And if she was thrilled to be there tonight, Nathan’s enthusiasm was off the charts, especially since Mick had gotten them seats on the fifty-yard line where the rest of the families of players sat. Nathan had been wide-eyed and taking it all in since they’d arrived a couple hours before game time, and he hadn’t been able to sit still, taking pictures and texting all his friends with the new phone he’d gotten for his birthday. Mick had gotten them an extra ticket so Nathan could bring his new friend, Bobby, another freshman football player and a really nice kid who was also thrilled to be at the game. The two of them had their heads huddled together pointing fingers, talking player stats and pretty much ignoring the fact that Tara was there.

Just as it should be.

She’d settled in, feeling somewhat conspicuous in the Riley number fourteen jersey Mick had given her, but also a little possessive and okay, just a touch warmed to be wearing his name and number on her back, especially since she was sitting with all the wives and girlfriends of the players.

“So, you’re Mick’s girl.”

She turned around and smiled at a cute brunette. “I don’t know about that, but yes, we’re dating.”

The woman held out her hand. “I’m Roseanne Lewis. My husband is Tommy Lewis, number seventy-two. He’s right tackle, offensive, and he’ll be protecting Mick’s butt tonight.”

Tara laughed and shook her hand. “Then thank you in advance for Tommy’s work.” Tara introduced Roseanne to Nathan and Bobby. Roseanne introduced her to the other women seated nearby.

“How long have you and Mick been together?”

That question had come from Sue Shore, a very pregnant adorable woman seated next to her, whose husband Derek was the kicker.

“We met earlier this summer.”

“We love Mick. He’s great with all our kids. He’s never seated a girl here with us before. His mom and dad have been here, and his brother a couple times, but never a girlfriend, so you’re a first.”

“Is that right?”

“Yeah. You must be special.”

She felt that way, and admittedly it felt really good. “When’s your baby due?”

“In a month. He feels like any minute though the way he’s kicking. Going to be like his daddy.”

Tara let out a short laugh, remembering having Nathan inside her and all the nights she couldn’t sleep because of his kicks to her ribs. “I think they all feel that way toward the end, don’t they?”

“Our daughter was more mellow than this little guy. He’s a born kicker.”

“I hope he follows in your husband’s footsteps then.”

Sue giggled. “That would be amazing.”

“Kickoff!” one of the women screamed.

Tara had been so busy chatting it up with the ladies that she’d barely noticed the game had started. She put her full attention on it, though, especially since San Francisco’s offense was up first, which meant after the kickoff Mick took the field.

And oh, what a spectacular figure he was in his uniform, which fit snugly across his fine ass, and the pads on his shoulders and chest, which made him look impossibly huge.

Tara tensed as he took the first snap from center, handing off to one of his receivers, who ran the ball for four yards. She let out a breath when the tacklers ran right past Mick.

Second down, Mick was under center again, and this time took the snap and dashed several steps directly back, stood there and looked for receivers, then shoveled a quick pass to the running back at his left, who ran for a gain of only two yards.

She knew what was coming with third down and four yards to go. First possession of the game was always a big deal, and Arizona would want to make a statement to San Francisco by making sure they didn’t get a first down. Tara could feel the pressure as surely as if she were the one responsible for getting the ball into the hands of a receiver.

Arizona was going to blitz.

Tara gripped the arms of the seat as Mick broke from the huddle and got in the shotgun position, took the snap, and rolled back. The blitz came, and his offensive line held. Mick fired off a long pass toward a receiver downfield.

He caught it! Twenty-two-yard gain.

“Breathe, honey,” Roseanne said, rubbing Tara’s shoulders. “It’s going to be a long game.”

Tara laughed. Then exhaled.

The first quarter was tense, with the Sabers putting seven points on the board in their first possession, and Arizona answering with a touchdown of their own right after. But then things settled down a bit, and by halftime the game was tied ten to ten. In the second half Mick came out and threw completion after completion, and the running game looked solid. The defense held, and the Sabers put points on the board. The game ended up being one-sided, with San Francisco coming out victorious. Being preseason, Mick didn’t play the entire game, so by the end of the third quarter Tara could relax, though she still rooted for the team.

