Page 80 of The Player

She’d spent the first half of Thanksgiving break holed up with Drew, eating, sleeping, and having sex in every room of her house. They’d done it fast when he didn’t have long and slow when practice had wrung him out, standing up when the bedroom seemed too far away, sitting down once her legs gave out, on the couch, against the wall, half-dressed and then not dressed at all.

She’d gone down on him in the shower, his fingers wound in her wet hair while he fed it to her. He’d returned the favor on the edge of the bed until she had to tap out and catch her breath. Later, mid-fuck, she’d attempted a move she had no business attempting and damn near pulled a hamstring. Drew had laughed so hard he fell off her, which only made it worse.

Nicole had gotten used to having her naked quarterback in her bed, and she wasn’t in any hurry to give that up. Getting dressed just created more laundry. He still had practice and team stuff, but once he was done for the day, she wanted him back at her place. Clothes optional, preferably off.

Having Drew around had also given her a good excuse to put off going home. She missed her family, but here she could go a few hours without thinking about the divorce.

The doorbell rang at eight fifteen. She opened the door to Drew in his practice sweats, his hair still damp from a shower. “Hey, beautiful.”

“Hey yourself.” She caught the front of his sweatshirt and leaned up to kiss him.

He grabbed her suitcase and waited while she locked up.

Neither of them had eaten, so they went through a drive-through. The girl at the window recognized him and asked for an autograph, holding out a pen and a napkin. While he signed, she looked over at Nicole. Nicole smiled at her. It took the girl a second, but she smiled back and handed over their food.

The smell of hot fries filled the cab. Nicole fed Drew one before unwrapping his burger, then spread a napkin over her lap and opened her own.

The signs for the Birmingham airport came sooner than she wanted them to. Finding a parking space took forever, and the terminal was just as packed. Lines stretched from the airline counters, suitcase wheels rattled across the floor, and Nicole could barely hear the announcements over everyone talking. She moved closer to Drew as a family squeezed past with a luggage cart. Goodness. Everybody had waited until tonight.

By the time they reached the counter, she’d unbuttoned her coat and checked the clock twice. The older woman reaching for her ticket looked right past her to Drew. “Well, I know who you are. My husband’s going to be sick when I tell him he missed you. He watches every game.”

“Tell him I appreciate it. We’ll try to give him a good one Saturday.”

The woman started telling him how they’d been on their feet during the Auburn game. Drew chatted with her while she checked Nicole in, asking about her husband and getting her laughing before she’d finished tagging the suitcase. Watching him, Nicole could see why she used to think he loved being the center of attention. He made it look so easy. But she was learning how happy he could be spending an evening at her place, with no crowd to entertain and no plans to go anywhere. Her man knew how to turn it on. He just didn’t need to keep it going all night.

Right now, this woman had his attention, and she was enjoying every second of it. Hell, Nicole couldn’t blame her.

With her suitcase checked, they got through security and headed down the concourse. They found two seats near the gate, and Drew stretched out his long legs and lifted an arm for her. Nicole settled against his shoulder with her purse in her lap, glad they still had a few minutes.

“Are you taking your parents somewhere tomorrow?” she asked.

“For dinner? Yeah. We’ve got a reservation at five. I’ve got practice in the morning.”

“Y’all have practice on Thanksgiving?”

“Yeah. We’ve still got a game Saturday.”

“I know, but damn. You don’t even get the whole day?”

He shrugged. “I’ll have the afternoon with them.”

Nicole rested her hand on his stomach. She’d known he couldn’t go home, but she hadn’t thought about him having to set an alarm and haul himself to the field on Thanksgiving morning. At least his parents would be there when he finished. Her own mother was probably in the kitchen right now with her grandmother and Tiffany, getting a head start on tomorrow’s dinner.

Nicole wondered what it would be like to bring Drew home, and for a minute, she pictured him beside her at the table, reaching for the macaroni and cheese while her mother told him to get some more. He’d turn that smile on her mother, and Nicole could just see the fuss she’d make over feeding him.

Of course, her mother didn’t even know there was a man to bring home. And a white football player, at that. Tiffany would have plenty to say about her being with Drew. And the rest of the family would want to know how serious it was. What was she going to say—that they were just having fun? Please. She’d stayed away for days because she wanted more time with him, and it wasn’t just for the sex.

Her family would hear her talking about Drew and know she was in deep. So deep it sometimes scared her.

And how was she supposed to explain feeling this much for a man she’d already agreed to let go? Maybe it made more sense to keep this to herself. That way, there’d be no questions about where it was going, no having to explain what happened between them once it was over. She could enjoy the time they had without bringing her family into it.

A guy who looked a few years older than them slowed as he passed. “Kiernan?” He stuck out his hand, and Drew leaned forward to shake it. “You made my weekend beating Auburn. I got fifty bucks riding on you winning that Heisman. Don’t let me down.”

“I’ll see what I can do.”

The guy laughed, wished him luck, and kept going. Drew slipped his arm around Nicole again, and she rubbed his knee through his sweats.

When the gate agent called for first-class boarding, Nicole stayed tucked into Drew’s side a little longer before she dug out her boarding pass. He kissed her temple, then walked her toward the gate. People were gathering near the counter, so they stopped to one side, beside the window.