Love Unmatched (Unexpected) Page 15

  He pressed his lips against my cheek and said, “You should know, babe. I am very familiar with your ‘twins.’ I notice any slight changes in them.” He referred to my breasts as twins since they gave him double the delight.

  “Grrr. I wanted to surprise you.” I said in frustration. I could not hide anything from him.

  “You can still surprise me,” he smiled as he reached for my stomach under the table. “Maybe this time you won’t graduate with honors. Now that would be a shocking surprise to me.”

  I laughed. In three months I would be graduating with my Masters in Nursing, and then I’d be working towards my PhD in Sports Science. Zander often wondered how I stayed on top of my classes with the busy schedule that I had with Sofia, working part-time at the hospital, and traveling for his away games. School was not hard for me. Being a mother while going to school was definitely challenging. Sofia’s energy often tired me out, but I would not have it any other way. I was able to study at night after she went to sleep and when I attended classes, Zander was a big help and when he couldn’t, his mom helped us out.

  I held his hand tighter and said, “I’d like to surprise you tonight. Instead of me doing a kneel-down on you, maybe you could do a couple on me…”

  His eyes flared and his breath was hitched, “I think we’ve had enough of this schmoozing tonight.”

  I traced circles around his palm, “But don’t we have to wait for the actual food to be served?” Having attended many of these banquets, I knew that the food was not going to be served for another hour and by that time, half of the guests would have left to go to another party.

  He said determinedly, “We’ll order room service.”

  I nodded my head, “Hmm, that sounds like a good idea.”

  He stood up and held my hand, urging me to go along with his plan. “I’ll say our goodbyes to coach and the rest of the guys. I’ll let them know that something has come up.”

  I grinned at him knowingly. “Sure, something has definitely come up.”

  As we walked outside the restaurant and waited for the limo, he wrapped his left arm around me, his right arm holding his trophy, he said, “This one’s for you, babe, for loving me just the way I am.”

  My heart squeezed at those words, I faced him and wrapped my arms around his neck, and replied, “Thank you for loving me just the way you do.”

  Because you said his story needs to be told…

  Coming in the Late Fall/Early Winter

  Book Three in the Unexpected Series

  Love Untouched

  People need air to breathe.

  I need to be in the water to survive.

  I have loved one woman.

  She loved me as a friend.

  I don’t know if I will fall in love again.

  If and when I do,

  I will give her my world.

  My name is Kieran Stone.

  This is my story.

  Prologue

  More than thirteen years ago

  Kieran

  I took a deep breath, jumped as high as I could, threw my arms up in the air, and rotated my body backwards as I entered the water head first. I felt the swirl of the water hit me as I sank further underneath. I kept my knees tucked together for a clean finish.

  Whew! What a great flip!

  As I swam upwards for air, I blew bubbles out of my nose. This was the best part; the bubbles that formed underneath the water. I loved blowing bubbles in the water. They were way better than those bottled bubbles where you had to blow through a straw to create them.

  I pulled on the bottom of my goggles to let the water out. I needed new ones. These old goggles weren’t serving their purpose anymore.

  “What’s your name?” I thought I heard a voice before I sank down under the water again. There were too many beginners at the Santa Monica Aquatic Center today. They stayed in the beginners’ pools, but I still didn’t like having too many of them around. I’d have to let my dad know that I’d like to change my practice times. The noise that they made distracted me.

  As I re-surfaced for air, I heard the voice again. “Hey, I asked you, what’s your name?”

  I pulled my goggles off of my head. Was that voice talking to me?

  I rubbed my eyes and swam towards the voice. A scrawny girl in a blue swimsuit sat on the side of the pool with her feet hanging and forming circles in the water. She had long, dark hair that was stuck to her face. I paddled my feet to get closer to her. She was the only one without a gaggle of other kids around her.

  “Are you deaf?” she huffed. She pushed her hair away from her face and I squinted my eyes to look at her. The sun’s reflection in the water was blinding my view of her. When I finally got a closer look at her face, I was mesmerized. Her nose was scrunched and her forehead was wrinkled into a frown but it was her eyes that drew me in. Wow! They were not blue or green. Were they …violet?

  I swam closer to her. Who was she? She was new here. Obviously, she didn’t know that some boys liked to be left alone. Boys like me.

