and barely make ends meet. I live in a two-bedroom condo that I can’t really afford and drive a car that is on its last wheels—literally. And I haven’t had sex in ten years. Does that sound like a match made in heaven to you?”

  Megan was quiet for a few moments before she covered her hands over chest. “He got rid of his hookup apartment?”

  “That’s what you got out of everything I just said?”

  “That and the fact that you haven’t gotten laid in a decade, but I didn’t think you’d want me to comment on that. Although it does explain a lot.”

  “Come on, I’m serious,” Julianna pleaded with her friend.

  “So am I,” Megan said with a straight, one-hundred-percent sincere face.

  Julianna’s shoulders slumped. Megan did not truly understand what was at stake here. This wasn’t a joke. It was her life.

  “I don’t think I’m going to see him anymore.”

  If Julianna had a chance of walking out of this situation with her heart and sanity intact, walking away now—before she got more attached—was really her only option. She and Cole were supposed to watch a movie at her place tonight, but she would just call and cancel. If he showed up, she just wouldn’t answer the door.

  Perhaps sensing Julianna’s defeated spirit, Megan offered some advice. “Look, I totally understand why you would think there’s no future for you and Cole. I do. I don’t agree with you, but I understand. Still, I think you are looking a gift horse in the mouth.”

  “What do you mean? I’m not a gold digger—”

  “No!” Megan interrupted her. “That’s not what I meant. I mean you are holding the golden ticket to the chocolate factory and you don’t even know it.”

  “Other than the fact that that was a Charlie and The Chocolate Factory reference, I’m not following.”

  Megan sighed as if it were as obvious as the nose on her face and Julianna wasn’t seeing it. “You just said that you’ve been in a pretty epic dry spell. Right? And now, you have a gorgeous man you are obviously attracted to, who I assume you trust since you let him hang out with Anthony, who I know would love to be the one to break said dry spell. And you have”—she counted on her fingers as she mouthed days of the week—“three nights of being a footloose and fancy-free single woman with no responsibilities. I say you cash in your freak pass. No. I dare you to cash in your freak pass.”

  “My freak pass?”

  “Yes. Just because nothing long term can happen between you and Cole, that doesn’t mean that you can’t live out every single fantasy you’ve ever had with a man who, I would bet Chloe and Cameron’s college funds, knows exactly how to fulfill anything you can dream up to total and complete satisfaction. Get in. Get some. Get out.”

  Julianna felt her cheeks heat up with the memory of just how satisfied Cole had left her last night.

  “When will you ever get this opportunity again?” Megan implored.

  Never.

  The possibilities of Megan’s insane proposal were tempting. She didn’t trust in a future between them, but she did trust Cole, and trust didn’t come easy for her. If last night were any indication, he definitely wanted to take things to a more physical level.

  Her heart raced as she seriously contemplated cashing in her freak pass. If she went into this with her eyes wide open and laying down nonnegotiable guidelines, then it just might work. No strings. No expectations. No future.

  As Megan had so eloquently put it: get in, get some, get out. Just three nights of physical pleasure. She could indulge in every desire, every sexual need she’d pushed down and ignored for the last ten years.

  “Well, it looks like you are having a light bulb moment of the naughty variety. My work here is done. I’m going to go try to get some sleep before Robbie and the girls are up.” When Megan stood, the swing rocked back.

  “Thanks,” Julianna said sincerely.

  Megan was a good friend, and although Julianna had tried to build her life so that she didn’t depend on anyone, she honestly didn’t know what she would do without her nosy neighbor who, sometime over the past four years, had become her best friend.

  “Anytime, chickadee.” Megan grinned as she opened her front door and paused before heading inside. “I kind of feel like your fairy godmother—if your fairytale was being featured on the Red Shoe Diaries.”

  Julianna laughed and shook her head at Megan’s analogy. Her life was definitely taking a Skinemax turn. The question was, could Julianna actually star in her own fantasies?

  * * *

  “I can come back,” Cole offered loudly as he knocked on Olivia Dare’s office door.

  He’d gotten a message on his phone that she needed to see him ASAP. He figured that it probably had to do with a press opportunity for the football clinic. He and Alex had been making the rounds
on radio and television programs to promote it.

