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the Phoenix Wildcats, until he realizes the coach has no intention of letting him start, and his childhood hero is a withdrawn, wary man.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

Do you really want to go back to Phoenix, to a house that isn’t really yours? And your only friend is some kid who, quite frankly, would be horrified if he knew what you really thought about him? Even if he does like guys, even if he didn’t mind admitting as much, do you think he’d want some washed-up has-been? Don’t confuse politeness with interest.


Patton hadn’t quite been guilty of that. He didn’t think DeShawn had any sort of sexual interest in him. But he wantedhim to. If he could wave a magic wand and suddenly make DeShawn interested, he would. Could he look forward to this sort of thing for the rest of his life or would it be easier for him when he retired from playing?


Chapter 22