“It’s—”
Although Gideon’s mother had taught him not to interrupt people, he had to stop this one. “I don’t want to know it. I want you to get dressed and get out of my home before I call the police.”
The smile started melting down her face before she firmed it up again. “You are such a kidder. That’s what I like about you.”
“Lady, you don’t even know me. You’ve seen me play. I probably said hi to you once or twice, and now you’re stalking me.”
“I am not. I love you, Gideon. I love watching you play. I love how you are with your friends. I don’t even care that your mother is black. I think it’s cool. It’s like the reverse Blind Side.”
Gideon blinked. “You know what? Sit right there.” He brought his phone to his face. “It’ll make it easier for the cops to get you.”
The cheerleader hopped out of bed and snatched her clothes from the floor. “Loser!” She put on her tight T-shirt. “I can’t believe you’re letting all this go out the door.”
“I’m not. I told you that you can stay right there until the police get here.” After the first ring, Gideon heard a click.
“Nine-one-one. What’s your emergency?” the dispatcher asked in a canned fashion.
“Yes, I got home and found an intruder in my house.” Gideon kept his stare on the She-Wolf to make sure she didn’t do anything else foolish. He had no idea if she had a gun or a knife or any type of weapon. How far would she go to get him?
She growled as she slipped on her skirt. “Bastard! Are you really on the phone with the cops?”
“Ma’am, do you hear her? She’s in my bedroom.” Again, Gideon kept his glare on this intruder. He spouted his address to the operator.
“Yes, sir. We’ll get officers to the scene.”
Gideon heard the woman typing as she spoke to him.
Dennis would have probably loved these antics. Gideon found nothing amusing about it. He felt violated and like he’d lost some control.
The cheerleader slipped on a pair of boots and then snatched her purse from the floor. So the woman wore no underwear? Okay, part of that did appeal to Gideon, but nonetheless, she’d crossed several lines. Don’t encroach on his space and never, ever talk about his family.
She started to make her way to the bedroom door to leave when she stopped. She turned toward Gideon and strolled toward him.
Gideon stood firmly in his spot as he pointed to the door. He’d seen careers of other athletes crumble from one stupid move. No way would this one opportunist make him step out of his character. He wouldn’t lay a hand on her.
“I’m leaving. I need to get this.” The cheerleader reached around his shoulder and removed a small cell phone from behind the picture of his family on the middle bookshelf. She pushed a button on it before slipping it in her purse.
“You were taping this?” The longer Gideon stood in front of her, the more it felt like lava coursed through his veins. His eyes and the back of his neck felt hot. He couldn’t stop balling his hands into fists. If he didn’t calm himself down, he would snap his phone in two.
“It would have been so intense. Me, you, and your Super Bowl ring.” She gazed down at his hand. “Oh, guess you don’t have it yet.”
Gideon spoke to the dispatcher. “Please send someone right away. She’s about to leave and I’m definitely pressing charges.” He gave a description of her outfit to the dispatcher while the She-Wolf continued growling at him. With the call over, he glared at the stranger in his home. “I’m calling the Wolves’ head office to get you removed from the team and banned from getting anywhere close to us. I don’t ever want to see you again.”
The tiny terror stomped down the marble steps to the door. She opened it, triggering Gideon’s alarm. She didn’t even turn around to acknowledge him. He closed the door, locked it again, and then disabled the alarm. As expected, his cell phone rang.
First, his alarm company called him. Gideon explained what he’d found when he’d gotten home.
“We’ll send police to make sure she leaves the premises,” the alarm company representative said.
“I’ve already contacted the police. They’re sending someone over now.” Gideon didn’t want to go that route, but she’d given him no choice.
Then Pearl from the front gate called him. “I got a report your alarm went off. Forget the code, Mr. Wells?”
“No. The guard before you allowed a stranger to come to my home and gain entrance with the cleaning staff here. I don’t appreciate that, and I will be reporting that to management.” As he thought about it, he would also have to call his cleaning company and complain about them letting this woman into his home. They had no right to open his door to a stranger.
“Oh, shit. I mean, I’m so sorry, sir. That shouldn’t have happened. I’ll call my boss right now and connect you to him.”
Gideon shook his head. “Later. I’ll talk to the police, and then I need some sleep.” He disconnected the call.
The police arrived within two minutes.
“The woman who was here left.” Gideon pointed down his driveway. “I want to make sure you get her before she gets away.”
“She won’t, Mr. Wells.” The officer took a step into Gideon’s home. “The first unit saw her walking down the road and they apprehended her. I’m here to take your statement.” He pulled out a notepad. “By the way, great game last night. Still can’t believe you’re here so soon.”
Gideon couldn’t believe everything he’d had to deal with within a twenty-four-hour period. Could he get a break?
After completing a police report, taking a couple of pictures with the officers and signing some autographs, the police left. Too bad now Gideon couldn’t sleep. He needed to rest to think clearly.
He lumbered up to his room after making sure he secured the downstairs and strolled into his large yet empty bedroom. When he crossed the threshold, he peered over to the bookshelf where the cheerleader had hidden her phone. If she’d hidden her phone, what else had she done? Had she bugged his room with some other recording device?
“Damn.” Gideon retreated to a spare bedroom.
With each step to the other bedroom, he gritted his teeth. His home should be his sanctuary. Now he felt like a guest. Never again would he allow a woman or anyone else to derail him. He wanted to keep his focus on his family, the reason for his trip back home.
Chapter 4
Janelle’s mother, Ida, could only be tolerated in small doses. Conducting her conversation with Ida by phone allowed Janelle an easy out when her mother got on her nerves. She rolled her eyes again, probably the fourth time during their chat, as she drove to her shop and listened to her mother give her advice on how to live her life…again.
“What you need to do is get you a rich man to pay your bills and get you out of this mess,” Ida said.
Janelle had made the mistake of not updating her address with her bank before they sent out a notification about her delinquent status. He mother had seen it and now felt she had every right to comment on Janelle’s personal affairs.
“Mom, I was able to get the loan on my own. I had the business idea on my own. I developed the business plan on my own. I don’t need a rich man to bail me out. As usual, I’ll