30. Chapter 27
Sloan
For some reason I thought giving in to the idea of Jax and I would make all the tension surrounding us just disappear. Like you see in the movies. Being together fixes everything, but we woke up this morning tangled in my sheets, and the rest of the world was still waiting outside my front door.
The Mango Ball Draft.
Tanner.
My contract.
It’s all there, hidden behind the glow of our feelings, so we decided to do what both of us do best when the tension is high.
Go to the gym and take it out on the weights.
When Jax suggested it, I almost cried. I’ve kept up on my training from the NFL, not because I have to, but because I love it.
I love the burn, the sweat, the intense feeling that overtakes me when I’m finished.
“I made us protein shakes.” He smiles, standing at the front door. “I also have two shakers ready to go with creatine and some bananas and a bar for after. I thought we could also go get lunch at The Dugout when we are done.”
If this is what it’s like dating Jax Calder—him being ten steps ahead of me, treating me like a princess every morning—then I know for certain I made a wonderful decision to mix work and pleasure.
I chuckle at the irony and then respond, “Can we go to Ruby’s instead?
I have to come back and get ready to meet with dick face and it’s closer to home and much faster. ”
“Of course, but I get to drive that fancy car of your’s while you ride passenger princess. I didn’t really enjoy it last time you drove.” His smile is so bright, it makes my pulse flutter.
“I’m not sure if I like the idea of you treating me like a princess,” I lie.
“Ok. You can open your own door.” He smirks. “I just need to see how it feels, how it rumbles under the seat.”
I hand him the keys and follow him outside.
“Where does one get a cherry red convertible Mustang in this condition?” he asks as he turns the keys in the ignition. It roars to life and I take in the sparkle in his eyes.
“It was my dad’s.” I sigh with a soft smile.
“It was just me and him growing up. My mom left when I was a month old. She moved to Bali to pursue a life of suntans and beaches and we never heard from her again. Dad said it was always the plan. They had a one night stand, she signed her rights over to him the night she told him about me, and that was it. It was me and Dad against the world. I never knew my grandparents, they died before I was born. Dad was also an only child. He coached college football in Seattle, and I went with him to every game, every practice, right here from this seat. I was in awe of him. He gave it to me the day I signed my contract with the Moonshines.” I feel my smile fall, and then I swallow the lump forming in my throat.
“The next time we rode in it together, I had his ashes sitting right here in this seat,” I say, patting next to my leg, “on the way to the cemetery back home.”
“I’m sorry.” He pulls over on the side of the road. “Maybe you should drive.”
I give him my brightest smile, “He’d love seeing me in the passenger seat.
He’d love seeing you behind the wheel.” It’s true, all dad wanted was for me to have someone.
“He loved this car,” I continue. “He used to sing ‘Isn’t She Lovely’ every time he cleaned her.
When I’d help him, we’d sing it together and dance.
He insisted we dance to it at my wedding one day. ”
The car is idling in the background of his next question. It creates a lump in my throat.
“Was he sick?”
“He caught pneumonia and they couldn’t get it under control. Daddy was in his 50’s when I was born, so he was older and couldn’t fight it.” I smile. “But man did he give it all he had.”
He looks sad, and being sad for me is not what I want. We’re together, and right now that’s all I want to matter. It’s all my dad would want to matter. “Maybe we can drive back home one weekend. You can meet him.”
He grabs my hands and kisses my knuckles.
“I‘d love that,” he says with a soft smile.
“Good, because that’s the whole damn reason he made me lay him to rest so far away. So I could bring a boy home to meet him one day.” I laugh at the idea.
He leans over and kisses me, “I love you, babe.”
I don’t say it back, and he doesn’t expect me to. He puts the car back in drive and holds my hand all the way to the gym.
I thought talking about my dad would make my heart feel heavy.
Tanner never really asked too many questions, all of my teammates knew, so I never had to tell anyone.
Jax is the first one I’ve told, but instead of making me sad, it gave me this renewed energy, and I took that shit out on the bags when we got to the gym.
One of my favorite workouts is kick boxing, so I start by beating the shit out of a bag, until sweat drips down my body and I feel lighter.
I look over at Jax, dancing to whatever he’s listening to in his headphones in between sets.
He does way more band work and stretching than I do. I bet his flexibility is far better than mine too. It’s confirmed when he gets down on the ground in a runners lunge that looks more like splits.
He pushes his headphones back and I do the same, “You don’t look like you’re working out over there,” he taunts.
“I’m taking a break,” I say, propping my feet back up on the leg press I moved to while watching him, doing a rep just to prove a point.
When I finish, he’s standing right beside me. “Wanna go throw a football around outside?”
I’m surprised by the question. I mean obviously yes, but I’m not really sure that’s something he’s actually interested in, until he continues, “It’s how Oz and I end every workout to keep my arm in prime condition, but he’s packing today, so he’s not coming to workout.”
I chuckle. “You throw a football around?”
“Yes,” he says, covering me in playful kisses. “It’s part of my arm care routine. It’s less stressful on my arm, and helps me focus on mechanics and pitch rotation.”
“You’re just making shit up now,” I tease as I pull out my phone to google it. I’m pretty sure he just wants to make me feel a part of the routine. But, sure enough I’m wrong, it’s a huge part of arm care. “Shit, ok,” I smile. “Let’s go throw a football.”
Not to my surprise, us throwing a football back and forth quickly turned into tackle football, that quickly turned into a heated makeout session, that turned into us back at my place, in the shower.
I peek my head out of the shower to see the time on my phone and my chest tightens.
“Jax, I have to be at Tanner’s office in an hour if I’m going to catch him before his meeting.” Ali sent me a screenshot of his calendar.
“I’ll be fast. Look at how hard I am,” he says, sliding a finger between my lips. “And how fucking wet you are.”
I stop protesting, deciding a slick bun in my hair is the perfect way to go, because I want him too much to move out of his grip and worry about silly things like blow drying my hair.
He takes a few swipes at my clit and pushes his fingers in and out of me a few times before lining himself up with my entrance and then pauses. “We should move to the bedroom. I don’t have a condom here.”
I reposition him, nudging him closer. “I have an IUD.”
“I’m not worried about knocking you up. I’d take that fate with a smile on my face. I just… I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”
“You don’t seem like the fuck around type,” I reassure him, “and I got tested after Tanner told me about his side piece.”
“I’ve never gone bare,” he admits.
“Me either,” I add.
We stare at each other for a moment, both unsure of what to expect, but urgency and need take over.
It’s a strange feeling at first. He slides inside me, and it feels more intense. Like when you have an itch you try to scratch with gloves on and then take them off. It just feels better, more satisfying.
“Shit,” he groans and I bend into his embrace. He’s behind me, holding on for dear life as he moves in and out of me.
“Jax. Will you pull out just in case?” I ask.
“Yes,” he says, planting a kiss on my lips, holding my face with his free hand.
We stay like this for a few minutes moving slowly as we both adjust to the sensation.
Then suddenly he uses both hands to grab me and pick me up.
He pins me against the shower wall and slides back inside.
My legs are wrapped around him tight as he quickens his pace, making me come undone a few seconds later.
I writhe and squeeze, and cry out his name as his body begins to fight against me.
A second later he is pulling out of me as fast as he can and leans in for a heated kiss as he comes all over the shower floor.
We stay like this, our foreheads pressed together, panting and kissing while we both attempt to come down.
“I don’t know if I can ever wear a condom again,” he finally says with a laugh.
“I don’t want you to.” And it’s the truth. I only want him. All of him.