“Meaning?” Ian asked.
“It’s more school. Paperwork. Studying. I feel like I’m ready to be out in the world doing things. Making an impact.”
He chuckled, probably at her enthusiasm. “Understood. Listen, I have to go over to the construction site … otherwise known as the new stadium to be. Want to join me?” he offered.
“Oh my God, yes!” She jumped up from her seat, eager for the opportunity to check out the new place firsthand, doing her best not to flinch at the shock of slight pain between her legs. No, she wouldn’t be forgetting Ethan any time soon.
A little while later, she was wearing a hard hat and walking alongside Ian, touring the first level of the stadium. He pointed out where the concession stands would be, the VIP ticket sales office, and the restrooms. But those things were in any stadium and they weren’t Ian’s pride and joy.
As he began to speak and point out what was to come, she saw the light in his eyes, unparalleled except when he spoke to or of his pregnant wife, Riley, and his children, Rainey, now four, and Jack, the baby.
He walked her out to the field and began gesturing as he spoke. “Spectators will stand twenty-four feet closer to the field than at the old stadium,” he began. “There will be four high-definition video boards on the corners of the upper decks to enhance fan experience, and get this. Two thousand flat-screen monitors spanning the stadium so fans don’t miss the action.”
“What about suites?” she asked, knowing that was how her father had taken them to football games. No nosebleed seats for the Dares.
“Two hundred and forty modernized, state-of-the-art suites. And for the fans in the stands? Canopy shading for ninety-two percent of the people who come to see the games,” he said proudly.
Sienna grinned. “Speaking of fans and fan experience, have you considered a fan suite? You could auction off the ability to have everyday people come, along with, of course, those who can pay. And for those who can’t afford it, you can have an online app that accesses the room. Computer terminals for fantasy football.”
Ian paused, turning to look at her, caught up in what she was saying.
Emboldened, she went on. “You can hire a company that designs apps to provide a virtual fan experience, installing cameras and digital technology that enable someone to be a player for the day.”
He blinked. “Holy shit, Sienna. You’re brilliant.”
She blushed at the compliment. “I’m just tapping into my age group and what I think people would want while thinking of the marketing standpoint for you.”
He grasped her arm and led her away from where there was noisy construction. “I remember when you and Avery put together parties for kids in the cancer ward of the hospital. You made sure the teenagers who couldn’t leave had a prom. You were always aware of what people in any situation needed.”
“In that case, I just understood better than most. I still volunteer there,” she said. “I provide entertainment, books, or whatever they need or might want. I find a way to obtain it for them.” Because she knew what it was like to spend ungodly amounts of time in the hospital.
She might have been young but she never forgot. She always remembered there were kids without parents like hers who could afford to be there day and night. Parents who had to work and leave their sick kids alone.
“Of course you do,” he said softly. “And you’d better make sure you come to me this year for players to swing by and meet the kids, sign autographs, bring them memorabilia.”
She pulled him into an impromptu hug, then quickly released him. Ian wasn’t one for a big show of affection but she was. And she appreciated the effort he was making in her life and the things that were important to her.
“As far as the stadium and your ideas, they’re damned good ones. You were looking for something valuable to do and contribute without going back to school? I’ve got it,” Ian said. “I want you working hand in hand with whoever we hire. Hell, I want you to find the right people to develop this kind of thing.”
She blinked in surprise. “But I don’t know the companies.”
“My head of tech does. He’s just older and doesn’t have the unique perspective that you do. Do you have any idea the freshness you can bring to the Thunder?”
“Ummm, no?” But thanks to his excitement, she was beginning to. “But Ian? I heard you on the phone with Ethan. I know he said something to you about me wanting to be hands-on. I don’t want a pity job.”
She was still surprised Ethan had looked out for her at all.
Ian burst out laughing, a rare feat for the quiet, surly man. “Do I look or act like someone who’d give anyone a pity job? Including family? Just ask Alex how hard he had to work to prove himself to me when he first signed on and you’ll have your answer.”
She grinned, recalling those early days of her brother, Alex, and the program he’d undertaken with the Thunder to bring concussion awareness to the league along with educating players on post-game life.
“Point taken,” she said.
“Okay then. Today you meet with tech. Tomorrow we’re meeting with the contractors responsible for wiring. We’re going to let them know we may need additional capabilities. “You ready for this?” he asked.
She was soaring with excitement as she answered, “Born ready.”
* * *
Ethan disliked being summoned, but that’s exactly what Ian Dare had done. He wanted a meeting at the stadium to discuss security, and he demanded it on his time frame on his turf. Almost two weeks had passed since Ethan had been with Sienna, and he couldn’t get her out of his mind. Traveling to Miami, knowing she was near but he couldn’t see her, was driving him to distraction.
Hell, just the memories of her were making him mad. The soft sounds she made when he kissed her, the way her body writhed beneath his when he had her nipple in his mouth, and the tight way she clamped around his dick when he was buried inside her. Then there was her general happiness at everything around her, her overall enjoyment of life, and the laughter she gave so easily. Fuck. His cock was hard at the memory of her.
