Chapter Seven
No matter how hard he tried, Quince couldn’t stop bringing Jathan’s hand to his mouth and kissing it while Jathan drove. The sweet smile that popped to Jathan’s lips each time had Quince fascinated. That smile was for him.
Jathan slowed as he reached the gate of his community. The thick iron piece slowly rolled back. Jathan lowered his window. “Good morning, Steven.”
A young-looking guard in the guard shack was all smiles as he waved. “Good morning.”
The fencing finally moved enough for them to enter. Jathan rolled up his window and pulled through.
“Twizzler guy?”
A bark of laughter burst from Jathan, making Quince smile. “Yep. That’s him.”
Quince couldn’t tear his eyes away from Jathan. That was why he didn’t miss the first hint of confusion that set in.
“Okay. That’s weird.”
Quince looked toward the road. He was a little surprised they were already in Jathan’s driveway. Quince had gotten lost staring. “What’s up?”
“The garage door isn’t opening again. I thought it was just a fluke when I left yesterday. The Chiron had no problems when I took Mom to lunch.”
“Asking a poor man question, but what triggers it to open?”
“Each car has a sensor installed.”
Quince nodded. “Is there another way?”
Jathan grabbed his phone and clicked around. “The door opened.” They pulled in.
Quince opened his door. “Show me where this sensor is. I can probably figure it out.”
Jathan flashed him a smile. “My Jack of all trades.” He popped the hood.
They climbed from the car.
Side by side, they stood staring down at the inner workings of another extremely expensive car. Quince tried not to drool and be practical. He waited for Jathan to point out the sensor. When Jathan didn’t, he looked over to find Jathan looking even more confused.
“What?”
“It’s gone.”
Quince’s blood went cold. “Show me where it’s supposed to be.”
Jathan pointed to an area where there was no way it could have fallen off. He saw immediately how it would be installed to get power. It had to have been taken off the car by force.
“I think it’s time for you to hire a bodyguard.”
Jathan closed the hood. “I have you.”
Quince fought a growl. “Seriously, Jathan. This is very likely how that person got in your garage. How long has it been since this car has been driven?”
Jathan shrugged. “I don’t know. Months.”
“Did the door open when you came home then?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t take it out. There’s a guy who does that on rotation, so the cars don’t just sit.”
Quince massaged his forehead. Someone could have been coming in for literal months and Jathan didn’t want security. He dropped his hand. Quince had a bad feeling this wasn’t the first thing Jathan chose to ignore.
“Were those flowers the first?”
Jathan shifted from foot to foot, making Quince’s heart sink. “Well, I mean. That’s the first time anyone has ever gotten inside, but I’ve had gifts left elsewhere. That’s pretty common.”
“Have you filed reports? Made a paper trail?”
Jathan shifted from foot to foot again.
Quince threw his arms up. “Damn it, Jathan. People are nuts. Are you trying to end up hurt? Even if this wasn’t happening, what about crazed fans who want to take you out of the game to ensure their team wins? You’re so much bigger than you realize.”
Jathan grabbed his overnight bag from the car without responding.
Quince crowded his space before he got away. “I can’t be with you all the time. Why would you make me worry like this?” Quince tried to become as pitiful as possible. “Are you trying to break my heart?” He kissed Jathan’s neck. “Don’t do this to me.”
Jathan laughed at his over-the-top ridiculous tone. “Okay. I’ll think about it. I’ll ask around. See if anyone has any recommendations.”
At the end of the day, that was all Quince could ask. He couldn’t force Jathan to hire someone. Quince hugged him tightly against his chest. His throat swelled. “I’ve seen this, and I can’t live it twice.”
Jathan melted into him. “No fair. You know I’d never hurt you.”
Quince didn’t give a shit if he played dirty. He had all the feels for Jathan. If anything happened to him, Quince might not survive it. Sometimes there wasn’t enough therapy in the world.
He took a step back. “Now. Remind me again what all we have to do before game time.”
Jathan took his hand and headed for the door. “A ton of shit, actually. With it being the deciding game, I have to get to the stadium early for interviews and all that. You’ll probably be bored off your ass to…” Jathan froze inside the doorway.
Out of pure instinct, Quince yanked Jathan out of the doorway and shoved him behind him. His entire kitchen counter was filled with gifts and flowers.
