The next day Shakira wore my jersey to school. I let Mel know how pissed I was and she practically threatened me bodily harm if I messed with those kids. Instead I picked up a few pizza pies and soda’s and we made our way to Kira’s school for her lunch hour. Shakira was sitting at a table with another girl talking to her. They appeared to be sharing cookies when a group of about four older looking kids stopped at their table.
“You still looking for a daddy?” one of the boys sneered.
Mel looked at me worriedly and I nodded. I walked over to the table and sat down the pizza boxes. I took a seat next to Kira while Mel went to inform the teacher we’d brought lunch. None of them seemed to notice me and I removed my hat and glasses. I bumped Shakira’s shoulder with mine and she spun around. Her face broke into a beautiful smile and she wrapped her arms around my neck. “Hi daddy!” she squealed.
“Hey princess.” I kissed her forehead. “Me and your mom brought pizzas for your friends.” I told her.
She looked at the pizza boxes and grinned. “Did you get pepperoni?” she asked and I nodded. I grabbed a plate and put a slice on it for her. I glanced at the group of kids that thought it was ok to bother my child and I noted that the ring leader was standing there with his mouth gaping open.
“Th-That-That’s Nicholas Rivers. You’re wearing his jersey.” He stuttered as he pointed out to Shakira’s top.
She nodded over her bite of pizza. “Yep.” She mumbled. Shakira knew I played basketball and was on TV and things but she was oblivious to what it all entailed. In her eyes I was just her father and that was fine by me.
I noticed a few other kids edging towards our table. Mel popped up and shot me a questioning look. I shrugged and she sat down across from us. The kid went complete fan girl on me and pulled at his hair. “He is like the best basketball player ever.”
Shakira nodded again. “Yea he brought my favorite pizza.” I laughed because it seemed like nothing he was saying was registering to her. Mel only shook her head. She took out a slice of pizza for herself and I grabbed her hand bringing it forward so I could take a bite. She scowled at me and I blew her a kiss which she rolled her eyes to.
One of the teachers came over just as I was serving Kira a second slice and smiled. “Hey there Shakira.”
“Hi coach Millers.” She greeted him. She appeared to like him which was good. He wasn’t a kid so that meant I could ring his neck.
“I didn’t know your father was Nicholas Rivers.” She only shrugged.
I held my hand out in greeting. None of the teachers knew who I was, when I came to the school after they moved in I met solely with the principal and asked for anonymity. I didn’t want Shakira being harassed about it or any issues about favoritism. You would be surprised by the horror stories some of the other teammates has shared with me. But, I liked it even less that she was being bothered for not having me in her life. “I’m Nick.”
He shook my hand frantically. “I’m Carl Millers; I’m the gym teacher here. I’m a huge fan man.” He told me.
I nodded. “Good to hear.”
“Are you going to be getting back on the court anytime soon?” he asked.
I shrugged and gestured to Mel. “You would have to ask her she’s in charge of my recovery.”
He turned to Mel and held out his hand. “Ms. Smith, how are you?”
She blushed. “I’m good, how are you coach? How’s Shakira doing in your class?”
He glanced at Shakira and nodded. “As good as ever. She has a lot of energy and she is always participating. I know it’s one of her favorite classes, she said she wanted to run like her mom.”
Mel smiled. “That’s good to know, thanks.”
He gestured to me. “I didn’t know you were married.” He said confused.
She let out a light laugh. “We’re not.”
I watched the interaction and I was stewing with jealousy. There was no denying his attraction to Mel and she was blushing like a damn school girl. He wasn’t a bad looking guy either. I tore into my pizza like it was the enemy then cleared my throat. “It was nice meeting you.” I told him in dismissal. I don’t know what he saw on my face but he nodded and beat a hasty exit.
Mel looked at me with a raised brow. “What?”
“Did you have to be so rude?” she asked.
I shrugged. “We’re not here to make friends Ms. Smith. We’re here to have pizza with Kira. Maybe if you’d stop flirting then you would remember that.” I told her with a scowl.