  I continued to ignore her. She splashed her feet and since I was close to her, her action caused the water to get inside my mouth that was presently opened because I was about to say something to her. This girl was annoying. I spat out the water and moved to her right, ready to climb up and leave.

  “Fine. I guess you don’t want to tell me your name,” she said with a snicker, “It’s cool with me. But can you just show me how to do the flip that you did a couple of minutes ago?”

  I didn’t answer her. I placed both of my hands on the concrete to push myself up and leave. I wasn’t one for chatting up with a girl who couldn’t do the basic back flips, even if she had unique-colored eyes. Especially if that girl splashed pool water into my mouth.

  “What if we make a bet?” Her tiny voice was clear against all the noise.

  That stopped me. I liked bets. That was how I got my baseball cards – they were going to be collector’s items one of these days. I always won when someone bet against me.

  “What kind of bet?” I asked as I sat beside her. She was still kicking her legs under the water.

  “Now, you’re talking to me,” she said, “I don’t know, you make it up. If I win, you tell me your name and teach me how to do the flip. Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone about our bet. See, my dad over there,” she pointed towards a big guy who sat on a bench, reading a newspaper, “he wants me to make friends. I just want to be alone so I can read my books. But he won’t stop bringing me here until I make new friends. If he sees me talking to you - he’s gonna think I’m making friends and he’ll be happy.”

  This girl talked too much.

  “Stay here,” I said and walked up to where my jeans were and took out a quarter from one of the pockets.

  “Do you know how to swim?” I asked. Her chin was turned up. She was cute. If she visited my school she’d have tons of guys crushing on her.

  She nodded.

  “Okay, if you can find this quarter when I drop it, I will tell you my name and teach you the back flip that I just did.” She was going to chicken out. Girls chickened out all the time.

  She stood up and said, “Go ahead. Throw it.”

  The pool was only 8-feet deep. I shrugged my shoulder. Fine, she was going for it. We’ll see if she could find this.

  I threw the quarter. She jumped into the water.

  She did know how to swim, right? Seconds passed and her head was not surfacing. Shoot. Maybe she didn’t know how to swim. What did I just do? I didn’t mean to hurt her. I jumped in the water but the lifeguard was faster than me.

  Next thing I knew, she was being pulled up from the water and the lifeguard was placing his hand on her chest after laying her body on the ground. He pushed his hands on her chest and a few seconds later, she sputtered water from her nose and coughed out. Her dad was now by her side. He looked scared and panicked.

  Her dad hugged her and asked her, “Why did you do that?” She did not respond.


  Then, he was scolding her, “You know better than to something like that. You scared me. Go get your clothes and we’ll go home.”

  She lightly nodded her head and walked towards the chair where a pile of clothes were stacked. Her shoulders were slumped. It was not fair for her to be scolded at. She must have been scared and now her dad was upset at her.

  Her dad was still talking to the lifeguard. I walked towards her and said, “Hey, are you okay?”

  She hugged her hands to her chest and said, “I’m okay. But I didn’t find your quarter.”

  I reached my hand out to her. “I’m Kieran. I’m sorry I made you do that.” She took my hand and shook it.

  She let out a small smile, “Kieran – that’s a cool name.”

  “I got really scared when you didn’t come up.” The last thing I wanted was for her to drown while searching for the stupid quarter that I dropped at the bottom of the pool.

  “Me too. I couldn’t move my legs.” She was gathering up her clothes on her hands and was walking towards the bathroom to change.

  I felt so bad. She really could have drowned because of me.

  “Hey, what’s your name?” I asked, following her steps.

  “Sedona.”

  She turned around and smiled at me. My heart skipped a beat when she smiled.

  “Do you like Super Mario Brothers, Sedona?” I loved Super Mario Brothers. My friends and I were crazy for Mario and Luigi. Maybe girls liked them too.

  She smiled again. Her eyes turned a prettier color when she did that. I found myself wanting to make her smile more.

  “I play with them all the time,” she answered. I heard her dad call her name. He wanted her to hurry up so that they go home.

  “Are you going to be here next Saturday?” I asked.

  “Maybe.”

  “Okay, then I’ll bring my Super Mario Brothers trading cards. I have some really cool ones. I can show them to you and if you like them, I can give you some.” She was cool. She didn’t tell her dad that I was the one who bet against her and that was why she almost drowned.

  “Cool,” she grinned and touched my hand. I didn’t move away. “Kieran, you still have to teach me the thing that you did earlier.”