After the game was over and the crowds had filed out of the stadium, the team gathered with wives and families for a barbecue right on the field, something Nathan was very excited about.

Tara was just happy to get the nail-biting tension of the game over with. Now she could relax.

Or so she thought, since they’d no more gotten down to the field when she saw Elizabeth heading her way, though how the woman could maneuver the turf in those four-inch heels was something Tara just couldn’t fathom. Elizabeth clearly did not know the meaning of the word casual. Meanwhile, Tara was quite comfortable in her team jersey, jeans, and tennis shoes, and her lips lifted when she saw Elizabeth’s disapproval.

“Tailgating today, Tara?”

Tara was so glad Nathan had met some of the other players’ kids around his own age and he and Bobby had already run off to hang with them so he didn’t have to put up with Elizabeth’s disdain.

“As a matter of fact, I am. Right now. You seem a little overdressed for it. Be careful you don’t break an ankle sinking into the turf.”

“I can walk just fine. I’m surprised to see you here.”

“Really? Why is that?”

Elizabeth shrugged. “Just figured you’d be out of your league by now. Or Mick would be bored with you. Trust me, honey. It’s only a matter of time. I’ll keep luring him in with beautiful women, and sooner or later he’s going to bite.”

Tara crossed her arms. “If you think he’s that shallow, have fun fishing.”

Tara spotted Mick coming onto the field, so thankfully she moved away from Liz and headed over to him, put her arms around him, and hugged him. “Great game today.”

He grinned. “Not bad. We have some things to work on, but it’s promising.”

“I thought you looked awesome. Your arm is strong, and your pass percentage was top-of-the-line.”

He arched a brow, then kissed the tip of her nose. “Keeping track of my stats now?”

“Only in my head.”

“Where’s Nathan?”

“He’s hanging out with D’Juan and Anthony’s sons. They play football, too, so Nathan and Bobby have made some new friends.”

Mick nodded. “Good. I’m starving. Let’s go find food.”

The barbecue was wonderful, as were the people, who welcomed her as if she and Mick were a permanent couple. Tara couldn’t have asked for a better night for her or for Nathan, though she was still a little worried about Nathan getting attached to everyone.

At this point there was nothing much she could do about it. Her relationship with Mick was either going to work out or it wasn’t, and she couldn’t shield Nathan from the fallout if it didn’t. At this point she had two choices. She could fling herself headlong into whatever she had with Mick and hope for the best, or she could cut and run.

She was scared of option one because the chances of her and Nathan both getting hurt were so great. But option two just wasn’t acceptable to her. Mick was part of her life now, and walking away from him would devastate her.

So what the hell was she supposed to do?

For tonight, she ate dinner and tried to enjoy herself, which was damned hard to do, considering her gaze kept drifting to Elizabeth, who seemed to be having a major talk with team owner Irvin Stokes. And in the middle of that conversation, Liz kept pointing to her, then whispering to Mr. Stokes.

Great. Just great. Tara could only imagine what lies Elizabeth was making up about her. Was she putting words in Mr. Stokes’s ear about what a bad influence Tara was on Mick? Would she tell the team owner that getting Tara out of Mick’s life would be the best thing he could do for the future of the team?

Panic set in when Elizabeth hooked her arm in Mr. Stokes’s and both of them headed their way.

“Damn,” Tara whispered.

“What’s wrong?”

“Liz is bringing Irvin Stokes over here.”

“Why is that a problem?” Mick shoved the remnants of his cheeseburger in his mouth, then wiped his hands with his napkin and grinned. “Hey, Irvin.”

Irvin Stokes was a billionaire who’d made his money in the financial markets. He was a shrewd businessman, and even though he was creeping up close to eighty years old, he still looked fit, with a head filled with silvery hair and a suit that probably cost more than Tara made in a year.

“Excellent start to the season, Mick.”

Stokes stuck out his hand, and Mick shook it. “Thanks. The team looks strong. You managed to bring in some solid players to the defense.”

