Sacking the Quarterback (10 page)

“
Then it’s not the job for
you. Come home and start a new search.”

Taylor jumped up and pulled off her
cap. “And admit failure? Not happening.”

“
You’re just like your
father. Too proud. There’s nothing wrong with saying
I made a mistake
. Better
to correct it now before it sucks you in any further.”

“
I’m not coming home. I’ll
suffer with a job I hate until I can find a new one. And I
will
find a new
one.”

“
Wouldn’t it be easier to
look without working eight to ten hours a day?” her mother asked.
“You sound exhausted when you call me. How are you supposed to
focus on the job hunt if you’re exhausted?”

“
Mom, I love you, but stop.
I won’t admit defeat and run back home with my tail between my
legs.”

“
Like I did?” a masculine
voice asked.

Taylor spun to see Rhett standing a
few feet away with a dozen red roses in hand. He looked so
handsome, wearing a suit. She’d never seen him in a suit, except on
television. He cleaned up pretty well. A hint of his warm cologne
hit her nose, and she breathed in the scent, her body immediately
reacting to his presence.

“
Our stories aren’t the
same,” Taylor said after the shock of seeing him there wore off.
“Technically, you’re still employed.”

“
I won’t be if I can’t get
my head straight for next season,” Rhett said as he took a couple
of steps closer. He held out the roses. “These are for you.” He
leaned in to kiss her check after she accepted them. The feel of
his warm lips on her skin made her nipples tighten. Something so
simple made her want him with a ferocity she’d never encountered.
He was her drug, and she was slowly becoming addicted.

“
Congratulations,” he
whispered against her ear.

Taylor shivered, the warmth of his
body making her pussy begin to dampen, the need to have him inside
her overriding. “Thank you,” she replied lowly before looking up
and staring into his eyes. His gaze heated the longer it remained
locked with hers. “Why did you come?”

“
And miss your big day?” he
asked with a grin. “I couldn’t miss the chance to tell you how
proud I am of you.”

He’d wanted to be there on
her special day? Why did that make her all warm and squishy on the
inside?
Stop it! He’s your kryptonite!
Danger, danger!

“
There’s your father. I’ll
just go wait in the car,” her mother said. Taylor had almost
forgotten she was still there. Embarrassment flooded her face as
she turned to nod her mother’s way. Her mother patted Rhett’s arm
as she walked through the two of them. “Take all the time you need,
sweetheart.”

“
Thanks … er … for coming,
I guess.” Taylor wasn’t exactly sure what to say. Her family was
waiting for her, but inside, she wanted to stay close to him. She
felt the pull, even if she couldn’t admit it to him.

“
You’re mine,
remember?”

Taylor felt anger creeping up through
the desire she felt. “I already told you that you didn’t own me.
Nothing has changed since the last time I saw you.”

Rhett stepped in closer and kissed
her. Her knees went weak as soon as his mouth was on hers. She
grasped handfuls of his shirt to hold herself up, but soon felt him
grasp her waist and help her keep upright. As soon as he released
her from his kiss, the world spun and she couldn’t catch her
breath.

“
You’re right. Nothing’s
changed since the last time I saw you. Only I realized something
else.”

Her heart beat a staccato in her
chest. “What’s that?”

“
It’s not a matter of
ownership, it’s a matter of what’s right. You’re mine.” He smiled
widely. “And I’m yours.”

And I’m yours.
The words sounded so good. But her plan. She had
to remember the plan. Rhett wasn’t a part of that. He was going to
wreck everything.

Or make it more wonderful.

The girly parts of her stood up and
cheered that sudden idea. Since the beginning, she’d been unwilling
to think something between them could work, only because she didn’t
want to get her hopes up. In her desire to protect herself, she
hadn’t left open the chance for something real to
blossom.

Could it?

Fear slipped back into her head, and
she glanced at her parent’s car. “I’ve got to go. They’re waiting.
We’re supposed to go have lunch and celebrate.”

Rhett backed away a step and looked
down. “Will you ever stop running from me?”

Taylor didn’t know what to say to
that. She didn’t want to run, but it seemed to come so naturally
when it came to him. “I don’t know …”

Rhett let out a sigh. “Then I suppose
you should go.”

Taylor nodded. Rhett turned and
started walking away.

When he’d gotten about five paces
away, words bubbled from her chest and sprang unbidden from her
lips. “You could always join us.”

Rhett paused and slowly turned around.
The smile that started to spread across his face was contagious—she
was fairly certain hers was just as wide.

“
I’d like that,” he said, a
glimmer in his eye.

Chapter Nine

Rhett watched as Taylor peeled off the
sexy little dress. She’d taken the regalia off before they ate, and
he’d not been able to ignore her body all through lunch. She’d sat
next to him, her body proximity doing things to his body. He’d been
hard for three hours and if he didn’t get inside her soon, he was
sure he’d die. His whole body was on fire for her, his cock
throbbing with every beat of his heart.

Now she stripped for him as they stood
on the edge of his pond. She’d been chased out of that pond for
skinny dipping for years, but this time he would chase her in. And
then he’d sink between her thighs as the warm water lapped their
bodies.

“
The pond looks cleaner,”
she said as she unhooked her bra.

He was so focused on her movements, he
almost didn’t catch what she said. “I had Mr. Branscomb come out
and dredge it out last month and clean it up.”

Taylor wiggled out of her panties and
walked closer to the edge. She put one foot in and smiled back at
him. “I can see all the way to the bottom.”

