"Sounds like you've been giving him your share of grief."

He leaned back in his chair and nodded. "Could be."

"I'm sorry about that last hit. I know how much football means to you."

Alex stiffened. He didn't want to get into his feelings with her. "Thank you."

"So about the offer, I can send something in writing over to your agent if you're interested."

And wasn't that the question. Was he interested?

Madison feigned interest in the interview with the Wall Street financial advisor they were trying to bring on board to meet with the players on a regular basis. Helping the guys with their finances from the beginning of their careers would teach them fiscal responsibility and remind them to think of the future when spending or not spending their often substantial incomes.

She was able to give her speech to the man by rote, then she turned to Alex to bolster things with the personal touch, the story of a man whose career had been cut short and how good financial advice had kept him from being broke now. Because he hadn't already blown through all the money in his bank account, he'd had time to think about his post-injury options without making decisions while in panic mode. Something they wanted the financial advisor to impress upon the players. Then teach them how to save.

But her mind wasn't on business. It was on what had gone on between Alex and Rachel at breakfast. Her head pounded, and the small, windowless conference room they'd rented for the interview didn't help. She felt as if the walls and her life were closing in on her. Although she hadn't seen any s.e.xual interest in Alex's eyes when he'd looked at his one-time girlfriend, his remaining anger told her there were still feelings there. The thought hurt, but it was true.

She'd had to give him the freedom to explore those emotions and work through them in whatever way he needed. She hadn't seen a ring on the other woman's hand, indicating she was, at the very least, not married. Which left all the other woman's options open too.

Madison's temple throbbed, and she was grateful when Bill Akins spoke, ending the meeting. "Well, it was a pleasure meeting you both. I need some time to think about your offer. The travel involved will impact my family, so I have to run this by my wife before making any decisions."

"We understand," Madison said, gathering her things and placing them in her larger purse.

"And we look forward to hearing from you," Alex told him. "Hopefully with a yes, you'd love to come on board."

The other man walked out and shut the door behind him.

"Well, that went well," Madison said. "Hopefully he'll agree." She hiked her purse over her shoulder. "I think I'm going to go back to the room and lie down. I have a headache."

"Can I get you something for it?" Alex asked, concern in his voice.

"No, thanks. I'll just go upstairs and rest." She started for the door.

"Aren't you going to ask what happened at breakfast?" His deep voice and that question stopped her.

As much as she wanted to know what had gone on with Rachel, a part of her dreaded the truth, fearing the other woman's return would have to change things between her and Alex on some level.

She swallowed hard. "Sure, I'll listen. If you want to tell me."

"Madison." Her name sounded on a low rumble.

"What?"

He held her gaze. "I didn't think we played that way."

Uncomfortable now, she fiddled with her bag strap and laid the heavy bag on the table. "I don't know what you're talking about."

He c.o.c.ked an eyebrow. "Games. Distrust. I thought we were open and honest with each other."

She nodded. But her thoughts were slamming around in her head at a rapid pace. The one that stuck out was her biggest weakness. When she'd rekindled this relationship, the one thing she'd promised herself was that she'd be the one to walk away first. She'd meant it then. Now it would be that much harder, knowing how deeply she was already involved. But if she got even an inkling that Alex was still interested in his old girlfriend, she would gather her pride and walk away, head held high.

She straightened her shoulders and met his gaze. "Fine. What happened with Rachel? I want to know."

"Finally something honest." He strode to the door and turned the lock, taking her by surprise. He then settled into the big conference room chair and pulled her into his lap.

"Alex-" She squirmed in his lap, but he held on tight. His body was warm and hard, his arms around her solid and safe. She wanted everything with him so badly. And she wanted him for a lot longer than a brief s.e.xual affair.

Somehow she'd given him her heart, and she feared he'd break it again. Whether he meant to or not. She swallowed a pain-filled moan.

He eyed her warily, but he kept his hold on her firm. "You were right saying I needed closure. I realized all that anger I held on to was more about my bruised ego than hurt feelings. It embarra.s.sed me to have given everything so freely and have her throw it all back in my face."

She wasn't surprised he'd come to a revelation. She'd wanted that for him so he could let go of the past for good.

"And Rachel," he went on. "It turns out she's always regretted that she didn't have the guts when we were together to tell me how she really felt about my career and my future plans."

Madison managed a laugh. "Yeah, well, you're a pretty tough guy to go up against when you want to be."

