I wasn’t going to bother changing out of my workout clothes. I liked the fitted yoga pants and the lavender top. It reminded me to always move through space with graceful intention. One of the skills Madame Collette had drilled into me.
“That’s all you have to do. I promise. One drink with the girls, and there’s no way they can lose. And you know how they like to win.” I heard the giggle in her voice.
Again, this was silly, but I had joined silly. I was a part of team silly. I grabbed my bag and walked out the door.
3
Sam
The lights were dim. Dim enough that I hoped none of the locals recognized us. Despite Stubbs’ cocky speech, I felt pretty safe invading Warrior territory on a Sunday night. There was a guy on stage singing something about a road trip he took. I stared at my glass of water.
Wes came up behind me and slapped me on the back. “Sticking to the hard stuff?”
“Yeah.”
He held up his fingers to the bartender. “Two bourbons, neat.”
The guy already had them poured before I could turn down the drink. It didn’t help that I had a reputation from my rookie season. It was like rushing a fraternity when I was drafted. I made damn sure the veterans liked me, especially Wes.
Wes grinned. “To tomorrow night’s win.” He clinked his glass against mine and kicked back the thick liquor. I didn’t have a choice. I swallowed it and felt the fire from my throat to my belly.
“That’s good shit.” He slapped me on the back.
“Thanks for the drink.”
He pointed to the bartender. “Another round.”
Shit, he was just getting started. I took the second round and it went down smoother than the first.
“I know where to find you tomorrow night, don’t I?” he asked.
“Hell, yeah. The end zone.”
Wes was part of the reason my numbers had broken so many records. He liked throwing to me. And it worked. We were a winning combination.
“Just keep open.” He winked.
“Shouldn’t be a problem with the defense the Warriors run.”
We both laughed. We had a right to be cocky and arrogant. We were defending national champions. We earned the fucking right to boast. Not only that, but any chance to take a crack at the Warriors, we took.
Wes’s eyebrows waggled. “Check that out.” He tipped his head and I followed his eyes.
A group of girls walked through the doors and headed for the bar. Every one of the Wranglers had noticed them. It was hard not to. There was no one else here and they were hot as fuck. Each one of them had long hair, killer hips, and a set of tits that we’d all like to get buried in. As they walked past our table, I could smell the expensive perfumes and lotions they wore. It was like walking past a makeup counter in a department store. My teammates’ heads had all pivoted in one direction.
“Shit,” I whispered under my breath.
“Fuck is more like it.” Wes chuckled. I guess I wasn’t that quiet.
I kept my ass planted on the barstool while most of the team saddled up to the bar, shoving each other out of the way to buy the first round of drinks. This was trouble. Every one of those girls was a distraction to my buddies.
Some of the guys had wives or girlfriends. Hell, some even had kids. But when a group of women like that walked in, they had the power to erase all memories.
“Not getting in on that?” Wes asked. We stared at our teammates.
“Nah.” I shook my head. “I’m focused on the game. Not getting a piece of ass tonight.”
I could tell he didn’t approve. “You threw one hell of a Dean last year.”