She rolled her eyes and bit her pizza. I saw the glimmer of mischief in her eyes and I glared at her. “What it sounds like is that you’re jealous of the coach. Is it his tight ass or is it the way he looks in his uniform?” she asked.
I mouthed the word ‘bitch’ and finished off my pizza making sure to ignore her. I caught her smile but I wasn’t feeding into her shit. I signed some stuff for some of the kids that wanted a signature and decided it was ok to introduce myself to her teacher now that the cat was out of the bag. We walked Shakira to her classroom and her teacher came out to greet us. She looked like a nice lady with her glasses and sweater. She was attractive but I barely noticed. She glanced at me and did a double take. “Hi, I’m Ms. Kohls and I’m Shakira’s primary teacher.” She introduced herself.
I gave her a cocky smile and leaned against the wall. I took her hand as I introduced myself. “I’m Nick Rivers, her father.”
She licked her lips and let her eyes roam all over my chest. I crossed my arms in front of me and her gaze skirted over my arms. She met my eyes and bit her lip. “You wouldn’t happen to be the same Nick Rivers who’s jersey she’s wearing?” she asked and I nodded. “I had no idea…” she trailed off.
I shrugged. “I didn’t want it broadcasted. I’m sure you could understand why.” I explained and she nodded. “We really must be going now, but it was an honor to finally meet you.” I brought her hand up to my mouth and placed a kiss to the back of it right before I gave her my best panty melting smile. She turned beet red from the attention.
Mel cleared her throat. “Ms. Kohls it’s great to see you again.” She said through clenched teeth.
I began to walk away when I heard Ms. Kohls ask Mel if we were together. I stopped and turned my head to meet her eyes. “No we’re not, I’m single.” I continued out of the school to wait at the car. I was leaning against it when Mel finally emerged a few minutes later. She didn’t look at me or acknowledge me and I smiled. She drove us home and was grumpy for the rest of the day, which was fine by me I didn’t give a shit. She waited until I went to my room for the night to corner me.
“You cannot flirt with her teacher Nick.” I heard from behind me. I spun around to face her and threw a hand across my chest.
“What are you talking about Mel?” I asked.
She put her hands on her hips. “You know what I’m talking about. That is totally inappropriate. If you need to get your rocks off you cannot do it with her damn teacher.”
I laughed. “She did look like a naughty little librarian with those glasses. She comes off as the type that is probably wild in the sheets.”
She scowled and I took off my pants to change ignoring her presence. I took off my shirt and grabbed some briefs and pajama bottoms to put on after my shower. “Nick…”
I faced her and crossed my arms. “What?”
“I’m not playing with you.” She threatened.
I shrugged. “Neither am I.” She growled before turning on her heels and stomping out of my room. She finished off her tantrum by slamming my door on her way out then hers as I guess she went in. I rolled my eyes and continued with my shower and bed.
CHAPTER 4
Mel
After the whole fight we had, if that’s what you want to call it, things became a little strained between us. I couldn’t describe the amount of jealousy that I had and he didn’t seem the least bit put out about anything I had to say about it. The fact that he completely disregarded me made me pissy and I couldn
’t let it go. Call it what you want I just wanted to kick him every time he was in my presence and to make it worst he didn’t even seem to notice.
There was a carnival in town today and we promised to take Shakira. Nick was worried about going but he was going to because she wanted him there. His biggest issue was being spotted and getting hoarded by fans. He didn’t mind them, but he didn’t want to disrupt Shakira’s life or take away from her normalcy. I can’t lie that no matter how mad I am at him these days I can’t help but get all warm and fuzzy inside by how he automatically puts her first. Shakira is totally enamored with him and the two of them together is the absolute cutest thing I’ve ever witnessed. I even caught them having a tea party last week. Yep, thee big ass supersized Nick was pretending to sit on a pink kid chair with a teacup in hand and tiara on his head. His healing is coming along awesomely and we’ve progressed to running. Soon enough we’ll be having one on one drills with his coach. I constantly wondered when the other shoe would drop. I mean sure I know that he wouldn’t kick us out or anything but I could only wonder what would happen when he didn’t need me anymore. I secretly have been looking up places and having things lined up in the event that I needed to do something and fast.
