Play Hard (Make the Play #2) (15 page)

Longest. Night. Ever.

After being questioned by the police and examined by a doctor, I’m ready to go home, take a shower, and hop into bed. Maybe stay there until I’m eighty. I walk in front of Aunt Molly and Uncle Alex as we head down the hospital hallway. The sterile smell is making my stomach curl. Then again, a lot of things do that during this pregnancy.

When we reach the end of the hallway, we turn a corner, and I freeze, inhaling sharply. Cal stands a few feet in front of me talking to his parents. With a bandage over his eye and bruises painting his face, he appears vulnerable and childlike. Nothing like the strong, courageous boy he was in my front yard.

“We’ll give you two a few minutes,” Aunt Molly says, swiftly touching my shoulder.

“Thanks.” I step away from my aunt and uncle and move closer to where Cal is standing. My gaze flickers over to his parents, and my insides coil. I’m sure they blame me for all of this, and I guess it is my fault. He walks up to me, his gaze traveling up my body.

“They’re letting you leave already?” His expression is one of grave concern.

I nod. “Doctor says I’m fine.”

“And the baby?”

“Baby is fine too.”

“Thank god.” He blows out a ragged breath.

My gaze flickers to his bruises. Reaching up, I tentatively trace them with my fingertips. “What about you?”

“I’m fine too. Nothing a little ice won’t fix.”

I’m skeptical. “What about your eye?”

“Just a few stitches. No biggie.” He’s being so nonchalant, but I was there. I saw how hard Dusty hit him. I saw all the blood.

I squeeze my eyes shut and breathe deeply. “I was so scared, Cal.”

“I wasn’t going to let him hurt you or the baby.”

My eyelids flip open. “No, I mean I was scared for
you
. When Dusty hit you I lost my mind. I can’t stand the thought that you were hurt because of me.”

“Hey.” Lifting his hand, his knuckles graze my cheek. “I’m fine.” He tips my chin. “Look.”

I stare at his face – at his piercing eyes, strong jaw and tousled hair. “Yes, you look fine.”

“Just fine, huh?”

Chuckling, I shake my head. “No, you look good.”

A grin spreads across his face, his eyes sparkling. It reminds me of how things were before tonight, before he found out my secret, and before Dusty showed up and attacked us. My lips curl downward, the magnitude of the situation crashing into me.

“What about baseball?” I ask.

“What about it?”

“Can you play? I mean, your season’s almost over, and--” Panic creeps up into my chest, and I’m struggling to stay calm.

“Relax. I can play. It’s nothing but a few stitches on my eye and some bruised knuckles.”

I breathe out, feeling only slight relief. “Cal, I’m so sorry.”

“You don’t need to apologize.”

“But I do,” I say. “About so many things. I wish we could start over and I could be honest from the beginning. Maybe if you had known everything from the start--”

“I wouldn’t have done anything differently,” he cuts me off.

“What?”

“I don’t regret anything between us. I’m sorry if I gave you the impression that I did. When I left your house it wasn’t because I was upset with you. Honestly, it was because I was upset with him. I couldn’t get the image of what he’d done to you out of my head.” Stepping closer to me, he hooks his hands around my waist. “The idea of anyone laying a hand on you is too much to take. But I shouldn’t have walked away. I shouldn’t have left you alone. It was wrong, and if I could do it over I would stay.”

Cal blows me away time and time again. Never before has anyone said these kinds of things to me. “I understand why you left, Cal, and it’s okay. You might not have stayed, but you came back, and that means everything to me.”

“I’m staying now, Taylor. I promise.”

“All of this isn’t scaring you away?”

He shakes his head.

“Well, I think the worst is behind us anyway.”

“You think Dusty will leave you alone now?”

“He has no choice. He can’t get to me if he’s locked up,” I say. “Apparently, since I left town he’s gotten involved in drug dealing, so there was a warrant out for his arrest. I don’t think he’s getting out for awhile.”

“I’m glad that he can’t get to you anymore,” Cal says.

“Me too.” I smile, my chest expanding as the realization of what I said hits me. Dusty isn’t a threat to me anymore. It’s a great feeling.

Leaning down, Cal’s face nuzzles mine. “Do you think your aunt and uncle will hate me if I kiss you right now?” His breath is warm against my skin. Until now I hadn’t given our families a second thought. Glancing over, I see the four of them huddled together talking. They don’t even notice us at all. Not that I would have cared if they did. Honestly, I’d give anything to feel Cal’s lips on mine right now. The mere thought of it causes my chest to ache.

“I don’t know about my family, but I think I’ll be pretty disappointed if you don’t.”

“It’s settled then.” His lips brush mine. Once. Twice. Light, like a whisper. Then his mouth is on mine again. Only this time he exerts more pressure, first on the top and then on the bottom. His lips move softly, and as badly as I want to speed things up, I also want to take things slow. Mostly because I don’t know how much pain he’s in. His hands slide around my waist until his fingers meet. They are warm and soft on my back. Sliding my hands up his muscular chest, I curve them around his broad shoulders and then loop them around his neck. Our chests press together, our heartbeats mingling.

His lips part momentarily and his tongue slips through my lips and glides into my mouth. I moan, and he clutches me tighter. Pain jabs me in the gut when Cal’s arm touches the spot where I fell. A surprised sound comes out of my mouth, and Cal draws back.

“You okay? I didn’t hurt you, did I?” Concern paints his face.

“No.”

“You’re lying.” His eyes flash, and he releases me. Reaching down, he yanks my shirt up to expose the nasty bruise blooming on my skin. He looks at me as if I betrayed him.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to lie. It just felt so good to be in your arms. I didn’t want it to end.”

