Free Chasing Jillian: A Love and Football Novel by Julie Brannagh Page A

THE cat down gently on the couch cushion, unfolded himself, and got to his feet. He wasn’t sure what it was with Jillian and why he couldn’t seem to stay away from her. He kept inventing reasons to run into her or spend time with her. Maybe it was the fact she didn’t fawn over him. She didn’t seem to care that he was famous, and she gave him shit about his money. At the same time, he’d seen vulnerability in her when he hadn’t expected it.
    Jillian kept him on his toes, and he hadn’t had that for a long time now. He wondered to himself how many women he’d passed up over the years who might have been a better choice than Kim. One such woman had just let both of them out of her apartment and stuck her house key back in her pocket. He had to admit he was more than a little attracted, even if she was currently trying to incinerate him with her eyes. Her morning crankiness was pretty damn funny.
    “So, where are you taking me?” she said.
    He gestured toward the apartment house parking lot. “Let’s get in my car and you’ll find out.”
    “Am I going to end up as the subject of a Lifetime movie?”
    “That would be a no.”
    She stared at his Escalade as he clicked the key fob to disengage the locks. “Nice ride,” she said.
    A few minutes later he pulled onto I-90, the freeway that led to Snoqualmie Falls, one of the most spectacular sights in western Washington. Hundreds of thousands of tourists visited the falls each year, which were internationally famous due to the television show Twin Peaks . When people weren’t marveling at the beauty and force of water cascading hundreds of feet, they were visiting the hotel perched at the top of the falls or touring the small town where it all was located.
    The sun’s rays were peeking through the quickly dissipating cloud cover, exposing blue skies. Autumn was on its way, but the Seattle area still basked in late-summer sunshine and moderate temperatures. There were hardly any cars on the road this morning. Hopefully, he could spend a little time alone with Jillian before someone recognized him.
    He pulled into the lower parking lot at Snoqualmie Falls half an hour later. The place was almost deserted. He stifled a sigh of relief. Hopefully, the entire hiking community had decided to attend today’s University of Washington football game or other outdoor pursuits. He only had a few hours before he had to get himself to the practice facility and she was due at her appointment. If she liked it here, he’d bring her again, when they could hike from the top of the falls to the observation platform and back.
    “Have you been here before?” he asked above the roar of pounding, falling water.
    “Not since I was a lot younger.” She opened the passenger door and slid out. He walked around the front of the car to join her.
    “Gotcha,” he said. They took a few steps on the path toward the observation platform that gave a 180-degree view of the falls. “It isn’t far to the observation area, but you might need to stretch a little. Try this.” He pulled one of his legs up by the heel.
    “If I did that, I’d be in the ICU.”
    “Just try it,” he coaxed. “Put your hand on my shoulder.”
    Jillian bent to try to grab her heel, teetered alarmingly on one foot, and he reached out to steady her before she fell into the brush that lined the pathway. For someone who probably didn’t attempt to twist herself into a pretzel on a daily basis, she wasn’t doing too badly with the stretching.
    “Oh! Oh!” She looked a little panicky as she lost her balance again. “Sorry.”
    “You’re doing fine,” he reassured her. “Take it easy. It’s a stretch, so it’s okay to go slowly.”
    She wasn’t one of the super-fit guys he spent all day with. He saw color rising in her cheeks from embarrassment. She seemed to come to some decision while he still held her upper arm.
    “Okay. I’ll see if I can pull my leg up a little higher,” she said.
    Seth took a deep