Strike (Completion Series) (10 page)

He pulled me into the game room. “Hey
, Jon, Bitsy, fresh chocolate chip cookies are in the kitchen. Maggie wants to meet you, so run in there and get a few. And bring some back for us if you don’t mind.”

Bitsy laid her pool stick on the table. The stick was twice as long as she was tall. Jon went to pick it up
, but Reed grabbed it. “I’ve got the cues, just follow the cookie smell and you’ll find the kitchen.”

They left the room and Reed nodded to the foosball table in the corner. “Play me so I can kick your ass again.”

I rested my hip against the pool table. “Totally unfair advantage. You have foosball at your house and probably practice all the time. I hope it makes you feel good to beat little old me.”

Reed grabbed me after he pushed the sticks, err, cues across the table and lifted me before leaning me back
so I rested against the top. My feet didn’t touch the floor, so I circled my legs around his hips. His hands landed on either side of my head.

“Seeing you in my kitchen looking at that
chair about killed me. I’ve had so many fantasies about you tied to it.” His eyes raked over my chest. “Having you on my pool table is another fantasy. I don’t think I can wait until tonight.”

I would have laughed and made a joke
, but he kissed me. I really liked the pool table and could so include this in my own fantasies. The kiss went on and on until I heard Jon.

“Don’t run
, Bitsy, you’ll spill your milk. This isn’t our house and we can’t afford to clean the carpet.”

Reed
did a pushup, flexing all those muscles that I wanted to drool over as he separated his mouth from mine. I loosened my legs so they slipped from around him as he swung me up. He grabbed the cues, walking them to the rack and situating them. I noticed his erection and from the look on his face, he knew I could see it. He put his finger to his lips, walking to the far side of the foosball table where it hid the lower part of his body.

“Come on and help me out of th
is predicament. If you score, I’ll deflate instantly.”

I raced over right as Jon and Bitsy rounded the corner. Jon had a large plate of cookies and a glass of milk. Bitsy had just her glass
and it was sloshing as she walked. Her mouth had a milkstache, so I didn’t think too much spilled.

“Sit them on the side table and come watch me kick your sister’s butt. Can you bring me a cookie
, Bitsy?”

She obliged. “Maggie said I can come over and play with her grandkids tomorrow if you say it’s okay
, Jaycee. She says they have a playhouse and I can bring my doll.”

I looked at Reed
, who scored as soon as Bitsy started talking.

He continued playing while talking
. “She’ll have a blast. I used to play with her sons when I was a kid. They’re good people. We can drop her off tomorrow so you can check out the place and see that she’ll have a great time.”

How did he always know what bothered me? We hadn’t lived in a normal neighborhood
; ours only had drug addicts and people just getting out of prison mostly for drugs. I would never let her play in our neighborhood. The few friends she had came to our small trailer and played on the side where the door faced. They never stayed long and I knew they were bored, but I couldn’t let Bitsy out of my sight. Jon followed my same rules when he watched her; it was just how we lived.

I needed to let
go just a little. “That sounds like fun, sugar. You can visit for an hour.”

Bitsy was happy with that. An hour was a long time to her.

“Are you paying attention, Jaycee? I don’t want you whining when you lose again.”

“I don’t whine
, moron. While you’re in spring training, I’ll be practicing so I can kick your ass.”

“I take that as a challenge
, and you’re on.”

I was no competition
; he played Jon next and Jon took one of three games. I high fived my brother after his win, but refused to acknowledge Reed’s. He curled his lip out and pouted, looking totally ridiculous, but didn’t seem to care.

Bitsy gave
Reed a high five with her small hand. He picked her up and swung her around in circles while her squeals blasted through the room.

“What’s going on in here?” A man’s booming voice
stopped our laughter.

“Hey
, Mick. Whoa.” Reed put Bitsy down and placed his hand on the pool table as he wobbled.

I watched Reed gain his balance before
I looked closely at the stranger. Damn, did Reed surround himself with hot guys or what? Mick was at least six inches taller than Reed with lean muscle. He had a gorgeous face. His wide nose took away from the finer lines and made him look manly instead of feminine. His red hair was the length of Reed’s. Sea green eyes completed the picture. I happened to catch a glimpse of Jon. He stood frozen with a look of shock on his face. I guessed this was another star ball player on Reed’s team.

