Chapter 29
SIENNA
Lucy Wolfe.
Micah’s younger sister.
It wasn’t hard to get the intel I needed to figure out who the mouthy, pretty brunette was, who obviously didn’t like me very much.
And I’m relieved.
I was adamant that Micah finally moved on, rekindled a relationship he had previously, and it didn’t feel nice.
It felt like another gut-wrenching stab to the heart with a really bad case of insomnia.
One I know I can’t do again.
It’s evident that I’m attached to this man. That no other one is going to gather up my attention and make me forget.
Micah is who makes my heart beat faster, my pulse race with excitement and irritation, and it means something.
It means I’m screwed.
I had every inkling of showing up to Micah’s last night for dinner, but didn’t want to commit in case I chickened out last second. So, I did research.
It took me a whole fifteen minutes at the salon while getting my hair cut to figure out who Lucy was.
Then I didn’t feel so threatened.
Obviously, she knows about me. I wouldn’t be happy with me either if a woman wouldn’t just drop her suit on past issues and just move on already.
On paper, it sounds dumb.
In reality, it’s cautious.
However, even that has a time limit. Because the more time that transpires and the more times I see him, the worse it gets.
So, just like Lucy, I’ll play along.
I purposely skipped dinner and showed up to the Magnolia Elementary baseball game with a newly purchased Magnolia Ridge Marsh Hogs tee and, yeah, I still don’t get it, but they were all over town today.
And, I swear, every person in Magnolia Ridge is here today.
The stands are packed, many folks brought their folded up chairs, and there are food trucks, a band—yes, I said a band—and not enough parking spots.
It’s a madhouse.
And they haven’t stopped cheering all game.
It’s the last inning, the crowd is going wild with excitement because we’re up two runs and the opposing team has two outs.
The last one means the game is over, and I have a feeling, this town is going to have a damn party over the win.
But, hey, whatever makes them happy.
Meanwhile, I’ve been watching the game but studying Micah like a hawk as he motivates his team to focus. He’s been all over, pacing and shouting, not once has he looked in the crowd, because I highly doubt he knows I’d show up.
Plus, it’d probably take him thirty minutes to find me in the throng of blue shirts and waving poster signs.
Taking a sip of my beer, the kid at bat strikes out, and the crowd goes wild.
Like rapturing insanity.
The deafening sound surrounds all my senses except one.
My sight.
The kids jump and yell excitedly on the field, gathering together in a group as Micah jumps up and down with them.
Heath runs out on the field to join his dad, all smiles and excitement as I’m able to witness their moment, one Micah may not have been able to have if his ex had had evidence of us dating.
I may have needed to be the consequence, and if I had to relive everything all over again, I would have wanted Micah to do the same thing. His son is everything that makes him who he is today, and I got wrapped up in my own feelings and not the bigger picture.
And, I feel a bit stupid, but I also feel like I was valid to feel the way I felt.
But, now…I need to turn a new chapter.
Just like Micah did.
The townfolk of Magnolia Ridge begin to pile out of the stands, and I follow, not wanting to be seen by Micah or his sister, Lucy, who, honestly, played her role in making me jealous perfectly.
I can respect it.
We might have to work on becoming friends, eventually, but for right now, I’m good with where we stand. I could use a little back-and-forth with someone who can keep me on my toes because, for a moment there, I was a walking zombie.
Recycling my glass beer bottle, I head to the parking lot where I parked, but I didn’t leave my car where everyone else did.
No, I broke another rule and parked in the sport athletics and coaching only section.
I’m surprised no one else decided to join me, but all that’s here is Micah’s truck and, I’m assuming, Coach Wilson.
It takes over an hour for folks and parents to leave. Coach Wilson slowly gets to his heavy-duty pick-up and doesn’t bother glancing over to see who I am or why I’m here.
And then there was one.
Running my palms along my legs, I impatiently wait for Micah to show up and get ready to leave. I have plans and things I want to say, but I’m afraid the longer I wait, the more I’m going to chicken out in the long run.
