Hailey Knight slipped out of her Mercedes and grabbed her purse, hurrying across the employee parking lot toward the practice field. She always made an effort to be early to any work commitment, even if it was a youth camp and not practice. She didn’t want anyone to have a reason to believe she’d only gotten her job as one of the team’s athletic trainers because she was the owner’s daughter. It was true in a way, she would never be at this level two years out of college without her father’s help, but she still tried to prove those crying, or at least thinking, nepotism wrong. She was proud that she’d earned the trust of the players and coaches in her short time working with the best team in the league, the Texas Titans.

She rushed through the glass doors, stopping to say hello to Cedar, the darling coordinator who had organized the Tiny Titans’ youth football camp. A lot of the well-known football players would be here, including Hailey’s brother-in-law, Xavier Newton. X and Izzy were adorable together. It had concerned her when her only sister fell for a football player, but so far, they seemed like a perfect match, and Izzy was definitely happy.

Hailey approached her own table loaded with first aid supplies and information on how to stay healthy and fit and sighed in relief. Everything was ready, and she was one of the first ones here.

“Well, well, if it isn’t the Miss Knight.” A snide voice came from behind her.

Hailey didn’t give the over-powering, terrifying snake of a man the pleasure of whirling to fight him. She slowly turned and pasted on her beauty pageant smile, pretending he didn’t affect her at all when all she truly wanted was to hide behind the nearest offensive lineman until William Fonnesbeck slithered away.

“Just Hailey,” she said, trying for friendly and unassuming. “Thank you, sir.”

William gave her a sultry smile. She supposed most women would find it attractive, but she knew exactly how slimy he was beneath the surface. One date with him had been one too many. Luckily, she’d been able to escape his tentacles, but now, she lived in terror of him getting her alone again. Even if he couldn’t hurt her physically, she knew he could retaliate in other vicious ways. As the Vice President of Rules and Administration, he was second only to the league’s commissioner, and William was the man who enforced fines and suspensions on the players. His title and the power he had to hurt her players and her team were scary enough without the veiled personal threats and sexual innuendos he always slipped in.

William had been charming the first time she’d met him, but she should have been smarter and not have allowed him to trick her into going on a date. She’d been semi-afraid to say no and have him watch her team like a hawk, but that would’ve been better than this extended period of trying to avoid him. Six months of purgatory and fear of what he could do to her players and, even worse, what he would do to her if he ever got her alone. She should’ve said something to her dad long ago, but he would go nuts and make complete enemies of the commissioner’s office.

The moment William realized she wasn’t going to report him because she loved her team and her father too much, he’d gotten more and more brazen. The noose of his innuendos and lewd suggestions kept tightening, and she didn’t know how to escape at this point. The Titans were already a target because of their huge success the past two years. Every owner in the league would be happy to see the commissioner’s office go after them. Now, they’d lost Ace Sanchez to a knee injury. Her team couldn’t afford bad press or suspensions, so she toed the line and lived in fear of William.

“Beautiful Hailey.” He leaned in close, and she gagged on his too-strong citrusy cologne. “I’ve been dreaming about you again, my hot little lady.”

Hailey backed into her table. He was so gross. “I think you’re mistaken. I’m definitely not dream material, more like a drama queen. Should give you nightmares.” She tossed him a sassy grin, but her heart was thumping so hard she was sure he could hear it with how close he was. How was she going to escape from him without bringing his wrath down on the Titans or telling her dad and having him get in a battle with the commissioner’s office? It was like fighting dirty cops. You couldn’t win unless you found a superhero. Unfortunately, those were in short demand these days.

William’s smile became even more predatory, like a lion cornering the gazelle. He had the nerve to wrap his finger around one of her long curls and brush it over her shoulder, his fingers lingering on the skin of her neck. She would’ve preferred a spider crawling along her flesh.

“No, they’re definitely dreams.” William licked his lips. “And someday real soon, you’re going to make them all come true.”

The look in his eyes made her want to scream and run and hide. Killing him with kindness wasn’t going to work. She had to be braver and pray it wouldn’t bite them all in the hind side. “You need to keep your hands to yourself, sir, or I’ll call security.” She’d rather use the self-defense moves she’d been practicing since their last date, but she was lucky he hadn’t black-balled her team because of her blatant refusals of his offers. The players were like her brothers, and she could never hurt any of them. She could hold her own with William, couldn’t she? His subtle threats and terrifying stares were getting worse with every encounter. She knew the harder she resisted the more he wanted to win her, but she would never give him what he clearly craved—her.

