Teresa
Iwas exhausted.
This was nothing new after a travel game day. They were usually long and tedious. My body ached from being crammed into a bus for endless hours with just enough time to get out, stretch, and warm up, then play, only to get back on the bus and head back home.
We had won, of course. I had never doubted any other possibility.
We were that good. The girls on the team, the girls who I knew and knew me well after years of playing together, had noticed how quiet I’d been and had graciously given me some space.
Space I’d used as I tried to read and listen to a band I’d noticed Jeremy had on the playlist he played in his room the night before.
The night before.
I glanced at my phone and hated the slight, maybe not so slight, disappointment I felt at not having any messages from him.
Being in his room, surrounded by his things and scent, had been overwhelming in the best of ways.
He hadn’t kissed me in the last couple of days, which made me think that maybe I’d solely attacked him?
Had he kissed me back out of obligation?
No. Why else would he want to hold a video he had of me, that could ruin my college career and reputation, over my head, if I didn’t go out with him?
Not that it mattered.
He hadn’t kissed me. He hadn’t hugged or called or texted.
I was probably a minor blip on his radar.
For all I knew, he was flirting and blackmailing a whole bevy of girls all over campus.
The thought made something tighten in my stomach.
I never thought of myself as jealous, but the idea of Jeremy around anyone else bothered me more than I was willing to overthink.
The buses turned off the freeway, finally almost to back at school, when my phone pinged.
Jeremy: Omega House. Tomorrow night. Wear something pretty.
My eye twitched as I pursed my lips. Not with irritation, which shocked me, but with amusement.
Did I want to go to a party with my blackmailer, sorta bully?
But was he a bully if all he was literally doing was helping me study?
Giving me a place to sit and just lock in when it came to my homework?
The four days after getting caught trying to steal that damn midterm had been interesting, to say the least.
The buses reached campus, and I rolled my neck.
The girls started to talk to me, everyone excited about finally getting back to school.
I smiled and laughed at the girls as they spoke to me, but my head was filled with a baseball player who did all sorts of things to my insides.
The team got off the buses, and I headed to the back to grab my duffle, sighing as I tossed it over my shoulder.
“Holy shit,” one of the girls whispered as she bent to get her bag.
“Right?” another said with a giggle.
“I just wanna poke those dimples with my fingers.” Dimples?
“Girl, I’d just wanna let him poke me. Hard.” I heard three of my teammates talk among themselves about god only knew who. “Or bounce a quarter off that ass. I mean, damn.”
“I bet it’s all the squatting he does,” another girl said. Maybe one of other girls had a new guy they were looking at.
“Who do you think he’s here for?” our goalie asked.
“Whoever it is, if she changes her mind, I’ll take her spot if she wants to tag me in,” another joked around. I turned, and my steps faltered.
Right there, like some kind of scene out of an 80s movie, stood Jeremy Fletcher wearing a gray U of D Baseball hoodie, leaning against his truck, one leg casually tossed over the other.
“What is he here for—“ Bethany, our goalie, started to ask, her eyes on me. I shot her a playful look.
“Shut up,” I muttered and started to walk towards him, ignoring the catcalls and oohs and aahs from my obnoxious and suddenly reenergized teammates.
“Mi cielo.” He reached and took my bag before his free hand drew me closer to him by the waist.
“Tere,” I corrected, resting my hand on his chest while I tried not to give away just how much his impromptu meetup affected me.
“Teresa,” he said in Spanish, rolling the ‘r’ perfectly. Yeah, I had a feeling my guy, I mean the big guy, spoke fluent Spanish somehow.
“What are you doing here?” I ignored the team of butterflies that started to flap their wings low in my belly.
“Had to let your team see you with your man,” his deep voice rumbled before he leaned forward, kissing the crown of my head then pulling back to look at me with a smile on his face and two very pronounced dimples on either side of his handsome face.
“Your man?” Bethany and Krystal, one of our defenders, both repeated loudly. My eyes shut for a second. I turned to see them standing right behind me.
“Hey!” My voice squeaked. “What’s up?” I asked as if I had guys waiting for me on the regular.
“You and the star baseball catcher?!” Krystall asked. Her eyes bounced between Jeremy and me.
“Hey, ladies, good game,” He complimented. “I watched it online. You blocked some great shots.”
