THE MAN. THE GAME. THE BABY. (A Knight Brothers Novel) (A Bad Boy Sports Romance)

by London Casey

  “No, this isn’t about me.” Scarlett put her hand to my belly. “This is about you. This baby. This life. Shit changes and you just need to roll with it. Sometimes the greatest things find you while you’re trying to find something else.”

  Find something else.

  I stopped crying. “That’s it.”

  “What?”

  “What I have to do.”

  I moved away from Scarlett. I went back to the paperwork spread across the floor.

  “Willow…”

  “No, wait,” I said.

  I looked across everything and started to nod.

  I grabbed my cell and made a call.

  “Ted… I know how to make this work…”

  (Roman)

  Fucking Caine.

  Fucking Slade.

  Caine was in Calgary for a game. He got called up to play some big game and there was some retribution on the line from a previous game where someone on the other team took out a star player. That meant Caine would be on the ice and just beat the shit out of anyone in his path.

  What a job.

  Slade was in Utah.

  Fucking Utah.

  Just cruising through small towns, drinking, smoking, fucking, and enjoying his freedom life. He hooked up with a buddy and was helping restore two old motorcycles. That’s how Slade survived. Cutting deals for food and shelter. He was a complete nomad outlaw kind of guy.

  I sat in my car in the driveway to the old house, alone. Completely alone.

  A call to the hospital gave me all I needed on the old man. He was recovering, doing better, even responding to the meds. The nurse joked and said he had a stubborn attitude and a strong heart.

  My mother didn’t have a strong heart because of him.

  The nurse asked if I wanted to talk to him on the phone and I refused. I hung up the phone. All I needed to know was that he wasn’t home.

  That meant it was just me and the house. I really had no clue why I was there. There was nothing to gain from it. There wasn’t anything else to lose though.

  I opened the car door and it hit me.

  Willow was pregnant.

  Jesus Christ, another Knight in the family? There was always going to be a strong chance of it being the way myself and my brothers were with women. Hell, maybe there were already a few Knight kids running around playgrounds.

  But this was my life. This was real. Willow was pregnant. I didn’t intend for that to happen.

  As I stared at the house I realized I was going to be a father now. I was going to get the chance to rewrite all the wrong. I couldn’t change the past but I could shape the future. Except I had a murder charge hanging over my head. I had Tyler pushing at me to take the fall so he could get himself help and clean up. Yeah, I should have been there for him back in our college years, but what the fuck did I know? Any time I shut my eyes I saw my father bearing down on me, belt or bat in hand, ready to take a swing at me. I barely slept. I only ate because I needed to fuel my growing muscles. I made deals with the coaches and the college to give me special access to the sports facilities. It wasn’t uncommon for me to be up at three in the morning throwing footballs down the field.

  That was my focus. My goal was the payday. Everything else was just noise to me.

  I wanted to take the fall for Tyler. To punish myself.

  But now Willow was pregnant.

  I walked forward and mustered up the strength to go into the house by myself. I entered as slow as I always did, like a person entering the cage of a hungry lion. Sometimes the old man would be napping on the couch. If I woke him up, I got beat. Sometimes I’d get in silently and watch him sleep. I’d envision putting a pillow over his face and ending it all.

  Then Ma would ppsst to me and she’d take me outside to talk. She’d make the best damn lemonade ever. She’d sit on the back steps, smoke, and watch me drink lemonade. We’d talk about school, sports, and look at the clouds.

  One time we got so wrapped up in it all, the old man caught her smoking.

  That was a bad night. A really bad night.

  I walked to the living room and felt the anger rising up.

  My phone vibrated.

  It was Mackey.

  Call me.

  I shook my head. “No.”

  A minute later another message came through.

  Owners want a face to face. You, me, the legal team. They’ve stacked their legal team for a fight. Against you. They want out of the contract.

  I was about to lose millions. Over a hundred million dollars.

  My phone went off again.

  Don’t ignore me. The league is also considering a permanent ban. You’ll be the first person in league history. This falls on me, Roman.

