Quarterback Draw

  Savannah looked over where Katrina had gestured. "I see them. Teenagers, huh? Such a fun age."

  "Yeah, unless you're in charge of raising them."

  Savannah arched a brow. "You're their guardian?"

  "I am."

  "Oh, Katrina. We need some wine. And some of this great food, too. You have to tell me your story."

  At Katrina's hesitation, Savannah laid a hand on her arm. "Trust me, I'm not press. I'm an image consultant, and I'm married to Cole Riley, wide receiver for the Traders."

  "Image consultant? That must be a fascinating job."

  "It's a great job. I love it. Now let's go get some wine."

  They found the bartender, who poured them glasses of wine. They settled on a spot where she could keep an eye on the kids, who were busy watching all the pregame activities and chatting with the people around them, clearly not at all interested in where she was. No surprise there. But she had them in her sights from where she and Savannah took seats.

  "Okay, now that we're settled, I want to hear all about you," Savannah said. "You are so famous. All the traveling you do to fun locations? What's that like?"

  She always had guys hitting on her. Women tended to avoid her, and she never understood why. She found Savannah charming, beautiful, and friendly. She instantly liked her.

  "The travel is great. I can't complain about it."

  "But we do complain, don't we? I get to travel a lot for my job, and it's awesome. I love the work I do. But I find myself missing home."

  Right away, Savannah understood. "Yes. I almost feel ashamed for resenting this amazing career I've been given." She looked around to make sure no one was within hearing distance. "I mean, I'm twenty-seven years old and I've made more money than I'll ever need in a lifetime."

  Savannah took a sip of her wine. "But? You're tired of the travel? Burned-out? Lonely?"

  Katrina blew out a breath. "It's like you took the words right out of my mouth, the ones I never say out loud."

  "Oh, sugar, I think most career women feel that twinge of guilt. We have major successes, and maybe some women never have regrets. Me? I love my job. I'm living my dream. But when I've been traveling for two weeks straight there are times I'd give it all up just to be able to spend a month at home."

  "Right. Until you spent a month at home."

  Savannah laughed. "Isn't that the truth? Then I'd go crazy and I'd be dying to get back on a plane. Do you think men go through this?"

  "I have no idea. Probably not, because they're not emotional like women are."

  "You might be right about that. My husband Cole travels all the time during the football season. I never heard him say he's tired of it. He just says it's part of his job and he's used to it. On the other hand, after a week on the road I start missing my husband, my bed, and my favorite pillow. And our dog that we just adopted recently."

  "Awww. That's like having a baby around."

  "I know. Right now I'm missing Luther so much." She pulled out her phone and showed Katrina a photo of an adorable mixed breed.

  "He looks like maybe some golden retriever?"

  Savannah nodded. "Yes. Mixed with Labrador and the vet said likely something else. He's a year old and Cole and I are madly in love with him. Right now he's staying with my in-laws. I was here in New York on business, so I decided to stay over the weekend to see Cole's game. We're both headed home after the game and I can't wait to see our baby."

  Katrina laughed and handed the phone back to Savannah. "That's awesome. With that little guy, travel's going to be even tougher for you."

  "I know. I'm branching out my business and hiring two consultants, so my travel should start easing up a little. I'd like to stay put a little more in the future. We bought a house, just got married in May, and now with the dog, I need more stability and less flying around the country. If my husband and I never see each other, it's going to make marriage a lot tougher. He travels enough during the football season. We can't have both of us on the road all the time."

  Katrina leaned back in her chair and took a couple sips of wine. "Do you think you'll miss it?"

  "The extensive time in airports? No. And I'll be busy enough training new staff. They can handle the heavy travel workload, which will free me up to expand my business."

  "Sounds fun."

  "I hope it will be." Savannah shifted her gaze to the field. "Still doing pregame stuff, so we have time for you to tell me all about yourself. You've been modeling for a while now, haven't you?"

