Blue Lines: The Assassins Series: A Loveswept Contemporary Romance Read online

“Not yet, but it will be. But what has been affected is your reputation, and that I can’t fix. I don’t know what you want me to do.”

  Erik threw his hands up in the air, exasperated. “Fix it! Make this probation shit go away!”

  “I can’t,” Koey said with a shake of his head. “You either sign it, or she’ll let you go and more than likely you’ll get picked up by some crap-ass minor team somewhere far from your family.”

  Erik covered his face with his hands, his heart banging against his chest as he took in long breaths to calm himself down. This couldn’t be happening. Why would Elli do this? So what if he had been in and out of the media a lot lately? If he remembered correctly, Shea and Jakob used to be just as bad. Plus, what about Phillip? He may have calmed it down a bit but there were still women leaving their house at all hours of the night.

  “This is insane,” he muttered.

  Koey nodded, running his hands through his thick hair before looking up at Erik. “Yeah, but you brought it on yourself. Stop messing with crazy chicks and stay out of the clubs or you are going to be out on your ass, Erik.”

  No, he wasn’t. He wanted to play for the Assassins. He loved Nashville. He loved being close to his friends and to his brother’s family. Everything was good here. The women were plentiful and man, were they hot. He liked it that way and wasn’t going to change because of some damn probation. If he needed to stay out of the public eye, he could do that. No problem. But that didn’t mean he was going to change his ways. He was happy, and he’d be damned if he was going to change that.

  Nodding his head, he looked down at his agent and said, “Okay, no problem.”

  “So you’ll stay out of the clubs? Away from the cameras?”

  “Yeah.”

  “And away from the women?”

  “Not entirely, but I’ll be more discreet.”

  “Cool, come on, let’s get this signed. But keep in mind, if you don’t abide by Elli’s rules you are out and there’s nothing I can do about it.”

  Erik and Koey entered the room and saw that Elli was the only one sitting at the table. She looked tired and part of him felt guilty for causing her so much stress. But the other part was mad; he was being punished for being a guy who liked to have fun. How was that fair?

  Elli stood when the door shut behind them, and then crossed her arms. “Gentlemen?”

  Erik wanted to roll his eyes, but instead he asked, “Where did Mr. Fisher and Bacter go?”

  “They had other things to do,” she said briskly before coming down to their end of the table and laying a pen on the folder with the probation paperwork. “Sign it, Erik. And don’t make any more mistakes.”

  “I don’t plan on it,” he said through gritted teeth, reaching for the pen. He signed his name and rolled his eyes as he leaned back into his chair.

  “I don’t want to do this; you know that, don’t you?”

  Erik looked up at Elli and saw that she meant what she said. She was a good person, and a loving woman. He knew that she cared for him, but it still didn’t lessen his anger. “I know, but it doesn’t change the situation, now does it?”

  Elli shook her head. “No, but hopefully you will.”

  “What?” he asked, confused. “Change?”

  “Yeah, because the way you’re living will get old. I can promise you that. I just want you to be happy, safe, and the best you can be for the team and for yourself. Maybe I am interfering with your private life, but when your private life is messing with my team, then, I’m sorry, but we have an issue.” She paused, then sat down by him, her eyes never leaving his. “I care about you, and I don’t want to let you go, so please do right by this contract and …” Elli paused again and Erik felt like she wanted to say something more, but instead she said, “Just please, don’t mess up.”

  * * *

  Please, don’t mess up.

  Elli’s words played heavy on Erik’s mind as he made his way to the heart of downtown Nashville to meet Phillip for lunch. The air-conditioning was on full blast in his black Aston Martin Virage. It was too early in the summer for the weather to be so hot. Turning the air vents directly onto himself, Erik drove to the Tilted Kilt restaurant.

