Winning Streak (7 page)

“Yeah, but it's so small. And pink. And plastic. Is that a Hello Kitty sticker?”

She groaned. “Yes, okay? It was a hand-me-down from Sophie, and she got it from Shiloh. And yes, it takes thirty-five-millimeter film.”

“Uh, it's okay. We just won't broadcast that to management. Maybe hold your thumb over the sticker.”

She felt a pout coming on, but he leaned in and kissed her cheek, and “woe is me” went out the window.

• • •

Madden hopped out the driver's side and almost tripped on a rock and face-planted in the sand in his sprint to open Saralynn's door before she could beat him to it. Her rewarding smile was so worth it. Even dressed down she still looked out of his league. He led the way into the main building shaped sort of like the Sydney Opera House and handed their tickets to the lady behind the front desk.

“You're the photographers?”

He nodded and held up a pretty impressive camera with a big zoom lens. Saralynn raised her little, pink rectangle, but only for a second. Desk lady narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips but nodded and waved toward the back door leading into the park.

Once they stepped into the cool night air alone, he let his shoulders hunch forward. “Man. I thought she was going to ask for fingerprints and dental casts.”

Saralynn glided down the few steps onto the dust path and turned in a slow circle, her head tilted back to take in the massive signs all lit up or backlit in different colors. “Whoa.”

“I know, right?”

“How did I not know about this place?”

“It's not one of the city's main attractions, but it should be.” He shuffled down then took a few backward steps into the maze but kept watching her take it all in.

“This is amazing.” It felt pretty great to claim credit for the awe on her face.

“Come on.” He held out his arm. It wasn't flattering when she stared at it like an alien tentacle, but she looped her arm around and held on tentatively. Baby steps. “So what do you think?”

“I love it. It feels like an abandoned carnival. Spooky but really cool.”

“That's the vibe I get, too. Especially at night. Kinda romantic though, huh?”

She glanced at him sideways and didn't say anything, but that smile was enough. “So you learned all about me on the last shared evening.”

“You wanted to say date.”

“Did not.” Her tongue flashed at him, and he resisted pulling her in for a kiss.

“My mistake.”

“Anyway, it's my turn. If we're going to get to know each other, we really have to put it all out there and open up. Do you agree?”

His stomach sank, but at the same time, hope expanded in his chest. “Sure. Okay.”

“You seem like a pretty smart guy. How did you … I mean, what happened that … ”

“I became a gambling addict?”

She glanced up at him almost shyly and nodded.

So, no easing into the shallow end. And here he'd thought he'd romance her until he could gloss over his past between flower bouquets and imported chocolates. He should have known better. Saralynn shared no other traits with women he'd dated before. This was a new frontier, and how could he deny the pretty trailblazer on his arm? Not that that made it any easier.

“I was always good with numbers, and our dad raised us to be competitive. To win every contest, and if something wasn't a contest, to turn it into one. Combine that with a decent bank account at twenty-one, and, well … I got sucked into gambling. Several twelve-step programs helped me see that was because I wanted my old man's attention, which I always kind of knew but never consciously thought about.”

She nodded as they walked, clearly listening, but keeping her gaze on the glowing signs. Whether she did it on purpose to make him more comfortable while he bared his soul or he just wasn't that interesting, it was hard to tell. Either way, gratefulness lifted the weight of embarrassment. Her small fingers tightened on his forearm, and the simple reassurance did more than she could know. “I could see that. As the baby girl of my family, I probably got spoiled, but I was also a surprise. My siblings let me know it. I think I might have tried harder to stand out and be as perfect as I could to make up for being the extra.”

“Trust me. You are nobody's afterthought.”

Her ear-to-ear smile took away any of his remaining insecurity.  She touched her temple to his shoulder. “Tell me about your sister.”

“Jace was always the overachiever, the focused one. I'd get her teachers in high school, and without fail, they'd say, ‘You're Jacquelyn's brother. You have a lot to live up to.' As if I didn't know. I bet they still use her term papers as examples. But she worked hard at everything she did, including raising me.”

