Page 42 of Run the Play
“You looked good out there today,” she says.
“You like watching your man work?” I tease. Her face takes on a pink hue, and I love that I can garner this kind of reaction from her.
“It’s my job to watch the team and assess injuries.”
“Fuck that,” I growl. The thought of her watching my teammates or watching him over me sends ice through my veins. “You watch me.”
“I get paid to watch the team.” There’s humor dancing in her blue eyes and, if I’m not mistaken, a little bit of challenge. She’s enjoying our banter as much as I am.
“Rowan, a word,” a voice says from behind us. I turn to see Chaz standing there, still in uniform, holding his helmet.
“No.”
“I think I pulled something in that last run.” He doesn’t wince or even flinch when he touches the area. He’s lying through his teeth.
“Oh, you mean the one where you couldn’t stop me?” I smirk.
“Fuck off, Reynolds.”
“No can do, Chazzy boy. You see, you hurt my girl, and that’s not okay with me. You need to stay away from her. If you’re injured, you see someone else. Rowan no longer exists in your world.”
“You like my sloppy seconds, Reynolds?”
This motherfucker.“She’s perfect. What men like you don’t understand is that breaking a woman, bending her to your will, you’re missing out on so much more. Her thoughts, her dreams, her love. You tried to break her, but you failed, and now, she’s mine. She’ll be treated like the queen that she is. I feel sorry for you. You missed the best parts of her.” Not turning to look at her, I hold my hand out and feel Rowan take it without hesitation. “You can’t control her any longer, and you sure as fuck won’t lay a hand on her.”
His face morphs from anger to shock. That’s right, prick, my girl told me, told all of us what you did to her, and we’re not going to stand for it. His eyes flash with a mix of worry and anger, and I can’t seem to find a single fuck to give.
“What’s going on over here?” Knox asks as he approaches us.
“Just checking on my girl, and Brown here says he’s injured.”
“Yo, John!” Knox calls out to the head physical therapist. He comes walking over, and Knox doesn’t miss a beat. “The new guy’s hurt. You might want to check him over.” There’s a challenge in Knox’s eyes as he looks at Chaz.
“It’s fine,” Chaz says.
“But you wanted Rowan to take a look. Better get checked out,” I taunt.
“Come on, Brown,” John says. “We don’t need injuries before the season even starts.” He nods for him to head toward the locker room.
“Good luck!” I call out to him. Chaz glares at me, spits on the ground, then turns and stalks off.
“That was fun,” Knox says, shaking his head.
“Landry!” Rowan scolds. “You can’t provoke him like that. He’s dangerous.”
“I’m fine,” I assure her, tugging on her hand to pull her into my chest. “We’re fine. He needs to understand you’re not alone.He now understands that we know what he did, and we’re not going to let him anywhere near you on his own.”
Her brow pulls together slightly, but instead of acknowledging me, she laughs and pushes me away. “Ew, you’re all sweaty.” She scrunches up her nose, dropping her hand from mine.
Instantly, I miss the connection. “Fine, I’ll go shower. You gonna eat with me?” I ask her.
“I have been every day the last two weeks,” she reminds me.
“Just making sure. Can’t have my girl breaking bread with my teammates.”
Rowan rolls those big blue eyes and looks over at Knox. “Can you help bring his ego down a little? Oh, and while you’re at it, remind him that this isn’t real.”
“Many have tried.” Knox laughs. “And as far as this”—he points between the two of us—“not being real, that’s between the two of you. The only relationship I get involved in is the one with my wife.” He winks and saunters off.
