Craving Her Curves (3 page)

“Tempting,” I yelled back with a laugh.

“Hey! No help from the instigators, please,” Joey said. I hunkered down by my shoes and took a deep breath. Racing the boys in my neighborhood when I was a kid was all I had to go off of for this, but it had been years. I said a small prayer that I wasn’t about to die, and took off.

I made it to the first mark, touched it and ran back to my shoes before pivoting on the balls of my feet and taking off for the second mark. Hand touch, spin, and back to the shoes. The third mark winded me, and the run back from the third mark meant I was fully out of breath and needed some water.

“Holy crap,” I breathed as I grabbed the bottle of water and sat on the bench. Joey trotted over and clapped his hands.

“That was beautiful, but don’t sit down. Walk, slowly, until your heart rate drops. Or you’ll get sick,” he said. I nodded, huffing as I stood and began walking in circles, and the team began cheering and whistling.

“I think you’re the first female interviewer we’ve had come in here that has even tried to do suicides. You’re the first interviewer period that’s ever made it all the way through them,” the Coach said, walking back to the stands with the team following behind him.

“Really? The guys didn’t try it to prove they’re all big and bad?” I asked. There was a collective shaking of heads.

“The men are usually worse about it than the women,” one of the team said.

I snickered, “I feel like I just won brownie points or something with you guys, after that.”

“You won our respect. That’s something not a lot of the press has, Miss Rivera. You are welcome here on my field any time you’d like,” Coach said with a smile. I returned it honestly and bowed a thank you.

“I’m flattered. Thank you for that,” I said. Coach tipped his hat and turned back to his team.

“I’m impressed. Coach hates anyone that has to do with the media. That camera man who was in the news for suing the team for assault a few months ago? It was Coach that decked him,” he said. I snickered.

“The guy probably deserved it,” I said. Joey and I returned to our seats.

“Oh yeah, he did,” he said with a wink that made me giggle.

“Alright, now that you’ve made me run and sweat, what happens after you die running?” I asked. Joey laughed.

“We practice our plays. We have to know that entire playbook inside and out, backwards and forwards, so that when Jason calls the play on the field, we know exactly where to go and what to do. It doesn’t matter that the stands are loud, or that it’s snowing. We have to know immediately and get there before the play clock runs out. We have to know those plays so well that it’s instinct,” he said. I nodded.

“
Instinct
.” I repeated. These men were drilled, day after day, hour after hour, to be machines. To ignore anything and everything else that might be going on. They couldn’t worry about the fans heckling them, or the fact that their wife had called them a bastard that morning. They had to go out there and play like it was the only thing in the world that mattered.

“How long are you all out here?” I asked.

“A few hours. We break around 1 for lunch and meet back here at 3 for an afternoon of more. The afternoons are usually less strenuous, though. Less ‘I’m going to die’, more ‘I’m just going to pass out for a second’,” he said with an amused grin.

“That sounds way more bearable,” I said with a sarcastic glance.

He snickered, “It’s life. This is what we chose when we decided to go into the NFL. No one walked into this without knowing what was coming. You just have to decide to do it,” he said.

“That sounds like something you can apply to life, not just football,” I said. Joey nodded.

“A lot of the guys have. Steven just proposed to his girlfriend after 6 months of dating, because he just knew that it was right. He just decided, I’m going to do it,” he said. I smiled; that was actually really sweet.

“She accepted?” I asked. Joey nodded.

“Right, you don’t watch sports news, do you? She accepted instantly. Her parents are pissed and have been all over the news outlets, talking about the big bad football player who swooped in and stole their little girl out from under them. It’s actually been really stressful for both of them. It’s difficult to plan a wedding when your parents are doing everything they can to make it a nightmare,” Joey said. I sighed.

“That sounds horrible,” I said.

“It is. But out there, it doesn’t exist. It’s just him and the ball. Nothing else matters,” Joey said. I sighed.

“That’s got to be difficult. I know most men can compartmentalize like pros, but this... This is important,” I replied. Joey nodded.

