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CHAPTER 1

SCARLETT

“ I think football pants are God’s gift to women.”

Autumn gives me a questioning glance. “Why?”

“I mean, look at them.” I wave my hand toward the Silverbacks players on the sidelines. “I’m in tight ass and thick thigh heaven.”

She smiles. “I can think of worse ways to spend a Sunday afternoon.”

“I bet men feel the same when women wear yoga pants,” I add.

“Poor Rogan. I don’t even own a pair,” Autumn says, mentioning her boyfriend who happens to be the team’s quarterback.

“I don’t think he cares what you wear. He’s so ridiculously crazy about you.”

She beams. “He is, isn’t he?”

“Yep. But you deserve it.”

“Aww, you’re sweet to say that. What about you?” She nudges the side of her sneaker against mine.

“What about me?”

“Don’t you deserve a nice guy?”

“I like to think I’ve already kissed enough toads, but just in case I haven’t, I’m gonna stick with my self-imposed dating sabbatical. Life has been much simpler since I began boycotting men six months ago.”

Autumn nods. “I understand that feeling. The two years I spent single changed my life. And then I landed my dream job and met Rogan.”

“Maybe it’ll work out for me too.”

“Investing time in yourself is never a bad thing. Look how well you’re doing, and your podcast has really taken off.”

I flick my hair from my shoulder and grin. “Yeah, it has, hasn’t it.”

She hooks her arm through mine, briefly hugging it close. “I’m not surprised at all.”

“You know you’re the only one besides my grandmother who didn’t think I was crazy when I wanted to do a podcast about professional wrestling.”

Her shoulders twitch with a brief shrug. “Everyone should do what makes them happy. I don’t know why people feel the need to give their opposing opinions on every little thing.”

“Yeah, ‘people’ being my family.” I let out an ironic laugh.

“I bet they see the error of their ways now, though.”

“Don’t be too sure. Even though I’m making more money than I’d hoped, it’s nothing compared to the money my family’s business generates.”

“None of that matters. You’re a grown woman who supports herself.”

I give a sharp nod. “Damn right I am.”

Staring down at the field, Autumn wraps an arm across her stomach. “Oh God. Here we go.” The head referee blows his whistle, and the opposing team kicks off, starting the game. The kick returner runs the ball back and is brought down just shy of the thirty yard line.

I pat her jiggling leg. “Relax. It’s only the second game of the season.”

“I know, but I want them to win.”

“Rogan’s behind center now, so all is well.” He was recently promoted from backup to starting quarterback.

She clasps her hands together in her lap. “Yeah, but that makes me more nervous because I don’t want him to be upset if they lose.”

“The game’s just starting, so let’s watch instead of worrying about what might happen,” I suggest.

“You’re right.”

On the play, Rogan hands the ball off to the running back for a gain of eight yards. I’m expecting them to run the ball again on second down but he drops back and throws a bomb.

“Oh.” Autumn panics, grabbing my hand and squeezing. Her grip tightens as the ball sails through the air, all the way down to the twenty yard line where the tight end, Cooper Grind, breaks free from his defender to make a one-handed catch. And best of all, he runs all the way to the end zone unchallenged.

Autumn’s hold on me disappears as we jump to our feet, along with the rest of the Silverbacks fans in the stands. The roar of the crowd’s approval is deafening as I watch Cooper and his teammates celebrate.

“That was amazing,” Autumn screams, her green eyes shining with excitement.

“It was. Your man did good.”

“He did, and Cooper was a beast shaking off that defender,” she adds.

“I agree. Was that Cooper’s first touchdown?”

“No, he got one last week.”

I find myself feeling regretful that I couldn’t watch the first game of the season. Cooper is one of the rookies on the team. With Rogan and Autumn’s blossoming romance, he and I have gotten to know each other after all of us hanging out together several times. He’s genuinely nice and easy to talk with.

“A touchdown in each of the first two games. That’s quite an accomplishment for a rookie,” I note.

“I bet by the end of this game it’ll be more,” she shouts over the crowd noise all around us.

We silently watch and then cheer as our kicker successfully gets the extra point. “They’re off to an amazing start,” I say.

Autumn nods. “That was Rogan’s biggest concern. He wanted to make sure they came out and got points on the board in their first possession.”

“Well, mission accomplished.” Tipping my head back, I close my eyes for a few seconds, enjoying the sun’s warm rays on my face.

It’s a beautiful September day in Virginia. With the temperature in the mid-seventies, it’s not too humid or too hot. But I’m looking forward to the official arrival of fall, which is my favorite season.

The opposing team manages to score a field goal on their drive, but the Silverbacks come right back and score another touchdown. This time it’s Griffin Moore, the wide receiver, who catches the ball in the end zone.

By the time the end of the game rolls around, the final score is 42-13, with our team on top. And Cooper got two touchdowns.

