4. Shep
4
Shep
“ S hit,” I mutter to my empty room. My team, the Galveston Hurricanes, had a game tonight against the Texarkana Blue Jays and lost 5-4. There’s not shit I could do with my shoulder injured, but I should be there. I should be supporting my team from the bench, at least, instead of moping around here in the middle of nowheres-ville. It’s just tendonitis, but my coach doesn’t want me to strain the muscles of my shoulder when I’m so close to getting a spot in the big leagues with the Houston Tornadoes franchise. A legend’s about to retire and his spot is coming open. It’s between me and another player, Josh Sinclair, to fill it. He plays for another minor league team in Corpus Christi. The man’s got one hell of an arm and we’re pretty evenly matched.
Running my fingers through my hair, I lie back on the bed and wonder if it would just be easier if they gave Sinclair the spot? It’d be a lot less pressure and he’d probably be better in the spotlight. I blow out a heavy breath. What am I saying? Of course I don’t want Sinclair to take my spot, I just have to find a way to get my anxiety under control.
I’m scrolling on my phone when Beau comes in without knocking. “Where have you been?” I ask. “It’s late.”
“What are you? My dad?” He says like he was expecting the question.
I glance over at him. He's sitting awkwardly in the chair by the desk, folding and unfolding the brim of his hat.
“What is it?” I ask.
“What?”
I narrow my eyes. “Why are you being weird?”
“I’m not.” He’s obviously agitated, but he’ll come out with it when he wants to, so I go back to scrolling social media. A few minutes go by when he puts his elbows on his knees and sighs loudly. He wants me to ask.
“You go to Tessa’s house?”
“How did you know?”
“Because you’re about as transparent as clean glass. What’s up?”
“I don’t know.” He makes that noise that sounds like a sigh again.
“Well, something is because you look like you’re tied in knots. What was that at the pond today?”
“The best kiss of my life.”
And he really means it. You can read Beau like a book. He’s always been like this. He can’t hide a thing, his face isn’t made for it. But I have to admit what I walked in on this afternoon was hot. Never in a million years did I think Beau would get his hands on Tessa Jennings and it may make me a creep for thinking it, but I wish I had let them go a little longer.
“Tessa’s grown up a lot.” I give him a meaningful look and he squints.
“She’s always looked like that. Maybe you’ve just never noticed.”
“Well, I’m noticing now. It’s hard not to.”
“Don’t talk about her like that. She’s…”
“I know, I know. She’s off limits. ” I mimic. “I guess I’m asking how it started.”
He shrugs. “She was swimming and one thing led to another.”
“I have a feeling you’re leaving out a lot. Like why she wasn’t yelling at you. And how your tongue got down her throat.” I act surprised. “Oh, and how she got naked.” I raise my eyebrows and sit back against the headboard, putting on a convincing show because he can’t find out I was spying.
“I didn’t get her naked! She was like that when I found her, I swear.”
“I was going to congratulate you, little brother. You don’t have to look so sorry. It's not like you watched her undress or something,” I joke. He looks away and I see him swallow. “You did? Seriously, Beau! What are you, sixteen?” As if I’m any better.
He drops his head down between his shoulders and doesn’t answer. I’m genuinely laughing now. He’s always had it bad, but sneaking around and hoping for a peep show is a new low. I tell him as much and he glares at me.
“I asked her to the fair,” he says, changing the subject.
“She turned you down. Is that why you’re acting weird?”
“Not exactly.”
“What is it then?”
“She didn’t say no this time. She just didn’t answer.”
I can see the questions roiling around inside him. He looks like he needs to confess, but what more could he have to say?
He blows out a breath. “She’s been swimming. Since she came home from UGA a month ago. I saw her one day when I was working. Well, I didn’t know it was her. I thought it was some kid who’d snuck over the fence and I was going to run them off, but it was her when I got close enough. She didn’t see me and she looked… I don’t know… happy.” He rubs the back of his neck, brushing the waves of his hair. “I mean, how often is she happy around me? I didn’t want to mess that up.”
“She didn’t know she was around you.”
“Do you want me to tell you or not?” He shoots back with attitude.
I hold my hands up. “Just saying.”
“So I started trying to be around when she’d come to the pond.”
“What, like once or twice?” He gives me a guilty look. “This whole time?”
“Yes, okay? Do you know how hard it is to hide behind a stumpy, little peach tree? And you saw her. She doesn’t swim in her clothes!” He puts his head in his hands. “I didn’t want to embarrass her.”
The poor ball cap he’s been worrying is gone for good. “So you’ve been basically stalking her for a month?”
“Shut up.” He groans and tosses his hat on the desk. “Today, I couldn’t help myself. I had to talk to her, even if she started yelling. And she did at first, but I got in the water too.”
“I noticed.”
He carries on like he didn’t hear me. “I had to touch her, Shep. She tried to swim past me and I grabbed her. But I said I was going to kiss her and she just sort of… let me. And then she kissed me back. And you fucked it all up.” He shoots me an annoyed glance.
“Sorry about that,” I snicker.
“Why did you fuck that up anyway? You couldn’t have waited five minutes to say hey?”
“What, and let you fuck her out in the open?”
He sneers in disgust. “You know it wouldn’t have gotten that far and don’t say it like that.”
I hold my hands up in surrender. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said something so vulgar about your precious Tessa.” He doesn’t take the bait, just stares down at the floor. I have to ask. “Was it really the best kiss you’ve ever had?”
He looks up and nods. “Nothin’ else will ever come close.”
“You’re so dramatic. Maybe she’ll say yes to the fair then.”
He rolls his eyes. “You know her, you know she won’t. She’ll wake up from whatever fever dream she was having today and I’ll never see the girl I kissed at the pond again.”
“I wouldn’t mind seeing more of that girl at the pond right…”
He launches himself at me to throw a fake punch and I raise my arms to block him. When I reach out to slap his face lightly, he punches me for real in the stomach.
“I’m kidding!” I groan, holding my middle, and he lays back on the end of the bed.
“Ask her to go with you,” he says suddenly.
“That was a weird segue.”
“Why?”
“You want me to ask Tessa to the fair? What are you talking about?”
“Ask her to go. She’ll say yes to you.”
“And where does that leave you?”
“I’ll just tag along with y’all. It’ll drive her crazy.” He smiles and then turns serious again. “Please Shep, I have to see her. I have to make her remember how she felt today.”
“Okay, okay. Fine. I’ll ask her.”
“In the morning?”
“Sure. Hey, Beau?” He turns to look at me. “When she goes in for a goodnight kiss tomorrow, I’m not turning her down. I might see what else she wants to kiss.”
This time, I’m ready when he swings at me.