Chapter 28
CHAPTER 28
JAKE
Being soaking wet and miserable was just the icing on a cold, wet, miserable week. Easton and Brax had ushered me into the showers of the locker room and Brax began ordering Easton and me around. It would have been funny if I hadn’t been so damned cold. “Go turn the dryer on again. Get the towels in there warming up. While they are warming up again, go get him a hot chocolate or hot tea.”
He turned a questioning eye my way. “Which do you want?”
“Would it be wrong to say hot chocolate?”
Brax gave me a smile I often saw Trent and Canyon give their boys, then turned back to Easton. “Go up to the kitchen on four, ask Miles to make you a hot chocolate for Trevor. He’ll know exactly what to make. By the time he’s got that done, the towels will be warm enough and Jake will be out of the shower.”
Easton saluted, though I swore I saw him roll his eyes and as he left I absolutely heard him muttering, “Of course Trev has his own special hot chocolate.”
Brax ignored him and pressed a few buttons on the outside of one of the shower stalls and the water turned on. When he turned back around, he looked at me like I was crazy. “Why are you still dressed?”
I blinked. “Was I supposed to be getting undressed?” I was already reaching for the zipper of Esme’s coat as I asked.
Brax sighed. “Strip. You’re ice cold and shivering. We can’t warm you up too fast, so the water’s not very hot, but it’s still going to feel better for you until Easton and Esme get back with everything.”
“I, uh. I need to clean my gun, and I really shouldn’t have it off.”
The are you kidding me look Brax gave me actually made me crack a smile. “No one will touch it. And you’re not going to be able to clean it while shivering.”
He made sense and I stripped off the rest of my clothes, carefully laying my belt and gun on top of the pile where I had an easy line of sight to it before stepping into the shower, unfazed by my nakedness around Brax. I’d been in enough locker rooms in my day to not be ashamed. Besides, Brax was distracted as he tapped away on his phone.
I hissed as the water hit my cold skin. It felt like little needles poking at me, and while I’d seen on the panel outside of the shower that the temperature had been set to barely tepid, it still hurt my skin. I hissed and bounced from foot to foot until the prickles turned soothing and I started feeling my skin again. Around the same time, voices once again filled the locker room.
Brax, Easton, and Esme were all talking over one another and I couldn’t make out much of the conversation aside from single words here or there. It sounded as though they were all impatient and worried about me.
I poked my head out of the shower curtain to find all of them engrossed in their conversation and paying zero attention to the shower. After taking in Esme in a pair of gray joggers and a baggy sweatshirt with the sleeves pulled up to his elbows, I swiped the three towels that were on the bench—still warm from the dryer—and ducked into the stall once more before my dick could get any crazy ideas.
Once hidden in the stall, I used my hand to reach out and press at the dial pad on the wall. After turning the water ice cold for a moment, I managed to adjust the temperature to the hottest it would go and felt the water steaming behind me.
I didn’t plan on getting in, just using it for extra warmth while I dried off.
While the steam took the last of the chill from me, I dried my body and hair as well as I could, and I thought of anything and everything but Esme in the gray pants that left nothing to the imagination. The three on the other side of the curtain were acting like I’d been swimming in a frozen lake, not caught out in a downpour. I’d been cold and shivering but not hypothermic when I’d gotten into the shower. That didn't mean I wasn’t looking forward to the promised hot chocolate before going upstairs to my office to clean my gun.
The sounds of me shoving my clothes into an empty shopping bag finally drew the three from their debate and they looked over in shock when I stepped out fully covered by three towels with steam billowing around me. The three of them growled wordlessly in unison, and all I could do was roll my eyes and try to keep the bone-deep exhaustion off my face.
There were still three hours in the day before I could go and collapse onto my bed in the hotel down the road from the arena. I hadn’t slept well since I’d woken up in the wee hours of Saturday morning to the sound of rushing water from a burst pipe in my neighbor’s townhouse. They hadn’t been home at the time and I’d been at work late Friday and had either missed the wet wall when I’d arrived home or slept through the pipe bursting. I didn’t know if that would’ve made a sound but it didn’t matter because whether it had or not, the pipe had gone unnoticed until I'd walked downstairs and found swollen cabinets and buckled hardwood flooring.
I hadn’t slept after that, and a plumber was at my neighbor’s house a few hours after dawn, and huge dryers were sent to start drying out the mess by early afternoon. I’d forced myself to put it aside while hanging out with my friends Saturday evening, and had done a decent job not thinking about it until I arrived home to a hole between my bathroom wall and the neighbors, and a note from the plumber apologizing for the mess.
I’d gotten a hotel Saturday night, then spent all of Sunday dealing with my renter's insurance company trying to find a place to stay while my place dried out and at least the hole was repaired. Things had been going well until I’d gotten a call just before lunch to inform me the burst pipe had started leaking again after the water had been turned back on and the plumbers had left the night before. All the progress made on drying out our homes had been undone and we were back to square one.
