Balls: The Complete Players Collection (Sports Romance Box Set)

by Teagan Kade

  I glanced over my shoulder at the click of high heels clomping down the stadium steps to see the most horrific sight. The woman walking towards me held a manila folder in her hand and a large grin on her unsightly face. Her hair was cut just above her shoulder, and dyed a brassy, copper red. It didn’t suit her. Wanda was a natural black. The lighter color was awkward at best.

  She lifted her hand and waved at me. Her cherry nails stuck out over her fingertips.

  “Fuck,” I breathed, turning back around. I couldn’t pretend I hadn’t seen her now.

  “Oh god. Her again?” Jamie muttered.

  “Scott,” she called out to me. Her voice was high-pitched and twittery. I always thought it sounded oddly birdlike. “Scott!” she shouted.

  I gave my whistle one long, punctuated blow. All twenty-three players stopped and turned to face me. “Get some water,” I said, before wheeling around to face my arch nemesis. “What do you want, Wanda? I’ve only got a few more minutes here before I need to head out to a meeting with Tripp and Allie.”

  Tripp and Allie were the co-owners of this enterprise. They’d placed a certain degree of trust in me. Trust I didn’t want to betray.

  Wanda strutted all the way up to the rink barrier, swaying her hips with each calculated step. She extended her arm out to me and pushed out her chest. “I know,” she replied. “I have an idea I want to run past you before you head out.”

  I glanced down at the manila folder that hovered three inches away from me. I wasn’t going to touch it. She’d had her hands all over the thing. It was soaked in the smell of her perfume. “What’s that?”

  “Open it.”

  “Why don’t you just tell me what this is all about?” I folded my arms in front of my chest. I could feel my heart pounding from the other side of my jacket.

  She sighed. “There’s no need to be so immature, Scott.” She plucked the flap of the folder open with her glossy nails, revealing a neat stack of papers. “I have a treat for you.”

  I couldn’t help but wonder if she used that line with other men. My imagination raced with her untying that red Japanese robe, letting the silk slide down her body as she stood there in some slinky black Parisian number. My jaw clenched. I balled my hands against my chest. It had been years but I still couldn’t get that image out of my mind.

  “Her name is Rae Walsh,” Wanda continued. “She’s twenty-three, 5’11, 165 pounds… and one of the best goalies the NWHL has to offer.”

  I glanced down at the picture. The girl in question had long, fiery red hair that tumbled down to her chest and the most piercing green eyes I had ever seen. But her eyes were not where my eyes lingered. This woman was stacked, had an ass that looked like it could take an all-night pounding and then some.

  “What do you think? Like what you see?”

  I swallowed hard. I loved what I saw, and the growing hard-on in my pants agreed. “You want to put her in as goalie?” I queried, unsure where Wanda was going with this. There wasn’t a single woman in the NHL.

  Wanda snapped the folder closed, stuck out her hip, and folded her arms across her chest. “Yes, that’s exactly what I want to do. “

  I shook my head. “She’s too small.”

  “What does that matter, Scott? She’s good. Rumor is she didn’t sign with the NWHL team this season because she was bored. Her agent claims the league isn’t challenging enough for her.”

  I exhaled. “I don’t doubt her skill. It’s just that this sport is dangerous. One good hit from any of these boys and she’d wind up in the ER.”

  “You’re only saying that because she’s a woman.”

  “It has nothing to do with her gender. It’s about her size. She’s small, even for a small goalie.”

  Wanda wasn’t going to let it go. “I understand that, but look at it from my point of view, from the PR angle. Nearly one third of hockey fans are women. You put a woman in that net and I promise you our viewership will soar, which means our revenue will grow exponentially. The team will seem new and modern, and with all of our new profits we could build a better rink, better offices, a better stadium… You get where I’m going with this, right?”

  My hand massaged my jaw as I thought about what she was proposing. She was right. Putting this Walsh girl on the ice would be beneficial to the team and the franchise in more ways than one, but not in the ways that mattered the most to me. I needed somebody large and confident in that goal. And a woman? I’m all for gender equality, but I didn’t know if it was time to be playing that card. She’d get demolished.

