Beautiful Storm (San Francisco End Game #1)

CHAPTER SEVEN

Amelia

Fuck.

If I thought Luke was going to hate the fact that I’m here, I was dead wrong. I’ve never seen him so happy. And that makes things worse.

Why do I get the feeling he’s going to enjoy this more than he should?

“Hi, Amelia, is it?” He squints as though trying to grasp a hold of a fake memory, and I roll my eyes. “I’m Luke. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

He holds out a hand for me to shake, and I stare down at his palm.

After we were all introduced and the producers spoke about their plans, we were given the opportunity to mingle and get to know each other. I immediately headed toward Storm’s head coach, Jonathan Pierce, but was intercepted by Luke on my way over to him.

“Well?” Luke questions me when I don’t react with enthusiasm.

“Stay away from this one,” one of his teammates warns me as he joins us, his gaze sincere. “He’ll be in and out of your pants before you can say ‘he has a cute smile.’ Yes, he does, but that's how he gets you.”

Luke bursts out laughing, slapping his teammate on the back. “That and my giant cock.” He waggles his eyebrows, turning my way to catch me fake gag. “Don’t listen to Carter. He just wants you all for himself. But unfortunately for him, you’re off-limits.”

Carter laughs as he walks away, leaving Luke and me alone, or at least, out of earshot of others.

I’ve had a week to mull over this project and my impending proximity to Luke, but it wasn’t enough to quell the anger over the hand fate dealt me. I’m clearly being punished for my lapse in judgment after sleeping with him a couple of months ago, but while I’d give anything to remove myself from this unfortunate situation, I can’t. It's my dream.

“So…” Luke begins, his gaze darting back to the rest of my crew before settling on me again. “This is what you do?”

“It is. And trust me when I say, I’d rather be on any other project right now.”

“That’s a shame. I was thinking you could work our little tryst into the show somehow. I’m sure it would boost your career.”

“Ugh. We are not secret lovers. It happened once and it won’t happen again.”

“I’m just trying to help.”

My jaw drops at his straight face. He really does think highly of himself. “How does that head of yours fit through the door?” I question, genuinely curious.

“With style.” He winks while I mentally wince, embarrassed for him.

“Okay. Well, it was nice catching up with you, but I’ve got to mingle.” I put on a fake smile and wave before stepping away, but he grabs my arm at the last second, pulling me to a stop.

“I trust you’re not going to bring up certain things from our past,” he whispers between clenched teeth, his happy demeanor gone, while I work hard to keep a straight face, my pulse racing.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I lie before shaking myself free and walking away, my head held high, proud of myself for how I handled that little interaction. Especially considering his touch completely rattled me.

I haven’t been able to stop thinking about our night together, and being in his presence again makes it hard not to picture his naked body. And he had to touch me. A vision of his huge palm wrapped around his throbbing length comes to my mind, and I picture him walking toward me, his piercing eyes locked on mine while he—

Goddammit.

It’s such an unfortunate side effect to him being the title holder of the guy-who-gave-me-the-best-orgasm-of-my-life. Hayley tells me there are plenty of men out there that could make me feel that good, and that I’m comparing Luke to a low base, but I haven’t really been in the mood to find out. At the moment, my job is the priority. I can worry about my sex life later, when I have the time to not just unpack my sex with Luke, but to also figure out why the sex with Preston wasn’t as good. Was it me? If it was, I can’t afford to let myself spiral.

I don’t talk to Luke again during the meet and greet hour, but I sense his eyes on me whenever I’m close by. I, on the other hand, use all of my willpower to ensure I don’t so much as glance in his direction. This is going to be hard enough without me wasting energy on negative thoughts. No, the less I see Luke, the better.

As I’m leaving the building, an unfamiliar voice calls my name, and I turn to find Thomas Kelly walking toward me. Considering he’s the quarterback, I should have spoken to him tonight, but the producers were monopolizing his time. Thankfully I now have the chance.

“Thomas—”

“Amelia Rose, what are the chances?” A smile graces my face as I picture a fourteen-year-old Thomas accidentally throwing a football at my head. My fault, not his.

“Hi Thomas, it’s been a while.”

