Payoff Pitch (Philadelphia Patriots) (19 page)

But at least he’d still be with the Patriots if he said yes. And he wouldn’t have to pull up stakes and move to a hotel room in the minors.

Like a red flag flapping in his brain, he immediately thought of Teddy and the dogs. How could he leave them for several weeks or even longer? That consideration probably held more weight than it should, but he couldn’t worry about it right now. Of course he’d go to the bullpen. The alternative was a whole lot worse.

But Noah simply gave Ault a thoughtful nod, as if he had to think hard about the offer. “You really think Dembinski will go for that?” The GM rarely listened to anybody.

Ault snorted. “Remember what I said about keeping this in the room?”

Noah managed a smile. He was glad he’d built a strong relationship of trust with Jack Ault over the past two years. “Yeah, and I appreciate this, Skip. You need to know that.”

Ault waved his hand to signify it was no big deal. “I ran it by Taylor before the game and she agreed with me. And you know how it is these days—if Taylor’s on board, Dembinski often is, too. She knows him inside out and she’s damn persuasive.”

Noah couldn’t stifle a relieved chuckle. Assistant general manager Taylor Page seemed to be the only human on God’s green earth who ever could sway Dembinski, and word was that she won at least as many battles with him as she lost. While there had been some friction last year when she and Ryan Locke first started dating, Dembinski and Taylor had settled into a respectful and productive relationship. Equally importantly, Taylor and Ault had become close friends during the year and a half that she’d been with the Patriots.

“Taylor’s great,” Noah said, grateful for her support, too. There wasn’t a player on the team that didn’t like the super-smart AGM, who just also happened to be a babe. Not that her looks mattered, because she’d proved her worth to the team a dozen times over. “If you guys want me in the bullpen, then that’s where I’m going to be.”

Ault rose to his feet and extended his hand. “If I know you, it won’t be that long before you’re ready to rejoin the rotation. Until then, just keep working hard every day with Javy and be ready to go when we need you.”

Noah gripped the manager’s hand firmly. “You got it.”

As he left the office, Noah made a vow to himself that he was going to work even harder than Ault or anybody else expected. There was no way he would let this setback tank his career. For a lot of guys, especially ones his age, demotion to a bullpen role signaled that the end of the line was in sight. But Noah couldn’t let that happen.

Yeah, someday he’d have to deal with a life that didn’t involve throwing baseballs, but he prayed to a merciful God that such a day would be years down the road.

Thinking—perhaps foolishly—that Noah might want to talk to her about the game, Teddy had waited up for him until after one-thirty. Normally, she was in bed well before midnight, having exercised the dogs one last time around eleven and then taking a long soak in the Jacuzzi tub in her ensuite bathroom. She’d expected Noah back by midnight since he’d never been later than that since she moved in. But as the minutes relentlessly passed, worry crept in.

She’d tried willing herself to drift off to sleep but it hadn’t worked. So, she’d hauled out one of the books on the required reading list for her course. If anything could put her to sleep at that hour it would be a dreary textbook. Though it seemed stupid to worry about Noah, she did anyway. He’d pitched poorly tonight, so what if he’d gotten drunk with his buddies and had an accident on the way home? Or was simply so distracted that he’d lost his concentration behind the wheel? The idea of him injured or worse made her skin crawl with anxiety.

Of course, he could instead be tucked up for the night in the arms of some cheerleader or model from his black book, someone doing her skilled, energetic best to make him forget his troubles on the field. The latter scenario was certainly preferable to her other, more gruesome imaginings, but she had to admit she loathed the idea of Noah with another woman.

In the complete stillness that enveloped the house, Teddy heard a distant coughing sound—one she recognized instantly.

Canine upchuck alert.

She threw off the duvet and raced down the staircase to the ground floor. Another cough, this time louder, coming from the kitchen
.

Her bare feet flying over the hardwood, she shot into the kitchen and flipped on the lights. Toby stood hunched over a disgusting mass of digested food, clearly sizing it up as possibly another tempting meal even though he’d just gotten rid of it. Teddy had seen this movie before and knew it never ended well.

“Toby, no!” she snapped in a commanding voice she hoped didn’t wake the housekeeper. “Get away from that!”

