Chapter 4
Lincoln stretched, the muscles in his back aching from today’s work out. He had to admit, this physical therapy was keeping him in top form. Over the last two weeks, he’d made great progress. Shoving the last of his clothes into a duffle bag, he turned, making sure he had all his stuff.
Today, was release day, not that he’d been counting the minutes or anything. The NFL had set him up in a condo nearby so he could continue therapy. Though he was still in some pain, it lessened each day. With the staples finally out, his scar itched, but at least the worst of the aches had diminished. Thank God for the physical therapy. It truly had helped.
He used each session to nonchalantly find out little things about Gina every day—like her love of books and food. They also had similar tastes in music and movies. She’d been adopted as a teenager by a foster family who fell in love with her. That brought up sad memories for him, of his parents and life growing up. Having lost them a few years ago, was hard on him.
He used his hours in therapy to watch her, to imagine running his fingers through the long blonde hair she always kept pulled back. He’d spent hours gazing into her green eyes that seemed older and wiser than someone her age should have. He’d found out she was an avid football fan, which came to light during a heated debate between her and Jesse about another player’s stats.
True to their word, Gina and Charles had made sure their appointments were at the same time. He worked side by side with the kid, watching his progress. Today had been Jesse’s first day on the bars, after he’d spent days watching Lincoln walk farther and farther until he made it to the other end.
Okay. So maybe all that self-pity about not having a future had been a little over-dramatic. Especially now when he felt such hope for the days and weeks, years even, to come.
Jesse had mentioned that his coach was retiring after that season. Lincoln wondered at the possibility of taking the job. He had even started looking forward to seeing the kid every day. Never before had he thought that there would be a day he would enjoy spending time with a kid. It hadn’t crossed his mind. Now, it was all he could think of.
“So, leaving us today?” Gina leaned on the doorframe as he slowly turned to face her. With his cane, he was able to move without a wheelchair.
His cock twitched against the jogging pants. The desire he felt for this woman was unlike ever before. He’d dated models, cheerleaders, actresses, some of the most beautiful women in the world. Why this therapist, in her plain little uniform that looked more like pajamas, drove his senses wild was beyond him. Okay, she was always happy and easy to talk to. That was new. Not something he’d ever experienced in his relationships with women. Those had been about sex, which satisfied his body, but his mind, even then, had ached in unfulfilled frustration.
“Sure am. But you’ll still see me every other day. I gotta keep working out with my buddy.”
“He’s doing amazing. Because of you.”
“He would have done well with or without me. But he makes it more fun for me. Keeps me going.” He moved towards her. “Now, about dinner…” He came to a stop in front of her, raised his hand and brushed a finger along her cheek. When she shivered and sucked in a breath, he smiled. “Come over tonight?” He pressed a piece of paper into her hand—the address to his temporary condo. With him staring into her eyes as if he could see inside her mind, she was powerless to do more than nod. He grinned. “Six.”
“Are you ready, Mr. Marshall?” A nurse rolling a wheelchair approached behind Gina Linc frowned and narrowed his eyes at it. “Sorry,” she told him. “Hospital policy.”
He grimly nodded, sliding into the seat. The nurse dropped the duffle bag on his lap. He kept eye contact with Gina.
“Wait,” Gina rushed to catch up with them. “I got it, thanks.” She took the handles of the wheelchair, practically pushing the nurse out of her way.
“Gonna miss me, huh?” Lincoln joked.
“Nah, I’ll still get to see you every other day. You have a few more weeks of therapy.”
“But, it’s not every day.” He glanced up at her, winking.
She patted a shoulder while the elevator took them down to the lobby. “So, who’s picking you up?”
Lincoln scrunched up his face. He wasn’t really sure. His focus had been on getting out of there, so he never paid it any mind. “The NFL rep I spoke with, just said it was handled.” As she pushed him out of the automatic doors, heat blasted them in the face. Lincoln turned his face up to the sky. Weeks of being in the air-conditioned hospital with its fake lighting and only a single window in his room that didn’t open, he had missed this. Being outside, in the sunshine, the warm air.
“Linky,” came a screeching voice from in front of him.
No, please no, he silently begged. Cracking his eyes open, the smile fell from his face. Sheena Lawson. They had gone on one date. One. And after, she’d gone all fatal attraction. for being such a well-known actress, almost A-list, this chick had some serious crazy going on. After that one, disastrous date, she had told one of those paparazzi TV shows that she and Linc were in a serious relationship. And the phone calls. God. Hundreds of them. Non-stop. Until finally, he’d had to change his number and his agent threaten her with a restraining order. Now, here she was, in her full blonde bounciness. Large breasts spilled out the top of her dress as she almost ran over to them. The chair screeched to a halt, and he turned to glance at Gina.