“He calls her whenever we get a break and she comes out here for lunch with him. They make the most of it; spend as much time together as they can and make sure that no matter what, they have each other. Even if they don’t have anyone else,” he said, his voice fading off a bit at the end. Amy’s words about his breakup a few months ago came back to me and I sat up a bit. It was time to change the subject.

“Do you find it difficult, being on the road as much as you all are?” I asked. Joey seemed to bring his mind back around and smiled again as he responded.

“Not really. Most of my friends travel with me as Bullets, or with their own teams, and most of my family is back in Maine, so I have to travel to see them anyway. I miss my bed more than anything else. Sometimes the beds in the hotels are horribly uncomfortable. But other than that, it’s not so bad,” he said. I nodded.

“Do you even have time for nightlife, parties, anything like that?” I asked with a soft laugh. Joey grinned.

“Sometimes, on off nights. We do have days off, so they don’t overwork us. On those nights, we try and go out to unwind. Maybe have a few drinks, meet some people, have some fun,” he said.

“Mmhm,” I said, making some notes.

“Amy told me that you’re pretty well known in the nightlife of Dallas. Maybe you could show me where to go sometime,” he said. I glanced up at him and smirked.

“Maybe,” I teased.

“It would be fun. For me, at least,” he said with a chuckle.

“Why, Mr. Parker, are you flirting with me?” I asked with an overdramatic eye roll and a fake hand fanning.

He laughed, “Maybe?” I could tell he was teasing me back.

I giggled, “Have you ever thought about moving back to Maine?” I asked, bringing things back on track.

“Sometimes. I do miss my parents. But, it’s cold up there and I’ve become spoiled by this beautiful Texas weather. Where else can it be warm enough for nothing more than a light jacket all the way up through Christmas?” he said. I laughed and nodded.

“I’ve heard that Maine is rather cold and snowy,” I laughed.

“Are you from Dallas?” he asked.

I shook my head. “I was born and raised in Las Vegas,” I said.

“Wow, Vegas. I love visiting there,” he said.

I laughed. “Visiting, yes. The cost of living is astronomical, unless you want to fear for your life all the time,” I explained.

“I always wondered what the suburbs of Vegas were like,” Joey said. I grinned.

“Either rich beyond most people’s pay grade, or nowhere you’d want to be past sunset,” I said. Joey laughed.

“Then I can see why you ended up here. I, for one, am glad you did,” he said. And there was that cute wink again. He was a charmer, wasn’t he? I cleared the blush from my throat and sighed, moving on.

J
oey had a great laugh. One that lit up his entire countenance when he let it out to play. By the time we got to the end of the interview, he and I were rather comfortable with each other, which made things a lot more pleasant.

“Are we done with the question and answer portion?” Joey asked. I grinned and nodded, tucking my notepad and recorder back into my bag.

“Yep. Now it’s time to take a few more pictures. Neil got you out on the field, but we wanted a few posed as well, if you don’t mind.” I said as he and I stood together. Joey smiled.

“I don’t mind at all,” he said with a wink. I smirked and motioned for Neil to come over. I could see why all the ladies were falling all over him: he was gorgeous, especially those eyes. And he was a genuinely nice guy, which just upped his attractiveness. He was the total package.

“How about on the bench, maybe with your helmet in your hands,” I heard Neil say as he and Joey walked down towards the field together. Joey looked back at me and flashed a grin. Was he actually flirting with me? Nah. No way. I grinned and walked up to lean on the railing so I could see what they were doing.

Neil got a few shots of him posed and doing something with his helmet, then a few with the football. Joey called over a few of the guys from the team and Neil took a few shots of all of them together, then he yelled up to me that he had everything he needed. I walked down the steps and out to where they stood.

“Thanks for the group shots,” I said to the other guys as they jogged off and waved their ‘your welcome’s. Neil was already halfway to the door.

“This was fun; I don’t think I’ve ever felt quite this comfortable with an interviewer before,” Joey said with a grin. I laughed.

“I try and keep it light; you can’t make friends if you’re a prick to people all the time,” I said. Joey snickered and nodded.

“True, but not everyone seems to understand that. We should do this again sometime,” he said. And there was that cute little wink again. I smirked.

“Maybe. If you’re nice,” I flirted, holding my hand out for a farewell shake. Jake took it gently and leaned in, kissing my cheek. That stopped me for a second.