He smiles knowingly. “How have you been? I tried to catch up with you inside, but your producers love to chat.”

“You’ve got to be a good communicator in their role. As do I, but the difference is that I know when to stop.”

“On that note, you’ll be the one making the big decisions on what makes it to the screen, right?” He grimaces, and I bark out a laugh.

“Are you nervous about something?”

“No, not at all. I’ve got my limits noted in my contract.” He smirks while I laugh. Good thinking . “I actually think it’s really cool that you’re here,” he continues, “directing this. I finally know someone famous.”

“Umm. Hello. It’s not nearly as cool as being the quarterback for one of the top teams in the NFL.”

Thomas attended the same high school as Luke and I did, but was the year above us. I first met him the day he almost knocked me out. I dropped to the ground and he came rushing over to make sure I was okay. We had a nice easy chat that day, and if he hadn't been teammates with Luke, we may have become friends. But it wasn’t meant to be. I’d vowed to stay away from the team.

Maybe I should have continued that vow all the way to now.

“Hardly,” Thomas says, releasing a breathy laugh. “I just throw a ball around. You’re the star. And I’ve got to say, it will be nice having a familiar face around when they’re filming. I’m still a little on the fence as to whether or not I’m happy about the show.”

I internally wince, but at the same time, I like his honesty.

“That’s fair. From what I understand, they didn’t exactly give you much notice.”

“Oh, I knew weeks ago.” He waves off my concern. “But we should be focused on our game. The Super Bowl is in our sights. The last thing we need is a distraction.”

My nose scrunches. I’m the distraction . At least, the production is, and I’m officially the face of it. “I promise to try and be as discreet as possible during practice and on game days. The last thing we want to do is mess things up for you. But if we get this right, it could be amazing for the team. For exposure.”

Thomas’s eyes flash my way, and I curse myself for saying the wrong thing, until he smiles. “You’re right. From now on, I’m going to embrace it.”

“Oh yeah? Does that mean you’ll let us glimpse a bit of your life outside of these walls?” I tease, comically clenching my teeth so he knows that I’m joking.

Thomas huffs out a laugh before shaking his head. “No chance. But good try.”

H ayley stands up and waves as I scan the low-key bar we agreed to meet in after work. I smile apologetically, already running behind on my first day, but she just rolls her eyes, refusing to accept my concern.

“How was it seeing Luke again?” she asks the second I’m in earshot. “Was he an ass? A gorgeous ass but an ass all the same. Did you talk? Ooh, was there a heated moment? I bet—”

“Hayley!” I cut in. “I haven’t even sat down yet.”

“You’re right. God, who am I?” She shakes her head with an appalled look on her face, making me laugh.

“We need to find you some work,” I say as a joke, because she has way too much time on her hands.

“We really do.” She nods multiple times. “I’m starting to seek out drama elsewhere.”

“You’ve got an audition next week and I know you’re going to smash it,” I say, using her words. “After that, this won’t be an issue.”

“Yes, I’m good. Anyway, how was your first day at the stadium? Was Luke an ass?”

“Isn’t he always? Although, he wasn’t completely awful.” Until the end. “And that’s worse.”

“Definitely. It means he’s planning something diabolical.”

“He’s not a cartoon villain, Hayls.” God, I’m shortening her name now… am I becoming an Aussie?

“Ugh, I need drama.” Hayley groans before laughing. “Anyway, back to Luke. Let’s hope he gets on your good side because he is definitely made for TV. That man has charisma for days.”

“I don’t want to hear that.” I comically wince. If I could make the call to keep him out of the show altogether, I would.

“Sorry.” She laughs again. “But it’s true.”

“Why’d I have to go and have sex with him?” I groan and drop my head into my hands as I pretend to cry.

“Because he’s gorgeous. Maybe you should do it again.”

“What? No.” I giggle. “It’s Luke . Did we have mind-blowing sex? Yes. At least I did. But is he still at the top of my shit list? Also yes. And I can’t imagine that changing.”

“But it could be hotter with him all… ‘I hate you, but you're a goddess in bed.’” She puts on a deep gruff voice for Luke. “And you all ‘I hate you too, but harder…yes, there.’” Her pitch rises and I can’t help but laugh out loud.

