Boxed Set: Intercepted by Love (The Complete Collection): Books One - Book Six (10 page)

Cade ached all over, but he skipped taking the muscle relaxers. Now that Andie was gone, there was no reason to lounge around at the ski lodge. He needed to get back to town, get his cell phone replaced, and see about the dog reward.

Besides, he also had to check in with his agent. If he wanted to move from Los Angeles, he had to put out feelers now and see whether he could get out of his contract. The closest pro team was the New York Warthogs.

After checking out of the lodge and picking up Red, he drove back to Itasca. Traffic was slow, and he passed several news vans parked near the university. After being detoured around the campus, he arrived at his apartment.

“Come on, boy,” he said to Red. “I bet you need a walk.”

Oh boy, was he stiff. Getting out of the SUV was more like rolling out, and he hung onto the frame to ease his muscles so he could stand straight.

As soon as he opened the back door, Red leaped out, knocking him back. Cade’s arms windmilled, and he grabbed onto a street sign just in time.

“Red, Red, get back here,” he yelled. “Red.”

Cade tore off after his dog. What had gotten into him? Maybe being penned up at the ski lodge had done a number to his obedience training. He’d remind his dog-walker to take the dog to refresher lessons once he returned to California.

Woof. Woof. Red darted across a two lane highway and barely missed getting hit. Cade loped a little further up the road before cutting across traffic.

A golden red streak charged toward Red, then bounced around wagging her tail. Gollie!

She ran circles around Red and pounced on him playfully with small excited yips.

Cade lunged and grabbed ahold of Red’s collar. “Come on, boy. We got to get Gollie back to her owner.”

Gollie wagged her tail and sniffed Cade, but when he tried to grab her, she shied away. The last thing Cade needed was to lose Andie’s dog. If she was still in heat, maybe Red could mount her and then while they were stuck together, he could get ahold of the female dog.

Good plan.

He ruffled Red’s fur and let him go. “Go get her.”

Sure enough, the dogs pranced around in a mating dance, flirting and wagging their behinds. They trotted up the hill toward the campus, and Cade could do nothing but follow closely.

Their antics got the attention of the students passing by. Several whipped out their cell phones and pointed them at the dogs. There was a lot of laughter and joshing by the guys and squeals from the girls.

Great. Just great. His dog was going to be in a viral video. But he couldn’t afford to lose Gollie at this point and have Andie pissed, so he stood back and waited for nature to take its course.

# # #

Andie charged out the library and wound her way through the campus toward College Town. She’d called the ski lodge and they told her Cade had checked out. She’d go to his apartment and wait.

Would he be upset with her for finding out his identity? But then, it wasn’t like she snooped or anything. Margo had hit her over the head with it. In any case, she had to get to Cade and let him know she wasn’t after his money or fame. A pro football player. That explained his awesome physique and tolerance of pain. But athletes were some of the worst types of guys to settle down with. They were always on the road and they had oodles of cash, which meant hordes of easily available women. A guy like that wouldn’t be satisfied to settle down with a small town librarian.

The campus seemed awfully crowded. Students milled outside the student union, and there was a large crowd gathered in the engineering quad near the bridge to College Town.

Guys were holding up cell phones and hooting, and the snow was packed by all the foot traffic. What was going on?

As she walked by, she heard girls squealing.

“Oh my, that’s so nasty.”

“The poor dog. He’s attacking her.”

“Oh yeah? She’s getting the best fuck of her life.”

“Go, boy. Woohoo!” Male voices shouted and laughed.

Typical students. Some dogs having sex, and they go wild.

She skirted around the crowd and cut under an overhanging tree, but her way was blocked by the voyeurs.

This was getting freaking ridiculous. She hopped onto a low wall to get around, when her mouth dropped wide open.

“Gollie. Gollie!” She jumped, slipped on the ice, and fell off the wall. A man picked her up. “You okay?”

“No, I’m not. That’s my dog. Get away from her, you brute, you …”

The male was Red. Cade’s dog. What was he doing here, and where was Cade?

Fury exploded from Andie’s chest, and she charged forward, her hands in fists. “Leave my dog alone. Leave her alone.”

She launched herself at Gollie and grabbed her collar. “You can’t keep doing this. You’re going to get pregnant.”

Gollie licked her face, seemingly oblivious to the male dog rutting at her tail end.

“You sweet, sweet girl. What are we going to do with you? And where the hell is Cade?” She held onto her dog and looked around.

OMG. Cell phones were trained on her and the dogs. The guys were leering, and the girls had their mouths covered, giggling. In a few short minutes, these videos would be uploaded to clouds worldwide.

