take second best, put me to the test

take second best, put me to the test by sassy

I moved my eyes from one kid to the other, watching them as they worked in small groups. My gaze stopped on my nephew and how he passed the ball from one hand to the other, killing time instead of actually doing something and I knew why. Where the hell was Will? I turned around and headed to where his hot mom was sitting, him standing next to her. Before I could realize it, a blonde girl I had never seen before popped out of nowhere, tripping over her own feet and I caught her just in time.
“That’s why people usually wear sneakers here.” I voice told her as I lifted her back up to her feet.
She blinked back at me and smiled. “I’ve always been a little different from most people.” She replied, blushing.
“Do you fall on your ass a lot then?” I said back, keeping a straight face and being my smartass self.

“Nice reflexes coach.” Colbie said, biting her lip and grinning at me in an obvious way.
I smirked at her, my eyes scanning her body quickly. She was hot, gorgeous even, Id lie if I said I'd never thought about making a move on her but her 12 year old son was why I had always given up. "Thanks Colbie." I winked at her before I realized I was still holding the petite blonde in my arms. "Did you get lost?" I asked her since she looked really out of place as I pulled away from her.
She flipped her hair back and parted her lips, but Will cut her off before she could even start talking. "She's my aunt! She came to watch me practice."
I raised one eyebrow at him, setting my hands on my hips and squaring my shoulders, "Really? Because you're doing nothing now."
He pursed his lips together, looking like he was about to argue but he knew better than that. I was a strict couch, but a sport like rugby needed discipline, mostly when you had to deal with teens. He let out a sigh eventually and ran back to the field, my eyes following him.
"Are you always so mean to your guys coach?" The girl broke the silence while Colbie just smiled at me, used to the way I dealt with her son.
I turned my head to her and smirked, crossing my arms against my chest, "No, sometimes I'm even worse." I said with a shrug.
“Damn.” She licked her lips and my eyes flicked to her mouth quickly before darting back to the field. Women often did that deliberatly, to tease or to get attention where they wanted it, but she didn't seem that kind of girl instead.
“Try to stay upright from now on.” I replied before turning to shout at the kids. Apparently they were too busy talking to run like they did at the beginning of every practice. "Are you all sleeping? Come on!" I set my hands on my hips and watched them, my eyes following Will and my nephew Robert which happened to be the best players. My thoughts drifted to Will's aunt and I refused to turn around, but I was sure she was watching me right now.
"Don't talk like that about them a.sshole!" Will's loud voice brought me back to reality and next thing I know they were fighting and, in the maybe 3 seconds it took me to run them Rob managed to punch his face straight in the face even though I had a feeling that he was the cause of troubles. "Hey!" I shouted full force, grabbing the two of them and dividing them easily. "What the hell are you two doing?"
They didn't say anything but, of course, didn't fight me too. "He started." Will said pointing at my nephew, his words proving that despite being taller and stronger than the other kids in the team, he was just a kid after all.
"I just said that your aunt is even hotter than your mom, it was a compliment." Rob said with a shrug, biting back a smirk and wearing that cocky attitude that made him look older.
I shook my head and massaged my temples, trying not to lose it because I hated when my guys fought on the field, it was one of the things that p.issed me off the most. "Robert, go get changed. Will, I'm going to take some ice to put of your eye." I said in a hard tone before I looked at the rest of the team, "Go back to run." I ordered, making it clear that running was going to be their punishment. They hated it.
I walked over to the park and fished the key of my motorbike out of my shorts, opening the seat to grab a cold pack I always have with me for the emergencies. On the way back to the field I stopped at the bathrooms, the blond girl reappearing suddently and walking straight into me again.
“Okay this time it has to be your fault.” She joked, pulling her bag back onto her shoulder as she grinned at me.
I gave her a small smile. “Nope. Still yours.”
She sighed dramatically and shrugged. “Well then I guess I'm a klutz.”
I rose a brow. “Or maybe you just like running into me.”
“I don’t mind it.” She admitted, licking her lips and looking desiderable all over again.
Her admission surprised me and made me grin, my hands leaving her body once again. "I thought you came here to watch Will."