Nothing like cleaning up dog puke in the middle of the night. Oh, well, that’s why I get paid the big bucks.

She vaulted across the room and grabbed the dog by the collar, gently pulling him away and making him sit and stay on the opposite side of the spacious kitchen. She went down on her knees and nuzzled the dog for a few moments to make it clear she wasn’t angry with him.

“I’ll bet it was a hairball, huh, buddy? You’re not really sick, are you?” She looked into the Poodle’s dark eyes and saw nothing that alarmed her. His expression was bright and happy, though if she knew his evil mind, he was wishing he could disobey Teddy and scoot over to nab what he clearly thought would be a tasty treat.

In a bid to circumvent that unpleasant scene, she grabbed his collar again and walked him out the back door, throwing the switch for the floodlights as she passed. Toby could do whatever business he had to do outside while she cleaned up the mess.

Back in the kitchen, the ceramic tile was almost numbingly cold on her bare feet. Cristina always boosted the air conditioning went she went to bed, lowering the house temperature to sixty-five degrees or less. That was the way Noah liked it and Teddy didn’t normally mind, especially when she was snuggled underneath the comfy duvet on her bed. Now, though, she hugged herself to keep warm, wishing she’d taken the time to put on her robe before coming down. Her pink sleep shirt didn’t quite reach mid-thigh and kept in precious little of her body heat. And her hiphugger panties were useless in that respect, too.

Then again, she didn’t plan on being up any longer than it took to scoop Toby’s mess into a trash bag and toss it into the bin in the garage. The dog seemed fine so she didn’t feel any need to stay up with him. Toby had a penchant for throwing up hairballs, and that was no doubt what had caused this little episode.

Bag in hand, Teddy went down on her hands and knees again and had just started cleaning the floor with paper towels when she heard the garage door opening.

Noah. Oh, this is just what he needs to come home to at the end of a bad night.

She hurried to finish the cleanup, madly ripping lengths of paper towel off the roll and scooping up the soggy mess. Once she’d done as much as she could, she tied a quick knot in the trash bag, tossed it in the corner and grabbed a container of Lysol wipes. She’d just gone back down on her knees to start frantically scrubbing the floor when she heard footsteps behind her.

“Teddy? What’s going on?”

Sitting back, Teddy wiped her brow, suddenly feeling flushed and nervous. She glanced over her shoulder at him, taking in his wide planted feet and his dark, intense frown. His eyes were locked not on the floor she’d been cleaning but directly on her bare legs and her butt under the woefully thin cotton shirt.

Well, that was just perfect, she thought with a resigned sigh.

She didn’t dare lean back down to finish sterilizing the patch of floor—not unless she wanted to flash him a whole lot of skin. She stood up quickly, managing a weak smile as she yanked the hem of the sleep shirt down in a vain effort to cover the tops of her thighs. “Toby just threw up and I exiled him to the back yard so I could clean up the mess.”

Noah’s rigid posture relaxed and his frown slowly faded. His tired-looking eyes roamed over her body and then stopped at her chest. No wonder, since her nipples were hard enough to cut glass and had been outlined by her efforts to pull down on the shirt. Yeah, she could tell herself it was the air conditioning making her nipples spring into action, but the way her inner muscles had clenched at the expression on his face put the boots to that. There was no mistaking either the intent of that gaze or her body’s response to it.

She eased up on the shirt a bit, giving him a hesitant smile.

“I gotta say, Teddy, you are absolutely fucking beautiful,” Noah said in a low, thick voice. He took two slow steps toward her then stopped.

She swallowed, staggered by his words. Then she caught the scent of alcohol wafting from him. “Noah, are you drunk?” she asked, her fists automatically going to her hips.

She wouldn’t blame him if he’d gotten loaded after the game—not after how he’d pitched—but she’d be furious if he’d driven home drunk.

He shook his head. “I had a couple of beers with the guys at Angelo’s. Then Locke made me go next door for coffee with him and talk it all out. I swear I’m sober.” He took another step forward and his right hand drifted up to her shoulder. “After the game, they demoted me to the bullpen. I don’t blame the manager, and the guys I talked to were totally supportive, but it still feels like I’ve got a six-inch blade stuck in my gut.”

