Chapter 50
Chapter Fifty
KEELEY
Ihave a vague memory of someone kissing my head, and when I wake, I find Sal’s side of the bed empty. With a smile, I stretch my body, groaning as it aches in all the right places.
I have never had sex that many times in one night, and I have to say, for a man twenty years older, Sal has incredible stamina. If I hadn’t said I needed sleep, I have no doubt he would have gone again.
With a deep breath to prepare for more muscle soreness, I lift my head and check the time to see it’s already nine a.m. Considering how early I fell asleep, I thought I’d be up before the sun.
After taking a moment to half twist, half crawl out of bed, I slip into my summer robe, sans clothes, and wrap it around myself, hiding the goods, hoping to tease Sal enough that he carries me back in here for round five this morning.
Since Sal set me up with my crutches close by, I quietly thank him and walk out toward the kitchen, assuming he’s making breakfast. “God. You must have fucked me into a coma last night because I slept like— Oh, Jesus.”
I tighten the robe around myself and secure the tie, smiling awkwardly at the three huge football players standing around my kitchen counter.
“Hi.” I wave hesitantly as Luke cracks up laughing, with Reed and Zane standing awkwardly beside him.
“Well, well, well. I’m not sure that’s what the doctor meant when he said you need to be taken care of,” Luke muses, making Sal groan as he turns away and walks out of the room, mumbling something about making a phone call.
“Nice to see you all. To what do we owe the pleasure?”
“We heard through the grapevine that you were struggling with boredom,” Reed fills me in, his lips pulled into a smile.
“But it looks like you found something to pass the time.” Luke winks and I roll my eyes.
“You caught me.”
“Yeah, we did.” Luke bounces his eyebrows, and Zane elbows him in the stomach.
“Now you’re just being creepy. Jokes aside, we came to check on you. How are you feeling?” Zane asks, his gaze dropping to my ankle.
“I’m okay. As long as I keep my foot elevated, the pain’s relatively manageable.”
“I’d imagine lying on your back helps with that.” Luke laughs at his own joke before covering his mouth and mumbling an apology. “Last one, I promise. Though I was going to ask about you and D’Angelo. I guess I don’t have to now.”
“I guess you don’t and that’s all I’m going to say. Moving on. How’s practice going? Are you all set for the opening game this weekend? Please tell me my replacement spoke to at least one of you about doing an interview with?—”
Luke puts his finger to my lips, shushing me loudly. “No talking shop or you’ll get us in trouble with the boss.” He glances over his shoulder.
“He told you not to talk about work?” My jaw drops as my eyes flash to Sal pacing in the living room. If he wasn’t on the phone, I’d be calling his ass in here.
“He did.” Reed pats me on the shoulder. “But I agree with his logic. You need to be focused on your recovery.”
“On that note,” Zane cuts in. “What happened?”
“What do you mean?”
“People don’t just fall down stairs, Keeley.”
“Sure, they do. Especially when they wear heels as tall as I do.”
Luke and Reed chuckle while Zane shakes his head. “I’m not buying it. You’re always in heels. High ones. You’d probably be able to run a marathon if you had to.”
I internally wince because he’s not wrong. “What can I say? I didn’t see the step.”
“Who were you talking to?”
“What?”
“Jesus, Zane. What’s with the third degree?” Luke asks, his expression pulled into a frown.
“I’m just asking a question.” Zane’s eyes bore into mine, silently reiterating what he asked. He knows something. He’s always been the quietly observant type. I noticed it when he first started at the Storm, before the drama between him and Easton even began.
I sigh subtly before sitting down on the stool, only for the guys to all panic and insist we move to the couch.
“I’m fine. I plan on kicking you out in a few minutes anyway.” I laugh at my humor until Luke’s eyes light up and I know what’s coming. He’s going to tease me about Sal again. “Don’t. You said that was the last time.”
“Dammit. Back to the guy you were talking to.”
I should have let him tease me about Sal; it would have changed the subject.
“It was Vance, right?” Luke asks, scratching his head. “I saw him as I was running over. Jesus, fuck. That asshole left the second you fell.”
“Vance?” Zane frowns. “As in Vance McMillan?”
“Yep.”
“Did something happen between you?”
“You don’t have to answer that,” Reed cuts in, his gaze bouncing pointedly between Zane and Luke. “As long as you’ve spoken to someone about what happened?” His eyes flash toward Sal, and I wait for him to look back before I nod.
“I have. Thank you all for caring. But I promise I’m okay. You can remove me from your group chat name.”
“Not yet. I want to annoy East for a little while longer.”
I snort out a laugh, shaking my head at Luke. “I’m surprised he’s never decked you.”
“Me too, if I’m being honest.”
The guys stay for another hour until they’re due for a group workout session, waving to Sal as they walk by. It’s another ten minutes before he ends his call, and his weary eyes have me worried. Especially when he notices me watching him and instantly schools his features.
“What’s going on?”
“That was Paige.”
Oh. I smile like I normally would if she’d called, despite having a fair idea what she was calling about. “How is she?”
“She’s testifying.”
“What?” I fake a gasp and Sal rolls his eyes.
“She told me you knew.”
