Kickoff Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright © 2019 by Cedrona Enterprises

  Blurb

  Dedication

  Author’s Note

  Chapter 1—The Kickoff

  Chapter 2—The Runback

  Chapter 3—Broken Plays

  Chapter 4—Safe Is Good if You’re Talking Baseball

  Chapter 5—Down and Almost Out

  Chapter 6—Sudden Death in Overtime

  Chapter 7—Recovering the Fumble

  Chapter 8—Reading the Defense

  Chapter 9—Encroachment

  Chapter 10—In the Huddle

  Chapter 11—Inside the Red Zone

  Chapter 12—In the Zone

  Chapter 13—Quarterback Sneak

  Chapter 14—Going Deep for the Big Score

  Chapter 15—Safety Blitz

  Chapter 16—Backfield in Motion

  Chapter 17—Sacking the Quarterback

  Chapter 18—Tripped Up

  Chapter 19—Rooting for the Underdog

  Chapter 20—Bringing in the Chains

  Chapter 21—Thrown for a Loss

  Chapter 22—Big Play

  Chapter 23—Home Field Advantage

  Chapter 24—Unnecessary Roughness

  Chapter 25—Broken Tackle

  Chapter 26—Block in the Back

  Chapter 27—Late Hit

  Chapter 28—Threading the Needle

  Chapter 29—Final Play

  Chapter 30—Everything on the Line

  Chapter 31—Overtime

  Complete Booklist

  About the Author

  Kickoff

  The Originals

  A Seattle Steelheads Football Classic

  THE GAME ON IN SEATTLE COLLECTION

  By Jami Davenport

  Copyright © 2019 by Cedrona Enterprises

  Copyright © 2013

  Copyright © 2011

  All rights reserved. This copy is intended for the original purchaser of this book ONLY. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without prior written permission from Jami Davenport. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author's rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

  This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to others. If you would like to share this book with others, please purchase an additional copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of the author.

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  The Seattle Sockeyes®, Seattle Steelheads™, and Seattle Skookums™ are fictional sports teams and a series of romance novels. Game On in Seattle™ is a series of sports romance novels. The names and logos are created for the sole use of the owner and covered under protection of trademark.

  This book is a work of fiction. While references might be made to actual historical events or existing locations, the names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Warning

  This book contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language and may be considered offensive to some readers. This book is for sale to adults ONLY, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-age readers.

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  Blurb

  Struggling pro football wide receiver Derek Ramsey was once Rachel McCormick's best friend and lover, and now they're forced together again.

  Gifted with an uncanny ability for evaluating football talent and a dogged determination to succeed in a man's world, Rachel finally gets her chance in the pros as a staff member of the Seattle Steelheads. Her first assignment is to help Derek get his game back. While working with him on the field, she succumbs to the chemistry between them and spends a forbidden night in his arms.

  The next day Derek has the best performance of his not-so-illustrious career. Soon Derek and Rachel are racking up nights in bed, and the team is racking up wins. They're risking it all, but they can't resist each other. Not only is Rachel his coach, but Derek knows the truth behind a secret that destroyed her father years before.

  Rachel and Derek are torn between love and duty, and the clock is winding down. It's fourth and goal, one second left in the game. The next play Derek makes must be for Rachel's heart.

  Previously published as Fourth and Goal in 2011. This version has been updated, rewritten, and re-edited.

  Dedication

  For all those female football fans who, like me, want to read a sports romance novel in which the heroine actually understands football and loves the game. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I enjoyed writing it.

  For my husband, a former college football player and my sounding board for the football scenes.

  And a special thanks to Jen Mueller, a Seattle sportscaster, and owner of Talk Sporty to Me, for taking time out of her busy life to answer my questions. Thanks also to the Seahawks Women’s Club for the incredible Football 101 camp I attended a few years ago at Seahawks Headquarters to benefit breast cancer.

  Author’s Note

  What are The Originals?

  Years ago, I wrote and published several football romances in the Seattle Lumberjacks series. Due to contractual restrictions, I was unable to use the Lumberjacks as my series name when the rights to the books reverted to me. The Lumberjacks books are being rewritten and rolled into my Steelheads series with the subtitle of “The Originals” to differentiate them from the newer books in the series.

  The books in this series were the books of my heart. It is with great pleasure that I am able to update and edit them as they revert to me from my publisher and re-release them as part of my Seattle Steelheads series.

  The events in this story take place nine years prior to Blindsided.

  The current true chronological order is:

  1—Kickoff

  2—Snap Decision

  3—Offsides

  4—Draw Play (Fall 2019

  5—Hot Read (Summer 2020)

  6—Comeback Route (Fall 2020)

  The Steelheads several years later:

  7—Blindsided

  8—Game Changer

  9—Fumble Recovery

  Chapter 1—The Kickoff

  Derek Ramsey’s life had just taken a turn for the worst and dived off a cliff into an unknown abyss.

