The Toughest Play

23. Autumn

CHAPTER 23

AUTUMN

A fter I finish texting with Rogan, I close my office door and call Scarlett. She answers after the first ring.

“Hey, what’s up?”

“Hi, Scar. Would you mind if I have Rogan and maybe one or two of his teammates over tonight?”

“Who is this?” she asks, and I laugh. “Seriously, though, what motivated this? You never want anyone at our house.”

“So I have some huge news but please don’t share it with anyone yet.”

“Of course I won’t.”

“Rogan got the starting position.”

“Yes! That’s fantastic. Even more so because it’s Brett he took the job from.”

“Yeah, I agree.” Especially now. “I was thinking I’d grab some balloons on the way home and get some Chinese takeout so we can have a celebratory dinner for him.”

“That’s a great idea.”

“I figured I’d invite a few of his teammates too.”

“Sure. I’m all for other hot football players coming over.”

“Yeah, and you already met Cooper and Griffin at Rogan’s.”

“Yeah, I did. Cooper’s a little young for my taste but he’s fun to talk with.”

“He’s three years younger than you,” I say.

“Exactly.”

I’m not going to try to make sense of her logic.

“I’ll take care of everything, and you’ll just need to be there to help me entertain.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to make this a private celebration?” she asks.

“No. Besides, there’s no reason he and I can’t do that later on tonight.”

“Ooh, you go ride that hot man.”

“I already did.” I smile.

“Woo hoo!” she yells in my ear.

“I’m gonna run. I’ve got a lot to do, especially if I want to get my work done and get out of here on time.”

“Okay. I’ll make sure the house is clean,” she says.

“Thank you. Although, if it’s a mess, wouldn’t that be on you since I’ve barely been home?”

She laughs. “Yep, which is why I offered to take care of it.”

“I’ll see you in a bit. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Hanging up, I place my phone on the desk, and finish up the reels I was making before Rogan started texting me. I schedule a couple of posts for later that night and then shut down my laptop. After what happened today, I’m never staying logged in to anything again.

I pull Cooper’s phone number from the team list my boss provided me, and send him a text inviting him over to celebrate. Then I do the same with Griffin and Thor. There are a few more things I need to take care of and then I’ll be on my way home to get everything ready for tonight.

“So who’s coming over?” Scarlett asks.

“Just Rogan and Cooper. Griffin and Thor both had plans already. But they mentioned getting together some other time to celebrate.”

“It’s too bad they can’t make it.”

“Yeah, but this is a spur-of-the-moment thing, so I get it. But I wanted to do something tonight to mark the occasion.”

“Does he know Cooper is coming over?” she asks.

“No. And I told him not to tell Rogan.” I climb up on a chair. “Can you help me out, please?”

She smiles. “Okay, shorty.” She holds the other end of the congratulations banner up until it’s level, then adds some tape to hold it in place while I do the same to my end.

“Thank you.” I step down off the chair and return it to its home under the table by the window. Glancing around, I look everything over. I think I have everything I need. I bought mylar balloons that say “congratulations” and tied their strings to the back of each barstool. Floating over the coffee table, there are three giant football balloons that are tied together and held down with weighted strings. I purchased a cake at the local bakery that says “Congratulations, Rogan” in green frosting. There are green and white napkins and plates that resemble the football field. And the final touch is the O’Rourke jersey I’m wearing. Before leaving the stadium, I purchased one at the souvenir shop.

Scarlett points at me. “Does that mean you’re going to give me your Moore jersey?”

I laugh. “Yeah, it’s yours. I doubt Rogan’s going to want to see me wearing it again. It’s too bad Griffin can’t be here tonight. You could’ve worn his jersey too.”

“He’s definitely attractive. So big and wild—just how I like them.”

“On second thought, it’s probably good he’s not coming over.”

She snickers. “Probably. Especially since I’m on a self-imposed hiatus from men.”

“You’ve been doing really well with that too.”

“Thanks. It’s actually not that difficult. I give my vibrator a workout every night and then I get to sleep like a starfish in my bed. No missed orgasms and no one hogging my bed either. Life is good.”

I laugh. “How much longer are you planning to stick to this ban on men?”

“I don’t have a concrete date, but I was thinking through the end of December. I can start fresh for the new year.”

“Sounds like a good plan to me.” I hear the sound of a car, and rush over to peer out the front window. “It’s Cooper.” He parked in front of our neighbor’s house just as I instructed. I hurry to open the door and wave him in. “Hey. Thanks for coming. Get in here before he sees you.”

Cooper takes the stairs in a single leap and is inside in a flash. “How’s it going, Autumn?” He leans over to give me a quick hug.

“It’s all good. How are you doing?” I ask.

He smiles at me. “I’ve got no complaints.” His gaze swings across the room to Scarlett as she walks toward us. “Hi, Scarlett.” He grins.

“Hey, Cooper. Have you been practicing your cornhole skills?” she teases.

“No, I haven’t had a chance. My ego is still bruised from the ass kicking you two gave it. You’ll have to warn me ahead of time when you want a rematch so I can practice beforehand.”

She shrugs. “It won’t help. Autumn and I are unbeatable.”

“Don’t challenge him too much. He’s a professional football player,” I warn.

“Yeah, but he catches the ball. He doesn’t throw it,” she says.

“He’s still ridiculously athletic and we’re not,” I point out.

“Thanks for the compliment, Autumn. You’d be surprised how many people think football is easy to play and think they could do it better than we do.”

“I’ve seen how hard you guys work. Your practices are grueling.”

“Oh, poor baby,” Scarlett says, patting his back. “At least you make a gajillion bucks for your effort.”