“Mick meet Jaycee.”

Mick shook my hand.

“This is her sister
, Bitsy, and brother, Jon.”

Bitsy grabbed Reed’s leg and wrapped herself around it. I was guessing Mick’s height sc
ared her. It didn’t throw Mick off his stride at all.

“You always get all the pretty girls
, Reed.” He turned to Jon.

“It’s nice to meetcha
, man.” He shook my brother’s hand.

“It’s nice to meet you too
, sir.”

“None of that sir business. That was Sir Charles’ nickname and he was my
idol when I was your age.”

“Charles Barkley?”

“Yep, that’s the one. He was one badass player. Oops, sorry.” He looked at Bitsy and it made me laugh.

Jon seemed to get his voice back. “Don’t worry about it
. Jaycee’s language could use some improvement.”

“Jon.”
I grumbled in embarrassment.

“I’ve heard it too
,” Reed interjected and I rolled my eyes.

“Who’s up for a game of horse? I came early so we could shoot a
few before everyone else shows up.”

I shook my head
, not understanding until Mick grabbed a basketball off a rack on one wall that held assorted equipment. I followed them out back to a basketball court. There was a tennis court next to it with the swimming pool about a hundred feet to the right. A putting green, a cage of some sort, I figured for hitting baseballs, and other equipment made the yard an athletic wonderland.

The pool was incredible, with a twisting slide
down one side and a diving board on the other. The barbeque area had stone tables with bench seats, a giant fire pit on the side and a grill setup that could just as easily be in a kitchen. This was the bachelor sports pad from heaven. What the hell did Reed want with me and my sister and brother? He should be entertaining rich divas who played in his rich world. As I looked around, it made me sad and uncomfortable.

“You playing
, Jaycee?” my brother asked.

“No, I’ll sit and watch.”

Reed grabbed my hand, giving it a small tug. “That’s not gonna happen. Everyone plays.”

“I don’t know how to play. I’ll watch the rest of you.” I
shook my fingers loose from his and sat down on a bench next to the court.

Reed hunkered down in front of me
, giving that little boy smile once more. “Look, Mick always kicks ass. He plays professional basketball and horse is the only basketball game I’ll play with him. Every so often, I win, but it’s few and far between. Have some fun with us, please?”

God, he was so hard to resist. I stood up and
let him pull me into the game. Mick was a riot and had a way of taunting Reed that showed what great friends they were. Mick picked up Bitsy on her first turn so she could reach the net, and within minutes, she was laughing and not at all intimidated by his size. Bitsy won horse and she was high fived from every direction.

Just as we finished
, the back patio door opened and another of Reed’s friends walked out. This one held the hand of a stunning woman, who looked like she could easily be on Reed’s arm. She was exotically beautiful but in a very short time, I could tell she only had eyes for Sal and wasn’t interested in Reed. Sal, I learned, was one of Reed’s teammates and played first base. His girlfriend, Chi Chi, who spoke openly about herself, was half-Mexican and half German, though her dad was American. His parents came to the United States a year before he was born. Her German heritage accounted for her blue eyes that were even nicer than Reed’s, and that was saying a lot. Maybe it was her darker skin that made them stand out more.

I liked
Chi Chi, though I remained intimidated by her looks. Nope again; I wasn’t bad in the looks department, but Chi Chi was in an entirely different league. She also spoke and listened to Jon like she cared what he had to say. He hung on her every word, kept his eyes on her face, and made me proud. I had nice tits, as Reed was fond of saying, but Chi Chi’s stole the show. I wondered if they were real and hoped, quite shamefully, that they weren’t. She wore a silk blouse, indecently unbuttoned, but who would button those in? Her waist was pencil thin and her ass spiraled out giving her the perfect bubble butt. Her short shorts showed off her long legs. She had on a simple pair of high bejeweled flip-flops.

Jealous anyone?

