Long Shot (Lauderdale Knights Book 3), page 1
Long Shot
LAUDERDALE KNIGHTS BOOK THREE
KAT MIZERA
Copyright © 2022 by Kat Mizera
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.
Editing: Tera Cuskaden, Anja Pfister
Cover Design: Dar Albert
Cover Photography: Wander Aguilar
Cover Model: Brady Ervin
Created with Vellum
For Linda Farber, without whom this book may not have happened. Thank you for your surfing expertise, friendship, and support.
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
Epilogue
Excerpt from Hot Shot (Knights #4)
Also by Kat Mizera
About the Author
Chapter
One
Jace
Watching the sun come up on the beach in Hawaii had become one of my favorite things in the last few days. When three of my teammates had invited me to come along on their vacation, I’d jumped at the chance because this was technically my first real vacation as an adult. I’d been playing minor league professional hockey since I was eighteen, and after six years I’d come to terms with the fact that I would probably never make it to the big leagues. Two months ago, everything had changed.
Due to several serious team injuries and a little bit of luck, I’d been called up to the Lauderdale Knights during the playoffs. For the first time in my professional life, I’d gone out there and showed them what I could do when given a chance. I’d done well enough to have a shot of making the team this year instead of being sent back down to the minors.
It was a huge deal because it was also the first time in my life I was making real money. Professional athlete money. And it was as exciting as it was terrifying. I wanted to do well, and planned to work my ass off all summer, but training camp in September was where I’d find out my fate. There was nowhere to go but back down to the minors, so I had to work out this summer like my life depended on it. Because in a way it did.
The off-season was always an important time of year, but this year it had the potential to be life changing. I would do everything I could do to prepare physically, but the mental part of it was different. How the other guys performed. Whether or not the guys who’d had injuries were coming back. So many fucking variables it made my head spin sometimes. Which was why I was sitting on the beach trying to relax before my buddies Wolf, Cam, and Felix got out of bed. We were only going to be here another week or so, and I wanted to make the most of it, both with and without them.
It was still early, but there were a handful of surfers on the beach, most of them just arriving. The sun was barely sliding up above the horizon, but I knew from coming here the last two days that it would be busy in an hour. My alone time, to stare and philosophize—and worry—about the upcoming hockey season, would be over in the next fifteen minutes, and I only had eight more days to do this.
My thoughts strayed to a woman walking across the sand, surfboard under her arm, and I couldn’t help but stare as she made her way to the water. In an emerald-green bikini that left little to the imagination, I took note of long legs and a smokin’ hot body. She had what I could only describe as tawny-colored hair, and it was like a halo around her head as a light breeze caught it.
I couldn’t see her face, but her profile was stunning.
There were a lot of beautiful women in Hawaii, and I’d enjoyed looking at the ones I’d seen so far, but there was something enchanting about this one. She almost looked familiar, but I couldn’t imagine from where. I couldn’t keep my eyes off her as she paddled out a little way and then lifted onto her board. She rode a small, slow-moving wave, but her body was poised and elegant, as if she and the board were one. It was mesmerizing, and I watched her for the next fifteen minutes or so, enjoying the way she moved.
It was late August, so it was hot and humid, even this early in the day, and eventually I had to get up to go cool off. As I got closer to the water, my surfer goddess was coming out and our eyes met.
“Watching you surf is beautiful,” I told her quietly.
She smiled. “Thanks.”
God, her eyes were a golden-green color too.
Why did she look familiar?
She was breathtaking, and I forced myself to look away, getting into the warm water. I dunked my head to rinse away the sand sticking to my skin and cool off. I was good about sunscreen, but it was much hotter than I was used to. Between growing up in North Dakota and living in Alaska for a few years, I wasn’t used to this kind of heat. It was hot in Fort Lauderdale, of course, but I hadn’t been there long before the season ended to get used to it.
I drifted out a little, relaxing in the water and alternating between staring at the sexy surfer and thinking about the upcoming season. I’d started to let go of some of my stress in the last couple of days. I’d worked my ass off to play professional hockey, and while there was nothing wrong with playing in the minors, it wasn’t the same as the big leagues. It just wasn’t.
I closed my eyes and let my body fall back, the saltwater allowing me to float, which was usually hard for me because I had so much muscle mass it tended to drag me down. This was nice, though, and I made a mental note to apply more sunscreen the minute I got out of the water.
I’d drifted out a little further than I’d intended, but I was too relaxed to worry about it. The gentle rocking of the waves seemed to take my stress and send it out to sea, leaving me to think about nothing but except the gorgeous surfer I was still watching in my peripheral vision.
