It was early Christmas morning and he was making breakfast for himself and Jenna while she still slept. He'd kept her up pretty late, alternately watching Christmas movies on TV and delighting in her body as much as he could. The last two days had been great, probably too enjoyable, based on how quickly he was growing accustomed to having her around.
There was something very different about her. She made him forget about his shoulder, his career, everything. That was dangerous, he knew. But for now, he was going to let himself enjoy the holiday with her and sort everything out later.
While flipping the bacon, his phone buzzed against his granite countertop, declaring Jason Myers had finally called him back. Jason had been Wyatt's go-to wide receiver and one of his best friends while he was at UT. He also had the unique qualification of having played for Jenna's father in high school. Wyatt had left a message with Jason the day after he'd kissed Jenna the first time. Her indication at the ice-skating rink that a football player in high school had hurt her somehow grabbed his attention and wouldn't let go. Wyatt turned down the burner and grabbed his phone quickly.
"Jason, what's up? Thanks for calling me back."
"You're welcome, man. Sorry it took me so long. Ever since I joined the Canadian Football League, I feel like I never have much free time anymore. But I have today off. I hope it's okay I called you so early on Christmas."
"No problem, this is perfect."
"Your message said you want to know about Coach Sutherland?"
"Sort of. It's more that I want to know about his daughter. Jenna."
"Oh right. I heard she moved to Pittsburgh a while back. Do you know her?"
"She's my…friend."
"Wow, small world. That's great. How's she doing?"
"Pretty well, but I do really want to know about when she was in high school. It's important."
"Um, okay. Well, s
he was a junior when I was a sophomore, and she graduated a year early, so I didn't really know her too well. I liked her a lot, though. She really knew her shit — was practically our assistant coach. I remember her being on the sidelines at every practice and games, too. But she was less involved the season before she graduated."
"Why do you think that was?"
"Well, there were rumors…"
"What rumors?" Wyatt asked quickly, squeezing the spatula in his hand so hard that he had to put it down and flex his fingers until the joints stopped hurting.
"I don't know. It was a long time ago. She was always nice to me. I don't want to talk shit when I don't know anything for sure…"
"Jason, just tell me. I won't use what you say to hurt her."
"People saw her with this dude, Chase. He kept it on the down-low, but it was a small town. She was a nice girl, but really shy and totally separated from the rest of the school…"
"Dude, just say it."
"Chill out, man. Why the fuck do you even want to know this?"
"I have my reasons. Just tell me."
"Fine. People said he banged her to get her to fall for him so she would beg her dad to make him starting QB."
Wyatt felt so much anger coursing through his body he almost dropped the phone before continuing to speak. "Do you think he would've done that? Used her like that, I mean?"
"He's definitely a ruthless piece of shit, and he did end up starting that season, so it may be true. I didn't want to believe it. I liked her, and Chase was a total asshole. His family had loads of money and he pretty much figured the world owed him everything. Back in high school, he liked to brag he would always get what he wanted, no matter what. Chase was born on third base and thought he hit a triple."
Wyatt felt a twisting sensation in his gut. He was pretty sure it was shame. "I know the type." Wyatt growled out, thinking of his father with irritation. "What happened to him?"
"Coach Sutherland made him the starting QB. If Chase hooked up with Jenna, there was no way Coach knew it. He was crazy protective of her. Jenna graduated a year early, leaving the team when we were poised to have our best season ever. That should've been a huge success for her to enjoy. She was a big part of the team. It didn't make any sense."
"And Chase?"
"He got a scholarship to the University of Georgia. He's been a backup for Atlanta for a few years now, though he started for several weeks this season when Travis Cunningham had that concussion."
"Oh, right, Chase Matthews, yeah, I've heard of him."
"He always talked a good game, you know, bullshitting people to get his way. He was pretty good at tricking coaches into thinking he was an okay guy. I'm sure he's done that in Atlanta, too."
"So he's just a smooth talker?"