“Raising you? Your parents weren't involved?”

A pang of sadness hit him in the gut even though he didn't really remember his mother. You didn't have to remember someone to miss them. “Our mom died when I was four. We have albums up until that time, but I don't have many memories of her. And Dad, after she died, threw himself into his work. We had nannies, but Jace looked out for me. Read to me, made sure I did my homework. Gave me advice about girls, taught me to drive. I have to give her a lot of credit for that one. I was a Formula One racer right out of the gate.”

“That does not surprise me.”

“Hey.” He nudged her ribs with his elbow, which earned him a hip bump. “So Jace went away to college, I stayed local and made some bad choices. Followed the old man around and tried to impress him, but my mistakes overshadowed my best intentions. When he left the team to Jacey, I was disappointed, but she deserved it.”

Saralynn stopped and pulled out her toy camera to take a few pictures of a Stardust sign with red-orange letters and a purple background. “Are you happy as assistant GM?”

“It's a good job. I get to be involved with the team, but the responsibility isn't overwhelming. In fact … ” He'd been doing less and less lately, and not by choice. It had started just after the gambling rumor.

“In fact?” She looked over her shoulder at him.

It wouldn't help to speculate with her. Not to mention it was pretty emasculating to think his sister and brother-in-law were secretly benching him and pretending that everything was business as usual. Unease settled just below the surface, but he pushed it out of his mind for the moment. “I could probably do more. Lighten some of the load around the office.” He'd just have to convince Jacey.

“That's very proactive.” Saralynn returned to his arm and led the way down the winding path, occasionally kicking a piece of old glass out of the way with the toe of her sneaker. “I think that's enough serious stuff for tonight, how 'bout you?”

“Agreed.”

“Oh! Cool!” She skipped over to a sign that said “Sin” and posed sideways at the end of it, arms crossed under her chest. “Take my picture?”

“Absolutely.” He adjusted the settings on his camera and framed it up before taking the shot, though it was hard to pay attention to anything except the sexy woman dominating the screen. “Okay, good.”

She jogged back, skidded to a stop pressed against his side, and leaned in to check it out. “I love it. Can we use this promotionally? I mean just a picture of the sign. It'd be a great way to tie the team in to the community.”

Her cotton candy scent filled his head and delayed his answer. “Uh, yeah. The ‘professional package' tickets let us do whatever we want with the pictures we take tonight.”

“Excellent. Do you mind taking one more of the sign? I promise the next shot won't be team-related.” Mischief sparked in her dark eyes and sped up his pulse.

“Ohh-kay.” He took the picture, and then she took the camera. “Hey.”

She grinned and pointed to a wedding chapel sign. “This one's for fun. Stand there.”

Contagious excitement mixed with curiosity spurred him to follow her directions while she fidgeted with the camera buttons then set it at eye level on a sign aimed at him. “Okay, ready?”

“Ready for—”

Before he could finish, she jogged over, grabbed him by the hands, and pulled him flush against her for a searing kiss. A light flashed, and for all he knew, it was every bulb in the park exploding from the sheer power of their connection. And then it didn't matter that she'd only done it for the picture because the kiss took on a life of its own.

Her hands left his and explored his back, holding him closer, which made his jeans a little tighter. She teased his bottom lip with her tongue, and he invited her in with a soft groan. One of her legs hooked around his thigh, and he grabbed it to steady her while his free arm circled her lower back for maximum contact. Her fingers delved into his hair, and the kiss turned hungry, desperate. Nothing else existed.

Finally, she pulled back, gasping, and put a foot of space between them, though she still held onto his forearms and swayed a bit. “Holy wow.”

He sucked air and willed blood back to his brain. “Yeah.” Never in his life had he wanted someone so much, but it clearly wasn't the place. Or the time. He didn't want to rush her.

“So, to be continued?” She licked her lips and straightened her dress, and he tried to form a coherent thought.

