Balls (Cruz Boys #1)

by Danielle Slater

  Unfortunately, my foot was a fraction of a second slower than usual and it found his stomach instead of the ball.

  He doubled over in agony and curled up in the fetal position screaming like I’d shot him.

  My foot had deadly power.

  Shit.

  “Sorry, man. My fault,” I said.

  I tried to help him up, but he slapped my hand away.

  He glared at me through a twisted grimace. He never would’ve gotten to that ball first if I wasn’t so drained.

  Literally drained.

  Coach shouldered me aside as he arrived on the scene of the crime. A couple of trainers knelt down beside the injured goalkeeper and started checking him out.

  Coach turned to me. “Are you insane? You want to kill Spain’s best keeper?”

  “No.”

  Small words and short answers seemed best. Coach didn’t seem in the mood for more.

  He pointed to the benches and yelled, “Go cool off!”

  He looked at the player standing on the sidelines hoping to take my job. Rafael Martinez. Eighteen years old and pretty good by most accounts. Some professional armchair idiots claimed he might be as good as me someday.

  That was never gonna happen.

  “Martinez, get on the field!”

  “You got it coach!”

  I walked toward the bench, determined to defy the dictator trying to ruin my life.

  As Martinez jogged past, he held out his hand expecting a low five.

  He wanted me to be happy about him taking my spot?

  Dipshit kid.

  As I approached the bench in a decidedly terrible mood, a ray of light pierced my darkness.

  Alex was standing in front of railing of the Significant Others’ section.

  Because she was my S.O.

  She waved and smiled.

  I waved back and wondered if she’d seen what happened. I hoped not.

  She flashed me a thumbs up and a you can do it fist.

  Okay, she’d seen it.

  Great.

  I didn’t know how long she’d been standing there watching, but however long was too long.

  She wiped sweat from her brow and suddenly stumbled. She fell back and plunked her butt down hard on the grass.

  I sprinted over in a flash. I got to her as another one of our trainers did.

  “You okay, ma’am?” he asked.

  I helped Alex to her feet. “What happened?” I checked her over and there wasn’t any obvious sign of injury.

  She had a surprised look in her eye. “I don’t know. I was standing there. Then I felt a little woozy and next thing I knew I was parked on the turf.”

  “You fell on your butt, honey.” I said.

  “Yeah, that’s one way of putting it.”

  The trainer gave her a more thorough scan. He checked her pulse. He didn’t freak out, so I figured it was probably the heat and too many sleepless nights.

  “How do you feel?” the trainer asked.

  “Not great,” Alex replied.

  “How about lately? Earlier today? Yesterday?”

  Alex thought about it. “A little weird, for sure.”

  “Well, your pulse is racing and you don’t look so good,” he said. “I don’t see any pressing medical emergency, but I’d highly recommend you check in with your doctor.”

  A doctor? What was wrong with her?

  “No, I’m fine. Really,” she said.

  Oh no. Not happening.

  “You’ll see my personal physician today,” I said.

  If something was wrong with her, there wasn’t a chance in hell we were going to let it go unattended.

  She shook her head. “That isn’t—“

  “This isn’t up for discussion, Alex,” I said. “I’ll set up the appointment for this afternoon.”

  “I don’t know,” she said. “Aren’t we all overreacting a little?”

  “You don’t understand,” I said. “How am I going to concentrate on practice if I think there might be something going on with you?”

  “Okay, fine. I’ll go.”

  A pissed-off voice from further down the sidelines interrupted our conversation.

  “Jesus H. Christ! Isn’t the reason we have a designated spot for girlfriends and wives is so they don’t get on the field and interrupt our practice?”

  Coach was about five seconds from earning a broken jaw.

  Alex shook her head. “Breathe, Leo. Stay calm.”

  “Leonardo! If you intend to play for Spain in the upcoming World Cup, get the hell over here and show me that you want it!”

  I hugged Alex tight. “I’ll text you the doctor’s number.”

  “Thanks,” she said. “Coach sounds pissed. I hope you’re not in trouble.”

  I laughed. “Me? Trouble? The two never met.”

  I kissed her and headed back to endure yet another round of verbal abuse. I prayed I didn’t snap and beat the living crap out of the self-righteous fart.

  How could he question my commitment?

  I wanted that Cup!

  Me! The Lion of Spain!

  I glanced over my shoulder and saw Alex walking out.

  I did want the Cup. No doubt about it.

  But it hit me like lightning from the blue skies above that it was no longer the only thing I wanted in life.

  I wanted Alex.

  Under me.

  Above me.

  Forever by my side.

  * * *

  Alex skipped into the entry hall like a kid finding out it was a snow day. I’d given her a key to my suite and I was happy to see she felt comfortable using it without asking permission first.

  Because we were a couple and that’s the kind of trust a couple had. The kind of trust we had.

  She jumped into my arms and wrapped her legs around my middle.

  “Straight to the fucking? That’s my girl.”

  Blood rushed into my cock and I thrilled in anticipation of her tightness. I whirled around and pinned her against the wall, all of my intention focused between her legs.

  She gasped as I drove my weight into her.

  “Are you always hard?” she asked in a husky voice.