  Stepping out of her husband Dylan’s arms, who also worked for the Thunder, Olivia shook her head and waved Cole in. Dylan and Olivia were newlyweds who definitely seemed to be living up to the behavior of everything that status represented. They couldn’t keep their hands off each other.

  Olivia wasn’t the only Dare to have taken a walk down the marriage plank in recent history. Ian and Alex had also entered into wedded bliss. It seemed love was in the air, and Cole felt like he was deeply inhaling its magic. With every second he spent around Julianna, he fell deeper under her spell.

  “Come on in. We were done.” Olivia sounded all business as she smoothed her hands down her silk shirt and pencil skirt.

  “We’re not done,” Dylan said in a low tone to his wife, “but we can pick this up later.”

  Olivia nodded, and other than the flush covering her neck and cheeks, she looked like the picture of professionalism.

  Dylan nodded at Cole as he left. “Good luck.”

  Cole had no idea what he would need luck for, but he said, “Thanks.” Then he took a seat in front of Olivia’s desk. “What’s up?”

  He had the feeling of having been called into the principal’s office, but considering that over the past month and a half he’d been on his best behavior, he was clueless as to what had landed him here.

  “We have a problem.” Turning her computer screen so it faced him, Olivia clicked her mouse on a small video that was saved on her desktop.

  When the screen popped up, he saw that it was security footage from the front gate of the stadium. Cole’s white Range Rover came into view, and Cole’s visit to the principal, a.k.a. Olivia Dare, became crystal clear.

  Cole watched as the driver’s side door of his vehicle opened and he stepped out, stalking towards that little dipshit Chad, who backed up and tripped over his own feet. The footage then went on to show Cole help Chad, who was falling, up by his collar and slam him into the guard station, pinning him against the door. There was no audio on the video, but Cole remembered verbatim what he’d said to Chad.

  After Anthony had informed Cole that Chad had been hitting on Julianna every time they went to the stadium and had stepped up his game to stalker status when, a few weeks ago, he’d followed them home and showed up on their doorstep.

  “What’s the problem?” Cole asked, not at all sorry for his behavior. In fact, he was proud that he hadn’t broken any bones or knocked out any teeth. He’d told him that if he ever even looked in Julianna’s direction, he would kill him.

  Olivia shifted the screen back to face her. “Chad is claiming that you threatened his life.”

  “And?” Cole still didn’t see what the issue was. It hadn’t been an empty threat. If that asshole so much as sniffed in Julianna’s or Anthony’s direction, he would no longer be breathing.

  “And Chad is threatening to go to the press and the authorities.” Olivia’s voice was strained.

  “And?” he repeated. He didn’t give a shit if he went to the press. He didn’t care what anyone thought about him, and he knew the asshole wasn’t going to go to the cops. Anthony had said that Robbie had taken down his license plate and told Chad not to come back uninvited again.

  “Cole, this is serious. I called legal, and you’re going to have to meet with them. You can’t go around threatening the lives of Miami Thunder employees.”

  “Then you should tell your employees not to stalk people.”

  “What?” Confusion was written all over Olivia’s face. “Stalk who?”

  “Julianna Perez. She’s Anthony’s mo—”

  “I know who she is, Cole.” She looked at him like he was trying to teach the alphabet to a Harvard professor.

  “Chad’s been harassing her every time she brings Anthony to practice, and a few weeks ago, he followed her home.”

  “He followed her home?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did she call the police? File a report?”

  Cole shook his head. “No. Her neighbor is a detective. He took down Chad’s plates and told him not to show up again.”

  Olivia’s eyes narrowed. “And did he?”

  “No.”

  “Then what was this about?” She waved her hand in front of the screen.

  “I just wanted to make sure that he got the message.”

  Olivia sighed and placed her hands flat on the desk. “Look, I don’t know what’s going on with you and Julianna, and it’s none of my business, but you can’t let whatever it is make you do things that put the organization and your career in jeopardy. Are we clear?”

  Cole nodded.

  “I’ll fill legal in on what you told me regarding the circumstances leading up to the incident. You should hear from them by the end of the day.”

  “Fine.” He stood to leave.

  “I think I know the answer to this, but is it serious?” She tapped her pen on her desk.

