Too Close to Call: A Romancing the Clarksons Novella Read online

  Too Close to Call

  A Romancing the Clarksons Novella

  By Tessa Bailey

  1001 Dark Nights

  Too Close to Call

  A Romancing the Clarksons Novella

  By Tessa Bailey

  1001 Dark Nights

  Copyright 2017 Tessa Bailey

  ISBN: 978-1-9459-2042-4

  Foreword: Copyright 2014 M. J. Rose

  Published by Evil Eye Concepts, Incorporated

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or establishments is solely coincidental.

  Book Description

  Too Close to Call

  Romancing the Clarksons

  By Tessa Bailey

  All-American wide receiver Kyler Tate’s life is about to change. A fairytale college career skyrocketed him to the NFL draft. Adoration and opportunity are thrown in his direction wherever he goes, thanks to being chosen in the first round by the Los Angeles Rage.

  None of the accolades mean anything, though, without his high school sweetheart, Bree Justice, by his side. Four years ago, she walked away from Kyler, choosing a quiet life over the flash and notoriety his career would someday bring.

  Now he’s back in their Indiana hometown, refusing to leave for Los Angeles without her. Demanding she give their life together a shot. Her heart never stopped bleeding for the love of her life, but Bree’s decision was final. Too bad their wild attraction has only been amplified by their separation, and Kyler won’t quit until Bree is wearing his ring.

  About Tessa Bailey

  Tessa Bailey is originally from Carlsbad, California. The day after high school graduation, she packed her yearbook, ripped jeans and laptop, driving cross-country to New York City in under four days. Her most valuable life experiences were learned thereafter while waitressing at K-Dees, a Manhattan pub owned by her uncle. Inside those four walls, she met her husband, best friend and discovered the magic of classic rock, managing to put herself through Kingsborough Community College and the English program at Pace University at the same time. Several stunted attempts to enter the work force as a journalist followed, but romance writing continued to demand her attention. She now lives in Long Island, New York with her husband of ten years and five-year-old daughter. Although she is severely sleep-deprived, she is incredibly happy to be living her dream of writing about people falling in love.

  Also By Tessa Bailey

  Click to purchase.

  Baiting the Maid of Honor

  Unfixable (New Adult)

  Protecting What's Theirs (novella)

  Staking His Claim

  Asking For Trouble

  Officer Off Limits

  His Risk to Take

  Protecting What's His

  Owned by Fate

  Exposed by Fate

  Riskier Business

  Risking It All (Crossing the Line 1)

  Driven by Fate

  Chase Me (Broke & Beautiful 1)

  Need Me (Broke & Beautiful 2)

  Off Base (novella)

  Up in Smoke (Crossing the Line 2)

  Make Me (Broke & Beautiful 3)

  Crashed Out (Made in Jersey 1)

  Boiling Point (Crossing the Line 3)

  Rough Rhythm

  Thrown Down (Made in Jersey 2)

  Raw Redemption (Crossing the Line 4)

  Worked Up (Made in Jersey 3)

  Wound Tight (Made in Jersey 4)

  Too Hot to Handle (Romancing the Clarksons 1)

  Too Wild to Tame (Romancing the Clarksons 2)

  Too Hard to Forget (Romancing the Clarksons 3)

  Too Beautiful to Break (Romancing the Clarksons 4)

  Too Close to Call: A Romancing the Clarksons Novella

  Acknowledgments from the Author

  Thank you so much to the 1001 Dark Nights team, including Liz Berry, MJ Rose, Jillian Greenfield Stein, and all the wonderful editors and designers. Thank you as well to Madeleine Colavita at Forever Romance, my family (especially my husband who watches the NFL Draft, which inspired this story) and as always, the readers. Love you all.

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection One

  Click here to explore

  FOREVER WICKED by Shayla Black

  CRIMSON TWILIGHT by Heather Graham

  CAPTURED IN SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  SILENT BITE: A SCANGUARDS WEDDING by Tina Folsom

  DUNGEON GAMES by Lexi Blake

  AZAGOTH by Larissa Ione

  NEED YOU NOW by Lisa Renee Jones

  SHOW ME, BABY by Cherise Sinclair

  ROPED IN by Lorelei James

  TEMPTED BY MIDNIGHT by Lara Adrian

  THE FLAME by Christopher Rice

  CARESS OF DARKNESS by Julie Kenner

  Also from 1001 Dark Nights

  TAME ME by J. Kenner

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Two

  Click here to explore

  WICKED WOLF by Carrie Ann Ryan

  WHEN IRISH EYES ARE HAUNTING by Heather Graham

  EASY WITH YOU by Kristen Proby

  MASTER OF FREEDOM by Cherise Sinclair

  CARESS OF PLEASURE by Julie Kenner

  ADORED by Lexi Blake

  HADES by Larissa Ione

  RAVAGED by Elisabeth Naughton

  DREAM OF YOU by Jennifer L. Armentrout

  STRIPPED DOWN by Lorelei James

  RAGE/KILLIAN by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright

  DRAGON KING by Donna Grant

  PURE WICKED by Shayla Black

  HARD AS STEEL by Laura Kaye

  STROKE OF MIDNIGHT by Lara Adrian

  ALL HALLOWS EVE by Heather Graham

  KISS THE FLAME by Christopher Rice

  DARING HER LOVE by Melissa Foster

  TEASED by Rebecca Zanetti

  THE PROMISE OF SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  Also from 1001 Dark Nights