  “Falls on me too,” I said.

  I walked to the TV. I wiped a line of dust away on the screen, corner to corner. My fucking TV in my bedroom at the apartment was fifty-five inches. The TV here wasn’t even twenty-four.

  The house lingered with the old man’s smell of aftershave and booze. Dust everywhere. The faint smell of piss. He definitely turned it into his own little bachelor pad after what had happened.

  I took the stairs and went to my old bedroom.

  Me and Caine shared a room for a while until Slade got a little bit older. Then it was Caine and Slade together and I had my own room. Most nights though we were all together. It was easier to survive the beatings in a pack than one on one.

  I stood at the window and looked to the backyard.

  Part of me could remember it all.

  The smell of summer. That wild heat. Grass, dirt, the trees. The smell of old gasoline and grass clippings. The faint rumble of the lawnmower. Me standing there, sweating, holding the football. The sun in my eyes but no sunglasses because that luxury wasn’t something anyone in the Knight house was given.

  I put the ball up and watched it go.

  It was supposed to come down in a garbage can but it had a little too much heat on it. It hit the roof of the shed.

  The old man saw it and turned off the mower. He walked to the football and picked it up. Part of me then still held hope. Hope that he would grin and throw it back. Maybe we’d have a little toss together. We could talk about the weather, cars, girls, whatever.

  That wasn’t my life.

  Instead, the old man took out a pocket knife, flipped it open, and stabbed the football. He cut it end to end and then ripped it open, leaving it as a flabby piece of leather.

  Then he went back to mowing.

  Goddamn, the memories were hard to sort through.

  My phone buzzed again.

  It was Ted.

  I took her home, Roman. She’s a mess. You need to talk to her. You also need to get a plan together. The headlines are getting out of control.

  I started to check… doing something no celebrity should do.

  STAR QB CHARGED WITH MURDER

  POTENTIAL LEAGUE BAN? WELL, GOOD-KNIGHT!

  THE DARKNESS OF KNIGHT SHINES BRIGHTEST NOW!

  DRAGONS OWNERSHIP: EVERY PRODUCT RELATED TO ROMAN WILL BE TAKEN OFF SALE. WE DO NOT CONDONE NOR SUPPORT THIS KIND OF RUTHLESS AND RECKLESS ACTION.

  LEAGUE COMMISSIONER: IT IS WITH GREAT SADNESS THAT I MUST ENACT AND IMPOSE A MINIMUM OF A ONE YEAR SUSPENSION…

  I stopped looking.

  It had always been me against the world.

  And now a life I created was going to enter that world in nine months or so.

  “Holy shit,” I whispered.

  I sat down on the edge of my old bed.

  I had faced plenty of challenges inside and outside this house. Being on the football field, I controlled the situation. I had multiple receivers. I had a line protecting me. And even if it all fell apart, I could throw the ball away. End the play, catch my breath, gather the guys up, and do it again.

  I faced critics saying I was overpaid. That I wasn’t cut for the league. The media following me, tracking everything I did wrong. So many run-ins with the law.

  All
those challenges I faced with a cocky grin.

  But this was different.

  A woman? A baby? Love?

  That was deep. That cut through the heart and went into the soul. I hadn’t experienced love since Ma was alive.

  But now I had a decision of my own to make.

  Take the fall for this murder… or become the father I never got to experience.

  (Willow)

  “Roman, you need to call me. We need to sort all this out right now. We have a plan. We have a way this could all work.”

  I hung up the phone.

  I paced Ted’s office.

  “Where the hell is this guy?” Jay asked, leaning against a chair.

  “It’s Roman,” Ted said. “He’s out there somewhere. Think about it. He’s banned from everything he loves. Now he’s facing a major life change with Willow. Nobody knows his story. Nobody has ever heard his side.”

  “I can’t see how there’s any justifying his side,” Jay said.

  “Did you read what I wrote?” I asked Jay.

  “Easy, Willow,” Ted said.