At that she let out a soft chuckle, her cheeks getting a slightly darker shade of pink and making her look her skin like porcelain. "That was the excuse." She joked, her voice soft.
"Was the bathroom too?" I joked back, looking at her face which was undeniably beautiful. I didn't like blondes usually, but after all the color of their hair didn't mean much when they got to spent nothing but a few hours with me.
She shrugged, biting back a grin, "For what I know you could have been following me."
"I hate to disappoint you but I was going to get some cold pack." I said back, my expression back to serious as I started to make my way back to the field, her following me without I had to ask.
She frowned, worry in her eyes, "Did someone get hurt?"
"Yes." I groaned, planting my fist into the pack and making it turn to ice as the girl jumped slightly.
"Rugby can be a dangerous game." She said seriously, sighing softly.
I shook my head since yes, that was true, but this wasn't the case. "Robert got into a fight with Will and punched him." I explained, anger evident in my tone since I didn't like when my guys took their problems to the field. It never ended well.
Her mouth dropped open, "What?! That little jerk, I thought they were friends! I never liked Robert that much." She snorted, the way she talked showing how well she knew her nephew.
"Yeah my nephew is hard to handle sometimes." I said nonchalantly, not offended even a bit.
She rose a brow at me, looking as if she was lost in her thoughts and judging me. “Apparently.” I took a second to study her before turning. “What exactly were they fighting about?!” She asked.
A side of my mouth twitch upward as I thought about what the kids had said. “Rob told Will his aunt was even hotter than his mom.”
She widened her eyes and blinked. “Aren’t they a little young to be saying those kind of things?” She asked seriously.
I shrugged, remembering exactly how I was at 12. I didn't talk only, I got some action too. “You didn’t like boys when you were 12?” I asked, making a good point like always.
“How do you know I like boys now?” She asked, staring at my body.
I was about to grin at the way she was looking at me, but when Chris started screaming my bad mood returned and I cursed under my breath. “That’s it! If you can’t learn to play the game and not kick each others asses? You won’t play at all. Practice is over.”
“But-“ Will exclaimed.
“No buts. Locker rooms. Now.” I ordered and there was no other argument. They all groaned in disappointment and I was sure they'd start fighting again once they'd get out of my view.
“So you’re the one who taught will the word ass.” She commented idly, almost talking to myself. “And Colbie blamed me.”
"Ass just is just a part of the body." I said flatly. There were some kids in my team that swore like sailors and that wasn't my fault at all.
She blinked her eyes at me, almost as if she was just realizing I was talking. "There are more proper ways to call it."
"Whatever they call it isn't any of my business, most of bad words they learn at school." I pointed out, "Or home."
"Are you trying to tell me something?" She narrowed her eyes on me and crossed her arms against her chest in a defensive way, looking like a feisty little thing ready to jump at my throat.
I smirked wide, her change of mood amusing me more than anything. "I was just saying, no offence there. I didn't say anything when you called my own blood a jerk."
She pursed her lips together, looking torn between arguing and agreeing. "Sorry." She said eventually, "I guess." She added.
"You guess." I repeated her, my smirk still in place while I tried to make up my mind. I was really tempted to make of her my new prey but there was something about this girl that held me back from making a move, maybe it was the fact that she didn't seem too attracted me which was weird. It could be challenging though. When she didn't speak I took my time to study her body, her face...she was sexy.
Her head snapped in my direction suddenly, her cheeks getting darker once again. "What?"
I noticed how her body tensed, the corner of my mouth lifting slightly because after all she wasn't so immune to my good looks. "Nothing, I'm wondering what a girl like you could like since sports don't look like your thing." I said nonchalantly and already imagining her in my bed instead.
“I didn’t say I didn’t like sports.” She replied, blinking back at me.
“I just assumed by the look on your face as we spoke of rugby.” I said casually, not really caring if she liked it or not. My bet was that all the workout she did took place in the bedroom.
“You assumed huh?” She replied, annunciated the first three letters of the word. “Well now who’s the ass?”
My mouth quirked upward again. “Clever.” I said finally.
“I'm not big on team sports.” She explained, leaving me wonder if she was boring herself with the subject.