When I’m in the middle of backing out and manning up, Micah treads over to his own truck, glancing down at his phone the whole time as he walks.
He’s in black jeans, a blue tee of Magnolia Ridge Marsh Hogs like the rest of us, and I’m happy he doesn’t see me.
It not only gives me the edge I wanted but also helps me take a deep breath before I pop my door open and slide out.
He opens his own door, throws his large bag in the front seat of his car as he scrolls with his thumb, and I walk toward him as silently as I can without receiving his attention first.
I win that, at least.
“I’d like to know how Marsh Hogs won when we had such better choices.”
Micah’s head doesn’t come up right away.
He stares at his cell before it slowly comes up and around to look at me like he didn’t hear me right.
Like I couldn’t be here because I’ve been avoiding him like the plague.
“Did you vote?” he finally asks, sounding a bit curious to know, but his blue eyes don’t miss out on my shorts that would not be deemed appropriate by any means for a teacher, but I wore them anyway.
“I did.”
“And?” His eyes unhurriedly skate up to meet mine, and I wait until they do.
“I voted for the Marsh Hogs.”
“You’re shitting me.”
I’m not.
It’s what he gets for leaving me in the dark and, truthfully, why not? Marsh Hogs has a nice ring to it.
Stepping closer, Micah tosses his phone in the front seat of his truck and waits for me to respond. He doesn’t rush anything, just waits for what I’m ready to give him.
“I thought it was cute,” I deadpan.
Micah’s expression lifts. “Cute? Do you think a bunch of seven to nine-year-old boys wanna have a mascot that’s cute?”
“I dunno. I’ve never been one.”
“Thank fuck,” he mutters, averting his gaze a little and alluding that he doesn’t know how to carry this conversation, leaving it up to me to put him out of his misery.
“Can we talk?”
He pushes his bottom lip out with his tongue and bobs his head. “Sure.”
“In your truck.”
His attention locks back on to me so fast that if he didn’t have too far to go already, he would’ve snapped his head off. “Where?”
“In the backseat.”
“You’re shitting me again.”
“I’m not.”
“How about the front?”
“You just threw your bag there.”
“I can move it.”
“If you want.”
He stares at me for another few seconds before he mumbles something under his breath that sounds like “Son of a bitch.”
The backseat door on the driver’s side pops open, and I waste no time climbing inside like I did the first night we met.
A night that will live in infamy of being one of the best nights of my life.
Micah climbs in behind me, but he keeps the door open.
Fair.
“I’m sorry about yesterday,” he says. “I didn’t mean—”
“Your sister was just being protective,” I reply, revealing the fact that I know who she really is. “And she’s a genius.”
“I wouldn’t say that.”
“We’ll keep it between us then.”
“You did your homework.”
“I did.”
“Why?” He cranes his head to look over at me, and now I feel vulnerable. That everything has to come out now because there’s no room to leave anything out.
“I had to see who I was going to be competing with.”
“Competing with,” he repeats. “Well, thankfully, I’m not that redneck.”
“Thankfully.”
Silence fills the space between us, and it’s unnerving as well as freeing. This is the first conversation we’ve had where I wasn’t pushing him away, and he was pushing me to forget everything that happened.
“You got jealous?” he mumbles, staring at the back of his seat. “I’d say that’s shocking, Miss Vesper.”
“Just like it was for you, Tad and Jonah, Mr. Wolfe.”
“Exactly like that. I was just waiting for the next asshole.”
“I thought you said you were backing off.”
“Physically,” he replies. “I didn’t say I wasn’t going to keep tabs on you.”
“Sounds borderline stalker.”
“Never said I was perfect.”
“No, just crazy.”
He lifts his shoulders. “I’m in love with you, Miss Vesper. I’m not going to stand by and watch someone else break your heart.”
My own clenches at his words, and it almost sounds like he was waiting to live through it. It’s a mutual feeling I shared when I thought Lucy was an ex.
