“Sounds like you had a good night,” I say, picking up the multi-coloured drink. This is either going to be sickly sweet, or just sweet enough that it’s easy to drink. I’m not sure which I’d prefer right now. Loud laughter and the accents have me turning my head toward the entrance. I sigh, closing my eyes briefly. There is my brother and Fletcher, along with Jackson and the others. There’s a noticeable distance between Logan and Jackson.
That’s not good.
I turn back to the bar because I don’t want to look at either of them. “This is about to get interesting,” Kate says quietly, but not quietly enough.
“Guys, are you having a drink with us before you go?” Chance asks. I cringe, and I swear Aubrey gulps hard on a mouthful of alcohol.
“Yes, we’ll have one for the road.” I shake my head at Fletcher’s answer. “Something wrong, Miss Walker?” he asks with a smirk before looking at Logan and then turning to look at Jackson. Jackson is looking everywhere he can except in my direction. So, we both have regrets. I was doing okay until I saw him.
Logan walks toward me, draping his hand on my shoulder. “Hey, sis.”
“Hey, you.” I look at him and notice a slight swelling around his eye. “What’s this?”
“Nothing but a misunderstanding.”
My eyes dart to Jackson and I see cuts on his knuckles. “What the fuck, you two?”
“Leave it,” Logan tells me.
“No. What the hell have you done?” I’m speaking to Logan, but my eyes are on Jackson.
“What I should’ve done when I first realised he was interested in my sister. And you, what were you thinking? You’re too good for someone like him.”
Jackson leans against the bar at the other end, away from us, and I fucking hate my brother right now. “Logan, you’re my brother, but you don’t get to decide what I do with my life. I’ve never interfered in yours, and boy, have you fucked up, a lot.” He stares at me, his eyebrows pinching together, and I see the veins in his neck more clearly. Yes, he’s getting pissed off, but I don’t care. “So, what gives you the right to interfere with my life?”
“You’re my sister, and it’s my job to look out for you and protect you from the likes of him.”
“Is that right? I wonder who said that to Lee because, let’s face it, you, Fletcher, and Jackson have all had much the same reputation.”
“Leave me out of it,” Fletcher says. “Even if you do have a point, and I know Jess would agree with you.”
Logan shakes his head and turns away, pulling his arm from me, and takes a seat on a bar stool.
“Are you going to talk to him?” Kate asks, her eyes drifting along the bar to where Jackson stands alone.
“I should because it doesn’t look as though anyone else is. But if I do, someone is going to have to keep my brother under control.”
She laughs. “I’m sure I can keep him occupied,” she purrs.
“Kate! He’s engaged and has a baby.”
“I’m kidding. I know all that. Go and speak to Jackson because he looks as though he could use a friend.”
I take a sip of my drink and then a deep breath.
“Samantha!”
“Logan, no,” I warn my brother as I walk down toward the lonely figure of Jackson. “Hey, you.” He tilts his head before sulking back to his glass. “What is your problem?”
“My problem? Oh, nothing, except you sneaked off at some point during the night, leaving me to wake up in an empty bed, and then I had to deal with your brother.”
I sit on the stool beside his without looking in the direction I’ve just come from. I don’t need to turn around to know my brother is watching me. “Jackson, come on. I left because I’m not into the whole walk of shame thing.”
He finally looks at me. “Who said anything about the walk of shame? I was more than happy to wake up and have breakfast with you this morning.”
“I don’t think that would’ve been such a good idea, do you?”
“And why not?”
“Because you’re you, and well, then there’s Logan.”
“Don’t use your brother as an excuse, especially when I’ve already had to put up with him today.” My gaze drops to his knuckles. That’s the only indication that he’s been in a fight. Or at least, I hope it is. “If I was a crap lay, you can tell me. Although, I’ve never had any complaints before.”
I chuckle.
“What’s wrong with you? We both wanted last night, and I thought you were interested in more.”
Did I give him the impression I wanted more? I don’t think I did, but now that he’s brought it up… Could I want more from him?
“Look, I need to get going.” I turn around and see all the guys getting ready to leave the bar. “Last night was fun,” he says, before quickly throwing his drink down his throat.
“It was.”
He stands and walks toward the guys, leaving me alone. I close my eyes as I hear them all say their goodbyes.
“Samantha.” I turn, opening my eyes to my brother.
“Go away, Logan.”
“I don’t want to leave on an argument.”
“Fine. I love you and have a safe journey home to Lee and Chloe. Give Chloe a kiss from her favourite auntie.”
“She’s too young to have favourites,” he teases me.
“She’s not. I’ll see you next week.”
“You’ll be with mum at the wedding?” he asks.
“Of course I will. I need photographic evidence to prove to Kate that Fletcher Adams is off the market.”
I stand and Logan walks with me to where the others are. “Really? She’s into Fletch?”
“Yip, she sure is. I can’t see the attraction myself.”
“That’s because he’s always been another brother to you,” he says, smiling. Logan’s right. I do have some fond memories growing up with both of them. Fletcher spent more time with us than his own mum.
“Go on, they’re all waiting for you, and please sort things out with Jackson. There’s no need for you to be fighting with him.”
