Into the Blackness (Blackness Series Book 4) (20 page)

He tries to buck up, but fails, offering me a chin lift and practically runs to his SUV. I watch his punk ass speed out of my driveway. Pussy.

Shutting the door, I go about cleaning and getting ready for the day. I can’t wait to see what rumors that interaction causes.

I walk into the gym just before tip-off. The boys are in a huddle with Jason, so they don’t see me enter. I scan the bleachers to find Kat standing with Sawyer and Dane, bouncing with excitement. Quickly, I squeeze and climb my way to half my family.

“Hey!” I yell over the roar of the crowd as the cheerleaders finish off their routine to the amazement of the boys who are glued to the two girls they went to homecoming with. I think condoms need to be purchased soon for the boys. Maybe I can snag some of theirs…that’s not weird or anything. Plus they’d notice when a few were missing. So much for that plan.

“Hey!” Kat yells back, beaming a huge smile at me.

She’s wearing slim chinos and a short sleeved cream colored sweater with a low sweeping neck-line. I’ve already caught a few of the men in here staring at her and a lot of the teenage boys. My wife is hot so I can’t blame them even if it makes my blood boil.

So I behave like a caveman and tag the back of her head crushing my mouth to hers in an inappropriate kiss for a high school basketball game. I don’t give a fuck. What’s even better is she wraps her arms around my neck and leans into me. She likes it. I pull away from her when the lights go down for the team introductions. Kat looks up at me with hazy sex-filled eyes before shaking it off and coming back to reality.

I kiss her forehead swiftly before shrugging out of my suit jacket and rolling up my sleeves to the elbows all while the crowd boos at the opposing team as they’re introduced. I’m still getting a few looks after my alpha male claiming of Kat, but no one is looking at her anymore so my plan worked.

I sweep my arm around her shoulders and she reaches up interlacing her fingers with mine. We’re still standing waiting for the team to be introduced when I feel eyes on my back. I turn to find Phil standing a few rows behind us. I offer him a chin lift and he returns it with a cocky grin indicating his head toward Kat. That’s either props for having a hot wife or props for marking my territory, I don’t know which. It doesn’t really matter so I smile back before turning my attention to the court.

The starters are all seniors other than Jake so I’m surprised when he’s introduced last. I’m even more surprised at the raucous applause that follows his name being announced. The bleachers vibrate with force and my ears wince in pain from the squeals of the girls around us. Kat, Sawyer and Dane lose their shit right along with the crowd. Jake turns his gaze to the bleachers, finding us quickly. The smile that lights his face makes my stomach flip. That kid loves us. I don’t know where or what he comes from other than it’s deep and dark. Fuck me if that’s nowhere to be seen in his eyes in this moment.

I smile down at him with pride like a father to a son. I know Jake’s a grown ass man, but I feel responsible for him. And I’m so fucking proud of him right now I can hardly contain it so I put my fingers in my mouth and release a deafening whistle just for him. Kat squeezes my fingers as the boys line up. I look down into her gorgeous hazel eyes where tears are holding themselves at bay but only just. I kiss her nose and she closes her eyes, pushing down the emotion before pulling me to sit next to her.

“That was some show your boy put on,” Phil congratulates clapping me on the back.

We’re waiting in the gym for Jake and Cole after an earth shattering performance by Jake. I’ve never seen him with a rifle, but what I just witnessed…Jake has more talent than he gives himself credit for.

“Twenty-four points, twelve assists and ten rebounds…he was fuckin’ amazing,” Phil continues.

“That he was,” I agree, catching Kat’s eyes from across the gym where she’s talking to some other moms.

She beams me a smile before excusing herself from the group, making her way back to me. Her movements are effortless, yet they seem to require so much. A flip of her hair, the sway of her hips, the swing of her arms, it’s all overwhelming to take in.

Kat slides an arm around my waist before sticking her free hand out to Phil.

“I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Kat Johnson,” she says brightly.

“Pleasure’s all mine,” he says, roughly pressing his lips to her knuckles before letting her go.

I steel myself against the desire to rip his lips off his face and sew them to his ass when Kat gives me an encouraging squeeze. I return the pressure with my arm around her shoulders.

“Your husband kicked my butt last night,” Phil informs Kat.

“I’m sorry to hear that. I’ve asked him to ease up on you boys,” she says sweetly.

“I doubt that,” he scoffs. “I’m sure keepin’ a woman like you in shoes and bags can always use some padding in the bank roll.”

I take a deep breath before I unleash, only to be cut off by my amazing wife.

“Actually, we donate his winnings to charity. Always have. My shoes and bags come from the sweat off his brow and he enjoys workin’ for what we’ve got. He also likes the reward of me beneath him at the end of every day. I’ll be sure to have another talk with him about bein’ so successful at the poker game though. It was nice meeting you, but you’ll have to excuse us. We’ve got four boys to get home,” she finishes coolly.

Phil is stunned stupid and simply nods as Kat steers me away.

“I fuckin’ hate these people,” she grinds out through a smile directed at a group of parents.

I grab her left hand to pull her to me and find it’s a little light in the jewelry department. In fact, it’s a different ring all together.

“A couple of the diamonds came loose on the other one,” she explains. “The local jeweler said he’d have my rings back tomorrow. Gave me this as a ‘place holder’.”

“Do you like your ring?” I ask wondering if I could convince her to not pick up her old one and let me get her a new one.

“Yes and no,” she says with a shrug.

“How’s that?”