“Thanks,” Beth said. Both girls were clearly charmed by his blue eyes and easy smile. I knew just how easy that was.
“Okay! Right, well, we gotta go,” I blurted, ready to get the girls away from Jeremy. Wait a second, am I jealous? Of them fawning over him or him complimenting them on how well they’d done? Either way, I didn’t like it. I’m not that girl. Ever!
“I don’t blame you.” Krystal’s lips twitched. “But you have a lot of explaining to do at practice tomorrow.” She winked, and I groaned.
“Whatever.” I shook my head and found myself reaching for the big guy’s hand. “Come on, Fletch, time to go home.”
“Ohmygod!” Krystal exclaimed, pure joy oozing out of her, “You call him Fletch!?”
“How cute are you two!” Beth added, waving goodbye with excitement as they headed to their cars in the lot.
“What do you think you’re doing?” I hissed under my breath. My eyes widened when my back hit the truck and his body pinned mine against the cold metal. The heat of his body shielded me like a blanket as I stared up into blue eyes.
“I missed you.” His hand caressed my cheek. “I watched your game.”
“You did?” I asked, slightly breathless. Not sure if I was asking about the game or missing me. “Why?”
“Because you’re mine.” I opened then shut my mouth.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about how he claimed me.
Not just in front of the girls but straight to my face in the most honest tone known to man.
This felt more than blackmail and bullying.
This almost felt… real. And somehow, even though he’d already started to chip away at the cold steel walls I’d built around my heart after my high school boyfriend and I broke up, he took out a huge chunk right then and there.
“Saw how you were favoring your right leg. Something happen to your left ankle?” Concern laced every word.
“How did you—“ I couldn’t get another word out because he leaned forward and picked me up
“Jeremy!” I squealed and heard more aahs from the girls still hanging around watching us. He opened the passenger door and slid me in, leaning over to put my seatbelt on for me. “I could have done that.”
“True. But with me, you don’t have to.” He grinned and leaned close.
So close I could see every detail of his beautiful blue eyes and the multitude of different azure shades that made his gaze as captivating as it was.
The freckles that dusted the bridge of his nose and his dimples made an appearance.
“Did you ice it?” he asked. I nodded, afraid to answer out loud because I had a feeling it would give away how I was feeling, which I wasn’t sure I was ready to face. “Good. Trainers say to do anything else?”
“You know the usual. Ice, elevate, heat. Take it easy until my run tomorrow morning,” I joked. “Honestly, it’s not that bad. It was just a twinge. It feels better now.” I stretched it, and sure enough, “No pain. Just tight,” I shared.
“Right. Okay.” He ran his fingers through his hair before scratching the short stubble at his jaw. “Let’s go,” he ordered, and I frowned.
“Where?” I asked, and I felt like my feet were about to start floating up in the air from the smile he gave me. Shit! Again, not that girl.
“You’ll see.” He winked, and my insides got all warm and gushy. Twenty minutes later, we were at a town home just outside of the campus. Jeremy had me settled in the middle of the most oversized, comfortable sectional.
“What is this place?” I asked. The guy was full of surprises. When he’d driven us away from the campus, part of me had worried he was up to something. He was; it just hadn’t been as nefarious as my wild imagination had led me to believe.
“My family stays here when they come into town. Usually, it’s rented out as an Airbnb.” I licked my lips.
“Smart,” I mumbled. “Passive income is important.” He grunted at my words before coming to kneel in front of me.
“One to ten, how much is it bugging you?”
“You pre-med now or something?”
“Humor me, Reynova.”
“You first, Fletch.”
“No, mi Cielo.” He smiled, shooting me a look, and I returned his smile.
“Still a business major, but I’ve played sports my whole life like you have.
” I opened and shut my mouth, ready to ask questions about why he chose business and what he wanted to do with it in the future but decided against it.
I was already getting way too close and chummy with a guy who was bullying me into fake-dating him.
“How bad is it?” he pressed, taking my silence for pain.
“It’s like a two. Hardly there. I promise.”
“Maybe we take a day off tomorrow and no morning run?” His suggestion had me turning to look at him.
My mind went directly back to that first day in the summer when I’d been stretching, so early in the morning the sun hadn’t even started to rise.
He’d walked out of our building and started to stretch across from me, very much in a space where I could see his large strong body flex and strain. I’d thought it a coincidence.