Stokes nodded. “Our free agent signings seemed to shore up our only weaknesses, so I expect great things this year.” He turned to Tara. “And this is your new lady? Elizabeth has been telling me about you.”

She didn’t even want to know what Liz had been saying. Tara shook his hand. “Tara Lincoln.”

“Oh, yes. You did our party a couple months ago. Very nice. I was pleased with how it turned out.”

“Thank you, Mr. Stokes.”

Elizabeth leaned against Stokes like he was gold. “I was telling Irvin that you were an event planner. The wives and girlfriends of the players always put on a charity fund-raiser before the kickoff to the regular season, and I was thinking since this is right up your alley, you’d want to spearhead it this year.”

“Oh.” Tara turned to Irvin. “Of course. I’d be delighted.”

Stokes took her hand between both of his. “Excellent. It’s good exposure for the team and for a good cause. This year it’s for the summer camps for underprivileged children in the area.”

“I’ll be happy to help out.”

“Your work would be gratis, of course.”

“I have no problem with that. I’m always willing to do charity work.”

“I’m happy to hear that. Still, it’s promotion for your company. I’ll have our people get in touch with you. The event will be held the Saturday before the last home preseason game.”

“Thank you, Mr. Stokes.” She nodded at Elizabeth, who winked at her and walked away with Irvin.

“That was ... interesting.”

“Why?” Mick asked.

“Because Elizabeth doesn’t like me. Why would she do that?”

Mick put his arm around her and kissed the top of her head. “Babe, I long ago gave up trying to figure out what the hell motivates Liz to do anything. Don’t even try.”

She shrugged and leaned against him. “You’re right. It’s pointless.”

But still, something nagged at her. Tara didn’t think Liz had suggested her because she liked her or thought Tara was a great event planner. Maybe Liz had done it for Mick because she’d finally figured out that Tara could be of benefit to Mick’s career.

Though she doubted it, since Liz had made it clear that getting Tara out of Mick’s life would be the best thing for Mick’s career.

But it was done now, and Tara was going to be in charge of planning this event. Now she just had to do a kick-ass job and impress the hell out of Irvin Stokes again.

Mick followed Tara home afterward. Nathan had made plans to spend the night at Bobby’s house, so Tara dropped them off first. Mick was already in her driveway when she got there.

“Tired?” she asked when she opened the door. He shut and locked the door, then pulled her into his arms.

“Not at all. A game always revs me up.”

She slid into his embrace. “Is that right? So what do you do when you don’t have a willing female in your arms to help you out with all that excess energy?”

He picked her up in his arms and carried her upstairs. “Jack off.”

The visual of it made her tingle all over. “I’d like to see that.”

“Would you.” He set her on her feet at the side of her bed.

“Are you serious?”

“Yes. Sit down.”

She sat on the edge of the bed, her fingers curling into the bedspread as Mick pulled his shirt off. The sight of his body never failed to arouse her, and especially so after watching him play tonight. She’d always been a football fan, but now that she knew Mick, knew his work ethic, and had seen him play, she knew what went into how he took care of his body. It was his job to make sure he stayed healthy, and he took it seriously. And boy howdy, did it ever show. He was muscled in all the right places, lean in all the spots he should be, and she had to resist going to him just to run her hands over the planes and angles that had been so perfectly sculpted by all the hours he spent running and working out at the gym.

She leaned back on her hands as he undid his pants, toed off his shoes, and shrugged out of his briefs and pants, kicking them to the side. His cock was already erect, and he fisted it in his hand, sliding it slow and easy.

“What do you think about when you do that?” she asked.

“Women.”

“Women you’ve had already, or women you’d like to have?”

“Both.”

He kept his gaze on her as he slid his hand up and down the shaft. The room grew warmer, so she kicked off her shoes and pulled her top over her head. “And what do you imagine about these women? Do you think about them just ... standing around?”

“Not really.”

“So you think about having sex with them.” She popped the button open on her jeans, then slowly drew the zipper down, her gaze fixated on the lazy up-and-down movements of his hand on his cock, the way his thumb circled the wide head. Her breathing quickened as she shed her pants, leaving her in only her panties and bra.

