Aced (Blocked #2)

by Jennifer Lane

  “No, you’re not. I don’t need your help with his. At all. You’re here to control me. Butt out.”

  She turned away from him and stared at my feet. I could almost feel waves of fury pulsing from her. I watched Alejandro rub his hand over his face, seeming weighed down by sadness. I felt sad, too, with Lucia tense next to me and pain flitting across Alex’s face. Braxton and I had frustrated each other like this many times. There was no easy solution.

  Alejandro’s mouth opened, but no words came out. He lifted his hand like he was about to touch her shoulder, but then he dropped it. After several moments, he seemed to realize Lucia wasn’t going to speak to him. He got up with a sigh and hustled down the steps to stand near the railing overlooking the court. Brad hovered twenty feet behind him.

  I glanced at Lucia, who ran her hands through her long hair. “So, you and Dane, huh?”

  She looked down, her cheeks aflame. “I guess I’m a ho.” She rolled her eyes.

  “You know that’s not true.” I sucked in a breath. “Did Alejandro say that?”

  “No.” She sighed. “But he probably thinks it.”

  “I doubt that. And if he does, he’s wrong. I’m sure he’s just worried. He wouldn’t fly all the way here if he didn’t care about you.”

  She sniffed, and a tear slid down her cheek. Stupid brother!

  “Actually, I’m surprised you both lasted this long, horndogs,” I offered, hoping for a smile.

  Her mouth twitched. “I know, right? We waited as long as we could. But then I went to DC for Dad’s inauguration, and I missed Dane so much.” She sighed. “I pretty much attacked him when I got back.” She gestured to the court, where the muscles in Dane’s arm rippled as he high-fived a teammate. “I mean, could you stay away from that hotness?”

  I chuckled. “You didn’t commit a crime, Rez. It’s just taking the next step with the man you love.”

  “I wish my brother would see it that way.”

  I looked at Alejandro. Even angry he cut a stylish profile against the railing. He couldn’t be totally immune to female attention, could he? Seemed to me like he should be receiving plenty of it. He gripped the railing with white knuckles as he glared at the court, no doubt aiming an outraged stare at Dane…

  Oh yeah, there was still a game going on. Highbanks had a comfortable lead, so I tuned back in to the drama next to me as Frank returned holding two coffee cups.

  “You.” Lucia pointed at him. “You told Alex. And you knew he was coming to yell at me, so you slithered away to avoid the confrontation.”

  Frank said nothing.

  “I thought we had a deal,” she fumed.

  Her embarrassment had vanished, and damn, she was mad!

  “The agreement involved me not speaking to your father,” Frank said. “We didn’t discuss your brother.”

  I watched Alejandro mutter something to himself, his mouth tight. He ran his hands through his hair like I’d just seen Lucia do—their family had the shiniest black hair—and a flash of silver on his wrist, an expensive-looking watch, caught my eye.

  “I never imagined you’d speak to my brother! His life has nothing to do with mine.” Lucia crossed her arms over her chest as she glared at Frank. “You’re up to your old tricks, then. I can’t believe you did that.”

  And I couldn’t believe Alejandro had judged his sister so easily. He’d swooped in to question her morals, then left her to deal with the aftermath. Nobody messed with my Rez that way. Before I knew it, I was marching toward him.

  As I neared, he stood taller, and I noticed a subtle scent of spice.

  “Good job,” I said. I stared him down as best I could, given I had to look up to meet his eyes. “What exactly are you trying to do here? You just made your sister cry.”

  “I just—it’s my—” With a defeated sigh his head dropped, and he seemed contrite. “Sorry.” But then his chin lifted, and his dark eyes glowed with warmth.

  Was the bastard actually smiling at me?

  Chapter Two

  MADDIE PERCHED HER HAND on her hip. “Really? Your sister’s over there crying. What the hell are you smiling about?”

  I felt a blessed letup of the concern consuming me since Agent Vanderberg had called, and I slid my hands into my pants pockets. “Lucia told me you’ve been an incredible friend…that you’ve looked out for her. And you scolding me for upsetting her proves it. Thanks for being her friend.”

