Hale: A Single Dad Sports Romance (Hale Brothers)

“You think she’s forgiven me? For real?” Hayden asks, sitting across from me in my kitchen. His palm is pressed to his forehead. He wears a worried expression on his face, and I’m enjoying it a bit too much. Letting him stew is one of the best paybacks I’ve come up with.

“Don’t you talk to her all the time?” I gulp my coffee and set my empty mug on the table.

“Well, yeah…” He averts his gaze, his fingers rapping a nervous rhythm against his scalp. “But not in person, you know. She’s coming home tonight, and I’m ready to fucking shit my pants. What if Pip doesn’t want to be my best friend again?”

I roll my eyes. “She is your best friend. I think you won her over when you thoroughly apologized for your overprotective asshole behavior.” I shrug, a smile peeking onto my lips. “And I think the song you wrote for her made a huge difference.”

Hayden grins. “She sent me a video the other day. Pip and Story were dancing and singing ‘Flawless’ at the top of their lungs. It was precious.”

Smirking, I stand up and edge to the dishwasher. “As long as you remember she has a good head on her shoulders, you’re fine.”

“As long as you two keep your hands to yourself around me.” He gives me a pointed look, and I return a blank stare. “I-I didn’t mean it in a bad way,” he mutters. “I just need to get used to it.”

“Piper is my girlfriend. She’s going to live here with me and Story.”

Hayden rubs the back of his neck. “Isn’t she going back to college? I talked to her, and she has plans to enroll next semester.”

“We’ll figure it out,” I say.

We need to be at the airport in two hours, and I still need to pick up Riley. She begged me to take her with me to meet her sister. I’m not sure the ride will be pleasant. Piper’s little sister is still super hostile toward my brother, and he tries to rile her up any chance he gets. I would’ve thought he liked her, but their five-year age gap makes that unlikely. So I’ve decided it’s my little brother acting like a teenager, even if on paper he’s a grown ass adult.

I stand in the airport, my arms folded across my chest. Riley is bouncing on her heels and pacing back and forth, her eyes focused on the arrival gate. She’s pissed at Hayden because of his jokes, so she’s been silent for almost thirty minutes. She’s ignoring me, too, because I refused to take sides.

When I feel someone’s eyes on me, I tip my head. It’s a tall, broad-shouldered guy with a ballcap shading his face. He takes a step forward, stops, shakes his head, and then goes for it, strolling toward us. The closer he gets, the easier it is for me to study him. He has a beard, and his eyes are deep brown. The guy is big and muscular, but I don’t think I know him.

He steps closer, and a smile illuminates his face as he realizes I’m watching him.

“Hey. I’m incredibly sorry for bothering you…but I just can’t help myself. Are you Hunter Hale?”

I turn to him and extend my hand. “Yup, that’s me.”

“Wow, I honestly never thought I’d get a chance to meet you in person.” He shakes my hand, and my eyes drop to the tattoos on his hand. One is particularly entertaining—Winnie-the-Pooh is inked on his wrist. “I’m Colton.”

“Oh my God.” Riley’s loud whisper makes me shift my gaze to her. She looks between me and this guy, her eyes wide like saucers. “You’re Colton Thompson. The California Thunders center.”

A hockey player? Well, now his appearance makes total sense. I watch hockey sometimes, but I don’t know any of the players—unlike my brother. Hayden loves hockey, and the Thunders are his favorite team. He’d freak out knowing we met their center while he was buying coffee.

“What are you doing in LA?” I ask. “I thought you guys were based in San Jose.”

“I promised to take my kid and my sister to Universal Studios months ago, and we finally got the chance to come. My family’s here, and now I need to meet my little sis.” He smiles, falling quiet for a moment. “I loved watching you play. And I was so damn proud! An American playing for my favorite team. What could be better?”

“Are we talking about Real?”

“Of course! Don’t get me wrong; there are so many great teams in Europe, but Real Madrid is next level for me. I fell in love with them when I was a kid, and nothing’s changed since.”

We talk some more, about LACFC and the California Thunders. Riley not-so-subtly mentions she’d love to see Colton play in person, and with laughter he promises to arrange tickets for us once the season starts. The way she blushes is adorable.

