Big Win

1. Alex

Chapter One

Alex

My breath came in steady gusts as I ran along the walkway. It was barely past dawn, my favorite time of day, and I was out for my morning run. The park was quiet as I followed the path along the shore. Gulls called in the distance, the only noise to speak of at this hour. I ran for a solid half hour and slowed to a walk as I made my way through the forested part of the park back to my flat. The air was cool and damp, typical for a spring morning in Seattle. A sudden burst of chatter from squirrels in the trees caught my attention, and I glanced up to see a woman walking toward me with a giant dog at her side. Tall and stately, the dog walked with grace at her side. I didn’t realize I’d stopped where I was until the woman got close enough for me to realize I knew her. A prickle of awareness ran up my spine.

Harper Jacobs was a good friend of my best mate’s fiancée. Harper also got to me—big time. I couldn’t put my finger on why. She was attractive, but in an understated way. I’d met her a bit ago when Liam, the best mate in question, invited me to meet him for coffee. Harper was there with Liam’s fiancée Olivia. I’d encountered Harper a few more times since then, what with our respective friends head over heels in love. She was polite and friendly and always seemed to have an invisible bubble around her. I wanted to know why she kept herself protected like that. I waited for her to reach me, which she eventually did. She slowed to a stop, rested her hands on her hips and glanced up at me.

“Alex, right?” she asked.

“That would be me. I see you’re out for a walk,” I said, instantly wondering why I couldn’t have slightly better conversational skills. Stating the obvious wasn’t particularly inviting. I usually didn’t give a b****y damn about conversing, but I wanted to know Harper beyond the superficial.

Harper nodded, her deep blue eyes crinkling at the corners with her small smile. “I am. I’m going to guess you’re just finishing a run,” she replied with a nod to my feet, which were encased in running shoes.

“That I am. I come here almost every day. I think I’d have seen you before if you’re here often, what with…?” My words trailed off as I gestured to her giant dog.

“Stanley,” she filled in, her smile stretching.

Damn. I wished I could see her smile more. Her whole face lit up and that careful, controlled look in her eyes softened.

As if in response to his name, Stanley stretched his head to my hand and slowly sniffed it. After a moment, he dipped his head further, nudging it under my hand as if he expected me to pet him. So I did. He was easily taller than my waist, his large eyes blue and his fur dappled steel gray.

“He likes you,” Harper said. “Stanley can be picky, so take that as a compliment.”

I stroked his head slowly and looked over at Harper. Her glossy brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail high atop her head with loose locks escaping. She blew a breath, effectively blowing one lock of hair out of her eyes. She wore fitted leggings and a fitted top, both bright blue, which brought out her eyes. She was clearly in good shape, but also managed to be curvy at the same time with full hips and generous breasts. I realized I was staring at her and forced myself to recall what she’d just said.

“I’ll take it as a compliment then. What kind of dog is he?”

“Great Dane. He’s on the large side for the breed, but he’s nothing but a gentle giant.” Her eyes canted down, and she laughed softly. Stanley had taken another step closer to me and nuzzled his massive head against my hip. “He’s a lover, not a fighter,” she said, looking back up to me. “So you run here on top of your practices?” she asked, referencing my career as a goalkeeper for the Seattle Stars.

I was a Seattle transplant after moving here with three of my teammates from our former team in London. The Seattle Stars were America’s current best hope for a shot at international glory on the soccer stage. Though I still felt out of step with Seattle and America in general, none of it helped by the fact they insisted on calling football soccer here, I’d come to enjoy Seattle and the team. Being a professional footballer, or professional sports player of any kind really, meant you went where you had the best offer. Oh, there were negotiations and such, but that was the life. Well that, and dedicating your mind and body to a sport. I loved football and had loved it since I was a lad. I felt lucky to be able to play professionally.

I met Harper’s clear blue gaze and nodded. “Most days I run on my own before practice.”

She nodded, but was otherwise quiet. The silence started to stretch, but it was a comfortable silence. In the few times I’d been around Harper, we’d always been in a group, usually with our shared friends. It occurred to me just now I didn’t know much about her, other than who her friends were. Stanley nudged my hand, and I realized I’d slacked in petting him. “Sorry ‘bout that, Stanley,” I said, glancing down and stroking his sleek head again.