And, he still loves me.
I don’t know how or why, but this man will not give up.
“I wanted you to know there is…this one guy.” I see his jaw clench before he lifts his chin to give me his full focus. “He’s different.”
“Like he sniffs glue and wears his pants too tight, kind of different?”
“No, like he’s kind and attractive,” I vouch. “And really good—”
“Stop,” he grinds out. “I don’t need to know this. And I definitely don’t like him already. Not that you care or that it matters, but I’m really hoping that’s not why you’re in the backseat of my truck right now.”
“Kinda.” He glowers at me. “I thought it was important to let you know.”
“I could’ve gone without it, to be honest.”
“Wouldn’t you want to hear it from the source?”
“Not really,” he replies honestly. “I would’ve gotten my information from someone in town.”
“Micah,” I mutter. “You know damn well that not everything in town is true.”
“No, but I’d figure it out. His social security number, blood type, what he’s allergic to, so I can have it planted in his food.”
“Micah—”
“I’m never going to be okay with you dating someone, okay?” His glower hardens before softening a bit. “I’m not built like that.”
“I don’t expect you to be.”
“But you want to tell me.”
“I did.”
“Why?”
“Because I want us to always have open and honest communication moving forward.”
He rolls his eyes and moves them away. “Great. Love it.”
“Micah?”
“What?”
I take this moment to climb into his lap, straddling my thighs over his and making myself as comfortable as I can.
But it’s hard because he’s literally almost hanging out of the truck, so my right foot is propped along the edge to keep myself from throwing all my weight on him.
His blue eyes slice up to me, and I can’t help myself any longer.
Nor do I want to torture him with ideas of another man.
“Do I still get to keep the nickname of BCR?” I ask, threading my fingers lightly through his thick hair above his neck. “I kinda liked the ego boost.”
“Only if it’s my cock you’re riding,” he replies with zero hesitation and zero attempt to touch me.
His arms and hands are at his side, careful to behave and remain still as I continue my soft assault on his hair.
“And if I don’t?”
“Then you don’t get to brag about it.”
“But I know about it.”
“And I know how tight you are,” he says matter-of-factly. “But that doesn’t mean I’m gonna go around town talkin’ about it.”
“Might want to.”
“Why so you’d have men lined up at your door the next day?”
“No, because they’d know I’m yours.”
I feel Micah tense underneath me, and I’m slightly worried I’m making a muck of this whole thing, but I’m tired.
I’m tired of the push and pull.
I’m tired of wanting him and being scared to still want him.
I miss the sliver of time where it was us, and we had a plan. One that held promise and happiness. One that may have been frowned upon by my current status, but that’s over now.
I’m not Heath’s teacher.
And Micah’s ex is gone.
Nothing is standing in the way but my fear of Micah shutting down again and leaving me out to dry.
“What are you saying?” he mumbles then. “Talk slow.”
The corner of my lips lifts a little. “I didn’t think I needed to talk. I believe you, and I communicate fine back here…in your truck.”
“I want words,” he presses determinedly. “You showed up at today’s game. You’re just asking for trouble at this point.”
“May as well. Nothing’s going to stop you from allowing me to move on.”
He stares at me for a long moment before asking, “Do you want to?”
My head is already rocking back and forth before one of his palms cups the side of my face, and he’s pulling me in for a kiss.
When our lips meet, it’s electric.
Our mouths open at the same time for more. The tip of Micah’s tongue brushes teasingly for a small taste, but he doesn’t give me what I want.
What I need.
“I’m all for second chances,” Micah whispers. “But this one is going to be different.”
“How so?”
His free hand bends my leg at the knee to bring it inside the truck before he closes the backseat door to give us privacy.
“I’m not letting you go, Sienna. You give yourself to me today, we’re together.
We’re public. We’re everything I ever wanted, and there isn’t anything or anyone who’s going to fuck that up for me. ”
Bending forward, my mouth brushes softly against his when I say, “Let’s go then.”