  Katrina nodded. "Ten years."

  "And successfully, too. Congratulations."

  "Thank you."

  "Is it all exotic locations?"

  Katrina laughed. "No, not always. Sometimes it's urban, and a lot of times it's studio."

  "But always an adventure, I'm sure."

  "It is."

  "And you've shot with some extremely sexy men."

  The funny thing is, she'd never paid attention to them before. To her, they were props.

  Until Grant. He'd been the only one she'd had a reaction to.

  "Yes. The men are certainly fun."

  "Any romances? Or am I being too intrusive?" Savannah asked.

  "No romances. We're usually too concerned with lighting and position. It's always very professional."

  Savannah studied her. "Yet here you are--with Grant. So maybe something there?"

  Oh, Savannah was good at this. "We're just friends."

  Savannah gave her a knowing look. "Of course you are. Now we're going to pause and go get some of that glorious food, and then I have more questions for you."

  Since she was enjoying herself immensely, Katrina was game for anything, so she followed along, filling a plate with more food than she should. But since she didn't have another shoot for at least a week, she felt like indulging. They made their way back to their seats and their waitress refilled their wineglasses.

  After devouring the food, Savannah wiped her lips with the napkin and took several sips of wine. "Now tell me about how you met Grant."

  "We did a photo shoot together in Barbados for a swimsuit edition of a sports magazine."

  "That sounds like fun. Was it fun?"

  Katrina shrugged. "For me the shoot was work. Grant seemed to be having fun."

  "I'm sure he did. He got to shoot with you."

  "Thank you for that. He did seem to enjoy himself."

  Savannah studied her. "And? Any sparks? On your side, I mean. Grant would have to be dead not to be attracted to you. For goodness' sakes, I'm attracted to you and I'm totally heterosexual."

  Katrina laughed. "Thank you again. And yes, there were definite sparks. I don't tend to get involved with men, though."

  Savannah arched a brow. "Oh. So you're into women?"

  "No. Not at all what I meant. It's just that with my work and my siblings, my life is kind of full."

  "Oh, honey, life should never be so full that you don't have time for some fun. I imagine Grant would be all kinds of fun. I mean, just look at him." Savannah's gaze strayed out over the field where Grant took warm-up snaps.

  Katrina studied him. She had to admit, in his uniform he was something to behold. Tall, muscular, and he looked so commanding as he threw the ball.

  "You're right. I'm sure he would be fun." She remembered the other night, the way he'd held her and kissed her. She'd definitely like to have some fun with him, but at the same time, she had responsibilities, and fun wasn't on that list of things she felt were important.

  "Then go for it."

  "I have the kids to think about."

  Savannah swirled her wine around in the glass. "So ... you feel you're not entitled, or that your needs should come last?"

  Funny how someone she barely knew had nailed it so well. "Maybe."

  "Sugar, give up on that notion right now. You work hard, and from what I can tell from here, those kids look well taken care of. Why don't you take some time for yourself and live a little?"

  She might just have
to do that. As long as she didn't take it seriously or get involved. "It sounds to me like you've had to learn to put yourself first."

  Savannah nodded. "Admittedly, it wasn't always that way. But I've learned over the years that my needs are important. And my husband has helped me recognize that."

  "He sounds like a pretty wonderful man."

  "That he is. Though he wasn't always as perfect as I make him out to be. We met when I was hired to make over his image."

  Katrina's lips ticked up. "Is that right?"

  "Yes. He was kind of a bad boy."

  "And you ... reformed him?"

  "Oh, no. I would never want to do that. I like him a little bad. But his public persona? It's as white as snow now."

  "Of course. Just the way you want him, right? Good in public, bad in private?"

  Savannah gave her a devilish smile. "Definitely."

  They eventually made their way to the seats in front of Leo and Anya.

  "About time you sat down. I thought you were gonna miss the game," Anya said.