“It’s not happening.”

“Sure it’s not.” She waggles her eyebrows and I groan again, knocking back the drink Hayley already had waiting for me. This is all new for me. I don’t talk about my sex life. Then again, I’m still trying to work out who the real me is. So, what do I know?

The night flies by, but the later it gets, the more obnoxious my yawning becomes until I can no longer hide it. This day…no, this week has kicked my ass. From the early mornings to late nights of planning and then today answering question after question, I’m done.

“I don’t mean to be a party pooper, but I’m freaking exhausted. I need to go home.”

“It’s only nine,” Hayley teases but at the same time she stands. “I get it. You’re a big-name director now. You need your beauty sleep.”

“Ha. I wish. But I do need sleep. I can’t believe how tired I am after my first production day.” I need to start looking after myself better. Now’s the time to be on my A game . “I promise I won’t make a habit of this. It’s just been a big week. I need to start eating better. Next time, be ready for an all-nighter.”

Hayley snorts out a laugh but doesn't call me out on the fact that I have never been an all-nighter kind of girl. Instead, she kisses my cheek and pulls me into a side hug. “Sweet dreams, sweetie. I’m going to go and find me a man.”

I look like garbage when I wake the next morning, but it’s nothing a little makeup won’t fix. On the drive home last night, I realized I could attribute all of my tiredness to stress. I felt the same exhaustion when I first left Preston. I know that once things settle down, I’ll feel better, and it makes pushing through so much easier.

When I pull into the stadium parking lot at seven a.m., I find one of the guys from the team, Easton heading inside. A hint of uncertainty settles in my chest when I remember hearing his negative stance on the show, and when he fakes a smile and picks up his pace to get away from me, the feeling deepens.

So far, I’ve only had a handful of enthusiastic players, and if it continues to be that way, I’m going to struggle to make a decent production. The idea was that we’d focus on the entire team, not a few random players. That’s been done. Many times.

And I need this show to be a hit.

I’m the first to arrive at our newly created Storm stadium office, but before I can dump my oversized bag onto my desk, the door swings open again. I lift my gaze to say hi to whoever it is, but am startled when it’s Luke.

“Uh, hi?” I question, dropping my bag as he locks the door, my chest tightening at the sound of that little click. “Unlock the door, please. I have crew members arriving shortly.” I smile, working hard to mask the nervous energy coursing through me until he turns the lock again, eyeing me curiously. “What do you want?” I ask, my voice curt.

He frowns before snapping out of it, his face suddenly neutral. “I thought we could have a chat.”

“Okay.” He walks forward and when he reaches my desk, I move around the opposite side, heading over to the makeshift kitchen they put in for us, making a show of pouring myself a coffee, even though I don’t drink it. I’m fine. Luke being here is fine. “Chat away. How can I help you?”

“You know why I’m here,” he rasps, standing right behind me, making me jump at his close proximity.

“I don’t know—”

“Don’t bullshit me, Amelia. I just want to know you’re not going to use the fire to gain ratings.”

“What?”I knew that’s what he was alluding to, but now that he’s said it out loud, I’m offended. “Why would I do that?”

“Oh, I don’t know—to advance your career? To help yourself . Just like you did when you told the cops I might have had something to do with it.”

“I didn’t… That’s… God, you have no idea what I went through.” I know I shouldn’t have mentioned his name to the police but I panicked. I didn’t know they’d arrest him for it. “You were never charged. It’s not a big deal. I don’t know what you’re worried about.”

”I just want your word that you’ll keep it to yourself.”

“Or what?” I stare him down, trying not to appear shaken by the threat dripping from his tone. And when he doesn’t say anything, I continue, needing to fill the silence. “I would have thought you’d love it. You’d be the star of the show. Or wait…” I fake a gasp and cover my mouth with my hand before whispering, “Are you worried it will ruin your reputation?” I exaggeratedly grimace. “I guess it wouldn’t be a good look when people find out you set me up and then ran away when shit got real. Leaving me inside a burning building .” My heart races as the fire once again burns through my mind, but I subtly suck in a breath to calm down.

