The Quarterback Sneak by Liz Matis Read Free Book Online Page B

pocket. Hurdling
over a fallen lineman, he released the ball just before hitting the
line of scrimmage. The crowd roared as the ball sailed in a
movie-perfect arc toward the end zone. Then the ball brushed off
Burner’s fingertips and landed into the Warriors cornerback’s
hands. Intercepted. Game over.
    The collective moan from the fans had
deafened Liam’s ears more than any cheer ever had. He’d
disappointed them. Again. Then the booing rained down from the
stands. Some players claimed they couldn’t hear the fans, but Liam
felt each hiss and catcall like a tackle from a charging
lineman.
    “Sorry man,” Burner said as they’d headed to
the locker room.
    “No, bro, it’s all on me.” Liam thumped his
chest.
    “Win as a team, lose as a team.”
    Liam nodded, even though he knew it wasn’t
true. Nothing would be said, but his teammates would silently place
the blame on him, especially the defense who held the Warriors to
only a single touchdown, keeping the Cougars in the game. Then
there was Romer, the rookie quarterback, who would no doubt be
gloating about his rival’s bad start.
    So Liam iced his shoulder and took his time
in the shower, going over in his head how he should handle the
inevitable onslaught of questions.
    Dressed in a suit and feeling calmer, he
left the safe haven of the trainers’ room ready to face off against
the press. Because of the media frenzy created by his engagement,
the Cougars had set up a formal press conference rather than the
usual post-game stand-up.
    At least a table would separate him and the
press. Win or lose, he hated how the reporters got up in his face
with their microphones and cameras after every game. He almost felt
sorry for Hayden, dealing with media on a daily basis. Though she
seemed to enjoy all the attention.
    As he took his seat, flashes from the
cameras nearly blinded him, and the shouts of a dozen reporters
muddled his ability to distinguish a specific question. But he
caught old man Middleton’s glare from the back of the room. Good,
maybe the owner was having second thoughts about the wisdom of
using Liam as his sacrificial lamb.
    Determined to set the tone of the
conference, Liam leaned forward to the microphone to issue a
statement. “I’m not talking about my personal life.”
    Meredith, handling her public relations’
role, pointed to a reporter from the New Jersey Examiner .
“Tony, get us started.”
    “How much do you think your poor play has to
do with your engagement to the daughter of the Cougars owner?” the
reporter asked.
    Liam rubbed the tension knotting the back of
his neck. Maybe he could deflect further inquiry with a
self-effacing remark. “I don’t need anyone’s help to suck. Just
look at last year’s Championship.” That earned him a few
chuckles.
    Tony followed up. “So you don’t think Hayden
Middleton is a distraction?”
    “During a game?” Liam decided to stick with
humor. “Only if she came running naked out on the field. Did I miss
that too?”
    A burst of laughter sounded off the walls.
Liam joined in. “Now can we talk about football? Otherwise, I’m out
of here.”
    “Given your past, isn’t your engagement to a
known party girl a danger to your sobriety?” The question came from
the back on the room.
    Scowling, Liam identified a reporter named
Ender—a hack who had gleefully written about his hard fall from
grace. Who let that prick in? The team had revoked Ender’s press
privileges long before Liam even joined the team, after the
so-called sports reporter targeted running back Miller and his
supermodel wife with a torrid personal piece that had nothing to do
with the game.
    Liam didn’t intend for the same thing to
happen to Hayden and him.
    “I said no questions about my personal
life.” Before anger got the best of him, he rose from his seat and
headed deliberately away from the microphone.
    The room exploded into chaos as he walked
out the door. Meredith followed him, her heels clacking like