"No. Chase is worse than just being a dick."
"How?"
"He beat up a girl in college. It was so bad, I even heard about it at UT. His parents used their money and connections to buy her off so she didn't press charges. They got him out of that one. Who knows what other bad shit he's pulled over the years."
"Do you think he threatened Jenna somehow to become QB?" Wyatt asked so quietly that he could barely hear the words himself. There was a long pause before Jason answered.
"That's what the rest of the team figured happened. I would love to kick his ass just for thinking he did it, though."
Wyatt felt a pair of soft hands touching his bare waist, shocking him back to reality. He turned to see Jenna gifting him with a warm, sleepy smile. Her hair was a mess — blonde and tousled around her pretty face — and he felt actual pain in his chest at the thought of someone hurting her.
It tore him apart to think he could be another in a line of quarterback jerks to take advantage of her. He'd never intended to do that. His plan had seemed so innocuous to him at the time. Yet, it was all so different to him now.
"Wy, dude, are you still there?" Jason asked on the other end of the line.
"Oh, yeah, sorry, I have to go. Thanks for everything, I mean it," Wyatt answered, staring at Jenna's face so intently he could tell it made her nervous. She started fiddling with her hair, pushing it behind her ear. He reached up and stroked her face tenderly, then smoothed her hair back for her. He kissed her cheek and forced a smile around the bilious guilt filling his mouth.
"All right. Well, if you do see Jenna, tell her I say hi."
"Will do. Bye." Wyatt lied. After ending the call he held Jenna in his arms, probably more tightly than was necessary. He lifted his head and placed his chin squarely on the top of her head for a moment.
"Are you okay, Wyatt? Who was that?"
"I'm great. It was my agent," he said on a swallow, shocked at how awful yet another lie felt in his mouth.
"Agent? Calling you on Christmas? That's some service," she said with a smile, as she circled her arms around his waist. "Yum, is that bacon I smell?"
"Shit, I don't want it to burn. Let me get it off the heat."
Wyatt crossed the room to the stove. After putting the phone down on the counter, he looked down at the sizzling bacon, hiding his guilty face from her. He used the time it took him to remove the bacon from the pan to get his emotions under control.
When he was ready, he took a fortifying breath and turned to her with a smile.
"Merry Christmas, Jenna," he said. And he meant it. He was happy she was there with him, surrounded by the Christmas lights and silly decorations they had put up together over the last couple of days.
She sparkled in front of him, glowing in his kitchen like a delicate snow angel. Her time with him was also ephemeral. His original plan to sway her opinion such that she adjusted her diagnosis of his shoulder made that almost inevitable. Yet, that made the moment no less confusing.
Maybe the feeling would pass, once he got over the shock of imagining this strong, but vulnerable, beautiful woman being the victim of a villain like Chase. And now, Wyatt felt like he was just the latest predator — the carnivore that had dragged her back to his cave. He wasn't sure whom he hated more, Chase…or himself.
"Feliz Navidad, Wyatt Alejandro," she answered with a teasing grin. Wyatt leaned back against the kitchen counter and Jenna nestled her thighs between his legs. She looked into his eyes and lazily trailed her fingers across his chest, shoulders, and stomach.
"I like that you speak Spanish," Wyatt said, trying to shake off his dark mood. Jenna deserved a happy Christmas, and he would give it to her.
"Why, thank you. I like that I get to use it with you. But I think everyone knows
those
two Spanish words."
"It's still very sexy to hear them come out of that pretty mouth of yours. It reminds me of growing up."
"It's not too shabby coming out of yours, either. I think you have the sexiest mouth ever found in the real world. It's
good you like me speaking Spanish, because my Irish accent is awful," Jenna teased.
"Why'd you study it?"
"An Irish accent? I never really studied how to do one. It's just more of a goofy thing I do when I drink…"
"Very funny, it's a real question. I thought you were supposed to be a serious woman."
