Rundown (Curveball Book 2) (8 page)

“
Me
too,” he replies, shifting some fallen strands of hair out of my
face.  “Me too.”

My
head drops to his chest and I kiss the area over his heart.  We
lie there, quietly wrapped up in each other for a long while, the
only sounds being the involuntarily purring I make as Drew’s hands
lightly stroke my lower back.

“
If
your hands weren’t moving I’d think you were asleep.”

“
Mmmm,”
he moans, as if he can’t be bothered to speak.

“
What
are you thinking?” I ask.

“
That
you sound like a cat.”  

Laughing,
I playfully bite his nipple.  Drew yelps and digs his fingers
into my sides. “What was that for?”

“
Cats
creep you out.”

“
Not
if they sound like that,” he replies.  What seems like a full
minute passes by and I’m nearly asleep when Drew lets out a heavy
sigh and admits, “I’m definitely a bath man.”

Just
a Number

“
You’re
shivering,” I say, running my hands up and down Breanne’s arms in
an attempt to warm her up, as she lazily draws circles on my skin. 
“Are you sure you don’t want to get out?”

“
Very
sure.”

“
At
least add more hot water.  I don’t want you getting sick.” 

She
groans, pushing off my chest like it’s the biggest burden in the
world, and reaches for the faucet.   Hating the loss of her
body heat and the sensation of her skin against mine, I sit up as
well so that her back is flush with my chest, and grab the hot water
handle before she has the chance.  Wrapping my arms around her
waist, I’m half expecting her to make some smart comment about her
being too slow for my liking, but to my surprise, she leans into me
and tilts her head to the side, giving me access to her neck. 
 I trail soft kisses from the hairline behind her ear to the
center of her shoulder blade, cherishing the taste and smell of her
skin, which is an intoxicating combination of vanilla and something
all her own. 
I can’t believe I almost walked away from
this for good.

Breanne’s
phone pings five or six times, bringing my thoughts back to the
present.  “Sounds like someone’s trying to get ahold of
you.  Do you need to get that?”

“
No,
it’s just a notification.”

“
Like
an update for your phone?” 

“
Umm,”
she pauses.  “It’s not exactly that kind of update.”

Noticing
how her body has tensed, I pull at her shoulder and shift her
sideways.   Her face is red and she’s avoiding making eye
contact.  Taking my finger to her chin, I force her to face
me.  When she finally meets my gaze, I raise my eyebrow and
cock my head to the side.  She shifts her weight a few
times and chews on her lip, making it impossible not to smile. 
What the hell has she been up to?

“
When
you wouldn’t return my calls or texts, I signed up for Google
Alerts so that I’d be notified of any stories linked to you. 
 It was the only thing I could think of at the time to figure
out what you were doing and where you were.”

“
Seriously?”
I ask, amused.   She covers her face and nods as a nervous
laugh escapes her beautiful lips.  
She really did try. 

Before
seeing her today, I knew I’d never be the same without her in my
life, but at the same time I didn’t think I had an option other
than starting over somewhere new and very far away from her.   I
would have existed, but barely, and being here with her now confirms
it.   Somehow, knowing that she was in as much pain as I was,
justifies what I felt. 

“
So,
what you’re saying is that you’re stalking me.”

“
I
wouldn’t have had to do that if you would have just answered your
phone,” she replies, not even bothering to deny what I’ve said.

“
Good
point, and I’m flattered.  You know what they say; ‘you’re
not somebody until you’ve been stalked’.”

“
That’s
not a saying.”

“
Should
be.  I feel very important right now.”

“
You
should feel important―you’re
my
‘somebody’.”

I
breathe happily into her hair and squeeze her tightly.   I
will never take any time with her for granted.   She’s it
for me.  

“
Are
you going to tell me what you read?”   

I’m
curious…and slightly worried.

“
Oh,
not much.   Besides that you were drunk and hooking up with
bimbos in public restrooms.”

I
groan recalling that she mentioned this at the airport. 
“Breanne—” I begin.

“
Don’t. 
I don’t want to know.”

“
I
want to tell you.   I don’t want any secrets between us,
and it’s not what you think.”   
Well, it could have
been if I hadn’t come to my senses.

I
take her silence as agreement on hearing me out.  “The woman
you’re referring to cornered me in the bathroom when I was wasted.
 I vaguely remember her offering to give me head after she
forced me to feel her up,” I say, realizing my recap has probably
been too blunt.  “If it makes you feel better, she threw her
drink on me when I turned her down.”

