Hot shot lauderdale knig.., p.1
Hot Shot (Lauderdale Knights Book 4), page 1
HOT SHOT
LAUDERDALE KNIGHTS BOOK FOUR
KAT MIZERA
Copyright © 2022 by Kat Mizera
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Created with Vellum
CONTENTS
Author’s Note
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Epilogue
Sure Shot (Lauderdale Knights #5)
Also by Kat Mizera
About the Author
AUTHOR’S NOTE
Dear Readers:
Just as life is often messy and unpredictable, so is fiction. This book took me on an emotional journey that led to some tragic events. I don’t want to give spoilers that could ruin the story for the majority of readers, but if you feel you need a warning when it comes to certain topics, be sure to visit the Hot Shot page on my website for more details.
My books will always have a happy ending, but certain events could be disturbing to some readers.
All my love,
Kat
1
Scarlett
I woke to warm hands on my body, and even in my sleepy state sighed with contentment. The last two days had been wonderful. I started to drift back to sleep, but Wolf’s soft lips on my shoulder woke up my body if nothing else. I shifted, moving my backside against his erection, and nestled as close to him as possible. I didn’t know how much more time we’d have together, but I was going to enjoy however much there was.
Wolf and I had fallen hard and fast the summer we were seventeen. It didn’t seem possible eleven years had gone by since then, but the passion and spark between us hadn’t dimmed in the least. The moment I’d seen him at the surfing competition the day before yesterday my heart had skipped a beat, and I’d practically thrown myself into his bed.
And it was still so damn good.
We’d been young and somewhat inexperienced back then, but what we’d lacked in knowledge we’d made up for in enthusiasm.
So much enthusiasm.
All these years later, the sex was even better than it had been as teens, and if I hadn’t been so sleepy, I would have wondered how I’d survived having sex with other men. Because they truly all paled in comparison. Ironically, he hadn’t been my first lover but I’d been his, and we’d eventually taught each other almost everything.
“You’re so beautiful.” His gruff, sleep-addled voice roused me from my drowsy state, and I reached back to run my hand along his side. We’d been naked for most of the last forty-eight hours, and I loved the feel of his strong, muscular body against mine.
One of his hands drifted to my chest, fingers lightly toying with my breasts, bringing me into a state of arousal. It had been like this the whole time we’d been together, so my body reacted without much input from the rest of me.
“You wet for me, babe?” He whispered against my ear, using his tongue to paint a trail along the side of my neck.
“Always.”
I couldn’t do anything but moan as he slid into me from behind.
Hard and thick and hot.
I lost myself in him, his touch, how amazing and sexy he was.
He moved slowly but purposefully, taking his time, kissing my neck and shoulder as he filled me, over and over and over. His hands were all over me, my breasts, my stomach and hips. Touching, caressing, stroking. Every time he bottomed out, I moaned with need. I never got enough of him.
“Are you close?” he murmured against my ear, his cock so deep I would have sworn he was tearing me in half. Except it felt so fucking good.
“So close,” I whispered, surging back to meet his thrusts, demanding more even as he gave it to me.
His fingers trailed down to my clit, circling and pinching until my world splintered around me and I shrieked his name. He came right after I did, and it wasn’t until I felt the rush of liquid between my legs that I realized what we’d just done.
“Wolf!” I practically jerked away from him, pushing at him so I could roll onto my back. “What did you do?”
“Huh?” He was still on his side, staring at me in confusion.
“Condom,” I panted, still coming down from the high of our lovemaking and trying to wrap my head around the fact that he wasn’t wearing one.
“Jesus.” He ran a hand through his long, dark hair. “I’m sorry. I was half-asleep…”
I couldn’t do anything but lie there for a few minutes. How had neither of us noticed? I’d never had unprotected sex with anyone, and I was sure he was careful too. Wolf wasn’t stupid, and he knew tons of women would love a professional athlete to get them pregnant. I, however, was not one of them.
Holy fuck. What had we just done?
I was a professional athlete too.
And now… oh my god.
The potential implications were terrifying.
“Dammit, Wolf. I’m not on birth control.” I finally looked over at him in frustration.
How could we have been so careless? I’d been half-asleep too, but I’d figured he’d been more awake since he’d been the one who’d initiated the sex. And I knew there were a handful of condoms right on the nightstand.
“I’m sorry,” he said, putting one of his big, gentle hands on my stomach. “I don’t know what came over me.”
