Broken Play (16 page)

“Damn,” he whispered. “You feel so good, Marian. So damn good.”

“I'm glad,” she told him. “I want to feel good for you. I want to be perfect for you.” Her arms went around his neck and he lowered himself until his forearms rested on the bed and they kissed. Tenderly at first, like a shy hello from her, and then hot and hungry.

“She is so fucking hot for what's about to happen,” Cass growled. “She can't wait for me to fuck you while you're inside her.”

Marian moaned into his mouth at Cass's words. Beau slid out and back in, fucking her gently. He needed to last. He wanted to come when Cass was inside him. Even the thought made him dizzy. Before he met Cass he'd never have believed he'd think something like that. His ass was up in the air a bit, thanks to the pillows and Marian, and he felt exposed and raw and aching with emptiness.

Cass crawled between their spread legs, nudging them a bit wider. Then he put one hand on Beau's hip and just did it. He just pressed his cock to Beau's ass and pushed inside a bit. Beau pulled away from Marian's mouth with a choked gasp. It wasn't that it hurt, it was just so weird. It felt good and crazy and forbidden and perfect.

“Yeah?” Cass asked. Beau was happy to hear his voice break a little.

“Yeah,” he said. He looked up at Marian and she was watching him with the hottest fucking expression he'd ever seen. Hungry and aroused and possessive. He had to kiss her again just for that look.

It took Cass a couple of minutes to get all the way inside. Beau's erection flagged a bit, but Marian whispered in his ear, “That's normal. Don't worry.”

“I'm just going to stay like this for a minute,” Cass said, out of breath. “If I move, I'm going. I swear. It feels that good, man. Tell me.”

Beau licked his lips and blew out a heavy breath. “I need that minute to adjust. I don't remember you being hung like a fucking horse.”

Marian burst out laughing. “Wimp,” she said, kissing his neck. “I took two of you.”

“I'm taking two of you right now,” Beau said, nuzzling her cheek. “Maybe not the exact same thing, but still impressive.”

“Mm,” Marian hummed as she kissed him again, and he chose to take it as agreement. Cass moved, a little glide backward, and then forward again, and every nerve in Beau's body zinged as he shivered.

“You move with me, against me,” Cass told him. “I push in, you pull out of Marian. I pull out, you push into her. That way you're always getting fucked, one way or another.”

Beau didn't stop kissing Marian to answer. He just did as Cass told him, and it nearly blew the top of his head off as pleasure shot from his ass to the tip of his dick. He was so not going to last long. The next time he pushed into Marian he did it harder, rubbing on her clit, and she whimpered into his mouth. She had to come. It wouldn't be right if she didn't. So he held on to her, kissed her and fucked her and took Cass with abandon, not caring about anything but having these two people connected to him like this.

Too soon he felt his orgasm coming. His hips stuttered as he lost the steady rhythm Cass had set.

“Yeah,” Cass said, panting. “You going to come? I need to come. Tell me you're ready.”

“Yes,” he gasped. “But Marian…”

“Just love me,” she told him, hugging him tight, squeezing his cock inside her. “It will happen. I'm close, too.”

Beau took her at her word and fucked her hard while Cass pounded into him. He knew he'd be sore later, but right now it felt amazing. “Yes,” he said. “Yes, yes. Now.” He threw his head back with a shout as he came, ramming into Marian and holding there, his hips jerking. Cass kept fucking him, just a little wild, a little out of control. It set off little aftershocks in his ass and he cried out. It was a sound he'd never made before, part surrender, part victory.

“Beau,” Cass said in a strangled voice, and then he pressed in deep and lay on Beau's back, his lips on the nape of Beau's neck as he came.

Marian was holding him so tightly, her face buried in his neck. She was working her hips still, fucking his still-hard dick, rubbing on him. Then she let out a moan and he could feel her coming, trembling in his arms.

“Oh my God,” she said when it was over, when they all lay there in the aftermath, sweaty and spent and aching. “That was…”

“Unbelievable,” Beau finished for her. “Amazing.”

“Believe it,” Cass said. “Cause that's how it's going to be from now on. This is going to work. We're going to make it work.”

“This isn't working.” Shannon ran his hands through his hair and then linked them on top of his head as he stared out at the field. The team was milling around, looking more like an angry mob than a team. “Either I suck as head coach, or you suck as team captain. Which is it, Cass?” he asked, staring out at the field.

“Neither,” Cass said defensively. “We just need more time to gel.”

“Smith is a disaster.” Shannon signaled Tyler over and the quarterback jogged across the field, taking his helmet off as he came. “You were supposed to have it all fixed by now.”

“What does that mean?” Cass asked sharply.

