Between The Tackles: A Bad Boy Sports Romance (Pass To Win Book 3) Read online

  Between The Tackles

  A Bad Boy Sports Romance

  Roxy Sinclaire

  Illustrated by

  Resplendent Media

  Edited by

  Teresa Banschbach

  Contents

  Mailing List

  1. April

  2. Nick

  3. April

  4. Nick

  5. April

  6. Nick

  7. April

  8. Nick

  9. April

  10. Nick

  11. April

  12. Nick

  13. April

  14. Nick

  15. April

  16. Nick

  17. April

  18. Nick

  19. April

  20. Nick

  21. April

  22. Nick

  23. April

  24. Nick

  Epilogue

  Thank You

  Also by Roxy Sinclaire

  Preview

  Copyright © 2016 by Roxy Sinclaire

  All rights reserved.

  Cover design © 2016 by Resplendent Media

  Edited by Teresa Banschbach

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locations is purely coincidental. The characters are all productions of the authors’ imagination.

  Please note that this work is intended only for adults over the age of 18 and all characters represented as 18 or over.

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  Visit her on the web: www.roxysinclaire.com

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  1

  April

  “Oh! I wish I didn’t have to work today! This seems so unfair,” I thought to myself.

  It was extremely unfair. What student wants to work during a school game?

  That’s what I was thinking while working during the final game. It was one of the biggest games in college football. I drummed my nails onto the counter as I awaited customers. I didn’t see the point of currently working since no one was going to want refreshments with the most exciting game of the year going on. I didn’t expect anyone to visit the stand with all of the action going on. The biggest game of the season was taking place and here I was waiting for my shift to be over. The entire school was watching the game from the stands. They could feel the rush and see the players live. If you weren’t there, you were nobody. I even saw the dean and the mayor of the city making their way to the field for the game. Almost everyone was there. Everyone that is, except me.

  I wished I could watch the game, but I couldn’t. Thanks to my boss, I didn’t have much of a choice. I had to work today. I knew she didn’t like me. She had never liked me and it wasn’t because I had to work during the game, but because she had a habit of giving me dirty looks, talking badly to me and giving me horrible shifts. She gave me the early morning and graveyard shifts which made it very hard to schedule and attend juggle when I also had to take the many intensive courses for my program. I knew I shouldn’t complain. I needed this job. It was the only way that I could afford to go to school. Not even the scholarships I had applied for and gotten would be enough to support me through school. Although I had worked hard and always got great grades in class, I still wouldn’t have been able to get into Michigan State without a job. Tuition was quite high and the law program isn’t exactly a cheap program here.

  As I filled up the popcorn machine and checked the soda machine, I sighed. Sometimes I wish I had all the money I needed. Then I could have more time to study and read. Life would be easier and I wouldn’t have to work AND go to school. I could also have a social life and truly experience university life for what it was.

  Then I snapped myself out of it. I needed to return to reality. Instead of constantly complaining, I had to put on a smiling face and pray that someone would buy something from the stand, so it wouldn’t feel like a waste of time being here. To make matters worse, I didn’t have any company either because today, I was the only one working at the stand. My boss said that Jenna was supposed to be working with me, but that she dropped out at the last minute. When I talked to Jenna, however, she told me that she didn’t know anything about that shift at all. I was beginning to wonder if I had done something to upset my boss that would warrant this treatment. I wanted to find another job, but this was the only one that I had found which seemed available and paid enough to cover the necessary costs. I knew that one day all this effort would pay off in the long run, but at that moment, it seemed to be so far away. Fortunately, there was a radio nearby and I could hear the game. We were doing pretty well. We were in the lead and there was no way that the other team was going to catch up with us. Momentum really seemed to be picking up as the running back, Nick Barrett was running towards the opposite end of the field. Images of Nick immediately popped into my head. He was the most attractive, wealthy and talented running back at the university. Every girl on campus wanted him and swooned when he walked by and men were quite jealous of him. He seemed to have it all, especially amazing statistics. What I wouldn’t give for him to even notice me! I had such a crush on him, but I tried to be realistic. There was no way someone like him would ever talk to me.

  I decided to pay attention to the game. The defense was trying to tackle him but he kept on running. It almost seemed like he wasn’t going to make it. The defensive line from the opposition wasn’t going down without a fight. They kept trying to take him down, but he was quicker than they thought! He kept running and running as fast as he could. He was getting closer to the end-zone. According to the announcer, you could feel the suspense and tension in the air. He crossed the goal line into the end zone and…TOUCHDOWN!

  We won! We won! I was so excited that I forgot I was working.

  “Yes!” I exclaimed as I jumped up and down. I was so happy that we won. I could hear the cheering all the way over here and I was proud that I was attending the school of the winning team.

