Page 3

Chapter three

Landon

ESPN notification – Here’s why, after only one preseason game, Colton Beaumont and his Sabertooths have proven they have what it takes for another championship run.

Bay Area News 5 – Landon Beaumont spotted leaving nightclub with Savannah Blake and two other women after Blake’s birthday bash.

Landon tossed the used condom into the little trash can tucked into the back of his bathroom closet. Even after a year of hooking up with Raegan, he didn’t trust her enough to stop ensuring it was properly discarded. It’s what he did with everyone to make sure there were no little Beaumonts running around.

At least none of his.

He frowned when he returned to his bedroom and she was still under his sheets, auburn hair spilling across his pillow and the belt that had restrained her wrists wrapped around her fist.

Despite the shadows, he thought her eyes lit up as he came to stand at the foot of the bed.

Landon didn’t know what to say. Sure, he liked Raegan for many reasons, not the least of which was that he felt comfortable exploring the things he couldn’t with a one-night stand. Being with her was easy. When he called, she came running, ready and willing to do anything and everything.

He also liked her because she usually knew when it was time to get going. Landon wasn’t exactly a cuddly, let’s-fall-asleep-together person. He liked his space, especially before an early practice.

Plus, allowing anything more introduced the possibility of one-sided feelings from the women he slept with, and he couldn’t think of anything worse.

“I was thinking…”

Damn. Everything he had liked about her went out the window. I was thinking was always a recipe for disaster. Now he was going to have to find someone new, and that would be a hassle, especially with preseason in full swing.

Landon shook his head, and she pulled the covers over her shoulders another inch, like a shield against his answer.

“I could stay. I’m here so often anyway.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

Her lips twisted into a frown, as if she’d expected that things would suddenly change between them. As if he hadn’t made things abundantly clear.

“Should I plan to come over after the game on Saturday?”

It was their first home game, so theoretically, she could, but he wasn’t sure seeing Raegan again was a good idea. “Not sure. I’ll let you know.”

“Next week?”

“Look, Raegan. You’re great and we have a great time, but I think you’re getting this a bit twisted.” Landon bent down and grabbed her clothes off the ground, setting them onto the bed beside her. “If I’m interested in fucking again, I’ll call.” The words felt harsh as they left him, but he needed her to get the message.

Ignoring the clothes, she slid up, her back against his headboard and her tits exposed. “I wouldn’t care if you hooked up with other girls. I don’t mind that. But I’m obviously the one you want to be with the most. What’s so wrong with being here more? And staying the night sometimes?”

What was so wrong with it was that it would inevitably lead to something akin to a relationship, and despite all she said about not caring that he hooked up with others, Landon knew there was no way it would end well.

He pointed around the room to where most of his things sat in boxes. “Now’s not a good time. I’m moving to another building, but I’ll give you a call when things settle down.”

Raegan held eye contact for a few seconds before she nodded, stepping out of the bed and into her clothes. Landon moved out of her way when she approached him, dropping his eyes to the floor. He tried not to flinch when she set a hand on his bare chest, and then she was gone, the sound of his private elevator the only noise in the dark penthouse.

A voice in his head called him an asshole, but he preferred it to the alternative.

Landon took a couple of minutes to clean himself and his room up before he went into the kitchen to make a quick dinner, turning on the TV as he tossed on an apron and began chopping vegetables. It was a shame his landlord was moving back, because he loved this kitchen.

The rhythmic sound of the knife hitting the cutting board and the smell of garlic sautéing in a pan grounded him in a way that nothing but cooking ever did. His mother had taught him before she had passed—the one thing they’d done together as he’d grown up. Every free second outside of school had been spent trying to prove to his father that he could be as successful on the field as his brother, but in the few moments after getting home, when his mother would show him how to make his favorite meals, he hadn’t had to prove anything to anyone.

He could just exist, enjoying the same rhythmic sound of the knife hitting the cutting board.

Now that she was gone, it was the thing that made him feel closest to her. Not even the two tattoos he’d gotten in honor of her—the sparrow on his hand with the words to the moon and back underneath and the butterfly over his heart with her birthday—gave him that same feeling.

The low hum of commercials turned to a local broadcast, and when Landon looked up, his face was plastered on the screen. He set down the knife, wiping his hands off on his apron before turning up the volume.

“Sentinels fans will get a kick out of this one.” The woman reporting laughed. “San Jose Sentinels tight end Landon Beaumont was spotted Monday evening at Savannah Blake’s birthday bash. Blake, whose latest album has topped charts for the last fifteen weeks, had a real assortment of people entering and leaving her party, but this is not the first time Beaumont and Blake have been spotted together. John, do we think this is the start of something?”

Landon scoffed, moving his chopped carrots to one side of the board and starting on an onion. Savannah had planned for her California tour dates to coincide with her birthday so all her closest friends could celebrate with her, Landon included.

“Well, by these pictures of them leaving the party looking very happy, I’d say they enjoyed each other and more .” The screen shifted to a picture of Landon walking out of the club Savannah had rented out with her wrapped in one of his arms. Beside them were two more women, arm in arm.

Landon chuckled. If only they knew that two of the three women had gone home together without him. What looked like the beginnings of a sordid orgy had been a cleverly disguised way of smuggling Savannah and her secret girlfriend out of the party.