I swam toward shore, opting not to drift out any farther, and gave a small wave as I passed the sexy surfer. She was polite but kept her distance. I figured guys probably hit on her every minute she was at the beach, especially wearing a bikini like that. As beautiful as she was, I didn’t want to bother her.
“Do you surf?” she asked, surprising me when she paddled up beside me.
“No.” I shook my head. “I’m originally from North Dakota and water sports aren’t really a thing there.”
“That’s too bad. There’s no other feeling like it.”
“I’ll bet. You look like you were born for it.”
“I grew up here, so I’ve been surfing my whole life.”
“I can’t imagine getting to watch this sunrise every day. I’ve only been here a few days, and it’s addicting.”
“It is.” She nodded thoughtfully. “I travel a lot for work, so I’m not here much anymore, but I try to take advantage of it when I am. Like today.”
“I’m Jace, by the way.”
“Tammy.” Her smile was as breathtaking as the rest of her.
“Nice to meet you.” I looked around. “I’m only here another week, and I’m already thinking I’m going to miss it.”
“Hopefully you can come back.”
“Maybe next summer.” Our eyes locked and held for a second, but then she turned and started to paddle out again.
“Take care!” She waved without looking back.
Instead of getting out of the water as I’d intended, I allowed myself to drift out a little deeper again, watching as she got up on her board. She was moving away from me, which was okay because I didn’t want to get in her way.
Something brushed up against my leg, and I started, looking around. I didn’t see anything, but I wasn’t worried about it. There were fish in the ocean, after all. We’d gone snorkeling yesterday, and I’d never seen such a variety up close and personal, so it made sense something might touch me.
“Hey!” I thought I heard someone yell but wasn’t sure. I glanced over at Tammy and noticed her waving. I looked around, but there wasn’t anyone else nearby, and I was trying to decide whether or not to wave back when I felt it again.
Something rough brushed against my skin, almost like sandpaper, and it had some weight to it, moving me to the side. I turned in alarm, trying to get my bearings and figure out what the fuck was going on, when I felt it for a third time. This time I managed to get a good look and my chest tightened with fear.
“Shit!” I inadvertently let out a yell as I got my first sight of the tell-tale fin that nearly gave me a heart attack.
Shark.
There was a shark close by, and I was fucking frozen.
I had no idea what to do and spun in a circle, trying to see where it was.
The shark brushed against me again, and this time I got a clear view of it.
Jesus fucking Christ.
It was at least five feet long and right next to me.
I felt a deep, searing pain in my thigh and jerked away just as Tammy reached me.
“Go!” she yelled, shocking the hell out of me when the shark approached again, and she pulled back her fist, punching it in the nose. I whirled around in confusion, so surprised at her courage I was frozen again, even though the shark seemed to have moved away.
“Can you swim?” she asked, panting slightly as her bright eyes sought mine.
“I… It bit me.” I looked down and noticed a red tinge to the water. “Oh, fuck.”
“Come on.” She held out a hand to me, and I stared at her for a second before taking it.
“Sharks are usually more scared of us than we are of them,” she said, pulling me toward shore. “He probably won’t be back, but we need to see how bad the bite is.”
Swirls of red floated up to the top, and I tried not to panic.
“Aren’t sharks attracted to blood?” I asked as adrenaline kicked in, and I began to swim.
“Just focus on getting to shore.” She’d let go of my hand but was swimming beside me, looking around as we moved closer to shore.
“You guys okay?” A surfer I hadn’t seen before was on shore watching us.
“Shark bite,” Tammy yelled to him. “Can you help me get him out of the water?”
“Fuck.” The young guy splashed into the water, helping us get to shore because the burning in my leg was making it hard for me to swim.
“Okay, sit down.” Tammy dropped to her haunches next to me as I collapsed on the sand.
“I’m going to get a lifeguard,” the guy said, taking off in the other direction.
The gaping wound in my thigh was ugly as fuck, and I grimaced, forcing myself to look away.
“You’re going to be fine.” Tammy met my gaze, and I was lost in her calmness as she wrapped a towel someone handed her tightly around my thigh.
“Thanks.” At least I had a gorgeous woman to look at while I bled out on the sand.
“Shark?” A lifeguard came running over to us. I tried to pay attention, but the adrenaline was fading, and I was about to crash.
“I think it was a tiger shark,” Tammy told him, resting one of her hands on my left forearm, as if telling me she was here for me.
