ROMANCE: SPORTS ROMANCE: Bad Boys of Sports: A Complete Collection (Alpha Male, Football, Hockey Secret Baby Romance) (Contemporary Sports Romance) (12 page)

CHAPTER 2

“You’re not going,” Chris said flatly, his tone a little harsher than he intended. He was sitting in the beanbag in his sister’s room, watching in annoyance as she and Angelica took turns holding dresses up to their small frames.

“Excuse me,” Angelica said, her head bobbing with attitude. “We are two twenty-two-year-old women on the cusp of receiving our bachelor degrees in biochemistry. We’ve worked our entire lives to get A’s and win scholarships and gain positive attention from our mentors. It’s about time that we finally have some fun!”

Chris snickered. “Don’t give me that. I take you guys to parties all the time; it’s not like this is your first time out at the frat houses or bars.”

Chris’s eyes kept darting over Angelica’s body, admiring her from afar. It was one of the rare occasions where she opted to wear her contact lenses instead of her glasses. Though she looked beautiful either way, she had done her eye makeup a different way, making her bright green eyes practically glow against her naturally golden tan face. She had twirled her curls up into a twist and had let three or four of her ringlets fall on her face. It was both cute and sexy at the same time, and it made Chris uncomfortable to know that later in the night guys would be trying left and right to run their hands all over her.

“Don’t be so hard on us, Chris. We didn’t do anything to you,” his sister said giving him a little shove on the shoulder.  She held up a black strapless dress that barely covered her essentials. Chris wondered where she got it, and why. Then he quickly realized he didn’t want to know and shook his head to disperse his thoughts.

“Don’t you have to get ready too?” Angelica asked, throwing him a look as if to say, “get out.”

“I’m a guy,” Chris shrugged. “All I have to do is spray down with sexy juice, put on a clean shirt, and I’m good to go.”

“Oh my god, get out!” Nikki yelled, rolling her eyes. “We need to change, you perv.” She picked up a pillow off of her bed and threw it at him, hitting him square in the chest.”

“Okay, okay,” Chris chuckled, getting up to leave. “I’ll be back in an hour to walk you to the party. Don’t leave without me, all right?”

Nikki and Angelica both murmured their agreements and didn’t bother to say goodbye as he left. When they heard the front door slam shut, Angelica tossed the red dress away from her and sighed.

“Can you believe him?” She asked. “He didn’t bother to invite us to this party, or to any football party – ever. ”

Nikki decided on the black dress and began taking off her shirt. “Aw, come on, Angie, you know he’s just overprotective. It’s not like he’s ashamed of us or anything.”

“I know, but the three of us don’t keep things from each other!  But it’s like he wants to keep us separate from his football life.  It’s annoying.  Think of all the parties we’ve missed over the years.”

“It’s not his fault we suddenly became interested in football this year.  That is, in one football player in particular.” She wagged her eyebrows at her friend.

She pulled the dress on and let it slip down her figure. It barely covered her butt, but she was certain that it was the style that girls were going for these days.

“What are you wearing?” She asked.

Angelica held up a crimson red dress with spaghetti straps and then a dark blue and black one with cut outs on the hips.

“Which one?” She asked, not able to decide. She held the red one up to her, then the blue so that Nikki could compare them.

“Definitely the blue one,” she decided. “The red’s too harsh for your make up.

With the decision made, Angelica pulled her shirt up over her head and began to undress. As she did, she thought about Chris, and how overbearing he was most of the time. It was annoying as hell and had driven nearly every boy she had dated away. He was too intimidating, both physically and mentally, and the other guys were afraid they wouldn’t live up to his standards.   It was almost like having an overbearing dad around, the way Chris guarded her dating life, but in the worst way possible.  She was determined not to let him have control over her in that area of life anymore.  After all, she was all grown-up and could look after herself.

“Do you think maybe we shouldn’t go?” Nikki asked suddenly, a stir of guilt rising in her for being so snappy with Chris.

