“Hey, Chris! We’re headed to Renaldo’s for lunch. You coming?”

“Can’t, Miguel,” Chris Carrington told the kicker on the team. “I have to go to the airport.”

Most of the LA Pumas team liked to work out together in the off-season, so half of them were there that morning.

The trainers led them through some group calisthenics before the players went to the weight room to work on their strength training. Now they were in the locker room, heading to the showers.

“What’s at the airport?” his center and best friend, Jackson Hunt, asked curiously.

“I’m picking up my baby sister,” Chris answered. “She’s in town to look at some colleges here on the West Coast.”

“I didn’t know you had a baby sister.”

“Adopted sister,” Chris stressed. “Yeah, my parents adopted her when she was eight years old and I was eighteen. I headed off to Louisiana State and the pros, so I didn’t grow up with her.”

“You haven’t seen her in ten years?” Jackson asked as they walked naked toward the showers together.

“I saw her the Christmas I went home right before I moved out here to LA. She was twelve, I think. She still looked like she was eight.”

“You got any other siblings I should know about, given that I’m your best friend and all?” Jackson teased.

“Nah. Just the one sister.”

“I’d like to meet her.”

“Okay. Ride with me to the airport.”

“Sounds like a plan. Now tell me you didn’t notice Cindy eyeing you up and down as we ran past the cheerleaders doing their workout.”

Chris smiled without humor. He had seen Cindy paying close attention to him, but they had gone out once before and the date had been boring as hell.

He thought he’d made it clear that there wouldn’t be any more to their relationship. Nevertheless, she persisted.

Desiree, Chris’s publicist, had set up the date between them, saying it would be good for his image to be seen with a cheerleader.

A model would have been better, but Chris had dated several already, and breaking up his string of models with a cheerleader wouldn’t be a bad thing.

As the quarterback for the LA Pumas, Chris had a reputation to uphold, according to his manager and publicist. It included lots of models. Lots and lots of models.

Chris grimaced underneath the cold shower. He hated models. None of them could hold a conversation with him about anything worth discussing. Their lives were about their careers and fashion.

None of them even understood football. All his dates consisted of him listening to them talk and talk and talk and talk…about nothing!

Cindy hadn’t been better. Although she had been fast to get him to bed, so at least he hadn’t had to listen to her talk too much. The sex had been okay, a mild release of tension for him.

The cheerleader had been a screamer. It seemed like every time he touched her, she screamed, no matter how light his fingers and lips were. He’d been afraid he’d break her if he’d been any rougher.

The women at his private club weren’t models, but he rarely played with any of them more than once either.

They enjoyed being with him, and he relished the performances. Yet, not one had captured his interest beyond a single scene.

All the women who had flitted in and out of his life had left him unsatisfied. No one created in him an interest for more from them.

“When you going to hit that again?” Jackson asked, referring to Cindy.

“Once was enough, man,” Chris answered honestly. “Not much there to hit.”

“She is a little thing. I bet I could stick one whole tit into my mouth.”

Chris laughed at the image. “You probably could,” he agreed. “Not enough for me.”

“Oh, yeah. You always did like them thick. Although lately, I haven’t seen you with a big girl.”

“Big girls aren’t a part of my PR plan,” Chris sneered. “Only models and the occasional cheerleader.”

“Hate to have your life,” Jackson drawled sarcastically.

Chris knew he sounded ungrateful, but sometimes it was too much. He had people telling him what to do in every aspect of his life. Who to date, what to wear, how to cut his hair, what he needed to eat.

Everyone had an opinion.

The only exception was football. The coaches advised him, but on the field, he was in charge. He called the plays, and he won games.

They had finished second in their conference. Next year, he felt for certain they could win the conference championship.

His team was fairly young and inexperienced at this level of professional play. But now that they had played an entire season together, they would know how to pace themselves better.

“Do you mind if I give it a shot with Cindy?” Jackson asked.

“Not at all,” Chris replied without hesitation.

“Great. Thanks!”

The two of them quickly got dressed and got into Chris’s Hummer. The ride to the airport was brief.

After parking, the two men made their way to the Arrivals level. According to the big board, Chris’s sister’s flight was at the gate and the passengers were disembarking.

“What does she look like, man?” Jackson asked as they scanned the crowds spilling out into the large hall.

“I don’t know,” Chris answered. “Mom said she would recognize me since she watches all our games and interviews.”

A gaggle of teenage girls came up to him, giggling. “Hi, Chris! Can we get a picture?”

Chris put on his best smile for the fans and crouched down enough so he could appear in the selfie they were taking. They gathered around him and snapped a shot with someone’s phone.

Soon, more people were stopping and asking for photos. Thirty minutes later, the crowd dispersed, and Chris could take a deep breath. He loved his fans but sometimes…

“Chris?”

“No!” He clenched his jaw in frustration. “No more pictures.”

He turned to face the woman behind him. His anger diffused immediately when he saw how frightened she looked.

She took a step back from him. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean to put you out.”

“Do I know you?” Chris asked, thinking the woman looked incredibly familiar. He knew he had never been on a date with her because she didn’t look like a model.

