Playing It Forward (The Steel City Seals #3)

Chapter 1

Terri – a woman about to prove cardio is useless when a football player is chasing you

Terri

“Holy mermaids swimming in the sea.” Ava sighs. “Have you seen the men the smugglers dragged in?”

I have seen them, but I use her question as an excuse to glance over my shoulder to have another look. Five football players from the Steel City Seals are sitting in a corner of the beach bar drinking beer. Every single one of them could be a front page model for a sports magazine.

The blond catches my eye and winks. I quickly turn away before I give him any ideas. Don’t get me wrong. I’d love to give him a whole bunch of sexy, sweaty, tangled in the sheets, ideas. But I can’t jeopardize my job.

I wag my finger at Ava. “Be careful. Hudson made himself perfectly clear.”

Hudson is the owner of the Hideaway Haven Resort where we work. He held a meeting to lay down the law before the football team arrived for training camp.

There will be no flirting with the football players. There will be no snapping pictures and sharing them on social media. There will be no gossiping about the team to outsiders. And there definitely – no exceptions allowed – will be no relationships between the staff of the resort and the players.

She sticks her bottom lip out in a pout. “Boss man is boring.”

I snort. “You didn’t think he was boring before he got married to Nova. As I recall, you chased him around the resort like a prohibition officer chasing a bootlegger.”

Her nose wrinkles. “Nova is one lucky duck. If she wasn’t such a nice woman, I’d hate her.”

“Liar. You don’t think she’s nice. You’re afraid of her because she and her friends who own Five Fathoms Brewing are famous for pulling pranks.”

“I’m not afraid of being pranked.”

“And you didn’t spend a year using a mirror to check above the door of each room you entered for a glitter bomb either.”

She grunts. “It’s not my fault the Backchannel Blonde from Five Fathoms turned into bottle bombs.”

I raise an eyebrow. “I guess it wasn’t your fault when you decided to have a bottle bomb contest either?”

“Oh, please. You’re just mad because you lost in the final round.”

“I didn’t lose. You cheated.”

“You can’t cheat in a bottle bomb contest.”

We’re getting off track. We’re supposed to be discussing an upcoming wedding happening at the resort. Not bringing up old news.

I’m the event coordinator at the resort, and Ava is the hospitality manager.

We often work together to ensure weddings, birthday parties, retirement parties, and other events held at the resort go off without a hitch.

And on Smuggler’s Hideaway – the island where we live – that often means ensuring there’s enough alcohol for the guests.

I tap my pen against my clipboard. “Let’s get back to this wedding. Did you get my email about the drinks I require?”

Ava swipes open her tablet. “I got the email, and I think we have everything except I don’t know what a Love You to the Moonshine drink is.”

“How could you? The bride made it up. According to her, it’s blackberry moonshine and honey whiskey mixed with pink lemonade, cranberry juice, and a splash of pineapple juice with sparkling rosé. She wants edible glitter and a cotton candy garnish as well.”

Ava blinks at me. “Who’s getting married? Ariel and Captain Jack Sparrow?”

I giggle. “I forgot to mention she wants heart-shaped ice cubes.”

She makes notes on her table. “It’s a good thing the boss man pays us the big bucks for these weddings.”

“You love the challenge and you know it.”

“I do love trying to figure out how to make cotton candy garnish that doesn’t melt when it’s ninety degrees out.” Her voice is dry as bone.

“You’ll figure it out.”

She bristles. “Of course, I will.”

“Do you have the supplies or do you need to order them?”

She consults her tablet. “I have everything except the blackberry moonshine, honey whiskey, and cotton candy. Buccaneer’s Whiskey & Distillery can supply the booze.

And I’ll ask my friend who works at Mermaid Mystical Gardens who their cotton candy supplier is.

Although, I could probably make my own.”

I groan. “No.”

“What?” She bats her eyelashes. “I can make candy.”

“You can also forget to switch on the refrigerator and cause a river of chocolate mermaids to flow through the bar and into the ballroom.”

