sample sunday. on the rebound.

Hey y’all!

It’s been a minute.

But as always, I’m SUPER excited to be back with a fresh Sample Sunday from my next release, On The Rebound which will be Book 3 of the Nymphs & Trojans Series by myself and Nicole Falls.

If you haven’t read Books 1 and 2 of the series yet, you can find them here. And if you have, get ready to meet Kage and Bleu later this Fall 🙂

(note: sample is unedited and subject to change because stuff happens lol)

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“Niko ain’t the only Trojan who can sing.”

The way he was acting about it made me giggle as I pressed, “You can’t say things like that unless you’re prepared to back it up for the viewers, Kage.”

“Aight, so what you want me to sing?”

“I don’t know,” I laughed. “Whatever your go-to song is for when you tell people you can sing. Everyone who says they can sing has one.” 

Because he knew I was right, he nodded. “Aight, aight. I’m a little rusty, but here we go.” Then he cleared his throat and closed his eyes to belt, “I see us in the park…” 

“Oh, you better not mess up Stevie,” I warned, instantly recognizing the opening line of Stevie Wonder’s, “Knocks Me Off My Feet” as Kage continued into the first verse. And honestly… he didn’t sound half bad. 

Was he as good as Niko? 

I wouldn’t give him all that.

But if I was the lead choir director at the church, he’d probably get the second solo. In fact, I found myself snapping along as he got into the chorus, vibing to his acapella version until he grabbed my hand to join him in a little two-step that somehow ended with me being spun into his arms. 

Great for television.

Bad for me since… has he looked this good the entire time? 

Don’t get me wrong, I was very much aware of the fact that Kage Steele was easy on the eyes. I mean, the honey-roasted skin with a face of scattered old scars that told me he didn’t back down from any fights growing up. The mid taper fade and the extra strong jawline that had a nice little five ‘o clock shadow goatee situation going on. The muscle that screamed professional athlete, and the tattoos that turned that same muscle into a canvas… 

Simply put, it was hard not to notice how handsome he was. Still, I wasn’t expecting to be so affected by it, doing my best to shake it off as I gently extracted myself from his hold and admitted, “Okay, so that was way better than I thought it’d be.” Then I turned towards the camera to add, “But Stevie we can not pay you for that, so please cut us a break.” 

The laugh Kage let off had a little extra baritone to it that made me blush in a way that was unexpected, forcing me to pull myself back together so that I could acknowledge, “If Stevie was your go-to, it’s clear you must have at least a little taste in music. But what artists have you had on repeat lately?” 

“The answer might surprise you, actually,” he insisted, a claim I was quick to shut down when I responded, “Nothing surprises me at this point.” 

“Oh word? We gotta change that,” Kage responded slickly, the side eye I gave him in response enough for him to come correct with a real answer. “But nah, I’ve been listening to a lot of the newer women in R&B. Ari Lennox, H.E.R., Snoh Aalegra…”

“Yessss. “Situationship” is my jam,” I interjected, getting ready to dish out some free promo by mentioning how I’d had the album on repeat during the flight here until I saw the flirtatious look in Kage’s eyes. 

“Situationship, huh? I guess I could get with that.”

Shaking my head, I couldn’t even pretend to hide my amusement when I asked, “You really don’t let up, do you?”

“I don’t,” he answered, moving to hover me where he breathed, “Ever.”

For whatever reason, his closeness threw me off balance. The smell of him was dizzying. And when I considered the fact that the cameras were still rolling…

Holding my hand up, I asked, “Natalie, can you give us five, please?”

From the captivated look on her face when she finally peeked up from behind the camera, I could tell she was all in with whatever it was she saw happening through the lens. And while it probably pained her to step away meaning she wouldn’t be a part of the more interesting conversation that was getting ready to happen, she still granted us the bit of privacy I’d requested, Kage giving her a little parting treat once he grinned and gushed, “Thank you, Natalie.”

Of course she blushed because Kage just had it like that with women. But at this point, I could only frown when I told him, “I thought I made myself clear with you, Mr. Steele.”

“Made yourself clear when you told me you don’t date athletes just to turn around and date an athlete?” he challenged. “All that clarity you claiming is lookin’ real cloudy to me, baby.” 

His point wasn’t exactly invalid. But I still felt like I had a strong defense, crossing my arms over my chest as I replied, “First of all, Todd is a former athlete who is very much retired. And second of all, if you know I’m in a relationship now then why are you still pressing me like this?”

“You know why.”

“Cause you think you’re hot shit and entitled to my attention?”

“No. Because I haven’t been able to get that night in Vegas out of my head, Bleu.” 

Oh.

That. 

Truthfully, I wasn’t sure if that night in Vegas a few months back during WNBA All-Star Weekend had ever even fully registered in my mind since the amount of alcohol I’d consumed within that short window of time was well beyond my usual limits. But with a working weekend perfectly coinciding with my best friend Vandra’s birthday, it was a no-brainer to make a celebration out of the trip. And somehow, that ended with us being invited to some random ass, NDA-required, no phones allowed celebrity penthouse party.

Kage was there.

We’d only formally met earlier that day, so I played it cordial when I noticed him. But he was pressed, and I was drunk, and we… might’ve ended up making out a little bit in a dark corner before I used the excuse of needing to go find my friend so that I wouldn’t further break my own rules of fraternizing with active athletes. 

He was an excellent kisser, though.

Perfect lip pressure, right amount of tongue, hands in all the right… whew. 

Up until this moment, it was a drunken memory that I’d managed to suppress under the whole, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” guise. But now that he’d brought it back up, I found myself caught up in a flashback, forced to shake it off so that I could casually remind him, “It was just a kiss, Kage.” 

At that, he huffed a laugh. “Just a kiss? Yeah aight, Bleu. Tell yourself anything.”

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