Chapter 8
COLE
Lennox had hired me straight out of college, and it had been a dream come true because I’d been a Nighthawks fan all my life. It was the reason I had the team’s logo tattooed on my arm.
Now, I had the woman of my dreams walking into the stadium, holding my hand, and wearing the same brand on her ample chest. Lorna looked fucking amazing in my shirt. And not just because it represented my team—the caveman inside me just liked seeing her in my clothes.
We strolled through the building until we reached the area where my office was located. There was an outer office with a long front desk and a couple of cubicles, then the back and left walls had doors that led to private offices for coaching staff.
I released her hand and opened the door for her so she could walk into the front area first, then I followed her.
When the door clicked shut, several heads popped up.
I greeted a few members of the front office staff as I walked up behind her and started to speak, but one of the interns, a young, boy-next-door type, jumped up from his cubicle and smiled broadly. “Hi, I’m Everest.”
I frowned, confused as to why he was introducing himself to me, then realized he was looking directly at Lorna. “I haven’t seen you around here before, and believe me, I would have noticed someone so gorgeous.”
“Um…” Lorna’s cheeks turned pink, and she shuffled closer to me.
“This is Lorna,” I grunted. “She’s mine.”
Everest’s face went pale. “Uh…sorry, Coach O’Hara.
I didn’t realize…” He looked a little panicked, and I had to suppress a laugh.
Most of the men around here were highly possessive of their women, and he’d obviously experienced it before, or he wouldn’t look like he wanted to cry for hitting on mine.
“Get back to work,” I told him before taking Lorna’s hand and leading her to my office.
Huck and Saxon were lounging on the wall next to the door and pushed off the hard surface when they spotted me.
“Boys,” I greeted them with a lift of my chin as I unlocked my door. “What can I do for you?”
Both men nodded respectfully at Lorna, but wisely, their gazes didn’t linger.
“I wanted to drop by and see if you had those new plays for us to study,” Saxon explained, following me as I ushered Lorna inside.
“Yeah. Give me just a minute.” I guided her over to a couch and planted a quick kiss on her lips. “You good for a bit while we talk?”
“Yup.” She dug into the tote she’d brought and pulled out an e-reader.
“I’ll give you a tour later, and we can make out in the locker room like we would have if I’d met you in college.” I winked, and she blushed adorably as she dropped onto the cushions.
Grinning, I rounded my desk and sat down, then swiveled around to the filing cabinet behind me.
A small keypad was above it, and I punched in a code before rolling one of the drawers open.
I pulled out a book of plays I’d been working on and shut the drawer.
After spinning back around, I held out the notebook.
“Drop it off after practice,” I instructed.
“You know the code. Make sure it’s locked up tight, or I’ll have your ass.
Is that clear?” Both players nodded. “Good. Now take a seat, and I’ll walk you through the trickier ones. ”
Half an hour later, there was a knock on my door, and we all looked up to see who had come by.
My brow furrowed when Micah walked into the room, but I managed not to full-on scowl at him. It wasn’t his fault he’d asked my woman to dance, but I was pissed about it anyway.
“Just dropped by to grab Sax and Huck,” he muttered.
“Micah?”
All eyes went to Lorna, who was stretched out on the couch, reading. She sat up and smiled at him. “Hi.”
“Um…hi,” he replied, shifting nervously on his feet, his eyes darting between me and Lorna.
“Listen, um…I wanted to apologize for—”
I started to interrupt and tell her she had nothing to be sorry for, but Micah beat me to it.
“You don’t owe me an apology,” he assured her with a smile. I contemplated breaking his jaw to ruin that pretty-boy smile, but I knew it would upset Lorna, so I rested my clenched fists on my thighs.
“Oh, I know I don’t,” Lorna informed him, tossing a disgruntled frown my way.
What the fuck?
“I was saying I’m sorry for Cole being such a jerk to you.”
I heard a muffled sound and glared at Huck and Saxon when I saw their shoulders shaking as they fought back smiles.