“You had David.” Luke waves off my comments as though I’ve barely rattled him, but I don’t miss the anger in his eyes. “You got out. You were fine. I sav—”

“I wasn’t.” I pause, refusing to rehash a part of my life long buried. While it’s not the event that kicked off my hatred toward Luke, it definitely cemented it, and I’d prefer not to fall down that rabbit hole of emotions. He played me that night and then I let myself get dragged back into his world a third time when I slept with him. I should have learned my lesson by now. “I won’t mention the fire. It’s not exactly something I like thinking about.”

“Good.” Luke fakes a grin before leaning in close, his hard body pressed against mine as he enters my personal space, forcing me back until my ass is digging into the metal edge of the counter. “As long as you stay quiet, I’ll be the perfect subject for the show. You want me to smile, I’ll fucking smile.” As if I need a demonstration, his expression easily morphs to give him a boyish charm, like he has a default setting ready to go, and it’s completely unnerving.

“I’m sure we can keep this professional,” he adds, his smile turning cocky once more. “That’s what you want, right? Unless you were thinking about another night of fun.”

As he whispers, his lips hover so close to my skin that I swear I feel his touch below my ear, sending an electric current through me. My heart pounds in my chest, threatening to break through my ribs, and I wish I could say it was due to the anger I hold and not because I’m imagining him settled between my legs.

“I can stay professional,” I whisper back, my lips purposely brushing his cheek as I turn my head, hoping to rattle him even half as much as he’s rattling me. “And I’ll keep the fire a secret, but make no mistake.” I shove him back and step aside, putting some much-needed space between us. “You will never be touching me again. That’s a promise. They both are. In fact, let’s pretend we don’t have a past. We don’t know each other. Period.”

Luke raises an eyebrow before shaking his head with a laugh. “Works for me. Pleasure doing business with you.”

He walks away, and I hold my breath until he’s gone, my body deflating as soon as the door clicks shut again, the tension finally leaving me.

I take a deep breath, but I’ve barely had a chance to process what just happened when the door flies open again and our director of photography walks in, beelining straight for me.

“What’s the plan for today, Boss?” he asks as he drops down into the seat opposite me, pulling out his notepad. “It’s a day of observations, right?”

“Observations, yes,” I rush out, hoping I don’t appear too flustered while inside my heart is still racing. “We’ll take some photos and… ah… After that we have a meeting with the coaching staff.”

“Eh.” Craig scrunches his face as though disgusted by the idea. “I’m not all that interested in another ‘you better not get in the way’ speech. Do they think we’re stupid? I’ve been filming documentaries for years, some focusing on subjects that didn’t know they were subjects. I can be discreet.”

“I know you can. And I know you’ll keep the crew in line. But they’re nervous. It’s a huge year for them, and they don’t need any distractions.” Wow, look at me paraphrasing or maybe stealing Thomas’s words. I run the words through my head again. Thomas was right. They don’t need us to take away from their efforts for the Super Bowl; they need us to be a part of it.

“On the way to the top.”

“What?”

Shit, I didn’t mean to voice that. I’m a little all over the place. “I was thinking out loud. Trying to find an angle for the show.”

Craig stares at me, confused. “I thought we had an angle?”

“We did. We do. It’s just an idea.”

The network wants a day-in-the-life style show and I understand why that would appeal. Reality television is a moneymaker right now. Those real estate shows where they just follow the realtors around are killing it. But they’re not entirely organic, and we can’t script drama here at the club. Well, we could, but as a fan of football, I will never let that happen. Even though the Storm isn’t my team . And even though, as Luke said, I have information on him specifically. I’d never share it. There has to be something better. Something more gripping. Something that only comes from following a team that just might make it all the way to the top.

We spend the next week mostly out of sight—planning, observing, choosing locations—so for the most part, I’m able to pretend Luke doesn’t exist, mostly, except when I find myself daydreaming about our time together.

Damn him and his expert hands…and mouth.

When we’re halfway through the second week of preproduction, it’s time to start our one-on-one chats with the players, and I can’t wait. The more I get to know them, the easier it will be to create a story and the more receptive they’ll be to give me what I need. I’m excited to get into it, but I have one complaint—everyone loves Luke .

So of course, he’s up first.