Pepper Espinoza

Patton Cooper won three national championships as the starting quarterback for the Los Angeles Marauders, but that didn’t stop them from trading him to Phoenix without so much as a warning. At thirty-two, he finds himself weighed down by old injuries and forced to start over again as a backup quarterback for an untried rookie. Deeply hurt by the betrayal of both his team and his ex-lover, Patton keeps to himself and takes what solace he can in football.<br><br>Cornerback DeShawn Jones has loved two things in his life -- football and Patton Cooper. It seems like his dreams have come true when he’s drafted to play for the Phoenix Wildcats, until he realizes the coach has no intention of letting him start, and his childhood hero is a withdrawn, wary man. But DeShawn refuses to give up on his dreams of playing, or his hope of reaching Patton.<br><br>A tentative connection forms between the two men, but the pressures of the game may be too much for the relationship to withstand. Especially when DeShawn is given the chance of a lifetime while Patton struggles not to relive the mistakes from his past.

Mr. November

“That’s enough,” Patton hollered, waving DeShawn in.


“Enough? I was just getting warmed up.”


Patton shook his head. He wasn’t going to do this. He wasn’t going to pretend this was like any other Sunday in the past eleven years. He wasn’t going to be able to work off any of this energy zapping through his veins like ungrounded electricity. “I’m warmed up.”


“What’s Stan going to say if he sees you out here acting like a receiver? You better get over there before he misses you.”


Patton shook his head. He didn’t know if there was just onesad thing about his life.


He left Patton standing alone, forced to admit that while DeShawn might be a little obnoxious, he wasn’t wrong.


Chapter 6