  Pulling into a parking spot, he sat for a moment trying to deal with his frustration. How did things get this bad? When Phillip started staying in, cutting back on the partying, he should have, too. Instead he was parading up and down Broadway getting into trouble. The women were his drugs, and the alcohol didn’t really help the situation, either. That was the one thing he hated about being a professional hockey player—the fact that he had no privacy and couldn’t do as he pleased. He was grateful for the chance to play the greatest game known to man; he only wished his personal life wasn’t under a microscope. But then again, maybe this was a blessing in disguise. Maybe this would help him get the alternate-captain position he wanted. He would be on his best behavior, show Elli that he could change, and then maybe she’d give him the position and title he wanted.

  Erik tried to cheer up. He could quit the life he’d been living the past six months. No problem. All he had to do was figure out a way to not think of Piper Allen. Not that it was all her fault, but yeah, it kind of was.

  Just thinking of her made him want her.

  He had already made the mistake of thinking of her once today, but that was Elli’s fault. She brought Piper to mind when she mentioned all the women he had been sleeping with lately. Their night together all those months ago was a mistake, he knew that. He hadn’t seen her much since, even when he saw her at Harper and Jakob’s recent family gathering; he was polite but ignored her for the most part. It was fine, though; everything would be fine. He could do this. He would forget about her the way he should have six months ago when he kissed her soft lips goodbye.

  Shit.

  Now he was thinking of her soft lips.

  With an irritation lacing his exhale, he opened the door and headed inside. He spotted Phillip immediately. His best friend was sitting in a booth with a large plate of nachos in front of him, but they were being ignored while he chatted with the beautiful blonde standing beside him. With a shake of his head, Erik made his way to the table, sliding into his seat and receiving only a curt nod from Phillip as he continued to talk with the blonde.

  “Come on, you can give me your number. I’m safe, I promise,” Phillip said as Erik reached for a nacho that was oozing with cheese, peppers, and chili. He loved the food at this place.

  “No way. I don’t even know you,” the blonde countered as she giggled. She was beautiful, of course, and had the three “bigs” going for her.

  Big boobs, big ass, and big lips.

  All the things Phillip loved. Taking notice of her name tag, Erik noticed that Cami filled out her Tilted Kilt uniform just fine. No wonder Phillip was laying his game down thick. Cami’s breasts were hardly covered by the thin white button-up shirt, and her butt was basically falling out of the bottom of the schoolgirl skirt she was wearing.

  Cami seemed completely engrossed by Phillip, too, which wasn’t abnormal. Girls flocked to Phillip. He was a good-looking guy with his boyish blond hair combed to the side. Phillip said his big green eyes captivated the women while his big thick dick kept them around. He was one of those guys who keep their face neatly trimmed, unlike Erik, who liked his beard thick and scraggly. Along with being a total flirt, Phillip was completely ripped, another reason women were attracted to him.

  Returning his attention to the nachos, Erik listened as Phillip went on.

  “You don’t know me now, but we can change that.”

  Cami rolled her eyes. “No way.”

  “Okay, well, let me ask you one more question, and then I promise I’ll leave you alone.”

  Cami eyed him skeptically before she put her hands on her thin waist. Her belly button was pierced and she had a tattoo peeking out from her shirt bottom. She was hot as hell, and if Phillip couldn’t get the job done, Erik was more than willing to try.

  �
��Fine,” she said, playing it as if she were annoyed, but anyone within a thirty-mile radius knew that she wasn’t annoyed with him at all. She was batting her eyes and giving him the come-hither look. She was digging Phillip just as much as he was her.

  Phillip smiled before he asked, “Where’d you get your skirt?”

  The girl looked at her clothing before saying, “It’s our uniform, although I have to pay for them myself.”

  “They were expensive, huh?” he asked, and Erik shook his head. Phillip was a master at picking up women and he made Erik literally laugh out loud with some of the lines he used. This come-on was one of his favorites.

  “Um, yeah, I hate paying for something that I don’t get to keep,” she said with a roll of her eyes, and then she asked, “Why?” Her brows were drawn together and she seemed just as confused as the hundreds of women he’d used this line on before her.

  “Well, baby doll, they would be one hundred percent off at my house, so why don’t you come on over after you’re done with work?”

  Erik watched as the girl blinked a few times and then started laughing. “Are you kidding me?”

