Blocked (47 page)

I stuck out my hand. “Hey, TJ.” The starting football quarterback at a volleyball game?

“Um…” He cocked his head. “This is election night, right? And…you’re
here?”

Before I had a chance to explain, the locker room door swung open, and I wondered if Lucia’s arrival would explain my presence. But it turned out the player who emerged explained
TJ’s
presence.

“Hey, gorgeous,” he said, and Nina shimmied right up to him. She’d planted a kiss on his lips before she realized I was there.

“Dane!” Her eyes widened.

“That was one hell of a match, Nina.”

It was the first genuine smile I’d seen from her. “Thanks.” She leaned into the big man behind her. “You know TJ?”

“Of course.” I nodded at him. “I go to Highbanks, after all.”

He groaned. “No going anonymous around here, that’s for sure.”

It struck me that maybe TJ would be a good friend—he certainly understood the burdens of celebrity. I shrugged. “If it weren’t for my mom, I could go incognito as a volleyball player. It’s a little different for a star football player.”

“Well, a volleyball setter’s like a quarterback,” Nina said. “The leader of the team.”

“And you did a great job leading tonight,” I said.

She beamed. “Thanks. See ya, Dane.”

I nodded at them as they left, and hoped the pain I’d caused Nina was in the past. Then the girl of my present walked out of the locker room and bounded into my arms.

“I can’t believe you’re here!” she gushed.

“
I
can’t believe I almost missed that performance. You were incredible.”

A giddy grin lit up her face. “It was so fun! But why aren’t you with your mom?”

“You know what, my mom’s going to be fine, win or lose.” It was the first time in recent memory that I didn’t feel a knot of worry in my belly when I thought of Mom. “She saw that I wanted to be with you, so she told me to go.”

“Wow. Your mom is so cool.” She turned to the agents. “What’s the latest with the election? Alex texted me that it’s still too close to call.”

China stepped closer. “Want to know what happened with Colorado?” When Lucia nodded, she said, “Senator Monroe carried the state.”

Lucia seemed to take the news well. “What’s the electoral vote count?”

“Tied at two-thirty-six,” Frank said.

Lucia looked at me with big eyes. “
¡Hijole!”

“So California’s still up in the air?” I asked.

“And Arizona,” Brad said.

I cradled her head. “Let’s go home and watch the results. Together.”

“Great idea.” She smiled.

We walked arm in arm out of the gym, and I tucked Lucia closer to protect her from the icy November wind. That’s when I heard a woman call my name. I turned to see a reporter rush toward us with her camera guy in tow. I felt Lucia tense next to me, but she didn’t pull away. When the reporter got closer, my jaw dropped. I’d met her before.
Beergate
.

“Beverly Jackson,” I said. I snuck a glance at her microphone and camera but didn’t see any Fox logo. “You got your job back?”

“You think I’d work a volleyball game on
election
night if I got my job back?”

“Good point.” I winced. “Were there criminal charges?”

“I had a good lawyer.” She frowned. “Now I’m stuck doing freelance work, trying to claw my way back.”

Guilt stirred in my gut. “I feel bad you never got the inside scoop I promised you.”

“You can still make it up to me.” Her eyes took in Lucia and me. “It appears you’ve got quite the scoop right there.”

Lucia shot me a questioning look. I grinned at her, then turned to Beverly. “You’re right.” I took a deep breath as I looked straight into the camera. “I love Lucia Ramirez.”

The cutest gasp lifted the air next to me. I turned to see her mouth hanging open, a full-on blush coloring her pretty cheeks. Her lips gradually pulled together and slid into a grin as wide as Texas. Her eyes danced as she gazed up at me. “And I love Dane Monroe.”

“How ’bout a kiss—”

But Lucia’s mouth was on mine before Beverly had a chance to finish her suggestion. Her warm lips and floral shampoo filled my senses, and I massaged my hands through her thick, wet hair to release more of the heavenly scent.

Somewhere a man cleared his throat, then a moment later I heard Brad say, “
Jesus
, horndogs! Get a room.”

I unlatched my lips and looked over Lucia’s shoulder to find Brad cackling and Frank shaking his head. I looked back at Beverly. “Will that work for you?”

“Who do you predict will win the election?” she asked.

How will I answer that?

Lucia looked at me, then at the camera. “One of our parents will win, of course.”

Beverly shook her head and opened her mouth as if to question us again, but then she tapped the camera operator’s shoulder. “That’s a wrap.”

I know I sighed with relief.

Sometime later, we cuddled on the TV room sofa and watched political commentators argue. The anchor touched her earpiece. “Well, what do you know. In this bitterly contested election between two very different candidates, it appears there
is
some common ground to be found.” The video of Lucia kissing me flashed on the screen, and I bolted upright as she squeaked. That reporter was
fast
.

“I’ve never seen myself kiss a girl on TV before.”

“It’s kind of weird.” She nodded. Then her mouth curled into a devious smile. “And kind of sexy.”

My lower body stirred. “Kind of a turn on.”