  The fire in her burnished eyes seemed to cool a bit. “Oh.” She stroked the small feathers in her necklace, which drew my gaze to the curves of her breasts, visible beneath her vest. She was exquisite. I glued my eyes back to her face before she seemed to notice my stare. The juxtaposition of her defined jawline and her soft, full lips intrigued me. I’d known she was a talented athlete after watching her play in the NCAA championships, but I hadn’t realized how lovely she was until now, up close. She smelled clean and calming.

  “I’m glad Lucy has someone like you here.” I continued. “I’m sorry I made her cry, but those things had to be said.” And now that I had said them, I wondered if my responsibility to my father was fulfilled. When he’d asked me to take care of my siblings, I hadn’t realized it would be so difficult.

  She shook her head, not seeming entirely convinced. “Do you always make such an entrance?”

  I forced out a puff of air. “That probably wasn’t the best way to start the conversation.” To confirm my gaffe, I looked to the stands, where my sister’s eyes glistened as she argued with Frank. I couldn’t hear them, but she was undoubtedly berating him for spilling the beans about Dane. “I know how upset Lucy was when Frank told my dad about Dane. And that was just about her dating him.”

  “So maybe you’d better not tell President Ramirez about Lucia’s sexcapades, then.” She raised an eyebrow in challenge.

  A chuckle bubbled in my throat, but I suppressed it. This was supposed to be serious. “Doubt I’ll use the word sexcapades with the president of the United States.”

  “Ah, c’mon.” She smirked. “He’s just a dad to you, right? You knew him before all this.” She gestured to the Secret Service agents. “Just like I knew Rez before she became famous.”

  Now that she mentioned it, it was nice that she looked at my family as just regular. Or as regular as a family like mine could be. I hadn’t had a girl approach me in forever—they seemed intimidated.

  Granted, Maddie had come down here to bawl me out, not hit on me, but still, it was welcome. “Rez?” I smiled. “That was my team nickname, too.”

  She perked up. “What sport did you play?”

  “Baseball.”

  “In college?”

  I nodded. “Texas Christian University.”

  “The Horned Frogs! They have a great baseball team.”

  A spark of happiness fired in my chest, and I leaned in closer. “How’d you know that?”

  “I’m a huge sports fan.” She grinned. “My grandfather taught me everything about baseball.”

  I inched nearer to her.

  “What position did you play?” she asked. “Wait.” Her arm shot out to clasp my wrist. “Let me guess.”

  Her touch was warm, and I breathed in her soothing, minty scent.

  She ran her tongue across her lower lip. “Pitcher?”

  “Wow. I started as a pitcher, but then I got injured.” My eyebrows arched. “You’re good.”

  “Ah.” She studied me. “Was it a shoulder injury?”

  “Almost.” I pointed to a different body part. “Elbow.”

  “Gotcha.” She smiled. “So then you transitioned to…first base?”

  My eyes widened. “You do know the game! You figured my height would help me snag wild throws from the shortstop.”

  “Plus, first basemen tend to be pretty cute.” Her eyes grew big, and she took a step back. “Ah, um, I mean…”

  I wasn’t sure which was more attractive—her thinking I was cute, or her mortification at saying so out loud. I was just about to change t
he subject to save her when her hand found her hip again. She straightened.

  “Wait a minute, mister—you avoided my question.” The fire was back in her eyes. “Are you going to snitch on Lucia or treat her like an adult? Which she is.”

  So she’d seen right through my ploy. I’d learned the evasive maneuver in media training: If you don’t like the question, redirect it to a topic you want to discuss. Maddie reminded me of Harris Faulkner on Fox News. She pressed politicians when they avoided her questions.

  Dad had made it clear I was supposed to protect my younger sister and brother, and withholding the fact that Lucia was having premarital sex likely defied that directive. But she seemed more confident about her decision than I’d anticipated, which made me question whether to tell him. Plus, I didn’t want to bother him—he was rather busy. “I’m not sure,” I finally said.

  “You shouldn’t tell him.”

  “Don’t you care about Lucia’s reputation? Her future? She’s not listening to me, but maybe she’d listen to him.”