  Wanda tapped her toe as she waited for my answer. “And it goes without saying,” she began in a lowered voice, “more money could end up saving your ass in the end if the team doesn’t do so well during its inaugural season. This is your first year coaching. A safety net might be a good idea.”

  Fuck her. “Fortunately for me, my ass won’t need saving at the end of this season.”

  “Scott,” she sang my name in a long, obnoxious manner I couldn’t stand. “Don’t let pride be your downfall.”

  I almost laughed aloud. “Have you forgotten who the fuck I am?”

  “No,” she sighed, shaking her head. “But that was on the ice. Now you’re back on land. Your reputation may have landed you this gig, but it isn’t going to keep it for you.”

  My jaw clenched. She had a point, and I hated it. “Fine.”

  “Good. I’m going to present this idea to Tripp and Allie during the meeting. I expect your full support.” Her lips curved into a victorious smile — bright red and twisted.

  “Full support? That’s a bold request coming from you,” I snapped.

  “I know it may be a bit difficult to see it, given our history, but I’ve always supported you, Scott. There was never a day when I didn’t believe in you. Even now, with you standing on the ice in this managerial get-up, I’m still confident you’ll be successful. You’ve always been in my thoughts and prayers.”

  My eyes narrowed. Wanda and her thoughts and precious prayers could fuck right off.

  *

  “A woman, really?” Allie turned her attention to me. “And you support this, Scott?”

  I glanced down at the papers spread across the conference table. There was a full history there of Rae Walsh, including her stats, her education, and her competition record. During Wanda’s entire briefing with the team owners, I hadn’t been able to take my eyes off Rae’s portrait. I hadn’t noticed it at first, but Rae had these thick, plump lips just begging to go down on me. In her athletic pictures they were a pale, peachy pink. Natural and innocent. But in her professional portrait, they were aligned perfectly with a bright, hypnotic red. I couldn’t help but imagine that scarlet ring wrapped around my dick, pacing up and down in long, fluid motions.

  “Scott?” Allie’s voice floated to me. “Earth to Scott.”

  “Yeah, sorry. I zoned out thinking about the question,” I lied.

  Wanda sent me an urgent look. Her eyes widened and her neck jutted out a little bit. It was a nonverbal command. She wanted me to do something, to back her up.

  “I think Walsh would be an excellent addition to the team, regardless of her gender. We’ll probably need to work a bit on her stamina and getting her used to taking big hits from these boys, but she should be good,” I said.

  The looks around the room showed me they were completely and utterly unconvinced.

  “And to be honest,” Wanda cut in, “we only need her for a year until we can find a replacement. But think of the attention this will drum up for the franchise and the team.” Wanda raised her hands in front of her face. Even though her mouth moved, her hands did most of the talking. “Her name will be plastered everywhere nationwide. I wouldn’t even be surprised if this went worldwide.”

  Only need her for one year until we find her replacement? What was Wanda talking about? This Walsh girl was supposed to be the replacement. Why would we be searching for a replacement for the fucking replacement?

  It mad
e no sense.

  Tripp nodded. “So, you’re envisioning this to be more of a publicity stunt? Sign her first season, get the attention, then release her?”

  The idea hit me like a ton of bricks. I had been so blinded by the one-eyed monster between my legs I hadn’t thought to figure out Wanda’s true angle here. She had presented this whole idea as though she was helping me, but in reality she was hurting me. Teams needed cohesion and trust. Switching out players every season didn’t build either one.

  Wanda nodded. “Exactly. She’s the perfect exhibition player to put on the ice, a modern Manon Rheaume, while we continue searching for a more permanent solution for goalie.”

  Allie turned to Tripp. “That sounds good to me. What do you think?”

  I shook my head. “No, this is a bad idea, and it’s wrong.”

