During the days, they were fierce nineteen-year-old rivals in a collegiate golf competition, but at night, their passion sizzled under the sheets. After Team USA won, Rio "River" Vargas returned to his native Spain and Greg Thorenson headed back to his home in the United States. But when Rio didn't respond to a letter he sent, Greg wasn't sure if Rio's silence was because Greg had beaten him for the win or because their affair had been only a four-night-fling.<br><br>Now, professionals at the height of their game, they meet again as competitors in a major tournament in the California desert, where the prize of thousands of dollars is at stake. It's been six silent years since those wild, hot nights as young men. Maybe for Rio that earlier passion had been an experiment, an aberration of who he really is and of whatever Greg may have meant to him. But to Greg, that earlier passion had been something deeper ... he had fallen in love.<br><br>Upon seeing Rio again, Greg is torn between ignoring the past or re-igniting the banked embers of emotion to see where they'll lead. But can he risk it? If Greg opens himself to love, and also wins this tournament, Rio may very well walk out of his life a second time ...

Hole in One

At the close of the clinic, Greg told them about meeting Rio. “We Americans nicknamed him ‘River’ because that’s what riomeans in Spanish. I still think of him as that and call him ‘River.’ After that tourney, when we were not much older than you, our coaches encouraged us, and we returned to our own countries and dedicated ourselves to becoming pros.”


Rio said, “Here we are, playing in a major together all these years later and renewing that friendship. Remember what we’ve each told you about your potential. Now’s the time for you to decide if you want a future in this game and are willing to work for it or you just want to have fun with it.”


“Who’s gonna win tomorrow?” a sassy kid, the finest driver in the group, asked.


Greg laughed. “Oh, no, you aren’t. I am.”


Chapter 11