Quarterback Keeper (Fall Lake Ballers #1)

Chapter Twenty

CHAPTER TWENTY

GIA

Three Weeks Later

I t was criminally early, the sun barely cresting the horizon to stream through the small porthole. Heat blanketed my back from Kylian’s large body spooning mine. I eased from beneath his heavy arm. Once free, I stretched then got out of bed. It was a new day, and I braced myself against my conflicting emotions. I already feared I was falling for him too hard and too fast. Just the hint of my out-of-control feelings was enough to douse the flame pooling low in my stomach with the need for round three.

I’d slipped into a pair of panties last night, but that was it. My fingers hooked the white dress shirt he’d tossed on the floor after he’d worn it on the flight to his away game the previous day. I pushed my arms into it, working a few buttons through their holes to keep it mostly closed.

It would have been nice to go to the game, but I’d attended all his home games since my first, several weeks ago. It’d become a habit to sit with Ares’s mom and nephew, which was fun. I enjoyed their company. When Kylian and I were alone hours later, we would talk about the plays. Getting that part of my life back was a gift I would always be grateful to him for.

After we’d gotten ready for bed, he’d set his alarm for nine to make his ten-o’clock class. I didn’t want to wake him, since he had about an hour before he had to get up. I made coffee to drink on the deck in the morning sun. I headed up the stairs to unlock the door to the cabin. It opened easily.

It wasn’t until I was on the deck that the sound of hushed voices too close to where I stood registered. My head whipped up, and my gaze jumped around until it landed on a man and woman a few feet from where I stood. I froze when I took in the man in the business suit. He was an older version of Kylian. A woman not too much older than me stood by his side. Heat rushed to my face as I realized what I was, and wasn’t, wearing in front of Kylian’s father as he studied me. He did not look amused.

“Ahh, one second.” A quick pivot, and I rushed down the stairs.

I deposited the mug of coffee on the counter, splashing hot liquid over the rim in my haste to get to the primary bedroom. I yanked the pillow from beneath Kylian’s head, and he came instantly awake.

“You’ve got to stop doing that,” he growled then reached for me.

I’d already moved back in anticipation. “Your father is on the deck.”

“Fuck.” He launched himself from the bed and shoved his legs into his dress pants. He zipped and buttoned them, not bothering with a shirt.

Well, I’m wearing it, so what could he do?

He was through the galley and on the stairs before I could find yesterday’s shirt—mine, not his. When I managed to get dressed, I headed for the deck but stopped near the stairs when I heard Kylian’s and his father’s heated voices volleying back and forth. Unsure what to do, I stayed rooted to the spot and eavesdropped shamelessly.

“Impossible. I’m already engaged to Gia,” Kylian growled.

“Absolutely not,” his father snapped. “I already promised Honeycutt that you’ll marry his daughter. He says she has her sights set on an NFL quarterback, and you’re the one she wants.”

“I don’t care if her daddy thinks he can get her anything she wants, including me. I’ve already chosen my path, and Melanie Honeycutt isn’t on it.”

“You’re making a big mistake, son. She would be the perfect wife. A true chameleon and able to fit into any social event you’re required to attend. But if you want to pass up the best thing that could happen to you… If you don’t want to marry the Honeycutt girl and live in the lap of luxury”—his father’s deep voice was resolute and threatening—“you can marry the little slut listening in the cabin and risk whatever dirt that I find in her past tarnishing your life. And let’s not forget about what your mother needs, hmm?”

Slut? I jumped back. Can he see me? What should I do? Pretend I wasn’t listening, or not deny anything and go up there, defend myself, and find out what Kylian wants to do?

The click of stilettos crossed the deck. Hatred for his father chased away the momentary shock of what he’d called me. When no more footfalls sounded, I knew Mr. Wilder and his young wife had left.

The second option won as an invisible thread pulled me to Kylian, and I scaled the stairs. He stood with a white-knuckled grip on the stern railing, looking over the water, his back to the dock. Mirroring his pose, I curled my fingers around the metal, not turning toward him until he moved. Our gazes locked and held, and I gasped at the torment swimming through his smoky- blue eyes. My lungs squeezed, and an ache thrummed in my chest. It was an odd feeling to see him like that—vulnerable.

“Ignore what my dad said about you. He’s an ass.”

“It’s forgotten.” Sort of. Okay, it wasn’t. I would forever hold that against his father. It was too great an insult to call me a slut when he knew nothing about me.

Kylian’s hand settled on my hip. When his other arm wrapped around me and pulled me against his solid chest, I briefly shut my eyes and savored the moment. It couldn’t last, no matter how much I liked being in his arms or how safe he made me feel.

I took a deep breath then said what needed to be vocalized. I knew other things were at stake from how affected he’d seemed. “We can dissolve our agreement. No harm. No foul. Just pretend that there wasn’t one.”

“Gia, my dad will not win this game he’s playing.” He notched my chin up so we were looking at each other again.

Based on the aftereffects of their encounter swimming in his eyes, I wasn’t so sure.

“We’re not giving him the satisfaction of bowing out early. That was his first strike. There will be more, but we’re in this together with something to gain.”

I curled my arms around his neck, wanting to believe him despite the odds I sensed were stacked against us. I couldn’t imagine a father doing that to his son. I didn’t have a father figure, except for my uncle, and he never would have done anything to hurt or use me. It was unfathomable. Pushing onto my toes, I tugged on Kylian’s neck until he lowered his face. And I brushed my lips against his in a gentle caress.

None of that was part of our contract, but the more time I spent with him, the more my walls crumbled. Thoughts fled as he took control of the kiss and swept his tongue past my parted lips to tangle with mine. My head spun, and I squeezed my thighs against the throbbing caused by his simple touch.

He nipped my bottom lip then eased the sting with a swipe of his tongue. I moaned, melting against him. Then his hands cupped my bottom, and he lifted me, my legs automatically wrapping around him. Short, silky strands of hair at the back of his neck met my fingers, and I toyed with them. I wanted to feel all of him. Clothes were an unwanted barrier.

He broke the kiss, pressing his forehead against mine. We took a minute to catch our breath, and as our surroundings came back into focus, surprise danced over my bare arms despite the September heat.

I wanted to strip him and myself bare out in the open. Relinquishing the tight hold with my legs, I slid them down his body until my feet were firmly planted on the deck. Then I rested my palms against his chest and slid my fingers to his broad shoulders, holding on to the tense muscle.

“I…” What? I was so consumed by how he made me feel that I’d lost sight of our surroundings. That wasn’t smart. On the heels of that thought, the fine hairs on the back of my neck rose with the sensation of being watched, and a jolt of fear surged through me. My muscles locked down as I did a visual sweep, assuring myself my ex wasn’t lurking in the shadows somewhere.

“Let’s take this below deck.”

The deep timbre of his voice, hoarse with desire, sent an entirely different kind of tingle dancing over my body, chasing most of my worries aside. I glanced around again, quickly, ever mindful of photographers or someone much worse. When I didn’t see anyone, the feeling passed. I was being ridiculous. I’d been careful and wouldn’t stop being cautious.

With a slow smile, I gave into my need for him that was impossible to deny. “What are you waiting for?”

He whirled and picked me up again. I clutched him tighter, laughter and a sense of freedom filling me. He carried me down the stairs, pausing to close and latch the door behind us.

As we tumbled into bed, I welcomed his weight, giving myself over to the passion only he could give me.