Big Baller: Bad Boy Sports Romance Read online

  Contents

  Title Page

  Big Baller

  ONE

  TWO

  THREE

  FOUR

  FIVE

  SIX

  SEVEN

  EIGHT

  NINE

  TEN

  ELEVEN

  TWELVE

  THIRTEEN

  FOURTEEN

  FIFTEEN

  SIXTEEN

  SEVENTEEN

  EIGHTEEN

  NINETEEN

  TWENTY

  TWENTY-ONE

  TWENTY-TWO

  TWENTY-THREE

  TWENTY-FOUR

  TWENTY-FIVE

  TWENTY-SIX

  TWENTY-SEVEN

  TWENTY-EIGHT

  TWENTY-NINE

  THIRTY

  THIRTY-ONE

  THIRTY-TWO

  THIRTY-THREE

  THIRTY-FOUR

  THIRTY-FIVE

  THIRTY-SIX

  THIRTY-SEVEN

  THIRTY-EIGHT

  THIRTY-NINE

  FORTY

  FORTY-ONE

  FORTY-TWO

  FORTY-THREE

  FORTY-FOUR

  Big Jock

  ONE

  TWO

  THREE

  FOUR

  FIVE

  SIX

  SEVEN

  EIGHT

  NINE

  TEN

  ELEVEN

  TWELVE

  THIRTEEN

  FOURTEEN

  FIFTEEN

  SIXTEEN

  SEVENTEEN

  EIGHTEEN

  NINETEEN

  TWENTY

  TWENTY-ONE

  TWENTY-TWO

  TWENTY-THREE

  TWENTY-FOUR

  TWENTY-FIVE

  TWENTY-SIX

  TWENTY-SEVEN

  TWENTY-EIGHT

  TWENTY-NINE

  THIRTY

  THIRTY-ONE

  THIRTY-TWO

  THIRTY-THREE

  THIRTY-FOUR

  THIRTY-FIVE

  THIRTY-SIX

  THIRTY-SEVEN

  THIRTY-EIGHT

  THIRTY-NINE

  FORTY

  ABOUT AUTHOR

  BIG BALLER

  Bad Boy Sports Romance

  by Abbi Hemp

  Copyright © 2016 Abbi Hemp

  All rights reserved.

  This is dedicated to every woman who has had a dream to become a full-time fiction writer - and done something about it.

  This novel contains adult language, situations, and themes. It is meant for adults only, please.

  Thanks for reading and supporting an indie writer.

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  Big Baller

  ONE

  Heidi

  Jessica, known as Lady Kat in the club, sat next to me in the dressing room as we prepared for another night of bump and grind. Exhausted, I stared at her reflection in the mirror.

  I slept during the day and worked nights, saving away. The plan had been to work my ass off (literally) for a year and then enroll in Cleveland University.

  Somewhere along the way, everything had changed. Had I forgotten why I started dancing? Without any family in the world, money would give me safety and security.

  Only a few years separated Jessica and I, but time had been rough on her. The dark club, lots of makeup and the fact she was willing to bare it all made up for her age.

  She caught me staring at her and asked, “What?”

  “Nothing,” I said, looking away. “Thinking about money. I need to reach my goal and enroll in school before…”

  I let my voice trail off.

  “Before you become an old biddy like me?”

  She laughed. I smiled.

  “No, but I want to do something with my life.”

  “There’s a hell of a lot of other things I’d do than become a police officer, but more power to you. Don’t want to be hanging around this place too long or you’ll end up looking like me.”

  Our eyes met in the mirror’s reflection.

  “It’s not like that,” I said. “Maybe I’ll become an attorney.”

  She smiled, still beautiful.

  “I know, baby. You ready to make some money tonight?”

  “Yeah, I guess,” I said then sighed.

  “Well, if you do want to make some, you need to snap out of your funk, hear me?”

  I nodded. Following her advice had enabled me to put twenty grand into the bank already. When I reached fifty-thousand dollars, I would feel secure enough to stop dancing and concentrate on acquiring a criminal justice degree.

  “You’re right,” I said, turning to look ahead and finish my own makeup. “All we’ve had is broke losers lately.”

  “Are you working tomorrow night?” she asked.

  “No, why? I’ve pulled six days in a row already, and I’m beat.”

  She glanced around the empty room then put her hand on my shoulder.

  “You need to ask Ugly Stan if you can work tomorrow night.”

  I turned to face her.

  “Why?”

  “Let’s just say I overheard him talking about football players coming in tomorrow.”

