Fourth and Goal by Jami Davenport Read Free Book Online

roar of the crowd on the kickoff. Not that the Jacks had enough of a crowd to cause a roar, but hey, there was always tomorrow. She was a longtime fan, and her heart soared when they won and ached when they lost.
    Someday she'd be a part of building a winning team, making a difference, and bringing a community together. Someday her pride would go beyond the pride of a mere fan.
    Someday.
    The All-Pro linebacker charged like a rhinoceros on steroids and rammed into Derek just as he caught the ball. He went one way; the ball went the other. His body crashed into the ground so hard his teeth should have been drilled right through his skull. At least that's what it felt like inside his helmet.
    Hauling himself to his feet, Derek ignored his complaining muscles and limped to the huddle. The entire Milky Way galaxy swirled in front of his face. Leaning in to hear the call, he rubbed his bruised hip. He'd be lucky to remember his name, let alone the play.
    Across the huddle, Tyler shot daggers at him with laser-sharp blue eyes. “Shit, hang on to the fucking ball, will ya, asshole?"
    Derek ignored him. He'd grown immune to Tyler's insults years ago. Besides, there wasn't much to say. He'd dropped another perfect pass and added one more nail in the coffin of his pro-football career.
    With a disgusted snarl, Tyler turned to the rest of the team and called the play, his back rigid with anger and frustration. His day wasn't going much better than Derek's.
    Derek threw a bone-jarring block on the next play, allowing their running back to move the ball to midfield. On third down, Tyler put up a long bomb. It was overthrown. Derek didn't stand a chance in hell of catching it. Even so, he got a few fingers on the ball before it bounced into the arms of a defender.
    Pissed as hell, Tyler stalked to the sidelines. Derek hobbled behind him. Every bruised muscle in his body protested the slightest movement while his brain swam around in his skull like fish in a fishbowl. Skirting the coaches and their disapproving glares, he slumped onto one of the benches. Swigging down some water, his cousin slammed his ass down beside him, fire in his eyes.
    "What the fuck is wrong with you, Ramsey? I used to throw a ball anywhere in your vicinity, and you'd catch it. Fuck, now you'd drop a fucking beach ball from three feet away."
    "Hell if I know.” Derek couldn't muster the energy to shoot back a smart-ass reply. Defeat weighed on his shoulders, and he'd never worn defeat well.
    "Well, whatever the fuck it is that you don't know, you sure as hell had better figure it out and fast.” Tyler's eyes flicked to HughJack as the coach scribbled on his clipboard.
    "I wish I could."
    "Look, buddy.” Tyler leaned closer, lowering his voice. “Coach had enough confidence to put you with the first string. Pull your fucking head out of your ass. I want that guy back who flipped the world off and proved them all wrong. Can we say Rose Bowl ? How about Olympics ?” Tyler tapped on his cousin's forehead. “Hey, are you still in there or did they operate on your fucking head at the same time they fixed your fucking knee? I never thought I'd see the day that you'd lose your fucking nerve and fucking give up."
    "I haven't lost it.” Derek clenched his jaw. Tyler was right unfortunately. He hated it when Tyler was right. Getting one up made his cousin an insufferable asshole, even more than usual.
    "You gave up on me out there. What the fuck was up with that?” Tyler narrowed his eyes.
    "I didn't give up. It wasn't a catchable ball."
    "Since when is a ball I throw your way uncatchable? You didn't used to think like that."
    He didn't. In the past, if it was still in the air, it was catchable. Once again Tyler was right. “I tried."
    "Yeah right. Fucking bullshit.” His cousin stood and moved a few steps away to watch the defense from the sidelines.
    Derek put his head in his hands. Damn. Damn. Damn . He took deep breaths, grasping for something to hold on to, to use