Entangled Moments: Australian Sports Stars, #3

By Iris Blobel

Markus and Sarah's lives couldn't be more different…

After three years away as a goalkeeper for an English soccer club, Markus DeLeon is happy to be back in Melbourne, back with his family and friends, including Sarah. He has known her since childhood, and has often provided her with a safe place from the teasing of other children and the troubles of a broken home. Yet, events after attending their friends' wedding set off a shift in their relationship and questions, which neither Markus nor Sarah know how to approach.

Sarah Winter caught her boyfriend cheating on her, and not for the first time Markus offers her a much-needed shoulder to cry on. This time, however, an attraction between them intensifies, ending in a passionate afternoon, and Markus doesn't know how to handle this new side of their friendship and flees to the coast. Sarah, unsure as well about the recent events, is surprised by his sudden departure, but is soon sidetracked by misunderstandings and a family emergency.

But sometimes risking what you have means you might lose everything…

• Language: English
• Publisher: Iris Blobel
• Release date: Nov 21, 2022
• ISBN: 9798215410240

Iris Blobel

Iris Blobel writes warm, sexy, and sometimes witty Australian Contemporary Romance books for readers who, like herself, still strongly believe in love and Happily Ever Afters. And she knows HEAs. Her couples are hungry for life, done with the past, passionate about family, and emotionally hopeful for a future. The stories are mainly set in Australia but also in New Zealand and even the US, depending on where her travels take her. She loves nothing more than for her readers to join her on her journeys. For more information, join her on FB https://bit.ly/3CGtIk8

Book preview

Iris Blobel

Copyright © 2022 Iris Blobel

This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and events are fictitious in every regard. Any similarities to actual events and persons, living or dead, are purely coincidental. Any trademarks, service marks, product names, or named features are assumed to be the property of their respective owners, and are used only for reference. There is no implied endorsement if any of these terms are used.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in a review and certain non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

No Generative AI Training Use.

For avoidance of doubt, Author reserves all rights, and there are no rights to reproduce and/or otherwise use the Work in any manner for purposes of training artificial intelligence technologies to generate text, including without limitation, technologies that are capable of generating works in the same style or genre as the Work, unless the Author’s specific and express permission to do so is given in writing. Nor does anyone have the right to sublicense others to reproduce and/or otherwise use the Work in any manner for purposes of training artificial intelligence technologies to generate text without Author’s specific and express permission.

Blurb

Markus and Sarah’s lives couldn’t be more different…

After three years away as a goalkeeper for an English soccer club, Markus DeLeon is happy to be back in Melbourne, back with his family and friends, including Sarah. He has known her since childhood, and has often provided her with a safe place from the teasing of other children and the troubles of a broken home. Yet, events after attending their friends' wedding set off a shift in their relationship and questions, which neither Markus nor Sarah know how to approach.

Sarah Winter caught her boyfriend cheating on her, and not for the first time Markus offers her a much-needed shoulder to cry on. This time, however, an attraction between them intensifies, ending in a passionate afternoon, and Markus doesn’t know how to handle this new side of their friendship and flees to the coast. Sarah, unsure as well about the recent events, is surprised by his sudden departure, but is soon sidetracked by misunderstandings and a family emergency.

But sometimes risking what you have means you might lose everything…

one

Staring, Markus DeLeon stood in front of Tyson. The guy definitely knew how to make a tuxedo look good. Markus’ mouth curved into a smile, though, when he saw Ty’s hair.

He cocked a questioning brow. The hair?

Tyson instantly raked his hand through it to mess it up a bit. Grandma Hazel, he griped through gritted teeth.

Markus wasn’t able to hold back a grin. Did I just see an eye twitch?

Oh man, give me a break here, okay? Tyson shot him a glare. And where the hell is Oliver?

Markus tried his best not to laugh, but failed miserably. He looked around the small room in the back of the church. It was furnished with only two bookcases, a desk with a chair, and a small sofa.

He sat as he watched Tyson pacing up and down the small room. He’d known his friend for over twenty years, and Ty’s eye twitch was enough proof that he was nervous. Markus couldn’t remember seeing Ty so tense in…well, ever. Not even before any of his important football games. Then again, it wasn’t every day that one married a gorgeous girl. And despite Katie’s best efforts to keep it a low-key event, the media was already present outside the church.