“We’ll see.”
“No. Please sort it out. What I do with my life and mistakes I make are all on me, nothing at all to do with you.” I kiss him on the cheek before he catches up with the others.
I pick up the large cocktail glass and take a drink. “Bloody hell, woman. Come up for air,” Kate says. I lift my head to see three sets of eyes on me.
“Shit!” I look at the now empty glass in my hand.
“Are we drowning our sorrows then?” Kate questions me as Chance orders more drinks.
“No. We’re going to party instead,” I say with a hiccup. “Well, I can’t speak for the two lovebirds, but I know that’s what I want to do. Oh, and speaking of love birds, as soon as I’m home I’ll be working on the pictures from the photo shoot.”
“Oh, don’t remind me.” Aubrey all but sighs into her glass. “I’m not sure I want to see them.”
“I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at them. You should do more modelling with Chance because the chemistry is there between you.”
“It should be there. They are married, after all,” Kate says, giggling. Kate, Aubrey, and I all burst out laughing.
“It’s going to be a long night with the three of you, isn’t it?” Chance is shaking his head with a smirk.
“You, handsome, will have to ensure you get me upstairs before I get too drunk.” Aubrey throws her arms around Chance’s neck.
“And who is going to look after us on a wild night out?” Kate cries loudly.
“I’m sure two good Scottish girls are more than capable of looking after yourselves.”
“You have met my friend here who fucked a Scottish player last night.”
“Kate! With you as my friend, who needs enemies?” I say, taking another drink of the sweet cocktail that’s sliding down my throat far too easily. I will be drunk. Very drunk.
“What?”
“I want to forget about last night,
” I tell her.
“No, you don’t,” Aubrey says, earning a scowl from her husband. “Don’t you dare, Chance. Jackson reminds me a lot of you,” she tells him. “And as for you, you don’t really want to forget about last night because in reality you wish you were with him instead of here without him.”
“I’m not so sure about that.”
“Don’t waste time when you get back home. If you want to be with him, talk to him. Don’t play games. Because you never know something might happen, taking him away from you, and then you’ll be the one who has to live with regrets.” A solemn expression passes between Chance and Aubrey, but I don’t question what’s happened in their past. If they wanted to share, they would.
“A toast,” Kate calls out, bringing us back to the present.
“To friendships and a new career, modelling for my beautiful wife, and to happiness for our new friends.”
“Happiness,” we all say at the same time, lifting our drinks to our mouths.
Could I be happy with Jackson?
That’s a question I can ask myself when I’m back home.
Chapter Eight
“And we’re home,” Kate says, taking her hand luggage from the overhead lockers.
“Yes, we are.” Well, I will be soon enough, and I hope my mum has been to my apartment and left wine in the fridge for me. Although, I’m sure she’s put more than wine in there, like fresh milk. My mum thinks it’s crazy that I have my own place considering how little time I spend there, but I’m not keen on the other option, and that would be staying with her. I’m too independent and she’s got control. She always wants to know where I am and who I’m with. She’s a worrier, but I suppose all parents are.
“Please tell me you’ve had fun?”
“Of course I have. It was an incredible time. Thank you for picking Vegas. I might actually want to go back some day.”
The holiday surpassed even my expectations in more ways than I thought possible.
Who would’ve thought I would go to a strip club, never mind enjoy it? I think Kate picked a great club. It wasn’t as seedy as I imagined it would be. It was erotic, and as I watched the dancers, all I could think of was Jackson. Me dancing for him. His deep blue eyes exploring my body as I slowly removed my clothes.
“I’m sure we can arrange that, but as promised, you get to pick next year. What’s your plan for tonight?” she asks, and I try to shrug thoughts of Jackson from my mind.
“Grab a shower, takeaway, and work on editing.”
“Chance and Aubrey?” she says with a smile.
Is it possible to miss them already?
“Yes. Some of their pictures are incredible, I just want to get the lighting in the background perfect before I send them a file. Tomorrow, Sid needs me to do a photo shoot in one of the gyms. I bet the model is nowhere near as good as Chance to work with. I do hope they can come to an arrangement. Not sure if the shoot would be here in Glasgow, or in London. Either location works well for me. It would be good to stay home for a bit and not have to travel.”
“Yes, it would be nice to have you here, and maybe you could take me to a football game. I’m sure Logan could get us tickets, and surely there are at least a few hot players still very much available?”
“Kate!” I take my camera bag from her and we exit the plane.
“Well, if you don’t ask, you don’t get.”
“And you’re not one to hold back.” Usually she’s not.
“You know me so well. I’m glad we both had a great time.” She pauses, and it seems her thoughts are drifting off.
“Kate, what’s wrong?”
“I’m still trying to decide if I should go and visit Declan tomorrow.”
I grab her shoulders and tug her gently to the side of the corridor, allowing other passengers to pass us. “He’s asked to see you?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“I received the letter last week.”
“And you’ve kept it to yourself all this time?”
“I know.”
“For what it’s worth, go and see him. He’s your brother and he loves you.”
