Loved by the Linebacker (5 page)

Chapter 7

Camila

Neither
of us have spoken since we got in the cab to head to the airport. Our feet are
now firmly on California ground and still nothing. Evan was right, I couldn’t
get him out of my mind last night which was a good thing for Gregg and
completely sucked for me. Nothing Gregg did could get my mind off the
linebacker, so I’m still as sexually frustrated now as I was when I arrived in
Colorado.

My
mind is on autopilot as I drive my SUV. I try to concentrate on the highway and
not the citrusy smell of the man sitting beside me. Taking a chance, I glance
over at Evan who is staring out the window. This isn’t the normal Evan I know.
The normal Evan would have his hand on my leg, trying to seduce me and make me
falter at my rule to not sleep with a client. Evan is acting like the picture
perfect client. I sigh
. So why am I so disappointed?

My
sigh catches his attention and he looks over at me. My stomach knots and I’m at
a loss as to what to do. I’m seriously like a schoolgirl with a crush and I
don’t have any idea how to act on it. There’s only been one other time that
I’ve ever felt this way about a man and that didn’t turn out so well. It’s a
mixture of giddiness and nerves and the combination makes me want to puke.

The
song on the radio is interrupted as my phone begins to ring through the stereo,
startling me. I quickly hit accept to make it stop.
Crap, I don’t even know
who it is. What if it’s Gregg?
I begin to panic, hitting every button on
the dashboard until Evan calmly hands me my phone. The speakerphone turned off,
I finally manage to answer, “Hello?”

My
sweet friend’s voice hits my ear. “Camila? Are you in town?” Mia asks and I can
hear her breathing heavily on the other end.

Immediately,
I push all my problems out of my mind. “Yeah, Mia. What’s wrong? Are you okay?
Toby? Tate?”

She
takes a deep breath and through gritted teeth she speaks. “Every…one’s fine.”
There’s a long pause and then she talks again. “My contractions are about a
minute apart and my water just broke.”

Without
looking, I swerve across two lanes of traffic to get to the exit. Evan cusses
under his breath and grabs the handle above the door.

“Okay,
Mia, I’ll be there as soon as I can. Is Toby alright?”

She
takes a few seconds then answers. “Yeah, he’s watching T.V. and I’m pacing in
the foyer. Tate’s already on a plane from Arizona so hopefully this baby can
wait that long.”

“Okay,
don’t have him before I get there,” I tell her and she laughs before we hang
up.

I
have a one-track mind right now to get to Mia’s place. After everything Mia,
Tate, and Toby have gone through in the last couple years, this baby has to be
fine. Luckily, Mia’s had an easy pregnancy up to this point, but I don’t think
she’ll be able to go through anymore drama after what her ex-husband did to
her. I press the gas pedal harder and maneuver through the tight traffic.

“What
the hell is going on?” Evan demands from the passenger seat.

Crap,
I forgot he was there. Good to know that it is possible to stop thinking about
him for a few moments. I speak fast, sounding completely frazzled which isn’t
like me, but then again, I’m no baby expert. “That was Mia James. She’s home
alone with her six-year-old son and her water just broke. Her husband is in
Arizona at spring training so I have to get her to the hospital.”

Out
of nowhere, Evan’s hand is on my thigh and he gives it a light squeeze. “Okay,
but you need to calm down. If we don’t get to her safely, then we can’t get her
to the hospital.” The animosity is gone from his voice and there’s a natural
assuredness in it that is already relaxing me. His thumb rolls over my knee,
helping my nerves as well.

I
nod and let off the gas. “Sorry, once I get her to the hospital, you can take
my car and go to your truck. Just text me where you leave it and I’ll get a
ride there once Tate gets back in town.”

Evan
shakes his head. “I’ll stay, I don’t mind hanging out with the kid so you can
take care of Mia.”

Luckily,
we’re at a stop light because my jaw drops when I turn to him. Evan laughs and
moves his hand to my chin, closing my mouth. “I like kids, I’m actually pretty
good with them.”

His
hand slides and cups my cheek. With the smallest smile, he looks in my eyes.
“There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Camila. I’m sorry about my comment last
night, it was out of line.”

Instinctively,
I nuzzle my cheek into his hand and nod. I take a deep breath, trying to calm
myself, both from Mia’s excitement and this man across from me. One minute he
hates me and I’m totally turned on, ready to jump in bed with him. The next,
he’s this sweet, giant teddy bear, something I’ve never wanted, but with Evan
Purser, I do. I want him to protect me, to calm me, to be the man I never
thought I wanted. Both of these thoughts scare the hell out of me.

