“Why me?”
“Because you’re a senator’s daughter. You can bring in at least two thousand dollars.”
I laughed hard. “My answer is no.” And it had nothing to do with my father at the moment. Sure, Ryker was asking nicely. Sure, Ryker was raising money for a good cause. But the whole senator’s daughter excuse was bull crap. He knew my father didn’t want me to participate. He knew it would piss my dad off. He was using me. “Any girl can bring in that amount of money. And let’s not forget how many guys are on the football team. That alone should meet your goal. Girls will pay two thousand or more just for you.”
“Maybe for me,” he said with a cocky smirk. “Only ten from the football team will be up for grabs. We had some guys bow out because of schedules and other shit.”
“Have you asked other ladies?”
“We’ve got nine eager women on the list. We’re looking for one more.”
“I’m certain you can find one more, but not me.”
He got up off the bed so fast, he made me dizzy. “What if I want you?”
The laugh that came out of me was a little choked. “No. You want to get under my father’s skin. I will not be a pawn in your game.”
He closed the distance between us until I was pinned up against a sliver of wall between the doorjamb and my dresser. “Haven, you’re by no means a pawn.” He lowered his head until I could feel his alcohol-infused breath breezing over my lips. “You’re going to be my queen.”
I thought I’d just died and gone to heaven.
“Think about it.” He kept his dark-gray eyes on my mouth. “You’ll be doing this for charity, but who knows, maybe your participation will help your old man’s election.” Then he brushed his arm over my chest as he walked out of my room.
When he was gone, I slid down the wall.
The only thing I could do at that moment was address the pulsing need I had in between my legs like I’d done every other night since I’d met him.
17
Ryker
Eleven days had flown by since I’d brought home Leigh’s box that Principal Holland had given me. I hadn’t opened the box, and I wasn’t sure I was ready to. Each day that had passed since the funeral seemed to be getting better albeit slowly, which was why I didn’t want to go down memory lane again.
So I’d tried to piece my life back together. I’d talked to Coach Chapman, gotten my ass back into the gym, practiced with the team, did four hours of my campus community service, and met with my advisor and then with my tutor to catch up on my classes. Not one drop of alcohol had entered my system during that time until the night I’d visited Haven in her dorm room. Before I’d gone over, Lucas and I had been sitting in our kitchen, discussing the fundraiser, when I’d gotten a call from the funeral director letting me know the headstones were ready. As soon as I’d hung up, I started drinking, and the last three days hadn’t been any different.
I lay on the weight bench in the gym, staring up at the lights. I’d worked out hard for the last two hours, trying to sweat out the alcohol from the night before. I wasn’t sure I was ready to play in the home game that day. My stomach was queasy, and my head spun a bit.
The door to the weight room creaked. “Ryker,” Lucas called before he loomed over me. “There you are. I got your note. Why didn’t you wake me up? I would’ve come down here with you.”
I sat up, shoving my fingers through my sweaty hair. “I needed to be alone.”
He went over to the stationary bike across from me. “You look like shit.”
Thank you, booze.“I feel like crap.”
He angled his head of blond curls. “You sure you can play today?”
I’d busted my ass in practice. My arm was ready, but my head wasn’t, and neither was my stomach. “I guess we’ll see.” I was more afraid my head would get in the way of playing. Home games drew a crowd, and that had always meant that Leigh and my brother, Randal, would be watching me. Plus, the fans were expecting perfection. I wasn’t sure I could give them perfection.
Lucas got on the bike, fiddling with the tension before he began pedaling. “Win or lose, man, the game will be good for you.”
I grabbed my towel from the floor and wiped the sweat off my face, hoping he was right, hoping the energy and the team would light a fire under me and give me that high I always got on the football field.
Lucas straightened on the bike, holding onto his hips while pedaling away. “Any word from Haven on the fundraiser? I need to get the program printed, update the website, and I need her bio.”
“She won’t budge.” The damn woman was stubborn. At first, I was using her. Actually, playing with her was a better way to put it. But all the guys who were participating agreed with Lucas. Having both sexes involved would make the fundraiser more interesting and give us the potential to bring in more money.
“Why limit it to us guys?” Erik had asked. “I would pay high dollar for a hot blonde.”
