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the Phoenix Wildcats, until he realizes the coach has no intention of letting him start, and his childhood hero is a withdrawn, wary man.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

They walked side by side up to their room, Patton pulling his key out to unlock the door first, a small thrill going through him at the thought of being alone with DeShawn. He would have characterized it as dread before, but now it just felt like excitement. DeShawn made good on his promise to go back to bed, throwing himself onto the mattress with a small groan.


“Got some after practice. I’ll be okay in a few hours.”


“I could go out if you want some peace and quiet.”


DeShawn chuckled. “Right, because you don’t do anything but flap your lips. Stay. I’ll be fine.”


“Will the TV bother you?” Can I stretch out on the bed with you? Can we talk about last night? Can you tell me what to do because I don’t have a playbook for this game?


“No. Trust me, I’m going to be out in a few seconds.”


“Okay. There are a couple of games on this afternoon I wanted to watch.”


Chapter 20