“Not a team player?” I asked, shooting her a quizzical look as she shrugged.
“A loner and a klutz. I'm just a mess aren’t I?”
I didn’t say anything and bit my tongue, I didn't like girls who called themselves a mess because, no matter if they really were or not, it wasn't sexy anyway. A leaf got caught in her hair and I reached forward to her, my fingers tangling in her silky hair before I pulled back. She tesned immediatly then let out a deep breath, as if she had been holding it as I showed her the leaf in my hand. “Damn wind.”
She just nodded slowly. “Mhmm.”
I raised one eyebrow at her, "Are you okay? Did you swallow your tongue all of a sudden?" I asked with a smirk on my face.
She made a show of rolling her eyes but ignored me eventually. "Do you do that for a living?"
"What? Saving girls from leaves? No." I shook my head, slightly amused by her change of mood.
"I meant this." She said motioning at the field, her eyes moving around while I kept mine on her face, "Rugby."
I tensed a little since it was a touchy subject but gave away nothing, keeping my face straight. "No, I just do it for fun." I answered in monotone, my voice showing no emotions. Truth was, once I had dreamed to become a professional player, and I had been so close to it, until my good luck turned into a bad one.
"Do you like yelling at kids?" She said in a teasing tone, biting down on her bottom lip and causing my eyes to land on her mouth, my mind already imagining it wrapped around my dick.
"That's the best part." I replied as I moved my gaze back to hers.
"I thought that was winning." She cocked her head to the side, her hair cascading over her shoulder.
I shrugged. "But if they don't win I get to yell more."
At that she laughed softly, her lips opened in a broad smile that showed white perfect teeth. "No wonder why your nephew likes starting fights."
"Yeah being a jerk must run in the family, if that's what you mean." I said running a hand through my hair. Good looks aside, I never got many compliments about my personality and the first impression that people got out of me was always a negative one, unless I was wearing a suit and making money. People were always more shallow than they thought, fortunately I had stopped caring years before.
“I didn’t say that.” She said softly, almost questioningly.
“No?”
“What do you do then?”
I blinked at her, wondering why she even cared. Most of girls just wanted to get in my bed and talking wasn't something I did much. “I work in finance.”
She looked surprised at least, if not shocked. “Like…money?” She questioned, making a face.
“Like money. Yes.” I answered flatly, used to get that reaction. They saw me on a field and thought I was a brainless guy only able to play and use his muscles.
She shook her head and laughed. “Sorry I just have a hard time imagining you in a suit.” She replied.
“I assure you I pull it off.” I gave her a grin and she took a deep breath.
“I don’t doubt that….I’m just saying you seem in your element…”
“And you seem out of yours.” I commented, my eyes roaming over her body and appreciating what she was wearing but leaving me wish that her clothes were on the ground instead.
“I came right from work.” She replied. “I assure you I pull off athletic wear fine myself.” She smirked, teasing me with my own words.
"I don't doubt that." I retorted with a grin, using her words against her myself. I tried to wonder what she could do, I was bad at reading people, mostly because I didn't really care, but by the way she was dressed? Something about fashion or maybe PR. "What's your work?"
"I'm an artist." She said simply, smiling genuinely for the first time since she had bumped into me.
"Don't artist go around with paint brushes in their hair, a pencil behind the ear and their clothes full of color stains?" I teased her, using a cliche I knew it wasn't necessarely true just as muscular guys being stupid wasn't.
She crossed her arms against her chest and shrugged, "There are many types of artists." She said dryly.
I parted my lips, about to ask her more and wondering if she was artistic in bed too, when my nephew's voice cut me off. "I'm ready to go." He said flatly, his mad mood evisent by the way he was frowning and how he kicked everything on his way to get where I was.
I turned my face and started at him, my face impassive, "Then go." I said simply while I felt the girl's eyes on me.
"I need a ride back home, you know that." He retorted, his hands rolling into fists by his sides as he narrowed his eyes at me.
"You'll walk instead and maybe next time you'll think twice before punching someone else." I glared at him since I wasn't impressed by his attitude.
"You're not my dad." He snapped.
