Love is Always Write Anthology Volume 6

everyone on the sidelines spilled onto the field. Then Hunter's rugged features– the all-American dirty blond hair, bright blue eyes, and blindingly white smile– filled the screen as he grinned his goddamned good ol' boy grin– again– and gave his goddamned good ol' boy "aw shucks" post-game interview. Again.
    Brad cocked his head and listened to that smooth voice with the hint of a Southern lilt for a second, then shook himself, hitting the remote to shroud the room in silence and a soft darkness. His penthouse was now lit only by the city lights glowing in the distance and the muted recessed lighting of the galley kitchen across the way.
    Slumping back into the black leather couch, Brad groaned and ran a callused palm over his eyes. Coach Fletcher was not going to like this. The owners' box was not going to like this. The whole team was not going to like this. Hell, the entire city of New York was not going to like this .
    Shit, this win had tied their two teams for the lead in the league's Eastern Division. Now all eyes and their mother's would be on next week's big rivalry game between his New York Diamonds and Hunter's team, the fucking Railers.
    He stifled another groan.
    As if he needed more reasons to think about Hunter and his all-American boy perfection.
    Ever since he and Hunter had gone first and second in the NFL's draft three years ago, their inexplicable connection– and their highly publicized rivalry– had been cemented and instantaneous. Both of them were quarterbacks and top draft picks, so it was natural that they'd be compared and analyzed down to their shoe sizes. Sportscasters rarely spoke one's name without the other. The fact that they had each been drafted to play in high profile rival cities like New York and Philadelphia was just icing on the talking heads' cakes.
    The two of them had somehow avoided each other at the college level with each taking his own path towards the NFL draft. Brad had gone the admittedly flashy and conventional route, choosing to attend an incredibly competitive Division I level college football program where, as a highly sought after recruit, he had been in the spotlight from day one. Hunter, on the other hand, had taken a more indirect path to astronomically unlikely stardom.
    Good ol' boy Hunter had come from some Nowheretown in the South, gone to a smaller, independent school, and somehow, shockingly and seemingly singlehandedly, had turned that school's entire football program into a nationwide contender. His completion stats and turnover ratio– or rather, his lack thereof on that last one, Brad acknowledged grudgingly– had drawn widespread attention by the time Hunter had been awarded the starting position as a sophomore at his small Pennsylvania college. When Hunter had capped off his senior year by leading the program to its third straight divisional championship and twenty-third consecutive win over two seasons, NFL scouts and the national press alike had sat up, taken notice, and turned their discerning and interested eyes towards this small town star with the golden arm.
    Brad himself had worked hard to fulfill the sky-high expectations with which he had entered Illinois's top notch university program. Sure, he had heard of this Hunter kid who was doing crazy ass things in Pennsylvania, but Hunter didn't play in his division, so what he did meant squat. Brad had had enough shit to keep up with between making the grades to earn his business degree, watching the reels for teams in his own division, and completing the plays to stand out against all of the other Division I teams' quarterbacks.
    It wasn't until NFL National Draft Day that Brad had even set eyes on Cameron in the flesh.
    Brad had just been selected as the first overall draft pick by the New York Diamonds. Grinning until his face hurt, he had been celebrating with his family– number one, hells fucking yeah – when an announcement was made to thunderous screams.
    With the second pick in the National Football League's draft, the Philadelphia Railers have selected... Cameron Hunter, quarterback, Eastern Pennsylvania College.
    The Philadelphia Railers, with slumping ticket sales and a desperate need to shake things up a lot, had taken a chance on their city's adopted son. From the sounds of the enthusiastic crowd in the convention center, their gamble was going to pay off, at least in fan interest.
    Before he knew it, Brad was heading towards the press tent, and that Cameron Hunter