“Joe, Aaron, Donnie, meet Julie. Julie meet Joe and Aaron and Donnie.” Hawk introduced me to a huge table of people, pointing them each out.

“Nice to meet you all,” I responded, wishing they all had nametags. How would I ever keep them all straight?

I was glad he had opted for another club other than Catch. I knew it was the Sharks’ favorite watering hole, but I didn’t think I could hold my head up there.

Hawk pulled out a chair for me and lowered to my ear.

“Love the dress, by the way.” His voice sent chills down my spine. “Think they have a storage room here?”

I coughed to cover up a squeal. The thing was, I knew he wasn’t joking. He would haul me away from this entire group of people and find a place to have his way with this little black dress. It was tight and short, and most of my breasts could be seen from the plunging V-line. I did what Hawk asked me. I wanted to make him happy. I wanted him to know I cared. And more than anything, I wanted him to know this sexual relationship between us was epic. I’d do what I needed to keep the fire and spice going.

Hawk ordered a cosmo for me and a round of beers for his friends.

There was mostly football talk. I couldn’t blame them. They were excited. The playoffs were a huge deal.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw two girls walk toward us.

“Savannah! Amelia!”

The guys got up to greet them. I had tried to talk field goals and pass rushes, but I was failing miserably. Maybe these girls spoke my language of books and Netflix.

Savannah sat next to me. “You’re his agent?” I asked.

“The one and only,” she smiled.

“It’s nice to finally meet you. And thank you,” I whispered.

“Thank me?”

Everyone else was talking. They weren’t paying attention to our conversation. Hawk was arguing about a play.

“Hawk told me about what you’re doing to help get the paperwork going for Hunter. I don’t know what to say. I’ve been trying to adopt that little boy since I met him.”

Her eyes softened. “I get it. Totally. I have an adopted niece and nephew. What I don’t get is how this asshole got roped into it.” She laughed at Hawk. But I knew my eyes lit with something else.

“I think when you meet Hunter, you’ll get it too.”

“Probably.” She took a beer from the pile on the table. The guys liked to order several rounds at once.

“What’s the first step?” I asked.

She took a swig. “I haven’t had a chance to talk to Hawk about it, but he has a hearing at the end of the week. It’s with Judge Bristow.”

I choked on my drink. “Judge Bristow?”

“Yeah, do you know him or something?”

I nodded. “You could say that.”

“Spill it. Any advantage we could get would be welcome. I know how important this is to Hawk.”

“Judge Bristow is my dad.”

She blinked. “Wow. That is something.”

“Yeah, he’s in family court. What are the chances?” I hadn’t even begun to broach the topic of Kane Hawkins with Daddy. He loved the Sharks. He loved the players. But his daughter playing house with the QB was a different story. I hadn’t figured out how to break the news to him yet.

“Then you have to talk to him.”

I bit my lower lip. “If he could have helped me before, he would have. I could never get through the damn red tape.”

Savannah took a sip of beer. I tried to ignore the fact that she was gorgeous and sophisticated, and could probably talk circles around me when it came to the AFA.

“This is different. Hawk has a hearing. Can’t you at least mention it to your dad?”

I had to try. I couldn’t let Hunter slip away again.

I nodded. “I will. I’ll talk to him tomorrow. I’ll do whatever I can.”

“Good. And we need you at the hearing.”

“What?”

Hawk turned his head toward me. “What’s going on?”

Savannah grinned. “You’ve got a hearing this week and I think we just found out how all of this is going to happen. I asked Julie to be there.”

He winked at me. “You want to do that?”

“Of course.” I would have to tell him later about my dad. I had no way of knowing this would happen. My dad heard a hundred cases a week. How did the stars align like this? “It’s one of the rules, right?” I teased.

“Yeah. It is.” He reached under the table and squeezed my knee, but he didn’t stop there. His hand slid between my thighs and I jumped, almost spilling my drink.

“I’ll be right back,” Savannah announced. “I see another client.”

Hawk leaned over. “All it would take is a hard pull and this dress would rip right off of you.”

“Isn’t that what you wanted?” I asked, coyly.

“That’s why I like being with a good girl.” I seized when I felt his finger breach the edge of my panties. “You follow all the rules.”

I bit my lip and gyrated my hips, causing him to groan deep in his throat.

“Damn woman, you better quit that or I'm gonna lose it right here.”

I shook my head and continued to squirm. His arm tensed against my waist, pulling me closer against his chest.

“If you don’t stop making all these sweet sounds I’m going to have to take you out back.” he whispered in my ear, and I shivered.

“So if I were to say …whimper, then you would take me right here? Right now?” I asked, and then whimpered just loud enough that he could hear me.

“Yep. Let’s go.”

I laughed as he dragged me through the sea of bodies in the bar and toward an entrance marked private.

“This is someone’s office,” I argued.

He locked the door behind him.

“I don’t give a fuck,” he growled.

He pushed me against the wall, kissing me deeply. His fingers dug into my thighs as he rolled the hem of my dress up to my hips. I heard the quick rattle of his belt buckle as he shoved his jeans out of the way and freed his cock.

“You drive me so crazy, Jules. So fucking crazy.” He hitched my leg around his waist, tilting me toward him.

I nodded in agreement. I was insane to be doing this. And then he pushed inside me and I knew why I did it.

“Ohh,” I moaned.

He pumped inside me and I clung to him.

His lips found mine in a frenzy of fire and heat. Biting. Licking. Sucking. As he thrust harder and faster.

His body tensed and then he murmured in my ear as his release exploded inside me, “I love fucking you, baby.”

The words soared through me. Because I loved it too.

Hawk kissed me quickly and then pulled out. I felt hollowness where he had filled me.

“I’ll make sure you get yours when we get home.” He winked.

I felt his cum soak my panties. I leaned into the wall, trying to steady myself. Hawk wriggled my dress back into place. My eyes opened and as I looked at him, I knew I had never felt so whole. So loved. So possessed by such a powerful and strong man.

“Need a minute?” he asked.

“I’m going to run to the ladies’ room and then I’ll meet you back at the table.” I smiled.

He slapped my ass as we walked out of the manager’s office. “Don’t be long.”

My chest heaved with heavy breaths. That was the thing. I didn’t think I could bear to be away from him for more than a few minutes either. I had fallen harder than I knew was possible.

“I won’t.”