It sucked even worse because she was incredibly sweet. Reed passed out beer and tried to hand me one, but I wasn’t drinking in front of Bitsy. I saw Jon shake his head no when Sal tried to pass him one. I was only a few months shy of drinking age and never had the opportunity to have more than a small sip. I wasn’t sure about Jon, but I didn’t see him having a chance to drink either. Our lives didn’t give us the opportunity to do something so criminally normal as underage drinking.

Reed’s friends didn’t seem fazed
by Jon’s Goth looks, but I think it was because Jon could talk their talk. Regardless of his black fingernail polish, black ensemble clothes, and military boots, he loved sports.

It was me
who didn’t fit in this world.

The rest of Reed’s friends showed up. Alex was single like Mick
. Once Bitsy got over her fear of Mick, she was his best friend. She followed him around and played her million-question quiz.

Reed had his arm around me
, keeping me pulled into his side while he spoke with Alex and Sal. I tried to wiggle away, but he stopped me. “What’s up, baby?”

Shit, that was his bedroom talk and he was now doing it in front of his friends. “I need to rescue Mick. Bitsy will get to the inappropriate questions next.”

Reed and his friends laughed.

“Mick has five sisters and if anyone can handle girls, he can. He’s having a good time chatting with her
, so let him be.”

Reed and his friends were evil. I’d saved Reed
from Bitsy’s question-fest and the least he could do was return the favor to his friend. Chi Chi walked up before I could give Reed a small piece of my mind.

“We’re going to change into
our suits. You wanna come with us, Jaycee?” She stood waiting with Dustin’s wife, Clare. Dustin played center field. Clare was a pretty little thing who didn’t talk a lot, but seemed to be good friends with Chi Chi.

What the hell could I do? “My
swimsuit’s in our apartment. I’ll need to go get it.” I dreaded being seen in the awful thing, but I just wanted to get it over with.

“Meet us
upstairs in the guest room after you grab it,” Chi Chi said.

I walked purposefully out of Reed’s house
, but dragged my feet once I was outside. It sucked being poor, but I’d never noticed it quite so much until I was with Reed. Well, I did notice it—having no money for food, using food stamps and government assistance; that was humiliating. I straightened my shoulders and grabbed my suit. I would put my tank over it.

I could hear the women laughing when I got closer to the guestroom
, and I was glad because I had no idea which room it was. Both times I’d been upstairs with Reed, we’d had more on our minds than a tour.

The women were sitting on the bed waiting for me
; they hadn’t changed and both looked up when I walked into the room.

“Close the door behind you so
we can begin the interrogation.”

What?
Who? They smiled at me, making me very uncomfortable. It must have shown on my face.

“Don’t worry
, chica, we won’t get into the nitty-gritty unless you wanna dish. We just want the scoop on the big romance,” Chi Chi said while Clare was practically jumping up and down with excitement. She reminded me of Bitsy.

“Umm, what romance?” Completely clueless, that was me.

Clare spoke up. “You and Reed. He’s only the hottest guy in baseball and, believe me, with our men, we know hot.”

They
grinned at me, giving me all the attention I didn’t want.

“I start working for Reed on Monday. I’ll be his housekeeper slash secretary. I think you both have the wrong opinion of me and Reed.”

Chi Chi shook her head, calling my bluff. “I’ve never seen him put his arm around Maggie, kiss her every time he can sneak one in, or give her the attention he gives you. The man is hot and bothered, not to mention the love bites all over you. Sal says Reed’s talked about nothing but you and your brother and sister for the past week.”

I just couldn’t help myself. “What does he say?”

“Sit down here and we’ll tell you.” Chi Chi patted the empty space beside her on the bed.

I’d never been into the girlfriend
girl-talk thing. For most of high school, I took care of my mom. My classmates ignored me and thought I was just stuck up. I knew this because I heard the whispered jibes they made at me. I didn’t care. A few of the boys gave me attention, but wanted only one thing. Mark, the creep, made sure all his friends knew I gave it up in the backseat of his car. But what could I do now?

I walked over and sat next to Chi Chi
, laying my swimsuit on the bed.

Clare moved a little back on the mattress so she could see me. “Dustin says Reed’s underwater when it comes to you. He’s been telling the guys what a beauty you are and brags about you
taking care of your sister and brother. You might not know this, but Reed doesn’t do the whole relationship thing.”