“It was wonderful to meet you, Charlotte. Maybe we’ll see each other again,” he said.

I nodded. “Until next time,” I said. Joey smiled and turned, running back out onto the field with his team as I watched for a moment, then turned and started walking towards the door to leave.

"Hmm. That was odd,” I said out loud to myself. I shrugged and picked up the pace as my phone vibrated in my hand. I glanced down at the screen and opened Jacinta's message.

Wine bar opening tonight.

Sounds interesting.
I replied as I stepped inside and started my trek back through the facility and out to the parking lot. We had a lunch date and I was probably going to be late, judging by the traffic alerts that were all over my phone’s status bar.

It should be. Are you in?

I grinned, a bit of a hop in my step now. I always had fun at wine bars. And parties.

When and where?
I replied.

I
slipped into the chair beside Izzy and grinned as Jacinta looked up from the menu.

“Crazy traffic, sorry,” I said, slipping my purse over the back of the chair and starting to look at the choices.

“I heard there was something happening on 635, I’m shocked you got here as fast as you did,” Jacinta said, causing me to laugh.

“Me too,” I said.

“We ordered you a coffee and some water just a few minutes ago, so it should be here soon,” Isobel said. I smiled my thanks.

“So what’s good here?” I asked. The restaurant that Isobel and Jacinta had picked for lunch shared the mall with the store that Jacinta worked in. It was a new place, only open a few days, but seemed to serve some sort of Tex-mex fare, and usually had a line. We’d intentionally opted for a very late lunch, in the hopes of missing most of the crowds.

“One of my regulars tried it the other day, and she said the fajitas and the tableside guac are excellent,” Jacinta said. I let my eyes roam over the menu.

“Oh! The fajitas are a group entrée,” I said, glancing at the girls.

“I could go for some fajitas and guacamole,” Isobel said, which settled what we were ordering when the waiter returned.

“So what’s the deal with this last minute wine bar opening?” I asked.

“It’s not last minute; I just kept forgetting to say something to you guys about it. I’ve actually known for almost a week,” Jacinta said. Izzy giggled.

“Good thing we don’t have plans,” she said with an eye roll for effect.

“Anyway! The place is supposed to be really nice and high class, just the kind of place we’ve been looking for to go to on those nights when we just want to sit back and relax,” Jacinta said. Izzy and I both gave impressed looks.

“That would be so nice: to go meet up after a bad day, get ourselves a few glasses of wine and hang out for a while,” I said.

“If it’s really nice, we should write about it and give the place a little boost in business, “Izzy said. I grinned and nodded.

“Do we know who’s running it?” I asked. Jacinta shook her head.

“It’s a woman, I remember that, but her name didn’t ring any bells when I heard it. I think she’s new to all this,” Jacinta said. She’d gotten pretty good at remembering the names and faces of the Dallas players. That was especially helpful, considering that she came across a shocking number of them in the boutique that she worked in. If we weren’t able to get the party schedules, she normally was.

“So what happened with that guy who asked you out last weekend? You never said anything else about him...” Isobel asked, turning to me. I smirked.

“What happened was that I looked him up and found him sprinkled across all the magazines,” I said. Izzy shrugged.

“So?” she prompted.

“With his wife,” I finished.

“Ooo, what a jerk,” Jacinta said, scrunching her face up in disgust. I snickered.

“I informed him that if I ran across him trying to step out on his wife again, I’d inform her myself,” I said with a grin. He’d gotten off the phone fairly quickly after that.

“That stinks; I thought he seemed like a really nice guy,” Isobel said.

I sighed. “They all seem like nice guys, until they do something creepy.” I said with a snicker.

That was how our lunch dates normally went. We didn’t have them all the time, because usually either Isobel or I were off somewhere for a story, but about once a week we’d manage to all get together. We’d talk about some guy we’d met or some club we’d been to, and laugh about the cute bartender that had wanted us to be his guinea pigs for a few drinks he’d concocted. That bartender had been cute. And gay, with a huge crush on the owner of the club he worked in. We’d set them up on a blind date and they were now blissfully happy together. I loved going to visit that place and seeing them.