Page 2 of Dangerously Yours

“I should go out there and wake you up to demand that you touch me,” I muttered, all while knowing I would never do that.

While I was very vocal about what I wanted in bed, I rarely ever initiated sex between us myself. Cade Davis was a Titan, and his entire generation of males had been for generations. In fact, our own son would one day take his place upon society’s throne, and I just hoped and prayed he didn’t act like his father. He might be a carbon copy of him in the looks department, but I would be damned if I didn’t teach him how to treat a woman, especially one he would one day swear to cherish and love.

“There is no one I will ever love but you,”Cade had told me during our wedding vows.

That beach wedding on the Outer Banks of North Carolina had been a dream come true for me. My family was close enough to attend, and many of his own friends and family had made the trip, too. It was a day of promise, and one of such beauty, that I had not only one wedding album, but two, under the coffee table in the living room. Earlier today, I had taken a trip down memory lane, perusing those albums, so to have him be so coldwhen he finally did get home had me a lot more upset than it should have. Cade was with the guys. He often played poker, visiting clubs like the Vault, and frequented many sports bars across the city.

I realized how foolish I was being. I decided to give him a pass, like I always tended to do, and get some sleep myself. I bent down to pick up my discarded teddy and dress, then noticed his clothes on the floor next to the shower. Usually, Olga would handle the laundry. I hated that I wasn’t more domesticated, but after an incident where I had accidentally shrunk a few pairs of his expensive dress pants, and discolored a load of his normally crisp, white shirts, Cade had forbidden me from doing the laundry.

It wouldn’t hurt to at least help our housekeeper out by picking them up off the floor. I grabbed his pants, socks, shoes, boxers, and finally his shirt. The latter article of clothing had me dropping everything else in my arms but it. I walked closer to the mirror where the lighting was better, then held up the white, long sleeved shirt. On the collar, there was something red synonymous with lipstick, and my heart sank.

“You fucking liar,” I seethed.

Cade had not been out with his friends, but instead with some other woman who was wearing the exact shade of lipstick he once told me looked cheap. I had no idea who the tramp was, but it didn’t even matter. The man I had slaved over an oven for all day long was getting busy with someone else. As I sat here awaiting his arrival, someone else was getting kissed goodbye. He came right in, took a shower, and went to bed, because he had already gotten his own orgasm. The hell with my wants and needs.

Most women would have started to shed tears at this point, especially if their pain was anything like mine, but not me. The wife of a Titan never wore her heart on her sleeve. She dressed pretty, attended events, and basically was arm candy for her man. She didn’t express her opinions about anything, instead playing the role of the dutiful wife. To cry over something so inconsequential to men with titles like his would be frowned upon. I stared at myself for a few long seconds before realizing I didn’t recognize the woman staring back at me. I liked her even less. I tore my eyes away, then grabbed all the clothes. When back in the bedroom, I disposed of them and put on a nightgown before climbing into bed with a virtual stranger.

NOAH

CURRENT DAY – CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

My team had fallen in the conference championship game, and the rumors were already starting to heat up. The Super Bowl had come and gone, the victor being one of my biggest rivals, and a quarterback I was often compared to. I fucking hated it all. My team should have been the one with the parade through town, and it should have been me at Disney World celebrating something I promised to bring to this city on the day I was drafted as the number one overall pick.

Most pundits had bemoaned the pick, even going as far as to call me a potential bust. I showed them all that I wasn’t some flash in the pan. Until I hit this level of competition, I didn’t even know what it was like to lose. My high school and college teams had won numerous state and national championships. My stats were the best in the league at my position, and I was all but assured of another consecutive MVP award. None of that mattered when it wasn’t me and my team hoisting the trophy in early February, though.

I’d had plenty of time to lick my wounds and get the sour taste that defeat left out of my mouth, only to now have to hear andsee the various sportscasters trying to predict whether I would be traded this offseason or not. There was a salary cap in place, and with the monster deals that both Romeo and I recently signed, it meant others had to pay for those contracts. A national analyst who had never played a single snap in his life had made it his mission this offseason to talk about my potential trade every day this week. It was so convincing that I had even called Gabriel myself.

“Is there something I don’t know?”I had asked Gabe.

“About?”

“Word is that I’m being traded?—”

“You have a no-trade clause in your contract. I would ignore the rumors and hearsay. You know how those talking heads like to get shit started for clicks and ratings.”

“I know, I know.”

“Go to Miami, and enjoy yourself this week. The concert is in a couple of days, and I’ve already forwarded you your tickets.”

“I’m going, but please promise me that you’ll let me know if anyone even approaches you about one.”

“I will, Noah. I’ve got your back.”

“I know you do,”I had told him, then disconnected the call.

It was actually quite strange that I was even going on this trip considering it would be only Daxon, Romeo, and me going this time. Back in the day, Gabriel and Callum would also join us, but the two men had found women of their own. Everything seemed to change at that point, but I knew regardless of relationshipstatus, they would have my back as they always had, and I would do the same for them.

Harper Grimes and Nicole Courtland were beautiful women, and both men were lucky to have them. Gabe and Harper had been destined from the start, but their road hadn’t always been easy. I grew up with those two, as well as Charlie Mitchell. The four of us had once been thick as thieves, and on some days, we might still be. That time wasn’t now, though. It was actually funny because this time last year, all five of us were single. Now, the running joke between us was regarding which one would fall next. I sure as hell didn’t plan for it to be me.

Of course, no one actually planned for these things. I doubted Gabriel ever thought a ghost from his past would return and tip his life upside down. And Callum couldn’t have known a one-night stand in Costa Rica would show up in his classroom a few weeks later and have him falling head over heels. If any of the rest of us were to fall like that, it would have to be Daxon. The psychiatrist was older than both me and Romeo, and it just seemed as if he would end up committing to someone next. As long as it didn’t rub off on me, I wouldn’t care.

As a Titan, I enjoyed the stature I got from the title alone. Add in the fact that I was one of the most recognizable faces in all of Chicago sports, and the chicks ate it up like candy. I liked being able to date whoever I wanted, whenever I wanted, and not have to worry about a family, especially during the season. I couldn’t count how many teammates spent most of their free time outside of meetings, practice, and games either talking to, or sneaking off to visit, their wives.

“It seems like someone is whipped,”guys like Romeo and me would say.

It was all in good-natured fun, though. I just preferred my fun to be spent a different way, such as the type I was about to embark on. There were multiple Titans within our circle in Chicago, but I mainly hung out with a small knit group of them. Some of the others were younger, but most were older, and there were also some similar in age to me that I just couldn’t vibe with. That would be why I tended to spend my time around my dysfunctional group. It used to be a quintet, but a trio wasn’t bad either.

“Do we have the yacht again this year?” Romeo asked as he walked into the room.

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