He chuckled. “We both know you’re not going to do that. You wouldn’t risk the fines and suspensions I can dole out on your friends and father. I know all about how much of a daddy’s girl you are and how you love your Titans.” He sneered at her. “So what’s it going to be, beautiful Hailey? Dinner at my place tonight, and you stay all night long, or do I start causing more than a little … trouble.” He licked his lips like a lizard ready to devour a bug.

She would never stay overnight with him, or any man for that matter, but she didn’t know how to get out of this. She and William both knew there were always things hiding in players’ closets that could be dug out and used as a reason for suspension. Not to mention the iffy hits and calls that happened regularly during the season. She had a horrible suspicion that something was going on with the Kincaid brothers. It was just a feeling but her intuition was usually spot on when it came to one of her players. If William had any inkling he could mess with their quarterback? She shuddered at the thought. William had all the power he needed to make her life absolutely miserable.

Hailey’s brain scrambled for an out, any out. She put on a fake smile and said, “You don’t know how much I wish I could have dinner with you tonight, but you must not have heard … I’m recently engaged.” She kept a straight face when she wanted to gasp in shock. Where had that come from, and who was she going to claim she was engaged to? Of the four dates she’d been on so far this week not one of them would be worth going out with again, let alone faking an engagement to.

He released her hair and actually took a step back, the scowl on his face ruining all his supposed good looks. “You are?” His eyes strayed to her left hand. She clasped it with her right to hide her naked finger. “To whom?”

A dark-haired man appeared at her table. Hailey dealt with burly football players every day of her life, but this guy’s shape still gave her pause. He was probably around six three and two hundred and fifty pounds. Every inch was muscle, not bodybuilder muscle but lean and functional and covered by smooth, tanned skin. He definitely had some Italian heritage in him as dark and good-looking as he was. Hailey had a strict policy of not checking out her own team’s football players, but she knew every single one of them. This guy wasn’t on her roster.

“Excuse me.” The man’s deep voice washed over her as his dark eyes looked at her with concern then flashed to William with annoyance. “Do you need some help?”

Yes, yes she did. Hailey grasped his arm and cuddled into his side, wrapping her other arm around his waist. “Thank you for coming to check on me, sweetheart.” His body tightened at the way she was trying to manhandle him, impossible to really do as she was almost a foot shorter and less than half his bodyweight, but she needed help, and she needed it now. The solution was so clear. William would back off if she were engaged. He would have to. Then there would be no repercussions on her football team and no coercion to date, and especially not to stay the night with, the slime ball VP.

“Um, sure … anything for you, honey.” The man wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and Hailey had never felt so safe as he gently pulled her close. Safety and reassurance were amazing and unexpected feelings to have at the moment, especially after the fear of William clogging her throat mere seconds ago and the fact that she naturally shied away from well-built men. The emotion of it all made her weak, and she found herself leaning against his muscular chest.

The dark-haired guy glanced down at her and winked. Ooh, he was quick too. She ticked off his positive qualities in her mind—not one of her football brothers, handsome with strong facial features, brown eyes framed with dark lashes, and smart. She might even give this guy a date to prove they were engaged.

“This is my fiancé,” she said to William, inclining her chin with pride.

The man kind of started, but he stayed close to her side as he released her from his hold and stuck his hand out to William. “Brady Giles. Pleasure to meet you …”

Brady Giles? Oh, crap, he was one of her players! He’d recently transferred from New England. He was one of the top cornerbacks in the nation, and they were extremely blessed to get him, but the Brady Giles she’d seen from the sidelines had long, dark wavy hair and a full beard. This guy with the cropped hair and clean shaven model-gorgeous face was a Brady Giles she’d never expected—sharp and way too appealing. What had she done?

“William Fonnesbeck.” William quickly shook Brady’s hand and arched an eyebrow, his face clearly still ticked off, but now turning vindictive. “Vice President of Rules and Administration for the league.”

Brady’s arm came around her again, and his muscles tightened. He knew exactly what the commissioner’s office could do to him—fines and suspensions that were all at the commissioner’s discretion. Sometimes, William would overlook something horrible like a domestic abuse charge and then fine a player for a hit in a game that was clearly unintentional. As a defensive player, Brady knew how tricky dealing with William Fonnesbeck could be.

“Of course, it’s great to meet you, sir. How do you know my beautiful bride-to-be?” As Brady smiled down at her, Hailey felt a rush of appreciation for him and an attraction that she couldn’t deny. He was a handsome one that was for sure, but his kindness in protecting her when he had no clue about the situation was drawing her in quick. If only he wasn’t a football player. She lived in fear of ever getting too close to a burly football player again. They could easily manhandle or hurt her. In fact, she tried to date scrawny men whenever possible.

“Miss Knight and I used to date exclusively. Very sorry to hear that she’s off the market.” William’s eyes roved over her. Hailey wished she’d worn a burlap sack to camp instead of a fitted Titans t-shirt and tight black shorts.