There was an interesting black leather bracelet with an engraved shell-shaped silver medallion on her wrist, and I tried to focus on the details to distract myself from losing my breakfast. It had a seahorse etched into the metal with some type of blue or green stone for the eye, and I thought it was stunning.
“That’s probably going to need stitches,” I heard someone say. “Ambulance is on the way.”
“No ambulance,” I muttered, shaking my head. “I’ll be fine.”
“You are going to be fine.” Tammy smiled at me. “But you’ll still need stitches and probably antibiotics.”
“We’ve called an ambulance,” the lifeguard said. “You’re definitely going to need stitches.”
Great. The last thing I needed was an injury impacting hockey in the fall. I wanted to tough this out, no matter how gross the bite marks were, but my stomach was threatening revolt and I didn’t think I could stop it.
A small crowd had gathered, and I slowly got to my feet, trying to ignore the blood on my hands and torso. I wasn’t usually squeamish, but I’d also never been bitten by a shark before.
I didn’t know how serious it was, but I’d probably be shipped back down to the minors in the blink of an eye if this impacted my ability to play.
“Paramedics are here,” the lifeguard said, putting a hand on my arm. “Just relax.”
Damn. I had no choice but to go to the hospital. I needed to make sure I got the best possible care in the event there was more damage than I thought. I needed help getting up but could still stand and walk, so it couldn’t be that bad, despite the amount of blood.
Right?
I looked around, wincing at the gathering crowd, when something shiny glinted in the sand, and I bent to see what it was.
The bracelet Tammy had been wearing.
I picked it up and turned to look for her. I wanted to thank her, but she was gone.
“What happened to—” I began.
“Let’s get you to the hospital.” The paramedics had arrived, as had a stretcher.
Damn. She was gone.
Chapter
Two
Tawny
There were no words for the panic I’d felt when I’d seen the telltale fin in the water near Jace. As a professional surfer, sharks were common and something we had to get used to, but I never would. Every time I saw one, whether it was up close like today or off in the distance, panic washed over me. Luckily, I’d been able to act on instinct and help Jace or this might have ended badly.
I took a few deep breaths, trying to calm myself.
I’d snuck away from the crowd the minute I’d seen reporters lurking. It was like they had a radar for accidents, and it was annoying sometimes. Granted, a shark attack tended to be a big deal, but the last thing I wanted was to be was in the middle of a story like that just before a competition.
I’d managed to grab my things and get out of there before anyone recognized me but had somehow dropped my bracelet. The bracelet I never took off.
Dammit.
I’d go back later in the day to look for it, but it was probably long gone, and that made me want to cry. Other than my engagement ring, which I no longer wore, it was one of the only things I had left from Pete.
“You’re back early.” My friend Kalea Desmond looked up from her computer as I walked into her condo. I stayed with her and her husband whenever I was in town.
“There was excitement on the beach.” I sank down into a chair and leaned back. I’d rinsed off the sand, but I’d grab a quick shower after I finished telling her what had happened.
“Holy shit.” Her eyes widened. “You punched it in the nose?”
I chuckled. “I did.”
“That’s my girl.” She shook her head. “Stupid shark had no idea who it was messing with.”
“Well, it didn’t mess with me,” I said, laughing.
“The guy all right?”
“His name was Jace, and yeah, he’ll be okay. It was bleeding, but I got a good look at the wound, and I don’t think the shark did too much damage.”
“We should turn on the news,” she said, her eyes twinkling. “I bet it’s all over the place.”
“I need a shower,” I told her, getting up.
She cocked her head. “You okay?”
“Yeah. It was…” My voice trailed off, and I shifted my weight uncomfortably. “Well, you know.”
“I know.” Her dark eyes filled with sympathy. We’d been friends a long time, and she knew my history, so there wasn’t much that needed to be said when it came to danger in the ocean.
I headed for the bathroom, got into the shower, and closed my eyes.
Despite springing into action, I’d been terrified when I’d realized Jace was too far away to hear me calling to him. Thank goodness I was a strong swimmer and had gotten to him relatively quickly. He’d seemed to be in shape, but he’d panicked. And who could blame him? I was a professional surfer and was used to seeing all kinds of things in the water, but sharks were always scary.
I dried off and put my hair back in a ponytail before padding into the kitchen, following the smell of whatever Kalea was cooking.
“What are we having for breakfast?” I asked.
“Protein,” she told me, rubbing her tiny stomach. She was barely four months pregnant and wasn’t competing anymore this season. Her husband, Connor, was in New York doing some promotional events, but he’d be here for the competition since he was a surfer too. The baby wasn’t due until December, and the Championship Tour season would be over by then.