Grabbing his phone, Markus flicked through a few names and dialled Oliver’s number. Where are you? he asked when his friend answered the call.

Give me five minutes.

Markus raised his brows. The groom’s having a hard time settling his nerves.

Oliver let out a bark of laughter. It’s his wedding day. Yeah, I’d be a little restless too. Do you have the rings? Katie will kill you, if you don’t.

Although sure he did, panic rose within Markus as he rummaged through his pockets to retrieve the small box. Yes, all good.

Okay, Oliver replied. See you in five.

He hung up and gave Tyson, who was still pacing, a reassuring smile.

Where the hell is he?

Wouldn’t say, he said with a lift of his shoulder in a quick shrug.

What do you mean he wouldn’t say? Tyson shot him a glare. You have the rings, right?

Markus nodded.

He’d known Tyson and Oliver for most of his life, since before school. They’d played footy each Saturday and later, during their teenage years, hung out together afterwards as well. Yet, after watching a game of soccer, Markus changed sports. Oliver had switched to baseball a year later, after spending a few months in the States. The youngest of the trio, however, had stayed with football and was one of the most regarded players in the Australian Football League. Despite going their different ways in sports, their friendship had remained as strong as the early years and nowadays they caught up as often as possible to watch a game of cricket or motor racing.

Oliver rushed into the room. Sorry for that.

You will be. Trust me, I’ll think of something to muck up your wedding day, too.

Oliver snorted, but didn’t reply. They looked up when a gentle knock at the door interrupted their conversation and the minister peeked in. Ready?

The guys high-fived each other. Let’s do this, Tyson said, with a determination that brought another smile to Markus’ face.

They followed the minister into the church and stood in a line in front of the altar. The hushed voices stopped more or less instantly.

The Church of St John’s was packed to the last seat. Markus saw a few familiar faces, like his family, Ty and Oliver’s families, Ty’s football mates and friends, and of course Katie’s mum, family, and friends. He wrung his hands and, just to be a hundred percent certain, he searched his pocket for the rings again, juggling the box at the first note of the loud organ. Everyone in church stilled, and the three friends turned to face the entrance watching the bride walk down the aisle with her father.

Katie looked sensational in her strapless dress, but so did Teagan, her friend. Yet, Markus almost lost his breath when his gaze fell on Sarah. He’d known her for as long as he could remember. Of course, he was aware how attractive she was. After all, he wasn’t blind. But today she looked stunning. Katie had tried to explain to him that the bridesmaid dresses were of the colour pale peach with a high neck but shoulder free, a ruched bodice with a layered skirt. He’d had no idea, but now that he saw Sarah wearing the dress, he had to compliment Katie on choosing such a perfect outfit for the girls. They both looked spectacular.

The hairdresser had also done a brilliant job getting Sarah’s wavy dark hair under control, and the make-up, in his judgement as a guy, was spot on, emphasising her beautiful chocolate brown eyes.

Cailyn stole the show, though. Ty’s little niece led the bridal party looking like a little angel in her cream, sleeveless dress, which had a delicate lace top and a tulle skirt. She walked down the aisle while dropping rose petals from a small basket.

Katie took Tyson’s arm, and the minister began the service with a prayer. The ceremony was brief, and Markus stepped forward with the small box holding the rings for the exchange. Emotions like pride and happiness for his friend shot through him, as well as a twinge of envy over his friend’s relationship.

He’d experienced those pangs of envy a couple of times over the last few months, and as much as he’d tried to ignore them, he now began to think that he was, in fact, looking for something long lasting as well. The idea of a relationship didn’t scare him anymore, quite the opposite, maybe he was ready for it. Something as good as Ty and Katie had. Hauled back by the sound of the organ, he blinked a couple of times and washed away the notion, focussing on what was happening right in front of him.

♥ ♥ ♥

As Sarah Winter walked down the aisle next to Teagan and in front of Katie, she kept her eyes to the ground. Her heart drummed heavy in her chest as she counted one-two repeatedly in her head to keep the rhythm of her steps. She’d practiced this part of the ceremony more than she liked to remember and she didn’t want to get it wrong. Only she’d practiced it without this intense headache. And without the heartache which Timmy had inflicted by cheating on her.

Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to relax and followed her instincts. It couldn’t be that hard, after all. When she made it to the front at last, she moved to the side and finally dared to steal a glance at the guys. She stared at Markus, who looked incredibly handsome in a tux. Very sexy indeed.

Oh, my good Lord.

The two shared a quick smile before the minister started, and she tried her best to focus on the service. Tried her best to ignore the thumping in her head.

Later that day, she found herself in the middle of the big wedding function. She leaned back into her chair as she scanned the venue, taking everything in. The official part of the reception was finally over, and a sense of tiredness overcame her as she relaxed some more. Of course, she had enjoyed the wedding ceremony, not to mention her immense pride to have been part of it, but she was glad that the formal part of the day was over. The photo session after church had dragged on because of the boys playing around so much, and although her headache had been relentless despite the medication she’d been taking, it’d been good letting go of some of the built-up tension.

Rubbing her temples, Sarah closed her eyes to give them a moment of rest from the light. Even the painkiller was powerless against the pounding war behind her eyes. Thankfully, she’d managed to plaster her best smile onto her face for the photos. The alternative would’ve been Katie’s anger for turning up to her wedding with a hangover. Why had she let Timmy’s cheating affect her so much? The bottle of red had been so inviting in her hurt but clearly hadn’t been the right choice of drink the day before a wedding.

When she heard the start of the next song, an old ballad from the nineties, she opened her eyes and perused the venue. Oddly enough, her gaze fell on Markus. Something inside her shifted. For some inexplicable reason, seeing him all dressed up in a tux stirred her restlessly. What was it with the sudden unfamiliar tingle lingering just above her skin? She’d seen him often enough in his surf shorts, sans T-shirt, but that tuxedo did something to her—or to him—that had her heart racing. Tilting her head a little, she studied him.

Markus was laughing at one of the guys’ jokes, showing his dimples even from the distance. A foreign sensation crept up within her. It took her a moment to figure out the reason was the blond girl next to him, trying desperately to get his attention. Was Sarah jealous? She’d never been jealous of Markus’ girlfriends before, so why would she be today? Was it her vulnerability because of Timmy and that she’d always felt safe around Markus? Perhaps she didn’t want love, but simply something like security in a relationship. She’d had that from the very first day she’d met him as a kid. With a heavy sigh, she closed her eyes again, knowing that the damn tiredness and hurt were playing with her head.

Her eyes flew open when she heard a faint giggle over the music. Damn, she wished that girl would leave him be.

Exhausted, she squeezed a little lemon into her tea as she watched all the couples on the dance floor.

Aww, baby, that’s your second cup of tea now. What’s the matter? Markus pulled another chair close and sat next to her.

Startled, Sarah nearly spilled the drink. Yet, the few simple words and his presence made her feel better already. For as long as she remembered, Markus had called her baby. Initially, it had annoyed her, because she’d been so proud of having finally reached her teenage years, but nowadays…nowadays she revelled in the comfort of their closeness. Tilting her head slightly to meet his gaze, she let out a soft sigh.

He laughed as he placed his arm around her for a little hug. Want to dance?

His mouth was so close to her ear, his breath touched her skin as he spoke. A faint shiver trickled down her spine. She’d known Markus for over twenty years, and she couldn’t remember her body ever responding to him like this. The combination of red wine, hangover, and the pain medication was clearly messing with her. After all, they’d shared lunches together at school, went together to movies and concerts, shared heartaches, and they even shared their first kiss celebrating Mark’s thirteen’s birthday. Both decided then and there that it wasn’t for them.

In all fairness, it’d hadn’t been their first kiss, but they had been about five years old when their mouths had accidentally met for the first time, and Markus had given her a wet, sloppy kiss in kindergarten as well when she’d fallen off the slide.

So why was her body betraying her today?

I have to take a raincheck, Marky, she told him. But thanks, anyway.

Want to tell me what’s up with you? He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. You’re usually the first one on the dance floor and the last one to leave.

Sarah let out another sigh before she decided what to tell him, if anything at all.

Markus had always been a good friend. More than that. He’d always been there for her, during good and bad times.

Especially during bad times.

I walked in on Timmy being with another woman yesterday afternoon. In his bed … you know... Her words were