Bad Boy's Bridesmaid (51 page)

“I really wish
you hadn’t hit him in front of me,” he said.

So did I. So did
Jack. But my bad boy wasn’t afraid of a good fight.

Jack grinned.
“That was one hell of a hit, huh?”

The officer
nodded. “Your lawyer will love it.”

Oh, this wasn’t
happening.
Again
. Jack faced me, shame darkening his gaze. He forced a
bit of lightness into his voice.

“Hey, I know I
talked a lot about changing. A lot. But…I gotta go get…”

I finished for
him. “Get arrested.”

“Yeah.”

“Again.”

Jack took it
like a man. “At least you know where to pick me up?”

I could have
been angry. I should’ve cried. Instead, I was just so glad he attacked the
asshole before I did or nothing would have remained of that slimy journalist.

I kissed his
cheek. “Tell me you don’t want to marry me just so you’ll have someone to bail
you out of jail?”

“At least you’ll
know where the checkbook is,” he said. “This is the last time. I promise.”

Yeah, old habits
died hard. I pulled my cell and prepared to make my usual list of calls. “I’m
charging you for overtime on this one, Mr. Carson.”

“That’s why I
love you.” Jack’s smile faded as the officer led him to the elevators. “You’re
practical.”

“One of us needs
to be.”

“I’ll get out of
this. Promise.” He held my gaze. “I love you.”

I watched my
future husband and father of my child get arrested for the second time in only
a few months. My voice was soft.

“Love you too.”

Now how the hell
was I going to spin this?

Chapter Twenty-Four – Leah

“I’m not doing
it.”

I expected
Jack’s resistance.

I straightened
his tie and brushed the wrinkles from his suit coat. He clutched the speech I
prepared in his hand. If he ripped it up, I had spares. A copy in my purse, another
in his jacket, and I still had my tablet and phone with copies ready to pull up
at a moment’s notice.

He was giving
this press conference.

And he was going
to read my speech.

Even if he hated
it. If he wanted to stay in the league, this was the only way.

“Jack, not every
man gets third, fourth, and fifth chances,” I warned. “You got lucky with the
judge, but just because he dismissed the case with some silly anger management
classes doesn’t mean your fans or the league will understand.”

He held up the
speech. “And
this
is supposed to fix it?”

“Jack, that
apology is the only thing that’ll save your career.”

“How can you be
sure?”

“Because I wrote
it.” I pulled him close for a kiss. “Read what it says.
Mean it
, and
we’ll see what happens when the league concludes their investigation.”

“But I don’t
mean it!” His voice sharpened. “Accepting the four game suspension without
question? Fully cooperating with whatever their decision they render? Eating
the fine and donating the same amount to charity?”

I arched an
eyebrow. “You’re donating to the hospital.”

“Yeah.” He shook
his head. “But now everyone’s gonna know. I’ll let my name get shit on, but I
don’t want them to say anything about my little brother—”

“They won’t.
Believe me, Jack, this will show that you have a commitment beyond yourself.”

He held my hand,
kissing the finger that now brandished a beautiful diamond ring. “I already
have a commitment. I have you. I have Sam.”

“Charm’s not
getting you out of this, bad boy.”

“What if I toss
you back on the bench, promise to behave, and give you the licking of a
lifetime?”

“In the middle
of the locker room?”

“Always been a
fantasy of mine.”

“And so it will
remain.” I poked his chest. “Speech now. Licking later.”

“Promise?”

“I still got
that leash on you, Jack Carson. Tighter than ever.”

His smile only
grew. I should have known better than to encourage him, but even in the darkest
moments, he was always eager to flirt.

He kissed me and
rubbed my tummy. I rested my hands over his. Jack hadn’t yet recovered from our
scare, and he spent every waking minute tending to my needs—offering me food,
blankets, any sort of fun second trimester naughtiness that tickled my fancy.

But his knee was
healed, and training camp was coming to an end. No one knew who would start at
quarterback. Jack only hoped he’d have a spot on the team when the season
began.

I wasn’t about
to let this latest scandal ruin his career. I wrote his speech to show heart,
growth, and personal responsibility. It welcomed any of the league’s chosen
consequences as fair and just.

But we knew it’d
be brutal. They weren’t punishing Jack. He’d serve as a lesson to every other
bad boy in the league, but if he could just be permitted to stay…

One of the
Rivets’ spokespersons rapped on the door. He waved us forward, and I gave Jack
as much of a hug as my baby bump would allow.

“Just be you out
there,” I said.

“Irritated and
sarcastic?”

I kissed him.
“Be the man I love.”

He smirked. “I’m
pretty good at that.”

“Don’t get
cocky.”

“I’m good at
that too.”

And that was what
I was afraid of. I tucked the speech into his jacket and let him lead us to the
pressroom. The media room was big enough to fit the usual batch of local
reporters, but tonight it filled completely, overflowing into the hallways and
fit with more cameras and photographers than crammed in during last season’s
playoffs.