  She looked over her shoulder at her sister. "Wouldn't dream of missing it. Football is my life."

  Anya rolled her eyes. "You're such a cynic."

  Savannah laughed.

  The Traders kicked off to New York. Katrina knew she should support her home team, but for some reason she found herself hoping the Traders would get the ball. So when New York punted after their first drive, her pulse raced with excitement. And when Grant came out and took command of his team, she found herself leaning forward to watch him.

  Football had always been something that she'd barely paid attention to. Leo and Anya watched it, and she watched it because they did. But it wasn't something she took an active interest in. She knew the game--sort of--at least the basics of it. She wouldn't claim to be an expert on it.

  But now that she was at a game, she could see the appeal. This was much different. The crowd noise was something close to deafening, and the people in the club box were so into the game, laughing and cheering and standing up when there was a good play. It was fun to be part of this. Even for someone like herself who didn't know much about football, the enthusiasm of the people around her was infectious.

  She tensed as Grant took the ball and backed away, looking for his receivers. She saw the field as a whole, where she was certain he had a specific play in mind. And in a split second, one of his receivers had made a catch and had the ball in his hands.

  "First down," Savannah said with a wide smile. "That was my husband, Cole, who caught the ball."

  "Oh, great. Good for him." Katrina made a mental note of Cole's uniform number so she could keep an eye on him.

  "Cole's a wide receiver," Leo said. "Want me to tell you what they do?"

  "I understand the positions," she shot back, then looked over at Savannah. "They think I know nothing about football."

  "She really doesn't," Anya said. "She reads a book while we watch the games."

  Katrina rolled her eyes. "I see more than you think. And I'm able to multitask."

  "Sure you are," Anya said.

  Savannah laughed. "I'll bet you do. Sometimes I'll catch up on work stuff while I'm watching the games. But don't tell Cole I said that. He thinks I'm riveted to the television the entire game."

  "See? Someone who understands me. I can hear the game and still read my book. And then if something exciting happens, I look up."

  "But you miss all the subtle nuances of game play if you aren't watching the entire time," Anya said.

  "Such as?"

  "Even a play where nothing happens still has importance," Leo argued. "I'm sure that's what Anya is talking about. Say they play first and second down and gain no yardage, or very little. Where are they on the field? Are they on their own twenty-yard line, or are they charging toward their opponent's goal? If they're closer to their opponent's goal, then third down becomes a critical play. What play are they going to call? Is it going to be a run or pass? If you're only paying attention to the cheers of the crowds, you're missing out on a lot, Kat."

  Her brother knew a lot about football. Clearly a lot more than she did. She understood the plays and how the ball moved down the field, but it was obvious she was going to have to start paying closer attention.

  "Okay, you've got me there."

  She watched the series of plays made by the Traders with a lot more interest. On one play, New York backed them up several yards on what Anya called a busted run. But on the next play, Grant threw a pass for a thirty-yard gain and everyone cheered. They ran the next two plays for another first down. She leaned forward, watching each play with keen interest. Before she knew it, the Traders were very close to the New York goal line and everyone was standing.

  It was third down, and the Traders were on the seven-yard line.

  Now she understood what Leo meant by critical plays. Her heart was racing as Grant took the snap. He took several steps back, defenders from New York were coming at him and she simply couldn't breathe.

  It felt like minutes, when she knew it was only a few seconds until he launched the ball in the air.

  One of the receivers caught it. It wasn't Cole because she'd memorized his number. But whoever caught it was in the end zone and it was a touchdown.

  Everyone in the club room stood and screamed. She screamed. It was madness and the most exciting thing ever. They were all high-fiving and she'd never had so much fun watching a football game. What an adrenaline rush.

  Now she was really into the game, and she probably asked Savannah and everyone around her a million questions. She learned more about football during that game than she ever had before, and by halftime she felt like she had a pretty good handle on the different plays. The Traders were up by seventeen points. The hometown crowd wasn't happy at all about that, but the club room was.