“I
do like your outfit though,” he comments with a smirk. As much as I disagree
with his comment about my sex appeal, I toned it down today by wearing the only
pair of jeans I had with me and one of Gregg’s team’s long sleeve t-shirts. I’m
swimming in the shirt, but I managed to tie it in back without showing too much
skin.

The
car behind us honks and I slowly look away from Evan. I’m changing because of
him. My style, my attitude, my thought process. I’m where I am professionally
because of how I am—sexy, hard, independent. I can’t change, I can’t let Evan
Purser ruin my career.
But what about my heart?

I
pull in front of the James’ house and park, running toward their home before I
have to talk to Evan again. Mia’s waiting with Toby on the porch, obviously not
wanting to waste any time. Evan makes his way to Mia, holding her hand and
helping her to the SUV. I stand staring at him, the gentle giant.

Toby
yanks my hand and looks up at me with big eyes. “He’s humongous!”

I
laugh and tussle Toby’s hair. “Yeah, but he’s a good guy.”

Words
I never thought I’d say.

Evan

“Uno!”
the energetic kid in front of me declares. Toby and I are both stretched out
over the floor, lying on our bellies as we play our fifth hand of Uno. We’ve
been sitting in this twenty by twenty space of hell called a waiting room for
the last five hours, but I’m not complaining. Despite the annoying infomerical
trying to sell the Magic Bullet, I’m in good company.

“Damn,”
I mutter, examining the four cards left in my hand. Toby giggles and I glance
up. “Oops!” I add on, knowing I probably should have used a different word
choice.

After
I take my turn, Toby lays down his card and jumps up, doing his victory dance.
Chuckling, I shake my head and shuffle the cards. Toby flings himself across my
back, draping his arms over my shoulders, his head next to mine.

Quietly,
the little boy asks, “Is my mom okay, Evan?”

I
glance up at Camila, who’s been pacing back and forth for the past two hours
since Tate arrived. The calm, collected, confident sports agent is showing her
true colors and how much she cares about her friends and it’s a total turn on.
Reaching the end of the room, she turns and our eyes lock. I can see the worry
in them so I give her a wink, trying to put her at ease. I swear the tiniest
smile comes to her face.

Dropping
my shoulder to reach him, I pull Toby off my back and set him in my lap. “Yeah,
man, your mom is good. You know, it takes awhile for babies to come, they kind
of have a mind of their own.”

Toby
nods. “And they don’t like to sleep. Uncle Grant sometimes comes over and takes
naps at our house because he says Liam is a night owl. Woo, woo!”

I
chuckle and ruffle his hair. “True and I’d probably not tell Colie that.” I’ve
never met the Adamson family, but I can imagine a new mom wouldn’t be too
pleased with that fact.

The
door swings open and Toby jumps up. “DAAAADDD!”

Camila
and I both turn our attention to Tate James who has a shit-eating grin on his
face. Toby runs into his arms and Tate scoops him up. I look over and Camila’s
standing next to me, biting her bottom lip. I have to swallow and look away
quickly.

“Well,
buddy, you’re officially a big brother!” Tate announces and Toby squeals,
hugging his dad around the neck. Tate’s grin gets even bigger when he says,
“Mia and baby
boy
, Barrett, are both doing great.”

Camila’s
hand is on mine and she gives it a squeeze. I’m pretty sure it’s not
intentional, I am just the closest thing she could grab. Toby yells even louder
about the gender announcement, even though they’d found out awhile back.

Tate
walks over to Camila and gives her a one-armed hug. “Thank you, Cam. I don’t
know what we would’ve done without you.” He gives her a kiss on the forehead
and pulls away. Camila’s eyes are full of tears and I rub my thumb over the
back of her hand.

Toby
takes his father’s face in both his hands, turning his head to look at him.
“Dad, this is Evan. He’s awesome!” Toby rattles off all the games we played and
I am secretly praying he doesn’t repeat any words I let slip out.

Tate’s
nodding his head with Toby’s hands still on his cheeks and laughing. When Toby
takes a breath, Tate looks my way, extending his hand. “Evan Purser, right?”

I
nod, briefly pulling my hand away from Camila’s to shake his. When we finish, I
move my hand to Camila’s waist, pulling her closer to me without objection.
“Yeah, nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,”
Tate acknowledges. “Thanks for helping my family out today. We really
appreciate it.”

