Game for Anything (12 page)

"I'm all yours," he replied in a low, sensual tone, deliberately letting her explore the idea of his really being hers.

Just as she had in her dream last night when she'd tied him up and had her way with him.

"The only thing that's nonnegotiable is football camp," he added.

"I thought training didn't start until July?"

"It doesn't. I volunteer coach at a camp for kids. The best and the brightest." Julie was surprised, and she said thoughtfully, "It must be like looking in a mirror." She could have sworn his eyes clouded over. "Sometimes it is."

"There must be so much pressure on those kids," she said, and his eyes met hers. For a second, she saw everything he wanted to keep hidden.

It hit her square in the chest: She wanted to be close to him. But could she actually risk dropping the walls she'd erected to protect her heart to find out more about what was in Ty's?

"I've got to work out for a couple of hours. I'll grab my stuff so we can head to the gym." Just as quickly as he'd opened himself to her, he closed off, and she felt oddly alone in her warm and cozy kitchen.

Julie had a knack for hitting too close, Ty thought as he bench-pressed three hundred for ten reps. He was pushing himself, trying to work off some of the relentless energy pushing through him. Through the glass wall, he could see Julie sitting in the gym's cafe, talking on her cell phone, taking notes, and tapping on her laptop. She was always so focused, so driven. She didn't smile nearly enough.

She picked up a clear plastic cup with the green sludge the trainers insisted was "power" protein and took a sip. Her face scrunched up and her cheeks sucked in with obvious disgust. Yet another thing they had in common, he thought as she surreptitiously spit it back into the cup after looking around to make sure no one was looking.

She seemed distracted this morning, and he was hoping he knew the reason why. All night long he'd been falling in and out of triple X dreams of the two of them. Him on her, her on him. Doggy-style. Up against the wall. Sixty-nine.

In his dreams, he'd had her in every possible way. Was it too much to hope that she wasn't any more immune to him than he was to her?

He got off the bench and picked up an eighty-pound barbell to work on his triceps. How pathetic would he be if he got an erection at the gym? He had to stop acting like a teenage boy dreaming about getting his first piece of ass.

Dominic DiMarco, one of the veteran Outlaws, walked into the gym, and Ty watched him speak to Julie. When Julie laughed, jealousy drop-kicked Ty.

Dominic was one of the few guys on the team who went home alone after a game, who didn't burn it out with groupies hanging on to him. A girl like Julie was probably just what Dominic was looking for, the perfect gorgeous, smart woman to settle down with.

Whereas Ty was fucking around and wasting his time.

His triceps burned as he pumped the weight harder in jealousy and frustration. Dominic dropped his gym bag on the floor between them and picked up some weights. "Julie's with you?"

Fuck. They were already on a first-name basis.

"I'm living with her," Ty said, then felt like an idiot for trying to lay claim to her before his friend could. He'd never acted like such a pussy before.

Dominic laughed. "Sean told me your new image consultant had you on a short leash." He did a curl, then winced in pain. "Good time to be a dog, I'd say." Then he asked, "You like being with her?" Ty grunted as he did his last rep. "Sure," he said in an offhand way. Time to change the subject.

"Your shoulder still giving you trouble?"

Dominic dropped to a lower weight. "A little," he admitted. "Julie said you knew each other in high school. Pretty girl."

Ty could think of a hundred better words to describe her than pretty.

"Thinking of settling down?" Dominic asked.

Ty forced a laugh. "No way. Not with all the action I get." It sounded empty, even to himself.

"I know you're not asking for my advice," Dominic said, putting down his weights and pinning Ty with a glance in the mirror. "Hell, you probably don't even need it. Forget I said anything." Ty sat down on the incline bench, figuring it wouldn't hurt to let Dominic say his piece.

"I'm listening."

"I made some bad decisions way back." Dominic shook his head. Ty nodded, wondering where Dominic was heading with this. He'd never been much for other people's opinions, but Dominic had the years, the experience behind him to back up whatever he was going to say.

"If you're lucky enough to meet someone special, don't let her go. You've got money and fame already. But you won't have her."

