Taking the Shot

Taking the Shot A.D. LYNN Copyright © 2023 by A.D. Lynn All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Cover Concept and Design by Katie Golding, Goldnox Designs Edited by Katie Golding, Goldnox Editing Service Author headshot photo courtesy of Jen Moser Photography. Created with Vellum For Kevin, who took me to my first hockey game, and everything else. Every love story I write belongs to you. Contents Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Chapter 44 Chapter 45 Chapter 46 Chapter 47 Chapter 48 Chapter 49 Epilogue Dear Reader About the Author Acknowledgments About the Setting Chapter One COOPER Gazing into Maddie’s blue eyes, I reach for her, cupping her cheek. She’s outlined by my dim lamp on the bedside table, casting a warm glow over my tiny, dark room. My gray bed sheets tangle around my legs, and her long, blonde hair tickles my arm. Smirking, she presses closer for another kiss, her bare chest brushing mine. Tingles rush down my spine. “Round two?” she asks, tracing a pattern on my abs that has all my blood flowing south again. “You betcha.” As her lips part for me, my phone buzzes on the nightstand for the third time. Maddie halts, raising an eyebrow at the interruption, and I sigh. I’d ignored it when we were in the middle of gettin’ busy before, but it keeps ringing. I have a good idea who it is. Only one person in my life is this insistent, and now’s not the right moment. “You gonna get that?” Maddie asks, tugging the sheet up to her chin, a disappointing sign for my evening’s aspirations. I picked her up in a campus bar and after a bit of flirting and my most charming smile, she said yes when I invited her back to my place. We had thoroughly enjoyed each other’s company, and I had planned to enjoy it again. If my damn phone would stop interfering. “I’m sure it’s fine. This is more fun, anyway.” I pepper kisses along her neck, and she wiggles against me. My phone stops buzzing, and I make good use of the silence. Maddie throws her leg over mine, and I’m just about to roll her on top of me when the ringing starts up again. Shifting aside, I stare at the ceiling and take a deep breath. “Yeah, I should probably check that.” My mother is liable to send out a search party soon, despite living a thousand miles away. I love her, I do, but I need to breathe. And have a sex life. Maddie tucks herself into my side, laying her head on my chest, and I reach for the phone. It’s hard to focus with a hot, naked girl wrapped around me, but the picture of my mom on the display sobers me right up. “Momma,” I say into my phone, suppressing a groan. “This isn’t a great time. Can I call you back?” “Why isn’t it a great time, pookie?” her southern voice drawls, defeating the purpose of my protest. I regret answering. Really, I regret even owning a phone right about now. “I was about to call Hunter to ask about you. I was worried.” “Having my best friend check up on me is a little extreme, no?” My mom huffs, but I’m distracted by my company. “There’s nothing to worry about.” Maddie sits up, rustling the covers. Her bare chest bounces, and I lick my lips. Her naked body is beautiful, lush and curvy, and I want to savor it without my mom interrupting. Maybe I can still convince her to stay. “What’s that?” Momma asks, tone laced with suspicion. Ears like a bat. “Is someone with you?” “Uh, yeah. Let me take care of this, and I’ll call you back.” Before she can argue, I hang up and toss the phone back on the nightstand. “Don’t go.” I reach for Maddie, giving her my best seductive grin, but with a flash of toned thighs, she’s already out of my bed. With a graceful scoop, she swipes her discarded clothes off the floor and I sigh. “It’s fine. I can’t stay. I have other things to do tonight.” Tossing me a smile over her shoulder, Maddie heads to my ensuite bathroom, as confident in her birthday suit as she was in her skinny jeans and crop top. God, her butt is cute. “Hey, I don’t want you to think—” “Look, Cooper.” She pops her head back around the doorframe, her cheeks still rosy from our activities. She holds her clothes in front of her chest, blocking my view. “I’m good. I get it. No strings, right? You made your expectations clear. And I had a great time.” She emphasizes the word and bobs her eyebrows at me, and my ego soars like the puck when Sidney Crosby sends a wrister into the net. Hell yeah, she did. Let no one say that Cooper Edwards doesn’t give a woman the full-service experience. Waving at my phone, she says, “It’s kinda cute that your mom calls you, but I should go.” “Even if she’s ruining the mood?” So much for round two. Or three. Without answering, Maddie disappears into the bathroom, and I collapse against the pillows. Taking a few deep breaths, I pull the sheet up to