  Now that the game was over, I felt a pang of wistfulness. I really wished I could have seen the game. It also would have been nice to see Nick Barrett actually make that dash. He was an excellent player and looked really hot in his uniform. To see him play at his best would have been an amazing thing to watch. It would have been amazing to see him in full form.

  Most people didn't know that I keep up with sports, but then again, not a lot of people at school knew me. To most people on campus, I only seemed like a nerd whose nose was always buried in a book. But for those who truly knew me, they knew better. They knew I was a huge fan of baseball, basketball, tennis, soccer and football. I also did some sports in high school, but decided not to continue with them as I had other priorities, such as school and work. I have always been into sports, thanks to my dad. We were very close and it was a way for both of us to have quality daddy-daughter time. My mother died a few months after giving birth to me, so I don’t know that much about her. But I was thankful that I had my dad who was loving and supportive. We didn’t always have a lot, but we always had enough and we had each other. I thought I was pretty much blessed just to have that.

  I could still hear the crowd going wild. Suddenly, I saw some customers coming to the stand. They seemed to be a couple, who were
madly in love as they kept giggling and talking to each other in low voices. I took their orders and checked on the machine. I scooped out some popcorn into the bags and poured out their drinks into the cups. I handed them their orders and watched them walk away. Sometimes, I wished I had time to date people. But I couldn’t. I didn’t even have time for my friends.

  I began to drift off. It had been a while since I went out with anyone. My last date wasn’t so bad. We were getting along just fine. He was a perfect gentleman, but something was missing and even now, I still don’t know what it was. I just wished I could be that close to someone again. Sometimes with all the papers and exams, it would be nice to have some company.

  I saw that everyone was clearing out from the field and some were leaving the stadium. Some people were now coming to the stand to get something to drink and eat. I delivered all of their orders and wished I could just leave now. The game was over and the stadium was almost empty.

  My boss finally came from the game and scornfully looked at me.

  “You can go now,” she then brushed me off.

  “I’m supposed to get paid today.”

  She looked at me as though I had said something shocking to her. My pay was long overdue. I was supposed to have been paid last week, but since things were stressful, I didn’t remind her.

  “No, you are not.”

  I was getting upset. I can’t believe she would do this to me.

  “Actually, you are right. I was supposed to be paid last week.”

  She snuffed, “I don’t think that’s true.”

  I showed her the pay slips from last week. She looked at them and realized I was telling the truth, but she tried to play it off as though it was just a simple mistake.

  “Oh, well I guess I didn’t see it. I will have to pay you later in the week.”

  I couldn’t believe that she would say that. I would have to wait a few more days when I should have been paid already?! What was wrong with this woman? I wanted to get upset. I wanted to say so many things to her. She was being out of line by holding up my pay. But I held my composure. I really needed this job.

  “Okay, fine.”

  “Well. You can go now,” she then shooed me off.

  “Thanks.”

  I then left the stadium fuming. I didn’t even get paid today, so now I had a long walk to catch a bus. I had finally reached the bus stop only to see that the bus was beginning to drive off.

  “Hey! Wait!” I screamed as I tried to run after the bus. It was already turning around the corner before I could do anything to stop it. Great. First I don’t get paid today and then I miss the last bus. I headed to the bus stop and sat there for a while. It was just NOT my day. Suddenly, it began to rain and then it began to pour. I thought to myself that I couldn’t even walk home. It was getting dark and I knew it wasn’t safe for me to walk home by myself. I had no idea how I was getting home.

  Suddenly, I saw a Maserati pull up to the stop. It seemed a bit out of place here and I wondered what the driver was doing in a place like this.

  The windows began to roll down.

  “Need a lift?”

  I was surprised to see Nick Barrett was behind the wheel. It was Nick Barrett.

  The rain was relentless. But I had no other way of getting home. Not that I wouldn’t have a problem going home with him…. Well, not like that. Maybe not so soon. Just the thought of Nick would make me flustered. Nick was the best football player the school had ever seen. He seemed to have it all: money, status and talent. I would never expect us to even interact with each other. I would sometimes see him at school and wish that he would notice me. But then again, what would he be doing with a girl like me? We seemed completely different and were from different side of the tracks. I couldn’t believe this was happening to me. I’ve always wanted to get close to him, but I was very apprehensive about getting in the car with him. He was extremely handsome, but what did I really know about him. I couldn’t stop thinking if I should get into the car with him.

  Noticing my indecisiveness, he asked me where I was heading.

  “Home.”

  “And where’s that?”

  “Uh, South Lyon.”

  “I’m actually going there. Come on, get in.”