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Later that afternoon, during the ninety-minute drive from San Francisco to Napa, Julie couldn't dismiss the feeling that something had changed. For some reason, Ty was going out of his way to be nice. Attentive. Even sweet.

She knew he desired her. And the clearer he made that, the less immune she was to it. Already, she was worrying about making it home fully dressed. And if she could barely keep her panties on during a ninety-minute car ride, how could she possibly last the next eleven days? With every passing hour, Ty was making it clearer and clearer that he wanted to be with her, sleep with her, give her pleasure.

If only she could trust him not to turn around and break her heart again. Fortunately, Ty misinterpreted her quietness.

"Are you afraid I'm going to act up at the party? Get all the woman to rip off their clothes and jump naked into the fountain?"

She took in the sharp planes of his cheeks, his strong nose, full mouth. Those dark brown eyes that knocked her right in the gut.

Surprisingly, what she saw in them reassured her. For some reason that she didn't understand, he was going to try to behave.

"Would it hurt your feelings if I said no?"

He kept his gaze on hers. "Don't worry. I'll make up for it later." Instinctively she smiled. "I have no doubt that you will." At last they pulled up in front of the vineyard estate. Ty held out his hand to help her out of the car, his heat enveloping her. As the limo pulled away, they stood together on the golden pavers, her hand still in his.

"Have I told you how beautiful you are?"

"Thank you."

"I'm not just talking about tonight."

No. He couldn't say something like that to her when her resistance was so low. She couldn't afford to let his admiration sink in.

"You clean up pretty good yourself. I like the suit."

"I'll tell them to blame you."

She cocked her head to one side. "Why?"

"They're paying for flash and trash. I usually put on my diamond-studded grill for events like this." She frowned. "You do not." Then, when he didn't say anything,
"Do
you?" He laughed. "You're too easy."

Their host suddenly appeared beside the Tuscan-inspired fountain at the top of the steps.

"There he is, the man of the hour. Ty Calhoun. And of course, a beautiful woman on his arm." As Gordon Montague made his approach down the steps, Julie tried to pull away from Ty. She wasn't his date, she was his employee. She'd stay just close enough to keep an eye on him. But he refused to let her go. Instead, he put his hand on the small of her back. Exactly where his hand always seemed to be.

"Gordon Montague at your service." Their host lifted her hand to his lips in a gesture that should have seemed gallant, but came across as creepy instead.

Julie fought the urge to roll her eyes. "Thank you for allowing me to accompany Ty to your party." Gordon turned to the devastating man beside her. "Even a superstar like you pales in comparison to your companion's ravishing beauty."

"Hey, Monty," Ty said, pulling Gordon's tight grasp off her hand under the pretense of shaking it.

"How goes it? What's on the agenda for tonight?"

He was doing it again. Always coming to her rescue.

"We're fund-raising for leukemia tonight." He turned to Julie. "My wife's sister's friend was touched by the disease."

Feigned concern did not suit Gordon in the least.

Ty grinned. "I'm always up for a dog and pony show for a good cause. Who would you like me to meet first?"

Ty was so irreverent, not the least bit bowled over by Gordon's money, his connections, his power. She'd grown up in this world, yet she'd never learned how not to take it seriously. She could learn something from him. Gordon led them inside, and as the evening progressed from cocktails and appetizers to a sevencourse sit-down dinner paired with expensive wines, it became abundantly clear that no one knew quite what to make of her. Was she Ty's girlfriend? His business associate? A groupie?

Julie didn't want to make Ty look bad by saying, "I was hired to watch over him," but she didn't want people to think she was the latest in a long string of one-night-stands, either. She settled for pleasant, but distant when answering curious questions. She enjoyed herself, but not too much. She stood near Ty at all times, but not too close.

Out of the blue, a lovely woman who seemed out of place in a light blue linen dress and shawl pulled Ty aside.

"I'm Gordon's sister, Gina the black sheep of the family. You must be the prized pig." Ty didn't take offense, just shook her hand and said it was nice to meet her.

"I'm afraid I can't stand too close to you for too long, though. When a man is as good-looking as you, it's dangerous to give anyone the chance to make comparisons." Gina gestured in Julie's direction.