"I do try." He grinned, a panty-moistening grin that had her shifting around in his lap. "I didn't make it easy for her apparently," he said, sobering. "She'd met my family by then, knew I was serious..." He shrugged it all off. "Anyway, I guess realizing it was more a question of my bruised ego than me nursing a broken heart helped me finally put it behind me."

Unable not to, she looped her arms around his neck. "I'm glad. Is that what Rachel wanted too? To make peace with the past?"

He drew a deep breath, making all Madison's nerves go haywire. "No. There's more," he said, confirming her fear.

Madison stiffened. "She wants you back?" She blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"No! Not that way!"

She let out a long, relieved breath. Of course, if she didn't want him back, there was something wrong with the woman, Madison thought, unsure if she should believe Rachel didn't have a hidden personal agenda.

Reminding herself Rachel had given him up willingly once before, she forced herself to focus. "Then what does she want from you?"

"She works at an entertainment company that is partnering with Sports and Entertainment Network. They want me to test with Allison Edwards for a sports show. National TV," he said, clearly still surprised by the offer.

But according to the gleam in his eye, he wasn't adverse to the idea. In fact, Madison guessed there was something inherently appealing about the exposure of a national television show to a compet.i.tive, driven man like Alex.

"What did you tell her?"

"She said I should take some time and think about it. I didn't have to say much of anything."

"Are you going to consider taking the job?" Madison asked.

The long silence that followed was answer enough.

He tilted her chin up, his gaze soft on hers. The intensity in his dark eyes made it clear he didn't find this any easier than she did. Which didn't seem to help her frayed emotions, and brought her close to the edge of tears.

He slid one hand to the back of her head, pulling her in close and kissing her. Not in the command-and-take-charge way that he usually did. He took his time, gliding his lips over hers and tracing them lightly with his tongue, back and forth, teasingly, before sliding inside. Whatever point he'd been trying to make was lost in the emotion of what should have been a simple kiss.

It wasn't.

The banked fire always present exploded between them, and suddenly his mouth on hers wasn't enough. With a moan, she shifted in his lap, reveling in the pressure of his swollen c.o.c.k against her pulsing, needy s.e.x.

"s.h.i.t, Angel. You feel so f.u.c.king good. So hot," he said, raising his hips in time to her movements.

The hard bulge of his erection came into direct contact with her c.l.i.t, and waves of pleasure swept through her body, but more frightening were the feelings of pure need and love that accompanied the physical rush. No, she thought, as if wishing the love away would change the emotion.

"I bet if I slipped my hand into those panties, you'd be wet for me, wouldn't you?"

She moaned at the image he created. Yes, she'd be wet. She was soaked now.

As if to test his theory, he slid a hand beneath her skirt, his fingers easing beneath her panties and parting her slick folds.

"Yes," he groaned as her hips arched, pressing her s.e.x into his touch.

The glide and press of his roughened fingertip had her trembling inside and out.

"I need to be inside you."

"Here?" she squeaked.

"Locked door, no windows. f.u.c.k yes." He stood, easing her onto her feet. With one hand, he swept her purse and the remaining papers he'd had out onto the floor.

Unwilling to think any further, let alone argue, she rose and unb.u.t.toned her skirt. Let it fall. His gaze darkened at the sight that greeted him, and his hot stare made her even wetter.

"Let me help," he muttered, fingering the bow at her hips. "This is my favorite pair of yours." He lifted her onto the table. She raised herself up so he could remove her underwear, and she watched in shock as he stuffed them into his pocket.

He merely grinned and rid himself of his jacket, then dropped his pants, boxer briefs along with them. She stared at his p.e.n.i.s, so long, thick, and ready to glide into her, and her s.e.x clenched at the thought.

He stepped between her legs, his large hands holding her thighs apart, and stared down at her. "I love how you look, so wet for me. So ready." He nudged her opening with the head of his c.o.c.k.

She moaned out loud.

"That's it. Let me hear you, baby."

She bit down on the inside of her cheek. "But someone else might too."

"Let 'em be jealous then." A devilish grin lifted his lips.

She rolled her eyes at his arrogance. Then he gripped the flesh on her thighs harder, and her eyes rolled for a different reason as he parted her folds and thrust in deep.

"Alex," she moaned at the invasion that was hard and thick, pulsing inside her.

He pulled out only to plunge back in, the force of his movement sliding her backwards on the cool polished wood of the table.

"Can't wait. I've got to come."

His words caused a rippling of desire to shoot from her depths where they joined to other, unrelated parts. Never before had s.e.x encompa.s.sed every inch of her body, but it did now.