She dived in and he stood there
watching her frolic in the water a moment. Taylor belonged here, on
this land. She’d snuck over as a child because it called to her.
Just like she called to him. Not a night went by that he didn’t
think of her, but he’d kept his distance, not wanting to push her
away. Three long months he’d spent alone with the house and the
land, fixing it up. All the while, he’d known he was making it
right for her. This was all hers.

“
You gonna come in or just
stand there and watch me,” she asked as she popped out of the
water, her hair molded to the sides of her beautiful face. The
wicked smile on her lips only made him harder, which was
impossible.

Rhett kicked off his shoes and quickly
disrobed before jumping in. As soon as he was in the water, she
splashed him and he chased after her. Once she was in his arms, she
fought a little but then stilled and molded her nakedness against
his. His hard cock rested against her stomach, throbbing to let her
know it was there. Taylor rubbed herself against him, making a
groan come from his lips.

When she lifted her legs to wrap
around his waist, he knew he was done for. In the position, her
pussy pressed against his shaft. Even in the water, he could feel
her slickness and heat. She was as ready for him as he was for her.
Rhett leaned in to kiss her gently before he broke away to gaze
down at her.

“
I want you so much,” he
whispered. “But I want more than a few random fucks.”

“
I have a plan—”

He cut her off, not needing to hear
her spiel again. “You’re going to let a plan get in the way of
something wonderful?”

Taylor wrapped her arms around his
neck. “If you’d let me finish. I have a plan, and I lost sight of
everything else just to reach my goals. Now I have a job I hate and
a man I want and I don’t know what to do.”

A smile played at his lips. “Sounds
like it’s time for a new plan.”

She nodded. “You’re right. But what
about you? You came here to sort out your life. Fixing up a house
is all well and good, but did you worry about fixing up what’s in
here?” She pressed her hand to his heart.

Rhett captured that hand and held it
closer. “I think I just needed to be reminded of the man I was, the
man I wanted to be. I allowed too many people to get me spun around
and off-track. The money, the lifestyle … well it can get to you.
This house will be my sanctuary. I can come here and remember
what’s important.”

Taylor looked up at the house. “You
did a fine job, by the way. I can’t wait to see everything inside.
Jennings said it looks amazing. You better not have torn it up too
much, though.”

Rhett nodded. “What? And incur your
wrath? Not on my life.”

She smiled.

“
It’s all for you anyway,”
he said.

Her smiled faded, and he feared he was
losing her. “For me?”

“
You belong here more than
I do. You laid claim to this land years ago and never let go. Now,
you’ve laid claim to me, too. It’s a package deal.”

Taylor’s mouth dropped open. “What are
you saying, Rhett?”

“
This place is as much
yours as it is mine. I want you here to remind me who I am and
where I want to go.”

“
What about my life? My
dreams?”

“
I’m not asking you to give
anything up, but I hope we can find a way to work things out. I
think it’s possible.”

Taylor shook her head. “You’re about
to leave for training camp. You’ll be half a country away. How are
we supposed to work around that?”

“
I just got
traded.”

Taylor looked up at him.
“Where?”

“
Houston,” he said with a
grin.

She began to smile before leaning in
to kiss him. “So you won’t be the traitor anymore? Then I’d say
that’s a very good sign.”

“
Traitor?” he
asked.

“
How you could leave Texas
and play for the opposition is traitorous at best. Now I can root
for you.”

Rhett pulled her close, his cock
slipping between her folds. “You weren’t rooting for me
before?”

Her answer really didn’t matter once
the tip of his cock slipped inside her without prodding. A moan
drew from her lips, and he surged in a little more. Taylor began to
roll her hips as he slid all the way home. She felt so good, so hot
… so raw. He was uncovered, and they were unprotected, but he
didn’t want to leave the heaven he was surrounded in.

“
We need a condom,” he
managed to sputter, his body shaking with the need to
move.

“
I’m on the pill,” she
said, her forehead against his cheek. “And you’re the only one I’ve
been with in a long, long time.”

Rhett let out a deep breath. “I just
had a physical and know I’m clean.”

Taylor lifted her head some and kissed
him deeply. “Then have at it, lover.”

Rhett didn’t need any more
encouragement. He clasped her hips and began moving within her
fiery body. She was so slick, so hot, he knew he’d never felt
better. Taylor seemed always ready for him, her responsive cries
pushing him to make her scream in satisfaction.

Taylor pushed her hands through his
wet locks and held on for dear life. Their bodies slapped together
under the water, the surface ripples growing wider and stronger as
he picked up the pace. Sweat beaded and rolled down his neck and
back from his strain to give her everything she needed.

“
You feel so good,” she
said as she let her head fall back. “Harder, Rhett,
harder.”

He leaned in to run his lips across
the slender column of her neck as he obeyed her command. She tasted
of sunshine and the outdoors. She tasted of this place, a constant
reminder of who he was and what he would always be. Rhett needed
her in his life. She belonged there.

Rhett gave her everything he had,
opening himself like he’d never done with anyone else. He felt raw,
exposed in a way that he feared. Taylor captured his stare, and he
watched the passion unfolding on her face. Each thrust of his cock
made her moan. Her eyes filled with emotions he couldn’t even
guess, but he hoped she felt the same things he did.

When her body tightened against his
and he knew she was about to come, he reached between them and
pressed against her clit. She screamed her release against his
lips, her pussy throbbing around his cock and almost making him
follow her. He bit the inside of his mouth, trying to stave off a
release.

He was nowhere near being
done.

After a moment, Taylor’s arms and legs
relaxed around him. She laughed, a grin coming to her lips. “You
really know what you’re doing, you know that?”