Page 1 of Announcing Love
Chapter One
Collegecampuseswerealwayssuch a weird mixture of eerie and peaceful at night. It was Artem’s favorite time to go to the library and get some time away from his overly loud family. He loved them. Artem couldn’t imagine his life without the boisterous household he had always known. Still, all that noise made it hard to get any homework done, and he would miss this soon with summer break right around the corner… and Artem’s constant thoughts of dropping out. The warm breeze fluttering through his hair and the way the trees swayed against the backdrop of the moon, this place was heaven. Of course, that was Artem’s problem. He was a dreamer.
Artem was so close to graduating as an art major. He knew damn well the likelihood of landing a job in his field was slim to none.For a while, that hadn’t truly mattered. His parents had been killed, leaving his older brother, Sacha, and him to care for their grandmother. They lived in their grandparents' home that they would inherit when Baba passed. He hadn’t had much hope for the future, so he had chosen something he loved. It wasn’t like he would ever get the chance to strike out on his own. At least, that was what he had thought until Sacha married Bandit.
Bandit played pro soccer and jumped into their little family with both feet. He paid for full-time care of Baba and paid off Artem’s college loans along with the remainder of his tuition. When he graduated, he could leave… guilt free. Except Artem still felt guilty and had no clue what he would do with his life.
The trees whipped again, capturing his attention. Artem froze and stared up at the sky. With his head in the clouds, he dug his phone from his pocket. He wanted a picture of this so he could try to capture the moment on canvas later. He took several shots from different angles, walking blindly as he tried for the perfect image. A solid body slammed into him, sending his phone skittering across the pavement. Strong hands grabbed him, keeping him from joining his phone on the ground. Artem stared into the most intense hazel eyes he had ever seen.
“It’s you.” Artem had no idea why the overly happy observation popped from his lips, but it was worth it to see Tip’s smile.
The same strong breeze that whipped at the trees ran through Tip’s dark blond hair, fascinating Artem. “It’s you.” His deep voice made goosebumps rise on Artem’s skin. Tip sounded so diabolical, repeating Artem’s innocent observation.
A nervous-sounding laugh escaped Artem. Now that his moment of surprise passed, it struck him how odd it was to run into Tip here. Tip wasn’t a college student. In fact, he was a thirty-year-old former pro soccer player who now was the same team’s sports announcer. There was no logical reason for Tip to be here. There had always been something about Tip that made Artem feel slightly like he was in danger. He just wasn’t sure which part of him was at risk.
“I didn’t mean to plow you over. I just left the campus radio station. They wanted to interview me.”
He had no logical reason except for that. “Oh. That’s nice. For a second there, I thought you were stalking me.” Horror raced through Artem as he realized what he said. “Not that you would,” he added with another nervous-sounding laugh. He quickly went after his phone to hide his embarrassment. Why had he said such a stupid thing? The only reason they knew each other at all was through Bandit. The pair had played together. Artem was no one.
“I’d stalk you if I had time.”
A loud, unfortunate-sounding cackle burst from Artem, forcing him to cover his nose and mouth. Jesus. Tip probably thought he was an idiot. The embarrassment fled as quickly as it hit when he looked over his phone.
“Great.”
“What’s wrong? Did it get fucked up in the fall?”
Artem bit back an aggravated sigh. “Unfortunately.” Even he heard the defeat in his voice. It was always something. They might have Bandit now, but he wasn’t Artem’s husband. Artem couldn’t expect the guy to take care of him financially. Artem didn’t need the expense of fixing his phone right now.
Tip took it from his hands and looked it over. “Damn. I really did a number on it.” He checked his watch. “There’s a wireless store two blocks over. They don’t close for another hour. Let’s go get you a phone.”
The last thing Artem wanted was to admit he couldn’t afford one, but better now than at the store. “I don’t really have the extra funds for that right now.”
Tip snorted. “I broke it. I fix it.”
No. He would never recover from the embarrassment. “It’s okay. I—”
“Nope. None of that.” Tip shoved Artem’s phone into his front pocket, blatantly stealing the device. He draped his arm across Artem’s shoulders. “Let’s go. No backtalk.”
Artem huffed, but he couldn’t help but smile. Sometimes he loved when decisions were taken from his hands. He wasn’t very good at being an adult. Artem was too much of a romantic. Tip was sexy and famous. He smelled amazing and his arm was around Artem. He was pathetically excited. Artem didn’t get a lot of physical affection from anyone other than family. To havesuch a popular and sexy guy at his side felt amazing. He didn’t even care about his phone any longer.
Tip led Artem to his Porsche, because no way would he let the guy get away. He studied Artem’s every reaction to the vehicle. Tip could be vain like that, but also, he kind of wanted to catch Artem’s interest. He had met Artem by complete happenstance almost a year ago. Tip had made a dumb move on a teammate. But as soon as he knew the guy was taken, he went straight to his house to apologize. Tip was no home wrecker. Except Artem had answered the door, and Tip had nearly forgotten why he was there. He was likely a good ten years younger than Tip. Maybe less. But he was drop-dead gorgeous, and Tip couldn’t stay away. This cell phone incident was the perfect excuse to stay in his company. Unfortunately, if Artem was impressed at all by the car, he didn’t show it. Dang. Tip would have to find a different way to get his attention.
With his hand on the back of Artem’s headrest, Tip eyed the road behind them as he backed from his parking space. His gaze met Artem’s sexy blue eyes as he moved to shift gears. Artem’s head leaned against the headrest and was turned his way, as if he had been staring. A nervous smile popped to Tip’s lips beforehe could stop it. He would like to think he was a confident guy. Tip had no clue why the thought of Artem watching him was so different from a crowd of thousands of fans.
“What?” Even he heard the uncomfortable laughter in the question.
“You’re like crazy rich, huh? I imagine you have to be after how many years of soccer?”
“Well, I started when I was five.” Tip laughed again. “But I didn’t get paid back then.” Tip couldn’t stop laughing at his own corniness.
A soft chuckle came from Artem’s side of the car. “I wouldn’t be surprised if you said you had been. You’re very talented. We’ve—my family,” Artem clarified. “We’ve watched your every game for years, ever since Sacha met Bandit. That’s how long Sacha has loved him. He fell the instant they met. It’s kind of sweet, actually.”
Tip nodded along. He had seen the couple together. They were perfect. A shining example of love he almost ruined. “You say you watch to see Bandit. Do you actually like soccer?”
He saw Artem shrug from the corner of his vision. “I have a team to cheer for. That’s something.”
“That’s not an answer.” Tip couldn’t stop smiling in Artem’s company. “Or maybe it is. You don’t like soccer.”