  “I thought you said it was none of your business.”

  “It’s not.” She smiled. “But that doesn’t mean a girl can’t be curious.”

  Cole grinned. He sometimes forgot that Olivia wasn’t just one of the guys. Not that she wasn’t smokin’ hot. She was. But she just carried herself in a way that made him not see her as a member of the opposite sex. He realized that she probably did that because she was in a very male-driven field. She obviously hadn’t been able to fly under Dylan’s radar though. He’d locked that down and put a ring on it.

  Since she didn’t strike him as the gossipy type, he answered her honestly. “It’s serious to me.”

  “Good. I like her and Anthony. If you were just playing game—”

  “I’m not,” he assured her. Then he added, “Not that it’s any of your business.”

  “Not that it’s any of my business.” Olivia nodded, her lips turning up in a smile as she brought her attention back to her computer.

  As Cole made his way down the hall of the executive offices at the Thunder Dome, he looked at the large color photos of players hanging on the wall. Football had been his life for as long as he could remember. Sure, he’d been close to his mom and spent time with friends, but the game had consumed him.

  Every year when June rolled around, he was itching to start training camp. In April and May, he lived for OTA (organized team activities), which normally ran for five days. OTA was basically training camp light. They ran plays with no pads and had weight training sessions. Most veteran players didn’t like them; they wanted to be doing whatever it was they did during the off-season. But Cole loved them. He loved the game—period.

  Nothing had ever come close to competing with the love and passion he had for football.

  Until now.

  Until Julianna.

  Chapter Nine

  Julianna jumped a few inches off the ground at the loud knock on the door. Glancing towards the clock, she saw that Cole was early. Again. As she walked to let him in, she made a mental note to start adjusting her expectations. Every time Cole told her that he was going to be somewhere, he was really going to be ten to fifteen minutes early.

  Not that it would matter after Saturday. Once Anthony came home, this—whatever it was—ended. A clean break. That was the only way she knew she would be able to come out on the other end of this in one piece emotionally.

  Reaching for the door handle, she noticed that her hand was shaking. The entire day, all she had been able to think about was turning in her “freak pass.” Getting in. Getting some. Getting out. She’d made a list of pros and cons. Although stopping this now, before anything had really gotten started, definitely had more checks in the pros column, there was one check in the con column she couldn’t ignore: ending her sex drought with Cole Carson.

  As mature and selfless as she’d tried to be while raising Anthony, she was still a woman with needs and desires. She’d put them on the backburner, but Cole had switched them to the front burner and turned the heat on high. Her body was burning with a frenzied cr
aving only he could quench.

  Megan’s words kept coming back to her. She had three more nights that she was, for all intents and purposes, off mom-duty. She could use that time safely and stop seeing Cole or she could make the most of it and explore her deepest fantasies with a partner so perfect that she couldn’t have cast him better if it really were a Red Shoe Diaries episode.

  At lunch, she’d deleted her pro-con list. She was doing this. Decision made.

  Taking a deep, steadying breath, Julianna opened the door. Cole was on the other side, holding flowers and a red envelope from Redbox. Her eyes ran over the swells of his biceps, which were pulling against his white T-shirt, down the vein popping out on his forearm, and over his large hands. She’d done a little research on quarterbacks and found out that most of them had larger-than-normal-sized hands. Those hands. They made her feel safe and secure and, at the same time, aroused and on edge.

  “God, you look beautiful.”

  Julianna felt her cheeks blush at Cole’s compliment.

  Today, she’d gone on yet another shopping adventure at lunch. This time, she got an appropriate dress to proposition someone in and suitable undergarments should the propositioned take her up on it. It had not been as easy a style to capture as one might think. She’d tried on at least a dozen dresses before landing on this one. It was a red, spaghetti-strap, cotton dress that had a fitted bodice and waist before it flared out. It landed at the middle of her thighs, and she’d paired it with tan wedges to give her legs a long, lean appearance.

  After work, she’d rushed home and showered, making sure she had enough time to blow out her hair, which hung loose around her shoulders and fell past the midway point of her back. She’d even brought out the big guns and put on the Chanel No. 5 she’d received from a wealthy, elderly patient at the doctor’s office where she worked.