“Out,” I growled at them.
Both men jumped to their feet and rushed from the room, but it didn’t stop us from hearing their laughter once they reached the outer office.
“I get it,” Micah said with a chuckle. “You’re gorgeous and—”
“Mine,” I interrupted firmly.
Micah rolled his eyes. “If you’d let me finish what I was saying…”
“Come here, lass,” I ordered Lorna, holding out my hand.
Micah huffed, but all I cared about was that my girl got up off the couch and padded over to me so I could pull her down onto my lap.
“As I was saying, if I’d felt the way about you that Cole obviously does, I’d have put up a hell of a fight, so I can’t blame him for acting like a complete asshole.” Lorna giggled, and I glared at the almost-fired linebacker.
“Well, I still think he should beg your pardon, but I’ll leave that between you two.”
Micah shrugged. “I’m used to it.”
Lorna looked at me in confusion when I just chuckled.
Micah backed toward the door. “Well, Huck and Sax are waiting, so I’m gonna go.”
“Later, Daughtry,” I said, giving him a respectful nod so he knew we were good.
He returned the gesture, then pivoted and moseyed out of my office.
“Used to it?”
I grinned down at my girl and winked. “Most of the men around here are as obsessed with their women as I am with you,” I admitted.
A pleased smile graced her sexy mouth, and she blushed. “I’m pretty fond of you too,” she giggled.
Cupping the back of her neck with one hand, I bent my head and captured her lips in a deep kiss.
We were both breathing hard when I pulled back and pressed my forehead to hers.
“If we don’t stop, I’m gonna fuck you right here, and then I’d have to fire every person who heard or saw something that is mine alone. ”
Lorna mewled, sorely tempting me to go back for another drugging kiss, so I lifted her off my lap and got to my feet. “How about that tour?”
“Including the locker room?”
A chuckle rumbled in my chest at her quip and the playful expression on her face. “If you’re a good girl.”
She dropped her head demurely and peered up at me through her lashes. “I’m always a good girl.”
I groaned and grabbed her shoulders, turning her away from me, then patted her ass to get her moving. “Let’s go, lass.”
Her hips swayed seductively as she sashayed toward the door.
Since no one was looking, I quickly adjusted the steel pipe in my pants, hoping it wouldn’t be as obvious.
She was too fucking beautiful, and I almost ordered her to sit her ass down and then spend the day hiding her in my office.
I needed to get my ring on her finger ASAP, then people would immediately know she was taken and I wouldn’t be fighting the urge to kill any man who looked at her.
I sighed and prowled over to her, grabbing her hand to pull her to a stop before she walked out the door.
“One second,” I told her before stalking to the couch and picking up my red Nighthawks hoodie that had “O’Hara” stitched on the back. It wasn’t a ring, but it would do the job for now.
She peppered me with questions as I showed her around, and it warmed my heart that she was so eager to learn about my second love. When I took her out on the field, I showed her a couple of plays that all ended with me tackling her to the ground and stealing kisses.
I plundered her mouth with my tongue, and she gasped when she felt the hard bulge pressing between her legs. My self-control was waning, so I reluctantly broke the kiss and jumped to my feet. Then I helped her up before grabbing her hips and tossing her over my shoulder.
She protested, but it was lost in her fit of laughter as I jogged back to the tunnel.
Rather than taking her to the team locker room, I made my way to the one for the visitors.
I waited until we were inside and the door was shut and locked before slowly letting her body slide down mine until she was on her feet.
“Are we going to neck like teenagers now?” she whispered.
I laughed and laced our fingers together, leading her toward a door on the opposite wall.
“Neck? Maybe if it was 1955.” Pushing the door open, I pulled her into a room that was set up for injured players, which meant there was a padded exam table.
“I hate to disappoint you.” Picking her up once again, I set her on the makeshift bed, then cupped her tits while I leaned in close. “But these days, we call it fucking.”