  “Sure,” I agreed. She left to change into her clothes. She was cooler than a lot of other girls. She did not back down from a challenge and she was still nice to me, even after I made her jump off the pool so that I could teach her a basic move like a back flip.

  I waited for her to get out of the bathroom. Once she was out, she was wearing a pink shirt with funky-looking shorts. She giggled and mumbled, “You know, Kieran, I think we’re gonna be great friends.”

  I smiled at her, “I don’t think so. You’re a girl and I’m a boy.” She continued walking and I found myself walking beside her.

  “So? I’ve always wanted a friend and a brother. It’s even better because you swim really well.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  She reached for my hand and said, “I know it. You’re going to be my friend.”

  I kept quiet. But I couldn’t shake off that funny, weird feeling in my chest that maybe she was right.

  My Deepest Thanks

  To my husband: Thank you for always being there for me. You’ve told me to treat writing as a hobby so I can continue to love it and feel no pressure. I have and look what it has brought me – tons of new friends. You are my rock. You’re not a Zander or a Kieran, you’re just you and that’s more than enough.

  To my dad: Thank you for encouraging me to be the best that I can be. When I told you that I started publishing my stories for people to read, all you said was, “Make people smile.” I’m trying dad. One story at a time.

  To my girlfriends: Elle, Sharon, G, Mel, and Chris: Thank you for reading through my endless drafts and for not letting me give up. Many of my characters are based from the lessons I’ve learned with you guys and the ridiculously hilarious moments that we’ve had. I love you guys!

  To Janessa Osborne: I thank fate for bringing us together. Remember when I said, “Hey, I wrote a book. Do you want to read it?” And the rest is an ever-evolving amount of texts and lots of LOLs. I appreciate you and Nikki (Book Junkies Anonymous). You two will always get the first dibs if I continue to write.

  To Author Jay Crownover: You RULE. I would never be able to write about tattooed men and rockers the way you do. And why would I? I know you kick ass (in books and in real life) & when I’m down, you tell me to shake it off and just do my thing. Lotsa love, YO. I look forward to reading more of your Marked Men Series.

  To KMS Editing: I stand by my firsts. Any grammatical mistakes or errors after your final edits are on me. Thanks, doll.

  To N Design: Thanks for my book cover. It’s a bit dark but you know what? It’s your homage to your favorite movie and I let you have it. Contact info: ndesign107@gmail.com.

  To my readers, bloggers, and new author friends: Thank you for your encouragement, support, and for telling your friends to read my book. You crack me up in numerous ways and I’m grateful for your enthusiasm and kind words. Without you, I’ll be sitting pretty in my couch and watching reruns of my favorite shows. NOT. I’ll be reading scholarly journals and scientific research. SURE. Thank you for spurring me on to keep writing my own brand of romance. I want to give a special shout-out to these authors & their upcoming books - Melanie Dawn (So Much It Hurts), Kimi Flores (Intertwined Hearts Series), & Nichele Reese (Juilliard or Else). You guys tag me and call my attention when need be. And make me more “sociable-looking” in the book world.

  About the Author

  "I write because I love it and for no other reason. The minute I stop enjoying it will be the exact moment I will stop writing."

  Anne Leigh is a 30-something-year-old who refuses to let the calendar dictate her age. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Biology and a Master's degree in Nursing. She likes to write about strong women and equally strong guys who grapple with their emotions when faced with something as intangible as love.

  She lives in Los Angeles with her husband. With her crazy schedule, she gets frustrated at L.A. traffic and needs an escape to keep her sanity, which thankfully her characters provide.

  She did not think of publishing her stories and when she finally did, she's truly appreciative of every, single person who found the time to let her characters become parts of their world. She is the author of the Unexpected Series. Book One is Love Unexpected. Book Two is Love Unmatched. Book Three is Love Untouched.

  She appreciates all the readers who leave kind comments/reviews on where they purchased the book because without them, all her stories would remain locked up in a thing called “computer.”

  She's always happy to find new friends and would love to hear from you via:

  Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/anne.leigh.963.

  E-mail: anneleigh15@gmail.com

  Goodreads

  Note:I do have a Twitter handle:anneleighauthor. I don’t tweet a lot & I apologize because I really am so busy but I will give you notifications/updates on upcoming books if you’d like to be my Twitter friend.