“It was nice to meet you, Hunter. I’m going to get to one of your games while we’re here,” Colton says, taking a step back. “Bye, Riley.”

He waves and walks away, and I focus my gaze on Piper’s sister. Her eyes are glued to the guy, and I chuckle.

“What?” she snaps.

“Nothing,” I assure her and turn my head to the gate, just in time to see Story and Piper. They stroll hand in hand as Piper pushes their bags in front of them, and my whole body warms up. My girls. My future. My everything.

My daughter notices us and takes off running. I catch her in my arms, pressing her close to my chest. Inhaling her sweet scent, my lips curl into a huge smile. I’m so damn happy they’re finally home. These last few months were hard, but they were also full of hope. I knew they’d be back, and now that they’re finally here, my chest doesn’t feel as tight. I can breathe freely and feel content. Everything is exactly as it should be.

“I didn’t expect Story to go to your parents’ just three days after our arrival,” Piper says, popping a cherry in her mouth. She’s sitting on the edge of the pool with her legs dangling in the water.

“Why?” I sit beside her and take a sip of my drink. It’s past eight p.m., and we’re finally alone. It feels like a blessing after three days of having our families constantly in our faces.

“We still have so many things to do: buy stuff for her room, make sure Binx gets used to this place again, and buy things for our bedroom,” she lists, tucking one of her wild locks behind her ear. The rest of her hair is collected into a messy bun, and her sun-kissed skin is glowing.

I try hard to hide my smile but quickly fail. When my parents came to visit us two days ago, my mom spent an hour, if not more, apologizing for not believing in us. Later, in the kitchen, she asked if there was anything I needed her help with, and I asked her to take Story to their house for a sleepover. Why? Because I wanted to keep my promise to my girlfriend. And making her pass out from pleasure isn’t really possible with Story sleeping just behind our bedroom wall.

“Why are you smiling?” Piper asks, fixing her necklace. Her fingers trail over her butterfly pendant. The smile on her face when I gave it back to her was priceless.

“Because I love spending time with you. Alone.”

“You have me all to yourself every night,” she murmurs, moving closer and leaning against me.

“I have no problem making you orgasm every night,” I counter with a smile on my lips. “But I don’t think I should be making you scream my name with Story in the house.”

“Oh God,” Piper groans and puts her head on my shoulder. “It was stupid of me to plan a quiet evening for us.”

“We can still be quiet, if you want it that way.” I smirk, wrapping my arm around her shoulders.

I bend down, tracing her bottom lip with my thumb. Her mouth pops open, and I slip my finger inside. Her tongue curls around it. The second I think I’m in control, she makes me realize I never was.

“Let’s go back inside?” My voice cracks, thick with my desire for her.

She nods, and I drop my hands from her body. We stand up, and she takes a step away from me. It’s the only thing she has time to do before I haul her to my chest. Piper winds her hands around my neck, her legs locked behind my back. Her chocolate brown eyes stare at me with such intensity, I feel pre-cum on my already hard cock. Waiting for her all these months, I missed sex and being intimate, but I wasn’t tempted. Not even with my hand. All of me belongs to her, and I don’t need anyone else.

We maintain eye contact as I carry her inside the house. Not a single word, not a single sound. Just our breathing and our heartbeats communicating on some totally different level. The understanding I have with Piper is out of this world. We talk, we plan, we give each other advice. We not only hear each other, we listen. And I know she’ll never judge me, just like she’ll never hear a critique from me, only guidance if I think things are going south. I’ll never pressure her into anything, just like she always makes sure we’re on the same page with our decisions. She’s precious and all mine. So fucking mine, I feel like I’m ready to explode with my feelings for her.

“Any particular wishes, baby?” I ask, opening the door to our bedroom with my leg.

“I don’t need you to be gentle with me,” Piper purrs sweetly, hiding her fingers in my hair. “I want a rough and hard fuck—” She gasps as I press her back to the wall.

“Anything for you.” A light kiss on her lips, and I put her down.

