by Scott, Kylie
Sadie comes around the counter and looks at our plates. “Why you would willingly eat a salad instead of chips is beyond me.” She hands me my ringing phone.
I glance at the display and it says Unknown Number. I’ve been avoiding them because most of them are going to be people I don’t want to talk to. Sadie enjoys those calls. My woman loses her mind every time a press call comes through. I’ve taken to handing her those calls. She uses her vast vocabulary to make every last one of them feel like total slime. Because that’s what they are. Slime-coated vultures wanting a piece of our story. I’ve already made my formal statements. Did all the interviews I’m going to do. Now it’s time to live my life.
Against my better judgement, I click accept and put the damn thing to my ear.
“Yeah?” I answer because this isn’t a ‘hello, how are you’ type situation.
“Um, Mr. Sparks, I assume?”
“Yeah, you got him. What do you want?”
“This is Lieutenant Browne from the Oakland Police Department. I wanted to follow up with you.”
“Already gave my statement, man. Got nothing more to say.”
“Actually I just wanted to let you know that we’ve charged Donald Bates and Mindy Goode.”
“No shit?”
Sadie frowns while holding a chip in front of her and mouths, “What?”
I shake my head and hold a finger up to her.
“Ms. Goode confessed. Mr. Bates has taken a plea deal to avoid a maximum sentence.”
“What does that mean for me?”
“Well, first and foremost, I wanted to tell you they can’t hurt you and they will serve time, although it likely won’t be much. Since Mindy gave us everything and came clean first, she will get three months in jail and have to do a year of community service.”
I grin. “Nice. And Coach Bates?”
“Up to a year in jail with the possibility of release in six months for good behavior. He will have three years of community service and can’t ever hold a position in a sports-related field again. Not that he’d be able to get one.”
“Did, uh, did he happen to mention why he did what he did? I’m still unclear as to why I was targeted.”
“Oh yeah. He said you were up for renewal of a fourteen-million-dollar contract.”
“So?”
“Well, turns out the investors told him that if he could cut several million, he’d get a million in bonus. Apparently, that wife of his is bleeding him dry. With you out of the picture, the next running back was worth far less. Multi-millions less without a solid record and history under his belt. However, Bates also didn’t want you being picked up by a competing team.”
“You’re kidding? He wanted to ruin me and my reputation so he’d score a million-dollar payout? He tried to destroy my entire life for cash?”
A hammer slamming against my chest would have hurt less. I rub at the sore spot I feel at my heart. A man I cared about, thought cared about me, willingly fucked me over for money. Before I know it, my woman’s arms wrap around me from behind, her forehead to my back, soaking me with her love and comfort.
“That’s whack,” I mumble, trying not to let my extreme anger out.
“It is. And between me and you, and on behalf of the entire Oakland PD who are all huge fans of the Marauders and yours, as well as being a member of a brotherhood, he deserves more than he got.”
I smile. “Yeah, well, he lost his reputation, his career, and his freedom. The exact things he tried to steal from me. So, I guess when it’s all said and done, I won.”
Sadie’s arms tighten around my body.
I finish the call and drop the phone to the counter. I spin around and look into Sadie’s beautiful face.
“If all of this hadn’t happened, I would never have met you.”
“Now that’s a silver lining.” She smiles prettily. A smile I want to look at for the rest of my life.
“Yeah, it is. Because in all of this, I not only won against him, I won the girl too.”
She grins, her arms wrapped around me, her chin resting on my chest. “Can we eat now?”
I dip my head and take her mouth in a soft kiss.
“Yeah, baby, we can eat.”
She attempts to let me go but I grip her tighter. Her brow furrows. “What is it?”
I chuckle and just look at her. “Who could have imagined through all of this, the scandal, your writer’s block, me hiding out in Jake’s place, that I’d find the woman of my dreams and fall in love under quarantine.”
“Love Under Quarantine?”
“Yeah.” I run my hands down to her spectacular ass and give it a little squeeze.
