9 Chapter 9

College had been a saving grace for him. He found his courage to be who he was, but even then he stayed away from athletes. Of course, he’d run in a different circle there. All his friends had been journalists, or at least wanted to be. The closest he’d ever gotten to sports was when his old roommatedragged him golfing. Truth be told, he hated golf, too.

No, he knew he wouldn’t shrink away just because some sports-monkey wanted to belittle him. He’d stand up for himself now; Lucas was sure of it.

He continued pacing the small room, giving himself his pep talk. Just because he was attracted to this man didn’t mean he couldn’t handle the situation. He could keep his attraction a secret and get through this assignment. Hell, maybe he could look back at it someday and laugh at the absurdity of it all. Lucas falling for a jock? Not possible. He could—

The shrill ring of his cell cut into his thoughts and he fished it out of his pocket. “Hello?”

“Lucas?”