Calling All the Shots Read Free

you wanted to be a writer.”
    He saw the momentary surprise in her eyes before she masked it.
She turned away from him, took another sip of her wine and then cleared her
throat. “That’s right, I did, but once I got to school I realized that I’m more
into telling people what to do.”
    He grinned as he suspected she wanted him to. But he’d been a
star athlete and had lost the ability to play his game so he knew that
dreams—especially those that were held since childhood—were hard to let go of.
“I’m glad it was easy for you to transition. It wasn’t for me.”
    “From football?” she asked. “I saw the game where you were
injured and despite everything I felt bad about what happened.”
    “What do you mean despite everything?” he asked.
    “Just that I wasn’t a Giants fan,” she said.
    Again he sensed there was more she wasn’t saying but this was a
first date so that made sense. He’d find out what she was hiding from him as
time went on.
    The timer on his iPod beeped and he stood up. “Dinner’s
ready.”
    “I think I’ll go wash up,” she said. “Can you direct me to the
restroom?”
    “To the left of the TV wall,” he said. “I’ll give you a tour
after dinner.”
    She arched one eyebrow at him. “What else would you show me
except your bedroom…the entire apartment is visible?”
    “I’ll show you my bedroom,” he said. “But I’ll wait until you
ask to see it.”
    “Don’t hold your breath,” she said.
    “Over dinner I want you to explain why you’re so prickly,” he
said.
    “Just because I’m not swooning at the thought of seeing your
bedroom?” she asked.
    “Sort of. But you also seem to be almost angry at me and I
don’t know why,” he said.
    “Oh, I…”
    “Not now. Go wash up and while we’re eating you can tell me.
I’m very good at fixing things,” he said.
    She shook her head. “Not this.”
    He watched her walk away again and this time he was just as
puzzled by her as the first time. He wanted her, which was why he’d been trying
so hard to convince her to go out with him. But now that she was here and he
realized how much of herself she kept hidden from the world…well, it just
intrigued him more.
    He wanted to get to know the whole Willow not just seduce her
into his bed. But both objectives were looking harder than he’d thought they’d
be.
    There was definitely something from their mutual past that he’d
done to upset her. But for the life of him he couldn’t put his finger on what it
was. He rarely thought of those old days now.
    He got the dinner his housekeeper had prepared out of the oven
and set the table for two. Willow still hadn’t emerged from the bathroom and he
wondered why.
    He was about to go knock on the door when she was back with a
fake bright smile on her face. “Dinner smells good. I had no idea you could
cook.”
    “I can’t,” he said.
    “Another illusion shattered,” she said.
    “I never said I could cook,” he said.
    “I know. It’s just that you seem like you can do everything,”
she said. “All the shows and the easy charm. Life just looks really good for
you.”
    “It is, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. I have struggles like
everyone else.”
    He held her chair out and she sat down at the table. “Jack
Crown isn’t like everyone else.”
    “I was hoping you’d see that. I’m not like any other man you
know,” he said. “But I think you meant that in a negative way. So tell me—what
did I do to make you so angry?”
    She swallowed hard and looked up at him with those big, dark
brown eyes of hers. “Nothing. I’ve just been burned in the past by men who
seemed too good to be true.”
    “Get to know me so you can see that I’m exactly what you think
I am.”
    “That might not work in your favor,” she said. “I don’t have a
positive impression of you.”
    “I can work with it,” he said. He always had the feeling that
she was judging him, and if there was one thing he knew about