She nods slowly, looking somewhat subdued. She blames herself for Declan’s current stay at her majesty’s pleasure. He intervened when a guy wasn’t taking no for an answer from Kate at a party. Needless to say, it didn’t end well for the guy. He ended up in hospital. His injuries were severe and Declan was given a sentence.
As we carry on walking through the building, my thoughts about Declan turn to Logan, with him getting into a fight with Jackson. There was no need for it. We get through security quickly and collect our luggage before making our way out of the building. We’d already decided we would be getting two separate cabs as we live in opposite directions.
“Thank you,” I say, giving her a warm embrace.
“It’s me who should be saying thanks. I needed this. I’ll call you tomorrow night.”
“Yes, let me know how your visit with Declan goes.” She nods and I release my hold then stand back and watch as she gets in the first cab.
Looks like it’s back to reality for both of us.
If I can show up to a shoot on time and be ready, given the fact that I’ve been up most of the night, then you’d think the damn model could do the same. Sid has booked out the entire gym this morning, giving us privacy to do a photo shoot, and yet we’re still waiting on the model.
Sid is by the windows on his phone, while I’m getting paid to stand around doing nothing at the moment. I knew we had all morning for this, but now it looks as though I’ll be rushing around whenever the model gets here. I hate having to rush my work.
Take me back to Vegas. And to working with someone who is professional.
“Well?” I ask as Sid walks toward me.
“He’s just entered the building.”
“That’s something, I suppose. He’d better not be the type to spend hours in hair and make-up.” We laugh. “Do you have any news on Chance?”
“I still can’t believe you asked him upfront for a shoot.”
“And why not? You would’ve been disappointed in me if I hadn’t.”
“Yes. You look tired but good, Sam.” Concern weighs down his voice, but it’s the narrowing of his eyes as he stares at me, trying to judge if I’m okay or not. Sid is one of my top clients, but he’s also a friend. A family friend. Someone who has always been there to offer me advice when I’ve needed it about an industry I never thought I’d be a part of. Sid has all the contacts a girl new in the industry could need.
“Yes, I’m tired. I never get used to being home in my own bed. It always takes me a day or two to get settled…”
“Then you’re usually taking off again.”
“Yes. Hopefully this time I can stay home for a bit. I do have a few things lined up here, including a film premiere.”
“So, what you’re telling me is that I’ll be lucky if you can fit me in.”
“Not at all. I always have time for you. Now, Chance?”
“Well, I’ve agreed to his terms. Now we just need to find a date that works for him and his wife because he doesn’t want to make the trip without her, and then I’ll let you know.”
“That’s amazing. I’m so happy for you. He has the look you’re after for this brand.”
“That he does.”
The door swings open. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” I say, with my eyes on him as he strides towards us.
“What?” Sid asks, and I realise that what I was thinking I’ve actually said out loud.
“Nothing. You never mentioned that today’s model was Jackson Taylor.”
“I thought I did,” he says to me before greeting him. “Jackson, thanks for this today, but you’ll need to smooth the way with Sam here. She hates being kept waiting.”
Jackson’s eyes are on me and I want to give him crap for strolling here late, but I can’t. I can’t get my mouth to move. He’s looking unsure of my reaction to him, but dea
r God, does he look fit. Sid’s Under Armour range of tops leave nothing to the imagination. Or maybe it’s not the fact that the top is stuck to his skin. It might be because I remember how he looks minus clothing. I take a deep breath as I think about his broad shoulders, his arms that were wrapped around me, holding me tight to him as we lay in bed naked. I close my eyes briefly, trying to recompose myself to the professional photographer that I’m meant to be.
“Sam, you know Jackson, right?”
“Yes, although we only met recently,” I tell Sid.
“In Vegas,” Jackson adds with a smirk.
Sid’s glance switches between us. “I just presumed you’d know each other because of Logan. Right, anyway, we should make a start.”
Sid tells Jackson what he expects from today, and I listen carefully because I want to get this right first time. I don’t want to have to come back and do another shot just because Jackson or I fucked up.
Sid has a few outfit changes for Jackson and he shows us what he’ll be wearing. This could be exhausting, especially when I find out Jackson has never done any modelling, although it shouldn’t surprise me.
“Okay, Sid. You’ve told me what you want, but I think this will work better if we go for more natural stances,” I say once he’s finished talking. “There’s nothing worse than seeing an image where you can see the model wasn’t interested in what he was doing.”
“And that is why I love you, Sam.”
Jackson’s brow knits tight together.
“Jackson, what’s your usual gym workout? I presume you don’t spend all your training on the pitch?” Sid asks.
“No, we don’t.”
“Okay, so how about we start off with you exercising? To me, that would be more natural instead of seeing you posing. Does this sound okay?” I don’t know why I’m even asking him.
“Sounds good to me.” He walks over and jumps on the treadmill. The black shorts with the company logo are sitting low on his hips. He switches it on and I expect him to go at a slow pace, but he doesn’t. His feet and legs work quickly as he runs. I move into position, taking picture after picture, avoiding moving myself in front of the treadmill because I can imagine the smug look that will be on his face. This is meant to be his warm-up. I think he must put my brother to shame in terms of fitness levels.
Scottish Player: A Hero Club Novel Page 5
