Page 9 of Waiting for Friday Night

“I’m not trying to fight with Halle Parker,” Quinton said. “There are a lot of things I’d like to do with her but fighting ain’t one of them.”

Cyril and Brian exchanged looks before Brian grinned and leaned in. “What do you want to do with her?”

Quinton shook his head. He wasn’t getting caught up in that trap. They knew he thought Halle was attractive. He’d mentioned it before, but he wasn’t about to let them sidetrack the conversation with thoughts of something that wasn’t going to happen.

“All I want to do with her is find a way to get through the football season without any trouble.”

Cyril grinned and gave Quinton a sly look. “I don’t think that’s what you meant.”

He did mean it, but that didn’t mean there weren’t other things that he wanted to do with Halle. There were a lot of things he’d rather do with Halle. He’d love to pull her curves against his body. Taste her lush lips. Palm her firm breasts and watch the fire flash in her eyes from passion versus the need to challenge him. The old him would have gone after her just to see if he could change the spark in her eye. He’d give his second Pro Bowl ring to take his time and prove to Halle just how good things could be between them. Had even considered pursuing her once. That was until he’d once overheard her give an offhand comment about not being into jocks. He was out of the business of trying to prove himself to anyone.

“Regardless of what you think I meant,” he said, “that’s what I’m saying right now.”

“You can be real with us,” Brian said. “If you like her, you like her.” Spoken like the friend who always had a new woman on his arm.

“If I like her then that doesn’t mean anything. I can’t mess around with the parent of one of my players. I’m already trying to convince everyone I don’t play favorites. I’ve got kids transferring to Peachtree Cove to play for me. If I start messing around with one of their mommas...” Quinton shook his head. “You think there’s gossip in this town now? Wait until that happens.”

“Gossip in this town will start up either way,” Brian said with a grin. “You might as well give the people something worth gossiping about.”

“Spoken like someone that doesn’t give a fuck,” Cyril said with a laugh.

Brian shrugged. “I don’t. Half this town is full of hypocrites. If they’re going to talk about me, I might as well be doing half of the crazy stuff they’re accusing me of doing.”

“I’d rather be off their radar,” Cyril said. A patron across the bar got his attention and he walked away.

“And I’d rather not get entangled with a player’s mom,” Quinton said. “If things don’t work out, then that makes it harder to deal with the player. No matter how much I might be interested in...showing Halle what I’m all about, I think it’s best to keep well enough alone.”

“Show Halle all that you’re about?” Brian said with a laugh. “Is that your way of being cute? Just say it, man. We’re all adults. You want to fu—”

“Nah, man,” he cut off his friend. “Besides, she’s too uptight. Sleeping with her probably wouldn’t be any fun anyway.”

A sound of surprise came from behind before a woman’s voice said, “Oh really?”

Quinton froze as Halle’s voice fell on him like a ton of bricks.

Halle wished she would have had her phone out so she could capture the picture of shock on Quinton’s face. She didn’t typically come out on a Monday night, but Tracey had texted her and Imani, saying she needed to talk and that her bed-and-breakfast wasn’t the place. Halle and Imani had immediately gone into friend mode and shuffled their evening so they could get with Tracey. Thankfully, Halle’s cousin Kayla was okay with Shania coming over. Kayla’s daughters Maya and Michelle were close in age with Shania and the three were almost inseparable.

She hadn’t expected to find Quinton at A Couple of Beers and she sure hadn’t expected to find him sitting around the bar talking to his friend Brian about all the things he wanted to show her. As if he’d ever get the chance.

“Hey, Halle, what are you doing here?” Quinton said, not sounding the least bit embarrassed to have been caught talking about wanting to sleep with her. Why she was surprised, she didn’t know. As a former professional player, he probably believed half the women he met wanted to sleep with him.

“I’m allowed to be here,” she said, crossing her arms. “Now, tell me again what exactly you would like to show me?”

Quinton held up a hand. “It wasn’t like that.”

“Then what was it like?” she asked, cocking her head to the side.

“I was just telling them that even if I were interested, which I’m not, I wouldn’t show you anything because you’re the parent of a player.”

“You wouldn’t have to worry about being interested, because even if you were it never would happen.”

He raised a brow. “Oh really?” His voice dipped to a low tenor and his gaze sharpened before it traveled over her face.

Prickles of heat danced across Halle’s cheeks. She sucked in a breath and narrowed her eyes. She fought not to shift as the awareness in his gaze tapped on something long dormant inside her. “Really. Nothing would ever happen between us.”

He let out a breath before the corners of his lips twitched in the barest hint of a smile. “Okay.”

The tone of his voice, as if he agreed with her, went against the challenge in his eyes. Was he calling her bluff? The man was handsome, and yes, she could see the sex appeal when he looked at her like that, but she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.

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