  He then pushed the door open to let me in. I felt like I didn’t have much of a choice. The rain showed no signs of stopping and there wasn’t another bus for miles. I decided to get into the car. I mean what did I have to lose? It was just a simple car ride right? I got into the car and then we sped off. And that was the ride that changed my life.

  2

  Nick

  When she stepped into my car, I couldn’t believe what was happening. I had seen her around campus but didn’t pay much attention to her. She seemed extremely quiet and always had her head in a book. She was quite pretty, small,petite and it made me wonder how I didn’t notice her before. She was naturally pretty, unlike some of the girls who would cake on makeup and swear that they were just adding to their ‘natural beauty’. That was until we started to get hot and heavy and then the makeup would fade. Then I would see the “real beauty” that they were talking about and then I would kick them out of my house. Immediately. From the looks of it, she didn’t seem to wear any makeup and wasn’t so flashy like the other girls.

  She was also really quiet and seemed to be nervous. She was looking outside the window and her hands were curled on her lap.

  “And where do you live?”

  “Barton’s Hill. But I am heading to a frat party close to where you live.”

  “Oh,” she said,as if she was expecting it. Well, the fancy car and the flashy clothes might have given it away. I hoped she didn’t think I was one of those rich and spoiled kids…Well I had to admit that I was. I did have it pretty good and everything just seemed to happen to me. It wasn’t my fault I was born into this life! And who was I not to take advantage of it?

  “Yeah. It’s actually my dad who has the money.”

  “Oh, okay.”

  She sounded even less impressed when I said this. I couldn’t understand why I wanted to make an impression. Normally, I wouldn’t care. Women would come to me. When I drive my car, they would normally flock to me. I was basically a god. I could have any woman I want. But I knew something was different about her. I just didn’t know what it was. I shouldn’t even be thinking about her. I had a girlfriend…which I was beginning to resent. Then I realized there was something important that I needed to ask her.

  “So I can’t believe I forgot to ask you this, but what’s your name?”

  “April. April Hansen.”

  “Oh, I am….”

  “Nick Barrett. Everyone on campus knows who you are.”

  I hid my smirk. I had to keep my cool. Apparently, my reputation preceded me. That was good to know.

  “Ah, they say they know, but do they really know?” I asked.

  She rolled her eyes at me. I laughed. She was so cute when she was irritated.

  “Okay, I have to admit that was pretty lame,” I agreed.

  “Good.”

  I asked her, “So did you get a chance to see the game?”

  “No, I had to work,” she replied.

  I said sympathetically, “Wow. That sucks.”

  “Yeah.”

  “What do you do?” I wanted to know.

  “I just work at the popcorn stand. It’s nothing fancy.”

  “Oh.”

  “But I did get to hear the game…,” she stated.

  And then she said the sweetest things to me that any girl ever did. She began to talk about my statistics and the team. She even gave me some pointers that would help us.

  “Wow, so you’re a big fan of football?” I marveled.

  “Yeah, Dad and I would sometimes watch games. We’d pay attention to tactics and what not.” she explained.

  “Wow that’s impressive,” I was astonished.

  “Yeah,” she responded.

  “No, I have never heard any gi
rl talk so much about sports. Most girls I go out with just pretend to be interested in the sport.”

  “Wow. Their loss.”

  “Exactly.”

  Then I wanted to know, “So, what do you study at school?”

  “Law.”

  “Wow, so not only do you know about sports, but you’re also very bright.” This girl was simply amazing!

  She blushed, “I guess you can say that.”

  I was becoming more attracted to her by the minute. It felt natural. It almost felt like I was cheating on her by having my girlfriend. The worst part was I didn’t even feel guilty. Jennifer could be such a pain sometimes and I was glad that she decided to celebrate with her girlfriends instead of me. I needed a break from her. Also I wouldn’t have been able to meet April, who was unlike any other girl I have ever met.

  “I guess I will have to watch what I say around you; in case it could be held up in a court of law,” I joked.

  She laughed. It was the most interesting and melodic laugh I have ever heard.

  “That’s only if you are under arrest,” she informed me.

  There was so much that I wanted to say after she said that, but I held my tongue. I wanted her so badly, but sometimes you can’t be too direct with women. Otherwise, you would scare them off. It really turned me on when she said that but I didn’t want to break a sweat. I just decided to change the topic of the conversation.

  “So you live off campus. Do you live with your folks?” I really wanted to get to know this girl.

  “Just my dad. My mom died when I was younger.”

  I offered her a little sympathy, “Wow. Sorry to hear.”

  “What about you?” she returned.

  “Oh I live alone with my dad. My mom died when I was younger. She was really sick and now I am glad she is in a better place,” I explained.