  Her forehead creased. “You make sex sound shameful. It’s not. It can be really…nice, wonderful even.” Her mouth quivered before she looked away. Why did she seem sad? She cleared her throat. “Sex is a way to show your love. You know how it is.”

  Here it is. This conversation had come up with my med school friends, and they’d been horrified when I told them the truth. But I’d promised myself I would stick to my values, no matter how unpopular they seemed. “I understand what you’re saying, but I don’t know, actually.” My chin crept up an inch. “I don’t believe in sex before marriage.”

  “You…” The crease between her eyebrows deepened. “You’re a virgin?”

  My face warmed from embarrassment. I swallowed, then gave a slight nod, scrutinizing her face for any sign of judgment.

  But she seemed fascinated rather than repulsed. “This is about your religion?”

  “Yes.” I wondered if she would condemn me for being Christian.

  “Hmm.” She eyed me. “I admire your commitment to your faith, but it must be tough to wait so long. How old are you?”

  “Twenty-four.” That’s not that old, right? “How old are you?”

  “Twenty-one. Well, I turn twenty-two next month.” She squinted. “You’re in your second year of med school?”

  Pleased Lucia had shared that about me, I nodded.

  “Wow. So you graduated from college in four years, then started right away at a prestigious med school.”

  I shrugged. “But you’re also graduating in four years—tough to accomplish as a student-athlete.”

  “How’d you know I’m graduating?”

  “Lucia won’t stop ranting about the team sucking next year without you.”

  “Ah, Rez.”

  The slight huskiness of her laugh set off a flutter in my belly.

  “The team will be fine next year. Your sister doesn’t realize how talented she is.” Maddie looked at Lucia, and I followed her gaze.

  Lucia had stopped arguing with Frank, who now sat in the row behind her with China. My sister stared straight ahead, her shoulders tense, as Allison leaned in next to her. I wondered why Lucia wasn’t watching the match when I realized the gym floor was empty. Both teams had disappeared to the locker rooms between games. I’d been so absorbed in my conversation with Maddie that I hadn’t noticed the break in the action.

  “Rez needs to work on her confidence,” Maddie said. “She’s really hard on herself.”

  My heart felt heavy to think of Lucy beating herself up. “She’s always been that way.” A flash of tears sliding down her apple cheeks filled my mind. “Once when Lucy was little, maybe eight, she blamed herself for Mateo going to the hospital. They were playing kickball, and he went down when the ball hit him. He didn’t get back up.” My pulse quickened remembering his little body splayed out on the driveway. “We were still figuring out his insulin dose and maybe missed one. It wasn’t Lucy’s fault that the paramedics had to come and get him. Still, she couldn’t stop crying.”

  Maddie pursed her lips with apparent confusion, and I was about to explain the medical stuff when she nodded. “Yeah, she told me about Mateo’s diabetes. He went into ketoacidosis, right?”

  Surprised, I nodded. “Do you have a family member with diabetes?”

  “No?” Her eyes held question marks.

  “Then how’d you know about ketoacidosis?”

  “I’m a bio-chem major.”

  “I see.” Dios, she’s smart, too? “Bet it’s hard to fit labs into your schedule as a student-athlete.”

  “No kidding. I had to jam most of them into the summers.”

  I’d endured quite a few late nights as a pre-med major, and I probably put less time into my sport since I was nowhere near Maddie’s caliber of athlete. “You’ll be a physician’s assistant, then?”

  She scoffed as she stepped away from me.

  “What?” I asked.

  Both hands flew to her hips. “Sexist much? I’ll be a physician, just like you.”

  “You…” My heart thumped. I’m not sexist! “I, I didn’t mean to denigrate you…I just thought, with classes and practice and everything…you’re going to med school? Lucia never told me about that.” How could Maddie have a prayer of getting into med school with her insane schedule? No way she had the scores I did. “You’re not applying this year, are you?”

  “No, I—”

  “You need to take a few more classes to get your grades up?” When her eyes narrowed, I winced. Wrong assumption.

  “Seriously? My grades are awesome, jerk. I’m taking some time off to try out for the national volleyball team.”