No wonder I felt dead on my feet.
“Airlines would charge the bags under your eyes extra baggage fees,” Easton said after taking me in for a moment.
I flipped him off and looked around the locker room. “I think I was promised warm clothes and hot chocolate.”
Esme snapped his fingers and turned to grab a pile of clothes I hadn’t previously spotted off of a counter.
Easton tossed a thumb over his shoulder. “It’s in Tom’s office. I told him not to let Trev have it, no matter what Trevor might say to convince him otherwise.”
Brax groaned. “I should probably go find him and get him his own hot chocolate before we leave.”
Easton looked over at Esme. “I trust you’ll take care of him?”
Esme nodded silently, his eyes not leaving mine.
“I’m not kidding, Cap. He needs sleep.”
“I know. That’s next on my list. He needs to get dressed first and apparently have hot chocolate.”
“It’s in a to-go cup.” Easton looked over at me again. “Dude, sleep. You look like shit.”
I tugged Esme’s T-shirt over my head and forced myself not to take a long sniff. It smelled clean, though it had a hint of Esme’s cologne on it as well, likely from being in his suitcase. “The bed at the hotel is massively uncomfortable.” I didn’t care I was going to be freeballing in Esme’s joggers. All that mattered to me was they were dry. As I pulled them up my legs, I was reminded I was thicker all around than he was and the material clung to me.
At least they were black.
Finally dropping my second towel, I turned my nose up at the idea of slipping my feet back in my shoes. They would need to spend the night on the air vent in the hotel to even stand a chance at being dry. Maybe I’d swing home and at least use the complex's washer and dryer. Hell, maybe I’d sleep in my own bed. It wasn’t like my neighbors were there to see into my place from the hole between our walls.
Then I remembered the power was off and I’d have no heat.
Elle and my pacifier were at the hotel anyway. Even if I had enough blankets to stay warm throughout the night, I didn’t want to have to go to the hotel before going to my house. It would take more energy than I had.
“I have no idea what just went through your head, but it was a million things all at once.” Esme stepped forward and gripped my elbow. “Come on, let’s head out and you can tell me why you’re in a hotel.”
On a sigh, I shook my head. “Three hours left, and I have to go to my office to take care of my gun before I can do anything else. It got soaked while I was out there.”
Esme didn’t look happy at my response, his annoyance clear in the exasperated huff he let out. “Fine. Let’s go upstairs.”
Brax and Easton had left at some point, and Esme glowered at my bag of wet clothing and my sopping shoes before bending to pick them up. He must have felt the same about my shoes as I had because he put them in the bag.
“You don’t have to do that.” Now that I was warm, I was more exhausted than ever. My brain was trying to focus on getting back to work, cleaning my gun, and the call I needed to return to the insurance adjuster. My libido, however, was focused solely on Esme’s smell, his hand on my elbow, and the firm press of his body against mine.
“Explain the hotel to me,” he said firmly as we headed to the office of the Parliament’s head coach to grab my hot chocolate.
Once I had it, I took a sip of my drink and smiled at the perfectly warm milk and rich chocolate. I was pretty sure I was tasting marshmallow and whipped cream as well, but I didn’t dare take off the lid and risk spilling it. “Burst pipe in my neighbor’s place. Soaked the connecting wall and all the insulation between our places.” I recited the details by rote as the elevator took us upward. Esme hummed and nodded as I spoke.
He never glanced at his office as we passed it, following me directly toward mine, and he didn’t leave my side as I bent to get the cleaning kit I had stashed in my desk drawer for just such an emergency. He tracked my hands as I got to work taking apart my gun, setting the magazine to the side, and then beginning to dry each part thoroughly.
“How long does this take?”
I shrugged. “Haven’t timed myself in a long time. Probably fifteen or twenty minutes.”
He nodded thoughtfully and tapped at his phone screen. When he pocketed his phone, he looked at me. “And then you can leave.”
“Um, there’s two hours and fifty minutes left in my shift.”
A head popped around my doorframe. “And I’m officially writing them off. You look like hell. Go get sleep.”
I blinked dumbly at Blaise. “What?”
“A few birdies told me you’ve had a hell of a week.” Then he looked at Esme in surprise. “What are you doing here? I figured you’d left already. I can’t believe you came back here after your flight in the first place.”
“Not leaving until this one is ready to go. He’s in no shape to drive.”
Blaise nodded. “Good plan. Makes me feel better.” Then he looked at me again. “Check out of whatever the hell hotel you’re at. The Grizzlies have an apartment down the road you can stay at until your place is livable again. Seriously, it’s got to be better than wherever your insurance is paying for.”
