The Running Series Complete Collection: 3-Book Set plus Bonus Novella (20 page)

“I love to hear you make that sound.  Was it for me?”  Evan’s hands are on my hips as he stands behind me in the shower.  Soft kisses sweep across my shoulder, and I release another soft moan of appreciation.  No more words are needed. 

Turning around to face him, I take a step back, pulling him with me so we are both bathed under the warm water pouring from above.  Evan reaches across and grabs the shampoo as our bodies rub against one another.  It sends chills down my spine despite the hot water washing over me.  He pours a generous amount of shampoo into his hand, and he begins to wash my hair, massaging my scalp, and planting kisses on my chin.  I lift my chin to rinse the shampoo from my hair, and as I do, Evan takes my breast into his mouth and entices each soft peak into tight firm buds.

I grab a sponge and some soap, which I work into a good lather and begin to wash his back and shoulders.  He allows me to wash him, exploring every inch of his body.  My sponge drifts across his chest, down his sides, between the fleshy folds of skin, and down his legs.  Eager to visit every inch of skin on his hard body, I lower myself to wash his legs and the soft sensitive part behind each knee.  Desire wells deep in my belly, and I look up at him, slowly taking him into my mouth, and lathing my tongue up and down his throbbing erection.  When I take him deep into my throat, he closes his eyes and lets out a growl that urges me on.  I love that I have such an effect on him.  I take him right to the brink when suddenly, he withdraws and pulls me to my feet. 

He lifts me up as my arms wrap around his neck and my legs wrap around his waist.  “I want to come inside you.  I want to watch you come for me.”  He lowers me onto him and I melt into his strong arms.  He takes a sharp intake of breath, and for a moment, he actually stops breathing.  Slowly, he lifts me, and then lowers me as I grind my hips, searching for my own release.  Our slow dance is incredibly sensual.  There’s no rush this time.  It is pure pleasure that radiates throughout my body.  As I climb closer and closer, Evan’s tongue joins mine in an expression of want and need.  His lips travel down my neck, nibbling and biting, when I feel him begin to shudder.  A deep grunt escapes from his mouth as he releases into me, making my muscles tighten around him and squeeze, pulsing and throbbing.  Incredible.  Amazing.  Mind-blowing.

We finish our shower and dry each other off.  I’m starving and my body betrays me when my stomach begins growling uncontrollably loud.  “Hungry?”  Evan asks, smirking at me.

“I’m starving.  Can you get my bag so I can finish up in here?  I’ll join you in a minute.”  Evan slips out of the bathroom and returns with my purse.

“Here’s your clothes, too.  It’s a little chilly out, so I brought you one of my sweatshirts.  There’s a blow dryer under the sink if you need it.  Don’t be long.”  He kisses me affectionately and disappears.  I look down, and in my arms is an old UMD sweatshirt.  I bring it to my nose and inhale his scent.  I can’t wait to wrap myself in it.  I hope he knows he’s never getting this back.  Ever!

When I rejoin him, he’s sitting at the kitchen table reading the paper.  The sight before me is a shock to the system.  A beautiful man, drinking his coffee, reading the paper, taking a bite of his toast, he looks ... domestic.  This incredible, sexy man is mine, at least for now, and I intend to enjoy every minute while it lasts.

He looks up at me, puts down the paper, rises, and walks purposefully towards me, sweeping me into his arms.  “Juliette, seeing you wrapped up in my old college sweatshirt unravels me.  I can’t seem to control myself around you.  This could become a problem when we go out in public.”  I giggle, kiss him and break our embrace.  I need nourishment.

Evan’s phone rings.  “Hey, Adam.  What’s up?”  While the boys chat on the phone, I make myself some toast, locate the butter on the counter, and find some yogurt in the refrigerator.

“Yeah, she’s here, she spent the night.”  Evan glances over towards me and winks.  God, he’s adorable.  He begins pacing and he’s visibly upset.  “Are you sure?  Shit.  I know.  OK.  Yeah.  No, I will.  Today.  Thanks, buddy. I owe you.” 

“That sounded serious.  Is everything OK?”  Evan’s just staring out the window.

“No, not really.  I have some business I need to take care of today.  Can I come over when I’m done?”  I was hoping he would say that.

“Yeah, I have to be to work by 7:00.  Call me and come over when you’re done.”

I
return home close to noon and I’m surprised to see Auggie is still home.  It’s Thursday and he’s usually at the real estate office or meeting with clients.  I walk over to him, and plant a kiss on his forehead.

Auggie looks at me and immediately spots the UMD sweatshirt I’m wearing.  “Hey, Jette, looks like you had a good night.  How ya feeling?”  His face is expressionless.  There’s something off in his demeanor.

“I’m great.  Never better, in fact.  How about you?” 

“I have something to show you, Jepetto.  Come here, sit down.  You’re not going to like it.”  I sit beside him in our usual spots at the kitchen island and he passes over his iPad for me to see.  He’s got the TMZ website up and all I can see is the headline, “Big Mac is Back” with the subheading, “Romping on the Beach with Mystery Woman”.

“I don’t understand.  Who’s Big Mac?”

“Just swipe down.  You’ll see.”

