Chapter 9
“Coach.” I say as I answer the phone, quietly closing Audrey’s storm door behind me.
I probably didn’t need to come outside to take this call, but I need the fresh air.
I was a split second away from kissing her, simply because she seemed so genuinely compassionate about my seafood allergy, and then she touched my arm. What the fuck is wrong with me?
“I made a bet with Bennett Davenport of the Wolves, and I lost.” Bennett Davenport is Jax’s coach.
While Jax hasn’t had anything truly negative to say about Bennett, he also hasn’t spoken very highly of him either.
Then again, no one except for me seems to be on a first-name basis with Silas Youngstown as he begins his second year as the Coyotes head coach.
“Okay?” I ask, confused. All kinds of bets are made in sports. Usually it’s dumb things like wearing the same underwear for a straight week, or eating a specific thing right before practice. I don’t know why this impacts me.
“We played golf today, and I lost.”
“And if you had won?”
“He’d have to buy me season tickets for the Wolves in one of the suites.”
“And since you lost?”
Silas growls audibly, and I stifle a laugh.
Coach is pretty gruff. Rough around the edges.
He glowers on the sidelines, hates doing post-game interviews, and keeps an incredibly small circle of friends.
In his late forties, he has no idea that there are hundreds of forums and groups based solely on how attractive women think he is.
Or if he does know about them, he keeps that to himself.
About an inch or two taller than me, his salt-and-pepper hair has just enough silver to give him a distinguished quality, and an ever-present five o’clock shadow makes him look even rougher.
“I have to participate in your stupid auction.”
“What?” I shout, loudly laughing.
“We were tied on the ninth hole, and a fucking gust of wind took my ball all the way across the green. Davenport is convinced it was meant to be. I call bullshit.”
“Should have said you had to play eighteen instead of nine holes.”
“We couldn’t. He had something to get to. Or maybe he made it up, because I was ahead the whole damn time.”
“You understand what the auction is, right?” I ask, unable to withhold the smile that is evident in my tone. The women are going to go absolutely nuts for him, and he’ll hate every minute of it.
“I know it’s a date with me. Am I allowed to set the parameters? Like we meet for a thirty minute coffee?”
“Uh, we haven’t decided that yet. I’ll get back to you.” I’m totally going to add a minimum time to the rules now.
“Jamie,” he growls. “I don’t want to fucking do this.”
“I didn’t make the bet, Silas. You did. This is all on you.”
When he doesn’t respond, I check my screen to see the jerk hung up on me. I’m not surprised.
Knocking quietly on Audrey’s storm door, I open it to find her on the floor next to her dog, speaking softly.
I can only imagine what she’s telling Flash.
I bet she’s explaining how the medication works, any side effects Flash might have, and how hopeful she is that Flash regains the use of her legs.
“Hey,” I say quietly. Audrey jolts, rolling over to face me, and I have to force myself not to groan. Spread out on the floor, she looks like a present I wish I could unwrap.
“Everything okay?” she asks as she quickly stands up. Her hair, no longer perfectly coiffed in her bun, makes her look even more perfect. Small tendrils fall against her head in haphazard directions, and I love how she looks approachable and innocent. Stunning.
Mine.
For fuck’s sake. I have got to get a hold of my emotions here.
“Yeah, it was my coach. He lost a bet with the Wolves coach, so now he has to do the bachelor auction,” I tell her, grinning widely.
She gives me a hesitant smile. “And we’re … happy about this?”
“Hell yes, we are! Coach has no idea how feral Denver women are for him. Or if he does know, he never brings it up. But they love him. I think he’ll get the highest number of bids.”
“I still think you’d get the highest number of bids. Certainly the largest amount in winnings.” Audrey looks down at the carpet, and I almost ask what she’s thinking.
“I won’t feel comfortable up there. I puked just coming here, Aud.
I’m likely to spew all over the guests at an event of that magnitude, and I don’t think I can come back from that kind of display.
” Besides, I don’t want to go on a date with just anyone.
Tonight has made me acutely aware of the fact that I want to date her.
“You puked because you were coming here?” she asks quietly.
Shit.
“I thought it was a bug or something,” she reminds me.
I sigh. “It wasn’t. I was nervous. I’m freaked about planning this, and you’re a cool woman, and I’m me. I got in my head.”