No wonder Cade was nowhere to be seen. That chicken shit was probably hiding while his lech of a dog was doing the dirty work.

Sure enough, Red was done, but stuck. He had the gall to lick her hand. Ewww … and act like he was her friend, wagging his tail as he panted with satisfaction and the biggest doggie smirk she’d ever seen.

Now that the action was over, the students dispersed to go to their classes. Now came the twenty to forty minute wait.

Andie knelt on the ground and hugged her dog. No matter what, she was glad to have her back, even if she had several doggie biscuits in the oven.

“Hey, looks like you found your dog,” Cade said, appearing at her right side. “You happy?”

“Where were you this whole time?” She lifted herself from the snowy ground. “Were you standing back watching?”

“I’m thinking I owe you a latte with white chocolate and peppermint candy canes.” His mouth curved with a lazy grin.

It was his eyes, however, that caught her heart. They were clear blue, the brightest blue she’d ever seen. His true color. She touched his face and stared into them, mesmerized.

“Your eyes, Cade. They’re blue.”

He blinked and turned away. “I’ll get the lattes.”

“No, don’t go.” Her hands snaked around his waist. “I know who you are. Margo showed me the magazine you defaced.”

His shoulders sagged and his face drooped. “I don’t know what to say. You’re not mad, are you?”

“No, why should I be? I’m shocked, and I don’t know what to think, but you’re still you under the fake name and colored contacts.”

“Did you read what they wrote about me?” His voice was guarded.

“Margo read some of it to me, but Cade, I don’t believe everything I read in the press. It’s just like all the things they said about King David. A historian’s job is to figure out the truth by analyzing the actions of all the players, and not just what was told about them.”

“I wish everyone thought like you.”

She tipped on her toes and drew his head down for a kiss. “Everyone’s not as smart as me.”

“Oh, Andie, you’ve just made me the happiest man in the world.” He bent toward her and captured her lips.

“There he is,” a female voice announced, causing Cade to lift his lips from Andie.

It was Margo, leading the charge as a camera crew descended on him and Andie. The remaining students lingering from the doggie burlesque show gawked and pointed.

Crap. He’d been found. He should never have destroyed that magazine, leading him to be caught by that boss of Andie’s. Why, oh why, hadn’t he controlled himself better?

A reporter stuck a microphone in front of him. “Cade Prescott, tell us what you’re doing hiding out in Itasca.”

Cade pushed the mic and took Andie by the arm. “Let’s get out of here.”

“But the dogs are still stuck. Shall we pick them up?”

“Yes, you get yours and I’ll get mine.”

The reporters circled around. “You sure don’t waste time finding female companionship. Does your agent know about her?”

Cade ignored the reporter. He bent over and lifted Red at the same time Andie picked up Gollie.

“Cade Prescott, it looks as if your dog’s stuck to hers. Are you stuck to this little redhead, too?”

“Don’t say anything, Andie. Don’t react,” Cade whispered under his breath.

“Care to comment on the rumors the Flash are letting you go? You disobeyed the coach’s call,” another reporter shouted over the din.

“Are you here for rehab? Is that why you fled the scene?”

Carefully, step by step, Cade and Andie crossed the quad with their dogs in their arms, but a horde of students blocked them, their cell phones in a row.

“Look at those dogs. They’re still stuck together,” yelled a man’s voice.

“Oh, wow, I wish my boyfriend could keep it up that long,” a woman said.

The reporters and camera crew took the opportunity and pressed them from behind.

“You can run, but you can’t hide, Mr. Prescott. There’s a certain female who was once stuck to you.”

“What’s he saying?” Andie asked Cade.

“Nothing, ignore it. He’s trying to get a reaction from you.”

“Looks like your dog isn’t the only one pregnant,” a female reporter stuck a mike in Andie’s face.

Andie pushed the mike and gawked at Cade, her eyes wide and accusing.

Crap. He’d forgotten to wear a condom. But how could the reporter know? Had Andie been spilling everything to a girlfriend? Dang.

He narrowed his eyes at her. “We’ll talk about this later.”

One thing he couldn’t abide was a woman with loose lips. Brag and compare. Somehow, he’d thought Andie was above that kind of juvenile behavior.

A hush fell on the crowd, and a chill prickled the hairs on the back of his scalp. A tall woman wearing a creamy mink coat with silver fox trim parted the crowd.

Cade’s face fell to the ground. It was his agent’s sister, Roxanne.

“I’m pregnant, Cade.”

~ To Be Continued ~

Book Two

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“… a wild ride, sit tight and hold on!”
Tope Awofeso

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Dedication

#23 Leroy “Boo-Boo” Irvin

“Stop it, stop.” Andie Wales swatted at the wet sponge mopping her face. Her back was freezing, and a hubbub of voices murmured above her. Where the heck was she?