My heart stops and I can’t breathe.  Staring back at me is a picture of Evan holding me over his shoulder on the beach.  I remember exactly when that picture was taken.  Holy shit.  I try to focus and read the first few lines of the article.

“What the fuck?”

Facing the Music

I
keep staring at the photo, hoping that I’m hallucinating.  The man that I just had the most amazing night with, and morning, isn’t who I thought he was.  Hell, I didn’t even know his real name.

“Auggie, how did you find this?”  I feel like such a fool.  My stomach is in my throat and I feel like I may vomit.

“Last night after dinner, I was curious about Evan’s job with the Sentinels, so I Googled ‘Evan Thomas’ and ‘NJ Sentinels’.  Every single page that came up referred to ‘Evan Thomas McGuire’.  I clicked on Google images, and the page was filled with pictures of Evan – your Evan.”  He shows me another page on his iPad.  His Google image search returned hundreds of pictures of the man I believed to be Evan Thomas. 

“That’s where I found the TMZ picture.  See, it’s right here.”  He scrolls down, and there I am hoisted up on Evan’s shoulder romping on the beach.  Holy hell.  I’m speechless.  I can’t find the words. 

“Jette, there’s more.  A lot more.  How much do you want to know?”  Auggie and his damned iPad.

“Show me everything.”  Evan had every opportunity to come clean last night.  It wouldn’t have changed a thing.  Not one damn thing.  At the very least, he could have told me his real name.

“OK, let’s start with his Wikipedia page.”  Auggie brings up his wiki and everything Evan has told me matches up pretty well.  He played for the University of Maryland where he was a quarterback.  It says he was drafted by the Houston Texans in 2009.  If I understood football more, I might be able to comprehend all the stats listed, but it just looks like Chinese to me.  It says he was officially traded to the Sentinels just two weeks ago.  According to his wiki, he does have family here.  Apparently, he’s also done a few commercials and television appearances. 

“OK, not too bad.  What’s next?”

“Well, he’s listed in Sports Illustrated as one of the NFL’s hottest players.”  Auggie shows me the article and it talks about someone I don’t even know.  The article is short but to the point.  Evan has acquired quite a reputation as a ladies man who never stays with one woman very long.  I knew it.  I should have listened to my gut instinct. 

“Auggie, they compare him to a rock star.  Do you know why?  This site didn’t really say anything specific.”  As much as it pains me, I need the facts – all of them.

“Yeah, here.  Read these.”  Auggie pulls up a few pages for me to skim through.  People Magazine has him hitting clubs and bars for a week in Vegas with a famous heiress.  Another site has him romantically tied to a television actress.  This can’t be real!  I feel like I’m reading about a stranger.  My head is spinning.  I can’t believe how little I really know about this man that I slept with.

US Magazine has pictures of Evan arriving at the VMAs with a pop star on his arm.  Holy shit, I think she won an award that night.  I have a bunch of her songs on my iPod.  Below it is a picture of the two of them on a beach in Mexico.  There’s even one of her sitting in the stands at a football game.  Holy hell.

USA Today reported last fall that Evan was sexting with the engaged and soon-to-be married star of a reality show.  Is someone making this shit up?  The more I read, the more adrenaline I can feel coursing through my veins.  My head is starting to ache with a throbbing pain.  I want to stop, but I know there’s more.

Auggie saved the best for last.  Finally, he pulls up a gossip site called “The Dirty”.  There are pictures of him at a college party with scantily clad girls.  The pictures are shocking – the truth is right there, staring me in the face.  Evan is in a hot tub with a bunch of girls, all of which have their hands all over him.  He’s smiling for the camera, showing those dimples that I know so well.  As I swipe down, more pictures appear.  There are pictures of him lying shirtless on a table so the party-goers can drink shots off his stomach.  Others show him holding a beer funnel helping to get the girls drunk.  According to the article, all of the girls in the picture are over eighteen, but not all of them are twenty-one, legal drinking age.

It’s no wonder Evan didn’t want me to ask too many questions.  Had I known what I know now, it
would
have changed things.  Dramatically.  I feel so stupid.  Gullible.  Rage is starting to fill me and my heart rate has quadrupled.

I pass the iPad back to Auggie.  “Please take this away.  I’m done.  I’m so done.”  I feel like my world is collapsing around me.  My hands are shaking and I have a sudden need to move.  Somewhere.  Anywhere.  I cannot sit still.  I need to go for a run.  I need to clear my mind. 

“Honey, I’m so sorry.  What are you going to do?”  Auggie is rubbing my arm sympathetically.  Even Maddy senses something is off and she’s sitting at my feet.

“Nothing.  It’s over.  I’m going for a run.”  I turn and head for my room to get changed.  One look at myself in the mirror, and I’m greeted by Evan. I’m still wearing his UMD sweatshirt.  I pull it over my head, and as I do, I inhale his scent.  I hold it up to my nose and strong, painful emotions wash over me.  I can still taste him on my tongue.  I can still feel his touch on my skin.  His shampoo is in my hair.  He’s all over me.  This will not break me.  I won’t let it. 

I have to get out of here.  I have to move.  Staying still will do no good.  I know what has to be done.  There really is no choice here.  He’s not who I thought he was.  He lied and misled me.  I deserve better.