  Tripp cocked an eyebrow at me. “Wrong? I’m a bit surprised, Scott. I never took you to be a very, ah, moral individual.”

  I ignored his comment. “We’re not here to discuss my past and previous actions. We’re talking about Rae Walsh’s potential to join our team, as well as her trajectory with us. I believe it’s completely dishonest and a huge disservice to our team to sign her and then simply fire her at the end of the season.”

  “Scott.” Tripp said my name with a very frank tone in his voice. “You don’t honestly believe she can be successful in a men’s professional league, do you? You think she can play an eighty-two game season at NHL level with the size and speed of these players? European ice is one thing. It’s a bigger surface, less physical, but here… There’s less holding and booking now, ten times more head shots.”

  I leaned over the table. “Well, Tripp, the NHL is not technically a men’s professional league. And I can’t say definitively whether or not she’ll be successful, because I haven’t seen her on the ice.”

  Allie laughed, and Wanda quickly joined in. “The majority of the players in this league are over six feet tall and more than two hundred pounds. Skill aside, they will literally crush her.”

  The way they just wrote her off incensed me. It was fucked up, and it wasn’t fair. They were going to use this girl for their own gain, and after she had taken the season’s beating. Then they were going to release her into the wild, cutting off both her career and her paycheck? How could they not see how wrong it was to use somebody like that? I knew a viper like Wanda wouldn’t be able to grasp that notion, but I expected at least one of the team owners to see how selfish, destructive, and horrible this whole fucking thing was.

  I’ve always loved an underdog.

  Fuck it. I was going to fight for her.

  My weight shifted from one foot to another. “Why don’t we make a deal? You give her a shot, and I’ll continue to diligently search for a backup to have in the wings.”

  My chest tightened as soon as the words were out. I knew how this probably looked in their eyes: I was vouching for her. Not only that, I was also threatening not to attentively do my job if they didn’t hire her and give her a chance to stay on the roster. I swallowed. It wouldn’t be unreasonable if they decided to let me go after this, especially if this Rae Walsh couldn’t perform.

  But they’d be idiots if they did let me go.

  Allie crossed her arms over her chest. The action emphasized the pads in the shoulders of her navy jacket. “I’ll take that deal if it means we’re going to get a solid season out of you. You’re going to have to be the one to recruit her, though. It will have to be on you.”

  Oh, I wanted Rae Walsh on me alright.

  “I’ll do it,” I said without hesitation. There was no way this girl would pass up on this chance, and the idea of finally seeing her in person intrigued both of my heads.

  “I can come along to make the negotiations a little easier if you want,” Wanda offered.

  I shook my head. “I don’t think that will be necessary, but I appreciate your diplomacy.”

  The last thing I wanted was to be around Wanda one day longer than was necessary. A shiver ran up my spine as I thought about being trapped with her in a hotel room, on a plane, anywhere alone. I’d rather sacrifice my right nut to some mythical god than spend one night with her — again.

  No.

  Fuck. Wanda.

  CHAPTER TWO

  RAE

  My apron lay on the table before me. I sank into my chair. The soles of my feet ached from standing for nine hours. I only had an hour left in my shift, but I was already mentally ready to leave. My hands twitched to push up from the table and simply walk out. I’d been working at the same coffee shop since I was a freshman in college, but why? What had I done to the universe for it to keep me here?

  Uh, nothing, Rae. That’s the problem, my head answers.

  I glanced at my other two coworkers leaning against the counter, chatting lazily. I could hear them going on ad nauseam about their class list. They ranked the professors between them in difficulty… and hotness. I assumed they must be in the same department if they had the same professors. One girl, Anna, started at the beginning of the spring semester this year. The other one was a newbie. This was her second week. I believe she was a sophomore. I couldn’t remember her name. Point was, I was far too old to be here.

  I sighed to myself. What did that even mean? Even when I was playing for the NWHL I still needed a second job to make ends meet. I was still at a coffee shop even though I was a professional athlete. I rolled my eyes. I felt extra salty today, and this long-ass shift wasn’t helping things. I needed a kick in the butt — stat.