  I cocked my head to the side, interested.

  “Yeah?”

  She nodded.

  “The whole team from what I heard. As you know, they have deep pockets and aren’t afraid to throw money in the air, especially if we work together and get them playing off each other.”

  I smiled.

  “You think he would let me?”

  “Girl, you’re a star in his eyes. He’d do anything for you. Don’t you know that yet?”

  “Whatever,” I said, returning my attention to the mirror in front of me.

  As if he’d heard us talking with his disgusting, hair-filled ears, Ugly Stan burst into the room.

  “Hope you girls is dressed,” he said with a snicker.

  I glanced at him in the mirror. Many women said they hated their boss, but in a seedy strip club in Mansfield, Ohio that phrase went to a whole other level.

  “Baby Cakes wants to work tomorrow night,” Jessica said.

  Ugly Stan walked over and put a pudgy hand on the backs of our chairs. He looked into my mirror.

  “That so, darlin’?”

  I nodded cautiously. As one of the few dancers or bartenders who hadn’t slept with him, he always singled me out and gave me a hard time.

  He turned his attention to Jessica.

  “Didn’t I tell you to keep your damn pie-hole shut about tomorrow night?”

  “Take it easy, Stan. You know she’s the youngest here and makes the most money. The team is going to shower money on her and you.”

  Ugly Stan laughed, his belly bouncing up and down, his threadbare green tee-shirt barely covering it.

  “You two think you’re so smart, do ya?”

  “I could use the money, Stan.”

  “I bet you could.” As he leered at me in the mirror, I smiled. “Fine, but you can’t work tonight. You’ve been here six days already. Don’t think I didn’t notice.”

  The tips I would lose on a Saturday night would hurt, but I hoped the football team would make up for it

  “Thank you,” I said sincerely.

  “Come with me,”
Ugly Stan snarled to Jessica. “You got to pay off some of your debt.”

  He turned and waddled out of the room as Jessica got to her feet.

  “Thank you,” I said, standing and hugging her. “Don’t let him make you…”

  “Girl,” she said, cutting me off. “It ain’t no big thing. Literally.”

  I smiled and watched as she walked to the door. Other dancers filtered into the room, sitting in front of some of the dozen or so mirrors on the walls.

  Most of them hated me, saying I thought I was better than them, stuck-up. If they only knew, I thought as I left before any of them started anything.

  Jessica kept them in line most of the time because we were such close friends. In some ways, she had filled the role of mother in my life.

  On the drive home to my small apartment, I thought about my parents. At the tender age of thirteen, I had lost both of them in an automobile accident.

  The only reason I wasn’t with them that fateful night was because I had called both of them assholes in typical teenager fashion. I’d never forgiven myself for it.

  When I reached my studio apartment in a small town north of Mansfield, I parked in the back. The moon lit my path as I made my way up the rickety stairs.

  I could afford a better place to live with all the money I brought in as a dancer, but I was serious about getting into college and changing my life around.

  The dancing was just a means to an end. With no surviving family, I had to take care of myself. I shut my apartment door and locked it with a chain and deadbolt.

  After a quick shower to rinse the stench of the club off me, I laid down on my single bed with a towel wrapped around me. A Cleveland University poster hung on the ceiling above me.

  I stared at it, wondering if I would be as happy as the students in the photo once I enrolled. With only twenty-grand or so saved up, I had a way to go to reach my goal.

  The events of earlier in the night crept into my mind. I sat up and put on my white cotton robe before sitting at a plain wooden desk to hit the books.

  Even though I wasn’t enrolled in any classes, I’d bought some used textbooks to get a head start. When I finally got into college, I wanted to be ready.

  An old episode of American Greed played on my laptop screen nearby. My favorite show served as background noise as I dug into the books.

  TWO

  Tony

  As I lounged on a deck chair next to the pool in my backyard, I thought about a way to politely get rid of Dylan for the rest of the afternoon.

  Beyond being a running back on the team with me, we had been good friends since college at Ohio State two years earlier, but he was getting on my nerves.

  “You gotta come tomorrow night,” he said, glancing over at me.

  “Why do I have to go? That’s not my thing, man.”

  “You saying you don’t like titties and pussy?”

  “I do, but you know the women at those clubs.”

  “It’s a morale building thing, Tony. The rest of the team wants you around. We’re going to go all the way next season. Bonding tomorrow night will make that goal easier.”

  His words made sense. Morale had been a problem during the last season.

  “Alright, man. I’ll be there at eleven tomorrow night, but no promises that I’ll stay long. This is all on the down-low, right?”