“What?” Angelica asked, her eyes wide with surprise. “You don’t want to go anymore? Really?”

“No, I do. The semester is going to be over in five weeks, and I know that this very well will be one of the last parties we go to. But maybe my brother is on to something. I mean, we’ve never partied with the other football players before.”

“That’s because he never let us,” Angelica replied, pulling her hair out of her clip so she could style it. “He’s way too overprotective when it comes to those dudes. Frankly, I’m a little tired of hearing the other girls squealing in the quad, always talking about how awesome the football parties are. I want to experience at least one before we start our master’s program next year, Nikki! You know we’ll be too busy then to go to any events at all. This is our last hoorah!”

“Okay, okay,” Nikki soothed, backing down. “Fine, we’ll go.”

Despite how sure she sounded, Angelica was a little worried too, especially after Nikki voiced her reluctance. As Nikki continued to get ready, Angelica went to her room to grab her clutch and add a few touches to her makeup. When she was ready to go, she pulled open the top drawer of her dresser and dug around until she found it. The hot pink taser was a weapon she had never used before but still kept charged. It had nine hundred thousand volts, and could make a man pee himself if held to his skin for more than five seconds.

“Just in case,” she whispered, slipping it into her purse.

CHAPTER 3

Angelica’s head swirled as she let the last of the alcohol slip from her cup and into her mouth. It didn’t taste like alcohol at all, which had been her downfall. The super sweet concoction went down a little too easily, and before she knew it, she had finished three red solo cups of it.

“Woah,” Chris said, peeling the cup out of her hand. “Maybe you’ve had enough of that, huh?”

“But I like it,” Angelica defended, trying to grab the cup back from him. “I don’t get to do this very often.”

“I know sweet cheeks,” Chris replied, tossing the cup in the trash. “But Nikki’s far more off than you are right now, and I need your help getting her home.”

It was the sure-fire way to get her to not to argue, and he knew it. Angelica was as fiercely protective of Nikki as Chris was of them, and if she were in trouble, she would claw tooth and nail to make sure her best friend was safe.

“Don’t call me sweet cheeks, cowboy,” Angelica slurred. “Where is she?”

“
Cowboy
?” Chris grinned as if he had just been given a big compliment.  “Giving me nicknames now, are we?  Keep going; I like it.”

“You started it. Where is she?”  she asked again, impatiently.

Chris pointed to the makeshift dance floor in the living room. In the throng of drunken people and rapidly blinking strobe lights, Nikki was being tag teamed by two players trying to dance with her. Even though Angelica was drunk she could see that her friend was clearly not in a good place. Her breasts were threatening to bounce right out of her dress, and the hem of it kept riding up. She was one wrong move away from showing the world her naughty bits, and Angelica couldn’t let that happen.

Realizing for the first time his sister might be in trouble, Chris started to get up.

“I got this,” she said, pushing Chris back down into his seat and out of her way to the dance floor. Angelica pushed herself into the sea of people to get to her friend. When she reached her, Nikki jumped on her and greeted her like they hadn’t seen another in years.

“This is so much fun!” Nikki yelled in her ear. “Isn’t this so much fun?”

“So much fun!” Angelica replied, matching her friend’s volume and energy. “But it’s time to say bye-bye to these boys and go home.”

“Hey,” Mark Greidy said, catching the conversation. “She’s not done dancing with us yet.” Mark grabbed Nikki’s arm and forcefully pulled her back between himself and Allen Roth.

Angelica saw panic in Nikki’s eyes and knew that he was scaring her. Immediately she tried to move in to get her again, but this time Mark shoved at her shoulder hard, sending her flying backward.

“I said get lost,” he growled.

“Let me go,” Nikki yelled and wriggled free from his arms.

Angelica lost her footing in the shuffle as Mark shoved her, and didn’t stop stumbling until she met someone’s hard chest. Quickly arms went around her, and Angelica looked up to see who had saved her.

“Are you all right?” Bruce asked, his voice full of concern. “Did he shove you?”