“Shakira?” I called out.
“Coming!” She screamed back just as Nick was coming down the stairs.
He had on a pair of worn jeans and a white t-shirt that fit him like a second skin. He had on his signature cap and glasses to try to disguise himself but I don’t see how that works. People are always looking at him especially the woman. His size alone attracts attention and then he wears things like this that leaves little to the imagination. He walked past me and went to grab a bottle of water from the fridge. When he bent down I checked out his ass and quietly wiped a hand across my mouth to check for drool. Kira came running down the stairs and went straight for the door. I grabbed my bag and followed them out. Nick drove today and we made it to the carnival in record time. Shakira’s eyes were lit up in delight when we arrived.
She grabbed Nick’s hand. “Can you win me a toy?” she asked.
He laughed. “I can try…”
We began walking past the games and when we came to a basketball one Shakira dragged Nick over. “Daddy you can win this one!” she said pointing.
His chest vibrated with laughter and I couldn’t help but laugh myself. They were going to cheat. He paid the fee for the game and kept making shot after shot. A small crowd had formed mostly younger boys that were watching in excitement. When he won with a perfect score he picked Shakira up. “Which one do you want?” he asked her.
She pointed to a large unicorn that looked bigger than her. The guy got it for her and Shakira pointed to me. “You have to get one for mommy too!” she squealed and wiggled for him to release her.
He put her down and turned towards me. His eyes were blocked but I knew he was looking into my eyes, I could feel it. “Do you want one?” he asked in a low rumble.
I shrugged while I wrung my hands nervously. I did want one but only so that he would win it for me not to actually have the toy. He cocked his head and watched me for a beat before he handed over cash and started up again. When he came down to the last shot he beckoned me over with his finger. I walked over hesitantly. “Yes?” I asked.
“You make the last shot.” He told me and I shook my head.
“You know I suck…” he put the ball in my hand and stood behind me.
He bent his head down and whispered in my ear, “We can explore that later.” And I felt a wave of desire flow through me. I knew he was just messing with me but I couldn’t help but react to his words. He put his hands over mine and lined his body up so that I felt him all over. My back felt like it was on fire from him being pressed against me. He showed me how to position my hands and what I needed to do with my arms and wrist to make the shot. He let my hands go but didn’t step back. “Go ahead Mel you can do it. You going to make this shot for me?” he asked.
I bit my lip and nodded my head as I concentrated. I don’t know why it suddenly became so important to me but I needed to make this shot. I focused and tossed the ball the way he told me and was shocked by the swoosh indicating that I made it. I jumped up and down and fist pumped the air. Nick was laughing behind me and I spun around and jumped on him. He caught me and held me while he laughed.
He slowly put me down letting me slide down his body and my arms stayed wrapped around his neck of their own accord. I smiled at him and his head bent down slightly. I was brimming with adrenaline and without thinking I got onto my tiptoes and pecked his lips. I pulled back and I saw his nostrils flare, neither one of us moved or let go as we just stared at each other. I reached up and removed his glasses from his face so I could see his eyes. It’s like a million different things were hidden there and before I could think better of it I kissed him again. It was closed mouth but this time I let my lips fully rest against his. His grip on me tightened just a fraction and just as I was going to melt into him and deepen the kiss Shakira’s voice broke the spell.
“Gross!”
We both looked down at the same time and she was watching us with a smile. “What?” I asked.
“I knew you two kissed and you said you didn’t.” she accused crossing her arms.