“Sometimes I think about having sex with them.” He squeezed his cock in his fist. “Sometimes I picture them lying on the bed, naked and touching themselves.”

Tara got up on her knees and reached for the clasp of her bra, popped it open, and pulled the bra off, casting it onto the bed. “So you think about these women masturbating.”

“Yeah.” He gripped his cock harder.

She swept her hands over her breasts. “Seeing a woman touch herself turns you on.”

“Hell, yes, it does.”

She grasped her nipples between her thumbs and forefingers, plucking them, the sensation rocketing to her pussy. Caressing herself like this, watching Mick touch his own cock, was the most arousing thing she’d ever experienced. She continued to touch her breasts with one hand, but let the other slide down her rib cage and belly, enjoying the tease as she made her way to her panties. She slid her fingers around the edge of her panties, while Mick wrapped a strangled grip on his cock and upped the pace a little faster.

“I like watching you,” she whispered, then tucked her hand inside her panties and cupped her sex.

“How does it feel?”

“Hot. Steamy hot. And wet.”

“Let me see.”

She swallowed to coat her parched throat and drew her panties down, adjusting herself with her legs dangling over the side of the bed. She grabbed a pillow to prop her head up so she could still watch Mick, then laid her palm over her sex, letting her fingers tap along the outside of her pussy lips.

“Your pussy is wet,” he said, moving closer to the bed.

“Yes.”

“Tell me what you think about when you get yourself off.”

“I think about someone coming into the room unexpectedly and finding me doing this.”

He curled his fingers around his cock and drove his hand to the tip, using his thumb to slide over the head. “Yeah? And what happens when he finds you?”

“He stands there for a while and watches me.” She rubbed her fingers up and over her clit, coating the bud with her juices, then slid her hand back down, palming her clit and lifting up as she experienced an explosion of sensation. “But then he undresses, begins to stroke his cock just like you’re doing.”

“And then what?”

“He comes over to the side of the bed.” Tara slid two fingers inside her pussy and began to fuck herself.

Mick leaned over the bed and rubbed his cock head against her thigh.

“Can you hear it?” she asked.

“Yeah.” He was panting.

“Don’t you wish that was your cock inside me, fucking me?”

“Yes. Is that what the guy in your fantasies does?”

She lifted her gaze to his. “Yes. He pulls me to the edge of the bed and plunges his cock in me, then fucks me hard until I scream because I’m coming so hard I can’t stand it, until he’s coming so hard he can’t help himself and he yells out my name.”

Mick grabbed her ankles and pulled her ass to the edge of the bed, ripped a condom from the pocket of his discarded pants, and put it on. Tara braced her feet on the side of the bed and lifted as Mick thrust inside her with one hard push.

And she did cry out, because she’d been waiting for it, anticipating it, and it was so damn good she raked her nails across his arm. He held tight to her hips and fucked his cock inside her, his balls slapping her ass in a hard and fast rhythm that made her whimper and cry out his name as she demanded more and more.

He reached down and began to rub her clit, furiously taking her to the edge, but this time not letting her even stop to drag in a ragged breath. She went over in a hurry, screaming and digging her nails into his arm as she came.

“Mick! I’m coming. Oh, God, Mick, I’m coming.”

“Fuck, yes. I’m coming. Tara!”

He did yell out her name as he dropped her legs and pulled her hips against his. He shouted with his orgasm, pumping against her time and time again with his release, then dragged them both onto the bed as he curled into her and buried his face against her neck.

Tara tangled her fingers in Mick’s hair, and he lifted, kissing her with a deep, intense kiss that warmed and comforted her in the aftermath of such incredible bliss.

“Am I crushing you?” he asked.

“No. This just feels good.”

He inhaled and let it out, then gathered her close. “I love being with you, babe. A lot.”

“I love being with you, too.”

“You’re the best thing that’s come into my life in a long time, Tara. Thank you.”

She swept her arm across his back and smiled, hoping it could always be this good between them.

Maybe this was what falling in love was supposed to feel like. Scary and exhilarating at the same time.

And maybe it was okay to let it happen.