Jack offered the
room a smile, even though I told him to appear as solemn as he could. Wasn’t
going to happen. I crossed my fingers.

“Lots of cameras
today.” Jack cleared his throat and approached an impromptu podium. “Don’t
worry, I won’t break any of ‘em.”

Cripes. Now I
crossed both fingers.

Jack unveiled
the speech from his pocket. He looked it over and heaved a breath.
Appropriately remorseful, but I saw something else.

That defiance.

He hated this so
much. My heart ached for him, but it was the
only
way.

Jack wasn’t a
man who’d beg for mercy. He earned the chances he got because he was the best
quarterback in the damn league and everyone knew it.

Which meant he
already made his decision.

I knew it before
he did.

“Good evening.”
Jack read from the statement. The cameras whirled and clicked. Flashes of light
captured the hard angle of his jaw, his growing scowl. “I wish to take this
opportunity to thank the members of the press and my fans for allowing me this
moment to express my sincerest remorse for…” He paused. Exhaled. “For…”

I saw it
happening. His mind changed.

At least he
almost made it through the opening paragraph.

Jack’s demeanor
shifted. He shook his head and ripped up the speech. The reporters murmured to
themselves.

“No.” Jack
started again. “I’m not
sorry
for what happened that night. Yeah, I got
arrested. Again. And yeah, I got a massive speeding ticket and nearly lost my
license. I regret the trouble it caused the team, league, and my family, but I
can’t apologize for the reason it happened. In fact, I’d do it all again if I
had to.”

No PR company
could salvage this. I waited as Jack faced everyone who would skin him alive
for daring to be honest when the media needed a scoop.

“That night, I’d
thought I lost my unborn son.” His words darkened. “I thought the woman I loved
was in danger. Yes, I sped to the hospital. Yes, we had an
issue
with a
journalist. But I did everything I could to rush to her side. I’m not
apologizing for doing what a father should do to protect his baby.”

The room
shifted. More lights and flashes. Jack shrugged at me.

“There’s not
much else for a man to do while we wait for the kid to be born. I, uh, painted
the nursery. I got the late night ice cream. Did the foot rubs. But that’s
nothing when you realize how
helpless
you are if there’s a problem.” His
voice hardened, confident. “I can’t do much for him now, but I will always be
there if he’s in trouble, no matter the damn consequences.”

I cradled my belly,
meeting Jack’s gaze with a gentle smile.

“As for the
assault charge.” The devoted father faded, and the hardened lover returned. “No
one will
ever
terrorize the woman I love, especially if she’s in the
hospital, fearing for our baby’s life. If defending her, if
protecting
her makes me some sort of criminal, then I’m a criminal. Cut me from the team.
Expel me from the league.”

The room buzzed.
Jack didn’t care.

“I might not be
a quarterback anymore, but at least I know I’ll be a damned good husband and
father. There’s
no
apologizing for that.”

The press
silenced. My eyes blurred with tears, absolutely moved by the man I loved. It
wasn’t the apology I wanted him to give, and it wasn’t anything the league
would ever tolerate. It didn’t matter. He made a mistake, got into trouble, but
this time…it wasn’t something selfish and inconsiderate.

He sacrificed
everything for
me
.

Jack wrapped it
up with a nod. “Now, I am sorry for the legal problems this is causing. My
driving was reckless, and I did punch a guy out.” He paused. “I know how my
behavior reflects on the league and the team. Hell, I know it’s making Leah
squirm because I’m going off script. Just let me say, I’ll take a punishment.
Whatever the league wants. And I won’t complain because it’s deserved. But I
won’t apologize for defending my family. I love her. I love my baby. And I’ll
do whatever it takes to keep them protected and safe.”

Jack tucked the
crumpled speech in his pocket. The media stood, shouting questions and calling
his name. He ignored them, holding out a hand for me to take. He pulled me from
the zoo and led me away until we tucked in a quiet, dim corner office. I was
lost to his arms.

His kiss stole
my breath.

“Marry me now,”
he said. “If my career is ending, at least I’ll know I’ll have you, Kiss. Let’s
get married now and just be happy.”

I stared into
those bandit blue eyes. “You really are bad, aren’t you?”

“Willing to do
something reckless?”

“Loving you
isn’t reckless.”

“You sure?”

“It’s a
testament to my patience, but it’s not reckless. It’s easy.”

Jack smiled. “Is
that a yes?”

I kissed him
again, easing the worry from his body with a simple brush of my lips.

“I love you,” I
whispered. “Let’s get married.”

Epilogue – Jack

His crib was
warm and comfortable. Sam stared at me with big, mocha eyes, just as expressive
as his mother’s. He liked it when I hung around, cooing and kicking his legs so
hard I hoped he wanted to play soccer and not become a punter.

