Between the Tackles: A Bad Boy Sports Romance

Book 3: Pass to Win

by Roxy Sinclaire

Genres: New Adult & College; Sports Romance

Synopsis

Nick Barrett is a god at my university. And me, little ol' April Hansen? I'm just a nerdy girl, studying and working to take care of my dad.
Nick could have any woman he wanted, but for some reason, he wants me... It's a miracle he even notices me waiting for the bus, let alone offer to drive me home.

Before I can help it, I'm falling for Nick. But there's a reason jocks and geeks don't mix, and I'm about to get my heart broken, I just know it.

Release date: October 16, 2016

Publisher: Roxy Sinclaire

Print pages: 270

Sample

Chapter One

 

April

 

 

“Oh! I wish I didn’t have to work today! This seems so unfair,” I thought to myself.

 

It was extremely unfair. What student wants to work during a school game?

 

That’s what I was thinking while working during the final game. It was one of the biggest games in college football. I drummed my nails onto the counter as I awaited customers. I didn’t see the point of currently working since no one was going to want refreshments with the most exciting game of the year going on. I didn’t expect anyone to visit the stand with all of the action going on. The biggest game of the season was taking place and here I was waiting for my shift to be over. The entire school was watching the game from the stands. They could feel the rush and see the players live. If you weren’t there, you were nobody. I even saw the dean and the mayor of the city making their way to the field for the game.  Almost everyone was there. Everyone that is, except me.

 

I wished I could watch the game, but I couldn’t. Thanks to my boss, I didn’t have much of a choice.  I had to work today. I knew she didn’t like me. She had never liked me and it wasn’t because I had to work during the game, but because she had a habit of giving me dirty looks, talking badly to me and giving me horrible shifts. She gave me the early morning and graveyard shifts which made it very hard to schedule and attend juggle when I also had to take the many intensive courses for my program. I knew I shouldn’t complain. I needed this job. It was the only way that I could afford to go to school.  Not even the scholarships I had applied for and gotten would be enough to support me through school. Although I had worked hard and always got great grades in class, I still wouldn’t have been able to get into Michigan State without a job. Tuition was quite high and the law program isn’t exactly a cheap program here.

 

As I filled up the popcorn machine and checked the soda machine, I sighed. Sometimes I wish I had all the money I needed. Then I could have more time to study and read.  Life would be easier and I wouldn’t have to work AND go to school. I could also have a social life and truly experience university life for what it was.

 

Then I snapped myself out of it. I needed to return to reality. Instead of constantly complaining, I had to put on a smiling face and pray that someone would buy something from the stand, so it wouldn’t feel like a waste of time being here. To make matters worse, I didn’t have any company either because today, I was the only one working at the stand. My boss said that Jenna was supposed to be working with me, but that she dropped out at the last minute. When I talked to Jenna, however, she told me that she didn’t know anything about that shift at all. I was beginning to wonder if I had done something to upset my boss that would warrant this treatment. I wanted to find another job, but this was the only one that I had found which seemed available and paid enough to cover the necessary costs. I knew that one day all this effort would pay off in the long run, but at that moment, it seemed to be so far away. Fortunately, there was a radio nearby and I could hear the game. We were doing pretty well. We were in the lead and there was no way that the other team was going to catch up with us. Momentum really seemed to be picking up as the running back, Nick Barrett was running towards the opposite end of the field. Images of Nick immediately popped into my head. He was the most attractive, wealthy and talented running back at the university. Every girl on campus wanted him and swooned when he walked by and men were quite jealous of him. He seemed to have it all, especially amazing statistics. What I wouldn’t give for him to even notice me! I had such a crush on him, but I tried to be realistic. There was no way someone like him would ever talk to me.

 

I decided to pay attention to the game. The defense was trying to tackle him but he kept on running. It almost seemed like he wasn’t going to make it. The defensive line from the opposition wasn’t going down without a fight. They kept trying to take him down, but he was quicker than they thought! He kept running and running as fast as he could. He was getting closer to the end-zone. According to the announcer, you could feel the suspense and tension in the air.  He crossed the goal line into the end zone and…TOUCHDOWN!

 

We won! We won! I was so excited that I forgot I was working.

 

“Yes!” I exclaimed as I jumped up and down. I was so happy that we won. I could hear the cheering all the way over here and I was proud that I was attending the school of the winning team.

 

Now that the game was over, I felt a pang of wistfulness. I really wished I could have seen the game.  It also would have been nice to see Nick Barrett actually make that dash. He was an excellent player and looked really hot in his uniform. To see him play at his best would have been an amazing thing to watch. It would have been amazing to see him in full form.

