Page 57 of Ruff and Tumble

Well, except for Philip, but that could only be considered a point in Cole’s favor. No woman—especially not one as enamored of dogs as this one—could reject a man holding a pit bull puppy in a lopsided bow tie. He was sure of it.

“Okay, now that you’ve proven your point, go away.”

Or…maybe not.

“Is that any way to talk to the man who just rescued your runaway Great Dane?” he asked, setting Philip lightly on the floor. He used his free hand to grab Hailey around the waist and pull her close. As he’d hoped, the press of her body against his was warm and full of the curves so carefully hidden under the masculine cut of her shirt. “After all the work it took me to get Garrett here, I expected a hero’s welcome.”

“What do you think you’re doing?” she said in the exact opposite of a hero’s welcome. It was also the exact opposite of a woman-he’d-recently-slept-with welcome, but he was trying not to dwell on that part. “You’re supposed to be at practice.”

“Iamat practice,” he protested. “Puppies need to be trained, too. If they’re all like Cleopatra, a lot more than I expected. I should probably have Reggie pencil me in for a few hours tomorrow, too.”

“Cole.”

The way she said his name was familiar in all the worst ways. It wasn’t the sound of a woman who was happy to see him or even one who was playfully pushing him away. It sounded an awful lot like his mom whenever he’d begged to get out of peewee football practice so he could go ride his bike.

“Besides,” he said, doing his best to ignore the condemnation he read in her face, “I wanted to stop by and see you. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about Sunday night.”

“Cole.” This time, she said his name more as a plea, and the way her body melted against his proved that she was thinking about Sunday night, too. He responded automatically, tangling his hand in the hair at the nape of her neck and straining to pull her close. There were too many watchful eyes on them for him to do what hereallywanted, but he was happy enough to have her in his arms.

Let everyone know. Let everyone see. He liked this woman, and he didn’t give a damn who knew it.

“Iamhappy to see you,” she said, her voice low. “And I’d be happy to continue this, uh, discussion at any other time. But you can’t be here. I know your schedule. This isn’t part of the plan.”

Of course it wasn’t part of the plan—the plan revolved around one thing and one thing only.Football.It was supposed to be the first thing he thought of when he woke up in the morning and the last thing he pictured before he went to sleep. It was supposed to drive him, shape him,pleasehim.

Well, that was too bad. Yes, football had driven him for thirty-two years. And yes, it was so much a part of him that he wasn’t sure where the sport ended and he began. But it didn’t make him light up when it walked into a room. It didn’t shyly ask him what his preferences were in the bedroom and then proceed to rock his world in ways he’d never imagined.

It didn’t make him feel like an actual goddamn person for the first time in his life.

“The plan sucks,” he said, inadequately summarizing his feelings. “I hate the plan.”

Hailey smiled, but he could tell it wasn’t enough. “The plan exists for a reason. You can’t hang out here all day. Not only will your coaches call up Jasmine and demand my immediate termination but you’re a distraction.”

Cole was so used to drawing stares and double takes when he walked down the street that he barely noticed them anymore, but he paused long enough now to glance around him. There were, in fact, an awful lot of people in this part of the warehouse, their arms full of equipment and their eyes equally full of curiosity. Somehow, he didn’t think it was the spectacle of a quarterback and his pit bull puppy they’d come over here to see.

“I’mnot the distracting one right now,” he said. “They’re staring at you.”

Hailey’s whole body jerked, but he didn’t relinquish his hold. If he was going to be banished to football practice for the rest of the day, he was going to enjoy this moment while it lasted.

“Only because you have your arms around me,” she hissed, her cheeks starting to diffuse with color. “This is tempting fate—and luck—too far. They’re probably waiting for lightning to strike me dead where I stand.”

“Actually, I think they’re waiting for this.”

He dropped his mouth to hers for a kiss. Public displays of affection weren’t something he indulged in very often, since the likelihood of it being captured on someone’s phone and posted online was high. He didn’t mind theworldwatching him kiss a beautiful woman, but he did mind his parents watching it. They had far too many Google alerts set up for his name to make him comfortable whisking random dates into his arms and putting on a show.

He felt no such qualms now—and even if he had, they would have disappeared the moment Hailey parted her lips to let him in, her own reservations equally null and void. She was always doing that, and it took him by surprise every time. It didn’t matter if he was asking for entrance into her home or her body or even her heart. She opened the door every time.

He’d never known anyone so unguarded, so honest. Soreal.

She tasted like coffee and sugar, both perfectly ordinary and somehow the most intoxicating thing in the world. So, too, was the way her arms wound naturally around his neck and pulled him close. She was all heat and curves, and he could have stood there falling into those sensations for hours.

Unfortunately, the moment he dropped a hand to her lower back, his fingers unable to resist the downward journey toward her ass, a burst of catcalling and applause broke out around them.

That sound might not bother him, but Hailey reared back, her color heightened so much that he could practically count every freckle on her cheeks and across her nose.

“Oh my god.” She dropped her arms from around his neck and released a low moan. “I can’t believe I just let you do that. What’s the matter with you? Don’t you have any decency?”

He chuckled and dropped a quick kiss on the end of her nose. “Not a scrap. Besides, I don’t think you have anything to worry about. From the sound of things, they liked it.”