I wasn’t sure
how many nights I spent watching the little guy. Leah gave me a hard time. She
said Sam couldn’t stop looking at me when I was around, and that I wound him up
when he was supposed to be sleeping.

Likewise, kiddo.

I couldn’t
follow all the rules, all the time. My son was worth breaking them all.

I tucked the
little stuffed football under his chin. He smiled. He had my smile. Now Leah
had both of us to deal with.

“So.” I set the
ball at the bottom of his crib. “You missed the championship game, bud. I mean,
you were there, in your mom, but you didn’t have a good seat in there. It was a
good game too. I told your momma I’d play for her, and I earned the MVP.”

Sam blew a spit
bubble. I took it as a compliment.

“This is your
first lesson.” I poked at his chubby tummy. “When you win, you act like you’ve
been there before. You hear me, Sam? Always.”

He gurgled and
made a little squeal. His toes wiggled, and they were pretty much the most
amazing things I had ever seen in my life. I rested my hand over him, amazed
how I created something so little and yet absolutely cripplingly frightening
and awesome and perfect.

“Last year was
for your momma,” I said. “I had something to prove to her. This year? It’s all
for you, Sam. Every play, every drive, every win. It’s because of you. You’re
my reason.”

I could tell he
was my kid because he didn’t have an ounce of humility in those rosy cheeks. I
grinned.

“You know, it
wouldn’t hurt if you told your mom that…I think hearing it from you would score
me some points…”

Leah giggled
from the doorway. I winked at her as she waited for me. Her arms crossed.

“He’s supposed
to be sleeping.”

Busted. “He’s
getting there.”

“Telling him a
story?”

“Just making
promises.” I brushed my hand over his cheek and smirked. “He’s bathed and ready
for bed.”

“I could have
helped.”

The little guy
wasn’t sleeping yet, but he would be soon. I edged from the crib and took
Leah’s hand, pulling her from the nursery and into our bedroom.

“Training camp
starts tomorrow.” I towered over her, but she was ready for me. Knew what I
wanted. She smirked as she let her husband lead her to the bed. “I won’t be
around as much.”

“Like I can drag
you away from that kid.”

I launched at
her, tossing her onto the bed and attacking her neck, her lips, her chin in
ravenous kisses.

“Speak for
yourself…” I tucked my fingers into her skirt. “What are you going to do
tomorrow when all the news crews and press come to camp?”

“The perk of
working from home. I have everything coordinated from inside the nursery.”

“Oh, yeah?”

She rose up,
letting me tug her blouse off her shoulders. “You have an interview with Sports
Nation at ten about your new, five-year contract. Then there’s a photo-op at
the hospital in the pediatric ward after practice. You’re only supposed to
bring the kids
one
jersey this time.”

“But they need
home and away colors.”

“You do have a
big heart, you know that?”

I smirked. “A
lot of things on me are big.”

“That so?”

“Need a
demonstration?”

She giggled.
“Your last demonstration ended with that little baby in nursery.”

“And you saw how
fun that was…”

Her body was
soft, warm, and absolutely perfect. I pinned her hands over her head as I
nestled between her legs.

“You know I love
you, right?” I whispered.

“You already
married me and got a baby, Jack Carson.” Leah teased with a bump of her hips.
“No need to flatter me anymore.”

“I’m serious.” I
leaned over her, kissing her, tasting her, amazed by her. “I would do anything
for you. Anything. Name it.”

“Make love to
me?”

“I was already
gonna do that.”

“Then I’m an
easy woman to please.”

“And you know I
love to watch you be pleased.” I kissed her again. “Are you happy?”

“Very.”

“How’s that
grand plan working out for you?”

Leah’s hands
found mine, fiddling with my zipper. She tugged on my cock, watching as I
shuddered with every perfect stroke of her hand.

“Married. Baby.
Job…” Her expression flickered as I adjusted her legs, pressing at her
entrance, teasing her wetness. I pushed inside just to hear the catch in her
voice. “
Passion
.”

Hell yeah. I
groaned as I pierced inside her completely. “Love.”

“Love.”

“You know you’re
nothing like what I imagined for me,” I whispered.

“Really?”

I savored her
tightness, withdrawing and earning her squeal. “I don’t mind being wrong.”

“Good.” Her
hands tightened over my arms. “Cause I’m always right.”

“You’re
everything I want.”

Leah’s beautiful
smile only got me harder. “Me too.”

“Prove it.” I
grabbed her and rolled onto my back. Leah’s steadied herself on my pecs, but
she knew what I wanted. Her hips ground against mine as she rode me just the
way I liked. “Tonight, we prove it to each other.”

“All night?”

I fucked the
most beautiful woman in the world—the love of my life and the mother of my
child. What better way to prove how much we needed the other?

“All night
long.” I held her hips firm against mine. “That’s my favorite way to party,
Kiss.”

The End

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