She was short; he would guess a few inches over five feet. Her long black hair was tied up in a ponytail. She had caramel-colored skin that looked so soft.

Chris looked up and down her lush body and felt something in him shift. From deep down, an intense attraction to this woman sprung up and nearly made him grab and kiss her.

But he controlled himself. Barely. He grimaced with the effort it was taking to manage his desire for this woman.

Her eyes were almond shaped, surrounded by long lashes that rested against high cheekbones. Her cute nose sat atop a full mouth. She was biting her lower lip at that moment.

When her tongue peaked out to wet her lips, Chris nearly groaned. The things he imagined doing with that mouth of hers.

Christ, who was this enchanting woman?

Chapter 2

“It’s me, Emma,” she whispered. Emma looked up at him, watching her adopted brother’s face go from disgust to surprise.

He was taller than she had imagined. She didn’t realize how tall six feet five inches was—especially when compared to her own diminutive stature.

Chris is so beautiful, Emma thought. ~Even more so in person.~

He had the face of a Greek god, which was framed by short black hair. He was golden, his tan a rich hue.

His blue eyes were the color of Caribbean waters, and his lips were full and sumptuous beneath his proportional nose.

His body was lean but muscular. His T-shirt strained to contain him, and she could see the outline of his shoulder and pecs.

His torso tapered down to a narrow waist that was sporting some very expensive jeans that hugged him perfectly.

“Emma?”

She looked back up at his face when he said her name. His voice was so deep and honeyed. Hearing him say her name made her shiver in time with its resonance.

Emma gave Chris a small smile and nodded her head.

“Wow! You’ve grown up!” Chris exclaimed, reaching out to embrace her.

Emma stood stiffly in his arms. She reminded herself that this was her brother. Chris wasn’t a threat, and Emma could trust him.

Besides, Chris could have any woman he wanted. He didn’t need to use her for sexual gratification.

Not to mention, when Chris had looked her over, he had not found her attractive, if his facial expressions were anything to go by.

When he pulled away, Chris looked at Emma strangely. “Is everything okay?” he asked, sounding concerned.

“Yes, yes. I, uh, I’m a little tired from the flight,” Emma reassured her brother.

“Of course. You left early to get here at this time.”

“Yeah. I couldn’t sleep because I was afraid I would sleep through my alarm,” Emma told him with all honesty.

“Well then, let’s get you home to rest for a bit,” Chris said, smiling.

Emma heard someone clear their throat loudly. Looking around Chris, she saw an immense man standing behind her brother. She smiled nervously at him.

“This is my best friend, Jackson Hunt,” Chris said. “Jackson, my baby sister, Emma Carrington.”

“Hello, Emma,” the big man said politely, holding out his hand to her.

Emma stifled her fear and shook it. “It’s nice to meet you, Jackson,” she greeted him a little breathlessly. This man could break me in half, she thought.

He’s your brother’s best friend, Emma reminded herself. ~Jackson will not hurt you. He doesn’t even know you well enough to want to hurt you.~

Not every man in the world feels disgusted with you. Some don’t care for you at all.

“Do you have any checked bags?” Chris asked, gazing intently at Emma.

Emma shook her head. “No. Just my backpack,” she answered. “And this bag.” She toed a small duffel at her feet.

“You don’t have to—” she began when her brother picked up her bag.

“What kind of gentlemen would I be if I didn’t carry your bags for you?” Chris asked, grinning. “Give me your backpack.”

“It’s okay—”

“Hand it over,” Chris said, his voice a little edgy.

Emma immediately did what he commanded.

“This way,” Chris said, turning and began walking away.

Emma practically had to run to keep up with them. She tried not to breathe so hard, despite her exertions.

Even though she had lost fifty pounds in the last two years, she still wasn’t in quite as good a shape as she wanted to be.

You’re fat, Emma chided herself brutally. ~You need to lose a hundred more pounds.~

That thought depressed her. It had taken so much discipline to get the fifty off.

She sometimes went days without eating and spent hours at the gym. She was worried about how she could keep it up for the rest of her life.

One day at a time, Emma told herself. ~One day at a time is all you can do right now.~

Even though she was jogging after them, Emma fell behind and almost lost them in the crowd. Thank God they were tall so she could see them above all the other people.

Emma was so intent on catching up to Chris and Jackson that she didn’t notice they had stopped and were looking for her.

“I’m sorry,” Emma apologized to the brick wall she ran into. She looked up and into the surprised eyes of her brother. She blushed when she realized it was Chris she’d barreled into.

He had grabbed her arms when she hit him. His grip was secure and kept her from falling on her ass.

“Thanks,” Emma mumbled.

Emma’s mind went blank when Chris flashed her a dazzling smile. Struck again by how beautiful he was, she stared back at him, dazed.

Emma felt Chris rub his hands up and down her arms. The delicious friction of skin-on-skin contact made her grateful she had worn a short-sleeve T-shirt.

His hands were rough, like he was used to doing hard labor. The feel of his calloused fingers and palms on her naked skin was electric. Never had another person’s touch affected her in this way.

What was going on with her?