Nick laughed. “We didn’t kiss that time. I didn’t say we never kissed. There’s a difference.” He explained. My head dropped against his chest as the laughter bubbled up inside of me. Why do we look like two guilty teenagers being reprimanded by a five year old? We unraveled ourselves from each other and I grabbed Kira’s hand. She helped me pick out a toy that Nick grabbed and tossed under his arm. We rode a bunch of rides and played games until it was dark out. Kira was getting tired but we still had to ride the Ferris Wheel. We decided to leave that for last. The line went quickly and we were boarding before we knew it. Kira was sitting in the middle of us and by the time we reached the top she was snoring lightly.
I laughed. “She falls asleep anywhere, I tell you.”
Nick shook his head. “I see that. I’m getting used to carrying her in and out of the car.”
I sighed. “Nick?”
“Yes?”
“About that kiss earlier…” I began. His arm was slung around the back of the seats and his hand came up and massaged the back of my neck. “Nick…” I groaned.
“What?”
“I’m trying to talk to you and you’re distracting me.” I complained.
“I know. I know what you’re going to say too.” He continued massaging my neck and I felt it to my toes. His voice dropped to a whisper. “You were going to say that you didn’t mean to kiss me but you did and I let you. That we can’t do it again and it shouldn’t have happened…” he adjusted the pressure he was applying to neck and I swear I purred. “But we’re on a ferris wheel Mel and this is supposed to be romantic. And you know what?” he asked and I only shook my head because I couldn’t speak. “Eyes.” He demanded his voice getting lower and huskier, and I opened them slowly. “It’s going to happen again, right here.” He promised and pulled my head towards him and he met me the rest of the way. His mouth crashed down onto mine and our tongues met eagerly. Besides our mouths the only contact was his hand on my neck but I felt his hands everywhere. We broke apart when we needed air and Nick threw his head back and let out a long breath. He didn’t speak for the rest of the night, not when we went to the car or the ride home. Not even when he put Shakira in bed. I didn’t know what to say either because I was so confused.
Nick
I don’t know if it was the environment or the moment but I couldn’t deny myself at the carnival. If I thought that our relationship was strained before that did nothing to help. Mel looked like a scared rabbit every time she was alone with me. The weeks progressed and she kept any type of physical contact nonexistent unless it was necessary with the therapy. We would start meeting up with coach in a week and my balls are so blue I swear they’re going to combust. I stayed true to the vow
I made myself that I wouldn’t pleasure myself thinking of her but as the days go by it’s becoming a part-time job. It’s like thinking of her smell these days get me hard as a rock. Phil made an announcement for the media about me resuming training shortly and it sent everyone into a tailspin.
The first day of drills sucked ass. Coach seemed more afraid of everything then I was and it was pissing me off. He wasn’t really training me for anything. This continued on for a week before I lost it and I flung the ball across the court.
“What the hell Rivers?” Coach screamed.
I threw my hands out in frustration. “What the hell coach? We’re supposed to be doing drills not treating me like a damn invalid fucking princess.”
“Watch it, this is just the beginning I can’t ride you too hard too fast.”
I was just about to argue when Mel spoke up. “Nick cut it out.”
“But-“ I began but she cut me off.
“Nick stop.” She demanded and I crossed my arms. She turned her attention to the Coach. “You can push him harder than you are. That is why we had the therapy we built him up to be able to move on the court. He knows the rules, if his ankle smarts or there’s any problems he is to stop and tell me and he will…” she trailed off meeting my eyes. “Won’t you?” she asked.
I sighed. “Yes Melanie. I will report any issues to you immediately.” I told her sarcastically with a salute.
“Smart ass.” She muttered and turned back to Coach. “Now give the boy something to do before he starts being a pain in the ass.” She grumbled and went to take a seat. The Coaches mouth was slightly opened as he watched after Mel as she found a seat. He looked at me curiously and blew his whistle. This time he gave me an actual drill to do and I went at it. I did drills until I was drenched with sweat and out of breath.
Coach slapped me on the back when we were done. “Good job Nick.” I nodded since I was busy chugging water. “By the way, that therapist of yours… what the hell?” he asked.
Needing Her (The Lexington Series Book 3) Page 8
