by Rhian Cahill
“Nonsense. You continue putting that yummy-looking dessert together. I can load these in the dishwasher.”
“Toby should—”
“I asked him not to.”
She stared at Mrs. Moreland. “Oh.”
The older woman smiled sweetly but it didn’t stop Madison’s stomach from summersaulting.
Swallowing through her constricted throat, Madison asked, “Is this where you tell me I’m not good enough for your son?”
“What?” Mrs. Moreland put the tray on the counter and turned to face Madison. “No. Why would you think that? Never mind. What I have to say is the complete opposite.”
Madison could only stare.
“You are the best thing to ever come into my son’s life.”
“Mrs.—”
Toby’s mom held up a hand. “First, it’s Lisa. Second, let me finish before you argue with me. Can you do that for me?”
Again, Madison remained mute. Just nodded like a bobble-head doll on a car dashboard.
“Good.” Talking a deep breath, Lisa settled her gaze on Madison’s. “Tobias has had some amazing things happen to him. He’s represented the country in his chosen sport and made a better-than-average living from the same sport. My boy’s been lucky. And I don’t care what anyone says, the injury that sidelined him did not end his good fortune.
“He’s thrived teaching. Every one of those kids he’s guided has been lucky to have him, but he’s also lucky to have them. He’s doing what he was born to do, regardless of what the sports commentators say about the waste of good talent. But you? God, I’ve watched him…heard him since he met you. He’s better than he was. He was always great but for you, he’s amazing.”
“I—”
“You said you’d let me finish,” Lisa said with a smile.
“Sorry.”
She cupped Madison’s cheeks in her small warm hands. “He’s told me quite a bit about you. I know all about where you’ve come from, and seeing you now, you’re better too. Together, you’re better. That’s something to hold on to.”
Madison nodded. She couldn’t think of anything to say and she feared anything she did say would disappoint Lisa. In the short time she’d come to know Toby’s mother, Madison had grown to respect and admire the woman. She’d raised an amazing family with unconditional love and wasn’t shy of telling them if they were out of line even now, with all of them adults.
No. Madison definitely didn’t want to disappoint Toby’s mother.
Lightly patting Madison’s cheeks, Lisa said, “You think on that. I’m going back out with the family.”
Before this conversation, Madison had known what she and Toby had was special. At first she’d believed it had to do with him being the only guy to give her sexual pleasure, but it had soon become obvious to her that sex wasn’t all they had between them.
She had no idea how Toby felt. If his affection went as deep as Madison feared hers did. Having never been in love, she couldn’t be sure, except the thought of being without Toby… Her stomach cramped, her chest ached, constricted, making it hard to breathe.
Was this what love felt like?
And if it was, what should she do about it? Tell him?
It didn’t seem prudent to do so when she wasn’t certain.
“Hey, everything okay in here?” Toby walked up behind her and slipped his arms around her waist. “That dessert ready yet? I’m dying to try it.”
Plastering on a smile and scrubbing her mind clear of her jumbled thoughts, she turned her head and pressed a kiss to his jaw. “Almost. Want to grab plates and cutlery for me?”
“Sure.” He let her go and spun her around. “But first, I want some of my favorite kind of sugar.”
His mouth came down on hers and she opened. Melting into the kiss—into him—Madison sank into the pleasure zipping through her veins. Toby’s kisses always set her on fire. The way he swept his tongue into her mouth, the way he demanded while giving her everything, it sizzled and fizzed and consumed.
He broke away. “Wow. Okay. Hold that thought. We’ll get back to that after everyone leaves.”
She smiled. Her face was flushed and she was certain if she went outside right now, everyone would know what her and Toby had been doing. “I need to finish the dessert.” Sticking her head in the refrigerator for a few minutes to get the whipped cream should cool her down.
Stepping away from Toby’s heat, she opened the fridge door and stood in the cool air wafting out of the opening.
Toby moved in beside her. “I could do with a bit of cooling off myself.” He glanced down.
Madison followed his gaze to the erection tenting his pants. A giggle escaped her.
“I’m not finding this funny.” Toby rearranged himself. “I can’t go out there and face my mother like this.”
“The advantage of being a female.”
“Really?” He arched an eyebrow and directed his stare to her chest. “Because…”
Looking down, Madison saw her nipples were hard and attempting to poke holes in her top. “Oh god.” She slapped her hands over them.
Laughing, Toby pulled her into his arms. “Have I told you how much I love your tits?”
“Only every time you get your hands or mouth on them.” She shivered, thinking about the stroke of his hands, the wet heat of his mouth.
“I’m not sure you appreciate my devotion. I think I’ll have to remedy that later.” He squeezed her ass, lifting her to her toes. “And your ass. I’m really, really devoted to your ass.”
Madison moaned and dropped her forehead to his shoulder. “Stop. We’ll never be able to go back outside at this rate.”
“If we don’t return, do you think they’ll just go home?”
“No.” She shoved him away. “Get the plates and cutlery.”
Smiling, he gave her a love tap on the ass as he passed her to do her bidding.