I grunted. I knew exactly what had come over him. What always came over us when we were naked. Or clothed and merely in each other’s vicinity. We were horny. All the fucking time. When we were together anyway.
But he was in charge of birth control.
Always.
Since we’d been teenagers.
I was too annoyed to simply accept his apology and move on, so I got out of bed and stormed into the bathroom.
I turned on the shower in frustration, closing my eyes and trying to breathe as I placed my hands flat against the wall.
The last thing I wanted right now was a baby.
I was the top women’s surfer in the world, and I wasn’t ready to retire yet. Not for a baby and certainly not for Wolf, no matter how I felt about him. That had been a point of contention between us for years—him wanting to settle down and me refusing—but we’d never had a conversation about kids before.
How had I gone from bliss to hell-on-earth in a matter of seconds?
I felt Wolf’s movement behind me and then his hands on my shoulders.
“I really am sorry.” His voice was contrite, his touch as gentle as ever. “I’ve never… I always use condoms. You don’t have to worry about diseases.”
I couldn’t help but snort. “Diseases are at the bottom of my list of worries,” I muttered.
“You’re really not on birth control?” he asked. “Still?”
“No. I’m not. You know I’ve always had trouble with it. The pills and implants make me so sick it’s like constant morning sickness. I had an IUD, and it slipped out of place twice. My doctor said I probably was just one of those rare women who isn’t a good candidate for it. So my only option are condoms. And you were in charge of those.” I finally turned to meet his gaze, glaring at him again.
“I’m sorry.” He rested a hand on the side of my face, staring deep into my eyes. “What can I do?”
“You already did plenty,” I whispered, not trusting my voice as I grabbed the washcloth and lathered it up.
Don’t cry-don’t cry-don’t cry.
What the hell was I going to do? My periods were pretty regular, but I never paid attention to ovulation or shit like that because I was always careful.
Oh my fucking god.
“Scarlett, will you please look at me?”
“I have to get dressed and find a drug store.” If I looked at him, I would definitely cry. And I refused. Besides, I had to do something, and I’d just figured out what.
“Drug store?” He sounded confused again.
“Yes. I need a morning after pill.”
He blinked. “Oh. I didn’t realize…”
“Of course you didn’t. You’re not the one who’d have to carry a baby for nine months or give up your career to do it.” I quickly washed and rinsed my hair before stepping out of the shower and grabbing a towel.
“Would having a baby be that bad?” he asked softly. “I mean, I know the timing sucks but—”
I whirled, scowling at him as I cut him off. “Are you serious right now? Jesus Christ, eleven years later, and yo u’re still the same misogynistic ass you were as a teenager.”
“I’m not a misogynist,” he protested, grabbing another towel as he stepped out behind me. “I’m traditional. It’s not the same thing. And it’s not like I could get pregnant even if I wanted to, so—”
“Therein lies the problem. It’s not something you’d ever have to deal with so you don’t think about it.” I wrapped the towel around my middle and reached for my toothbrush.
“I don’t know what you want me to say.”
“Nothing. It’s obvious you haven’t changed at all. It’s like everything we talked about the last couple of days has been a lie.” I brushed my teeth and then stomped into the hotel room, digging through my suitcase for panties.
“What are you talking about?” he finally demanded, coming after me. “What have I lied about?”
“We just had a conversation last night about how we’ve grown, changed, matured since we dated all those years ago. How maybe things could be different this time… but all I’m hearing now is the same bullshit you spewed then.”
“I’ve barely said a word except to apologize, ask what I can do, and then question how bad it would be to have a baby together. Why are you so pissed off?” He stood there with the towel knotted low on his hips, a few beads of water still trailing down his magnificent torso.
What a shame I was too furious to appreciate the view.
“I’m pissed because you act like your old-fashioned, traditional ideals are a given, and what I want doesn’t matter. Just because you’ve decided a woman’s place is at home doing nothing but raising a family doesn’t mean that’s what I see in my future.”
“What’s wrong with wanting to take care of someone and have them take care of me in return?” he asked. “My parents did it, and they’ve been together thirty years.”
“Are you listening to yourself? I am the number one surfer in the world at the moment. I make millions of dollars a year. I have a successful, lucrative career that requires me to be in top physical shape. How do you not understand that?”
“I do! But you’re almost thirty. We’re almost thirty. Are you going to surf forever?”
“Are you going to play hockey forever?”
He didn’t respond, and we stared each other down until I finally turned away, shaking my head before glancing at him again. “Look, this is a more heated version of the same thing we’ve argued about for years. And it’s getting old.”