“Ethan! Jesus, are you listening?” Sebastian, who sat beside him on their private plane, barked at him, snapping his attention back to where it belonged. “Where the fuck have you been for the last couple of weeks? I thought you were a pain before, but lately? I don’t even recognize you.”
Ethan ran his hand through his hair and glanced at his youngest sibling, who’d put up with a lot from him in the last year. “Sorry, man. Really. I just have a lot on my mind.”
Sebastian narrowed his gaze. “I guess I’ll have to take that.”
It was as much as he could give his brother considering Ethan couldn’t possibly tell his sibling that he’d fucked their biggest client’s little sister and couldn’t get her out of his head.
“Are we ready to deal with Ian?” Sebastian asked.
“Yes.” Ethan inclined his head. Business always came first in his mind, and everything he needed, specs included, was front and center. And if he forgot, he had his iPad filled with information.
At Sebastian’s second concerned look, Ethan narrowed his gaze. “Have you ever not been able to trust me where business is concerned?”
Sebastian shook his head.
“How’s Ashley?” Ethan asked, changing the subject. He glanced out the jet window and realized they were descending.
“Good. I think…” Sebastian paused, his expression carrying a heavy weight.
“Talk to me.” Ethan might have had his head up his ass, but he was always there for his brother. “What’s wrong?” he pushed when Sebastian didn’t answer immediately.
Sebastian gripped the armrest between them. “Ashley wants kids.”
“Better you than me,” Ethan said, then glanced at his brother and realized how serious this was.
Ethan blew out a long breath, knowing firsthand what kids or at least teenagers demanded. He’d stepped up when his father fell apart and helped with his siblings. Babi
es, children, were the last thing on his agenda.
But this was Sebastian they were discussing and he was married with a wife he adored, who obviously wanted kids. “And you don’t?”
This was a subject never discussed amongst the brothers, although Parker and his wife, Emily, were expecting a baby, as were Sierra and her husband.
“What if I fuck it up?” Sebastian asked. “After all, look at the example I had. Pay for it and it’ll get better,” he muttered resentfully.
Sebastian was an interesting case. When he was a kid, their father had bought him out of a lot of problems, choosing to throw money at any given situation instead of being a parent. As a result, Sebastian had thought he could charm his way through life. He’d recently learned otherwise and reunited with Ashley, who’d lived with them for a brief time during one of his father’s even briefer marriages. After screwing up big-time when they were kids, Ashley had returned after Mandy died and Sebastian had had to make it up to Ashley before she’d even give him the time of day. He’d manned up and they’d been happily married ever since.
But Ethan could understand his brother’s fears. “Just do the opposite of what Dad would do,” Ethan said. “That’s how I stepped up and helped raise all of you.”
A wry smile twisted Sebastian’s lips. “You did, didn’t you? Not even two years older than Parker and you were everything to us.”
Ethan’s chest warmed at the appreciation in his brother’s tone. He hadn’t done it for the accolades. His siblings had needed him but it was nice to be appreciated.
“You’ll be a great father. I know it. You just need to believe in yourself. I believe in you and I know Ashley does, too.”
Sebastian let out a huge breath of air. “Wow. I didn’t realize I was holding that in.”
Ethan frowned. “Maybe I was too caught up in my own shit over the last year to realize you needed me.”
Sebastian rolled his eyes. “You’re entitled to take time for yourself. Let’s face it. Mandy fucked you over. If you needed to pull back to get past it, nobody blames you.”
Ethan nodded. But he was slowly coming back to himself, he thought, and he had a little sprite of a woman who’d spent all of twenty-four hours with him to thank.
And he was back to thinking of Sienna. This time it was Ethan gripping the armrest of his seat, because no matter what had occurred between them, it was over. Ethan was by no means ready for any kind of relationship and Sienna had commitment kind of girl written all over her pretty face.
* * *
Sienna had accomplished a lot in her two weeks working under Ian, although he’d handed over preliminary approval on things to his sister Olivia, the executive director of the Miami Thunder. Sienna wasn’t as close with Olivia as she was with Avery, but they had a good personal relationship and were gaining an even better one by working together. She’d pulled the other woman into the minute details of her ideas, and together they’d formed a partnership of sorts that worked. Considering this was a last-minute add-on to the stadium as a whole, they’d made a good start, including hiring an internet company that could oversee and help implement the apps and make Sienna’s ideas reality.
She walked into the old stadium and headed directly for Olivia’s office, bypassing the brunch that had been set up for guests. The smell of the bacon had her stomach churning and it wasn’t a pleasant sensation. She hadn’t felt well the last couple of days, either, and she figured she’d picked up a virus or something.
She walked into the office to find Olivia eating an egg sandwich, and that triggered her gag reflex. “Excuse me.”
She ran for the nearest ladies’ room, making it just in time. Pulling herself together, she washed up and dug a breath mint out of her purse before heading back to Olivia’s office.
“Are you okay?” Olivia perched her glasses on her head and met Sienna’s gaze with a concerned look on her face.
Sienna nodded. “I think I have a bug or something. I may just go home early.”
Olivia’s gaze softened. “You should do that. I think Ian just wants us to stop by and meet the people he’s invited for a big stadium meeting. I’m sure you can slip out right after.”