  THE SURRENDER GATE By Christopher Rice

  SERVICING THE TARGET By Cherise Sinclair

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Three

  Click here to explore

  HIDDEN INK by Carrie Ann Ryan

  BLOOD ON THE BAYOU by Heather Graham

  SEARCHING FOR MINE by Jennifer Probst

  DANCE OF DESIRE by Christopher Rice

  ROUGH RHYTHM by Tessa Bailey

  DEVOTED by Lexi Blake

  Z by Larissa Ione

  FALLING UNDER YOU by Laurelin Paige

  EASY FOR KEEPS by Kristen Proby

  UNCHAINED by Elisabeth Naughton

  HARD TO SERVE by Laura Kaye

  DRAGON FEVER by Donna Grant

  KAYDEN/SIMON by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright

  STRUNG UP by Lorelei James

  MIDNIGHT UNTAMED by Lara Adrian

  TRICKED by Rebecca Zanetti

  DIRTY WICKED by Shayla Black

  THE ONLY ONE by Lauren Blakely

  SWEET SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

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  1001 Dark Nights story

  The First Night

  by Lexi Blake & M.J. Rose
>
  Table of Contents

  Book Description

  About Tessa Bailey

  Also by Tessa Bailey

  Acknowledgments from the Author

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection One

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Two

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Three

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Epilogue

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Four

  Discover the World of 1001 Dark Nights

  Discover More Tessa Bailey

  An excerpt from Too Hard to Forget by Tessa Bailey

  Special Thanks

  One Thousand and One Dark Nights

  Once upon a time, in the future…

  I was a student fascinated with stories and learning.

  I studied philosophy, poetry, history, the occult, and

  the art and science of love and magic. I had a vast

  library at my father’s home and collected thousands

  of volumes of fantastic tales.

  I learned all about ancient races and bygone

  times. About myths and legends and dreams of all

  people through the millennium. And the more I read

  the stronger my imagination grew until I discovered

  that I was able to travel into the stories... to actually

  become part of them.

  I wish I could say that I listened to my teacher

  and respected my gift, as I ought to have. If I had, I

  would not be telling you this tale now.

  But I was foolhardy and confused, showing off

  with bravery.

  One afternoon, curious about the myth of the

  Arabian Nights, I traveled back to ancient Persia to

  see for myself if it was true that every day Shahryar

  (Persian: شهريار, “king”) married a new virgin, and then

  sent yesterday's wife to be beheaded. It was written

  and I had read, that by the time he met Scheherazade,

  the vizier's daughter, he’d killed one thousand

  women.

  Something went wrong with my efforts. I arrived

  in the midst of the story and somehow exchanged

  places with Scheherazade – a phenomena that had

  never occurred before and that still to this day, I

  cannot explain.

  Now I am trapped in that ancient past. I have

  taken on Scheherazade’s life and the only way I can

  protect myself and stay alive is to do what she did to

  protect herself and stay alive.

  Every night the King calls for me and listens as I spin tales.

  And when the evening ends and dawn breaks, I stop at a

  point that leaves him breathless and yearning for more.

  And so the King spares my life for one more day, so that

  he might hear the rest of my dark tale.

  As soon as I finish a story... I begin a new

  one... like the one that you, dear reader, have before

  you now.

  Chapter One

  Draft Day was nothing like Kyler had pictured.

  “With the ninth pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, the Los Angeles Rage select…” Kyler Tate’s parents sucked in breaths on either side of him. “Kyler Tate, receiver, University of Cincinnati.”

  The tense atmosphere inside the event hall exploded with wild cheers, exclamations, and boos. His shoulders were slapped by thousands of hands, kisses landing on his cheeks. Like falling out of a kayak into a rushing current, bashing into rocks on the way toward a waterfall, Kyler stood, put his head down, and proceeded toward the stage. Cell phones rang at every table he passed, terse conversations taking place as the deadline timer for the next announcement started. Players he’d faced on the gridiron sweated in their suits, mothers fussed, water glasses were refilled.

  This was it. Years of training, icing down injuries, two-a-day practices, glory, pain, and mental fatigue. All for this moment.

  And it was…utterly fucking incomplete.