I leaned down to kiss her and tasted fajita from our takeout after the match. Spicy and delicious, just like her. We stretched down toward one end of the sofa, her on top of me and our legs tangled together. She skated her fingertips underneath my shirt, springing goose bumps up the midline of my torso, and my hands wandered down her back until they cradled her fine butt cheeks, soft and muscular through the Spandex.

I barely heard the reporter say that Arizona had gone to Governor Ramirez, but it seemed neither of us cared. The real decider would be the massive number of electoral votes in California, and it was still too close to call.

My breath caught when she unbuttoned my shirt and yanked it open.

“Gotta see this gorgeous chest.” Her brown eyes flared with heat as they roved down my body, and her lips soon followed the scorching trail her eyes had left. Her sweet mouth on my belly ignited a fire in my core, and my hips bucked off the sofa.

She grinned up at me. “You like that?”

My fingers played with her hair as I tried to catch my breath. “I’ve got no words for how much I like that.”

She pressed lingering kisses up my chest, and the flames licked higher. Her warm breath tickled my collarbone. Just as her face hovered over mine, an involuntary yawn stretched her mouth. Her eyes widened as her hand flew to cover her mouth. “Sorry!”

I chuckled. “My little studette is tired after her stellar match.”

“No, I’m not.”

I touched my finger to her lips. “We’ve got time. It’s okay.” Then I drew her into me, and she snuggled in so her head rested on my chest. My fingers wove into her damp hair, and I breathed in her beguiling scent. A commentator said something about California typically being a lockdown for Democrats, but the Latino vote made that less certain.

I curled a strand around my finger. “What if your dad loses?”

“What if he wins?” She lifted her head. “That’s a lot of pressure.”

I laughed. “I was thinking the same thing. I wouldn’t mind if Mom lost the election. Maybe my life could return to normal.”

She twisted her mouth to one side. “That’s not very nice of us to hope our parent loses.”

“I think it’s normal, in our situation.” I pressed a kiss to her lips. “Whatever happens, I’m glad I found you.”

She looked into my eyes. “
Te amo
.”

“I love you, too, Luz.”

I’m not sure what time it was later when the TV anchor said, “
California votes are in for over ninety percent of the precincts, and we’re finally ready to announce the winner
.” I looked down to find Lucia sleeping in my arms, so sweet and yummy. I nudged her awake. “Luz, there’s a winner.”

She gasped and turned her blinking eyes to the screen. We joined hands just as the reporter began to speak.

“
The next President of the United States is
…”

Acknowledgments

Gratitude and blessings to:

Nicki Elson, critique partner. Thank you for warm fuzzies, raucous political commentary, and non-stop laughs.

Jessica Royer Ocken, editor extraordinaire. We’ve plowed through five novels together, and I look forward to many more. Thanks for articulating my ideas better than I do!

Coreen Montagna, book designer to the stars. Dane and I appreciate your talent.

Yelania Velasco, Spanish consultant.
Gracias
for your detailed and
rápido
assistance. (Any remaining errors are mine.)

Julie from AToMR Tours. Thank you for your intelligence and kindness, and for spreading the word about
Blocked
.

My volleyball teammates at Kenyon College, particularly the woman who shares my brain: Gwynn Evans Harrison. We had a blast together!

Supportive authors Carol, Elisa, Debra, Beck, Cherie, Susan, Colleen, Hannah, Jen, Judy, Trish, Robin, Darcia, Lisette, Alex.

Encouraging readers Mitsy, Grace, Roche, Leisha, Victoria, Jaime, Lorne, Janine, Cécile, Ina, Vishal.

My friends and family for putting up with this crazy writing gig of mine.

About the Author

Get psyched for romance with psychologist/author (psycho author) Jennifer Lane! By day she witnesses tremendous growth in her psychotherapy clients, and by night she wrangles misbehaving fictional characters as she writes sports romance and romantic suspense with a psychological twist. She can’t decide which is more fun.

A swimmer and volleyball player in college, Jen wove some of her own experiences into
Streamline
—a military mystery about swimmers. Dani at Refracted Light Reviews called
Streamline
“an emotionally complex story about the ones we love, the ones we hurt, the mistakes that break the human heart, and the love that puts the pieces back together.” But you don’t have to take her word for it. Readers can dip their toes into Jen’s world of swimming romance by sampling her free New Adult novella
Swim Recruit
.

College volleyball romance
Blocked
is Jen’s newest release. Peek inside big-time college sports and even bigger national politics when the offspring of two presidential candidates find out whether opposites really do attract, or their match is blocked from the start.

Stories of redemption interest Jen the most, especially the healing power of love. She is also the author of The Conduct Series, a romantic suspense trilogy that includes
With Good Behavior
,
Bad Behavior
, and
On Best Behavior
. “In a story of betrayal, responsibility, treachery, and honor, Lane does an excellent job portraying the intricate intersection of two lives connected by love…and lies,” said reviewer Susan Swiderski.

Ultimately, whether writing or reading, Jen loves stories that make her laugh and cry. In her spare time she enjoys exercising, attending book club, hanging out with her plus-size, “I’m not fat, I’m big-boned” Izzie cat, and visiting her sisters and their families in Chicago and Hilton Head.

JenniferLaneBooks.com