My hands roam over her narrow waist and down to her killer hips. Pushing down her bikini bottoms, I kneel and toss them aside as soon as she steps out of them. Piper spreads her legs, leaning back against the wall. I look up, and our gazes meet. She’s watching me.

Her pussy is wet, and my mouth waters. Without any hesitation, I lift her leg and hook it over my shoulder, spreading her open. She jerks, and her eyes instantly snap closed once I flick my tongue over her clit. I smile to myself and ravish her little cunt with my tongue. I kiss and suck, licking and circling my tongue over her clit. Piper pants, her moans filling the room. She’s not trying to hold back or keep her voice down. The house is ours for tonight, and I plan to make the most of it.

“Hunter…” She whispers my name, her fingers digging into my hair. She rocks her hips back and forth, riding my face. “You feel so good.”

Nibbling on her clit, I draw a loud moan out of her, and she tugs harder on my hair. I hiss; her roughness makes me see stars, and my cock strains against my shorts. Plunging one of my fingers inside her pussy, I loudly suck on her clit, and her legs tremble. I push another finger inside her and slowly start pumping, moving my fingers in and out. My mouth never leaves her pussy as I lap my tongue over her clit.

Piper sucks in a breath and presses her palms against the wall. She’s on the brink of her first orgasm, and there’s nothing better than watching her come—on my tongue, with my fucking lips getting her off.

“I’m gonna come…right there…please, Hunter…” she moans. Her movements become erratic. A little more, and she’s a goner. “Oh my God, Hunter…”

Standing up, I press my palm to her pussy and lightly slap it. Piper whimpers; her eyes are hooded as she licks her lips. I take a condom out of my pocket, push my shorts down, and kick them aside. Sheathing my cock, I step closer. My arms are around her waist, and I lift her, making her loop her legs around me.

Piper unties her bikini top and pushes her naked tits against my chest. My hands lower, and I cup her ass. This girl and her charms…dammit. My resolve disappears into an abyss, as if it wasn’t there in the first place. I position her for a better angle and slide my cock deep inside her warm pussy.

Heaven. Fucking heaven.

She cups my face and presses her lips to mine as I fuck her slowly, her back pressed against the wall. We kiss, our tongues playing with each other. My skin is hot, and my veins feel like they’re on fire. Every emotion feels different around her, more heightened. It’s like she’s a fucking energy drink, pumping through my blood and making me feel unstoppable.

Loving her feels like the most natural thing in the world. Like the rainbow that comes after the rain on a sunny day. It fills me with hope and joy, spreads love throughout my body. Not loving her feels wrong. As if a part of me went missing, and no one knows where to find it. I have no desire to go back to how it was then, when I didn’t have her in my life.

My thrusts become rougher, and I grip her ass hard. I slam inside her, going balls deep. Again and again. Piper chants my name; her eyes are closed, and her tits bounce with each movement. She’s so fucking gorgeous, and she belongs to me. The thought settles in, and I know I won’t last long.

“Baby, are you close?” I ask, and she nods.

I cover her mouth with mine, drowning her moans and screams in our kiss. She orgasms, her pussy squeezing my cock so hard I instantly come too. I continue moving, prolonging the feeling of my release. Her body is tense as she rocks on the waves of her orgasm, her fingers threading through my hair.

Catching her gaze, I smile and amble to the table in the corner of my room. With one hand, I push aside some documents and put Piper on its surface. Mischief swims behind her irises as she trails a manicured finger down my chest.

“Are we going to make it to bed tonight?” She arches an eyebrow, making me snort.

“We have all night for that,” I say, changing the condom and throwing the used one into the trash can.

“You’ll not only need to fuck me, but also feed me,” Piper murmurs, her hand draping around my waist.

“How about,” I say, pulling her ass to the edge of the table, “I fuck your brains out one more time, and then we go to the kitchen. We can eat dinner and talk about your college arrangements.”

Piper nods, her eyes sparkling. There is something on her mind for sure, because she keeps quiet, her palms pressed to my chest. I thrust my hips forward and start to move inside her again. I have no clue why I’m so hard so soon after my release, but with her it’s my new reality. Not that I’m complaining, because I’ll never say no to anything she wants. Because all I want is her.