  If the rumor was true. The one woman he could never forget and who would just as soon forget him had been hired by his team as an analyst and consultant.

  He’d stalled as long as he could. After tying the laces on his cleats, he stood and made the trek to the practice field. The way he felt, he’d rather be walking to the gallows.

  Rachel McCormick.

  Images of Rachel played through his mind like an old, beloved movie he couldn’t stop watching, even though he knew every line and wished he could change the ending.

  He hadn’t seen her in almost five years and hadn’t talked to her in two years. That last conversation was the reason he wasn’t looking forward to this reunion and doubted she would be either. Did she even realize he was on this team?

  No, Rachel had always done her research. She knew.

  Tyler Harris, his best friend, cousin, and the team’s starting quarterback, loun
ged near the edge of the practice field, waiting for him. He lifted a sports drink to his lips and gulped it down as Derek approached.

  “Have you seen her?” Derek glanced around, not seeing the oh-so-familiar face and body.

  “Nope.” Tyler narrowed his eyes and studied him so intently Derek squirmed under the scrutiny. “You’re still carrying a torch for her.”

  “No, I’m not, and I never did. We were friends, and we should’ve kept it that way.”

  Tyler rolled his eyes. “You were both so fucking wrapped up in each other, neither of you could see what was obvious to the rest of us.”

  “Well, aren’t you suddenly the romantic.”

  Tyler scowled and flipped him off before turning on his heel and stalking away.

  Derek sighed deeply and followed his cousin to the field, where most of the team was already warming up.

  Five years ago, his one-weekend affair with Rachel McCormick had dropped him for an emotional loss. For years, she’d been his best female buddy, and he’d messed up a good thing by following his dick instead of his brain. Then when she’d called him two years ago and asked for his help, he’d declined. He’d had his reasons, but none he could tell her. Instead, he let her think he was a selfish, ungrateful bastard. He’d battled a half decade of guilt and coulda-shouldas, so this reunion wouldn’t be pleasant for either of them.

  Taking his place among the teammates lined up on the field, Derek went through the warm-up exercises, then he did drills and ran patterns with the other receivers.

  Still no sign of Rachel. He was starting to relax. The rumors had been nothing but rumors.

  Derek took a break and gulped down a large cup of water. He crushed it and tossed it into a nearby garbage can. Squinting into the relentless afternoon sun, he wiped the sweat from his brow. It had to be ninety-five in the shade. Most people would be surprised at how hot Seattle summers could be, but Derek had been born and raised in the great state of Washington.

  Even with temperatures in upper digits, the heat wasn’t as scorching as the pressure put on this team to win. Last year, his first year with the Steelheads, they’d finished three and thirteen. Two games better than the previous year. Just another below-mediocre season in a sorry decade of football for the Northwest. The Steelheads had owned the league basement for several years, and it was well past time to crawl out of that basement.

  Derek had sucked right along with the rest of his teammates. He’d thought playing with Tyler again would be all they’d need to repeat their high school and college glory days. No fucking way. Dropped pass after dropped pass racked up on his stats. Meanwhile, Tyler, as starting quarterback, didn’t gain any fans with his on- and off-field escapades.

  Funny how life worked like that. One minute they’d stood on top of the mountain, the world at their feet. The next, an avalanche of mistakes and bad luck had swept them downward until they hit rock bottom. Now, bruised and battered, they fought their way back to the summit.

  At the height of his athletic career, Derek had been the Rose Bowl MVP and a world-class sprinter with a gold medal in the 4x4 relay. But that gold turned into fool’s gold, and he was the biggest fool of all.

  One hit during the first play of his first professional game kept him off the football field for over a year. By the time his knee recuperated, his team hadn’t wanted him. Yesterday’s hero had become today’s damaged goods.

  Three professional teams in four years was not a good indicator of career advancement.

  He’d made so many mistakes in the past few years. Derek had signed a one-year contract last year, and management hadn’t renewed it yet. His rumored partying and lack of effort hadn’t impressed anyone. His ego took a huge hit, and his confidence tanked.

  His gut told him this was it. He either proved he belonged or admitted he didn’t have what it took. No more second chances. Failure was not an option. He’d be washed up at the tender old age of twenty-seven.

  Now it came down to this one defining moment in what had once promised to be a stellar football career.

  After last year’s dismal season, the Steelheads’ normally hands-off owner had fired their entire coaching staff. They shelled out big bucks to lure Hubert Jackson—a successful young coach—away from his championship team and recommitted themselves to building a winner.