  I closed my eyes. Mierda. “Oh. Lucia told me about that, but I forgot.” I opened my eyes to find her watching me. Why did I keep sticking my foot in my mouth? My dad’s words filled my head: “A confident man admits when he’s wrong.”

  “Sorry, Maddie. Of course you’ll go to med school. You’ll be an excellent physician.”

  One hand fell from her hip. “I hope.” She frowned. “My grades might be good, but my MCAT score’s only average.” She folded her arms across her chest. “No way I’ll get into a school like Johns Hopkins.”

  “Hey, that doesn’t sound like the future Team USA middle blocker talking.”

  Her frown disappeared. “Rez has told you a lot about me.”

  “She talks about you all the time. She’s a huge admirer of yours.” I was becoming one as well. Unfortunately, Lucia had also mentioned Maddie’s boyfriend. Of course she had a boyfriend. She was beautiful, a superstar athlete, and smart to boot. Before I met Maddie, I couldn’t have cared less about her relationship status. But talking to her now…I wished I’d met her before some dude had snatched her up.

  “Rez is so sweet,” she said. But the line between her eyes deepened.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I feel bad.” She sighed. “I’ve been ignoring her this week.”

  “Why?”

  When she didn’t speak, I noticed the crowd noise increasing as both teams jogged in from the locker rooms. Dane and another player scooped up a ball and began to bump, set, and spike to each other. I think Lucia called that pepper? Dane towered over the other players, and I couldn’t stop watching him. When an errant ball bounced my way, he looked up at me with a scowl before retrieving it. Game three was about to begin.

  “I think I know why you avoided Lucia this week,” I said as I gestured to the gym floor. “I’d ignore her too if forced to see her nasty PDA with him.”

  She grinned. “Aw, you still don’t like Dane? But your side won the election.”

  Though the Democrats have a stranglehold on Congress. My stomach clenched.

  She shrugged. “I think they’re cute together.”

  I fought the urge to make a gagging sound. I didn’t want to channel my seventeen-year-old brother, Mateo.

  “I bet Lucia’s been dying to talk about her and Dane. Now I feel even worse for going radio
silent.”

  “You didn’t know they had sex?”

  “Apparently I found out after you did.”

  I scoffed. “I wish I’d never found out.”

  “Are you mad at Frank?”

  “No.” I shook my head. “I’m mad at myself for asking Frank to keep me informed. But she’s my sister, and Dad’s too busy to take care of her.”

  “Maybe Lucia can take care of herself?”

  Her teasing smile made me pause but I still growled, “Definitely not.”

  She laughed as she rolled her eyes. “Big brothers.”

  “You have one too, then.”

  “Yes. His name’s Braxton.”

  The crowd roared, and I realized again how blurry my surroundings had become as I focused on Maddie. She was like a flickering sparkler on a Fourth of July night. Everything around her seemed dull and out of focus.

  “What a set!” She clapped her hands. “Dane was way off court, but he pushed the ball right to his offside hitter.”

  “Yeah, he’s incredible,” I gushed.

  She caught my sarcastic tone and shook her head with a smile.

  “Why did Lucy have to drag you here?” I asked. “You seem to enjoy the match.”

  Her shoulders slumped. “I’ve been a recluse all week, after…” She looked down. “After my boyfriend broke up with me.”

  My heart did the salsa dance. I should feel some sympathy for her, right? Here I was, training to become a doctor, supposed to feel sad for her loss, but my only feeling was a burst of joy. “That’s…tough,” I managed. “Is he a student at Highbanks?”

  “He’s a wrestler here. We dated three years.”

  “I’m sorry.” Watching her lips tremble, I did feel sad for her. I fought the urge to rub my thumb across her mouth to quell the tremor. “So when Lucia said only you understand what she’s going through, she meant you…?”

  Her eyes darted up to meet mine. “That I’ve had sex?”

  “Oh!” My eyes opened wide as heat rushed to my groin. “No, I was trying to say that you understood the, um, vicissitudes of, uh, romantic relationships—”

  “Does that bother you?” She stepped closer, and I gulped. “Do you judge me for not being a virgin?”