“Yeah, but I’m fine,” Angelica assured him. “Thanks for the catch, but I’m more worried about my friend.”

Bruce lifted his head to look over at two of his teammates. They were clearly drunk, and the girl between them was obviously trying to push away their wandering hands. “I got this,” he said, moving towards them.

As Bruce went to grab Nikki from Mark and Allen, Chris came up behind Angelica and asked if she was all right.

“I came as fast as I could, but these damn people wouldn’t move,” he barked, annoyed.

“It’s fine; Bruce has it handled,” Angelica snapped.  She was annoyed that he’d wasted the night keeping an eye on her when his own sister clearly needed his protection more than she did.

Nikki came running over to Angelica, wrapping her arms around her. Bruce had gotten the two jocks to let her go, but it was evident they weren’t happy about it. Mark was in Bruce’s face, ready to throw blows.

“That was my chick man,” he shouted clearly above the music. Frustrated, he shoved at Bruce’s chest.

“Not tonight bro,” Bruce snarled, pushing him back. The music froze as the two players looked at one another with daggers. Before she realized it, Angelica’s feet were moving towards the scene.

“That’s enough,” she said, her voice full of authority. “He wouldn’t have had to come over if you hadn’t tried to molest my friend.”

“Please, she was begging for it. Just like you’re begging to be taught a lesson.” Mark moved toward Angelica threateningly.

Before she knew it, her taser was out of her purse, and she was pressing the metal prongs into his side. Mark’s body spasmed violently as multiple shocks of violent electricity shot through him. Angelica counted to three before turning off the switch, and as soon as she did the player’s body dropped to the floor, still trembling.

“How’s that for asking for it, asshole!” Angelica shouted. Suddenly she felt arms around her waist again, and she was being lifted up and away from the crowd that had erupted in laughter.

“Let me go!” Angelica shouted.

“Don’t you dare tase me too,” Bruce warned. Immediately he felt her relax and carried her all the way outside as Nikki and Chris followed them.

“That was hilarious,” Chris laughed as they got outside. “Man, that douche had it coming.” He patted Angelica on the back after she was sat back down on her feet. “That was awesome Angie.”

“Can we go home now,” Nikki whimpered, her hand on her stomach. “I don’t feel so good.”

“Come on, I’ll walk you both home,” Chris said, taking each girl’s shoulders in his arms. For once, Angelica didn’t argue with him and let him lead her away from the party.

“Wait up, I’ll come with you,” Bruce said, taking a step towards them.

Chris shook his head as they kept on walking. “I got it, man. Thanks.”

As they went to turn the corner, Angelica turned around, waving her fingers in the air with a smile on her face. “Thanks for the invite!”

CHAPTER 4

“I’m so embarrassed,” Nikki groaned the next morning, her head resting heavily in her palm as she sat cross-legged on Angelica’s bed. In her drunken state, she had spent most of the night with her head in the toilet and then had come to Angelica’s room to sleep. Her mouth still felt gross, and her throat burned in protest.

Angelica chortled as she walked back into her room, holding two cups of hot coffee in one hand and a plate of glazed donuts with the other. To her wonderful surprise, she hadn’t woken up without so much as a hint of a hangover. When she found Nikki groaning at the bottom of her bed, she went straight into mom mode and went to get them some caffeine.

“Girls have done worse at jock parties,” Angelica soothed as she nursed her coffee. “Besides, you did nothing wrong. Those assholes were trying to take advantage of you, and they deserved some payback.”

The girls heard their front door open and close and Angelica rolled her eyes. “Why did you give your brother a key?” She mumbled. Seconds later Chris walked into her room, looking chipper as usual.

“Ooh, donuts!” He said as a form of greeting. He snagged Nikki’s untouched one off of the plate and scarfed it half way down in one bite. Chris rubbed his stomach happily over his dark gray V-neck T-shirt as he bounced onto Angelica’s bed, his head landing in her lap.