  “No. Fuck this. I don’t work for you anymore, Jay. I’m not afraid of you. Roman was trying to do right. Christ, do you know the amount of money he’s donated to domestic abuse organizations? And he’s kept it silent so it wouldn’t be a publicity thing. And this guy, Tyler, look at his sheet. He’s begging for help here. He took Roman’s gun and used it to kill a man. That’s not on Roman.”

  “Having a weapon is,” Jay said.

  “It was legal,” I said. “And Roman tried to help. I have the testimony of the other men involved.”

  “How’d you get that?” Jay asked.

  “I have my ways,” I said.

  The truth? I found the men, played the pregnancy card, and got them to talk. They were nervous because of the business dealings within the building. They weren’t legally allowed to have gambling, fights, and deal drugs. But I worked my own angle. A group of friends playing some cards and it got out of hand when Tyler lost big.

  “Fucking hell,” Jay growled. “How’s this going to help him with the league?”

  “I’m not worried about the league,” Ted said. “I’m worried about him staying out of trouble for something he didn’t do. How about that? For the first time ever, I get to truthfully defend him.”

  Maybe it was supposed to be funny, but it wasn’t.

  The situation was dire.

  “Who is representing Tyler?” I asked.

  “Corolley,” Jay said.

  “My advice?” I said. “Call Tyler and get him to lose all legal counsel immediately. Give him what I’ve written with a detailed explanation of what it means for him and his life. This is his only option.”

  “Not exactly,” Ted said. “You know how Roman is. When he sticks to his guns…”

  I touched my stomach. “I have leverage.”

  “You really are vicious,” Jay said. Then he grinned. “You take a new job yet?”

  “You couldn’t afford me, Jay, even if I wanted to come back and work for you again.”

  I turned and walked out of the office.

  I had never talked to Jay like that in my life. Hell, nobody did. But I had nothing to lose. My mother instincts were in high gear already. I was going to fight for what I loved - the baby in my belly… and Roman.

  I got into the apartment and found Scarlett standing there, face red. She bit on her nails and looked shocked.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  “I can’t believe I’m saying this,” she said. “But Roman… Knight… is in my apartment.”

  “What?”

  “Your bedroom. He’s a mess.”

  “Oh, shit.”

  I ran forward and Scarlett grabbed me. “Hey, are you okay here? Alone with him?”

  “Yes,” I said. “Scarlett, this is insane. But I really love him. And I believe he really loves me. We’re having a baby together.”

  “He’s getting charged with murder.”

  “No. Not with me on his legal team.”

  Scarlett smirked. “Okay. I’m a phone call away. I won’t go too far.”

  “Thank you.”

  She left and I went to the bedroom.

  And there he was.

  Roman.

  Sitting on my bed.

  He looked at me and smiled. “Sweetie.”

  “What are you doing here? I’ve been trying to call you. I’ve been talking with Ted and Jay…”

  “You have? I thought you were fired?”

  “I was. I am. I think. I spent the day trying to figure out how to save your ass and Tyler’s ass.”

  “You did that for me?”

  I stepped toward him. I grabbed his hair. My fucking sexy warrior… I pulled at his hair, wanting to hurt him in the most loving way possible.

  “Yes,” I said. “I did that for you, Roman. I love you. You’re worth being here for. You’re worth all the trouble you caused.”

  “You’re just saying that because you like my dick.”

  “I love your dick,” I said. “But I love your heart and mind. You’re too determined for your own good. Where did you go today?”

  “The house.”

  I nodded. “Did you see your brothers?”

  “No. I went alone.”

  “Why?”

  “To remember again,” he whispered. His hands touched my waist. “Because you make me want to forget it all. You make it worth forgetting.”

  “Jesus, that might be the most romantic thing you ever said to me,” I said.

  “Good. I’m going to end up destroying you, Willow. It’s my nature.”

  “I’ll tame the beast,” I said.

  His eyes were locked to mine.

  His hands slowly inched up my shirt. His hands cupped over my breasts, over my bra. When he squeezed, I sighed. The rush of warmth was instant and it brought me to life. His hands eased down and grabbed the bottom of my shirt. Exposing my stomach, he leaned forward and kissed me.

