Page 2 of Offsides

A second later, Theo turned, her gaze locking with his. It was almost as if his thoughts had betrayed him, calling out to her. The corners of her mouth tugged upward into a smile that seemed to be more practiced than genuine.

I mean, she is a reporter…and fuck, now she’s headed this way…

Theo excused herself from the conversation she was having with a board member of Southland Holdings, the Atlanta Rising’s parent company. Cowboy couldn’t remember the tall, balding man’s name, but there was no mistaking the look of disappointment on his face as Theo stepped away from him, making her way across the room.

Cowboy said a silent prayer that she wasn’t heading his way, quickly followed by one undoing that prayer. The conflict raging within him was a battle he couldn’t explain—and one he didn’t want to examine or understand.

“Mr. Callahan,” Theo said, her graceful movements coming to a stop right next to him.

“It’s Cowboy,” he told her. “Miss Kappas.”

"It’s unusual for you not to be on the pitch.”

“I’m playing host today,” Cowboy remarked, trying to keep his voice light. He could feel himself stiffen in her presence, unsure of how to act. He’d made it a point to avoid the media, both as a player and a staffer, never allowing himself to be the direct subject of an interview. Standing this close to a reporter now, even as pretty as she was, made him a little jumpy. And he was not a jumpy person. He was Mr. Easygoing. “To Keaton and Isaac.”

Cowboy nodded in the direction of the bar, where Isaac Peters, the other candidate for the president role, had Felicity cornered. Isaac seemed to be under the impression that the way to land the job was flirting with the potential boss lady. Boy, was he in for a big surprise when he found out that Felicity—who really was as tough as nails in her own right—was dating the team’s head coach.

“And me,” Theo added.

“And you, apparently.”

“I don’t think we’ve met yet,” Keaton said, turning to Theo with an outstretched hand. The cocky grin that was tugging at his lips made Cowboy chuckle, at least internally. It was well-known to those who had met Keaton that he would go after anything in a skirt—and was usually pretty successful. Apparently an on-the-job interview wasn’t something that was going to stop him either. “Keaton Alexander. Former forward for San Diego, Kansas City, and US Men’s National Team.”

“I am aware of who you are, Mr. Alexander. And why you’re here. I’m Theo Kappas, host of Sports Down South.”

“You’re the dude who emailed me?”

“Ette. Dude-ette,” she corrected him. Cowboy bit back a laugh, his mind flashing back to the scene at Bunz a few short weeks ago during the team’s charity auction where Theo had said those exact words to him.

They’d been standing in the middle of the sports bar, surrounded by hundreds of Atlanta Rising fans for the team’s bachelor auction to raise money for the Special Olympics Unified team that Felicity had been working on starting up. Cowboy’s heart had leapt when he’d seen her in the crowd, still in the dark about who she really was, letting his imagination run wild with the idea that maybe she wasn’t really a reporter. Watching her bid on him had excited him all over again. That was, until Felicity had declared the winner and announced her name.

For months Theo had been emailing him, pestering him with questions, requests for quotes, access to players, and more. If Cowboy hadn’t already had a deep-seated dislike for the media, the nonstop emails and texts would have been more than enough to push him over the edge. Never once had Theo taken the time for a personal introduction though, relying solely on digital communication, so naturally—at least in his mind—Cowboy had thought Theo was short for Theodore. Man, had he been wrong.

You really should use your full name…your really pretty full name…

Her name wasn’t the only thing pretty about her though. Everything about her caught his eye. Her presence commanded the room, attention drawn to her like a moth to a flame. At least his was, and he was sure he wasn’t alone in that.

He just really wished she wasn’t a reporter.

“My apologies, Miss Theo,” Keaton replied, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles like he was her knight in shining armor.

Irritation rushed through Cowboy at Keaton and his so-called moves, but also at the fact that Theo was here to begin with. Reporters belonged in the press box, not the owner’s suite. Especially reporters that he had to fight against picturing naked.

“No worries. Happens all the time,” she said, that rehearsed smile of hers making another appearance. “Mr. Callahan didn’t know either until recently.”

“He at least has an excuse, since he doesn’t own a TV.”

“You don’t own a TV?” she asked, taken aback.

“Nope.”

“Interesting.”

Which is exactly what I wish you weren’t…

Fuck, Theo Kappas was beautiful. No, beautiful wasn’t the right word. She was hot. Plain and simple. Exactly the type of woman who got Cowboy’s motor running. Even her standing just a few feet away made his pulse kick up a notch. With her long chestnut hair and those legs that went on for days, she was exactly the kind of girl he pictured on the back of his bike.

He would never, ever admit it out loud, but there was a large part of him that wanted to take her for a ride on said bike. Wanted to see just what she was like when she let loose. His brain, and his dick, liked the idea of getting her pressed tight up against him, the vibrations of the motor between their legs as he whisked her off somewhere for a picnic. Followed up by finding out just how those legs felt wrapped around him. If she had been any other woman, he wouldn’t have hesitated.