by Virna DePaul
As Daniel finished eating, Ruby lifted him and patted his back. He let out a loud belch, which both of his parents thought was the most glorious sound they’d ever heard. They praised the newborn, their laughter lulling Daniel to sleep in his mother’s arms.
Alec and Ruby had married a week after the infamous proposal at the Bootleggers’ game. It’d been a small ceremony, just close friends and family. Although Alec hadn’t been fond of the idea, Ruby had insisted on at least inviting her father. She’d hated the thought he wouldn’t be at her wedding. When she saw him, she’d fallen into his open arms.
Tears had sparkled in both of their eyes. “Congratulations, sweetheart,” Phil had said. It wasn’t perfect between them, but it wouldn’t have been right without her father there. After all, he did love her. And maybe firing her was just the push she needed to start her life anew.
Now, she was free. Free to explore options, free to work for herself, and now that she’d be home to take care of a newborn soon, maybe it was time to start her own business. There was time to think about it, but for now, she was just happy to see her father smiling again.
By the end of the short ceremony, there hadn’t been a dry eye in the audience. Everyone was thrilled for them—Heath, Kyle, Camille, Arabella, Ruby’s family, and of course, Carolyn, Alec’s mother had driven down from Charleston to see the special moment come to life.
The memories all crashed inside her mind, as Ruby held her son. Her son—she had a son. She could barely believe it, even with the baby asleep in her arms. She’d never known she could love someone as much as she loved Daniel and Alec, and to think that last year at this time, she thought she’d be alone for the rest of her life.
How quickly things changed.
“You need to get some sleep,” Alec murmured. “Let me put him back to bed.”
Ruby almost told him no, but then she yawned. “Okay.”
Alec took the baby, turning to Ruby, saying, “Check it out, Red. Football hold.”
Ruby laughed. Too hard and it would hurt her body. She had to admit she loved seeing the big football player holding a tiny newborn. The contrast was startling, and yet, Alec held his son like he was the most precious being in the entire world. Ruby couldn’t stop the tears from brimming. She’d been a total watering pot for months now. Stupid hormones.
After he put the baby down, Alec got onto the hospital bed with her. He didn’t really fit, but she’d missed his warmth next to her. “Thank you,” he said as he kissed her forehead. “For our son.”
She smiled sleepily. “You’re welcome.”
As he murmured words of love in her ear, she fell asleep in his arms.
Ruby looked up from her laptop and smiled, while Alec stumbled into their bedroom and flopped face down onto their bed.
“Finally get him down?” she asked, moving a hand off of her keyboard to run her fingers through his tousled hair. Poor thing hadn’t slept much for the last four months since Daniel had come into this world. The little sucker wanted to take everything in, always staring around the room, as Ruby or Alec carried him, sang to him, even begged him to please go to sleep.
“I think he’s going to be a coach,” Alec said. “Because God knows, he owns me. Tells me what to do like a little bitch.”
Ruby giggled and slapped his arm. “Don’t say that about the baby. Just last week, you swore he was going to be a wide tight end, like his daddy. And the week before that it was a kicker,” Ruby said with a laugh.
Alec lifted his head from the bed. “Well, that’s before I heard the lungs on him. Good Lord. As if I don’t hear enough screaming from Coach.”
Ruby caressed her husband’s cheek, and he leaned into her touch.
“Knowing us,” she said, “he won’t end up in football at all. He’ll insist on doing his own thing entirely.”
“And I’ll support him one hundred and fifty-nine percent.”
Alec gave Ruby’s hand a sweet kiss.
“Oh.” She grinned. “Well, then I’ll have to give him one hundred and sixty percent.”
“Such a competitive woman.” He grabbed her legs and slid her along the bed, then lifted her into his arms as she shrieked. “All right, lady, time to get ready. We have guests coming in twenty minutes.”
Ah, yes, the barbecue. Alec had been wanting to have one ever since the baby was born, but she’d wanted to wait a while until she was up to it. Now that it was chilly outside, and the Savannah humidity had burned away, now was the perfect time.