  “What?” Phillip asked innocently. “It is the truth.”

  “You’re a dog!” she exclaimed.

  “That may be true. I do like it doggy-style, so what time do you get off?”

  When Cami just walked away, Erik couldn’t help laughing out loud. Phillip watched her walk away and then looked over at Erik before smiling. “She’ll be back.”

  “Sure she will,” Erik agreed.

  “You’ll see, she wants me.”

  “I don’t doubt you, but I think you could have left off the doggy-style comment. You might have had a chance of getting her home before that,” he said, tossing a nacho into his mouth.

  Phillip shrugged his shoulders. “She liked it. She is watching me now, thinking of a way to come back and talk to me without feeling like a slut.”

  Erik followed Phillip’s gaze and found that he was right: Cami was watching him. “You’re a master.”

  Phillip nodded. “This is true.” They shared a laugh before Phillip asked, “So how’d it go with Elli?”

  Erik sighed. “Not good. She has put me on probation.”

  “What?!” Phillip exclaimed. “You couldn’t talk your way out of it? What the hell did you do?”

  “Nope, she is threatening to kick me off the team. She’s not happy with the PR I’ve been getting … man, I didn’t even realize how much shit there was until she threw a bunch of magazines on the table.”

  Phillip grunted. “No shit.”

  “Yeah, I’m a little worried; I can’t step out of line at all until this thing blows over. I’m on strict probation.”

  “Holy shit, dude, that blows,” Phillip said with a shake of his head. “I have a meeting with her tomorrow. You think she is going to do the same to me?”

  Erik shrugged his shoulders again. “I don’t know.”

  “Damn, that sucks,” he said, still shaking his head.

  “I know. I’m so pissed.”

  “I don’t blame you. So I guess we’ll be staying in a lot.”

  “Yeah, I guess,” Erik said, leaning back in the booth and crossing his arms. “It’s bullshit, you know.”

  “I agree. We are young, we are horny, we should be able to do what we want,” he said before stuffing a chip full of cheesy goodness in his mouth.

  “I completely agree, but oh well, if I want to succeed and advance in my career, I have to play by her rules.”

  Phillip nodded. “Yup, and really, Elli isn’t a witch; she just cares about us a little too much.”

  Erik took a sip of the beer that Phillip had ordered for him. “Yeah, it just sucks.”

  “We’ll figure something out. Maybe we can have parties at the house instead of going out.”

  “But what about cops? We’ll have to keep everything on the down-low.”

  An evil grin went across Phillip’s face before he said, “How loud could a bunch of women and two guys be?”

  Erik nodded, but before he could say anything, they were interrupted by Cami. She leaned against the table, her breasts basically in Phillip’s face while her ass was in Erik’s view. “I get off at ten P.M.”

  “Awesome, here’s my number,” Phillip said, reaching for the pen she had stuck between her breasts. He looked up at her and smiled as he handed her the napkin with his cell number written across it. “Call me when you get off; I’ll give you directions to my house. Do you have a friend?”

  Cami’s eyes cut to Erik before meeting Phillip’s again. “Sure, I’ll bring someone.”

  “You, baby doll, are a gem. I’ll see you later.”

  He reached for her hand and kissed it before smiling up at her. She rewarded him with a quick grin before walking away. Leaning back, Phillip stretched his arms behind his head. He shot Erik a quick grin and said, “Well, at least we won’t be lonely tonight.”

  * * *

  The only good thing about Cami’s friend Christina was that she gave good head.

  Erik watched as she moved her tongue up and down his swollen cock. He was surprised he was able to get it up given how annoying her voice had been. He was disappointed when she had walked in the house behind Cami, but once she was on her knees, and his cock was deep in the back of her throat, his disappointment went out the window. She wasn’t that hot, but she gave a great blowjob.

  Okay, if he was being honest, it wasn’t that she wasn’t hot, it was that she reminded him too much of her. She had the same hair, the same eyes, and the same build. The only difference was that she didn’t have the gap in her teeth.

  He missed that gap.