“Ugh, I’m sorry. I wanted to tell you so many times, but I’m still trying to work out how this whole best friend versus boyfriend thing is going to work.”
“It’s okay.” Sal stalks closer and wraps me in his arms. “She also told me you begged her to mention it.”
“I did.”
“Thank you. She’s not at all happy about my response.”
“What did you say?”
“That I was disappointed.”
I grimace. “Damn. You pulled that card.”
“Yep. What is she thinking, Keeley? She knows about the fire, and about someone stalking her mom. So, what? Does she think they’re going to let her fly into New York and testify without consequence?”
“I don’t think she’s worried about that. She’s more concerned with making sure she does her bit to ensure they go to prison for a very long time.”
“That’s exactly what she said.”
“Why don’t you go with her to New York?”
“I don’t want her to go.”
“I’m not sure you can stop her.”
“Fuck, I know. Instead, I’ll just add her to the list of people I’m worried about.”
“Come on. We both know you were worried about her before you found out she was testifying.”
Sal tries to fight it, but his lips lift into a smile and he reluctantly agrees. “I can’t process that now anyway. I have something important to do.”
“More important than Paige?”
“Jesus, that’s a trick question. No, but also yes.”
“Call me intrigued.”
“I’m taking you out.”
“Out?” My eyes widen before excitement fills me. “Are you taking me to the stadium?”
“Definitely not.” Sal chuckles while I frown.
We’re not meeting Vance until four this afternoon, so I was secretly hoping he was going to let me get a few hours of work in beforehand.
It would certainly help to take my mind off whatever I’m going to say to Vance.
“Sorry.” Sal smiles sympathetically. “But?—”
“You’re just looking after me. I know. Only, where were you when the guys were grilling me about our love life?”
“As far away as I could possibly be.” Sal visibly winces.
“And wasn’t that so nice of you?”
I raise an eyebrow and Sal chuckles, pressing a kiss to my head. “Sorry. I won’t do it again. Now, we’re going out because you need some air.”
“Then open a window.”
“Okay, I’ll rephrase… You need a change of scenery.”
“I’m fine. A change of scenery is not going to stop me from thinking about work.” Or Vance.
“We’re going out,” he tells me, walking into the bedroom without letting me argue. I watch him with a smile until he stops suddenly and rushes back into the kitchen.
“Are you naked under that robe?”
“I sure am.” I beam up at him and he groans, dropping his face into his hand. “Are we still going out?”
“Yes. Come on. I’ll help you get dressed.”
The sun beams through the trees, appearing like flashes of light as we drive toward the beach and away from the chaos. I put down my window to feel the breeze on my face, breathing in the salty air as the ocean comes into view.
“Where are we going?”
We’ve been driving for about twenty minutes without Sal saying a word, and as we turn toward the water, my interest piques.
“Are you taking me to the beach? I’m not sure my crutches will be that easy to use on sand.”
“I could carry you.” His eyes flash my way before they’re back on the road, so he doesn’t see me poking my tongue out.
“I can walk, Sal. I’m not—” I cut myself off when he smirks, and roll my eyes as I bite back a smile. “We’re not going to the beach, are we?”
He shakes his head.
“How about I wait and see?”
“I think that’s a great idea.” Sal smiles as he turns his attention back to the road, while reaching out to curl his hand around my thigh, giving it a squeeze.
I bask in the warmth of his palm on my skin until the car slows, and he turns into the driveway of a huge mansion. A beachfront property that I stare at longingly like it’s love at first sight.
“Are we visiting someone?” I ask, turning his way to gauge his reaction.
“No,” he answers without emotion, coming to a stop near the front of the circular driveway.
“Trespassing?” I ask next, and this time Sal laughs.
“No.”
I stare at him for a beat until an idea hits me and I gasp. “You bought a house, didn’t you?” I don’t know why that thought popped into my head, but the second it’s there, I know it’s the truth.
“I did. A year ago.”
“What? Why?”
“Because I thought there would come a time when I’d want to grow up and become a homeowner.”
“Sal, you own your apartment. Two apartments, in fact—one here and one in New York.”
“And a house in…” My eyes widen and he trails off. “It doesn’t matter. The point is that I wanted something bigger. What do you think?”
Without giving him a response, I turn toward the house and take it all in, breathless at its beauty.
I’ve never pictured the type of house I’d want if I ever moved, and yet, one look at this place has me thinking this would be it. If I had unlimited funds like Sal does. It’s a modern beachy structure with lots of windows, and what looks to be high ceilings based on the size.
There are manicured hedges running around the grounds, and a huge entry with an angled roofline covering the porch, highlighting the water features on both sides.
“It’s beautiful, Sal.”
“I’m glad you think so. Here’s hoping you like the inside too, because I’m moving you in here.”
“You’re what?” I huff out an incredulous laugh.
“You heard me.”
I what? My jaw drops before I shake my head. “You’re moving me in?”
“Yep. And you’re not going to argue. You’re going to smile, say thank you, and make this as painless as possible.”
“I am?”
“Definitely. Come on, I’ll show you around.”
He jumps out of the car and jogs around the front to open my door while I stare at him in awe, my heart pounding. I could get used to this version of Sal. Protective yet demanding.
I think I just fell for him a little bit more.