“What should I wear?” Ruby asked, getting up and opening her closet.
“Nothing. Go naked, please. Except for some shoulder pads and knee socks.” He winked at her, and she stuck her butt out at him. She loved the way they played, loved that Alec had brought out that sassy, playful side in her, loved that she could feel like herself around him.
“I don’t think the guests would appreciate it,” she said.
“Oh, yes, they will. Well, the guys will, anyway.”
Once they’d gotten dressed, brought all the food outside, including the cooler, and set up to watch a football game since it wasn’t their week to play, they began opening the door, one time after another, letting in their friends and family. After only an hour, Daniel woke up and screamed through the speaker until Ruby went and fetched him, bringing him to the backyard, bundled in a blanket for everyone to say hello.
“Here he is!” Ruby brandished the baby like he was the main dish. Barbecue ribs, be damned. Nothing was more yummy than her little munchkin.
“Oh, he’s so beautiful!” Arabella, Kyle’s girlfriend screeched. “Doesn’t it make you want to have a baby, Kyle?”
“Yeah, Kyle, don’t you want to have a baby?” Heath chided him, clapping a hand on his shoulder as he walked past to grab a beer from the cooler.
“Duchess, we just got married,” Kyle said.
“So? You know that as a princess of Salasia, heirs are very important.”
“We’ll get there. Right now, I’m enjoying having you to myself. Hell, I already have to share you with a whole country.”
“And you’re doing it marvelously, sweetheart,” Arabella said, blowing Kyle an air kiss before cooing at Daniel.
Ruby patted Kyle’s shoulder and went on to find Camille sitting in one of their rocking chairs.
Camille was about six months pregnant, her baby bump round and adorable. She and Heath had found out they were having a boy and had already picked out a name—Peyton Andrew. Emma could barely contain her excitement at having a baby brother and had wholeheartedly approved of the name, saying it definitely belonged to a future football player.
Ruby looked forward to meeting Peyton and was sure he and Daniel would play in the backyard together while Ruby and Camille watched their husbands play on TV.
Camille, Arabella, and Ruby all fawned over Daniel’s cute smile while Heath, Kyle, and Alec all watched, beers in their hands, cracking manly jokes but really, amazed at the families they’d started.
Ruby overheard Heath say, “I can’t complain, man. Life is fucking amazing, you know? Every time I see Camille and Emma, Camille pregnant with my baby…” He couldn’t finish his thought. “It’s just awesome.”
Alec nodded and stared at Ruby with a smile. “Yep. I know what you mean.”
“Me, too,” Kyle said, his gaze on his princess. Then he blinked and shook his head. “Stop making me look bad, though. I’ll be the happiest man alive when Bella gets pregnant but that can wait a year or two.”
Heath and Alec just grinned.
“Sometimes you have to take your blessings as they come,” Alec said. “Can’t plan for everything, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Alec winked at her.
He had embraced fatherhood without hesitation. The moment Daniel had come into his world, he’d fallen head over heels in love with his son, and even more for Ruby.
His career was flourishing too. The Sports Armour ads had been filmed and would air at the start of the new seaso
n, plus a new ad campaign was being laid out by Sports Armour, along with new offers from Nike and Reebok. Alec’s image had undergone a complete transformation. Their marriage hadn’t stayed a secret for long—despite his and Ruby’s best efforts—but when the cat had gotten out of the bag, Ruby had told him they’d be better off using it to their advantage.
She became his full-time, freelance publicist.
Her father hadn’t liked it at first, but there was nothing he could do about it.
The public ate up his love story, and when they’d discovered he and Ruby were having a baby? Suddenly, he’d been on every magazine cover, and photos of them together appeared on Instagram every day. It had worried Alec at first, the intrusion on their privacy, and she understood his worry that some might view the publicity as some kind of sign that he valued his career more than family. But day by day, she’d been allaying his fears, assuring him that so long as it didn’t cross certain lines, it was okay to share their lives, their happiness, with the public. He didn’t have to worry that Ruby would ever interpret his actions as duty or showboating or manipulative ever again—she knew her husband for what he was. A good man.
