Chapter 2
LINCOLN
My hair and shirt are dry by the time I watch Parker march across the huge room the team owner booked for tonight’s party.
I was expecting her to disappear when Casey, Kodie, and Sutton left. But she surprised me by hanging back and continuing dancing with Reese and a few of the other wives and girlfriends.
“We should head out,” Killer says beside me.
The single guys and I planned to head to a club and continue the party.
I was buzzing for it earlier in the night, but now…not so much. I can’t put my finger on why, but I fear it might have something to do with the redhead currently making her way to the exit.
Invite her, a little voice says in my head.
A laugh bubbles up at the thought. I haven’t spoken to her since she was about five seconds away from causing me physical harm earlier.
I shouldn’t do it. I shouldn’t rile her up any more than she already is, but I can’t help it.
The sight of her eyes flaring with irritation, knowing that I’m getting a reaction out of her, is just too much to deny.
Sadly, Casey dragged her away earlier before I could discover what ideas were playing out in that pretty little head of hers.
Dragging my hand down my face, my skin still slightly sticky from the drink that ran down it earlier, I make a rash decision.
“I’m gonna call it a night,” I tell the guys. “See you at practice.” I push to my feet and march away before anyone has a chance to question me.
I’m never first to leave the party, especially on a night with as much to celebrate as New Year’s.
I follow Parker out, keeping my distance so she doesn’t realize who’s behind her.
When she gets into the elevator, I hit the stairs.
The two drinks I allowed myself earlier in the night have long worn off. I can’t say the same for Parker, though. I’ve watched her movements on the dance floor become more and more erratic.
She’s wasted and is apparently going to go stumbling out onto the street where she could be picked up by anyone.
Yeah…I don’t think so.
The elevator is still descending when I hit the ground floor, my heart racing with exertion.
I wait in the shadows for the elevator doors to open, allowing her to spill out.
The second they do, and she stumbles forward in her skinny jeans, sequined tank, and heels, a smirk curls at my lips.
Parker Donnelly is hot. And while she might know she’s attractive, I don’t think she understands the half of it.
She has every single man in her orbit under her spell, and she has no idea.
The excitement that rolled through the dressing room when news got out that she’s going to be our assistant athletic trainer was something I’ll never forget.
And what happened next probably taught a number of my teammates a lesson they’ll never forget, too.
I crack my knuckles, remembering how it felt to slam my fist into Marcus Sutherland’s jaw when he made a comment he instantly regretted about our new colleague.
I’m pretty sure everyone thought it was because Parker is my best friend’s little sister, and of course, that’s a part of why I’m protective of her.
But I’d have done the same for any woman in our world.
Hell, in any fucking world. I can only imagine how fucking hard it’s going to be for Parker to walk into the arena, and the training room, in a few days.
She’s the only woman on staff. The last thing she needs is our fourth-line winger shooting his mouth about her abilities to help us relax after a game.
As far as the team should be concerned, she’s no different to Jarad or Dillion, our other trainers.
Funnily enough, I haven’t heard a single word said about her from Sutherland since. Maybe he isn’t such a stupid motherfucker after all.
I’m not naive though. His opinion will only be the first of many.
I fucking hate how hard Parker is going to have to work to prove herself just because she’s a woman.
It’s fucking wrong, and I’ll stand up for her and any woman who is following their dream and trying to break into a male-dominated career.
The second she steps onto the sidewalk, her arms lift in a pathetic attempt to cover herself from the rain.
She looks up and down the street as if she’s looking for her Uber, sighing in defeat when she doesn’t see it.
Pushing my hand into my pocket, I pull my keys free and march forward, ready to make my presence known.
I’m aware that this could be an even worse idea than kissing her at midnight, but apparently, I’m a glutton for punishment.
“Come on,” I say, stepping up behind her, the raindrops hitting my face. She tenses at the sound of my voice. “I’ll drop you home.”
“I’m waiting for my lift,” she almost shouts so she can be heard over the rain.
“And I’m right here, and my car is right…there,” I say as I press the unlock button, watching as the light illuminates the street a few cars down.
“I’m fine. Thank you.”
“Parker.” I sigh. “It’s raining, and you’re wasted. Let me just get you home safe.”
“Who says I’m going home?” she taunts, finally turning to look at me. “Maybe I’m going to my boyfriend’s house.”
The word hits me harder than it should.
Parker has dated a few guys over the last couple of years, but none of them have lasted. There are only two that I know of who’ve hung around long enough to earn the term “boyfriend,” but both of them fucked up and lost what was undoubtedly the best thing in their life.
Refusing to take the bait she’s dangling, I step a little closer.
“Then I’ll drop you there. Just give me an address.”
Pressing my hand to the small of her back, I find the fabric already damp as I gently push her forward, more than ready to get out of the downpour.
My shirt is already soaked through and stuck to my body. Now that I’ve decided to leave, I’m ready to get home.