“You and Beau have hooked up with Marian. I have eyes, I see things. Smith is here because of her. It was your job to fix it all. But Marian still won't go in the locker room, and Smith still hates everyone.” Shannon turned to glare at him. “I'm not an idiot. I know that somehow the two are related. Smith hovers around her like a feral mother hen. And I'm not sure he'd let her in the locker room if she tried to go in there. I also know that you and Beau know what's going on.” He held up his hand to stop Cass from talking. Tyler had arrived and he just stood there, listening. “Fix it, Cass. I mean it. Or this team is going nowhere. If Marian is the cause of Smith's issues, then Marian is gone. I don't like it, but there it is. Right now Smith is the more valuable of the two.”

“If Marian goes, we go,” Cass said coldly. “I don't like it, but there it is.”

“I guess that gives you more incentive.” Shannon sighed. He sounded tired. “I like Marian. She's a damn good coach. And I see her trying with Smith. But whatever she's doing isn't working. Is it you? If you left her alone, would he settle in?”

“No,” Cass said. “What's eating him won't go away if we do.”

“I get that I can't know what that is,” Shannon said. “There are a whole lot of things I don't like in this situation, and that's one of them. But I'm not going to push.” He narrowed his eyes as he stared at Cass. “You are. You're going to push until it's settled, one way or the other. We need Smith to play like the franchise player he is. Tyler.” He turned to the quarterback. “Is it you? You're not connecting with him. Communication?”

“He knows the plays. We just need to work it some more. We're almost there.”

“Almost doesn't score touchdowns, Tyler. It doesn't put us in the play-offs. My expectations are low. A wild-card spot, that's it. That's all we need to show progress and fill the stands. You're connecting more with Beau than Smith. You two are covering for him. Stop it.”

“Why are we having this conversation instead of you and Smith?” Cass demanded. “Tyler and I are doing our jobs. He's the one out of sync.”

“Because he already knows it,” Shannon said. “All you have to do is watch him and you can see it. He's as frustrated as I am. I think he wants to fit in here. But he has no idea how to do it, or even how to try. He's doing that for Marian, isn't he?”

“Yes,” Cass said from between gritted teeth.

“What else will he do for Marian?” Shannon asked. Cass could almost see the gears in his head working.

“Meaning?” Cass asked, not sure he liked where this was going.

“Just think about it,” Shannon said dismissively. “And think about what else you'll do for Marian. It's on you to fix it, and I think you've known that all along. So do it.”

Cass turned away with a huff of annoyance, jerking his helmet in the air in front of him, trying not to throw it as he stalked off. He looked up and saw Marian watching him with a worried look on her face. It had been over a week since that incredible night when the three of them had been together for the first time in a true ménage à trois, the night he'd taken Beau for the first time. They'd spent every night together since, done things Cass had never thought he'd do. And he'd loved every minute of it. But Marian was still holding a part of herself back. He and Beau knew it, had talked about it. She wouldn't move in with them, kept saying it was too soon to know if they were in love. Shannon hit on it when he observed she still wouldn't go in the locker room. She said she was healed, but that was a lie, wasn't it? Maybe she never would be. Maybe this was all she could give them. His heart broke a little standing there looking at her, wondering if he'd always long for something he couldn't have.

“Hey,” Beau said from off to his right. Cass turned to see him standing on the edge of the field, his helmet under his arm, looking as worried as Marian. “What's going on?”

Cass just shook his head. They couldn't talk about it here. “I need to talk to Smith.” He wiped his sweaty forehead on the towel wrapped around his neck. Eighty-nine fucking degrees in mid-June. He loved everything about the South but the weather. The humidity was like breathing soup. “I have three fucking days to save this team.”

“Whoa,” Beau said. “What are you talking about?”

Tyler walked over, eyeing them both with trepidation. “Don't listen to him, Cass,” he told him. “This is not on you. Smith isn't connecting with anyone. Hell, not even Tom, and everybody loves that damn kid. How can they be roommates and Smith hasn't fallen in love with him?”

“Tyler, if you're scared of something, how do you overcome that?” Cass asked thoughtfully, looking at Marian.

“Therapy,” Tyler said with a laugh. “I don't know. Confront it, I guess. Like, go on a trip in a plane if you're scared of flying. Once you realize it's not so bad, then you're not scared anymore.”

“But what if you'd been in a plane crash before?” Cass asked. “Then you wouldn't even want to get on a plane, ever again. Maybe you even start to hate pilots and flight attendants.”

“Start with something smaller,” Tyler said, looking confused. “Like a glider. Jesus, I don't know. I'm not a shrink. Are you afraid of flying?”

“We've already tried a glider,” Beau said, leaning over and setting his helmet down on the ground. “The fear is still there. And it's two problems. Two people. One who's afraid to fly, and one who hates pilots. How can we fix that with one solution?”

“Okay,” Tyler said. “I'm going to try to work this out in my tiny brain.” He pointed to Marian, keeping it low-key, close to his chest. “Afraid to fly.” He pointed out to the field, not to anyone in particular, but they all knew who he meant. “And hates pilots. Right?”

“Right,” Beau said.