“Anytime,”
I say, rubbing my fingers up and down Camila’s hip. I can feel her body start
to relax against me and I smile.

“Yeah,
Evan, can you come over sometime? I have a pool and Dad’s teaching me how to do
a swan dive. It’s awesome and I could show you,” Toby rambles.

The
adults all laugh and I tousle his hair. “Sure thing, buddy, but I’m more of a
cannon ball kind of guy.”

Toby
throws his head back, giggling hysterically and Tate shakes his head. “Come on,
Tob, let’s go meet your brother. Cam, give us a few minutes and then you guys
can come back.”

In
a trance, Camila nods as the James boys leave the waiting room. I turn to her,
rubbing my hands up and down both her arms. “You okay, Cami?”

In
response, she throws her arms around me and buries her face in my chest. Her tears
are muffled as she sniffles into my shirt. Holding her close, I try to console
her. “Sshh, baby, it’s okay.” Where this is even coming from, I have no idea.
As much as I wanted to break down Camila’s bold demeanor, I’m not a fan of
crying women, especially not this one.

Chapter 8

Evan

I
pull Camila’s SUV into her three-car garage and put it in park. In one of the
other bays is a sleek black Jaguar and the other houses Blake’s custom neon
blue Harley Davidson. For two people who aren’t dating, they sure are
very
close,
but I know today’s not the time to bring up that conversation again.

After
Camila got out a good cry in the waiting room, Tate took us back to Mia’s room
to meet the new baby. When Camila was in the room with the James family, she
was the calm, collected Camila I’m used to, but she hasn’t spoken since we left
the hospital. Camila clears her throat and I turn my attention to her.

“Sorry
about today…breaking down, keeping you in L.A.—”

I
cut her off. “It’s fine, Camila. I like the James’, maybe we can hang out with
them again.”

Tears
well up in her eyes, but she nods quickly and opens the car door. I sigh,
watching her walk inside then I get out and follow her. The Dave Matthews Band
plays through the speakers and I can hear Camila in the kitchen. When I walk
into the room, I smile as she hands me a glass filled with clear liquid. Taking
it, I mumble my appreciation and watch as she pours herself a glass of red
wine.

She’s
shed her heels and that oversized shirt she was wearing earlier. Now, she just
dons her jeans and a white camisole, showing off her pink and black bra straps.
I lick my lips at the sight of her perky breasts almost busting out of the tank
top. Camila takes a long drink of her wine and tops it off before walking across
the room and opening a cabinet. She pulls out a box of Twinkies, taking one out
and holding it up.

“Want
one?” she asks, tearing open the wrapper and taking a bite.

I
try to hide my laughter as I shake my head and take a sip of the drink she
handed me. Tasting the alcoholic beverage, I lick my lips. “Gin and tonic?”

She
nods and picks up her glass of wine to drink with her Twinkie. Of course it’s
gin and tonic, that’s Blake’s drink. I take a quick swig and set it down then
lean against the counter. “So, want to talk about today?”

Camila
looks at me surprised, her cheeks filled with Twinkie and I grin. Closing the
space between us, I wipe my finger across her lip, swiping away some cream that
didn’t make it in her mouth. She watches me closely and as easily as I could
turn this situation sexual, I wipe the cream on a towel. Reaching behind her, I
grab another Twinkie and her glass of wine. Both of them in one hand, my free
hand takes hers and I lead us to the living room, taking a seat on the couch.

Camila
drops to the cushion, pulling her knees to her chest. I hand her the wine and
Twinkie. Taking another bite to stall, she washes it down with the red wine
then looks at me. “Mia and Tate have been really great friends to me. Tate’s
been my client for awhile and when I moved to L.A., Mia was my realtor. We
immediately connected, friends from day one, before the two of them were even
together.” She takes another drink and then continues. “After Tate and Mia
started dating, Mia’s ex almost killed her…”

Camila
shuts her eyes tightly and I take her hand, rubbing it softly. When she begins
to talk again, I don’t let go of her. “She survived the attack, but then she
had to face the bastard in court and it damn near broke her. Her father passed
away last fall too so I just wanted everything to be perfect for her today and
seeing Tate beam like that, I…”

Camila
hides her face in her legs and I reach over, pulling her into my lap. She
doesn’t hold back as she burrows her head in my chest and lets me hold her,
rubbing her back and consoling her. I don’t mind the tears anymore, all I want
is to hold her until she feels better. For a good five minutes, we don’t move,
just stay in this exact position. I’m surrounded by the ticking of the
grandfather clock and the sniffles of the woman in my arms.

