A CONTRACT ENGAGEMENT

Julian was a little starstruck. It was the Tide’s catcher, Sheldon Michael. He was a veritable legend in baseball, and it was rumored this would be his last year before he retired.

“Nina! You should have just come on in. Tony got held up by an interview, but he wanted you to come on back.” he said.

Nina walked over and gave the catcher a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Good game, Sheldon. You’re looking as awesome as ever.” She said

The big man actually blushed. He glanced up at Julian, and Julian was convinced the guy scowled at him.

“Oh, Sheldon, this is Julian Martin. Julian, this is Sheldon Michael, the Tide’s star catcher.” Nina said.

“Yes, I’m well aware,” Julian said. “Great game. I’ve watched you a lot of years.”

“You Julian Martin who makes the sportswear?” Sheldon asked.

Julian nodded. “Yeah I am,” he replied.

“Cool. You two come on back. Tony should be done by now.”Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

Despite his wealth and position, Julian couldn’t control the incredible rush of walking into the Tide’s locker room. It was every little boy’s dream. It was why he’d gone into the business he had. He loved sports, and he was as in awe of the big dream as any other kid out there who loved sports.

Several players stopped Nina for a quick hug and a kiss. Some ruffled her hair and she gave them affectionate pats in return.

“Nina! There you are.”

Julian looked up to see Tony barreling his way through a crowd of people. The next thing he knew, he had Nina in a giant bear hug, swinging her around in a circle.

Julian watched, his irritation growing more with each passing second.

Finally Tony put her down.

“Hey, did you see? Fantastic hit, wasn’t it?” he said.

Nina smiled broadly at the other man and her affection for him was obvious. A fact that made Julian even grumpier. Endorsement or not, he was ready to deck the star right in the jaw.

“I saw, of course. You were awesome as always.” Nina replied

“Hey, I need to get a quick shower. You two can wait for me over there,” he said, gesturing toward a sitting area that was removed from the chaos of the open locker room. “I won’t be long.”

Nina kissed his cheek. “We’ll be there. Take your time.” She said,

Tony ruffled her hair affectionately and loped off toward the showers. Julian opened his mouth to ask but then shook his head. He’d wait. This had to be worth the price of admission.

Nina led him into the adjoining room and sat on one of the leather couches.

“This is usually reserved for coaches and their families,” she said when he sat down in one of the chairs across from her. “None of the press or players will come in here.”

“You know I have a hundred questions, Nina,” he said drily.

She flushed a little guiltily. “Okay, so maybe I’m guilty of wanting to watch you experience everything firsthand. I mean I could have warned you but that wouldn’t have been any fun, would it?” She said, grinning at him.

He raised an eyebrow. “The only question I want answered right now is whether you’re involved with Tony Parker.”

He watched her eyes go wide in shock. Her mouth fell open, and he knew at that moment, whatever he might have assumed-even with good reason-he was dead wrong.

“What?” she asked, looking genuinely surprised at his question.

“It was a sensible assumption,” he defended before she could speak.

“Julian, Tony is a-” They were interrupted when the two men Nina had gone to visit in the stands came through the door.

“Nina, love,” one of the men said when his gaze lighted on her. He smiled big and held out his arms. Nina went into his embrace and endured a painful-looking bear hug.

The other man regarded Julian with what could only be considered as suspicion.

“Going to introduce us, Nina?” the man she just hugged asked.

“Of course,” she said as she curled her arm around the other man and kissed his cheek.

“Julian, I want you to meet my brothers, Victor and Cole. I’m not sure you guys met when we were in high school because they were both already in college then. So here you go. Guys, this is Julian Martin. He owns Mart Enterprises. I brought him back to talk to Tony.”

Julian could swear she said the last pointedly. He relaxed and shook the hands of each man and endured a painful grip from each. Typical measuring stick of a man. See if you could make the other wince. He squeezed back with as much force and endured grudging looks of respect from her brothers.

Interesting that they were all back in the players area and that they’d sat in different areas for the game, although Nina had said she’d gotten the tickets particularly for him.

“Very glad to meet you both” he said

“Are you the man responsible for our Nina leaving home and working so many long hours?” Victor asked

Julian lifted one eyebrow then glanced between Nina and her brother. Nina closed her eyes in despair and shook her head helplessly at Julian. He remembered her saying that according to her father and brothers, her only requirement was to look pretty and let them support her. Apparently they weren’t on board with her having a career.

“Please don’t start,” Nina said to her brother, giving him a look.

“I’m afraid I am,”Julian replied. “I wish I could say it was something I regret, but Nina is one of the brightest minds I’ve encountered. She’s going to single handedly turn my advertising efforts around. I think in a year or two, Mart Enterprises won’t simply be one of the leaders in athletic apparel, but the undisputed leader when it comes to sportswear”

Her two brothers eyed Nina with renewed interest while Nina stared at Julian, her eyes wide with shock. He could almost swear she looked a little teary. He smiled at her and reached for her hand. To his surprise she accepted without complaint and curled her fingers tight around his.

“If you’re meeting Tony about business, we’ll just scoot on out,” Cole said. “Are you going to make time to come home or will you be busy again?”