The best man. The hottest, sexiest, most-fatherly man on Earth.
“Does it ever not feel so…overwhelming?” Kyle asked no one in particular. Ruby glanced over at him and saw his gaze was on Arabella again. Lord, the man was smitten. “Like everything’s just too perfect? Don’t you feel like it’s unfair to have it so good?”
Heath shrugged. “Maybe a little, but it will just get better and we get to enjoy that. Cheers, dude.” He clinked beer bottles with Kyle and with Alec. “To life.”
“To our unbelievably amazing lives,” Alec corrected, staring at Ruby.
The friends enjoyed their evening together before Camille and Heath needed to leave to pick up Emma from her father’s. Kyle and Arabella left soon after, leaving Alec and Ruby to themselves and the baby.
Cradled in his father’s arms by the fireplace, Daniel was an adorable, sweet, sleepy bundle. Ruby was pretty sure he’d be huge in no time with the way he drank milk and was filling out fast. Sitting in their living room, listening to music, while Ruby worked on her laptop, nobody had to say anything. Every so often, Alec would lean over and kiss Ruby’s hair, neck, and cheek.
She’d close her eyes and wonder how she got so lucky.
“You know, I’m glad you decided to break the rules for once,” he said after some moments of silence. “Otherwise we wouldn’t be sitting here tonight.”
She smiled at him. “And I’m glad you decided to listen to me and play by the rules, otherwise we definitely wouldn’t be here tonight.”
Daniel’s eyelashes fluttered, and when he opened them, his face screwed up like he was going to start crying. Ruby took him into her arms and rocked him, her voice soft and soothing. Daniel finally fell back asleep. “Let’s get to bed. Our talking is keeping him up.”
“Let’s get to bed so I can rock your world.”
“You are so smooth. Not.” Ruby laughed and led her husband into Daniel’s amazing, zoo animal nursery. But yes, slipping under the covers with her husband would be so good right now. Maybe they could even have sex for hours like they used to do before Daniel came.
Together, they put their son to bed and watched as Daniel squirmed around then finally settled into a comfortable position. They each kissed his little forehead and cheeks before Ruby pulled up the side of the crib, covering him with a light blanket. “Good night, my little football player,” she said.
“Good night, my little freelance publicist.”
Ruby scoffed and elbowed Alec. “Good night, our huge game-changer.”
“Truer words were never before spoken.” Alec picked up his wife and carried her into their bedroom, while Ruby laughed into his neck. Climbing into bed together, her husband wrapped his arms around her, as they stretched and yawned for the third time in five minutes.
“Wow. We may need to postpone that world-rocking session until the morning.” She laughed, cuddling against his chest. Making love in the morning before the baby awoke was her favorite thing to do anyway.
“Fine by me…” Alec kissed her forehead. And before he’d finished his thought, he was fast asleep, his large chest rising and falling in tune to his breaths.
Ruby slipped out of his arms, turned off the light, and snuggled back against her husband. “Good night, Alec. I love you.” Only the sound of his snoring replied. But she knew he loved her, too. He’d told her. And then he’d never, not once, stopped showing her.
Description
Wide receiver Gabe Murphy took his team into the playoffs last season before suffering a shoulder injury that some say he will never recover from. After his former team dumps him and he gets picked up by the Savannah Bootleggers, Gabe is determined to play better than ever, only this time he’s not getting attached—not to his new city, his new team, or his beautiful new athletic trainer, Zoe Reynolds.
Zoe’s newest client is carrying a chip as wide as his broad shoulders, but she sees the kindness and vulnerability hiding behind Gabe’s cocky grin and chiseled body. She’s going to train him, and help him move on. She just has to keep herself from falling in love with the stubborn man—hard to do when they end up living together.
Soon, Gabe learns Zoe’s battling her own demons. Will he be able to let go of the past and open his heart again? And will Zoe cheer Gabe on to victory, both in football and in love?
Chapter 1
Gabe Murphy wasn’t going to let a daytime temperature of over 100 or a few fifty-pound boxes get the best of him.