She’s
quiet for too long.   Feeling the need to explain myself
further, I continue.  “At the time, I was miserable.  I
was looking for a way to get you and what happened out of my head,
but in the end I couldn’t go through with it.   I’m
sorry you had to see that.   I know if the roles were
reversed I’d find the prick and beat the shit out of him.”

“
It’s
my fault you put yourself in that situation.  It still hurts
though.”

“
We
both messed up, but we’re together now.  Do you forgive me?”

“
Of
course I do.”

“
Is
that all you read?”

“
No,
I found out all kinds of things about you.”

“
Like
what?”

“
For
starters, your birthday is coming up.”

“
Mmm
hmm.”

“
When
you returned from your UCL injury it was rumored that you were taking
HGH and had to undergo testing.”

“
Actually,
I didn’t have to.  I offered because I had nothing to hide.”

“
The
most important thing I came across, however, was that your baseball
number is 45, not 4.  The number 4 belonged to Joe Cronin and
was retired in 1984.”   

At
this I bust up laughing, recalling what I had thought was a smooth
attempt on my part when trying to convince her to sleep with me right
after our ordeal started in the woods.

“
Hey,
I never said that my number with the Red Sox was 4, only that it was
my number in baseball.”

“
Oh,
really?  So when did you wear the number 4?  College?
 High-school?”

“
Little
league,” I admit.

“
You’re
unbelievable.”

“
We
both know that using that line persuaded you to give me a chance,
like it was fate.   If I had told you that my number was
45, I would have never gotten the chance.”

She
scowls at me before turning her attention back to the running water.

“
That’s
probably enough,” I suggest, noticing how high the water level has
gotten.  It’s only then that I calculate how long it took to
fill the tub back up.  Adjusting to look over the edge of the
tub, I’m shocked by the amount of water that’s pooled on the
floor, but I’m in no hurry to get out and clean it up. 
“Unless you want to flood the house.”

Breanne
looks over the edge and shrugs.  “It’ll be fine…unless,
you’re planning on a doubleheader?”

She’s
laughing at her own joke, and I can’t help but think that her
laughter is my favorite sound…actually, all of her sounds are. 
Yes, I most definitely want a doubleheader.

“
Maybe
I am,” I muse, lowering myself back after she turns off the faucet,
pulling her with me.   

I
nuzzle against her head and kiss her neck while giving her breasts
some much needed attention.  Although I want nothing more than
to take her again right now, the thought reminds me of our pre-sex
conversation, and I remember I have an important question to ask her.

“
What
the hell is an IUD?”

“
I
wondered if you were going to ask me about that,” she replies,
casually, as if talking about IUD’s is normal conversation.  “It’s
a plastic contraption that’s inserted into a woman’s uterus and
releases hormones to prevent pregnancy.”

“
Oh,”
I cringe. “That sounds…painful.”

She
laughs, probably comprehending that this is the most in depth
conversation I’ve ever had about birth control, which is basically
nothing.  “Not really, more like uncomfortable, but only
during the procedure.  It’s nice because it lasts for a few
years so don’t really have to think about it.”

“
So
what you’re saying is that I never have to wear a condom again.”
My logic is stupid but I state this rather than ask because I don’t
want to give her the chance to tell me I’m wrong.  

“
Never.”

“
This
day just keeps getting better.”

“
Glad
I could help.”

“
How
long have you had it?”

“
Since
shortly after Maddie was born.”

“
Isn’t
she three?”

“
Yeah,
why?”

“
You
said a few.  Isn’t three a few?”

“
I
believe it lasts for five years, but if it’d make you feel better
I’ll get it checked out.  I think my annual exam is coming up
soon anyway.” 

Breanne
has been very clear that having more kids is not something that she
wants.   I’m not looking to complicate things more than
they are, but I’d also be lying if I didn’t admit that the idea
of having a baby with her excites me. 
Too bad it’s not an
option.

“
It’s
not a big deal, baby.  I was just curious.”

Breanne
tilts her head to the side, and gazes at me over her shoulder,
smiling. 

“
What?”
I ask.

“
You’ve
never called me baby before,” she tells me.  “I like it.”

“
Now
that you’re mine, you should know that I plan on having several
nicknames for you.”