Page 8 of Rushing Her: Seattle, Westerners (Gridiron Warriors #2)

He pushes me to deal with the folder. I flick it open and find pictures of me and Alexandra exploring our sexuality.

She was tied to a piece of equipment in the team’s equipment shed as if it were a St. Andrews cross.

We were indecent on campus property; we both could have been punished, or worse, expelled.

Her face is clear to see, and most people would have guessed it was me.

My newly bald head rested against her naked shoulder as I held her.

It was her fantasy. One I’ve thought of repeatedly through the years.

She awakened a beast in me that night, and since then, I have struggled to find a satisfying sex life that is on the vanilla side.

Until she came back to me last night. Now, she’s mine, and we will walk this line no matter what.

I stumble back and find my ass planted on a bench at their picnic table. She broke it off to protect me. She sacrificed everything for me.

“Now you see why she’s stayed away. As you both got more famous, this would have come out and blown up her life just as much as yours.”

“People are more progressive now,” I correct him.

“Are they?” He cocks his head to the side and raises a brow.

He’s right, people say they are, but most are still bigots and prudes. Behind closed doors, they’d give the woman they desire her fantasy, no matter what, but in the public eye, they’d never dream of anyone finding out that they would tie up a woman.

“I could have spun this to appear as though you forced her; I didn’t.

I just kept the pictures and deleted the camera footage.

Those are the only copies. She’s been protecting you since then.

That’s why she would never take you on as a client.

Well, that, and she has scruples. She’s good.

But when I did that. When she cut it off with you, it broke something inside you.

You haven’t played the same since. It’s time to fix that, Brayden.

Be the player you were always meant to be.

Not this arrogant asshole.” He waves his hand up and down at me.

Leaning toward him, I growl, “You created this monster. Look at it one last time, and don’t ever contact me again.”

Storming out of his house, I need to get away from him. Mildred yells for me, but I don’t care. My tires squeal while peeling out of their neighborhood, and I hit the freeway home.

T hree hours later, my G-Wagon sits in front of my house on Washington Lake in the exclusive Laurelhurst neighborhood.

The folder lies on the seat beside me, taunting me.

The proof that my life was fucked over because a man thought he was doing me a favor; that the woman I despised for so long broke my heart because she truly loved me.

Time to fix this messed-up situation. I grab the folder and unfold from the seat as I stroll up the front walkway toward the bridge that spans the open space below, leading to the front door of my house.

I called ahead and told my housekeeper and the dog sitter that I was on my way home.

So, I’m greeted by all three of my dogs.

“Hello, boys and girl.” I chuckle as Teal’C jumps up on me.

“Down boy,” I order the just over one-year-old Boston Terrier.

He growls as he rushes off back through the house.

The dog is good, but he’s lucky he made it to this age.

He chewed up a pair of my cleats from my first year of college.

They were a good luck charm, and still are, but don’t look as nice as they did before he came into my house.

I lean down to pat the head of my old guy.

Alfred has been with me for ten years, and I pray he’ll always be here, but after growing up on a ranch and seeing animals have to be put down as they age, I know he won’t be around forever.

The English Bulldog already moves around slowly.

I got him as a puppy and had to name him after my favorite English comic book character, Alfred Pennyworth—Batman’s butler.

Then there’s my girl, Helena, named after my hometown. She’s a Staffordshire Bulldog. I had to pay the homeowner’s association an extra fee when buying my house five years ago because she looks like a Pitbull, and they are prejudiced against them.

Walking through to the great room past the center fireplace, my view of Mt. Rainier is breathtaking—the lake bustles with people enjoying the day. After taking a moment to soak it all in, I move on toward the entrance of the primary suite to change into a pair of shorts and a Batman t-shirt.

Practice comes early tomorrow morning, but I intend to go see Alexandra. Oh , that reminds me; I never rechecked my phone after leaving Coach’s house. Doing so now, I see the messages from her safety team.

Immediately, I dial her head of security’s number. “What’s up, Warner?”

“She got home before five this morning. She was followed from the private airstrip to her home. We got the plate number, but it’s a rental. We can’t get any more information.”

“I’ll take care of it. Is she safe?”

“She’s just staying in her apartment. Hasn’t come out. When I saw her at the airport after the Portland team informed me she was heading back, she had on dark shades to block her eyes. I’ll send pictures.”

“Thank you. Let me know if there is any change.”

“I will, sir.”

That woman is one of the best at close-proximity protection. My agent wants her to guard me, but I told him it was none of his business; she was staying on Alexandra.

I walk out to the garden and slip in an earbud as I dial the next number.

“What the hell do you want, player? You decided to take me up on the offer to coach at Ramsey after you retire?”

While outside, I begin checking on all the flower beds and trees, and I chuckle at his joke. “I’m a Duck through and through; you know that. Never going to coach for you.” The lawn care guys came just last week to mow the grass, so I water the plants that are drying out in the heat.

“Damn, how rude. What do you want, then?” Thor chuckles.

“Need you or your lovely wife to run a check for me. I’ll forward over Warner’s report.”

“Don’t you be calling my wife lovely, asshole. I’ll break your neck.”

“Tell Briar I said hey.” Egging him on is a lot of fun.

“One of these days, fucker, you’re going to fall, and I’ll flip the script.” Briar is in the background telling him to watch his mouth, and I laugh harder.

“This is for my girl. She’s being followed.” He went through similar shit with his wife before they got married.

“On it. Briar and I will see what we can do. Dinner soon.”

“It’s season, so it’ll be hard, but I’ll try to make time.”

“Are you retiring?”

“Haven’t completely decided.” A thought rolls through my mind. “I have something else for you. I was given an old file, and I need to make sure that the images are not backed up anywhere else. Can I drop them off with you tomorrow? You are going into the office?”

“I’m thinking about it. Briar wants to know if you’ll cut us a break on the private box.” He’s the one laughing now.

“I have nothing to say about that.”

“Fine,” I hear Briar say. “See you soon, Bray.” She laughs, and I tell her the same.

“I’ll see you tomorrow at the office,” Thor cuts into our banter. “I’ll be downtown.”

“I have to make a stop downtown after practice.”

“Okay.”

With that taken care of, I finish my chores before going inside to fix an early dinner and head to bed.