She trembled from head to toe, and even after standing in the open fridge door and sucking in several deep breaths of cold air, her nerves were so jangled she could only think of one thing.
Toby spending the rest of the night showing her his appreciation.
Chapter Nineteen
Toby craned his neck and lifted his ass out of the seat to see over the crowd.
“Who the hell are you looking for?”
He swiveled back to face Adam. “No one.”
On the other side of Adam, Cooper laughed. “Did you invite Madison?”
He lasered a dark look his younger brother’s way.
“Jesus. You’re in love with her,” Coop said with a shake of his head.
Love? He wanted to fuck her ten ways to Sunday every damn day and couldn’t stand it when they weren’t together, but love… He wasn’t in love with Mad. Was he?
“My god you’re idiot. Coop’s right.” Damian leaned forward in his seat. “You’re totally in love with Madison.”
“What the hell would Coop know?” Toby grumbled.
Adam laughed. “I’d think him and Zac were the experts on that subject, so if he says you’re in love with her then you are. What say you, Zac?”
Zac studied him from where he sat on the other end of their brotherly row. “Yep. Totally know the signs. And they’re flashing neon red right across your forehead, big brother.”
What the fuck? Why was his love life suddenly to topic of conversation? “What the hell did you put in the beers, Damian?”
All his brothers laughed at him and Toby was on the verge of punching the closest one when Cooper tipped his chin, indicating something behind Toby.
“Here comes the love of your life now,” Damian added.
Whirling around in his seat, Toby watched Mad make her way down the aisle towards their row. She’d worn blue jeans and a jumper in a deep green that set off her creamy skin and blonde hair. The sweeping curls—left down, the way he like them—moved around her shoulders, played peek-a-boo with her tits and had his palms itching to tangle his fingers through the strands he
knew from experience were silky soft.
Holy shit!
It slammed him like a front-row forward.
He was positively one hundred percent completely in love with Madison Keibler.
“There ya go. Now you get it,” Coop said behind him.
“Fuck. What the hell do I do now?” he asked, a little in awe of the emotion filling him.
“Make sure she doesn’t get away, dumb fuck.” This sage wisdom came from his oldest brother.
“How?” Toby mumbled.
“Shit. If I knew that, I wouldn’t be spending most weekends screwing nameless women at the club,” Damian answered.
Toby didn’t have the time or the brainpower to work out that little nugget of info from his oldest brother. Right now, all he could think about was how to make Mad his.
Permanently.
He smiled, the stretch of his lips growing wider the closer she came. Politely excusing herself from the two men on the end of their row, she turned side-on and shuffled past them to the empty seat beside Toby.
“Hi.” She leaned in and kissed him.
He was too stunned by his epiphany to return her kiss, and she’d taken her seat before Toby realized he wanted more. Grabbing her hand, he wove his fingers through hers and settled their joined hands on his leg. “Do you want a drink?”
“I’m good at the moment.” She leaned forward and looked past him at his brothers. “Hi guys.”
He ignored them and concentrated on Mad. “Ready to see a professional game live?”
“Yes. What game are we watching?”
“Dogs versus Dragons,” Adam answered.
“I got that from all the supporters on the way in, but what game is it?” Mad sat on the edge of her seat and peered down at the field.
“Umm…” Adam glanced at him and shrugged. “Round six.”
Toby chuckled. He knew what she was asking.
“No. What game? Soccer, Union, League, AFL— what game?”
Adam’s mouth dropped open. “You don’t know what type of game we’re watching?”
“Toby just said it was a footy game.” She shrugged. “I’ve never been into sport so I don’t know a football from a soccer ball.”
“Well first, it’s League, and second, Soccer is not footy.” Adam punched Toby in the arm. “How could you let this woman’s lack of footy knowledge go on for so long? Move over. I’ll teach her.”
“Not a chance, big brother.” Toby turned his back on Adam and with two fingers under Mad’s chin, brought her gaze to his. “You ready for a crash course?”
“Yes. So this is the code you used to play, right?”
“Yep. The St. George Dragons are my old team.”
“Really? Is that the team you go for then?”
“I’m partial to them but growing up, we were Roosters supporters. Dad still goes to all their home games.”
“So we’re going for the Dragons?”
“Yes.”
“Are they good?”
“Their season has started off all right. Too early to tell if they’ll make finals but on paper they’re good, and they’ve performed well in their games so far,” Toby explained.
“Is this the same code as the school team played the other week?” Mad chewed her bottom lip. “I really should have Googled the rules.”
“No. That was Union. I’ll give you the basics and explain anything more in-depth as it comes up in play. How’s that sound?”
“All right. Go.”
Toby barely got the list of players’ positions out before Mad’s eyes started to glaze over. She might be a genius who skipped grades, but it appeared the rules of League were beyond her. “How about we just watch? It might be easier to point out the rules as they happen.”
“Yes, that might be best. It is a little confusing. All those people on the field at once…”
Beside him, Adam chuckle behind his beer. “I can’t believe you’re dating a girl who hasn’t a clue about the sport you live and breathe for,” his brother muttered.
Turning to his brother, Toby smiled. “I know. But I don’t live and breathe for the sport. Never did.”