  This year Derek had been invited to attend a training camp to contend for a spot with the rest of the hopeful wide receivers. He caught that wake-up call. He’d been fumbling his career and squandering his God-given talent.

  No more.

  Derek had sworn off what little partying he’d done, removed distractions from his life, and set to work. He studied game tapes all summer and worked out several hours a day. He focused every bit of his being on resurrecting the potential he’d had in college.

  The all-new coaching staff watched him with unreadable expressions, made notations on clipboards, and gave nothing away. When Derek dropped an easy pass, the head coach shook his head, threw his clipboard down in disgust, and stomped off. The man had a reputation as a taskmaster and two championship rings to back it up. He didn’t accept excuses or anything short of perfection.

  Derek kept his mouth shut and tried harder, but the coach never looked his way the rest of practice. He showered, dressed, and trudged out of the locker room and down the hall. Depressed and discouraged, he stared at his feet. He pushed opened the heavy door leading to the parking lot and slammed into something or someone. Looking up, he instinctively reached out to steady the person and opened his mouth to apologize, but nothing came out.

  Rachel.

  The rumors were true.

  The woman regarding him coldly with poise and confidence barely resembled his tomboy buddy from his high school and college days. This Rachel wore a navy-blue blazer with matching skirt and shoes, complete with manicured nails and makeup. The suit hugged her tall, lean body and accentuated her curves and straight-to-heaven legs. Her long reddish-brown hair was pulled back into a tidy ponytail.

  While he preferred the blue jeans and T-shirt version, this Rachel was just as gorgeous and way more unapproachable. Don’t mess with me radiated from every pore in her body. Not a hint of the shy, sweet Rachel he’d once known.

  Derek untied his tongue and forced his brain to remember the English language. “Rachel, good to see you again. I’d heard the team hired you to help us out, and we can use all the help we can get.” He sounded way calmer than he felt.

  “Thank you. I’m looking forward to this opportunity.” Her professional, icy tone didn’t begin to disguise her distaste for him. She looked as dangerous as a hand grenade with the pin pulled. She glared at his hands still on her shoulders, and he quickly removed them and shoved them in his pockets.

  This reunion wasn’t starting out well, but he had mad respect for Rachel and her abilities. Being around her every day might be difficult, but they were both professionals, and they’d rise above their personal differences.

  He hoped.

  Who the hell was he kidding? This was going to be as difficult as fuck.

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  There were lots of things Rachel McCormick couldn’t forget. Topping the list was Derek Ramsey, her former longtime best friend and only-one-weekend lover. And not just any weekend lover, but the shatter-your-heart-never-slept-with-anyone-else-before-or-after type of lover.

  He still had that rugged profile, gorgeous butt, and long legs. An oh-so-familiar scar zigzagged down the length of one upper arm and ended at his elbow, a souvenir from a pissed-off defensive back during his college football days. A Rose Bowl tattoo graced the other arm, a new addition since she’d last seen him naked over five years ago.

  She’d rather fight ten linebackers for the last piece of double chocolate fudge cake than face this man, but she was committed to her mission. Everything hinged on her handling the next few months in his presence. Seeing him brought back a painful onslaught of confusing emotions. Fondness, anger, and regret banged against each other
like bumper cars.

  Rachel thought she’d gotten over him long ago, but she’d been fooling herself.

  Five years might not have changed her physical reaction, but a melancholy layer of mistrust coated her emotional reaction, a painful reminder of good times never to be recovered.

  Worst of all, a sadness for what was and never would be again engulfed her like a morning fog in downtown Seattle, more unsettling than the physical pain.

  When she’d needed him most, he’d essentially turned his back on her and her father.

  Aware of every inch of his six-foot-five frame, Rachel attempted to breeze past him and into the building. Big mistake. Her ankle twisted. Her always-clumsy feet wrapped around each other, and down she went, only to be suspended in mid-fall and hauled against his strong chest.

  He smelled of pure male with an underlying scent uniquely his. Their gazes met and locked. Sadness flickered in his eyes, then extinguished like a candle in a hurricane.

  She gripped his shoulders. Her attempt to right herself rubbed her chest against his. Her body thrummed with excitement and anticipation, refusing to listen to warnings from her head. Those familiar brown eyes, kind, concerned, and full of regret, stared down at her like warm fudge brownies straight from her mother’s oven. A few wrinkles in the corners testified to the miles he’d put on since their college days. Yet those tiny lines only added to his overall hotness—a hotness to which he’d always been relatively oblivious.

  She, however, wasn’t.

  Her heart lay at his feet and begged for any crumb he chose to throw her way. Her pride gave it a swift kick in the pants and forced it back to reality. This man was not her friend. Not anymore. Not after what he’d done to her father and, by association, to her and her brother.

  “You’re still fighting a losing battle with gravity.”