  I went from standing at half-mast to full attention before she finished the question. “Around you I am.”

  I massaged her tits through her blouse and growled when the perky nipples hardened. I started to tear off her pesky clothes when she covered my hand with hers.

  “I have to tell you something,” she said. “I visited your doctor.”

  Oh no. Bad news.

  She had leukemia or some other horrible shit. Doctors never gave good news. It wasn’t in their job description.

  “Are you gonna be okay?” I asked.

  She was a real trooper. That was for sure. She got shit news and yet was staying so positive. She had a fighter’s spirit and so did I. We would never give up. Never let this thing beat us.

  “Don’t worry, Alex,” I said. “We’ll do whatever it takes. I’m not gonna lose you.”

  She gave me a weird look. “What are you talking about?”

  “Uh, I don’t know. What are you talking about?”

  She dug in the purse still slung around her shoulder and pulled out a folded piece of paper. Her hands shook as she unfolded it and showed it to me. It looked like a blood test or something. Hell if I knew. I wasn’t a doctor.

  I couldn’t take all the mystery.

  “Give it to me straight, Alex. How bad is it?”

  “Bad? I’m pregnant, Leo. We’re pregnant!”

  My legs wobbled and nearly gave out. I leaned into her against the wall to keep us both upright. My heart stopped in my chest.

  Once when I realized she wasn’t horribly sick.

  And then again when I realized she was carrying my baby.

  “That’s fucking amazing!”

  “I know!” she said. “Can you believe it?”

  “I’m going to be a father?”

  She stared at me wit
h smoldering eyes. “You’re gonna be my baby daddy.”

  I jerked back and howled loud enough to annoy people staying on the floor below us. I was a lion building my pride.

  My pride in her and our growing baby.

  My cock throbbed in my pants, clearly wanting to share in the good news. Of course, its version of sharing didn’t have a lot of nuance. It wanted to fill Alex’s body every which way. It wanted to own her completely.

  I couldn’t have agreed more.

  I wrapped my arms around her and squeezed her tight. And then a terrifying chill shot up my spine.

  Was I squeezing the baby too hard?

  I relaxed my hold immediately.

  “Shit! Sorry, did that hurt the baby?”

  She gave me an are you serious look and busted out laughing.

  I didn’t usually enjoy other people’s laughter at my expense, but with Alex I couldn’t have been happier. If she laughed because I made a dumbass of myself, fine. It made her happy.

  That’s all I cared about.

  After she finally stopped laughing so hard she couldn’t talk, she took a big breath and wiped tears from her eyes.

  “Don’t be crazy. Our baby is safe inside me, and you’d better not for one second start treating me all dainty like a china dish.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” I said.

  She didn’t have to tell me twice. I crushed a kiss onto her lips and slid my tongue into her mouth, eager to taste this new reality.

  It was better than ever.

  I pulled back and was startled to see her beautiful plump tits staring me in the face. She’d somehow disrobed and I hadn’t noticed.

  And I thought I was slick.

  “I’m sorry,” I said, “but I don’t do that anymore. I’m a father now.”

  She grabbed my hair with both hands and yanked my head down into her cleavage.

  “You’re my big stud and you’re gonna give this horny pregger’s bod what it needs.”

  “Fuck. I love being a dad.”

  I latched onto a nipple and sucked it to stiff attention. I could’ve sucked on those beautiful tits all day. At least until I passed out from my cock stealing too much blood from my brain. I sucked her delicious nipples and had no intention of doing anything else any time soon.

  Alex moaned and arched her back, giving herself to me. “I need you inside me,” she said. “I need you filling me completely.”

  I pulled back and let her nipple pop out of my mouth. Her breasts jiggled to a stop.

  She lowered her head and looked up through her lashes, all innocent and coy. She knew just how to make me squirm.

  “Is my baby daddy gonna take me now?”

  Fuck. My balls tingled with excitement.

  “I’m gonna fuck my baby mama,” I said. “Fuck her so hard until she comes on my cock.”

  I slipped my hand inside the leg of her shorts and further until I felt soft cotton panties. She was already soaked. I pushed the fabric along her groove and she trembled.

  “That is mine. It’s mine to take any way I want. Tell me it’s mine.”

  “Yes. I’m yours, completely, in every way.”

  I curled a finger under her panties and slid it into her pussy. Her wetness dribbled over my knuckles. My balls twitched as the hunger in my belly growled for her.

  I carried her through the living room and out onto the balcony. The evening sky painted purples and pinks in soft, smeared strokes. The surf crashed far below. I claimed her mouth and tongue, taking and giving in breathless waves.

  I pumped my finger in and out of her, longing to replace it with something bigger.

  Between gasps, she managed to say, “Shouldn’t you get some rest tonight?”

  I peeled her legs off my waist and yanked down her shorts and panties in one go. I balled them up and tossed them over the railing.

  “You won’t be needing these.”

  The wind caught them and whipped them in lazy circles until they plunked down in the water below.

  Her jaw dropped. She stared at the spot in the water where the expanding circles pinpointed her clothing’s last known location.

  “Those were my favorite panties! I bought them for you!”