Pursuing this, whatever it was or might be, could blow up in his face. If things didn't work out, aside from the ramifications at work, there was a personal risk. If Jacey thought he was irresponsible, he might not get to know his niece or nephew. He didn't gamble anymore. But something about Saralynn made him want to roll the dice.

“Yes, please.”

Monday, March 3rd

She's not avoiding me.
Whether that was denial or a declaration, Madden didn't know. He'd called Jacey on Sunday to see if they could meet up for lunch, but she said she had plans with Carter. That could have been true, except he knew her tells. The girl could not lie well to save her life. And now here he stood, staring at the arena's basement elevator, trying to believe it wasn't a big deal. While he was considerably better at stretching the truth than his sister, he couldn't lie to himself.

The strong impulse to play hooky stilled his hand from pushing the button, but he fought it and won. It was only 8 a.m., an hour before the offices officially opened, but Jacey would be here. She always was. No better time for a most likely heartbreaking chat.

The elevator seemed to go extra slow, and the walls seemed extra close.
Is it hot in here?
He tugged at the neck of his T-shirt and was about to slip the blazer off his shoulders when the doors opened and a gust of cool air conditioning hit him, drying the sweat on his neck and making him feel clammy. Swallowing was a lost cause, just a dry click. But the light was on in the office at the end of the hall, and against his better judgment, his feet kept moving.

He knocked once then stepped inside. Jacey looked up, surprised. She tried to cover it with a smile, but it didn't quite work. “Hey, Madden.”

Oh boy. If she wasn't calling him Maddie, it had to be bad. His stomach turned upside down, and he almost fell into the chair opposite her desk. “Hey. Thought I'd come in early so I could talk to you.”

She shuffled papers around her desk, organized her pens. Normal Jacey behavior but with a nervous edge. “What's on your mind?”

He could still back out. He didn't have to ask the questions he was pretty sure he didn't want answers to. But he needed them. “Lately, Carter's been taking meetings for me. It's his right as GM, but for the last year, I've been talking to player agents and other teams on my own, no problem. And I noticed it started right after the gambling rumor. Jace … do you not trust me?” Those last words came out an almost-whisper and hurt like barbed wire being pulled out of his throat.

She wouldn't meet his eyes, just stared at her ink blotter, hands flat on her desk. That hesitation choked him up, and he bit the inside of his cheek hard to hold back the tears that wanted to surface. Finally, Jacey cleared her throat. “I want to trust you. Carter, too. He took those meetings because I asked him to. It's an important time for the team, shaping up for next season, and I just wanted to make sure—”

“I wouldn't go on a bender and come in drunk?”

Her eyes flared at him and held regret and sadness but also a hint of defiance. “You came in hung over the day after the bachelor party.”

“It was a
bachelor party
. Maybe I had a few more drinks than the other guys, but I'd just seen my ex saying ‘I do' to someone else. Don't I get any slack?”

She almost said something but didn't. Didn't have to.
You've gotten all the slack I can give
was plain on her face. It broke his heart all over again.

“You can count on me, Jace. I know you couldn't before, but you can now. I didn't gamble that night. I haven't gambled since … well, you know. It's a choice every day, but I make it because you mean too much to me. So does this team. I swear.”

Tears slid down her cheeks, and she wiped them away with a small sniffle, but she nodded. The fist of tension in his gut unclenched just a little. She grabbed a tissue and dabbed at her face. “I love you, Maddie. Always have, always will. And I love this team, too. I'd like you and Carter to take the remaining meetings together today and tomorrow. Trade deadline's on Wednesday, so it's crunch time.”

That was fair. The bigger the player names, the closer to the deadline their decisions ran. It made sense for Carter to be in those meetings. At least she wasn't cutting him out entirely. “Okay, boss.”

That got a smile out of her even if it also triggered an eye roll.

“Well, I'll just get out of your hair then. And Jace? I love you, too.”

The tears threatened again. She balled the tissue in her hand and nodded with a watery smile. He winked and turned heel before he could lose it. His palm was so sweaty, it almost slid off the doorknob, but he slipped out and took a deep breath.