Only then did he climb up her body, kiss her deeply, then put on the condom and thrust into her.

He raised himself up on his arms. “Now we’ll come together. I want you to squeeze the come right out of me, Kat.”

She reached up and slid her fingers over his lower lip. “Make me.”

Again, that animalistic growl that never ceased to make her sex flutter. He dropped down on top of her and cupped her butt with his hand, tilting her pelvis up so he could grind against her.

“I’ll make you. I’ll make you come so hard you won’t even know your own name.”

He kissed her, his tongue doing delicious things to hers. The kiss was deep and heady and she lost all sense of herself as he seduced her with his mouth and with his cock. And when she exploded, he was right. She was gone, an out-of-body experience, and she had no idea who she was. She knew only pleasure, only the slide of her hands across hard muscle, the feel of her pussy clenching his cock as stars exploded behind her eyes. She heard his loud groan as he went with her, felt them both shuddering together, then collapsing, holding on to each other like a lifeline in a storm of ecstasy.

He’d taken her breath away, exceeded all her expectations as to what sex was all about. And now, as he lay next to her, rubbing her back and kissing her shoulder, she realized she’d waited entirely too long for this sex thing.

Or maybe she’d waited just the right amount of time. Because Grant was pretty damn good at this. So maybe she’d just been waiting for the right guy to introduce her to it.

“Tired?” he asked.

“Mmm-hmm.”

He brushed his hand over the top of her head, then kissed it and tugged her against his chest. “Sleep, Kat.”

That sounded like a really good idea. “Okay.”

TWENTY-TWO

GRANT WAS PRETTY GOOD ABOUT SWITCHING FROM play mode to game mode.

Last night with Katrina had been all about play. Today, it was getting into game mode. There were three days until the game, and even though it was still preseason, with every game, they drew closer to finalizing the team and the start of the actual season.

He worked with the offensive coordinator and the backup quarterbacks, trying to confirm the plays they’d use this year. He spent time trying out the rookie receivers to see who would make the team, who was going to fit with the organization this year.

All in all, there was a lot going on right now, especially for those who were busting their asses to make the roster.

Grant was the starting quarterback. His job was set. But he knew there were other guys on the bubble. His job was to help the team figure out which guys would stay, and which would go.

He’d explained all this to Leo as they’d driven in this morning. He was pleasantly surprised to find Leo up and ready when he’d come down at seven-thirty for coffee.

“It’s not even eight a.m. yet,” he’d told him.

“I figured whatever you had in mind for me today, I’d better be early,” Leo had said.

Katrina might be worried all the time about these kids, but she’d done a fine job giving them the right tools they’d need to succeed. Leo had the work ethic in place. Now it was up to Grant to tap into it.

When Grant had told Leo he was taking him to practice today, Leo’s eyes had widened. He was so excited, even though Grant had told him he couldn’t work out with the team or anything.

“It’s just watching, ya know?”

“I don’t care,” Leo said. “I’m excited just to be there to see the team go through practice. It’s the closest I’ll ever get to seeing a pro team do this.”

Grant slung his arm around Leo’s shoulders. “At least until you make a pro team yourself.”

Leo let out a snort. “Yeah, like that’s ever gonna happen.”

Grant had stopped him there. “With an attitude like that, it never will. If you don’t believe in yourself, how do you expect anyone else to? How will a college coach believe you’ve got what it takes to make the team?”

Leo had looked embarrassed. “Okay, you’re right. I’m fast and I’m good enough. I know it. I’m just getting a late start, is all.”

Grant slapped him on the back. “That’s better.”

Grant introduced Leo to all the guys in the locker room, then placed him with one of the assistant offensive coaches, who promised Grant he’d explain everything there was to know about football.

Grant was certain Leo was going to get one hell of an education today. There would be yelling and cussing, and if Katrina knew that, she’d likely be horrified. But this was a player’s world, and Grant was confident Leo could handle it.

In fact, during one of their drink breaks, Grant spotted Leo glued to the coach’s side as the coach was screaming obscenities at one of the wide receivers. Leo was doing his best to suppress a grin.

Yeah, the kid was doing fine.

So was the team. Rookies looked acceptable; the few guys they’d signed during free agency were a good fit. They’d shored up holes in the defense, and JP McClellan was back on the offensive line after an injury last season. Grant felt confident in his team this year.

Grant had been studying the playbook when Cole Riley came over.

“How’s it going, Cassidy?” Cole asked.

“It’s going so great that I think you’re going to have a good year, because I’m going to be throwing to you a lot.”

Cole grinned. “Of course you are, man. Because I’m a superstar wide receiver. And you’re the superstar QB.”