Joachim Books

 Hello, 

 This will be the last excerpt of The Kicker, Part 1 that I post here on Tuesday Tales. I'm sorry about this. Please don't be mad. It's longer than usual and you'll know why when you read it. The book will be out in a few weeks, and you'll be able to read the end of this story then. In the meantime, with out further adieu...Dale & Robbie: 

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Dale’s stomach flipped as she depressed the gas pedal harder. She had to beat him to The Beast. Sweat broke out on her brow. Maybe Trunk wouldn’t even be there? There was no game that afternoon, so where else would he be but in his wife’s bar, right? Maybe he went to a movie. As much as she tried to convince herself he wasn’t there, her heart knew the truth. Her pulse raced and her stomach turned queasy.

Racing into a space on the street, she jammed on the brakes and bolted out of the car, not bothering to lock it. Once inside, she glanced around and didn’t see Robbie. Tuffer sat alone at a table in the back. She let out a breath she’d been holding. Thank God! Trunk lounged against the bar, chatting with Bull Brodsky, an offensive lineman for the Kings. Dale rushed over. She wrapped her hand around his upper arm.

“Hey, Dale! Happy Thanksgiving, hon. Tell me, how was Robbie?” Trunk snickered.

“Look, the bet is off. Okay. It was a mistake. I never should have agreed.”

“Why? The guy didn’t fall for you? I find that hard to believe.”

“According to Demson, he fell hard. So you win!” Bull chimed in.

“Yeah. Now all that’s left to collect the dough is to break up with him,” Trunk added.  

Dale raised her hands. “No, no. No bet. I didn’t win. He didn’t fall for me. Call it off, okay? Honestly, it wasn’t...”

“Dale,” Robbie called.

She turned in time to see him come out from the men’s room to join Tuffer.

“There he is. Lover boy. Tell him Dale,” Trunk said.

“Tell me what?” Robbie approached his teammates at the bar.

“No. Nothing. There’s nothing to tell,” Dale said, grabbing his arm and dragging him toward the door. “I’m hungry. Let’s go eat.”

Robbie freed his arm and walked up to Trunk. “Tell me what?”

Dale edged between them. “Trunk, don’t!”

“Come, Dale. Don’t steal the moment. I’ve been waiting for this for years.” Trunk pushed her aside.

“What’s he talking about Dale?” Robbie looked at her.

“Don’t believe him. Don’t believe him.”

“She doesn’t love you, pal. You think she does, but it’s phony,” Trunk said, pushing his finger into Robbie’s shoulder.

“Of course, she does.” Robbie shoved Trunk’s hand away.

“It’s all a bet.”

“Trunk, don’t!” Dale wailed, her eyes filling.

“What do you mean, a bet?” Robbie’s eyebrows lowered.

“I bet her she couldn’t break your heart.”

Robbie shot a quizzical look first at Trunk, then at Dale.

“That’s right,” Bull chimed in. “He said you didn’t have a heart to break.”

“And she said you did and laughed.”

“So, I bet her a hundred bucks she couldn’t break your heart.”

“Really?” Robbie’s eyebrows rose.

“Yep. She’d have to get you to fall in love with her first. And then she’d dump you, like you dumped all those women who fell for you. Then she’d break your heart. If you even have a heart to break,” Trunk said.  

Robbie faced her. “Dale? Did you make that bet?”

With tears streaming down her face, she nodded.

“Did you dump him yet?” Bull asked.

A hush fell over the bar as the patrons listened.

“No,” she whispered.

“I guess his finding out about the bet is as good as dumping him, right Bull?”

Brodsky nodded.

The color drained out of Robbie’s face. “So this was all a gag?”

“No,” she whispered, reaching for him. He sidestepped, avoiding her grasp.

“Yeah. It was. There you go! That’s the payoff,” Trunk said, pulling five twenties from his wallet. She ignored him. Her heartbeat doubled, sweat broke out on her brow. “Don’t. Please Robbie. Let me explain.”

The light in his eyes turned cold and hard, his expression to stone. “Your performance over the last two nights deserves way more than a hundred bucks.” Robbie yanked out his wallet from his back pocket. He grabbed a fistful of bills and threw them at Dale.

She gasped, drawing her hand over her mouth. Her eyes grew wide and wet. The bills floated to the floor.  “Please Robbie. Can we go somewhere and talk?”

As he shook his head, Robbie’s eyes filled. A tear slid down his cheek, but he caught it and wiped it away.

“She had to make you cry to win the hundred bucks. Bingo. You win, Dale.” Trunk shoved the money into Dale’s hand. She pushed him and the bills away. 

Robbie shot her a wounded stare, “Congratulations,” he choked out, then turned on his heel and strode out of the bar.

“Robbie! Wait! It’s not true!” Dale called, following him to the door.

He jumped into his car and sped off. Dale sank to her knees, burying her face in her hands. What had she done? Oh God, what had she done?

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That's it until the book releases. I apologize for leaving you here, but there was no way around it. I will post here when the book is up for preorder. Thank you so much for reading Robbie's story. Don't forget to hop on over to the wonderful Tuesday Tales stories. You'll find them HERE.