“And I have to come up with a solution before mini-camp ends,” Cass said, frustrated as hell. “Three days. Or I'm not exactly sure who's going to be showing up for preseason.”

“What do you mean?” Beau asked.

“He didn't mean it,” Tyler said quickly. “He's just trying to get you to jump for him. You know that.”

“I don't,” Cass said. “I don't know that. He's right. Marian is good. She could be great. But a player like Smith trumps an assistant coach any day in this business. And I've drawn my line in the sand. If she goes, we go.” He looked at Beau, chagrined to realize he'd spoken for him before talking to him about it.

“That's right,” Beau said, nodding. “We go if she does.”

Cass relaxed. “What Shannon doesn't get is that Smith will go, too. He won't stay if Marian isn't here. So I'm gone, Beau's gone, Smith's gone, Marian's gone. This team would have a losing season. No offense,” he added quickly for Tyler's benefit.

“None taken,” Tyler said. “You're right. You're holding this team together with sweat and determination, and that's about it. Without you, it comes apart at the seams. What's going on off the field is more important on this team than on any other team I've played for. I don't know why. Maybe because of who we all are, what we're fighting against—reputations, low expectations, prison records, and failed rehab. You name it, this team has got it. But we've got someone who believes in us, which means a hell of a lot to some of us.” He wiped the corner of his mouth with his thumb pensively. “You and Marian both hitched your wagons to this falling star, we know it.”

“I want this team to win,” Cass said vehemently. “I need this team to win. I've helped build this team. I could be part of something great.”

“You are part of something great, whether we win or not,” Beau told him. “Don't forget that.”

“But winning would be pretty damn awesome, wouldn't it?” he asked.

“Yep,” Beau said with a lopsided smile.

“Oh, yeah,” Tyler agreed.

They all stared out at the field, at Danny Smith, who was oblivious.

“So, think,” Cass said. “Think of a solution. And I'm going to talk to Smith.”

“So, I'm here,” Smith said, sitting down in the seat beside Cass.

They were out in the stands after practice, watching the guys clean up the field, raking it and watering it. Cass was glad they held mini-camp in their own stadium. There had been fans in the stands today, watching them. PR was hoping open practices would sell more game tickets. He'd actually had several fans stop him and laughingly talk about the karaoke video. He still wasn't so sure he wanted people watching that, but if it sold tickets, he'd sing again.

“It's not working,” Cass said, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. “You're not working here.”

“I'm doing my damn job,” Smith said angrily. “This team is for shit. There's a reason no one wanted these damn players.”

“That's bullshit,” Cass snapped. “They're good, better than what I've seen on the field in the last two weeks. You've fucked everything up.” He turned and glared at him. “And I can't say anything. I can't kick your ass and yell at you. Because you saved her. You saved her and I owe you, and she'd never forgive me if I made you feel bad.”

“She told you,” Smith said, looking shocked. “I didn't think she'd tell you. She never told anyone else.”

“I'm not anyone else,” Cass said, looking away. “And neither is Beau. We're it. The real deal. Can you handle that?”

“I'll believe it when I see it,” Smith scoffed. “You two got a pussy to share right now, which makes you happy. But when another one comes along you'll be gone.”

“Did you just call Marian a pussy?” Cass asked, completely floored at how clueless this guy was. “What the fuck? She thinks you're her friend, her hero. And you call her a fucking pussy? Like that's all she is?”

“Not to me,” Smith said. They were glaring at each other. “But I know guys like you. Fucking think you own the world and can do what you want. Fuck her together? Hell, yeah. Fuck each other? Hell, yeah. Ain't nobody going to tell you no.”

“Lots of people have told me no.” Cass leaned back in his seat and faced Smith. “Here it is, straight. If you don't get your shit together, Marian is out of here. They're going to fire her because they think she's the reason you can't get your game out of your ass. And if Marian goes, Beau and I go, too. That's already been said, it's out there and agreed upon. So if you want to be left here in Birmingham by yourself, or you want to finally retire from a game you hate so fucking much, then go ahead. Keep dropping the ball and getting in fights on the field. Go for it. Ruin Marian's dreams, her career. My plans, my career, Beau's. Do it. But if you really care about her, then you'll start trying, man. You'll put all the shit behind you, open your eyes and look around. Because if you do that, you're going to see a team full of guys who are giving one hundred and ten percent. Guys who know this is their last chance and who know you can make it happen for them. They want to trust you, Danny. They want to believe in you. These are not bad guys. These are not guys out there raping women. They're not giving the world the finger. Been there, done that, for most of them. They are here to work and to make something happen, to build this team. We want you to be a part of that. I want you to be a part of it because that would mean something to Marian.” He paused, watched Smith sitting there stoically, no hint on his face of what he was thinking. “So? What's it going to be? Should we start packing?”

“No, man,” Smith said. “You don't got to pack. I got this.”

“Good,” Cass said. “I'll call you later. First, I've got to talk to Marian.”