“I can do that.” The imminent nausea had passed. “Do you know who he’s hosting?” Sienna placed her handbag onto a chair and settled into the seat beside it.
“The company in charge of security and smart tech at the new stadium.” Olivia glanced at the computer screen by her desk. “Ethan and Sebastian Knight.”
If Sienna hadn’t just thrown up, she might have lost it anyway, hearing that Ethan was in the building and Ian expected them to meet. Of course, her half brother had no idea that there was any more between Sienna and Ethan than a casual acquaintance from their brief weekend together.
“You look like you’re going to be sick again,” Olivia said, brows furrowing.
“No. I’m okay.” She was now forewarned, which she appreciated. She’d have a few precious minutes to come to terms with seeing him again and pretend he’d been nothing more to her than a good host.
Not the man she’d propositioned. Who she’d lost her virginity to. Sat half-naked with while they devoured Chinese food. Slept wrapped in his arms. And had woken up to find him thrusting inside her, then climaxing all over her back.
God.
Were the recollections still as vivid for him as they were for her? Did he wake up thinking about their time together and fall asleep the same way? Did he wrap his hand around his thick cock and make himself come to the memories of their bodies grinding together? Because she did variations of all those things.
And yet she had to face him again now and pretend he was a business associate of Ian’s she barely knew. To her surprise, the thought of him looking right through her hurt more than it should given their agreement.
One time and nobody would ever know.
“Ready?” Olivia asked, placing her glasses onto her face and rising from her seat.
“Of course.” Sienna picked up her handbag and followed Olivia out of the office, doing her best to pull herself together and lock away any sexy thoughts of Ethan Knight.
* * *
Ethan didn’t need to be wined and dined, or in this case fed breakfast, while meeting some of the major league football stars who played for the Miami Thunder. Although he realized this wasn’t geared toward him but was a corresponding photo opp and charity breakfast, and it was probably easier for Ian to meet them here before heading over to the new stadium for a walk-through and meeting.
Ian strode over and greeted Ethan and Sebastian, shaking their hands and slapping them on the backs as if they were old friends working on a joint project. Which, Ethan supposed, they were. It wouldn’t pay for him to be his grumpy, pissy self with the man he needed to please with both his security and smart technology.
Ian began to discuss a new addition to the fan experience, something his team would need to get up to speed with. Sebastian talked, and Ethan listened, content to let his brother run the show. Sebastian had always been the schmoozer, the brother with the personality and ability to charm everyone they worked with and reassure people when something went wrong. It made sense to let him convince Ian that Knight Time Technology could handle this admittedly comprehensive idea for including a virtual fan experience at the stadium. KTT could work alongside the computer company that created the apps and make sure the wireless technology was secure.
“Aah, here she is,” Ian said, gesturing toward the entrance to the large conference room. “The woman responsible for the entire fan-experience idea. Ethan, you know my half sister, Sienna.”
Ethan heard her name, the sound both a shock to his system and a punch in the gut at the same time. He hadn’t expected to see Sienna again ever, especially not during his time in Miami. But here she was, walking over with a smile on her face.
“And Sienna, this is Ethan’s brother, Sebastian. And Sebastian, Ethan, this is my other sister, our executive director, Olivia Rhodes.” Ian gesture
d to the woman standing beside Sienna, a brunette who bore a striking resemblance to her brother.
But the introductions went over Ethan’s head because his gaze was wholly focused on the woman he couldn’t get out of his mind. Sienna appeared as beautiful as he remembered but much more fragile. Her skin was pale, her eyes wide as she forced a smile and shook Sebastian’s hand first.
“Nice to meet you,” she said.
“Same.” Sebastian, unaware of Ethan’s reeling emotions, turned to Olivia Rhodes, giving her the same greeting.
“Ethan, you mentioned to me that Sienna was interested in more hands-on business dealings than school,” Ian said. “And when she returned from her weekend in New York, she blew me away with her ideas. Once we hired a company to implement the concepts, I thought it prudent to bring you in for security.”
“I’m impressed with her plans, as well,” Ethan said, not surprised at her ingenuity and intelligence. It had just been a question of finding the right fit for her business-wise. Apparently Ian had seen and tapped into the potential.
“So Sienna told me all about your weekend together in Manhattan.”
“We … kept busy,” Ethan muttered.
Sienna flushed a deep shade of red, and he quickly looked away, not wanting to draw attention to them.
“Right, we did.” Sienna gestured with her hands in that expressive way he’d found so engaging in New York. “The gala was lovely but I especially enjoyed seeing the sights. The Statue of Liberty was fascinating and One World Trade was heart-wrenching. In addition, we had good talks and it was very productive for me.”
Listening to her sum up their weekend into one of sightseeing and productivity had Ethan clenching his teeth in frustration considering he knew he’d spent much of that time balls deep inside her.
“We had a nice time, didn’t we … Ethan?” She hesitated, stumbling over his name.
If she’d called him Mr. Knight, he didn’t know if he’d have been able to restrain himself from throwing her over his shoulder and storming out of here like a caveman so he could take her in the nearest office he could find.
Dare Me Tonight Page 5