“Oh, Taylor, c’mere.” He wraps his arms around me, but this time he keeps them higher. “You have to promise to tell me if I hurt you again, okay?”

“Okay,” I promise.

“God, I hate that he hurt you. I hate that I didn’t stop him in time.”

“Please don’t say that. It’s one little bruise. If you hadn’t shown up when you did, it would have been so much worse.” I rest my cheek against his chest, listening to his heart beating under my skin. “You saved me, Cal.” 

I’m popping an Ibuprofen when there’s a knock on the door. Since I’m the only one home, I reluctantly stagger toward it. I feel like death warmed over this morning, and the last thing I want is visitors. My face hurts every time I talk or laugh, and the stitches above my eye itch. With a groan, I slowly open the door.

It better not be a salesperson. That’s all I have to say.

Relief floods me when I see that it’s Chris.

“Dude,” he breathes out, taking in my face.

I step out of the way to allow him to enter. After he passes me I say, “Em’s not here. I think she’s at the library tutoring someone.”

“Yeah, I know,” he says as I close the door behind us. “She told me. I came by to see you.”

“Ah, so she told you about my exciting night then?” I head into the family room. The Ibuprofen is starting to take affect, thank god. Lowering down onto the couch, I settle back against the cushions. Chris does the same.

“Man, why didn’t you take me with you?” Chris says. “Two against one, we totally could’ve taken the guy.”

“I handled it,” I bristle.

“I know, but you didn’t have to handle it alone.” He slaps my thigh. “We’re a team, you and me.”

“I guess I just didn’t want to involve you in it,” I say honestly. “Besides, I wasn’t even sure he’d be at her house. It was just a hunch.”

“It’s not too late. We can find the guy and kick his ass now,” Chris offers.

“Dude’s in jail. He’s someone else’s problem now.”

Chris nods as if processing the information. “How’s Taylor?”

“Shaken up, but physically she’s fine.”

“And you two are good?”

I nod.

“Probably helps that her ex is behind bars, huh?” Chris smiles. “In one night you sorta got rid of her past.”

“It’s not really that simple,” I mutter.

“What do you mean?”

There’s no need to keep it secret anymore. The cat’s already out of the bag. My parents know. Emmy knows. Pretty soon Taylor will start showing, and the whole town will know. Hell, I kind of wish I’d come clean with everything to Chris last night. Chris was right about one thing. I could’ve used his help. What was I thinking racing in their by myself like a knight in shining armor? When I think of the damage Dusty could’ve done to Taylor it’s too much to bear.

“Chris,” I start, “Taylor’s pregnant.”

“No shit?”

“No shit.”

“And it’s his?”

I nod.

“Wow.”  He whistles. “That’s a little different than me having to face Josh on the baseball team. Once she has this baby you’re going to have to be faced with another guy’s child all the time. Do you think you can do that?”

“It’s true, I’ll have to see the child around town, but that will happen whether I’m dating Taylor or not,” I explain.

“So she’s staying here, huh? She’s not going back to the city?” He asks, and it’s a valid question. All of us assumed Taylor was here to hide from her ex. Now that he’s locked up, it would be safe to assume she’s going back. Only I know the whole truth. She might go back home, but not until after the baby’s born in the fall.

“I don’t know what her plans are for the future, but the baby’s staying here.”

Chris furrows his brows.

“Her aunt and uncle are adopting the baby.”

“Ah, I see.” Chris nods. “That’s pretty cool, actually.”

“I think so.” The whole town knows how the pastor and his wife can’t have kids. It’s honestly amazing what Taylor is doing for them.

“Dude, how did your parents take all of this?” Chris asks.

“Better than expected, actually.”

“What about Em?”

“You probably know that better than I do. Isn’t she the one who told you about this? Isn’t that why you came over today?”

“All she said was that you were beat up by Taylor’s ex and could use your best friend. She said I’d have to find out the rest from you.” Chris presses his two index fingers together, tenting them. Leaning back, he pins me with a challenging stare.

I smile. “Well, Em’s Em. She’s following me around, talking nonstop, and begging me for every single detail. You know how she is.”

Dropping his hands, he chuckles. “Sounds about right. But I’m sure it’s just because she’s worried about you, bro.”

“You guys don’t need to worry. I’m fine.”

“So you’ll be able to play in our last couple games of the season?” His gaze travels to the bandages covering my knuckles.

“Ah, so that’s the real reason you came over. To make sure I could play.”

“C’mon, you know me better than that,” he says, but he’s smiling so I know he’s not really offended.

“My face and knuckles are a little banged up, but my pitching arm is strong. Trust me. Nothing’s keeping me from playing in our last games.”

“Can you believe high school is almost over?” Chris’s tone is laced with awe.

“I know.” I sit up. “But don’t worry, man. It’s not the end for us. We will always find a way to play ball together.”

“Partners for life!” Chris uses his thug voice, but it doesn’t ring true.

“Yeah, don’t say that when we’re out in public, okay?” I cringe. “I don’t want people thinkin’ you’re my boyfriend.”

“Oh c’mon.” Chris puffs out his chest. “You could do a lot worse than me.”

“I could do a lot better too.”

“Nah, I don’t think so.”

Chuckling, I slug him in the shoulder. Wincing, I realize my mistake, but it’s a little too late.

Chris laughs when I shake my hand out. “Karma, dude.”

“Screw you.” I roll my eyes.

“What do ya say, you prove to me that you’ve still got it.”

I raise my brows, wondering what he’s talking about. “Are you still referring to you being my boyfriend?”

“Dude, I know I’m hot, but it’s time to move on.”

I shove him. This time using my palms.

“No,” he says. “I was talking about baseball. Wanna go throw the ball around?”

“Sure.” I shrug. “Why not?”