Every thrust, grind, glide out, and hard push back into her caused sparks of electricity to reach outward, and she felt Alex from the tips of her toes to the lump in her throat and beyond to the stars that burst brightly behind her eyes.

He picked up a steady rhythm, each drive into her accompanied by the arousing roll of his pubic bone against her s.e.x. She glanced at his handsome face, jaw tight, eyes narrowed and focused. On her. Without warning, he slowed down and raised her into a half-sitting position on the table. She rested on her elbows as he rolled his hips, keeping their bodies in direct contact that was so hot and intimate. He deliberately ground directly on her c.l.i.t, causing those stars behind her eyes to burst as he rocked them both to the most earth-shattering o.r.g.a.s.m she'd ever experienced.

Tremors and vibrations shook her long after he'd spent himself inside her. No condom again, and she couldn't bring herself to care. Everything about this moment was surreal, something more out of a novel than real life, and she knew she'd take this memory out and relive it time and time again.

Later, when she thought about the job offer he'd received, reality broke through the sensual bubble he'd put her in. Because Rachel had offered him fame again. He'd been used to the attention and accompanying perks before having it suddenly ripped away. And it had been the lack of those things that had led him back to Madison. To proclamations of wanting a relationship, to the changes she'd seen in his entire personality since his forced retirement.

What would happen if he returned to that life? To the h.o.a.rds of fans, the women ... Would she lose him all over again? Madison's stomach did a complete one-hundred-eighty-degree flip at the thought, and everything inside her grew cold. The truth was, everybody ultimately left her, and she'd be better off preparing for the eventuality with Alex sooner rather than later.

NINE.

Madison returned to Miami and a normal routine. She worked, spent nights with Alex, and dealt with prep for the upcoming hearing about her foster mother. Jonathan was thorough in questioning her and keeping her in the loop about what to expect. His private investigator hadn't found anything on Eric to help their case, indicating her foster brother had been very careful. No way did Madison believe he was clean or operating in his mother's best interest. The hearing was in two weeks, and she scheduled a final meeting the week before with Jonathon, who wanted to run Q and A by her one last time.

She tried hard not to think about what could possibly come up at the hearing, pushing it away into a box in the back of her mind until she needed to open it and deal with the contents. It was the way one of her social workers had taught her to deal with long-term problems when she was a child, and the method had stuck.

In the meantime, life went on. To her surprise, Alex had invited her to his mother's house for dinner this coming weekend, and despite her nerves, she'd agreed.

There was no further discussion about Rachel or the job offer, and the wondering niggled at the back of Madison's mind. She still wanted him to consider the PR campaign proposed by Derek Fine, but she knew better than to think he'd be receptive now. Especially when he had another offer on the table.

She stared at the inside of her closet, attempting to pick a dress to meet her boyfriend's mother. Wasn't that a first? she mused. In all her relationships, none had progressed to the point where she'd met the parents. She had met Alex's other side of the family when they'd dated, more because of Riley than Alex's instigation. She hadn't met his full siblings or parents, and she shivered, glad Riley and Ian would be there offering familiarity and support.

Even she knew what a big deal it was for Alex to bring a woman home, especially after he'd mentioned he'd done the same with Rachel. She pushed thoughts of the other woman away. Again. Madison's insecurities were just that, her own. Alex had given her no reason to let them interfere in the present. She'd counseled enough women over the years to know how to talk to herself and keep herself looking forward, not back. She found the more she kept thinking positively, the easier it became to continue on that way.

She chose a pastel-printed sundress along with a ta.s.seled pair of sandals. Because of the heat and humidity, she pinned her hair up in a loose bun, letting soft strands fall to her shoulders. A spritz of light perfume, a swipe of blush, some lip gloss and she was as ready as she'd ever be. It certainly was the most she'd angsted over clothing choice, she thought wryly.

Her doorbell rang just as she'd changed her purse to something small she could slip over her shoulder. Drawing a deep breath, she headed to answer the door for Alex, who'd showered and changed at home after a trip to the gym.

She answered the door, her gaze drifting over his fine form, a pair of khaki cargo shorts, and docksiders on his feet, a light blue collared short-sleeve polo shirt accenting his tanned skin and brown eyes.

His gaze skimmed over her in return, those chocolate eyes darkening. "You look beautiful, Angel."

She felt herself blushing. "Thank you. You look pretty hot yourself."

He grinned. "Ready?"

She nodded. "Just let me grab my purse and the gift."

He shook his head. "You didn't have to buy them anything."

"I can't show up at your parents' house empty-handed! What will they think of me?" She stepped into the entry, where she'd left her bag, keys, and a small arrangement of flowers.