Excerpt: 'Covering Kendall' by Julie Brannagh

Julie Brannagh, author of Covering Kendall (out now!), shares an excerpt from her new release.

Julie: Thank you so much for inviting me today! I'm so excited to be here, and thrilled to introduce my latest book, Covering Kendall, which debuted on Oct. 21!

Covering Kendall is the story of the Capulets and Montagues. In shoulder pads. The teenage Juliet is replaced by the mid-30s Kendall Tracy, who spends her days dealing with the challenges of running a pro football team. There's no dying, and Juliet's balcony is replaced by a stadium team suite. Getting involved with a guy who plays for Kendall's team's hated arch-rivals, the Seattle Sharks, though, is the Worst. Idea. Ever. Unfortunately for Kendall, she can't seem to stay away from Drew. He can't bring himself to leave her alone, either.

Here's the excerpt …

Kendall jerked away from Drew like she'd stuck both of her hands in an open flame. She flung herself out of the cocoon of blankets and Drew's body, fumbling around until her fingers found the switch to the bedside light. The room was lit seconds later, and so was the face she couldn't believe she hadn't recognized immediately.

"You're Drew McCoy," she cried out.

She scooted to the edge of the bed, clutching the sheet around her torso as she went. It was a little late now for modesty. Retaining some shred of dignity might be a good thing.

She'd watched Drew's game film with the coaching staff. She'd seen his commercials for hair products and sports drinks and soup a hundred times before. His contract with the Sharks was done as of the end of football season, and the Miners wanted him to play for them. Drew was San Francisco's number one target in next season's free agency. She'd planned on asking the team's owner to write a big check to Drew and his agent next March. If all that wasn't enough, Drew was eight years younger than she was.

What the hell was wrong with her? It must have been the knit hat covering his famous hair, or finding him in a non-jock hangout like a bookstore. Maybe it was the temporary insanity brought on by an overwhelming surge of hormones.

"Is there a problem?" he said.

"I can't have anything to do with you. I have to go."

He shook his head in adorable confusion. She couldn't think of anything she wanted more right now than to run her fingers through his gorgeous hair.

"This is your hotel room. Where do you think you're going?"

She yanked as much of the sheet off the bed as possible, attempting to wrap it around herself and stand up at the same time. He was simultaneously grabbing at the comforter to shield himself. It didn't work.

She twisted her foot into the bedding while she hurled herself away from him and ended up on the carpet seconds later in a tangle of sheet and limbs, still naked. Her butt hit the floor so hard she almost expected to bounce.

The number-one reason why Kendall didn't engage in one-night stands as a habit hauled himself up on all fours in the middle of the bed. Out of all the guys in the world available for a short-term fling, of all the times in her life she thought that might be an acceptable option, of course she'd pick the man that could get her fired or sued.

He grabbed the robe he'd slung over the foot of the bed, scrambled off the mattress, and jammed his arms into it as he advanced on her.

"Are you okay? You went down pretty hard." His eyes skimmed over her. "That's going to leave a mark."

He crouched next to her as he reached out to help her up. She resisted the impulse to stare at golden skin and an eight pack. She'd heard Drew didn't lack for dates. He had other things to offer besides the balance in his bank accounts.

"I'm okay," she told him.

She felt a little shaky. She'd probably have a nice bruise later. She was going down all right, and it had nothing to do with sex. It had everything to do with the fact that if anyone from the Miners organization saw him emerging from her room in the next seventy-two hours, she was in the kind of trouble with her employer there was no recovering from. The interim general manager of a NFL team did not sleep with anyone from the opposing team, especially arch-rivals that hated each other with the heat of a thousand suns. Especially a star player her own organization was more than a little interested in acquiring. Especially before a game that would mean the inside track to the playoffs for both teams.

Drew and Kendall would be the Romeo and Juliet of the NFL. Well, without all the dying. Death by 24/7 sports media embarrassment didn't count.

You can find out more about Julie and her books at www.juliebrannagh.com.