And now it felt like someone had just stuck that blade into her gut, too. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, wishing she could do something to help him. “I was worried about you. I couldn’t sleep.”

“You were worried about me?” He sounded surprised. And skeptical.

“Of course I was worried. You always come right home after the game.” She winced and dropped her gaze, embarrassed at her admission. She got a little jolt when she took in the serious bulge in his jeans.

And, dammit, she could immediately feel herself growing wet as she stared at his impressive package. Her instinctive response shocked her, but she couldn’t move. Didn’t want to move. Her heart drummed a staccato beat against the walls of her chest as she waited for him to say something.

Please say something, Noah
.
Get us out of this.

When she lifted her gaze, she realized how foolish
that
idea was. Noah had clearly noticed that
she’d
noticed, because he gave her a slow, sexy smile and closed the gap between them until his chest brushed her stiff nipples. She gave a soft gasp as heated sensations rippled through her, sensations she hadn’t felt for a long time.

Or maybe ever, come to think of it. At least not so strongly that the backs of her knees went weak as water. That was both a testament to his major league hotness and, unfortunately, to her lousy sex life.

When he enfolded her in his brawny arms, Teddy didn’t resist. Couldn’t resist. She was sick of not knowing what it was like to be swept away by a passion so overwhelming that nothing else mattered in that moment. She wanted, she
needed,
to let go and give in to everything she felt for him.

And he needed her, of that she had no doubt.

Ignoring all her good intentions, ignoring everything but him, she snaked her hands around his broad back and snuggled into the warmth of his chest. Suddenly, she was anything but cold.

“Nobody ever says they worry about me,” Noah whispered into her ear as his heavy stubble rasped against her cheek. “Not since my mom died, anyway.”

Teddy heart’s ached for him even as her body shook with desire. She knew he’d lost his mother as a very young child and that he had a cold relationship with an emotionally distant stepmother. But what about the other people in his life?

She raised her head, blinking away the beginning of tears as she stared up into his darkly intense gaze. “I’m sorry about that, too, Noah. You deserve to have someone who worries about you.”

He bent, just a bit, and their lips slid together so smoothly it seemed to happen without any conscious will or effort. A final, sharp warning sounded in her brain, telling her to pull back. But even before she parted her lips to Noah’s probing tongue, she’d already gone boneless in the strength of his embrace, knowing on some level beyond thought that this was right—if not for always, at least for this moment.

For now, that was enough.

Teddy gasped against his mouth as he came into her, his tongue tasting and stroking with a leisurely sensuality. Noah’s hand cradled the back of her neck, holding her captive as he claimed her with an intoxicating possession. No man had ever kissed her like this. No kiss had ever made her surrender like this. She heard herself whimper and could hardly believe she’d made such an aching, almost desperate sound.

Out of pure, primal instinct, Teddy reached down with both hands for his belt. His erection was right there, big and hard and thrusting at his jeans, and the mere brush of her hand against its length brought a groan from deep in Noah’s throat.

But when he pulled back, she wanted to groan herself with frustration.

“Teddy, no,” he said in an agonized, raspy voice. “We said we wouldn’t—”

“Shut up, Noah,” Teddy ordered as she slid her bare leg up his thigh and pressed herself up against his groin.

“God, babe.” He groaned again as he slid a big hand under her nightshirt, cupping her ass and increasing the pressure of his cock on her mound. “You’d better be sure, because I’ve never wanted anybody like I want you. Never.”

Teddy so wanted to believe him. To believe that it wasn’t just hormones and frustration doing the talking. But now wasn’t the time for a cool-headed analysis. Not when she was so wet, so ready for him. Noah must know how ready she was—he could feel it for himself as his fingers slid down to her slick folds.

“I’m sure,” she whispered. And, dammit, she was. “Now, Noah. Right now, before one of us thinks any harder about why we shouldn’t.”

As if Noah needed any encouragement to keep going. Cuddling her with one arm, he smoothed a hand over her soft, damp curls. Teddy sucked in a gasp as his fingertips brushed over her aching clit and then she kissed him again, this time even deeper, desperate to have as much of him inside her as she could. By the time Noah smoothly slipped two long fingers into her, she was so far gone she thought she was going to come apart right then and there.