I
brush a loose hair behind her ear and Camila lifts her head until our eyes
meet. “I’m really sorry, I know you need to get back to San Diego.”

“Cami,
don’t apologize again. I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

She
wipes her fingers underneath her eyes and stands up. Reluctantly, I let go of
her and she stands between my legs. My fingers graze the back of her legs, but
she doesn’t pull away.

“You’re
welcome to stay here tonight since it’s so late,” Camila says softly, almost
biting her bottom lip and I feel my cock twitch.

Slowly,
I stand up and nod. “Definitely. I’m not leaving you like this.” The last time
I was in her house, I wanted nothing more than to get her naked, but now it’s
more than that. She’s shown me her vulnerable side and I’m not going to let
that go unnoticed.

I
lean down and brush my lips across her cheek. Instantly, Camila tenses and
backs away, bumping into the coffee table and rambling. After giving me
instructions on where the guest towels are, she disappears upstairs. I fall
back on the couch and drag my hand over my bald noggin. With my eyes closed,
all I can see is the beautiful woman in my arms.

I
polish off her glass of wine while my mind races.
What the hell is Camila
Lemos doing to me?
I only had one girlfriend in high school before I joined
the NFL. Since I’ve become a professional athlete, all I’ve wanted is easy
lays… until Camila Lemos. Now, I want her, but I want her so much more than the
other women I’ve been with. I already know she’s strong, independent,
compassionate, but I want to know more. I close my eyes and shake my head
because more than anything, I just want her. To be her friend, her protector,
her lover.
Baby steps, Evan, baby steps
...

Camila

Alone
in my bathroom, I stare at myself in the mirror. What the hell was wrong with
me today? I don’t break down like that. Sure for Mia, Colie, or any of their
families, I do, but not in front of Evan Purser. I let him see how easily I can
be hurt, how much I care for my friends, and shockingly, he didn’t flinch. He
stood by my side all day long, held my hand, consoling me while I cried like a
little girl.

Shaking
my head, I undress down to nothing except my panties and pull on a pink
nightshirt. I slowly button it up as it hangs mid-thigh. I gather my hair in
one hand and wrap a ponytail holder in it, letting it rest high on my head. So
many thoughts are racing through my mind, but I’m too tired to even focus on
one. I should call Blake, rehash the day so I can analyze every moment, but I’m
so exhausted and besides, I will never talk to him about the effects his
brother has on me.

I
flip off the bathroom light and step into my bedroom, staring at the bed. After
a day like today, I wish Blake or Gregg were here to hold me while I fall into a
deep sleep. One of the benefits of not having a serious boyfriend is that
either will do and neither will care. An empty bed is also one of the downfalls
of not having one either. A loud knock comes from the door and I jump, startled
by the noise, almost forgetting that anyone else was even in the house.

I
glide across the room and when I open the door, Evan stands before me in his
boxers and a tight, white undershirt. Suddenly, I feel naked in my nightshirt.
My skin peeks through where the fabric hangs open at my chest and I gather the
material in my hands.

A
smile spreads across Evan’s face and he reaches out, touching my cheek. “I
thought maybe you wouldn’t want to be alone tonight.”

My
cheek burns in his hand and I stammer, “I… I’m fine, thanks, but—”

He
takes a step toward me, pushing me back and entering my bedroom. “I’m staying
with you tonight,” Evan states and walks around me. He gets to my orange and
gray comforter and pulls it back before looking in my direction again.

“Evan,
I don’t—”

“Screw
your clients, I know. But tonight you’re going to sleep with one,” he says and
holds his hand out to me with a gentle smile on his face.

Blushing,
I look down and giggle.
Seriously, how does he do this?
I walk over to
him and he pulls me into a bear hug, pulling my hair out of the ponytail and
whispering, “You need a friend tonight and I’m here for you.”

I
look up into his eyes, really looking at him and what’s beyond the mask that he
wears. Inside this big bad linebacker is a guy with a big heart and someone who
genuinely cares…about me.

“Thanks,”
I mumble and crawl across my bed. Evan lies beside me and holds out his arm.
Without hesitating, I snuggle against him, resting my head on his chest. He
reaches out and turns off the light and then his fingers run through my hair.
Evan softly begins singing
Crash
by Dave Matthews Band under his breath.
His voice is low and his chest vibrates against my cheek, my eyelids get
heavier and heavier. His lips brush across my forehead and I wrap my arms
around him tighter.
Why does this feel so right?