"Oh yeah, lucky you. When he'll know? You'll need to run, not to walk." I raised one eyebrow at him, making him groan and spin on his heels as he started walking. I gave my attention back to the blonde, "Sorry about that."
"Poor kid." She said as she glanced over my shoulder, shaking her head, "You can be pretty scary, you know whay?"
I smirked, ignoring her words completely since I wasn't interested in talking about my nephew or how I looked when I taught him a lesson. "Do you want to go get a drink?" I asked instead, wanting to go straight to the point. My point.
She blinked her pretty eyes, looking taken aback, "Like...now?"
"Don't worry, I'll get changed into decent clothes." I shot her a smirk as I joked, finding myself wanting her to say yes and my dick to be inside of her by the end of the day.
“Do you even know my name?” She asked with a grin, making a good point but did it really matter? A name was just a name.
“Lila! We’re going home!” Will shouted from the other side of the park.
“I do now.” I reply with amusement in a low voice.
She waved to Will and Colbie gave her a distinct look before walking up to her. Girls thing I guessed.
“Sorry you came for nothing.” She winced.
“It’s never nothing when I get to see you guys.” The younger blonde said honestly. “I'm gonna go get a drink with-“ She paused, probably realizing she didn’t know my name either and that mattered since my goal was making her moan it sooner than later.
She looked back me him and I was grinning, liking the expression on her face. “Travis.”
She blinked, as if I had said my name was Jesus. “Right.” She grinned eventually.
Colbie gave her a tight smile and pulled her aside while Will started speaking to me. "Sorry about earlier." He said seriously.
I raised one eyebrow at him, surprised but not impressed at the same time. Those kids were smart and sometimes they thought that an apology was enough to forgive and forget. It wasn't. "Which part?"
"All of it." He said simply and shrugged his shoulders, proving my point. If he didn't even know what he was apologizing for, how was I supposed to tell him it was okay?
I stared at him, watching him getting more nervous as seconds passed. My guys respected me and I respected them, but I wasn't their friend, I was their coach. "Let me guess, the others asked you to talk to me." I said eventually.
He shook his head quickly, but his face gave him away. "No. I just don't want them to pay for Rob's and my mistakes."
I let out a sigh, wondering if my nephew and him would ever learn. "We'll see." I said simply but that was enough to make him smile a little.
Lila walked back over to me, Will going away with Colbie instead. “Everything okay?”
She nodded. “Did you drive?”
I shook my head and she reached into her bag to grab her keys. “Don’t worry, there’s a place just on the other side of the park, we’ll walk….if you think you can keep on your heels for that long.”
She blushed and nodded. “I think I’ll survive.”
"If you feel like you can't do it, just let yourself fall and I'll catch you." I grinned at her, sliding my hands into the pockets of my shorts as we walked.
Her cheeks got even darker and she bit down on her lips, her eyes on me. "Don't tempt me now." She joked or at least I thought so, she sounded so serious.
I shrugged as I kept my smirk in place, trying to figure her out. The sooner I did that, the better chances I had to see her naked. Girls were usually easy to handle, even the ones who thought they were so complicated and so deep eventually fell in one clichè or another so I just acted consequently. So far I knew she was an artist, not enough to label her. "Nothing bad about temptation." I said casually even though I was teasing her deliberately.
"Do you know much about temptation?" She asked with a smirk on her on lips, her green eyes flaming and for a moment I got a glimpse of...something. Something sexy and yes, really tempting.
"I'm all about temptation." I answered seriously and broke eye contact in favor of staring in front of me, noticing a few guys walking out the bar and looking at her as if they wanted to rip her clothes off.
"Oh? Like...how?"
"I always give in to temptation." I answered and winked at her as I opened the door of the bar, letting her go first and dropping my eyes on her ass when she walked past me. She had a fine ass.
She blushed again and looked around the small place, "Counter?" She suggested, since there wasn't even a free table, but my thoughts went somewhere else.
I smirked from ear to ear, allowing my mind to think of her bent over the counter as I looked at her, "Sure, wherever you want." I said as I set my hand on the small of her back, leading her to two stools.
I motioned to the bartender who happened to be my friend too and we spoke a few moments about sports before I turned to her again. “This is Lila, Lila, this is Hal he owns the bar.”