Mouth agape, Audrey stares at me. “You — you’re you. And I’m cool? You’re an MVP-winning quarterback, Jamie. If either of us should puke from anxiety, it’s me. I’m not an anxious puker, though. When I have an anxiety attack, I cry, then typically pass out.”
Woah. “You have anxiety?”
Audrey nods. “Someday, I’ll explain the dynamics of my family. Honestly, they probably run in the same circles as you. I bet you’ve at least interacted with my parents once or twice. Ever heard of Charles or Emmanuelle Carrington?”
Why does that last name ring a bell … oh, shit. “Wait. My agent was just talking about your dad trying to marry off his daughter to anyone who will take her. Is that you?”
Audrey winces. “Yep, that’s me.”
“Shit, Aud. I’m sorry. That was incredibly uncouth of me.”
She shakes her head. “Not really. If it’s true, is it still considered to be uncouth? Oh well. It doesn’t matter.”
I hear a whimper, and look down to see Flash struggle to sit up. Audrey immediately crouches down, picking Flash up carefully. “I need to take her out before I can do all her before bedtime care.”
“There’s a whole routine?” I joke awkwardly.
Audrey giggles, making me exhale in relief.
“For now, there is. I clean her wound, make sure she’s clean after urinating and defecating, and give her all her medications.
I kennel her at night, so I put an inflatable donut around her neck so she doesn’t attempt to somehow get at her wound.
She doesn’t very much care for the kennel, so I usually end up falling asleep on the floor as she does. ”
“Impressive. Sounds like Flash has the perfect human mom.”
“I hope she thinks that. I love her so much. And somehow I’ve ended up falling for those fluffy little rodents, too.”
I bark back a laugh as I walk toward the door. “They’re pretty easy to fall for.”
The following day, I’m at spring practice.
Every NFL team has a spring schedule. It is nowhere near as intense as training camp, but it keeps everyone aware of what they need to work on, if they’ve gotten really out of shape, and allows us to spend time with one another.
While I can genuinely say all of these guys are my friends, I have a couple of really good friends on the team. Best friends, even.
“You ready for this, QB?” My most used wide receiver, Maddox Lawson, says as he falls into step beside me. We’re walking into our indoor field, as the outdoor fields are still too icy for us to use.
Colorado loves its sports teams, and they love new state-of-the-art stadiums, practice fields, and everything our players need to stay in tip-top shape.
It never ceases to amaze me that I get to play here.
There are some teams that play in thirty-year-old stadiums, with the owners unwilling to put one extra cent into the team.
The Coyotes are incredibly lucky to be represented by an owner who recognizes the need of high-cost products, and he put his money where his mouth was when he campaigned for our new digs.
Our brand new stadium, with a retractable roof and every technological advancement known to man, came at the bargain price of two billion dollars.
Partially funded by taxpayers, fans expect the most out of us.
It will be an honor to step foot on the turf in a few months when the stadium is fully open.
“Yo. QB. You with me?” Maddox says, slapping me on the back. While we occasionally have pads on for spring practices, it’s rare. Today we’ll be in our practice uniform and pants, with helmets, of course.
“Yeah, I’m ready. Excited to be that much closer to the season starting.”
“You typically fill up the offseason with a lot of charity things, right? And you’re the MC for the animal charity event? I’m hoping the ladies dig the guns,” he boasts, flexing his biceps with a massive grin.
“I’m sure you’ll have no problem getting bids, Mad,” I say with a chuckle.
“Are the bachelors allowed to make requests?”
“Like what?”
Maddox leans toward me conspiratorially. “What’s the age range for women bidding? Are men allowed to bid? What if it’s a couple and they’re hoping for a little group action?”
“Jesus, Mad. You know you don’t have to sleep with them, right?” I rub a hand over my eyebrows.
He bursts into laughter. “It’s too easy to rile you up, QB.
I’m just fucking with you. I have no problem wining and dining an octogenarian widow.
Hell, I’m cool to hang out with a guy who’s just coming out of the closet.
None of that shit bothers me. As long as the charity gets a ton of money, that’s all that matters. ”
“I’m hopeful it will. Also thankful they’re letting me MC instead of being up for auction,” I say with an exaggerated shudder.
Maddox lowers his voice. “You gonna be okay with being on the mic? I know you’ve come a long way since our first years in the league, but this is a different situation.”