 

Most people didn't know that I kept up with sports, but then again, not a lot of people at school knew me. To most people on campus, I only seemed like a nerd whose nose was always buried in a book. But for those who truly knew me, they knew better. They knew I was a huge fan of baseball, basketball, tennis, soccer and football. I also did some sports in high school, but decided not to continue with them as I had other priorities, such as school and work.  I have always been into sports, thanks to my dad. We were very close and it was a way for both of us to have quality daddy-daughter time. My mother died a few months after giving birth to me, so I don’t know that much about her. But I was thankful that I had my dad who was loving and supportive. We didn’t always have a lot, but we always had enough and we had each other. I thought I was pretty much blessed just to have that.

 

I could still hear the crowd going wild. Suddenly, I saw some customers coming to the stand. They seemed to be a couple, who were madly in love as they kept giggling and talking to each other in low voices. I took their orders and checked on the machine. I scooped out some popcorn into the bags and poured out their drinks into the cups. I handed them their orders and watched them walk away. Sometimes, I wished I had time to date people. But I couldn’t. I didn’t even have time for my friends.

 

I began to drift off.  It had been a while since I went out with anyone. My last date wasn’t so bad. We were getting along just fine. He was a perfect gentleman, but something was missing and even now, I still don’t know what it was. I just wished I could be that close to someone again. Sometimes with all the papers and exams, it would be nice to have some company.

 

I saw that everyone was clearing out from the field and some were leaving the stadium. Some people were now coming to the stand to get something to drink and eat. I delivered all of their orders and wished I could just leave now. The game was over and the stadium was almost empty.

 

My boss finally came from the game and scornfully looked at me.

 

“You can go now,” she then brushed me off.

 

“I’m supposed to get paid today.”

 

She looked at me as though I had said something shocking to her. My pay was long overdue. I was supposed to have been paid last week, but since things were stressful, I didn’t remind her.

 

“No, you are not.”

 

I was getting upset. I can’t believe she would do this to me.

 

“Actually, you are right. I was supposed to be paid last week.”

 

She snuffed, “I don’t think that’s true.”

 

I showed her the pay slips from last week. She looked at them and realized I was telling the truth, but she tried to play it off as though it was just a simple mistake.

 

“Oh, well I guess I didn’t see it. I will have to pay you later in the week.”

 

I couldn’t believe that she would say that. I would have to wait a few more days when I should have been paid already?! What was wrong with this woman? I wanted to get upset. I wanted to say so many things to her. She was being out of line by holding up my pay. But I held my composure. I really needed this job.

 

“Okay, fine.”

 

“Well. You can go now,” she then shooed me off.

 

“Thanks.”

 

I then left the stadium fuming. I didn’t even get paid today, so now I had a long walk to catch a bus. I had finally reached the bus stop only to see that the bus was beginning to drive off.

 

“Hey! Wait!” I screamed as I tried to run after the bus. It was already turning around the corner before I could do anything to stop it. Great. First I don’t get paid today and then I miss the last bus. I headed to the bus stop and sat there for a while. It was just NOT my day. Suddenly, it began to rain and then it began to pour. I thought to myself that I couldn’t even walk home. It was getting dark and I knew it wasn’t safe for me to walk home by myself. I had no idea how I was getting home.

 

Suddenly, I saw a Maserati pull up to the stop. It seemed a bit out of place here and I wondered what the driver was doing in a place like this.

 

The windows began to roll down.

 

“Need a lift?”

 

I was surprised to see Nick Barrett was behind the wheel. It was Nick Barrett.

 

The rain was relentless. But I had no other way of getting home. Not that I wouldn’t have a problem going home with him…. Well, not like that. Maybe not so soon. Just the thought of Nick would make me flustered. Nick was the best football player the school had ever seen. He seemed to have it all: money, status and talent.  I would never expect us to even interact with each other. I would sometimes see him at school and wish that he would notice me. But then again, what would he be doing with a girl like me? We seemed completely different and were from different side of the tracks. I couldn’t believe this was happening to me. I’ve always wanted to get close to him, but I was very apprehensive about getting in the car with him. He was extremely handsome, but what did I really know about him. I couldn’t stop thinking if I should get into the car with him.

 

Noticing my indecisiveness, he asked me where I was heading.

 

“Home.”

 

“And where’s that?”

 

 “Uh, South Lyon.”

 

“I’m actually going there. Come on, get in.”

 

He then pushed the door open to let me in. I felt like I didn’t have much of a choice. The rain showed no signs of stopping and there wasn’t another bus for miles. I decided to get into the car. I mean what did I have to lose? It was just a simple car ride right? I got into the car and then we sped off. And that was the ride that changed my life.