She waves away my comment. “It wasn’t a big deal.”

“Not a big deal? We had to rip up the hardwood floors.”

“They needed replacing anyway.”

I raise an eyebrow. “At a resort that’s less than ten years old?”

She shrugs.

I open my mouth to berate her but a shadow falls over our table. I glance up to find the blond football player grinning down at me.

Smirking smugglers! He’s even better looking up close. He has bright blue eyes, the color of the ocean. Considering I live on an island, I’m a sucker for anything ocean colored. He’s clean shaven allowing me a glimpse of the dimple on his left cheek. A dimple I find myself wanting to lick.

My gaze travels lower to his broad shoulders that appear strong enough to carry me through the highest ocean waves. His t-shirt strains against his chest and biceps. My fingers tingle at the idea of touching those muscles. Are they hard? Is his skin soft?

I’d love to find out, but I can’t. He’s off limits in all caps and flashing blue lights.

“Hi. I’m Nolan.”

“If you want a drink, the bartender will be happy to help you.” I point to the bar and the bartender waves at us.

“I don’t need a drink, but I do have a question.”

“The bartender can help you with any questions.”

Ava kicks me under the table. I glare at her. “Knock it off.”

She smirks before standing up. “I’m leaving. Why don’t you take my seat?”

Before Nolan can sit, I stand. “I’m leaving as well.”

He scratches his chin. “But you haven’t told me your name yet.”

I give him one of my customer service smiles. “It’s Terri. I’m sorry I can’t help you, but I really do need to get back to work.”

“Work? You’re on the beach.”

“I’m aware since I live on an island.”

“You live on Smuggler’s Hideaway?”

I open my arms wide. “I don’t see any other islands around, do you?”

He chuckles. “Funny and cute.”

I roll my eyes. “I bet you tell all the women that.”

“Only if it’s true.”

Whatever. I scoot around him. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

“But you haven’t let me ask my question yet.”

Ugh. He is not letting this go. “What’s your question?”

He grins and those blue eyes sparkle. I glance away. A woman could get lost in those eyes and forget her own name.

“Do you want to go out with me, Terri?”

“Sorry. No can do.” I scurry away before I forget all about Hudson’s warnings. Before I say screw it and say yes. It’s not often a handsome football player asks a small town girl out after all.

Unfortunately, Nolan follows me. Considering he’s an athlete and I believe working out is a form of torture, he easily keeps pace with me.

I quicken my steps but he sticks with me.

Probably because he’s well over six feet tall and I’m barely five-feet-five.

Okay, fine. Five-feet-four inches and a half.

“Why not?”

“What do you mean, why not?” I wheeze out.

“Why don’t you want to go out with me?”

My lungs burn, and my legs protest at the pace I’m setting. I give up. I can’t outrun him. Maybe I should reconsider my stance on working out. Would it kill me to go to the gym once in a while? The gym at the resort is excellent. And, as an employee, I get free access.

I reach the bar and stop. I place my hands on it as I catch my breath.

“I don’t have to explain myself,” I finally say when I can speak without wheezing. Hudson would throw me to the pirates if I told one of the precious football players about his rules.

Nolan’s brow wrinkles as he stares at me. “This has never happened to me before.”

He’s adorably confused. I giggle but slap my hand over my mouth to hide the sound. It’s not nice to make fun of someone.

“Terri,” Ava calls, “can you help me carry these glasses inside?”

Thank you, I mouth to her before tucking my clipboard under my arm and accepting the tray she hands me.

I beam up at Nolan. “Duty calls.”

I scurry away. This time he doesn’t follow me. My stomach drops. I want him to follow me.

No, I don’t. Nolan is one sexy specimen of manhood. But I’m only allowed to appreciate him from afar.

I’m not risking my job at the resort for a summer fling with a football player. And, let’s face it, a summer fling would be all it is. The Steel City Seals team will be gone at the end of the summer as soon as training camp is over.

I have no desire to be the notch on one of the player’s belts.