“Not really the place to discuss it, Nicky,” she admonishes, curling into my side a bit more. Almost immediately she’s gone, running toward Jake in a full sprint as he exits the locker room. Jake’s face splits in two with a wide grin as she heaves herself into his arms, almost knocking him down. They hold each other tightly, drawing some looks from the other parents that are merely trading smiles and back pats with their children. Pussies.

Cole comes out of the locker room and I see his face drop when he finds Kat’s already occupied. Fuck that. I move to him in a few strides and wrap him in a bear hug clapping his back firmly.

“Good game, bud,” I congratulate, releasing him and squeezing the side of his neck.

“Thanks, Nick,” he says with a relieved smile.

Kat passes me Jake and wraps Cole up in her arms with no less intensity than she offered Jake. I grab Jake similarly to how I’d grabbed Cole, squeezing the shit out of him.

“Proud of you,” I murmur in his ear before letting him go, again with a neck squeeze.

Jake gifts me a giant toothy cocky grin and I chuckle. Sawyer and Dane come barreling over to us, fist bumping the guys and immediately start rehashing the game highlights giving Cole’s performance off the bench plenty of attention too.

I notice Regan and her posse hovering near the exit of the building as we make our way out.

“Can we go for ice cream?” Sawyer asks, eyeing the girls with his big brown eyes beneath his shaggy black hair that I heard Kat threaten to cut in his sleep if he doesn’t keep it out of his eyes. Apparently, the homecoming haircuts have grown out faster than she likes.

“You boys wanna go on your own?” I ask knowing no fifteen-year-olds want to hang out with their parents—even if we’re not parents—on a Friday night.

“You don’t wanna go with us?” Sawyer asks with a hurt tone in his voice and I want to kick myself in the balls. Of course they want us with them. They’ve missed out on the normalcy of a family outing after a game.

“No place I’d rather be. Just thought you’d want some alone time with your ladies,” I reply, nodding toward their admirers.

“They’ll be there too. Everyone will be,” Cole responds coolly, like he couldn’t care less if the girls are there or not. I furrow my brow before Dane explains his reaction.

“You’re just pissed because Avery went down on Beckett last weekend. Fuckin’ forget about her,” he admonishes his friend.

“Was she goin’ down on you too?” Kat asks sheepishly.

Cole turns bright red and stares at his shoes.

“Sunshine, kinda my department, not yours,” I inform her with a pat on her ass as I let her go and wrap my arm around Cole’s shoulders.

“Hey, I know about suckin’ dick,” she argues somewhat loudly for the venue, causing the boys to chuckle nervously.

“Kat,” I chide with my own chuckle as she realizes what she just did and bursts into her own laughter.

I pull Cole aside after settling Kat in the passenger seat while the boys maneuver into the SUV. It has seven seats, but the third row is a little crammed for growing teenage boys to squeeze into.

“So what happened with Avery?” I ask leaning against the tailgate.

“Just what Dane said,” he says quietly, not meeting my eyes.

“And what about what Kat asked?” He blushes again and stares at his feet. “Eyes up here, Cole. You’re man enough to do it, you better be man enough to admit it and talk about it like an adult because that’s adult shit.”

His soft blue eyes snap to mine and I see a bit of maturity sparkling behind them.

“I’m not in trouble?” he asks softly.

“For what?”

“For you know…” he trails off unable to say the words.

“Should you be?”

“I don’t know. Everyone does it. It’s like kissing people do it so much.”

“So she’s goin’ down you because you want it or because that’s just what you think you should be doin’?”

He shrugs.

“Cole,” I urge him.

“It just kinda happened. I was curious and then she was just doin’ it,” he huffs.

“Is that all that happened?” I ask, hoping like hell that’s all that happened.

“Yeah.”

“Cole, I’m not your father, but I’m responsible for you and I give a shit about you. I was fifteen too so I know what it’s like. I fucked up plenty at your age and I wish someone woulda talked to me before I made those fuck ups. You’re too young to be goin’ that far with a girl you just started seein’ a few weeks ago. It’s tempting to just get sex over with, but that’s the wrong way to go about it. Find a girl you wanna share that with and make it special. I don’t expect you to be a monk. I’m not sayin’ wait for marriage or college even. I’m sayin’ you get one shot at firsts in life and you wanna be able to look back at that shit with pride not shame. You don’t look proud right now, bud.”

“You’ve been more of a father to me than mine ever has been. I’m sorry I’ve disappointed you,” he says dejectedly.

“I’m not disappointed in you. I’m proud of you for havin’ the courage to stand here and listen to me. I’ll only ever be disappointed in you if you break our rules. You remember what those are?”

“No lying, no disrespecting, no drugs or alcohol and if there is drugs or alcohol and we get in a car are asses are grass. Oh yeah, and Aunt Kay says if we don’t keep our rooms clean she’ll empty the garbage in our beds and make us sleep in ’em.”

I chuckle because I didn’t know the last rule. Cole chuckles slightly too, breathing a sigh of relief I’m not mad at him. I clap him on the back before moving off the tailgate.

“Nick?” he calls as I walk away. I turn and see a reluctant look on his face, so I return to stand in front of him, peering into his soft blues.

“You can say anything to me, Cole,” I reassure him as I notice he’s clamming up.

He takes a deep breath and then clears his throat.

“My parents don’t tell me that they love me. I don’t think I can remember them ever sayin’ it when I think about it. But I tell Aunt Kay all the time and she tells me even more. And I just…I just want you to know that I love you too,” he whispers the last part.

“Love you too, bud,” I say pulling his head to my shoulder roughly with my hand in his messy blond hair.