“That would have been an awesome book title.” She winks and then stands up on her toes and takes my mouth in a sweet kiss.
“Nah, nobody would read it anyway,” I tease, half-joking.
She giggles and I walk her back over to our lunch.
Yep. A lifetime of being quarantined with Sadie…won’t be enough.
I’ll always want more.
The End
KYLIE SCOTT TITLES
Stage Dive Series
Lick
Play
Lead
Deep
Strong
Closer
Dive Bar Series
Dirty
Twist
Chaser
Trust
Flesh Series
Flesh
Skin
Flesh Series Novellas
It Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time
Repeat
Lies
The Rich Boy
Novellas
Colonist’s Wife
Heart’s A Mess
AUDREY CARLAN TITLES
Biker Beauties
Biker Babe
Biker Beloved
Biker Beauties: Biker Babe, Biker Beloved (Biker Beauties Volume 1)
Biker Brit
Biker Boss
Biker Beauties: Biker Brit, Biker Boss (Biker Beauties Volume 2)
International Guy Series
Paris
New York
Copenhagen
Milan
San Francisco
Montreal
London
Berlin
Washington, D.C.
Madrid
Rio
Los Angeles
Lotus House Series
Resisting Roots
Sacred Serenity
Divine Desire
Limitless Love
Silent Sins
Intimate Intuition
Enlightened End
Trinity Series
Body
Mind
Soul
Life
Fate
Calendar Girl
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
Falling Series
Angel Falling
London Falling
Justice Falling
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We’d like to thank the amazing team of people who helped us make this book happen so quickly!
First and foremost our thanks go to our extraordinarily considerate and supremely talented editor Jeanne De Vita. You took on this project not knowing what you were going to get and stuck by us chapter by chapter. We are humbled by your commitment and support.
To Jena Brignola our graphics designer for knocking out an incredible cover with zero time allotted for messing around. You blow us away with your ability and craft.
To Amy Tannenbaum for being the most awesome and incredibly accepting agent in the world. You found out two of your authors were working together and championed the pairing from the beginning and got right to work the minute we notified you. Simply astounding what you’re capab
le of.
To Jeananna Goodall for not only introducing Kylie & Audrey but for also planting the seed that the two of us should work together.
To our beta team Tracey Wilson-Vuolo, Tammy Hamilton-Green, and Gabriela McEachern for being the most incredible cheerleaders and support system two women a world apart could ever have. We can’t thank you enough for reading every chapter and giving your feedback daily. It was above and beyond the call of duty and we are so grateful.
To our photographer Brian Kaminski for the utterly perfect image that graces this cover, you are magic with a lens.
To the Readers, we couldn’t do what we do and provide for our families with you. Your support is everything. Thank you from
From AUDREY to KYLIE
I’m feeling very schmoopy about you right now. Thank you for considering me when you came up with this grand idea of a couple falling in love during the pandemic. It really gave me something beautiful to focus on during such an ordeal in real life. On top of that, I feared writing with a partner but have always wanted to try it. I can’t believe how easy and exciting it was, especially in light of the fact that we are on different continents! I look forward to writing more books with you in the future. The possibilities are endless lady! Madlove. AC
ABOUT KYLIE SCOTT
Kylie is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author. She was voted Australian Romance Writer of the year, 2013, 2014, 2018 & 2019, by the Australian Romance Writer’s Association and her books have been translated into twelve different languages. She is a long time fan of romance, rock music, and B-grade horror films. Based in Queensland, Australia with her two children and husband, she reads, writes and never dithers around on the Internet.
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ABOUT AUDREY CARLAN
Audrey Carlan is a #1 New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. She writes wicked hot love stories that are designed to give the reader a romantic experience that’s sexy, sweet, and so hot your ereader might melt. Some of her works include the worldwide phenomenon Calendar Girl Serial, Trinity Series and the International Guy Series. Her books have been translated into over 30 languages across the globe.
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