Rundown (Curveball Book 2) (13 page)

“
Alright,
everyone.  As much as I appreciate you all coming out here this
evening, I won’t be posing for any more pictures if you’re going
to pull stunts like that.  I’m spoken for and madly in love.”

The
few ‘aw’s’ are barely audible over the roaring ‘boo’s’. 

“
Who’s
the lucky girl, Drew?” one reporter asks.

“
Is
it Amber?” someone else yells. 

“
So
the rumors that you’re back together are true?” another reporter
chimes in.

Fuck
this.

“
Breanne
Sullivan.  I’m involved with Breanne,” I quickly correct. 
“Thanks again for coming out.”

 
I
walk over to Brett to collect my things and quickly type out a text
to Breanne, letting her know that I just confirmed our relationship
to the press, and apologize for not being there to tell the kids in
person.  She had wanted to give it a little more time, which I
get, but I’m sick of waiting.  And kids aren’t stupid
either, or so I’ve been told.  Besides, the press hounds me
religiously.  They know where I spend my time.  The last
thing I want people to think is that I’m with anyone other than
her. 

Gripping
my phone as I wait for Breanne’s response, I fall behind Brett and
Everett who’ve taken the lead, and make small talk with O’Conner.  

“
It’s
10pm, O’Conner.  Why aren’t all these people in bed?”

“
Good
question, son.  Only idiots would drag themselves to the airport
to watch a washed up ball player walk down a hallway.”

I
toss my head back and release a boisterous laugh at his honest, surly
response.  “Thanks,” I reply, cupping his shoulder. 
Before I’m able to further express my appreciation for O’Conner
staying true to himself, a man bumps into me, sending my phone
crashing to the ground several yards away. 

“
Oh
shit, man,” the guy, who could only be described as a stoner,
apologizes. 

With
his back towards me, he runs and retrieves my phone.  Seconds
later, O’Conner scoops him up and in the blink of an eye the guy’s
face is flush against the wall.  O’Conner forcefully snatches
my phone from his hands and gives it to Everett who is now by their
sides.

“
It
was an accident, pops.  Ease up.”

Not
appreciating the nickname, O’Conner pulls him off the wall slightly
and then shoves back harder.  “How’s that for pops? 
Keep your hands against the wall.  Where is your license?”

I’ve
come to enjoy O’Conner and Everett’s company, but it’s pretty
clear from instances like this that they miss real action. 

“
Guys,
let him go.”  I take my phone from Everett and assess the
damage.  There’s none, except a scratch to the case that could
have been there before.  “The phone’s fine.  He said it
was an accident.  Let’s go before you two cause a bigger
scene.”

O’Conner
shoves the guy away and both he and Everett resume walking as if
nothing happened.   

Bang.
Bang. Bang. Bang.

“
Go
away,” I yell, rolling further into my pillow.

“
You
overslept.  Get up!” Brett yells through the door of my hotel
room.

Groaning,
I force myself out of bed and head to the bathroom.  I splash my
face with cold water, trying like hell to remove the grogginess
that’s clouding my brain.  I can’t remember going to bed
last night.  I grab the edge of the counter and stare at myself
in the mirror.  
Why the fuck do I feel like I’m forgetting
something?
 

Suddenly
recalling the issue Breanne’s dealing with at home, I return to the
bedroom and grab my phone to make sure she didn’t call.  I’m
relieved that she didn’t, only because that means nothing else has
happened.  I shoot her a quick text, letting her know that I’ll
call her soon, and then shower and dress in record time.

Dashing
out the door, I’m greeted by my three traveling companions, none of
whom seem pleased to have been kept waiting.  Together, we head
towards the elevator.  As we wait, my phone pings, signaling
that I’ve gotten a new message.  Curious, I unlock my phone
and read a few messages I must have missed in my haste to get ready,
and smile as I look them over.  She’s not pissed about my slip
with the reporter. 
Thank God.
   Not caring
about the crowd of fellow hotel guests that’s formed around my
entourage while we wait for the elevator, I call Breanne.

“
Hey,
you busy?” I ask when she answers on the fourth ring.

“
Never
too busy for you.  Did you get any sleep?”

“
As
good as could be expected without you.”

She
laughs.  “Seeing how we haven’t spent a night together since
the barn, you must be going on months of shitty sleep.”

“
About
that.  Don’t you think it’s time that changed?”

“
Lets
figure it out when you’re back, ok?”

“
You
aren’t mad?  I haven’t checked the news yet to see if anyone
actually cares, not that anyone’s opinion other than yours counts.”

“
Oh,
people care.  I’ve already received a dozen calls from
reporters.”

“
Don’t
answer them.  I’ll have Brett work on a press release. 
Until then, just ignore them.”

“
Yes,
sir.”

“
That
has a nice ring to it.  You should call me that more often,” I
reply, as the elevator doors open. 

“
I
don’t think so.”

I
let the other people get in the elevator before stepping in myself. 
“You’ve called me God before, switching to ‘sir’ shouldn’t
be that hard.” 

A
woman gasps behind me, followed by Brett nudging me in the ribs.
 Unfortunately for everyone else, this conversation is the only
thing I give a shit about right now.  If anyone’s
uncomfortable they can plug their ears.

“
Not
going to happen,” she replies.

“
You
talk a big game now, when we’re separated by thousands of miles. 
We’ll see what happens when I get back.” 

“
Keep
dreaming, baby.”

“
That
sounds like a bet.”

“
Sounds
like there’s even less of a chance now.”

“
I
can’t wait to prove you wrong.”

“
You
are so obnoxious,” she sighs.  “And I miss you like crazy.”

“
Me
too, beautiful.  So back to us having sleepovers.”

“
Seriously? 
Are you capable of thinking about anything other than sex for more
than 30 seconds?”

“
I
don’t think I mentioned sex.  Did any of you hear me mention
sex?” I turn slowly to face the four women and one man standing
behind me.  They’re all in business suits, and all of them are
looking at anything other than me.

“
Where
are you?”

“
In
an elevator with the guys and a handful of strangers.”

“
Drew!”

“
What
were we talking about again?”

“
How
we won’t be having sexovers anytime soon.”

“
Any
more peeping Tom’s?” I ask, stepping into the main lobby of the
hotel, ignoring her ridiculous claim.
Of course we’ll be having
sexovers
.

“
Not
that I’m aware of, but the day’s young.”

“
Listen,
I’ve gotta go.  My schedule is hectic so I probably won’t
have time to call you until I’m on my way to Alexis’s later.”

“
Take
care of your stuff and call me when you can.  If you’re not in
the mood to talk, just send me a text letting me know you’re ok.”

“
I
will.  Do you promise to call if something comes up?”

“
Promise.”

“
I
love you.”

“
Love
you too.”

“
That
was brutal,” I mutter, slumping down into the back seat of the town
car. 

“
Which
part?” Brett asks.

“
All
of it.  Between flying, the shit going on at home with Breanne,
the meeting with the Giants and the photo shoot, I’m spent.  I
know it sounds lame, but I’m beat,” I tell him.

“
You
sure you don’t want to have an early night and go to Alexis’s
tomorrow?”

“
No. 
I need to get this over with.  The sooner it’s taken care of,
the sooner we can all go home.”

“
At
least let me help,” Brett offers as we pull up in front of the
hotel.

“
Thanks,
but you’ve done enough just by coming out here with me.  I
need to do this alone.”  I pause and then turn my focus on
O’Conner and Everett.  “You know what I mean.”

“
If
you change your mind, I’ll be there.”  Brett opens the car
door and steps out.

“
Thanks. 
I’ll stop by tomorrow morning.”