Now there was a little more than shock on my face
, and Chi Chi continued where Clare left off. “Reed takes women to some of the formal social functions required by management, but it’s never the same woman twice. And he never talks about them before or after they go out. We wondered if he was in the closet, which would have been an incredible waste. So give us the 411.” At my blank look she added, “Information.”

  I took a steadying breath.
I would just give the truth. “There’s not much to tell. Reed and I are exploring our feelings. That’s separate from working for him and I just want to do a good job and make sure his life runs smoothly while he’s away at spring training and on the road once baseball season starts.”

A slight frown marred Chi Chi’s perfect face
, but only for a moment. “Okay, you and Reed are in a new relationship and we’ll respect that for now. But seriously, we’ll eventually get the information we want. So do you plan to wear that old lady thing or do you want to borrow one of the ones I brought?”

She’d picked up my suit and I could feel my cheeks blossom with color.

Chi Chi gave me a soft smile. “I was dirt poor when I met Sal. That’s nothing to be ashamed of. Clare and I are friends because we’re not into the ‘who’s got bigger diamonds’ game. We leave that to other players’ and management wives. Girlfriends come and go in professional sports. Most of the wives won’t give me the time of day even with mine and Sal’s relationship lasting longer than some of their marriages. We’ve been together for two years and I’m still treated like a ball bunny.”

“You aren’t a ball bunny and S
al loves you. That was apparent from the beginning.” Clare sounded really affronted.

“We both know that
, but Jaycee needs to be prepared for the wives, and let me tell you honey, the pitching wives are the worst. Pitchers are the biggest crybabies in baseball and they marry bigger crybabies. Pitchers make all the money and want to be treated like prima donnas and so do their wives. Stick with us and we’ll be sure you don’t take any of their shit.”

I looked at my swimsuit still in Chi Chi’s hand. “You brought an extra suit?”

“Oh did I. It’s new and gorgeous.”

“I can’t wear your new swimsuit.”

“Of course you can. I bought three that day and I’ll wear the other one I brought. Let me show you.”

The swimsuit was a barely there
red bikini. I’m talking maybe six inches of material max. “I can’t wear this!” I think my voice squeaked.

They laughed. “Of course you can,” said Chi Chi. “You have a killer body, great tits, and a tight ass. Reed will love it.
”

“So will the other guys,” Clare added.

“Try it on and let’s see.” Chi Chi stood up, putting her hands out for Clare and me. She pulled us off the bed.

I carried the dental floss into the bathroom
and closed the door. I’d put my tank over it if it fit. I had to adjust the ties and just as I was examining myself in the mirror, a knock sounded at the door.

“Don’t you dare put that top over it
. We wanna see.”

I might change my mind about liking Chi Chi.

I took a deep breath and walked out.

“Pinchy
, mamacita. That suit was made for you.”

Clare actually clapped
, reminding me again of Bitsy.

“I need to wear my shirt over
this.”

“Not a chance in hell
. We’ll rock our men and give Mick something to tell the tall boys. And that man needs a steady chica and a family. If Reed doesn’t work out, trade down to Mick.”

Clare had slipped off her shirt and she threw it at Chi Chi. “Give Mick a break. He’s only a half-step down.”

I laughed, because what else could I do? Reed was incredible, and I wouldn’t pretend to have any interest in Mick. He seemed like a nice guy, and yes, very good looking, but he was no Reed. Of course, I was biased.

Chi Chi and Clare completely undressed in the bedroom like they’d done it many times
and had no problem being naked with other women. I couldn’t help staring at Chi Chi’s breasts when she pulled her shirt over her head.

She laughed when she noticed. “Nope, they aren’t real
, but I don’t care, I love them. Sal bought ’em for me on our first Christmas. He said he liked my body like it was, but I had a serious hang-up about my tits and convinced him. Yours are lovely, Jaycee; you’ve got good genes. My ass is my own, though, and I have booty on you.”

She did and it no longer mattered whether her
breasts were real or fake. Chi Chi was a doll, outspoken, and funny. Even with fake boobs, she was real. I tried not to panic as the three of us made our way downstairs and outside. They made me leave my shirt in the bedroom and even with them wearing as little as I was, I felt naked.