“What did they say?”
“They said they wanted the story, and they were impressed by my writing samples. They want to discuss this with me as soon as possible as well as possibly doing something full time together in the future.”
“Look at you. Way to go after what you want. I think they are all going to be fighting over you, sweetheart.” He winked, and my stomach did these weird little flips.
“So, how will this work? It sounds like you know where you’re going to play next year,” I whispered as I glanced over my shoulder. “I’m guessing you won’t want to wait to announce it. And we haven’t really discussed how it would all work after the story breaks.”
He leaned back in his chair and ran his hand over the scruff on his jaw. “Well, I can’t really be the reason you lose another gig, can I?”
“I mean, I have part of a story to write, but I think there’s a lot more to dive into.”
“Agreed.” He leaned forward and reached for his orange juice. “You can break the news on where I’m playing and tease an upcoming story that you’re writing, as well.”
I tried to keep my smile from taking over my entire face, but I knew I was failing miserably.
“Okay, I’ll just ask you a few more questions on our flight home about why you’re choosing the Thunderbirds, and then I’ll write up your announcement tonight. You can obviously look it over, and then you just say when you want the story to go public.”
“I think it’s time. And then we’ll resume work as usual.”
“Sounds like a plan, Captain.” My teeth sank into my bottom lip.
I was thrilled, even if a few more weeks with this beautiful man were going to be deliciously torturous.
fourteen
Lincoln
“Why are we doing this?” she hissed, and I didn’t miss the irritation in her voice.
I’d pulled out the kayak, and we were making our way around the cove. Brinkley couldn’t get into a rhythm with her paddles, and it was funny as hell to watch. She didn’t like that she wasn’t good at something.
Hell, I understood that.
I was a competitive dude.
“Because it’s a good upper body and core workout, and sometimes you need to change it up. Stop being a baby and give yourself a minute to figure it out. And stop deflecting and answer the question that you seem to be avoiding.”
“I’m not being a baby!” she shouted and looked over her shoulder to glare at me. “I’m just partnered with a man who refuses to let me lead. You’re going too fast, and I’m just wasting energy.”
“What can I say? I like to lead, sweetheart.” Wasn’t that the fucking truth. But I wasn’t talking about this fucking kayak. This woman was so deep in my head now that I couldn’t think straight.
She’d asked her final questions on the plane last night to write up the announcement about where I’d be playing this season. She’d agreed that I got to ask a few questions this morning during our workout because she’d been relentless on the plane. Yet here she was, deflecting the question and focusing on the goddamn kayak.
I’d dropped her off at her house after we’d arrived back in Cottonwood Cove after a long travel day.
Normally, I’d be anxious about alone time after spending all that time together.
That was the fucked-up thing. I wasn’t longing for time away.
I was actually counting the minutes until I saw her again.
“You’re such a pompous ass.” Her paddle shot into the surface sideways, intentionally causing water to shoot up and hit me in the face.
That was all it took, and I’d had enough. I dropped my paddles into the boat and leaned my body to the side, easily causing the kayak to capsize as we both tumbled into the water.
I knew it wasn’t deep since we’d stayed close to the perimeter as we made our way around the cove.
We went under, and I pushed to my feet and stood, shoving the water away from my face and laughing as I watched her. She sputtered water and ran her hands over her hair, which was tied back in a long ponytail, blinking excessively.
“What the hell did you do that for?” My eyes zeroed in on her white tank top, not missing the way her nipples strained beneath the fabric. She attempted to march toward me, but her movements were slowed by the water, and she stopped a few inches in front of me. The water settled just below her perfect tits, and she was surrounded by the aqua sea.
“You were being a brat. I thought I’d help you cool off.”
“I’m a brat?” she gasped and shook her head. “That’s rich.”
“I answered everything you asked on our flight home. You agreed to answer a few questions that I had this morning, and so far, you’ve done nothing to cooperate.”
“Says the most difficult man on the planet.” She raised a brow.
“Thank you, sweetheart. I strive to be the best. That means a lot to me.” I loved fucking with her.
“It was an insult.” She caught my gaze and followed it, looking down to see her headlights were on high beam. A pink hue settled on her cheeks as she crossed her arms over her chest.
“You said that I was the most difficult. That makes me the best, doesn’t it?”
She sighed. “I don’t know why you care so much. You’re the one who got me fired. Why are you invested in the reason that I didn’t choose to go back to my old crappy job?”
“Let’s see. You hated me for costing you that fucking job, but then when you got it back, you said no. I want to know why.”
“You’re awfully nosy for a football player. Maybe you should consider being a bloodsucker,” she said, and the corners of her lips lifted as if she were proud of her witty comeback.
The girl never missed a beat.
“Answer. The. Fucking. Question.”
Her tongue swiped out to wet her plump bottom lip, and my hands fisted beneath the water as I fought the urge to move in. Cover her mouth with mine.
Taste her and touch her and wrap her legs around my waist.
Rub my cock against all that sweetness.
Jesus. I was fucking losing it.
“Fine. Harvey Talbert, my old boss, is a misogynistic pig most of the time. He told me to do whatever I had to do to get you to talk to me. So, I did, and he fired me for it.”
“I already knew that. Try again.” There was something more there. Someone desperate for a job doesn’t turn down an offer when it comes unless there’s a reason.
She sighed and looked away. “He never treated me like a reporter. He’d made me uncomfortable a few times.”
“How so?” I asked, feeling something unexplainable build inside me.
Anger.
Rage.
She cleared her throat. “The week before he fired me, I’d gone to him, asking him why my interviews weren’t getting top billing when I knew they were better than some of the articles that he was running. He suggested that I have dinner with him at his place. He let me know that spending time with him outside of work was the fastest way to get more exposure in the magazine. I turned him down, obviously, and then he let me go shortly after. Obviously, I was just someone that he wanted to fuck, nothing more.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I didn’t even recognize my own voice. I was so pissed. “Why didn’t you tell me that in the beginning?”