“Save me, please,” he whispered. A smirk broke out on Gina’s face.
“Nope, that disaster is all yours. Have fun.” Her smug smile didn’t betray the tightness on her face, the way she held her shoulders back, entire body a mask of tense muscle.
“Oh, come on. Help a guy out. She’s crazy. We had one awful date and she thought we were getting married.”
“Not my monkey, not my circus.”
Sheena bent over, almost smacking Lincoln in the face with her chest as he turned to face her. Her arms lassoed his neck, tight, like an anaconda trying to suffocate him.
“Linky, I’m so happy you’re all right! Come on now, let’s get you to your place and get you all tucked in. Then I will grab you some dinner.” He tried to stand, but Sheena wouldn’t budge. Her manicured claws dug into his forearms as she hefted against his body weight, trying to pull him up. Good God. This woman was going to land him right back upstairs if she didn’t knock it off. He winced, as pain shot through his leg. It wasn’t fully healed, but he didn’t need the pain pills, refused to take anymore.
“She-She, please, let Lincoln be.” Roger Carter, Lincoln’s agent, stalked around the front of a black BMW. He wrapped an arm around Sheena’s waist, and she giggled. “Linc, how are you?” he held out a hand, vigorously shaking with his client. Lincoln looked between the two before him, as his agent held the bottle blonde sack of crazy, tightly against his side.
“So, um?” Lincoln didn’t know what to say to them. He just wanted to get to the condo and make a wonderful dinner for him and Gina. He would finally have her alone and maybe they could see where this was going.
“Oh, yea.” Roger stepped forward, taking the bag from Lincoln. “I got the address, let’s get you to your new home. Though we won’t be tucking anyone in, now will we Snooky-Bear?” Lincoln tried to not gag. Snook bear? And what the hell was up with his voice? Instead, Linc turned to Gina, who tried to hide her smile, though failed miserably and Linc’s gut tightened.
“Tonight?” he asked her. She nodded and turned, taking the wheel chair back inside. Lincoln slid into the back seat of the BMW, watching her walk away.
“So, Linc, I gotta say, thanks for this.”
He cocked one eyebrow and looked at Roger. “For what?”
“Well, if you hadn’t asked me to take care of Sheena here, we wouldn’t have met and gotten married.” Sheena’s high-pitched shriek pierced his ears. He fought the urge to cover them with his hands.
“I’m sorry. You did what?” He blinked, looking again to the couple in the front seat. Roger held Sheena’s hand, up in the air so Lincoln could see their rings.
“We eloped, last week. We couldn’t be happier, and it’s all thanks to you,” he gushed. For a tough sports agent that half the NFL wanted to represent them, and the other half was intimidated by, it was hard to watch this.
Lincoln sunk into the seat, watching Miami whizz by.
“I got the groceries you asked for. The place is stocked. You should be all set for a few days. If you need anything, there is a list of numbers on the fridge of places that deliver. You have a car service to get you to and from appointments. Sheena is gonna whip you up some dinner, while I go over some paperwork with you.”
“No.” First, he wasn’t eating anything that psycho whipped up. And second, he had plans that didn’t involve Rog or his new wife. “Sorry, Rog. I know you’re trying to help me. But, I have plans.” Roger glanced at his client in the rearview mirror. His eyebrows pulled together in mock surprise.
“Already, my man? Damn, you work fast. Hot date? Party?” He laughed.
Lincoln looked back out the window. “Something like that.”
Roger pulled into a private drive that led to what he had said was a small condo. In fact, it was pretty large. Two floors, right on the beach. Lincoln stared in awe. He’d made millions playing football, but he’d always lived small, if only because he was gone most of the year, playing. He climbed out of the car, following Roger into the condo. His agent handed him the keys.
“Well, then we’ll get out of your hair.” Lincoln leaned on his cane as he walked into the living room. To the left was a large kitchen, with a dining room in between. The open floor plan was great. He could cook and still entertain Gina. There were bar stools up against a kitchen counter. Large glass sliding doors opened to a porch, looking out on the beach. He shook his head.
“Thanks for everything, man.” He heard Roger and Sheena leave, and moved slowly further inside. Past the kitchen, led down a hallway. There was a bathroom, then the master bedroom, with another bathroom. He couldn’t really go upstairs yet, so he didn’t bother exploring.
Setting his bag down, he shuffled to the kitchen and looked over the groceries, deciding what to cook. It had been years, since he had enough down time to actually cook a great meal for someone. He wanted to impress her, show her that he was more than just a jock. Smiling to himself, he knew just what to make and began to prepare.