Page 2 of Kicked in the Heart
Rocky rolled her eyes. “No, Mom, just the opposite. I’m going to be playing for the Indianapolis Legends starting next week.”
With a heavy sigh her mother asked, “Are you sure that’s what you want to do?”
“Mom…”
“I mean, what man is going to want a kicker as a wife?”
Seriously, her mom was stuck back in the fifties. “Mom, there’s more to life than being a wife and mother. I want my own career.”
“But a football player? How about being a cheerleader instead? I’m sure you’d be good at that.”
Mom, I’m not going to argue about this with you. I thought maybe for once you’d just be happy for me.” She took a deep breath to calm herself. “But, I guess that’s not going to happen, at least not today. Love you, Mom. I’ll call you next week.” She hit end before her mother could try to guilt-trip her into turning down the offer.
She closed her eyes and sighed. At least that was done, now she could concentrate on getting ready for her first practice in a couple of days. She’d done it. She was a professional football player.
Chapter Two
Butch
Brandon Sutton sped into the parking lot, pulled into a spot and stopped with a squeal of tires. If he was late for practice again Coach was going to nail his balls to the wall. Last night’s beer with the guys had turned into an almost all-night booze fest and he was feeling it this morning with a hangover that felt like it would kill him. He prayed the aspirin he’d taken as he ran out the door of his apartment would kick in soon and tamp down the headache to a tolerable level. Rubbing his temple, he hurried past the news vans parked near the press entrance. Why were they making such a big deal about the Legends getting a new kicker?
Slipping into the team meeting room and taking a seat in the back, he hoped Coach hadn't noticed his late arrival.
Nicknamed “The Butcher” by the media after a particularly brutal tackle in his rookie year the name stuck and now everyone just called him Butch, even his family.
“Glad you decided to join us, Butch,” the coach said without missing a beat. “As I was saying, Mark will be out the rest ofthe season, so the team did an open call. Our new kicker, Rocky Masterson, will be joining practice after the press conference. Let’s help them get ready for the game against Chicago this Saturday.”
Butch wondered why they were making such a big deal about replacing their kicker. His teammates whispered among themselves, smiling. Maybe they knew who this guy was. He hadn’t heard of any kickers named Masterson.
The locker room buzzed with speculation as they geared up for practice. Trey Conners, a receiver and Butch’s best friend, slammed his locker closed and picked up his helmet. “Any idea who this Rocky guy is?”
Butch shrugged. “Never heard of him.”
“You’re not curious?” Trey asked as they walked toward the door.
“I’m paid to block for whoever it is. Makes no difference to me. I just hope he can keep it between the uprights.”
Butch shielded his eyes from the sun and looked out over the practice field, searching for an unfamiliar face. Despite all the chatter in the locker room, he still had no idea who Rocky Masterson was, he’d never heard of him. Maybe he’d played on a foreign league?
“Butch, you gonna join us?” Coach yelled from the sideline.
“Yeah, Coach,” he yelled back, grateful the aspirin had dulled his headache a bit.
He noticed a woman walking toward him from the tunnel with a workout bag slung over her shoulder. She was gorgeous, with a beautiful face, a body with the kind of curves he liked, and honey-blonde hair.
“You looking for the cheerleader practice?” he asked with a smirk, she obviously hoped to meet some of the players.
“What?”
“The cheerleaders are practicing in the auditorium today, beautiful. If you turn left inside the doors…”
“I’m not a cheerleader,” she said indignantly as she crossed her arms and glared at him.
“Oh, media then? That’s even better, there’s no rule against dating the media. They’re probably setting up in the media center.”
“I’m not with the media, I’m…”
“You busy tonight?” he asked, interrupting her.