Clearly, it had worked since these poor excuses for journalists were talking about it. Either way, he didn’t mind the attention. Kind of liked it, even.

Plus, the pretty blonde beside Savannah’s girlfriend had come home with him, and the sex had been as good as any other. She’d left as soon as it had been over—a perk of hooking up with Savannah’s friends, who were all famous in their own right, or at the very least, knew how to act around celebrities.

Landon worked on his fried rice as they dissected the photo. Right as he turned down the heat of the burner, he heard the man say, “Speaking of football and Beaumonts, early predictions point to the Sabertooths winning the championship again this year. Headed by who some might call the league’s greatest of all time, Colton Beaumont, the Sabertooths have won three times in the last five years, and after their first preseason win this weekend, they’re looking like they could make it four.”

Landon ground his teeth, turning the heat all the way off and smashing the power button on his remote.

Just what he needed. A reminder that no matter what he did, it would never be enough to outshine the league’s greatest.

Landon yanked his helmet off as the final whistle blew on their second preseason game Saturday evening, pulling the nearest Denver player into a handshake and mumbling, “Good game.”

Preseason games didn’t count for much, but Landon had played a good one, and with the constant collapse of Denver’s pocket, it had been an easy win. Even better, that win had come at home, which meant he could shower, do some media, get treatment for his aching muscles, and go straight to bed.

His whole body hurt from the second hit he had taken in the red zone late in the first quarter, but he forced a smile as he rode the sportsmanship train. When a reporter approached him—after talking to Ray Landers and Myles Young, the Sentinels’ head coach and quarterback—Landon smiled charmingly at her, ready to answer her template questions. He recognized her, had probably hooked up with her once or twice, but her name eluded him.

“Landon, great game. I know this is only preseason, but you looked good out there. Can we expect some big plays from you and Myles this season?”

“Today was defense’s day. They did a great job, got a lot of stops. We always hope for big plays, and we’re, of course, hoping to improve our stats this season. Playoffs were good to us last year, but I think we have a shot at a conference final and championship.” Landon wasn’t sure he was sticking to the script anymore, but hopefully the bullshit he spouted would be enough to keep his agent and the Sentinels’ PR team off his back.

“Speaking of championships, your brother is at the helm of a strong Sabertooths team. They won their second preseason game too and are looking for another ring. How does that make you feel?”

Landon took in the woman’s short brown hair, her shoulders squared, head held high, and her face scrunched as she held the microphone in front of him.

He could’ve told her that it made him feel like shit to constantly have everything come back to Colton. He could’ve told her that he was tired of playing the game and getting nothing from it because nothing he did was good enough, not for anyone . He could’ve told her that, like a child, his feelings were hurt that his family was usually across the country at a Sabertooths game, when he played just as often. That no one ever thought to come to his games except for the few times his sister was already in Los Angeles for work and flew up.

He could’ve said all of that, but instead, he forced that charming smile he was known for wider and winked at her. “I love a good competition. Would the league be as fun without some sibling rivalry?”

She laughed, though it was clear it wasn’t the answer she’d been looking for from the way her eyebrows stayed scrunched. “Thanks, Landon. Good game, and good luck next weekend.”

“Thanks.”

He jogged off the field and toward the locker room, showering and rushing through a brief press conference with more of the same questions. While one of the team trainers massaged his muscles, Landon finally checked his phone. Maya, his sister, had congratulated him on his win. When he scrolled down, he saw the one message from his father.

His eyes scanned the number over and over again, though he knew what it meant. He didn’t need to check to see the number of receiving yards he’d gotten, but he knew if he did, it would read the same. Landon let out a bitter chuckle.

His father couldn’t even give him a single word. Just a number, which, for a preseason game, wasn’t that bad. The disappointment was clear, as it had always been. Landon was sure Colton hadn’t gotten one of these.

When he’d been a kid, nothing he did mattered and it didn’t matter now, not when Colton had three championship wins to his name.

“I’m good, thank you,” he said to the trainer, who nodded and walked to one of his teammates. Landon grabbed his dress shirt, buttoning it until he reached his diamond curb link chain and running a hand through his damp hair a couple of times.

He might not have been the best player in the league or even in his family, but damn did the media love him, and the least he could do was give them something to talk about. Screw an early night.

Wondering where his closest friend had gone, he shot him a quick text.

Landon

Are you still around?

Ikaika

Nah. Finished treatment while you were doing media and am headed to my aunt’s house.

Landon groaned. Running backs took far more hits than tight ends, so the Sentinels had decided not to play Ikaika in the preseason to keep him healthy. It made sense that he’d left so much earlier.

He thumbs-upped the message, then dialed Savannah’s number. He knew she didn’t have an event today, but it was unlikely she’d answer, so when she did, he was surprised. “Lando boy, what’s up?”

“Hey, Sav. You, me, a bunch of hot women, and a ton of booze. Tonight. Even better if it’s somewhere paps will be.”

She chuckled. “I love the way you think.”

Once again, Landon ended the evening with a woman whose name he couldn’t remember and woke Sunday morning with a killer hangover.

It was a better feeling than the emptiness in his chest.