She cracked her eyes open right into a big pink tongue. Her dog, Gollie, panted puffs of steam in her face.

Strong hands lifted her from the snowy ground, and a whirlwind of jumbled thoughts floored her. She’d just had the best weekend of her life, thought she’d found her one true love, and now?

“You fainted, Andie. Let me help you up.” The voice belonged to Cade Preston, or rather, Cade
Prescott
. The man she’d carved her heart out for was an imposter.

Someone stuck a microphone in her face. “As Cade Prescott’s girlfriend, did you know he’d gotten another woman pregnant?”

“Stay away from her.” Cade yanked Andie to her feet, his protective arms shielding her. “We’ve no comment. This is a private matter.”

Pregnant? Andie squinted into the wintry sun and spotted the woman wearing furs—more like, dead animal skins. Tall, decked out like a model at a photo shoot, she snagged Cade’s jacket.

“This would have been a private matter had you not pulled your disappearing act. Maybe you should clue in little Miss Snow Bunny here.” The witch darted a sneer at Andie.

Immediately, half a dozen mics blossomed in front of Andie, and reporters shouted questions at her.

Whatever was going on, Andie wasn’t going to react. She’d already given the news crew plenty of fodder by fainting. Her stomach cringed. Hopefully her mother was too busy to watch the newscast, but with the way gossip traveled in the small college town of Itasca and the lack of big events on campus, her little fainting spell would be on everyone’s flat panel screen by dinnertime. Not to mention, it was her dog having public sex on the Engineering Quad a few minutes ago.

“Hey, you okay?” Cade’s deep voice rumbled in her ear at close range. “Let’s get out of here.”

“Where are Gollie and Red?” Andie darted a panicked glance around the wall of people. The two dogs had been inseparable a few minutes before she fainted, and Gollie had licked her back to consciousness, but now, they were nowhere in sight.

Cade’s shoulders hunched, and he wiped a hand over his forehead. “They probably ran back to my place. Don’t worry. Red knows the way home.”

“Okay, if you’re sure.” She swallowed the lump in her throat. Even though every nerve in her body screamed to ask Cade who that woman was, and why she was accusing Cade of getting her pregnant, Andie had to maintain composure in front of the press.

Reporters swarmed around them, each trying to get his or her questions answered.

“Prescott, did you know you knocked her up?”

“What’s your agent going to do now that you got his sister pregnant?”

“Did you really think hiding in Itasca’s such a great idea?”

“Are you going free agent? Are your days with the Flash behind you?”

“I’m not answering any questions,” Cade said, keeping his head down and one arm around Andie.

“You’re not getting away from me.” The woman with the furs jutted herself in their path. “You got me pregnant, and I’m not going away.”

“Please, Roxanne, not here. I’ll talk to you after I speak with my lawyer. Good day.”

“It’s not a good day,” the woman screeched. “You ran, and now I’ve got you. You’ll pay through the nose for this. Everyone, listen to what I have to say about this no good loser.”

She gestured for the mics to be brought closer, and the swarm of reporters buzzed a circle around her.

Taking the opportunity to escape, Cade guided Andie across the bridge toward College Town. Their footsteps crunched over the well packed snow down the slope, and Andie’s head swam with the whirl of events.

She’d met Cade last week in the library and after spending a weekend together, she’d convinced herself she’d fallen in love with him. Which wasn’t logical, because after all, how could she really know him enough to have those feelings?

Obviously, she didn’t. The man stomping through the snow next to her had given her a fake last name and wooed her with sweet words and hot lovemaking. Gah! How could she have let things get so far?

She peeked at Cade’s rugged profile, and he gave her a pleading stare, his lips tight.

“I didn’t mean for you to find out this way,” he said. “I was going to tell you who I am this morning, but when I woke up, you were gone.”

“I had to go to work.” Her excuse sounded doubly lame since she was, at this moment, definitely not at work.

“The note you wrote on the mirror, it sounded like you regretted everything.”

“I didn’t last night, but seeing how things turned out …” She swept her hand toward the campus. “Why did you hide your identity?”

“I was ashamed.” He plunged his hands into his pockets and shrugged as they stepped around the trash bins lying in the gutters.

“I can see why.” Her voice took on a sarcastic lilt. “Do you always have women tracking you down?”

“Hey, I can’t help it if I attract the stalking kind.”

His attempt at humor dropped like a cow pie on Andie’s snow boot.

She should kick him to the curb, although truth be told, she had been searching the internet for his fake name. These days, who didn’t research a potential contact? It was the sensible thing to do.