Fuck. I’m getting old.
It’s New Year’s, and I’d rather be giving Parker a ride and then going home than continuing the party.
I guess it hits all of us eventually.
“Cancel your ride,” I instruct as I successfully move her forward. To be fair, it’s not exactly hard. I’m sure I bench press more than her body weight daily.
I’m under no illusion, though. Parker is a beast.
Her strength and endurance have always been outstanding.
I remember training with her as a kid. Rett and I would never admit it out loud, but she was always faster and more agile than us. And she’s hella strong.
I might not have worked with her yet, but I already know that she possesses the strength to make all of us weep in pain.
Something tells me that she’s excited about it too.
My sexy little sadist.
“What the fuck has gotten into you tonight?” Parker asks as we close in on my car.
I snort a laugh. “Funny. You’re usually hassling me about who I’ve gotten into.”
Parker gags dramatically.
“You know, for someone who claims not to like me, you sure are interested in my love life.”
“Love life?” she balks.
“Okay, bad choice of words,” I reason.
“I don’t give a fuck who you fuck,” she drunkenly shouts. “But I can’t get away from it. Every time I open my socials, there’s some story about your wayward dick.”
“Aw, babe. Look at you worrying about me not being able to control my dick.”
“Get over yourself, Storm. I’ve never worried about a single part of you, least of all your dick.”
Car lights shine from behind us, and Parker halts.
“That’ll be my ride.”
“I said, cancel it,” I hiss, giving her little choice but to continue forward.
“B-but—”
“Don’t be a pain in the ass, Donnelly.”
She huffs as we come to a stop beside my car.
Reaching around her, I pull my passenger door open and wait.
“Don’t make me put you in there.”
Sliding my hand from her back to her hip, I crowd her. She can either get into the car, or press herself against me, and I know which she isn’t going to do willingly. Such a fucking shame.
“You drive me fucking crazy, Storm,” she seethes before dropping into my car with a huff of irritation. I smirk as she puts her belt on and then sits with her arms crossed over her chest, her eyes staring straight ahead.
I don’t know what it is about Parker, but her defiance gets me every fucking time.
Shaking my head, I slam her door and jog around to the driver’s side to join her.
“So,” I start once the engine is purring and I have the heat cranked up to help dry us off.
“So,” she repeats.
“If you want to go to your boyfriend’s, you’re going to need to give me his address.” I fucking hate saying the words. Even if she’s lying, they taste bitter on my tongue. But I need her to tell me what I already suspect.
There is no boyfriend. There hasn’t been for some time.
She glances at me out of the corner of her eye, and I immediately want to celebrate.
“I hate you,” she mutters under her breath.
“I know. And isn’t it so much fun?”
She makes a weird noise at the back of her throat that I can’t decipher, and my obnoxious smile grows wider.
Fuck, I love riling her up.
“I bet it didn’t take you this long to tell your Uber driver where to go.”
“No, and he’d have given me less shit, too.”
Taking matters into my own hands, I put my car into reverse and back out onto the street before taking off in the direction of Parker’s apartment.
She lives on the same side of town as me.
Our apartments aren’t all that far apart, something I’ve thought about more times than I’ve actually been there—which is all of once, when Rett and I helped move her in a couple of summers ago.
She used me for my muscles and then sent me on my way. She didn’t even invite me for a thank-you meal, which I think is rude, but whatever.
“Just take me home,” she finally says, although it’s so quiet, if I weren’t paying attention, I’d miss it.
“I’m sorry, what was that?” I ask like an asshole.
“Fuck’s sake, Linc,” she mutters. “I said, just take me home.”
“But your boyfriend will be so disappointed.”
“I’m sure he’ll get over it.”
“Yeah,” I muse, desperately trying to hold back a laugh.
Silence falls as I continue driving to her place. The roads are dead. Everyone is either still partying or sleeping.
Parker shifts, and I glance over as she twists my way, pulls her legs up to her chest, and rests her head against the seat, her eyelids lowering.
Her features almost instantly relax, leaving her looking peaceful and beautiful. I mean, she’s always beautiful, but it’s different when she’s not throwing barbs at me.
Her red hair is wild after a night of partying and drinking; her makeup is smudged and sexy, and her lips are full and unbelievably kissable.
I think back to midnight, and fire shoots through me.
Only once has a kiss ever affected me so potently. But the less I think about that right now, the better.
“Shit,” I hiss, swerving sharply to miss a parked car.
Parker mumbles something, but I’m pretty sure she’s passed out.
I drive with her snoring lightly next to me, lost in my own world, but it all comes crashing down as I turn the final corner and drive straight into a scene of devastation.
“Fuck. Parker,” I say, reaching out to wake her. “Parker, you need to—”
“Are we here?” she murmurs sleepily.
“Uh…yeah. You need to—”
“Fuck.”