“Oh?” Brady shrugged as if it meant nothing that William had dated her. He also turned slightly so his large frame partially sheltered her from William. Oh, man, if she hadn’t sworn to never date a football player, she’d be making a play for this one. “Funny but she never told me about you.” Ignoring William, he smiled down at Hailey. “Are you okay?” he asked in an undertone.

“I am now.” She squeezed his waist. Was it possible this fine-looking man could’ve just solved all of her problems with William? Maybe superheroes did still exist.

Brady brushed her hair off her neck. Her skin tingled warmly in response. “I’ve got to go run my station, but I’ll see you after camp, right?”

“Wouldn’t miss it.” She grinned up at him. Now that she knew he was a football player and one of her guys, he was off-limits for her to date, but faking an engagement was different. What a chill and fabulous guy he must be to play along and help her out like this.

He bent down and softly kissed her cheek. Her stomach tumbled from the warmth of his lips and the delectable sandalwood cologne he wore.

“Thank you,” she whispered into his neck.

“Not a problem. Maybe you’ll tell me the story someday,” he murmured back.

“Maybe.” She gave the word a lot of Southern sass.

He straightened and gave her one more smile. His smile was unreal. It took his face from handsome to sculpted by angels.

Hailey forced herself to stop staring at her fake fiancé and noticed William sneering at the both of them. Brady released her and clapped his large hand on William’s shoulder. William winced but didn’t say anything.

“It’s an honor to have you here, sir. I’m guessing you came to get to know the guys? Let me introduce you around.” Brady escorted William away from her, glancing back once to give Hailey another smile.

She winked at him but then wilted against her table, relief rushing through her. If William believed she was engaged, maybe he’d finally leave her alone. How far would she have to take the farce though, and would Brady really be game? Probably not. That was asking a lot of someone you didn’t know, and she refused to use the connection to her father to rope Brady into something he probably wouldn’t be interested in doing.

She watched Brady walk away, noticing how good he looked in a nicely-fitted neoprene shirt that stretched across his broad back and wide shoulders, and shorts that showed off his incredible calves. Faking an engagement to him wouldn’t be too tough. Hailey laughed to herself, but it was shaky. She was relieved to get this reprieve from William, but he had a lot of power, and she knew he could be ugly. Had she just created a bigger mess for herself and Brady Giles? They couldn’t really fake an engagement and get away with it, and William wasn’t going to just slink away.

Little boys started spilling into the camp, shouting and laughing. Hailey smiled, grateful to concentrate on something other than William and her fears.

* * *

Brady finally got rid of the snake from the commissioner’s office and focused on the children happily running to their station. He was lucky to be partnered with Teo Parata, a chill Polynesian offensive lineman. They had a lot of fun teaching the little guys how to tackle and how to block. It was a busy day, but Brady found his eyes straying to the table where his fake fiancée was smiling, laughing, and helping anyone who had an injury, or the numerous young men who faked an injury to bask in one of her smiles. Not that he blamed any of them.

He’d recognized her immediately as the owner’s daughter Hailey Knight. She was a well-known and beautiful woman. A shapely blonde bombshell every man would notice. He’d never seen her equal with the bright blue eyes, smooth, tanned skin, and the distinctive cleft in her chin. She was perfect physically and probably used to lots of attention, but Brady had recognized the fear in her eyes when that loser Fonnesbeck had pushed into her personal space. That’s why he’d gone to help. When she’d claimed they were engaged, Brady easily played along. He wouldn’t mind being engaged to her, not at all, but he knew it was all a farce to keep the vice president from the commissioner’s office away from her. Hopefully, he hadn’t just put a huge target on his own back.

He’d come to Dallas to escape his own troubles, but sadly, trouble had a way of following. The lead police investigator from Foxborough had suggested a couple of times that if Brady could display a girlfriend, or better yet a fiancée, his stalker might back off. Brady had actually gone the other direction the past two years, afraid any girl connected to him would be a target for his stalker. That concern was probably misplaced as his stalker was one hundred percent syrupy sweetness, never threatening him or anyone else, just loving him deeply in every sickening letter and postcard delivered to his home via the U.S. Postal Service. She’d found his address through three moves in Massachusetts, and now, she’d already found him here in Dallas.

He snuck another peek at Hailey. Her bright smile was like a ray of sunshine to him. The gorgeous owner’s daughter had trouble written all over her. Trouble in the form of Brady having no clue how to say no if she wanted him for her fake fiancé. Yet what if a female in his life could finally get his stalker to leave him alone? No, he wouldn’t use a woman just to make his life easier. It was smarter to stay away from Hailey Knight, but he could already see she might prove irresistible to him.