  My hands slid around his head and I pulled as I whimpered. “Yes, Roman…”

  His lips kissed over and over.

  He was kissing me. He was kissing our baby.

  His hands lifted again and he took my shirt off. Then he went for my bra, unsnapping it. It fell forward, between us, to the floor. He then looked up at me, his hands returning to my now bare breasts. He cupped from under my breasts, his thumbs sliding across my nipples, making them instantly erect.

  “Fuck, they’re going to fill up soon,” he whispered.

  “They hurt right now.”

  “I’ll take care of you, sweetie.”

  Roman straightened his back and latched onto my left breast. He sucked hard, enough to make me yell out. His tongue swirled and cut with precision, making my knees weak.

  He pulled away from me and pushed me back a step before falling to his knees before me. With his long fingers, he opened my pants and pulled them right down to my knees. His left hand touched the back of my right leg and he helped me out of my jeans. Again, his lips came forward, kissing lower than before. Teeth grazing my skin for a second and then he took hold of my panties with his mouth. He pulled down, allowing his right hand to grab and in a matter of seconds, I was naked before him.

  It was such a different position for me, standing while he was kneeling. Almost as though I had the power over him. Which was impossible. The second Roman grabbed my ass with his hands, I melted again. My hands slid into his hair and he came forward, mouth going right between my legs. His tongue curled against my pussy, bringing instant pleasure. The tip of his tongue nestled tightly against my clit, making rough circles, making me jump at him.

  A second later, he spun me around and put me on the bed. His hands opened my legs at my knees and slid his hands down my inner thighs. I caught myself thrusting at him, clutching for the sheets, desperate to have his mouth taste me again.

  He did.

  He sucked hard, fast, his tongue slicing me open. He latched tight,
his tongue darting as deep as he could reach. His hands worked up my body and cupped my breasts. As he pulled at me, I rocked my hips, grinding against his tongue. I felt myself already close to climax. I told myself to wait… but why fucking bother?

  I bent my legs and dug my heels into the bed. I started to come, my body lifting off the bed.

  “Oh, Roman,” I groaned. “Fuck…”

  Just like that, his mouth was gone from me. My ass was off the bed, thrusting up and down. I looked at him, out of breath, my body pulsing.

  Roman stood at the edge of the bed and ripped off his shirt. He then slid his pants down to his knees, gripped the thick center of his cock, and came at me.

  I felt pressure, a slight pain, and then he was deep inside me. He did it so fast, so fucking hard, I thought my body was going to explode. Mid-orgasm and he does that to me…

  “Sweetie, fuck,” Roman said.

  He moved down at me and kissed me. I locked my ankles behind him and felt him sliding in and out of me. Fucking me so hard that I lifted off the bed and crashed back down on it, over and over. My bed got as much of a workout as I did. The mattress slammed off the wall with each thrust of his body.

  He fucked me into oblivion and back. His big hands cradled me in all the right spots at all the right times.

  He came with me as his tongue explored my mouth, grunting each time his cock spurted deep inside my womb. We had a long time to go of free sex without worry. Of course, at the end of that, we’d have a baby to take care of.

  Roman stayed inside me, one hand touching my hip, the other touching my face. We then rolled to the side, our legs intertwined.

  “I don’t want to crush the baby,” he whispered.

  “I don’t think you can,” I said with a grin.

  “Whatever. I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing, sweetie.”

  “Neither do I.”

  “Wait,” he said. “I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing, but I know this… I love you. I’m going to take care of you now and forever.” He put his hand to my belly. “I’m going to take care of our child. I’m not going to let history repeat itself. I swear to you.”

  “I know that, Roman. I trust you.”

  “You’ve given me so much, Willow. I can’t…”

  “You don’t have to,” I said. “Let me help you. You’re not going to take the fall.”

  Roman grinned. “That’s where you’re wrong. I’ve already taken the fall… I’ve fallen for you…”