  Before he could reach the stage, panic set in. Set in real good, like claws digging into fertile ground. A moment earlier, everyone in the room had looked familiar, but they were strangers now, spinning in a kaleidoscope. Sweat popped up on his forehead. His shoulder blades tightened, a harsh sound puffed from between his lips. From behind the podium, the announcer gave him a strange look, the Rage jersey lowering in his grip. Are you okay?

  The man’s mouthed words barely penetrated over the sudden rushing stream of images. Of her. Bree Justice.

  Since middle school, he’d been imagining this day. Late at night, his head nestled into the pillow of his childhood bedroom, staring up at a poster of T.Y. Hilton on his ceiling, he’d heard the announcer saying his name. But in every single one of his dreams, he’d leaned over to kiss Bree before making his way to the stage.

  Bree wasn’t there, though. She was a thousand miles away in Indiana, same place she’d been since he left for college. Same place she’d been since breaking up with him the night before he climbed aboard the Cincinnati-bound train and sped off, doubtful he would make it one day without her.

  In a way, he hadn’t.

  A vivid memory swept into the chaos of Kyler’s mind. Another time he’d climbed a stage what felt like a million years ago…and he was powerless to do anything but let it play out.

  “Bloomfield High! It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for. Your votes have been counted!” The smiling cheerleader bounced up and down on the stage, a microphone in one hand, two gold sashes dangling in the other. “Your pick for prom queen is…” She squeaked and did a little dance. “My friend and yours, the incredible Hailey Faye! Congratulations, Hailey!” Kyler smiled and pulled Bree tighter against his side. Lord Jesus, he couldn’t tear his eyes off her tonight. Any night, really. But in the ice blue dress that brushed her knees, all that curly black hair twisted up into some fancy style, she was even more beautiful than usual. His heart hadn’t stopped beating triple time since Bree floated down the stairs, her father watching with hawk eyes as he pinned on the corsage.

  In the back of the gymnasium, they were surrounded by a mixture of Kyler’s teammates—most of them sneaking sips of vodka from flasks stowed in their jackets—and Bree’s Animal Care Club friends. It was an odd mix, to be sure, but ever since Kyler and Bree had gotten together in middle school after being randomly paired for a science class presentation, they’d proceeded as if the eclectic blend was normal. So everyone had followed suit.

  Years later, they all traveled in a pack, meeting at Nelson’s Diner on Friday nights, sneaking out to the creek that ran through the town woods on summer Saturdays. On a monthly basis, couples were formed or dissolved within the group, but Kyler and Bree stuck together like glue through it all.

  Kyler loved Bree. Bree loved Kyler. Nothing would ever change that.

  The applause was beginning to die down from the prom queen announcement and Kyler’s teammates began nudging him between the shoulder blades, making wise cracks about how pretty he looked, how adorable it was that his tie matched Bree’s dress. He merely shot them the bird. “Your choice for king should come as no surprise,” called the cheerleader from the stage, rolling her eyes good-naturedly.

  Everyone turned to look at Kyler and he forced himself to smile, nodding politely. Earlier that year, he’d captained the team and led them to the state championships. In a football town like Bloomfield, title winning touchdowns, like the one he’d scored, tended to remain fresh in their mi
nds. News of his full-ride scholarship to the University of Cincinnati had blown through the town like wildfire this week, making it impossible to walk two feet without receiving the kind of effusive praise he’d learned early to be thankful for.

  At one time, he might’ve wished for a football helmet to tug down over his head to escape the scrutiny, but he kept his chin up in the face of the attention now. The people of Bloomfield drove to his games every week, made signs, chanted his name—a fact he still couldn’t believe—and he wouldn’t hide from that type of kindness.

  Bree slipped her hand into Kyler’s and went up on her toes, whispering in his ear. “I’ll meet you out back after your dance.”

  “You don’t want to stick around and see my oversized head in a crown?”

  “I’ll see you in it later.” Her slow wink sent warmth sliding into his belly. “But everyone is going to stare at me while you’re out there, wondering how I feel about you dancing with another girl.” She shivered. “You know I don’t like the attention.”

  “I do know that.” His mouth started to curve with the secret he was keeping, so he planted a kiss on her forehead to hide it. “Or maybe I forgot. Again.”

  Suspicion snuck into her expression. “Kyler Joseph Tate—”

  “You know what? I’m not even going to announce his name,” said the cheerleader on stage, sending laughter rippling through the crowd of dressed up high school students. “I’ll just say this. It’s a well-known fact that Kyler Tate doesn’t dance with anyone but Bree Justice. No matter how hard all us ladies have wished he would.” Laughter, sighs, gagging noises, and camera flashes went off around them, but Kyler kept his gaze trained on Bree, his pulse hammering as she tried to hide beneath his arm. “So we’re bucking tradition tonight. Your queen is going to dance with her man. And Kyler is going to dance with his Bree. Everyone clear a path to the dance floor. DJ? Drop that slow jam.”