With the Silverbacks in the lead from the start, it wasn’t the most exciting game I’ve seen. But sometimes it’s nice to have an easier win.

My best friend and I remain seated as the other fans file down the aisles and out of the stadium. Autumn’s busy staring at her phone while she posts on the Silverbacks pages. She became the team’s social media manager a few months ago, and she’s been kicking butt at it ever since.

“I’m done,” she announces, rising. She tucks her cell phone in her back pocket and claps her hands. “Let’s get out of here. Rogan said they’d meet us at the restaurant.”

“They?” I say, standing.

“Yeah, I’m assuming some of his teammates are coming too. When they win, they like to celebrate. You know, all that male bonding stuff is important to them.”

I frown. “Are you sure it’s okay if I’m there? I don’t want to intrude.”

“Why wouldn’t it be okay?”

“You’re Rogan’s girlfriend, so you have a reason to be there. I’m just tagging along.”

She narrows her eyes at me. “You’re Rogan’s friend too. Now, come on, Scar. No more arguing.”

The hostess leads us to a table at the back of the restaurant. Autumn and I settle into seats across from each other. “What’s the plan?” I ask.

Autumn hands me one of the menus. “They shouldn’t be far behind us. Rogan texted me what they all want.”

Since this is a fairly new restaurant and I haven’t been here before, I take a few minutes to peruse what they offer. The waitress comes over, setting waters down in front of us. I close my menu, and Autumn explains we’re ordering for a group of people. Reading from her phone, she rattles off an endless number of items before I finally cap the order with a cheeseburger and fries. We watch the waitress hurry off before we glance at each other.

“I bet she’s wondering how all that food is gonna get eaten,” I say.

“Yeah, considering it’s enough to feed every person in here.” Autumn’s face lights up, and she lifts her hand, waving it around over her head. “They’re here.”

I cast a look over my shoulder and see Rogan leading the way, much like he does on the football field. I catch a glimpse of Cooper as they draw nearer, and he smiles when he notices me.

Rogan walks over to Autumn and presses a kiss to her upturned lips before he sits to her right, at the end of the table.

Cooper takes the seat next to me. “Hey, Scarlett.”

I smile and nudge his arm. “Hey, Coop.”

Griffin sits next to Cooper, and Thor drops down into the open chair next to Autumn. He’s so tall and his shoulders are so wide, he looks comically large next to my best friend.

“Congratulations. You guys played great,” Autumn says.

“Yeah, that was impressive,” I add. “Rogan, you look so comfortable out there, it’s hard to believe it’s only your second game as the starter.”

He grins. “Thanks. To be honest, it felt fucking amazing.”

Autumn caresses his forearm and they share a loving look. Seeing her so happy makes my chest pang with gratitude. She deserves someone to appreciate her the way Rogan does. Especially after what her asshole ex-boyfriend put her through.

The waitress comes over to take their drink orders.

“What do you want?” Cooper asks me.

“I’ve got water.”

“Come on, we won. You need to have a celebratory drink with us.” His grin is endearingly crooked, and before I know it, I find myself nodding.

“I’ll take a Kahlúa and cream.” I rode with Autumn, so it won’t hurt for me to have a cocktail or two.

He passes my order on to the waitress, then turns back toward me. “Did you enjoy the game?”

“I did. But your touchdown celebration needs some work.”

His dark blond brows pinch together. “You think?”

I laugh. “No, I’m messing with you.”

His expression relaxes and he shakes his head. “I thought you were serious.”

“Not at all. I actually liked that you didn’t do some silly dance.”

“It’s not really my style.”

“Yeah, I can see that.”

“It’s not about the flash; the substance and level of my play and helping my team succeed are what matter most to me.”

“Have you rehearsed that answer?” I ask, teasing him. “You know you’re not at the podium doing a post-game interview right now, right?”

He makes an obvious show of looking around as if he’s confused. “I’m not?”

I shake my head. “Nope. And I’m great at keeping secrets.”

He leans closer. “The real reason for my lack of celebration in the end zone is because I can’t dance.”

I can’t tell if he’s serious. “Are you joking?”

One side of his mouth quirks. “What do you think?”

“I’m not sure.” I study his face for a clue but there isn’t one. “You move naturally, but I guess being a good athlete isn’t necessarily synonymous with being a good dancer.”

“Sounds like you’ve been watching me, Scar. And now you’re here. Are you stalking me?” He winks, and I’m thrown by how sexy it is.

I crook my finger, calling him closer as I lean over and whisper in his ear. “You wish.”

The waitress returns with our drinks. As soon as she places them down, two more servers show up delivering the food we ordered, which barely leaves any free space on the table.

I sip on my beverage while I watch the guys pile ungodly amounts on their plates. The Kahlúa packs the perfect punch and tastes so good, I’m tempted to suck it right down.

