She grabbed my arm, but I didn’t try to shake her off. This was Whitney’s friend, and she was only trying to protect her. I laid my hand on hers, turning back so she could see my eyes. See the truth in them.
“It’s okay, Holly. After she hears me out, if she still wants to leave, I’ll never call her again.”
Holly’s face softened, and she did that quick blinking thing again. “Please don’t hurt her again,” she said with a soft sigh, then gave me the stink eye and punched me in the arm.
Thinking that was my cue to move forward, I gave her a reassuring smile and headed straight toward my girl. Todd Morris looked up and his arm tightened around her shoulders as our eyes met. “Can I help you?” Morris snarled.
Whitney looked up, and there they were, those beautiful eyes. So green, so perfect I wanted to dive into them. “Hey, can we talk?”
It was like everyone in the room froze for an instant, then reanimated, then sped up. Rhett shot up from the couch while Morris nestled Whitney closer to him. A hand came down on my shoulder, a quick glance showed me it was attached to Ace.
I didn’t shake him off. I didn’t raise my voice. I only looked at her.
“From the moment I spoke to you on the phone, there’s been no one but you. I have proof, if you’re interested in seeing it. And if you aren’t…” I swallowed hard, knowing these next words were going to be the hardest I ever had to say, “then I hope you have a happy life and that you find someone you can trust and grow old with. Someone who loves you the way I love you, but who treats you as you deserve.”
She just sat there, not moving, not blinking. A stone would have been more animated. My heart sank into my toes.
I nodded and swallowed again. “Goodbye.”
As I turned, Ace’s arm fell off my shoulder, and I walked from the room, past a crying Holly. Past half my teammates. Past fucking Caroline, who blew me a kiss.
Ace stopped me at the door, grabbing my arm and whipping me around. “So that’s it?” he asked with his patented smirk.
I nodded. “Yeah. Sometimes you just have to let fate play out her hand.”
From the corner of my eye, I saw Caroline stand and take a step toward us. Still looking at Ace, I asked, “Why is she here?”
He followed my gaze and lifted a shoulder. “We’re friends, we fuck. Why do you care?”
I waited until he met my eyes again. “How much did the tabloids pay?”
His face turned into a mask of confusion, then his eyes widened. “Did she…?”
“Yeah.” I clapped him on the shoulder and tossed his words back to him. “Beware, Ace. She’s a man eater. I wouldn’t be surprised if you’re next.”
I heard him mutter, “Fuck,” as I walked out the door.
I didn’t make it very far. On legs too weary to make it another step, I sank down on Ace’s little porch. Dropping my face in my hands, I pressed my fingers into my scalp, almost to the point of pain.
The door behind me clicked, then someone sat beside me. It was her.
Whitney nudged me with her shoulder. “Hey.”
I nudged her back, lifting my head so I could see her. “Hey.”
My face burned and my throat clogged as she linked her fingers through mine.
“So… I heard you wanted to talk to me,” she deadpanned, causing me to laugh.
I brought her hand to my mouth and kissed her fingers. “Who in the world told you that?”
Her smile was tender and so very beautiful. “Let’s call it women’s intuition.”
“I’m sorry, Whit,” I told her.
The smile faded. “I know. Me too.”
I frowned at her. “Why are you sorry? You did nothing wrong.”
That got a laugh out of her. “I wish that was true. I was such a bitch to you, almost from the moment I arrived in New York. I didn’t even know that girl was inside of me, but…” she hissed like a cat, pretend clawing at me. We both laughed, and I kissed her hand again.
“It was a big lifestyle jump for both of us, and I let it go to my head,” I confessed.
“And I let those awful tabloids get to me.” She laughed and made a cha-ching sound. “And your credit card.”
“So we both made mistakes,” I said, leaning into her.
Her head rested on my shoulder and sighed with that soft little squeak I loved so much. “Yeah, we did. Must be a rookie thing.”
I kissed her hair. “Yeah, it must be.”
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
Whitney
Over the next several days, we completely cleared the air between us. I attended his games even though he was in the dugout waiting for his rotation to pitch. After the games, we’d come home and talk some more. Even though Calvin usually hated this kind of stuff, he never once complained or seemed irritated by my need to talk all of this through. At night, I slept in my own room, not wanting sex to rush things between us.
I told him of the three men I’d slept with since our separation, and he told me about his… uh, more than three.
It was painful to hear, but it was good at the same time. Soul cleansing in many ways.
No, I never slept with Rhett. He was very flirty and attentive, but I realized he was like that with everyone. And I told him about Todd, how he’d fallen in love with me and wanted me back.
“Well, most couples find each other in their twenties, after they’d already sowed some wild oats,” I told him after we’d asked each other all our questions. “You and I were practically children when we met, so…”
“So we’ll call this our wild oats rookie season?” Calvin added helpfully.
I laughed, then pointed at his crotch, giving him the stink eye. “You better keep those oats in there from now on.”
He kissed me then, long and deep. Desire curled in my lower belly. “These oats are only for you,” he whispered against my lips.
“They better be.” I pinched his side and he yelped. The war was on.
In an instant, we were tickling each other and rolling around on the floor like children. We were back. Through the hell of his rookie season, we’d found each other again. Better, more grown up versions of the people we had loved so much only a few months ago.
As he was tickling me, his hand accidently covered my breast, and we both froze, staring into each other’s eyes. It had been so long since he’d touched me like that. Since before I left him the first time. In those short few days we’d had together before the tabloid ripped our world apart again, we had slept together, but hadn’t made love.
I was nervous, I realized as I pushed his shirt up to feel his skin. He was warm and solid, the muscles rippling beneath my fingers.
“I’d like some of those oats now,” I whispered and watched his eyes dilate.
He pushed my hair out of my face, trying to read me. “You’re sure?”
I nodded and licked my bottom lip. “Absolutely certain.”
He continued to look down at me and pain flickered across his face. I ran my hand through his hair, then my thumb over his forehead, smoothing away the wrinkles that had formed there. “What’s wrong?”
“Uh, well…” he swallowed hard. “I used condoms every time I…” Shame filled his features.
I blew out a breath at the reminder. “I did too,” I told him, meeting his eyes. “So we should both be clean. And we’ll both go to the doctor this week to make sure.”