“I suppose you need to go,” Harper said.

When I looked back at her, she looked, well the only way to describe it was nervous. Seeing as I hadn’t a clue what she could be nervous about, I was flummoxed. But I didn’t want her to go. I wanted to curl my hand around hers and walk through the park.

“Why don’t we walk for a bit?” I asked, startling myself.

Her eyes widened for a beat, and her cheeks flushed. She went still, so still it worried me, and that controlled look slipped in front of her eyes again. Stanley took a step away from me and nudged her hip gently before turning to stand close beside her. He exuded a quiet protectiveness toward her. Her shoulders rose and fell with a deep breath, and then she nodded. “Okay, that would be nice.”

I bit back my grin and turned to walk alongside her. Stanley padded beside us. He wasn’t on a leash and didn’t appear to need one. He stayed right by Harper’s side and walked quietly, his gaze alert. Aside from the squirrels and birds chattering around us, it felt as if we were alone. Oh, there were a few other early risers out and about, but anyone here at this hour loved the quiet as much as I did. Harper idly kicked a pebble as we walked. I wanted to look long and hard in her eyes and make the underlying worry and tension in them disappear. Yet, I was slightly relieved we weren’t face to face because Harper seemed more relaxed when I wasn’t looking right at her.

So I just kept walking. I didn’t care to talk. Talking wasn’t really my thing. As we walked along, I felt the hum of tension emanating from Harper start to ease. Lincoln Park was an urban sanctuary and preserve situated by Puget Sound. There were the usual park amenities, such as a pool and tennis courts, but there was also a walkway along the beautiful shoreline and a well-preserved old growth forest, offering plenty of peaceful walking in the quiet hours of the day. We followed a footpath through the trees until we reached the walkway where I’d gone for my run this morning.

Salty air gusted off Puget Sound with the sun rising through the clouds. I glanced to the side when Stanley stopped abruptly. Stanley was staring straight ahead at a man running along the walkway. He didn’t raise his hackles, nor did he make a sound, but it was plain he was bothered. I lifted my eyes to Harper. Splotchy red spread up her neck and face, and she looked absolutely horrified. She seemed to have forgotten I was there. I reached for her hand, curled tight in a fist at her side. The second I touched her, she swatted my hand away and then gasped.

“Oh, I’m sorry! I, um, I…” She looked from me back to the man, whoever the hell he was, running toward us. He was still a good distance away. I didn’t know what was going on, but I had two inclinations—go punch the guy because his mere existence upset Harper, or get Harper away from him. Liam was wont to tease me for ‘protecting the whole wide world’ as he liked to put it. I didn’t like seeing anyone hurt. Ever. I had my reasons, but those weren’t particularly important now. What mattered was taking care of Harper.

“Harper?”

I wanted to reach for her hand again, but I didn’t want to startle her as I already had. Her eyes flicked to me again. The blue had gone darker, but she held still. “I’m not sure what’s up, but I think we should go,” I finally said.

She nodded jerkily, but she didn’t move. So I reached for her hand, and this time she let me curl mine over hers. I don’t know how long she’d been cold, but right now, her hand was freezing. Stanley was still staring at the man gradually closing the distance between us. I’d seen him running before and thought nothing of it. Whatever he was to Harper, it wasn’t good. “Stanley, come on,” I said softly as I turned and led Harper away.

The next few minutes were quiet. I didn’t even notice the birds calling and the squirrels chattering as we made our way back through the trees to the park entrance. I’d walked here, but I didn’t know how Harper had arrived, nor did I know where she lived, but I wasn’t leaving her side until she was home again. We reached the park entrance, and I glanced down. Her skin was pale and her eyes shuttered. Stanley was as close as he could get to her on the other side without melding his body to hers.

After a moment, Harper looked up. “Did you walk here or drive?” I asked.

“I walked,” she said, her voice low and quiet.

“Okay, where to?”

