Introduction
A single night of powerful connection collides with a cruel twist of fate. No matter the outcome, Sergio and Tobin are meant to be.
Sergio went from the streets to being one of the highest-paid soccer players in the world. For the most part, he has tried to stay humble. The change in his circumstances doesn’t mean his life is easy now. He meets a lot of users and has a hard time saying no. Tobin is the first person he’s met since hitting it big who doesn’t want a thing from him. Yet Tobin needs him more than Sergio could possibly know.
Tobin has no clue Sergio is famous. In a moment of living life to the fullest while he can, Tobin takes Sergio home for the night. While it is the greatest night of his life, he has no plans to repeat the experience. Everything recently changed for him and Tobin is in no place to start a relationship. He must accept Sergio as the temporary gift he is, except he doesn’t take into account Sergio’s determination.
Sergio isn’t the type to be pushed aside. Tobin is in his sights now. Unlike everyone else, Tobin deserves Sergio’s help and he’s not taking no for an answer. All he can do now is hope that life doesn’t steal Tobin before Sergio can save him.
One
Considering Sergio’s friend Valor had made it to forty without ever being married, Sergio was more than a little surprised—in a good way—to be sitting at the guy’s engagement party. It thrilled Sergio to no end to see Valor finally settling down. Although it was a little strange to see Valor marrying a man two years older than Sergio’s twenty-four, but who was he to judge. When it came to love, Sergio wasn’t exactly killing it. For someone with a five-million-dollar-a-year contract with an L.A. pro soccer team, the Lancers, and several lucrative contracts with advertising agencies, he would have thought he would have better luck with the guys, but no. He only met users or cheats... or both. That didn’t mean Sergio planned to quit. In fact, he couldn’t stop gravitating toward Valor’s man’s best friend, Tobin.
Tobin was a tiny blond with light green eyes and a blush that made all the muscles in Sergio’s stomach tighten with lust. The moment Sergio had walked into the engagement party, his gaze had found Tobin and his feet had been headed Tobin’s way before Sergio could have a second thought. While Sergio would normally be a little guarded with someone new, he was a good ninety percent certain that Tobin had no idea who Sergio was—other than being Valor’s friend, of course. Sergio couldn’t stop flirting with him. Watching the man blush was too much fun.
“Tell me, Tobin, what’s your favorite color? Do you want to sit on my lap?”
Tobin’s gaze dropped to the floor. A gorgeous blush touched his cheeks. “It’s red. What about you?”
“It’s green. The exact shade of your eyes, to be more specific. You’re a baker, right? What’s your favorite food and do you plan to take me home tonight?”
Tobin met his stare again. “I’m a pastry chef and Mexican food, but not like Tex Mex. Do you know what I mean?” Tobin became more animated, talking with his hands. “Like, not the California style bastardized version of Mexican food, but like authentic. Does that make sense?”
A laugh burst from Sergio. “Yeah. I’m Hispanic.”
Tobin blushed again as Sergio pointed out the obvious. “Oh, yeah. Sorry.”
“Don’t apologize. You’re adorable.” Sergio barely stopped himself from stroking Tobin’s jawline. He looked like he had soft skin. Sergio wanted to find out. “I love pizza,” Sergio added, hoping to soothe Tobin’s embarrassment. “I’m not a chef, like you, but I sure as hell can cook you some authentic Mexican food. That’s another reason you should take me home. I’d make it worth your while.” Sergio eyed Tobin’s body with every ounce of heat he felt. He bit his bottom lip. Damn. Tobin looked sexy in his gray button-down shirt and dark jeans. “In more ways than one,” Sergio added, so there would be no misunderstandings about what would happen if Tobin took him home. He quickly changed tactics again, trying to keep Tobin off balance so he wouldn’t run away. “Do you like watching sports?”
Tobin curled his nose. “Not especially. It’s not that I hate them, or anything. I just get bored and stop paying attention. Since you asked, I’m assuming you do. Which is your favorite?”
“Fútbol.” Sergio stared intently at Tobin, looking for any signs that the man played games with him. Tobin wouldn’t be the first man to pretend not to know him in hopes of getting closer.
Tobin’s forehead furrowed. He looked adorably confused. “Do you mean American football or soccer?”
A smile exploded across Sergio’s face. Tobin wasn’t playing him. He really didn’t know Sergio played professionally. “Soccer.”
Tobin’s expression cleared. He smiled. “Oh. My mom tried to make me play that when I was four. She said I refused to run back and forth with my team. Instead, I kept dropping to the ground and crawling around so I could pick dandelions.”
Sergio couldn’t stop smiling at the laughter in Tobin’s eyes. “I bet you weren’t much smaller than you are now.”
To his surprise, Tobin’s smile slipped away. “I’m sure.”
Sergio hadn’t meant to insult him. He found Tobin adorable. Apparently, he had hit an insecurity. Sergio hated that. He wasn’t that guy. He liked making people smile. Sergio scrambled to expose a weakness too so they would be even. “I grew up in the streets, living in homeless camps and shelters. That’s how I met Valor. He was one of the cops who spent time with the teens. We would play basketball and whatnot. He’s been good to me—made sure I didn’t stay without a home, you know? How did you become best friends with a famous actor like Reid?” Sergio had to keep Tobin from asking too much about his past. He still wasn’t ready for Tobin to find out he was famous in certain circles. Sergio liked that Tobin thought he was just some guy.
Tobin was back to looking open again. His insecurities had disappeared. “I have a deal set up with the Coastal Arts Center where Reid does a lot of his theater work. A few days a week, I restock their green room with baked goods to keep the crew fed. Reid is a force of nature. He just kind of adopted me as his friend. I don’t remember being consulted. It was like I was there working one minute, and Reid swept me out the door the next. He talked a mile a minute while taking us to lunch.” A sexy smile touched Tobin’s lips. “I don’t think I even told him my name until we were leaving the restaurant. It’s pretty much been like that ever since.”
Even though Tobin laughed at the memory, Sergio didn’t want Tobin to walk away with a similar story about him. “What’s your last name?”
Tobin looked taken aback by the question, but he still immediately answered. “Sader. What’s yours?”
“Costa. How old are you?”
“Twenty-four.” Tobin kept immediately answering Sergio’s questions without an ounce of reluctance.
Sergio’s smile was out of control. “Me too. You never answered me about sitting on my lap.”