“I was backing up a teammate! I didn’t start the damned thing.”
“But as usual, someone caught it on video.” Bri’s frown wasn’t one Macy would want to face.
Austin came up beside them. Grabbing Bri’s cell, he watched the screen with a wince. “God dammit. Don’t you know what behave yourself means?” he asked, and as his brother’s agent, he had every right to know the answer.
Still, Macy felt sorry for Jaxon if he’d been backing up a friend as he claimed.
“And to say the video has gone viral is an understatement. I’m getting notifications like crazy.” Bri continued to shoot daggers at her bad-boy brother.
“Dammit, Jax, when are you going to get your shit together?” Austin asked.
“Some asshole in the bar was throwing shit at Dale Macaffrey for his missed catch in the playoffs. And he swung first. His friends jumped on and Mac needed reinforcements.” Jaxon folded his arms across his chest defensively.
“Come on, guys. You never know where the paparazzi or asshole fans are going to be,” Damon said in an attempt to help his brother out.
“My point exactly!” Bri poked her finger at her brother.
“Not my point. I was saying cut him some slack. A decent teammate helps out his buddies.” Damon tried again to stand up for Jaxon.
Austin groaned. “Regardless, it looks bad, and management is going to be pissed. But we are not doing this here. Not today. Today is Damon and Evie’s celebration.” Always the head of the family, he took the lead, and his siblings usually listened.
Glancing at Jaxon, he said, “I hope you’re prepared for a meeting with ownership, because once they see this video, you’re going to be in for it. So will Mac but I don’t represent him.”
Everyone, including Macy, grimaced at Austin’s furious tone, but Jaxon just looked pissed off.
After some more family discussion and murmuring quietly, Damon and Evie said their goodbyes, leaving for their honeymoon to celebrate their happiness, while Jaxon headed for the bar and asked for a drink.
Macy waited until Bri was alone and walked over to her friend. “Hey, are you okay?”
“If I kill my brother, will you bail me out of jail?” she asked, a wry smile on her face.
“If I can afford it, you know I will.” Macy laughed. “Is he in that much trouble? Because it sounded like he was just helping out a friend.”
Austin joined them. “Doesn’t matter. A brawl reflects badly on him.”
Bri grasped the drink out of Austin’s hand and downed it all in one gulp. “And Jaxon tends to find trouble.”
“He needs to mature and settle down,” Austin said, as if that were the answer to Jaxon’s reputation and problems.
“As if any sane woman would marry him,” Bri muttered.
Macy strongly disagreed. “Come on. I know you can’t see him this way, but he is easy on the eyes.”
Bri made a gagging sound. “I’m going to make some calls,” she said and walked away.
Macy kept an eye on Jaxon, who, looking pissed at the world, made his way outside to the patio, where the chairs were still set up, and sat alone on a cushioned chair.
Feeling like he needed company, Macy headed outside to join him.
Chapter Two
Jaxon resented being humiliated and called out in public even if Bri was his publicist and Austin his agent. Jaxon was a grown man, dammit, and could do whatever he wanted, including backing up a teammate when a jackass made fun of him in public and swung first. His brother had played on a team and damn well knew what it meant to be a stand-up guy. Fucking hypocrite giving him shit now, Jaxon thought.
“Want company?” a familiar female voice asked.
He glanced up. Macy, his sister Bri’s friend, had been coming around family gatherings more often lately, and with her understated sensuality, beautiful smile, and charming personality, he’d been intrigued. Flirting came naturally to him, but Macy knew his reputation with women, which was legitimately earned, and he was sure his sister had warned her away from him. She might have blushed a time or two at his compliments, but she hadn’t truly engaged with him.
Smart woman.
But that didn’t mean the sexual chemistry wasn’t there. He felt it and knew she did, too. In fact, he’d caught her watching him when she thought he wasn’t looking, like during the ceremony earlier. But he was surprised she’d come out here now.
“Have a seat.” He gestured to the free chair next to him.
She lowered herself onto the white folding chair. “Sorry it got ugly in there.”
He raised an eyebrow. “You’re not here to tell me what a dumb move I made?”
A smile curved her lips. “I kind of admire the fact that you stood up for your friend. Are you really going to get in trouble with management?”
His shoulders stiffened at the thought. He’d given them enough aggravation over the years that they wouldn’t be happy no matter the reason. “Probably. Can we talk about something else? Anything else?”
She shrugged. “Sure.”
“What’s going on with you?” he asked, curious about this woman he’d only seen from afar. This was their first real conversation.
She sighed. “You really don’t want to hear my problems.”
He tilted his head and glanced at her pretty profile. “Try me.”
She shrugged. “Well, I have custody of my fifteen-year-old half sister, and her mother showed up after five years, making noises about wanting custody.”
Resting his elbows on his knees, he turned her way. “What happened to your parents, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“My mom died when I was six, and Dad passed eight months ago.”
Knowing what it was like to lose a parent, even one he hadn’t liked that much, because the Prescott family tree was complicated, he grabbed her hand and squeezed it compassionately. “That sucks. I’m sorry.”
Her smile was grim. “Thank you.”
They sat in silence for a while, the sun beating down on them. Glancing at her from the corner of his eye, he took in her pert nose, those lips he’d imagined