  The cell lying on the table sprang to life before my eyes. It vibrated across the surface as the name ‘Micah’ was displayed on its face in a bright bluish white light. My agent. I reached over and picked up the phone. My thumb swiped across the green circle.

  “Micah, hi.”

  “Rae, have I got a deal for you!” His voice sounded chirpier than usual. That was good.

  “Oh, yeah?” He’d been trying to place me in the NWHL for the last three years, and I had turned down each and every offer. The league simply wasn’t for me, but he never seemed to understand that. Every time a new season rolled around Micah would come calling with some ‘stellar deal’ from the NWHL and I would be left rolling my eyes. Still, I played along. “What kind of deal are we talking about?”

  “I think it’s best I break the news to you in person.”

  I sighed. “Micah, I’m at work.”

  “At the coffee shop?” he whispered.

  My eyes narrowed. “Why are you whispering? Is there someone with you?”

  He ignored my questions. “Well, once you get your skates off and hit the shower, come over to my office as soon as possible.”

  There was somebody else in his office. Someone he was trying to impress, needing to hide the fact I was a coffee shop wash-up. “Whoever is with you isn’t going to believe for two seconds I’m on the phone and on the ice.”

  He released a rather forced chuckle. “I’m sorry. I know you’re excited, but I can’t say. Just get cleaned up and hurry over here. Please,” he added, which meant he must be really desperate for me to show.

  I sighed again. “Is it even worth my time? Don’t make me drive across town after my shift to hear some NWHL pitch again.”

  “Okay then, see you soon. Bye.” Silence. He’d hung up.

  The hell, Micah?

  I knew I should be hopeful and believe in my agent, but after three years of crappy offers it was difficult to maintain a positive headspace. But who knew? Maybe he did have something different. I told him no NWHL pitches and he hadn’t backtracked. That was new.

  “Rae, get back behind the counter will you!”

  And if I still had a soul, my manager’s words obliterated any shred of it that was left.

  *

  A long finger pressed the button that was directly linked to Micah’s speakerphone. “Hey boss, Walsh is here,” Mona the secretary said in an easy, Long Island accent.

  “Great. Send her in.”

>   Her amber eyes flicked up to me from beneath long, fake eyelashes. Her jaw moved in a rapid bob as she gnawed on the piece of gum in her mouth. “You heard him. You can enter.”

  “Thanks, Mona.”

  “No problem,” she said as I turned to go to Micah’s office. “Oh, and Rae?”

  “Yes?” I stopped, glancing at her over my shoulder.

  “You reek of burned coffee and scalded milk. I don’t know if that’s some of kind of new French fragrance, but it really ain’t workin’, hon.”

  I bit my tongue before speaking. “Thanks, Mona. Real helpful.”

  She shrugged. “Just thought you should know… Since there’s somebody in there with him.”

  Without saying another word, I turned back around and walked rather quickly to Micah’s office. My face lifted when I reached the mahogany door. I rapped a few times on the hard surface.

  I heard a shuffle from inside before the door flew open and Micah’s round, tanned face greeted me. He wore an uneasy smile. His eyes opened wide when he saw me. He looked… nervous? “And here she is.”

  He stepped aside so I could enter. He didn’t have his suit jacket on, and his long red tie swallowed the attention of his outfit. “Rae, this is Mr. Bausch.”

  A tall, well-built figure rose from one of the armchairs in front of Micah’s desk. His white, button-up shirt was rolled up to his elbows, revealing defined forearms. I spied the tail end of a tattoo dipping below his sleeve. When he turned to greet me, my breath caught in my chest. This man was, put simply, a dark-haired Adonis the likes of which had probably never stepped foot inside this office. There were flecks of silver in his trimmed locks, but that only added depth to his look. He definitely wasn’t a hockey professional, because when he smiled at me I saw two rows of sparkling white teeth… and they were all there. He did look familiar, though.