  Looking back down at Christina, he watched as she curved her tongue around the head of his cock. Tangling his fingers in her dark blond hair, Erik closed his eyes, taking his mind off her, and enjoyed his building release. Christina took him deep into her throat as she massaged his balls.

  It was pretty awesome and he was getting pretty close to orgasm.

  Christina started to move more quickly, raking her bottom teeth along the length of him and Erik bit down on his lip, his grip on her hair tightening. He was almost there. He’d had a rough day, and blowing his load in this chick’s mouth was just what he needed. When she moved her hand to the base of his cock and squeezed, that did it and he came long and hard into the back of her throat. His eyes were squeezed shut as he felt her back away, the cold air hitting his sensitive dick. He knew that when he opened his eyes, she would be lying there expectantly. Sure enough, his eyes now opened and there she was with her legs spread wide, her eyes fixed on him.

  “You taste so good,” she murmured as his eyes moved along her body. Christina’s skin was bare, no tattoos at all, and like always, his mind went straight to her. She had this sick tree tattoo that covered her whole back. The branches went along her ribs and around to her breasts. It was hot, and if he was being honest, he missed her body, too. He didn’t understand why he still thought of her, but he did. They only spent one night together, and he broke it off with no problem. He doubted she even thought of him as much as he thought of her. He was pathetic.

  “Thanks,” he mumbled as he moved toward her, kissing down her bare belly. He moved his hand between her thighs, spreading them before running his finger up her slit, which was covered in thick dark hair. A part of him wanted to ask her to leave. He didn’t like it when a woman had hair between her legs; he liked them bare. But it seemed rude to ask her to go wait in the living room for her friend, especially after what she just did for him. So he lowered his mouth to her wanting lips and ran his tongue slowly up her. She took in a ragged breath, moving her fingers into his hair as he flicked her extended nub with the tip of his tongue. He was just about to insert a finger inside her when a knock came upon his bedroom door.

  Christina’s eyes met his before she brought the sheet up over her body. Turning to the door, he yelled, “Yeah?”

  “Hey, there is someone at the
door for you.”

  Erik knew he should tell Phillip to tell them to go away but he was taking this as a welcome interruption. Plus he knew that Phillip wouldn’t have come to tell him unless it was someone important. He only hoped it wasn’t his parents. They were supposed to be coming in this week and he really didn’t need them seeing that he had some girl whom he didn’t really know spread-eagle in the middle of his bed.

  “Okay, I’ll be right out.”

  “Really?” Christina asked in a huff.

  “It must be someone important,” he answered as he pulled on a pair of shorts, then went into his bathroom to wash up. When he came out, Christina was sitting on the bed with an annoyed look on her face. “Give me a minute,” he said as he left the room with a shake of his head. After he answered the door, he was going to ask Christina to leave. She was an annoying pain in the ass. Hell, he’d pay for the cab.

  Moving down the hall, Erik saw Phillip standing in a pair of boxers with his arms across his chest.

  “Who’s here?” he asked.

  Phillip turned, revealing the same person he was thinking of earlier when Christina had his cock in her mouth.

  Piper Allen.

  She was stunning, as usual. She wore a pair of short white shorts with a blue tank that was bigger than her. It hung off her thin shoulders, and he could see the branches of the tattoo he was just thinking of. Her blondish brown hair was up in a mess of a bun. Her eyes looked wider, and a brighter blue than he remembered. Her lips looked plumper, too; inviting. And when she gave him a sneak peek of the gap in her smile, he swore his heart skipped a beat.

  God, what was wrong with him?

  Clearing his throat, he said, “Hey.”

  “Hey,” she said, looking everywhere but at him. “Sorry to just pop in. I’ve tried calling you over the past few months but I can’t seem to get ahold of you.”

  That was because he was ignoring her.

  “Oh, no big deal. Everything okay?”

  Finally her eyes met his, and he could see that something was wrong. Erik was pretty sure that Phillip saw it, too, because he coughed, then said, “Hey, I’m gonna go in the other room. Piper, it was nice seeing you again.”