“How are you ladies doing this morning?” He asked cheerfully.

Nikki groaned and held her hot cup of coffee against her temple, hoping the heat would drive the throbbing away. “This is one of those rare moments where I wish I didn’t have a photographic memory,” she whined, recalling last night. “Even when I’m drunk it still works.”

“Don’t worry sis,” Chris comforted, stretching his arm out to pat her knee. “You’ll feel better once you get some of the coffee down and get some food in your stomach. He looked up at Angelica from her lap and stared for a moment admiring her form peaking under a lavender tank top.

“You’re famous Angie,” He teased. “Everyone at the party wants to be your friend since you’ve tased one of the biggest douches in school.”

“Really?” Angelica asked, surprised. “I can’t believe he’s not going to press charges.

“He was going to,” Chris told her. “But I told him that I would bear witness to you using it in self-defense, and he quickly backed down.”

“Thanks, Chris,” Angelica replied sincerely. She reached down and stroked his black hair down his devil’s lock. “I appreciate that.”

Chris shrugged, enjoying one of the few civil moments between them. “It’s the least I could do for not getting to you before Bruce did.”

“How is he?” She asked, her heart quickening.

“Not bad. He had girls swarming him after we left, thanks to his hero act. Last I saw at least three girls walked out of his room this morning. He may still have more in there, who knows?”

Angelica’s heart sank hearing about Bruce’s bedside activities. She tried to ignore the disappointment rising in her chest. Why would he sustain from being with other girls? It’s not like they were dating. Hell, he hadn’t even asked for her number. He was just nice to her.

~

3 Days Later

“Miss Foster, do you have a minute?” Professor Trang asked.

Angelica had just finished her Encrypted Zoology class and was about to walk out with Nikki when their professor stopped her from walking out the door.

“Sure, Professor Trang, what’s up?” She asked. It was a hot day on campus, and her short pale yellow sundress wasn’t doing much to keep her cool. She wanted to get home, change into her bikini and stretch out with Nikki in their yard for the last time this season before they started their nightly studies.

“Are you aware that there’s a certain set of rules sports players at our school have to abide by?” Professor Trang asked.

Angelica felt a twinge of panic as she was asked the question. She thought he was referring to the little tasing she gave to Douchebag Mark at the party.  She had spent the entire weekend after the event worrying about whether she’d get in trouble.  She was aware that it wasn’t exactly legal to even carry a taser, but the party wasn’t exactly a school function, or at least she hoped they wouldn’t count it as one. 

“I’m afraid not, Professor,” she replied, her voice sounding small.

“Well, I’m sure you’ve heard of our star quarterback, Bruce Knox.  He’s failing my Intro to Biology course for the second time. He not only needs it to graduate, but he also needs it to play in the two final games, which are apparently more important than a diploma,” he said, his tone full of annoyance. “Anyway, you’re my best student, Angelica, and I know that I’m putting you out for studying for your own finals, but I was hoping you could tutor him for his two makeup tests and finals. I promised that if he got a ninety or higher, I would let him slide through with a C-minus for his overall grade, which would allow him to graduate.”

Angelica couldn’t believe what he was asking her. As Bruce’s tutor she would be spending a whole lot of time with him, and maybe she’d be able to get to know him better.  Her heart fluttered at the thought of it. She just knew that he was a good person, despite what Chris had said about him.

“I would love to!” Angelica quickly agreed.  Professor Trang raised his eyebrows in surprise.

“Wow, really?” he asked. “Wonderful! Well, obviously I’ll give you extra credit for this, and I’ll be giving a personal phone call to the admissions board tomorrow. I know you’re a shoo-in for the master’s program, but a little push from a professor definitely doesn’t hurt either.” He gave her a friendly a wink.

“Thank you, Professor Trang!” Angelica all but gushed. Outside, Angelica found Nikki waiting for her by the stone steps of the building. She quickly relayed the message of the exciting news and both girls squealed and jumped up and down in excitement for Angelica’s opportunity.