She looked confused. “I’m walking you home,” I explained.

She started to shake her head, but I shook mine in return. “This isn’t up for debate. You don’t have to tell me what’s got you so upset, but there’s no b****y way I’m leaving you here with that look on your face. I’ll walk you right to your door and you can slam it in my face, but I’m not letting you walk alone.”

She swallowed and then nodded. “I live just a few blocks that way,” she said pointing the same direction I’d walk to return to my flat. This area of Seattle was residential with a mix of homes and flats.

“Perfect. You must live a few blocks from me then. Shall we?”

At her small nod, I commenced to walk again, her hand still in mine. Her hand was finally starting to absorb heat from mine, which relieved me. I kept batting away thoughts about what may have put the stark fear in her gaze, but I didn’t want to think about that now. I just wanted to make sure she got home.

I realized I hadn’t been paying much attention to how fast I was walking. I tended to move quickly no matter the circumstance. I glanced to Harper, about to slow down, but she was keeping pace easily even if she still looked half-stunned. We crossed another street, and Harper slowed. My flat was another two blocks away. “It’s here,” she said, pointing up to an older home, clearly renovated into smaller flats. Flowers were blooming in abundance in boxes hung on windowsills and railings.

“I’ll walk you in.”

Her eyes gave little away, but she looked the tiniest bit relieved and nodded. After she keyed in a combination at the main entrance, which led into a massive foyer, we made our way up two flights of stairs that hugged the curved wall. I released her hand on the way up and stood beside her while she pulled her keys out of her jacket. They fell to the floor in a clatter. It appeared that each floor held a single flat with Harper’s door the only one up here on the top floor.

“Dammit,” she said in a whisper, promptly dropping them again when she tried to fit the key in the lock.

“Let me,” I said, reaching down and scooping up the keys.

She was quiet while I slid the key into the lock. I felt entirely out of place and as if I was probably pushing into places I shouldn’t go, but I didn’t feel right leaving just now. Despite the fact I didn’t know Harper particularly well, she was important to Olivia who had essentially become the center of my best mate’s universe. By extension of that, she mattered to me, even setting aside the draw I felt for her. I needed to make sure she was okay before I left her, and she’d been anything but since she’d laid eyes on that man in the park.

When the door opened, I held it and gestured Harper through, stepping just beyond the threshold myself. Stanley stood beside Harper, his eyes on her as if he was trying to ascertain her status. She stopped after several steps and hugged her arms around her waist, a visible shiver running through her. That was it. I was making tea.

“How about I make you some tea?” I asked.

Her eyes swung to mine, almost incredulous. “Tea?”

“Yes, tea. You’re shivering, and I don’t know what happened back there or who that man was, but it upset you. Us Brits happen to think tea makes everything better. At the least, it should warm you up a bit.”

She stared at me for a beat and then smiled, just the smallest smile. “Okay. That would be nice.” For the first time since we’d seen that man, she seemed to relax a bit.

Her flat was on the small side. We’d entered into what must be the living room, which had a window taking up the entire side facing the street and offered a view of Puget Sound in the distance. Light fell in a shaft from the sun rising up above the water. The hardwood floor gleamed under the sun. A cream colored circular rug sat in the center of the room with a sectional couch surrounding it. A TV was mounted on the wall above a small fireplace. The kitchen was to the side with an island demarcating the space from the living room. A door leading to a bathroom and another to what I presumed to be her bedroom were at the back.

She gestured to the kitchen. “By all means, make some tea.”

It wasn’t hard to figure out what was where, what with a tea kettle on her stove. With that and water, all we had to do was wait. It occurred to me I hadn’t asked about the most important part. “I’m assuming you actually have some tea,” I said, glancing to Harper who’d followed me around the island and was presently leaning against the counter. The lines of tension had eased on her face, and she finally looked back to herself. She grinned. “I do. Right over there,” she said, pointing to a cabinet behind me.

I started to open it and then paused. “Is it okay if…?”

“Of course it’s okay. If it wasn’t okay, I’d have shooed you out already,” she said with another grin.

I liked Harper grinning, liked it quite a lot.