Now that they were suitably far from the campus and alone on the sidewalk, Andie pulled Cade to a stop inside an alley. She wasn’t going to go all the way to his apartment and let him weasel his way out of this.

“Who is she? Why’s she here?” Her breath came out like puffs of steam in the wintry air.

“She’s my agent’s sister, Roxanne Cash. As far as why she’s here, she’s after money. I suspect she’s been cut off by her brother who’s in charge of her trust fund.”

A flicker of hope blossomed in Andie’s heart. Perhaps this was the price Cade had to pay for being famous. If he was truly a professional football player, he was a target for all sorts of unscrupulous people.

“But why does she think you’d give her money?” Andie narrowed her eyes. “I mean, it’s not true, right? You never slept with her, did you?”

Cade darted a stealthy glance up the street and scratched the back of his neck. “I don’t think it’s true. I mean, if I slept with her, I used protection.”

“If?” Andie’s face broiled hot, and her pulse jumped to her throat. “You mean, you slept with her?”

“I’m sorry, Andie. It was before I met you.”

Duh, obviously. Everything was way, way too much.

“What else don’t I know about you? It’s been a shock of a day. First, Margo tells me you’re a football player, and now this? How many other women have you slept with, and how many other babies have you sired?”

“You’re overreacting.” Cade grabbed her shoulders. “This stuff with women claiming things. Happens all the time when you’re famous and everyone knows how much you make.”

“This isn’t about money.” Andie clawed at Cade’s jacket. “It’s about you lying. You slept with her, didn’t you?”

“Maybe, but if she’s pregnant, it’s not mine. I always use protection.”

“Like you did with me?” Hot blood flooded her face, and her head felt like exploding. “You forgot, and you shot inside of me. You didn’t even have the decency to pull out.”

“You’re different.” Cade’s eyebrows inverted, and he squeezed her shoulders. “We got carried away. I’m sorry. The important thing is, I want a relationship with you, Andie. You’re the one I love.”

Somehow none of it rang true anymore. How many other women had he made to feel special? Different? How many other times had he gotten carried away? Bottom line, Cade hadn’t been honest with her when he rolled into town with a fake last name. He’d lied and misled her, and she, like the naïve idiot she was, had swallowed it all and given her heart.

“I can’t be with you anymore.” She pushed away from him. “I’m sorry, Cade, but you need to work it out with that woman if she’s pregnant. You need to think about your kid. You have to do the right thing.”

“You’re jumping way ahead. We don’t even know if it’s my kid or not.”

“That’s just it. We don’t know, but I’m not taking a number and waiting around. I have to go.” Every muscle in her body tightened to hold back the tears. She had to be strong. Her father was paralyzed from a stroke, and her mother needed her help. Her life was here, in Itasca, with her parents, far away from the glamour and bling of Hollywood, where the Los Angeles Flash had their stadium.

“Andie, please.” He swept his fingers over her temple. “I thought we loved each other.”

The last thing she wanted was to hurt him. He’d been a foster child, a baby no one wanted to adopt. But right now, she had to save her own sanity and protect her own heart.

“You will always be precious to me, Cade. Always, but I can’t be with a guy who sleeps around.” She wanted so much to kiss him one last time, but it would be a bad idea. A really bad one.

His face was stricken as he cupped her head between his large hands. “I’ll never sleep with anyone ever again. I’ll prove to you how much I love you. Stay by my side, Andie. I need you. I can face anything if you’re with me.”

“I can’t.” She swallowed hard, unable to stem the tears from trickling. “I almost married a guy who turned out to be a man whore. My heart can’t take it, and I have my family—my father’s paralyzed and my mother needs my help. I wish—”

His lips were upon hers before she’d finished her next sentence. He kissed her slowly, not invasive, but strong and firm. His hands caressed her as if memorizing every line and contour of her face, her neck, underneath her hair.

Andie breathed in his manly scent, like pine and soap, distinctively Cade. She tasted the mint of his toothpaste mingled with the bitter dregs of his morning coffee. And she wanted him, more than all the particles in the universe, more than her studies and research, she wanted him. But like her historical studies had shown her, a man’s biography was often not what it seemed. The King David persona was invented to teach lessons in morality, to glorify a kingdom, and to uphold a religious sect. Somewhere behind the legends and myths was the real man.

And the real man was not so pretty. The real man did despicable things. The real man was not a hero.

Her real man stopped the kiss, peering into her eyes and leaving her lips tingling, wanting more.

He swept a thumb over her cheek, catching a teardrop. His eyes were moist pools of blue. So blue she’d sink and never find herself again.

She had to leave. There was nothing more to say, so she ran away.