The No Sex Clause Read Free Page B

hierarchy of school and make something of myself.”
    She glanced over at the school principal, not at all ashamed to see that he was mopping sweat off his scarlet face and glaring at her.
    ***
    “Wow - did you hear that? Hot damn - looks like the Mouse has finally grown a spine!” Maria whistled under her breath as she turned from Jed to look at the podium.
    “The Mouse?”
    “Oh, yes - that’s what we called her in school. She always seemed to be on the outside. She never had the right clothes. I guess she was a bit of a geek, really. But it doesn’t surprise me that she wound up writing a book.”
    Catching the frown on Jed’s face, Maria turned back to him, her hand resting on his arm. “I must admit I felt sorry for her, but what could I do? She seemed to go out of her way to be a target - sometimes she’d try to be cool, and that was hilarious!
    “And she had the hots for Joey Henderson - star footballer, Captain of the team. Can you imagine? Little Mouse actually thought Joey would be interested in her.”
    “And why wouldn’t he be?” Jed moved slightly away; this woman was crowding him and he didn’t like the cruelty that lay so close to her surface.
    “Oh, really – I mean, I don’t know how well you know her –” Maria’s pause made her suggestion obvious. He couldn’t know Anna very well if he hadn’t caught a whiff of scared rodent emanating from her. “To those of us who knew her at school, she’ll always be Mouse.”
    That sudden surge of protectiveness hit him again. “You must admit, writing a book is no mean achievement – and she looks like she’s making a good living off it. And her looks – well, they’re not what most guys would describe as Mousy. She looks all genuine to me,” Jed said, casting a lazy glance over Maria’s hard, round, enhanced bosom.
    He was shamed that he enjoyed the dark flush that spread over the woman’s cheeks, and the old saying his mother used: ‘More to be pitied than blamed’ resounded in his mind.
    He put his drink on the bar and scanned the room to see where Anna was.
    Maybe she needed rescuing.
    * * *
    “So, I hear you’ve written a book – a bestseller, no less? Well done, little Mouse.” Joey hugged her to him. Anna closed her eyes in bliss – only to discover there was no bliss in her.
    “Did I tell you I went pro? All the way to the leagues, baby – maybe after this bun fight is all over, you’ll come back to my place and I’ll show you some videos of my greatest moments on the pitch?” Joey spoke with such confidence, and so obviously wanted to share his achievements with her, that Anna basked in his warmth.
    After all, the football team captain had said: “Well done” about her work! And he wanted to show her his greatest moments! But it did occur to her that his comments about her achievements had been pretty short, and she wondered if he knew anything about her book. Even though she tried to beat the thought down, light was dawning in her brain and she couldn’t ignore it. “Er, wait a moment, now…is this something like showing me your etchings?”
    He burst into uproarious laughter, slapping a hand on his beefy thigh as if she’d said the most amusing thing in the world. “Well, well, Miss Mouse – you have grown a sense of humour since you left school!”
    Everyone was looking at them now. The Homecoming Princess was scowling, and several of the other women were smirking at Anna. Something didn’t feel right…particularly the way Joey’s buddies were all grinning that silly grin men share when one of their number is about to score…
    But she didn’t have time to consider the implications because a large warm hand closed on hers, and she was pulled away and came to rest against a solid wall of masculine chest. In the split second between Bob pulling her towards him and Joey letting her go, Anna felt like a bone trapped between two slathering dogs. The idea infuriated her almost as much as all this blatant male