Hoisting one box onto his shoulder, he heaved it off the moving truck and carried it into his new house. Luckily, his shoulder held up fine, despite everything it’d been through the last few months.
As one of the NFL’s top wide receivers, Gabe had taken his former team, the Chicago Noise, to the playoffs last season. Without him, the Noise wouldn’t have gone as far as they had. And how had he been rewarded?
He hadn’t.
After he was hurt and became a free agent, the Noise didn’t renew his contract. Never mind all the amazing catches over the years, the MVP Award, or any of the media firestorm and praise for #44 Gabe Murphy. They’d tossed him away all because of one stinking shoulder tear. True, it was a severe tear and his performance hadn’t been up to par even after he’d been cleared to play—he’d missed several key passes in the final playoff games last season—but all he’d needed was a little more time to get his range of motion one hundred percent back.
The whole situation reminded him of his grandfather’s favorite book, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, when that one dolphin says, So long, and thanks for all the fish. Fish—that was all he’d been to the Noise. Now that his bucket was temporarily half-empty, he may as well have been chum.
See ya, Gabe, don’t let the door hit you on the way out…
Whatever—didn’t matter. He’d worked with a trainer and physical therapist all summer and he was almost to 100%. The Noise was part of his past now and Gabe had a new team: the Savannah Bootleggers. When the season opened, Gabe was going to prove that all the rehab and strength training he’d been doing had paid off. That he was just as good a player as he’d been before he’d torn his labrum.
His shoulder had given him a minor setback. Nothing more, nothing less.
He put down the box he was carrying, wiped his brow and headed to pick up another box outside, passing a tiny presence hovering in the doorway. Tiny, but deadly.
“Whoa, that’s a million-dollar shoulder there, buddy,” his sister said, arms crossed over her chest. “You might want to slow your roll and let the movers finish their job.” Michelle, a.k.a. Murph, was five-foot-two and the bossiest sports agent in the business. She was also his sports agent.
He breezed past her.
“Seriously, Gabe,” Murph called. “You shouldn’t be putting unnecessary stress on it. Save it for your appointment with your new trainer thi
s afternoon. Last thing we need is to cancel because of another injury.”
He grabbed a heavy box of plates and silverware and strode by her again. “I’m not…”
Even the word injury didn’t settle right with him. He was not injured. An injured player never recovered. An injured player did not return with a vengeance after a downfall to prove the critics wrong. Gabe was going to do all that and more.
“I’m not going to hurt it again.”
Gabe set the box down on the dining table, then lifted the hem of his shirt to wipe the slick sweat off his brow. It was middle of July, hot as balls, muggy as hell. Apparently they were in the middle of a heat wave, with no relief in sight. It’d only been two days since they arrived, and damn did he miss Chi-town already.
“I’m just saying,” Murph said. “You don’t want to take unnecessary risks.”
He waited until one of the movers left hearing range before responding to his sister. “Hey, I don’t need you telling me what I can and can’t lift,” Gabe said, harsher than he intended. He took a deep breath. “I know my limits, Murph.”
Another mover followed the other guy carrying a big box, and he gave Gabe a wary glance. They probably looked like a married couple having a spat.
“Okay, okay, just trying to help.” She threw her hands up and sauntered off toward the living room. “Big shot thinks he knows everything,” she mumbled to herself.
“What’s that?”
“I said, ‘You’re the best!’” she said, faux excitement dripping from her voice. “I love working for you…so…much…”
Gabe shook his head. He loved his one and only sibling. They could argue ‘til the cows came home, but when it came down to it, they let conflict slide. After their parents died in a car accident when he was six and Murph was five, they were taken care of by their grandparents, Mimi and Pop, but he and Murph had learned to always lean on each other.
Murph didn’t need shit from him any more than he needed it from her. After all, he wasn’t the only person displaced when the Noise turned its back on him. She’d had to leave Chi-town, too, and he felt guilty for having made her leave her friends behind. As his agent, she didn’t have to physically live in the same town that he did—but Murph had always gone wherever Gabe had gone. That’s the way it’d been their whole lives.