"Oh, fine. I'll be serious. Well, I took it in school, but I worked really hard to become fluent because I wanted to do Doctors Without Borders in South America."
"Did you?"
"I was going to. About five years ago, I had to leave Atlanta." She paused and her eyes darkened, triggering that growling worry in Wyatt again. He clutched her hips and she leaned in more closely to him, before she continued on. "I thought that would be the perfect time to do it, but Tea's husband had died and after a year or so, she was still a mess. It was clear she needed me. That's what friends do for each other. If my mom's best friend Cheryl hadn't stepped in to help my dad raise me after she died…well, I don't even want to think about how much harder everything would've been. So, I decided to take an opportunity I found here in Pittsburgh instead."
"You guys must be really close."
"The closest. I'm the brown bird."
"The what?" he said, over a chuckle.
"The tattoo on my hip…" Jenna lifted up the tiny tank top she was wearing with one hand and drew down the side of her panties to reveal the colorful tattoo of three intertwined birds of varying colors flying in a circle. He remembered licking that design with abandon only the night before. "All three of us have this tattoo. That's each of us. Tea is the soft lilac one, Aubrey is the one with all the crazy colors, and me — I'm the sensible, boring, brown bird here."
"There's nothing boring about you, Doc, especially when you get me thinking about that tattoo on your hip. But I'm really trying to be good here and keep my hands off you long enough to make you breakfast. So you didn't get to do Doctors Without Borders? Is that why you do the free clinic and your charity work here?"
"How'd you know about that?"
"I've been trying to know everything about you, Doc, haven't you realized that yet? Eloni told me about it. I think it's great."
Jenna giggled and tickled his waist lightly in response.
"I think you cooking for me is great. I'm still recovering from the dulce de leche you made last night for Christmas Eve."
"I liked making it for you, I also liked licking it off you," Wyatt whispered in her ear, before sucking lightly on the lobe. "How about pancakes for your Christmas breakfast?"
"That sounds great!"
"Good, because I want to start opening presents."
"Yes, sir!" Jenna answered.
Wyatt took the plate of pancakes he'd made earlier out of the oven where they were warming. Jenna placed it on a tray, adding the bacon and other fixings. Wyatt went to grab the tray from the counter, but she slapped his hand.
"Oh no, you don't, Wyatt. You don't need to be straining that shoulder. I'll carry the tray," she ordered, grabbing it from him and bumping him with her hip. He followed her quietly, watching her rounded ass walk away from him in nothing but small, white panties, making him wonder if the presents could wait.
Jenna put down the tray next to the tree and turned in time for him to hand her a present.
"Wow, you don't mess around, Wyatt."
"Nope, open it. The food can wait."
Jenna giggled girlishly, and her big smile made his heart flip over in his chest again. She was allowing herself to enjoy the holiday, and he was relishing this new side of her. The paper flew everywhere, eventually revealing a box of ice skates.
"Ice skates?"
"Like our sort of first date. I know you weren't able to skate that day because it was a team thing, but next time, it will be just you and me. You need to be ready. I'm pretty experienced after my last skating session, so you can hold onto me. Don't worry."
"That sounds like so much fun, Wyatt. And I love them. Thank you." She leaned forward and kissed his cheek before resting back on the floor. "How'd you know my size for ice skates?"
"I peeked at the shoes you brought and snuck away to call about them. It was pretty hard to have them delivered here yesterday without you noticing, you know."
"I'm very impressed."
"Okay, now open this one." Wyatt handed her the smallest present in size, and the one he'd been most nervous about.
"But, it's your turn."
"I'll go next. Open it."
Jenna ripped the paper off and flipped the lid on the small jewelry box and gasped when she saw the delicate earrings inside. Her eyes misted a bit, but she tried to regain her composure before looking at him again.
"Wyatt, they look just like…"
"Your locket? I know. I saw them at an antique shop when we had an hour to ourselves during our Oakland trip. I remembered your locket had a woman's face on it, too. The sales lady called it a cameo."