THE BUILDER
By GRAYSON-REYES COLE
LYRICAL PRESS
KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP.
http://www.kensingtonbooks.com/
Chapter 1
“For the love of—” Exasperated huff. “Wake up!”
Devon McAteer was quite obviously a heavy sleeper. He lay spread out on his stomach in the middle of his bed. One great arm curved around a fluffy white pillow pressed over his head. Broad, tapered, and muscular, his back was accented with a fine indent, an intriguing line traveling down into the wrinkled white sheets tangled around his narrow hips and thick legs. The man was barely covered. His dark brown skin glowed like hot fudge drizzled over perfectly formed muscle and bone. One could only get a body like that from relentless effort, almost-insane dedication. It was the body of a star athlete, and the contrast of it against the pale sheets was nothing short of breathtaking.
“Come on, man! Wake up!”
Devon snored as loud as an old dump truck and was, metaphorically speaking, dead to the world. He was also—apparently—impervious to spoken commands. His watcher leaned over in one choppy movement to jerk the pillow from his grasp. “Get up!” she commanded again, irritation raising her voice. She refused to fail at this for the third time.
The snoring stopped. Devon raised one hand high in the air. It hung there, still and intriguing, for a long moment. The woman looked on curiously. The arm dropped again to grab another pillow to hold over his head. The snoring started almost absurdly soon after, like it had never stopped.
She stared at him. Her brain and some other parts of her body warred over whether she should figure out how to get him conscious or take advantage of the opportunity to study him up close and personal while he slept. Many women around the world, she knew, would kill for the opportunity to be in a bedroom like this with one of the most talented, famous, richest football players of the time...or any man with a body like his.
Even though she couldn’t see his face, she knew it well. Hell, most of the country knew his face. He wasn’t the most handsome man she’d ever seen. His facial features struck one as common, plain, at first. Save for a nose clearly broken more than once. Still something about him invited friendliness and trust and...desire. Wholly attractive, though she couldn’t quite pinpoint why. Well, there was his body. Another long look and she had to stifle a sigh.
This situation called for drastic measures. She wrung her hands in anticipation, knowing what she had to do. The very thought caused a deep tingle in the pit of her stomach. Reaching over, she put her hands on a warm and meaty shoulder. Soft and hard at the same time, the feel of him beneath her palms was so sinfully nice she felt guilty. Get over it, girl, and do your job! She shook him as hard as she could.
Devon jumped up with a start, his eyes wild and disoriented. “Huh?”
He brushed at his face with his hands. His attention snapped to the intruder. “Who the hell are you?” he demanded, though he seemed to be struggling to gain mental footing.
Not a morning person. He was probably trying to clear the cobwebs out of his brain.
“It’s eleven thirty in the morning. Practice started hours ago.”
“I’m sorry, who are you again? And what are you doing in my house?” Devon raised his
head to look her in the eye.
His leer intensified—quite rudely—and he let out a long, offensive, “Aww, hell naw!”
Just great. Looks like my reputation precedes me.
“Glad you’re awake enough to recognize me. Obviously, I’m Jada Green. I’m here because
Dane Andrews sent me to see about you.”
At the Barracudas owner’s name, she watched Devon’s eyes narrow into sharp focus as he
scowled. He whipped the sheets off his body and stood in front of her with fists on hips. Jada felt her eyes go round but quickly schooled her features. She refused to react to his admittedly glorious, completely naked body. Perfectly formed would be an understatement.
“You tell Dane I don’t need a damn babysitter!” Devon roared.
“I’d really rather not be called that,” she stated plainly. Mentally, she was still patting herself onthebackforkeepinghercool,thoughshesilentlyurgedherself,Don’tlook!
“Listen, sugar—”
“I’m not your sugar. Jada Green,” she repeated and stuck her hand out.
Devon ignored it. “Again, Miss Green, why are you inside my house?”
“Dane gave me a key and the alarm code. He was worried when you didn’t show up to
practice this morning. He sent me to check on you. I’m inside your house because you weren’t answering any of your phones or the door, and your cars are still in the garage. I needed to make sure you were okay—”
“This shit is priceless,” Devon swore. “Look, I’ll forgive you for overreacting even though I’ve shown no predisposition toward harming myself, directly or indirectly—”
“You didn’t show a predisposition—nice word choice, by the way—toward violence until two days ago either,” Jada interjected.
Devon raised his voice to talk over her. “Listen, I may have lost my temper Monday night, but it’s the only time I’ve done it and I— Why am I explaining myself to you? Get out, Miss Green.” With a sigh, she leaned over and picked up the discarded sheet from the floor, then casually
handed it to him.
Devon looked at the sheet and understood immediately that she wanted him to cover his
nudity. He ignored it.
Jada shrugged and dropped the sheet. “I’m sorry, but I’m not going anywhere. Dane assigned
me to work with you for the entire time you’re on probation.”
“I’m suspended for one game. I have already paid out my ass in fines. What probation are
you talking about?”
“Come on, Devon. You know your contract is up for review. You’re on extension right now for the rest of this season. For our purposes, let’s consider that extension period probationary while we ponder the possibility of free agency or a trade.”
Devon took an almost-menacing step forward. His body moved with slow, sinuous power, like a tiger on the prowl. Jada probably would have been fascinated if she hadn’t been so wary. She took a step back.
“Everything was settled between me and Dane. I didn’t sign a new contract at the beginning of the season for reasons that are none of your business. But he knows there’s no possibility of me going free agent or being traded.”
“Dane didn’t indicate there was a signed agreement of any sort.”
“What the f—”
“Listen, Devon, I don’t want to butt heads with you.”
“You got to be out your rabbit-ass mind! If you don’t want to butt heads with me, you
shouldn’t be in my house uninvited, in my bedroom for damn sure uninvited or waking me up from some much needed rest.”
Jada did have a conscience. For the first time, she averted her gaze. “I told you why