  I yanked my shorts down and held my dick with one hand.

  “Your panties aren’t what I need.”

  I backed her up against the railing and wrapped her legs around my waist. With one smooth thrust, I parted her sweet lips and drove all the way home.

  She groaned and her softness tightened around my shaft.

  “This is what I need,” I said.

  I squeezed her into my chest and took her weight on the tip of my cock. The silky squeeze inside her was all I ever needed.

  The crisp scent of the ocean breeze picked up, and my heart swelled in my chest. We had all night.

  And like I said, I was no doctor, but I was going to do my honest best to fuck another baby into her.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Alexis

  I was seriously not looking forward to the phone call with my parents about being pregnant. They were supportive of most anything I did, but me being pregnant, out of wedlock, with a bad boy soccer superstar wasn’t going to be something they could easily swallow.

  So, I did what most kids do when they don’t want to face their parents about something, I didn’t mention it.

  I decided to give myself a few weeks, or months, to figure out how best to approach the subject. It wasn’t a pressing issue anyway, so I prayed the answer would reveal itself before too long.

  Another day passed and Leo said he had a special date planned. I already knew how to swim, so I wasn’t worried about needing a swimsuit for the date. I was beginning to wonder if there were any not-special dates with Leo. He had a way of blowing my mind each and every time.

  We’d picked up Josh in a Town car and were now heading to the Poble Sec district, an area of Barcelona that was once fairly seedy but had lately been booming with bars, restaurants, and other local favorites.

  We pulled up to a quaint Italian bistro and the car stopped.

  Leo took my hands in his. “We’re going out for a family dinner. Dante and Gio are meeting us here.”

  I stared at him in confusion.

  “Too much surprise?” he asked. “Sorry. I wanted tonight to be special. I wanted you to spend time with my family. So they can see why I’m so obsessed with you.”

  “I already get it,” Josh said.

  Dinner with his brothers? Could he have been any sweeter? He wanted me to get to know the people he loved most. His family. He was inviting me into that intimate circle.

  My eyes misted up and I had to breathe slow and even to keep the tears in check. I swallowed hard and nodded.

  Gusto was the cutest little bistro in the world. Every table had its own nook decorated with photos and artifacts of a particular region in Italy. We were seated at a large table with a map of Sardinia hung on the wall.

  The greetings and initial conversations had gone so smoothly that I already felt like I was a part of the family. We were well into the process of stuffing ourselves full of pasta when Dante stood up and pointed at a photo on the wall. He touched it.

  “If you look closely, you can see the villa where we grew up. That white arch right there.”

  He tapped the glass.

  “To Old Sardinia,” Gio said as he lifted what must’ve been no fewer than his fifth beer.

  The three brothers clinked their mugs together and shared a drink.

  I took a sip of wine and my heart warmed. Not because of the wine, although it helped.

  It was Leo. It was seeing him with his brothers. This was a side I didn’t know.

  A side I wanted to know more.

  Gio wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve.

  “Bro,” Leo said, “we have a proper lady here. Can you pretend to be civilized?”

  “Why? Who do I have to impress?” He turned to me. “You’re not on the market, are you?”

&n
bsp; Leo beaned him with a garlic bread knot.

  “I don’t think I am,” I said with a laugh.

  Leo furrowed his brows.

  “You don’t think you are? Don’t toy with this scavenger. Trust me. He’s more bite than bark.”

  Gio gnashed his teeth at me and his mouth happened to be open when another of Leo’s tossed bread knots lodged in it.

  “Goal!” shouted Josh.

  Gio tore off a bite and grinned.

  “Back off, little brother,” Leo said.

  There was the slightest edge to his voice. It made me wonder if these three handsome brothers had some history of competition with the ladies.

  Dante took a seat and snatched the remaining bread from Gio’s hand and popped it into his mouth.

  “Always a few years younger and a few steps behind,” he said as he chewed up his prize.

  Gio shook his head. “See what I had to deal with growing up? It’s a miracle I’m not certifiably insane.”

  “All the certificate does is make it official,” Leo said.

  “Brothers are cool,” Josh said as he watched the three in admiration.

  Dante refilled his brothers’ mugs from an opened bottle on the table.

  “So, Leo,” he said, “what’s the real reason you dragged me away from the south of France this evening?”

  Leo swallowed hard and took my hand. He kissed it with trembling lips.

  “Everyone at this table is my family. You each know me like no one else does.” He looked around the table and the mood thickened with emotion. “Alex and I have wonderful news.”

  Was he about to tell the news?

  We’d talked about telling our families and we were both excited to do so, but I didn’t know he meant tonight!

  Gio slapped the table. “He didn’t give you gonorrhea, did he?” he yelled.

  Leo leveled a hard stare at him.

  Gio leaned back and held his hands up in surrender. “Kidding. Can’t anyone take a joke around here?”

  “What’s gonorrhea?” asked Josh.

  “Never mind,” Leo said. “Moving on.”

  He turned to me and his eyes had a tenderness that pierced my heart.

  “Alex and I are going to have a baby,” he said.

  He leaned over and kissed me.

  I shivered from head to toe. There was nothing like the feeling of being loved so completely. So honestly.