"Although I do have to say that the two of you look good together." Ty turned to Julie. "I told you so." Then to Gina, he added, "She refuses to believe me." Julie bared her teeth at him, hoping it looked at least a little bit like a smile. "That's because I've never heard so many people use the word 'pretty' to describe a man before." Gina grinned. "Mark my words, this is the girl for you. She's not blinded by all of your shimmer and shine."

Julie felt completely transparent. She couldn't pinpoint the exact moment that Ty started to get to her; all she knew was that he had, and was doing it still.

And she couldn't let him. No matter what.

"Excuse me, I need to find the ladies' room."

She dashed through the lavish ballroom, searching for a place to hide out for a few minutes, to try to regain her equilibrium. She ran into the kitchen, where she saw a set of stairs, a narrow, dark flight that she hoped led up to maids' quarters.

The stairs seemed to go up and up forever, growing darker with every step, climbing up to a secret tower. Something told her to turn back, that she shouldn't be trespassing in a stranger's house, but she was more afraid of the devastatingly handsome man who awaited her at the bottom of the stairs than she was of being caught.

Continuing to climb, she felt for a light switch along the wall. She heard footsteps on the steps behind her a moment before she flicked the switch and gasped aloud.

At the top of Gordon Montague's secret tower was a fully equipped sexual hideaway . . . the last place on earth she wanted Ty to find her.

Only, judging by the heat she felt at her back, he already had.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Ty had long believed in the power of positive thinking. Coach after coach during the past decade had pressed the power of visualization upon him and his teammates. Although he wasn't big on woo-woo stuff, acting like you already had what you wanted worked most of the time on the field. Ty wanted to win games; he won them. He wanted lots of money; he had it. It hadn't occurred to him to use this technique for getting a girl, but then, he'd never wanted anyone nearly as much as he wanted Julie. And he'd certainly never had to work for it like this before, either. He'd made his way through the kitchen, signed a few autographs, and asked which way she went. Something about the dark stairwell conjured up a flow of sexy images. Julie asking him to unzip her dress, beckoning him over, ripping his clothes off, lying across his lap, begging him to spank her sexy lace-clad ass.

He'd been stuck on this fantastic image as he made his way up the circular stairs. A light scent of apples and cinnamon lingered in the air and he'd known he was on the right track. His cock had hardened at the thought of how soft her ass cheeks would feel beneath his palm, at how good it would feel to cup her breasts with his other hand.

And then she'd switched on the light, and he'd seen a sex toy wonderland. He'd never seen so many erotic pictures, paintings, sculptures, dildos, vibrators, and books outside of a porn shop. He was clearly better at this ask and you shall receive stuff than he'd ever realized. Maybe when he retired from the game, he'd write a book on visualization.

He whistled at the S and M equipment hanging from the walls, the thick chains by the bed. "Damn. This is some room." He figured Julie was probably freaking out right now. She giggled. "You know when you took me into your basement? I thought you had one of these rooms under there."

He smiled. "As if I'd ever need to chain a woman down."

Her eyes were big as she examined a two-headed dildo from a distance. He was pretty sure she had no idea what it was for.

"True," she agreed. "But you still could have been into kinky stuff." He pushed her farther into the room. "Go ahead, examine everything. I know you're dying to." She made a face. "I'm too grossed out right now. Just thinking about Gordon in here with ... whoever he comes here with." Her shoulder nearly brushed into a fully erect statue and she jumped. "I hope he washes everything on a regular basis."

As Ty did a quick perusal of the room's contents,he could see Julie warring with herself, opening her mouth, then shutting it.

"Go ahead, ask me. I know you're dying to." She stood in the center of the room, a perfect, pure goddess in the midst of sin. "Have you ever ..." Her cheeks flushed pink. "Once." Her mouth flew open. "You've used this stuff?"

He grinned, looked around at the impressive contraptions. He wasn't into anything crazy, but a pair of handcuffs with Julie certainly wouldn't suck.

"Not exactly."

"Please tell me pictures aren't going to surface of you naked in leather chaps with a spiked collar around your neck."