“Goddamn, that’s good,” Thor says, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

Griffin leans forward to see around Cooper, and his gaze touches on me and then Autumn. “Ladies, thank you for ordering for us. We usually have to wait for the food to show up.”

“No problem,” Autumn says.

“We need to hook you into doing this every week we have a home game,” Thor says.

Rogan nods his agreement. “That works since I plan on her being at every game.”

“Do I get a say in this?” Autumn asks.

Rogan smirks. “When don’t you?”

I love seeing my friend stand up for herself. She hasn’t always been that way.

Conversation halts as everyone gets down to the business of devouring the food. I try to focus on enjoying my cheeseburger and fries while no fewer than ten women come by the table to tell the guys how well they played.

Cooper seems to be a fan favorite. He politely rebuffs their attempts and sends them on their way, or at least he does until one particularly aggressive woman doesn’t want to leave. She stands beside his chair, placing her large boobs at his eye level, then runs her fingers through his hair. Cooper opens and closes his mouth, as if he’s not sure what to say, while his teammates grin at his discomfort.

I reach out, grip his chin, and turn his face toward me, dislodging the woman’s hand. “Honey, you need to eat up. We have a long night ahead of us.”

His eyes momentarily widen and then a slow smile spreads across his lips. He wraps his arms around me, drawing me closer. “Baby, thanks for the reminder.”

I glance at the overeager fan and she holds both hands up. “Sorry. I didn’t realize he had a girlfriend.” She scurries away and I release Cooper’s face. His arms drop and I rub my hands together. “That was easy enough.”

Autumn claps. “Well done.”

I lean forward in a slight bow. “Thank you.”

Cooper smiles. “Thanks for saving me.”

I shrug. “She didn’t seem to know how to read the room.”

“I thought she was going to climb in my lap.”

“Or smother you with her boobs,” I say, laughing.

“Right?”

“Hell yeah!” Thor pumps his fist. “Death by titties. What a way to go.”

Everyone laughs.

“Will you smother me with your tits later?” Rogans asks Autumn.

Her cheeks turn a vibrant shade of pink and her eyes bulge as she looks at him. “Rogan, hush.” As scolding as her tone may be, Rogan just chuckles.

“Don’t be shy, Autumn. There’s no subject off-limits with us,” Griffin explains.

I nudge Cooper’s leg with mine and his focus turns to me. “Does all the female attention bother you?”

“It depends on the situation. When it’s a fan wanting an autograph or a photo, I don’t mind. But I really dislike when it gets awkward because they’re so persistent.”

“I’d just tell them to get the fuck off me.”

He shakes his head. “I can’t say that. If I did, it would spread like wildfire all over social media, and I’d be labeled as an asshole or something even worse.”

“I didn’t think about that. But what’s to stop someone from embellishing their interaction with you anyway?”

“Nothing. But I like to think most of the fans are good people who wouldn’t do that.”

“I guess I’ve never given much thought to how worrisome that could be. You have to carefully measure every single word that comes out of your mouth. Boy, I’d suck at that.” I laugh.

He smiles. “Yeah, but I think it’s easier to forgive a beautiful woman who’s misspoken than a man who has”

I scoff. “Men might forgive women easier but women can be brutal with their own sex.”

“I’m certainly not an expert on women or what they do, so I’ll take your word for it.”

“You should, because you know I’m bluntly honest.”

“I like that about you.”

I cock my head, studying his face. “Really?”

“Yes. It’s refreshing to not have to wonder what you’re thinking.”

I laugh. “You know I’ll flat out tell you.”

He nods. “But I think that’s a positive.”

“I’ll remind you of this conversation when my honesty pisses you off sometime.”

He shakes his head. “I doubt that will happen.”

I give him a skeptical glance. He hasn’t known me long enough to have learned my history. My experiences have taught me that many guys don’t like an outspoken woman. Or at least the ones I’ve dated haven’t.

“Why don’t you pretend you have a girlfriend?”

“I doubt anyone would believe it since I’ve never been seen out with any women.” He takes a sip of his beer and licks his lips. “I’m kind of surprised you don’t have a boyfriend.”

“Maybe I like women.”

He nods. “Fair enough. Do you have a girlfriend, then?”

“Nope. And so you know, I’m a purely penis-loving woman. However, for the past six months I’ve been taking a break from dating to focus on myself.”

“How’s it been going for you?”

“Honestly, it’s been pretty great. I may never date again. My life is so much less complicated when I’m single. What about you?”

“I’m a rookie on the team, so this is a make-it-or-break-it year for me. I can’t afford any distractions, and my schedule is crazy anyway.”

Picking up my glass, I point my chin toward his beer and say, “Let’s toast.” His large hand wraps around the bottle and he raises it. “To being single and focusing on our careers,” I say. He clinks against my glass and then we both drink.

It’s kind of comforting knowing I’m not the only one who’s happy alone.