“I’m on my rookie contract and I went in the second round. I’m not getting the crazy amounts of money you seem to think. Don’t get me wrong, I’m making more than I ever imagined, and I’m grateful for that and don’t take it for granted.”

At that moment, we hear a vehicle pull into the driveway. “Do I need to hide?” Cooper asks.

I laugh. “No, we’re not going that far with the surprise. I think you being here will be enough.”

We stand on the other side of the foyer and wait. When he opens the door, we all shout, “Surprise!”

Rogan freezes in place for a moment, beaming at us before he pushes the door shut. “What’s going on?”

I move forward and he meets me halfway. “We wanted to help you celebrate your promotion.”

He pulls me into his arms, squeezing me tightly. “This is amazing. You three are the best.” He presses a kiss to my lips and smiles. “You’re the best girlfriend in the entire world.”

I step from his arms, and while he’s greeting Scarlett and Cooper, our dinner gets delivered. I carry the two bags of food to the kitchen island and spread out the containers.

“Oh, man, Chinese food. This is going to hit the spot,” Cooper says, rubbing his flat stomach.

Rogan tips his head toward his teammate. “I thought I ate a lot, but this guy puts my efforts to shame. I don’t know where he puts it all.”

“It’s genetic. My whole family is like me,” he says.

“That’s so not fair. Guys have it so easy. Not only do they lose weight easier than women but they get to eat more too,” I say as I put a serving spoon in each container. “Everyone dig in.”

Cooper and Scarlett get busy filling their plates while Rogan sidles up behind me, slipping his arms around my waist. With his lips pressed to my ear, he whispers, “Seeing you in that jersey is doing things to me.” I wiggle my ass against him and his teeth nip my earlobe. “My little Fall. Later, I want to see you in only my jersey.”

I peek over my shoulder at him. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Scarlett nudges Cooper’s arm. “Don’t mind these two lovebirds. I just ignore them.”

“Hey, the longer he pays attention to his girl, the more food I can eat.”

“I heard that,” Rogan says.

“We heard you too, dude,” Cooper says.

I glance at Scarlett and she nods, confirming Rogan wasn’t whispering as softly as we both thought. Now I’m completely embarrassed. I watch as she and Cooper carry their plates over to the table and sit down.

“Don’t worry, Autumn, I’m sure these two have heard worse,” Rogan says.

“Can we change the subject, please? Oh, I know. What happened with the Brett situation?”

“What did that asshole do now?” Scarlett asks. While I scoop rice and lo mein, I fill her in on what transpired this afternoon. She slams her palm on the table. “What a dickhead.” She holds up her fork, visibly clenching her teeth. “I want to stab him in one of his beady little eyes.”

“Good thing he’s not here. I think she might be serious,” Cooper says, noticing the murderous glint in Scarlett’s blue irises.

I laugh. “Oh, she is.”

“After everything he’s put you through, I can’t believe that weasel is still pulling his shit,” she says.

“I don’t think he’ll be messing with either of us again. Coach Chubb got ahold of the footage and it showed him entering your office and coming out of it a few minutes later. Let’s just say, Coach tore him a new asshole, and even better, he fined him ten thousand dollars.”

“Awesome.” Scarlett throws her fist in the air. “Hitting that cheapskate in his wallet is poetic justice.”

“I’m so relieved it all got resolved. I was a little nervous about what would happen when I showed up for work tomorrow.”

“It’s all set. Nothing to worry about,” Rogan assures me.

We settle in at the table with our friends and enjoy the delicious Chinese food. I eat way too much, but I don’t care because calories don’t count when you’re celebrating. When it’s time for cake, we sing a congratulations song to Rogan using the “Happy Birthday” melody and then we dig into the chocolate confection with gusto.

The rest of the night passes much too quickly, as it often does when we’re having fun. Cooper leaves and we say goodnight to Scarlett before heading into my room. Rogan’s barely closed the door when he’s behind me, lips pressed to the side of my neck. “You’ve been driving me crazy all night long wearing this shirt. I can’t explain how much of a turn on seeing my name on you is.” He slips his arms around my waist, walking me forward until my knees come in contact with the side of the mattress. Leaning forward, I brace my palms on the bed and arch my back. Rogan groans. “Fuck. I want you so much.” Tucking his fingertips inside the waistband of my shorts, he drags the black material down my legs and helps me step free of them. His palms skim up the outside of each calf and then along my thighs until he’s able to cup both of my naked ass cheeks. “No underwear, little Fall?”

“I figured why bother when you’d just have to remove them.”

“I like that philosophy. I think you should never wear them again since I plan to remove them every chance I get.”

His hands leaving me, I hear the sounds of him undressing and then he’s leaning into my back, bending me over the side of the bed once more. “I need to be inside you right now.”

“Yes,” I readily agree.

He rubs his cock between my lips, coating himself in the proof of my desire. I feel the head pressing against my entrance before he enters me in one long stroke. An unintelligible sound falls from my lips as he buries himself fully. “Jesus. You feel even better than you did the other night. This might be a hard, fast ride.”

“Do whatever you want with me.”

He grabs my hair, tugging my head back. “Do you want to be my little fuck toy?”

“Yes.”

Groaning, he grips my hips and begins thrusting. “Hang on, baby.”

My hands fisting around the comforter, I hold on as he fucks me like he owns me—which he does. Every time he slams inside me, our skin slaps together, which I find to be oddly erotic. Combine that with our ragged breathing, and it’s unbelievably sexy.

His hips rapidly piston until his orgasm hits. His final strokes slow as he releases inside me. He falls onto my back with a groan. “I’ll never be able to see you in that jersey without thinking of fucking you in it.”

I laugh. “That could be a problem when I wear it to your games. Maybe I should wear Griffin’s jersey instead?”

He playfully growls, “Don’t even fucking think about it.”