  “Of course. The owner is closing up the club all night for us. His name is Ugly Stan.”

  “Ugly Stan, huh?”

  He nodded and grinned.

  “I’ll see you there tomorrow night.”

  “Sounds like a plan. One more brew before you hit the road?”

  “You trying to get me fat?” he asked with a laugh.

  He stood. I glanced up at him.

  “Who knows, you might do better on the defensive line.”

  “Whatever, man. I’m out of here. You’re coming tomorrow night, right?”

  “Sure.”

  “Alright. Good. Later on.”

  I nodded my head at him before he turned and walked into the back of the house. Dylan was a good guy, but our team had problems a bonding experience at a strip club wouldn’t solve.

  After giving him a minute to leave, I stood and stretched before diving into the pool. The cool water felt wonderful on a hot July day. With no daily practices until late August, I had all the time in the world.

  Because I’d grown up so poor, the twenty-million dollars I’d already earned in my first two years felt like a fucking billion. Somehow, I’d managed to resist the urge to go on a spending spree and blow it all.

  I had spent a couple million on a house and a few vehicles, but after those purchases, I settled down, intent on having money to invest in some sort of business after my career eventually ended.

  As I bobbed up and down in the water, relaxing with my thoughts of the future, I saw two scantily clad women walk toward the pool. Dylan stood between them with a huge smile on his face.

  “What the hell?” I asked, staring up at him.

  “I thought we could get the party started a little early. This is Erin and Tiffany.”

  The two women giggled. After two years, fucking with football groupies had lost its luster. With a eight figure net worth, women were only after one thing with me, and I hated it.

  “You guys need to go,” I said. “I’m about to leave.”

  “Aw,” one of the women said with a pouty face.

  Dylan pushed her into the water. She came up near me, laughing and giggling like a crazy woman.

  “Let’s get this party started,” Dylan said, putting his arms around the other woman.

  I swam to the shallow end of the pool and climbed out. Water dripped from my body to the warm cement. The woman in the water stared at me with a confused look on her face.

  “You all have to go. Now.”

  As I walked toward Dylan, he cocked his head to the side.

  “What’s wrong, bro?”

  “I told you, I have to go take care of some stuff.”

  “Fine,” he said with a disappointed frown. “Let’s go ladies. Party at my pad. I’ll have to do both of you.”

  The women giggled as I stood with my hands on my hips, waiting for them to leave.

  “You sure, bro?” Dylan asked. “Erin here…”

  “I’m sure,” I said, cutting him off.

  “We’re still on for tomorrow night, right?”

  “Tomorrow night?” the wet woman asked Dylan.

  “Don’t worry about it, baby. You’ll have fun with me tonight.”

  She smiled, putting her right hand on his arm.

  “I’ll call you tomorrow,” I said.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Dylan said, putting his arms around the waists of both women.

  I watched as they walked into the house. When they were gone, I went inside and thought briefly about going to see Jamie, my sister. Instead, I stayed home, alone with my thoughts.

  The mansion would stay empty until I found the right woman. With so much fame and fortune, finding a woman not after my money had turned out to be more difficult than I ever imagined.

  In the kitchen, I made a salad, still weighing whether I should go to the strip club with the rest of the team. I would never find a suitable wife in such a place, but it might be good to blow off steam.

  By the end of the night, I’d resigned to going in order to build more team unity. With the last two seasons we’d had together, we needed to do something to break the funk.

  While unlikely, Stan’s Gentleman’s Club might do the trick. If nothing else, I would get out of the house for a few hours, something I needed to do more. Off season months were the worst.

  Lying in bed, my hands behind my head as I stared up at the ceiling, I wondered if I should have fucked one of the women earlier. One-night stands were usually not worth the risk for someone like me.

  At the same time, I was a man who had needs. Why can’t I ever find a good woman? I wondered as I fell asleep, dreaming
of touchdowns and true love, the best things in life.

  THREE

  Heidi

  The big night arrived. According to Jessica, we might make a few thousand if we showed the team a good time. She sat next to me in back, getting ready for the horny football players.

  “Has the whole team ever come before?”

  “Not here in Cleveland, but it happened once in Gary, Indiana when I worked there.”

  I nodded, listening intently. She always gave me good advice.

  “At least I’m not nervous anymore,” I said with a nervous laugh. “Remember my first night here?”

  Jessica smiled and put her hand on my shoulder a moment.

  “I didn’t think you would last this long,” she admitted.

  “Well, I did. And I’m ready for tonight.”