  They got up to stretch, and Savannah introduced Katrina, Leo, and Anya to several of the people in the room, some of them wives and relatives of the other players. Leo and Anya decided to go out and wander around. She told them to stick together.

  "Should we hold hands, too?" Anya asked.

  Katrina rolled her eyes. "Just don't wander too far."

  "We're going to ogle the souvenirs. That's it," Anya said. "We'll be back in a bit."

  As they walked off, she turned to Savannah. "I probably smother them."

  Savannah shrugged. "I'm horrified at the thought of someday having teenagers. Or children. I wouldn't have the slightest idea what to do. I think you handle them well. You don't seem like you're smothering them at all."

  "Thanks. We've all grown up together, so I'm doing the best I can."

  "It's all you can do, really. They seem like awesome kids. And hey, they both know football, so a point in their favor."

  Katrina smiled. "They know a lot more than I do. They're constantly educating me. I wouldn't know much about pop culture, the latest hot music, or social media if it wasn't for them. Sometimes it helps having teenagers in the house. I feel so old sometimes, even though I'm only twenty-seven."

  Savannah laughed at that. "I did an image makeover for a very young entrepreneur last year. He was a software developer and I spent quite a bit of time with him. I learned a lot of things I wasn't aware I didn't know about. I might know clothes and image and presenting yourself to the public as a professional, but Twitter and Instagram and Tumblr and the different types of music streaming and ... God, I don't even remember the rest of it. Everything that's now and cool and other things I don't have the time or the energy to delve into. He was on top of it all and deeply immersed in it. Talk about feeling old. How can we be so young and be so out of the mainstream?"

  "Because we spend all our time working and not enough time playing?"

  "I guess. So, see, you're learning a lot just having teens."

  "I suppose I am."

  "Besides, they can program a new phone for you. Plus, they know way more about how to find things on the Internet than we do. That's invaluable."

&
nbsp; Katrina laughed. "You're so right about that."

  The kids came back and everyone settled in for the second half. New York came back and scored twice, but so did the Traders, with a field goal and a touchdown.

  Grant didn't play the second half, nor did the other starters like Cole. She wondered if he was hurt or if there was some kind of problem, but everyone told her since this was a preseason game, the starters typically only played the first and second quarter.

  "It's just a preseason game, remember," Leo said. "I mean the coaches are watching, sure, but a lot of the second-and third-string players come in later in the game, so it's not like any of this means anything in terms of standings or anything. They're really evaluating players at this point."

  "They also look at what plays work and what doesn't," Savannah said. "It's a chance to try out some plays that they'll use during the regular season."

  Katrina was learning so much about football. It was like she was getting years' worth of information in one game.

  Katrina found herself missing Grant. He really did have an imposing presence, a command of his team, and a knowledge of where his players were. The game didn't seem as exciting without him in it. But with the help of Leo and Anya as well as Savannah, she learned even more in the second half of the game about offensive as well as defensive plays. Once the Traders were up by fourteen points, the defense came into play as the Traders tried to hold the lead deep into the fourth quarter, when New York pushed down the field.

  Katrina found herself alternately watching the clock and the play on the field, hoping the clock would move faster. When the clock wound down to the two-minute warning and New York was on the five-yard line, she felt the hard thump of her heart.

  "This is agony," she said to Savannah. "What if they score? They'll be within a touchdown."

  "New York will probably try an onside kick so they have a chance to get the ball back," Leo said.

  New York had pulled all of their starters after the first half. And now there was a critical play coming up, and their backups were doing the heavy lifting.

  Still, it was so interesting to watch, even if she didn't know the players.

  But then, wonders of wonders, New York's running back fumbled the ball and the Traders recovered. There was more elated cheering in the club box, because the game was basically over.

  The Traders offense took control of the ball, and the backup quarterback whose name she didn't remember threw to the tight end for a first down on the initial play.