Jathan kissed his nape and tugged him backward against his chest. “It’s okay. I was just caught off guard after yesterday. I forgot my management team was scheduled to come by. It always looks this way after they’ve vetted and approved my fan mail.”
“Holy hell.” Quince stepped inside. He was completely speechless. Once he moved far enough into the room, he realized there were boxes of shit piled on the floor on the other side of the kitchen island.
“Surely, Jayda had it worse.”
Quince shook his head as he moved to eye all the flowers and cards. “I never saw her deal with her mail. She hired a company to answer everything. I doubt she saw a single thing anyone sent.”
“That’s kind of shitty. Then again, I can’t imagine how much stuff she must’ve received. I was a kid when she died, so I don’t know much about her.”
Quince groaned. “I’ve never felt so old.”
Jathan flashed him an evil grin as he moved to the counter and began opening cards on the flowers. “People spend their time and money on this stuff. The least I can do is take a look. I let management send people the thank-you notes and whatnot, though. I don’t have that kind of time.”
He fascinated the fuck out of Quince. It was no wonder someone hardcore stalked him.
He was too nice for his own good. Still, Quince couldn’t resist this peek inside a famous athlete’s life.
Jayda’s life had been totally different.
She had been on twenty/four-seven. A camera had always been in her face.
Jathan’s was a different shade of fame. “What do you do with all of this?”
Jathan shrugged. “I have a gift room upstairs. When it gets out of control, someone on my management team arranges to have everything donated to charity.”
“You really have like an entire management team, don’t you?”
Jathan met his stare, looking confused by the question. “Doesn’t Tip?”
Quince shrugged. “I run his ranch and keep his land safe. That’s all he hired me to do. I don’t get into his business.”
Jathan went back to looking at his letters. “Oh. That’s cute.” He held a crayon drawing. It was obviously supposed to be Jathan.
A smile snapped to Quince’s lips. “Adorable.” A thought occurred to him when he noticed—oddly—one gift was a toaster. It had the team logo on it, but still. “Hey. Do people do that shit where they send you wedding invitations just to see if you’ll send a gift?”
Jathan laughed. “Yeah. I send them a letter of apology for missing their wedding, along with a signed basketball card.”
Quince shook his head. “All this and you still don’t realize you need security.”
Jathan made a dismissive gesture. “You’ve been out with me.
People don’t usually bother me. If they do, it’s asking for a selfie, and they’re always super nice about it.
I think most people don’t want to look like a psycho fan.
” A bright smile lit his face. “I saw Lady Gaga one time at a party. Never in my life have I wanted to make a fool of myself like I did that night. I didn’t bother her, though. She’s allowed to have some peace.”
Quince shook his head. He couldn’t imagine what it looked like inside Jathan’s head. The guy really was all sunshine, rainbows, and kindness.
“I’ve never felt so lucky to know someone in all my life, and that has nothing to do with your job. You’re easily the greatest person I’ve ever met.”
Jathan looked confused but moved. He closed the gap between them. Jathan crowded his space and wrapped his arms around Quince’s neck. His lips skimmed Quince’s. “That sounds like some shit a guy trying to get in my pants would say.”
A growl escaped Quince. He slapped Jathan’s ass. “Don’t toy with me.”
With a laugh, Jathan took a step back. “We have an hour before we have to leave. Do you want to go through all this stuff with me? If you see anything you want, you can have it.”
Quince didn’t hesitate. “Sounds fun.” It genuinely did.
The nosey side of him had to know what sort of things people sent their favorite basketball player.
The rest of Quince just wanted to be in Jathan’s company.
It didn’t matter what they did. They were together.
He felt like he had waited his entire life for this.
If this motherfucker didn’t stop checking Jathan in the ribs, Jathan was about to get tossed from this game.
His rage level was through the roof. It was only matched by his pain.
Goddamn. Sometimes a season could be long as hell.
Then the clouds parted. Angels sang. Jathan smirked.
He saw his chance. In a quick move, he shifted just enough to goad the guy into another sharp elbow to the ribs.
This time, Jathan had seen the ref’s eyes on them.
The whistle blew. “That’s two.”
Jathan shot the guy a shit-eating grin. Free throws were like child’s play to him. All net. Zero interferences. Swoosh. Both shots made.
“Yeah. Keep that shit up, motherfucker. I can make those all night.”