“Agreed.”
“It’s literally the only reason we’re not together, and you still refuse to acknowledge it, much less change or evolve.”
“That’s the reason?” he demanded, his dark eyes narrowing slightly.
“Well, it’s certainly not because I don’t love you, but I guess you never loved me the way I loved you.” I turned, yanking on a pair of shorts, furious at myself because of the tears forming in my eyes. I hated fighting with him, yet no matter what else happened with us, this was always how it ended.
Always.
“That’s not fair.” He moved behind me.
“Life isn’t fair, is it?” I countered, picking up my purse.
“Where are you going?”
“I already told you. The drug store.”
“Give me a minute and I’ll come with you.”
“Don’t bother. I’ll handle it.”
“Scarlett.” He reached for me, but I headed toward the door.
“You probably shouldn’t be here when I get back,” I whispered, even though it nearly killed me to say the words. Then I let the door fall shut behind me.
2
Wolf
I’d been in a piss-poor mood since leaving Hawaii. It had been more than a month, and I was still grumpy as fuck about the way Scarlett and I had left things. We almost always parted ways on bad terms, and then a few weeks later one of us would reach out to apologize. We never officially got together or anything, but we also never stayed angry for long. This time, I was torn because while it had been more my fault than hers, not using a condom that morning had been an accident. I’d texted her later that day asking if she wanted to talk, and I still hadn’t gotten a response.
So I’d tried to move on, like I usually did.
Except this time was harder than any of the others.
This time I missed her in a way that was different from the past. All the other times we’d hooked up over the years had been brief, mostly sexual interludes. The three days we’d spent together in Hawaii had been different. We’d talked. About the past. The future. Potentially seeing more of each other. There had been a neediness in her I’d never felt before, and though I hadn’t acknowledged it verbally, I’d sensed it. As if she’d been ready to talk about something more permanent.
She’d never looked at me like she had that first night when we’d gone to dinner. Her eyes lingering in a way that had nothing to do with sex. When she’d asked me if I ever missed her, it had taken a ton of self-control not to bang my fist on the table and yell, “fuck yeah!” Instead, I’d nodded, trying to read between lines that always blurred when we were together. Nothing with us had ever been easy, but this last time had felt different.
Or maybe seventeen-year-old Wolf, who’d fallen hopelessly in love with her, was just shoving his subconscious back to the surface, and I’d been imagining it. But I knew Scarlett, and even if it wasn’t what I’d hoped it would be, there had been something different about her, and the way we were together this time.
Then all hell had broken loose, and it pissed me off.
“Are you going to sit there with resting bitch face for the rest of your life?” My friend and teammate, Camden Locke, our starting goalie, asked on a Sunday afternoon in August. “Or do you actually want to talk about whatever it is that’s crawled up your ass?”
We were at a local sports bar called Cappy’s, watching half a dozen baseball games on all the different TVs. I had little interest in baseball in general, but I’d agreed to come out and meet Cam and our other teammate, Felix Lessard, and I didn’t want to be an asshole about it.
“I’m hungry,” I muttered. “Let’s get food.”
“Nachos,” Felix said, rubbing his hands together. “And more beer.”
“Cool, yeah. Whatever.”
“There’s a few ladies over there checking us out,” Cam said, nudging me. “You wanna buy them a drink?”
I had to make a conscious effort not to wrinkle my nose.
“Not really, but you go ahead.” I pretended to be interested in the game.
Puck bunnies and hookups were the last thing I wanted right now.
I didn’t have one-nighters in me anymore, and the only woman who turned me on was the one I couldn’t have. I joked with my teammates about not being ready to settle down, but the truth was I’d always been ready. Since I was seventeen, I’d known I would be ready as soon as Scarlett was. The problem, of course, was that she wasn’t the settling down type.
She rode the wind, both literally and figuratively. Well, it looked like she could ride the wind when she was on a surfboard, and she never stayed in one place very long the rest of the time. She’d told me she had a house in Los Angeles, but she was never there, always bopping off to one exotic locale after another. What kind of life would that be for us as a couple if I was traveling nine months of the year, and she did it another nine months? Some of our seasons overlapped, so we would potentially be apart more than we were together.
She’d accused me of not loving her enough to make things work, but she was the one who refused to compromise. I’d asked her to marry me five or six years ago, when we’d spent a little time together in L.A., and she’d laughed, saying neither of us were ready. It might have been true at the time, but it hadn’t hurt any less. So I’d forced myself to move on.