She held out her hand and smiled at him. “It’s good to meet you.” He smirked wide and nodded towards me. “Your usual?”
I nodded before looking at her, expecting her to drink something disgusting and fruity that tasted more like shampoo than alcohol. “Whiskey. Neat.” She replied seriously, hanging her bag over my chair as Hal grinned at her.
“I like her already.” He grinned and I looked at her, surprised and a little worried too. She seemed too petite and young to drink whiskey.
She shrugged. “I have five brothers, we didn’t ever really get into girly drinks.”
“Five?” I rose a brow and she nodded. Five brothers was an impressive number and more than enough to scare guys away, I was sure, only I had no intention to date her or anything. I just want her in my bed.
Hal slid her her drink and me a beer bottle then went off to the other side to flirt with some girls. “Why is the owner bartending?” She asked curiously as she tilted her head to the side.
I laughed. “Girls like bartenders.” I said simply and she shook her head. At least I was honest.
“Do girls like rugby coaches who are really financiers?” She asked, sipping her drink slowly.
I licked my lips, wishing I could lick hers instead. “You tell me.”
She set her elbow on the counter to lean her head against it. “I don’t think it would matter what you did coach.”
"Because girls like coaches instead?" I grinned, keeping my eyes on her as I took a swig of beer from the bottle. As I swallowed, I noticed her eyes glancing at my lips which was always a good sign.
She shrugged and played innocent even though I wasn't sure if that fit her. One moment she seemed young and inexperienced, the next one the opposite. "What do I know, I'm just an artist." She said coyly, her finger tracing the rim of her glass as she stared at me shamelessly.
"What about you, artist?" I asked simply as I adjusted my stool, inching it closer to her and only now noticing that she smelled amazing. Her scent reminded me of flawers, but also something spicy that burned through your nose and went straight to your core.
She took a moment to answer, bringing her glass to her lip and taking a sip while I waited impatiently. "All I can say is that you'd make a good statue."
I raised one eyebrow at her as I processed her words, a little taken aback to be honest. Sure as hell I had never got that and I didn't really know if it was a compliment. I was big on sports but art? I thought I had a strong opinion about what was beautiful or not, but that was all I knew about the subject. "Is that what you'll do tonight? Turn me into a statue?" I teased her.
She shook her head and a light blush crept on her cheeks again, "Nope. I don't think I could remember all the details I'd need."
I smirked from ear to ear since that sounded like the perfect excuse for me to get into her bed. "I could help you with that." I said quietly, boring my eyes into hers and hoping she'd make a particular part of me hard like a statue instead.
She blinked at me, this time her turn to be taken aback, "Are you serious?" She asked in an hesitating tone.
I shrugged and offered a smile. I wanted to fuck this girl yes, but I wasn't a creeper. "I would if you were." I winked at her before breaking eye contact and downing the rest of my beer.
“You weren’t kidding.” Lila commented, taking another drink as I gave her a questioning look. I was having a hard time focusing on what she was saying.
“About what?”
She licked her lips slowly, distracting me once again but also giving me hope that she could be interested, or at least attracted to me. “Temptation.” She replied crossing her legs the opposite way as she swiveled my chair towards me.
I gave her a wide grin and nodded. “You’re right I wasn’t.” I ran my hands through my hair again as I wondered if I should make my move. I didn't like waisting my time, I didn't go after girls, I was always impatient to close a deal. “I live upstairs.” I added even though that wasn't true. I only wanted to test her, because if she responded positively, she'd come with me no matter where I lived. She blinked. “Then you can have another drink.” She smiled, reaching into my bag to grab something. “I have to drive home.”
I studied her as I processed her words. Maybe she was lesbian or she had a boyfriend, both ways she had just missed her chance with me. Whenever I got a no, even if it didn't happen that much, I just forgot about the girl and move to the next one. “Maybe next time.” I said with no convinction since I was aware that next time wouldn't happen ever.
She nodded and handed me her business card. “Call me.” She grinned and I watched her as she left. My eyes dropped on the small piece of paper in my hand, my fingers ready to close around it and toss it in the trash when a word got my attention. Apple?