It might have looked that way to others, but Toby had always known he’d be a teacher. He just happened to be good at football and like most things he did, he did them to succeed. And until he’d blown out his knee, he’d been at the top of the game.
***
“Hey!” Madison jumped to her feet. “He can’t do that!” Spinning to look at Toby, she asked, “Can he?”
“No.” He shook his head. “It was a cheap shot because they’re losing and frustrated, plus time is ticking down.”
Dropping back into her seat again, she glanced at the huge scoreboard at the end of the field. “Three minutes left?”
“Yep.” Toby patted her leg. “Don’t worry. We’ve got this.”
He meant the Dragons, but since the first whistle blew it had been ‘we’. As though being a spectator made you one of the team. She’d really enjoyed the atmosphere of the game. Liked being among a large group of people wanting the same outcome. It was strange but thrilling to sit here in the middle of it—to be a part of it.
For the next few minutes she sat on the edge of her seat, counting down the seconds. Toby and his brothers did the same, and when the final siren blasted through the stadium, Madison jumped to her feet with all the other Dragons supporters and cheered.
Throwing herself into Toby’s arms, she gave him a smacking kiss. “Thanks for inviting me.”
“I take it you had fun then?” he asked with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.
She grinned. “Maybe a little bit.”
“Good. Another new experience for you.”
“One I want to do again. When’s the next game?”
“They play every week,” Adam leaned in to say. “And thank you, Madison, for making today’s game more exciting than usual.”
“I did?”
“Your enthusiasm, regardless of your cluelessness, was fun to watch.”
“Wait. I think that’s a backhanded compliment…” Madison glared at Toby’s brother.
Adam laughed. “Not what I intended. Are you joining us for dinner?”
“Oh, you’re all going to dinner?”
“That was the plan, but if you don’t want to go, we don’t have to,” Toby said.
“You go. Have dinner with your brothers. I’ll go home.” She didn’t want to intrude on their male bonding time. Within ten minutes of arriving at the game, she’d worked out that’s what this day was about for them.
“Ah, let’s see…go home with you, smelling all sweet and warm, or go have dinner with my beer-smelling, ugly-mugged brothers…? No contest. You win hands down.” Toby wrapped an arm around her waist.
“Do we get that option?” Damian asked.
“Nope.” Toby slid his other arm around her and picked her up. “She’s all mine. Get your own.”
Madison squealed when he started to walk away, carrying her. “Put me down.”
“No. Can’t risk one of them stealing you.”
She laughed. “No chance of that happening.”
Serious eyes met hers. “Promise?”
Madison wasn’t sure what to make of Toby’s sudden mood switch. But it was easy to give him what he’d asked for though. “Promise.”
“Good. Let’s get out of here.”
“If you put me down we could do that quicker.”
“But I like you in my arms.”
“I know, and I promise to let you carry me again when we get home.”
His eyes dilated, the pupils expanding to swallow up the dark brown. “Will you be naked,” he whispered.
A shiver went through her. “If that’s what you want.”
“Oh, I want. I want and want and want. It’s my permanent state with you.”
“That sounds serious.”
“It is.”
Madison’s insides clenched. What were they talking about? Sometimes she still foun
d it hard to decipher those between-the-lines sentiments. She’d improved over the weeks she’d been with Toby, but every now and then she tripped up.
Before she could probe deeper, his brothers surrounded them.
“Put her down, Toby. Security is looking this way, and I don’t like the way that rent-a-cop has his hand on…what the hell is that?” Damian leaned around Madison to get a closer look. “Jesus. It’s a flashlight. Never mind, if he comes this way we can take him.”
“Please tell me you do not have your gun on you,” Coop growled.
“Hell no. I’d never get that through the security check at the gate. It’s in the car.”
Toby shook his head. “Damian. Go away. All of you. Go. Away.”
Laughing, the four of them clapped Toby on the shoulder and said goodbye. Watching them go over her own shoulder, Madison waited until they were all out of sight to face Toby again.
“You can put me down now. The threat has gone.”
“That one has.” He started walking again. “Gotta protect what’s mine.”
Madison sucked in a breath as those words slid through her.
What’s mine.
If she didn’t know before those two words, she did now.
She was in love Tobias Moreland—and she had no idea how to tell him.
Chapter Twenty
Toby weaved his way through the milling students as he headed to Mad’s classroom. He needed to grab a quick word to let her know he was going with Jim Landry and his mother to the specialist to find out if the kid would play again this season or at all.
Jim was a nervous wreck and his mother was no help; she’d almost hyperventilated in Toby’s office. No wonder Jim asked him to accompany them this afternoon.
“Sir. Sir.”
Toby turned to see Andy Sturgis jogging his way. “Hey, Andy, what’s up? I’m in a bit of a hurry.”
“Have you heard any more about Jim’s knee? Is he out for the rest of the year?”
They both knew if the injury was as bad as feared, Jim would more than likely be out for longer than one season. The type of damage the promising five-eighth had sustained was career-ending. Toby ought to know. It was the injury that had ended his NRL career.