I didn’t have words and before I found any to reply with, he was already gone. I wasn’t going to tell him I’d been paying out of pocket for the difference between my hotel and the one the insurance company had approved because I was pretty sure their hotel hadn’t been cleaned since 1977, much less updated. “Oh.”
Esme looked pleased. “How much longer?”
I looked down at my gun and the pieces laid out in front of me across my desk. “Just need to oil them.”
“Good.”
Esme refused to let me leave on my own and drove me down the street to my hotel, paid the valet to park his car, and walked up to my room with me. “Make sure to get everything packed up to come to my place.”
I was too caught off guard when he grabbed Elle and my pacifier and placed them in the front of my backpack to argue with him.
After a few minutes of packing, the room was clean. “Anything else you can think of?”
I looked around the room. We already had Elle and my pacifier, and it wasn't like I’d thrown things everywhere. There was a small pile of dirty clothes and a smaller pile of clean ones on the desk. My laptop was in my backpack and my tablet was with it. I double-checked I’d grabbed my toiletries, then shrugged.
“I think we've got everything.”
“Great. Let’s get you checked out of here and we should be back at my place in about twenty minutes.”
He was already zipping my suitcase shut when his words finally caught up to my brain. “Wait, what?”
He barely glanced in my direction, too focused on his work. “When was the last time you relaxed?”
“Is that a trick question?”
The grunt he let out at my response was far sexier than it had any right to be. “Come on. You need actual sleep.” He held my suitcase with startling ease and reached his free hand out to me. “Ready to go?”
The only thing I could do was nod my head. I must have looked ridiculous checking out of the hotel wearing sweats, my belt, and the boat shoes Esme had produced from one of his suitcases. Thankfully, no one said anything to me, even as I shuffled from the front desk, through the lobby, and to the valet stand.
To my surprise, we didn’t go directly to Esme’s. Less than fifteen minutes after leaving the hotel, we pulled to a stop in front of my townhouse. “I can’t stay here. I thought about it, but there’s no power.”
He chuckled at my confusion. “You’re right, but you need more than three outfits.” I could admit he made sense and I once again found myself shuffling along with Esme following me up the walkway, through my front door, and to my bedroom.
I was packing clean clothes with the help of my phone’s flashlight when Esme stepped into the closet with me, turned his flashlight on, and looked around in confusion. “Do you have something against variety?”
I examined my closet and started to laugh at the number of black shirts and khaki pants I owned. “No. This is just easy. I don’t have to think about what I put on. And after having so many pockets at work for so many years, I have a system for my phone, my wallet, my sunglasses, my keys. I feel lost without my pockets.”
“You could get a bag for everything.”
The fact he’d delivered the option without a hint of sarcasm or humor made me unsure of how to respond. I’d grabbed a red T-shirt and a blue Nashville PD sweatshirt and put them in a bag just to prove I didn’t always wear black before I’d figured out something to say in response. “I could, but I don’t really think it would fit the utilitarian vibe I’ve got going on.”
Esme’s face broke into a huge smile, his eyes lighting up at the same time. “Probably not. Do you need socks?”
I nodded and headed for my dresser. My sock drawer was big enough it also held my pacifiers, and while I was embarrassed Esme was going to see my collection, I knew he would eventually see everything anyway. Hell, he’d already seen some of it—this was just a more intentional thing. And if he was going to be around more often, he was going to find out. Even when I wasn’t feeling particularly little at home, I usually had a pacifier and Elle with me. Because of that, I tended to lose pacifiers around the house or wear them out if I got stressed and bit on them. It was easier to have a bunch of extras on hand so I didn’t go without.
“That is an impressive collection.” Esme was painfully serious and I felt my face heat as I nodded my agreement. “Should we take a few to my place with us? So you have some there?”
“Ahead of yourself much?”
He lifted a shoulder. “Realistic. I know what I want.”
I rolled my eyes but reached out for a few pacifiers and pushed them into my pocket. “We’ll see how long it takes until you’re begging me to leave.”
“Doubtful.”
After leaving my room, I grabbed the safe I locked my gun in at night and Esme herded me back to the car. We were heading to his new house, not the townhome he’d had when he first moved to Nashville. I hadn’t had a chance to see it yet because there had been work crews painting and putting new flooring in a number of rooms since he’d closed on it.
“Ms. Donna still has Chloe and Stank for the night. I asked if it was okay if they stayed an extra day. I’m going to be lucky if she gives them back to me tomorrow,” Esme was saying as we drove through a neighborhood with homes bigger than I’d know what to do with.
“Oh. If it’s too much, I can stay in the team’s condo.”
A storm brewed behind Esme’s eyes at my words. “Like hell. I have a perfectly comfortable house and will know you're getting sleep and being fed.”
“Spoken like a true Daddy,” I said, stifling a yawn.
“Judging by the bags under your eyes, I’d say you need one. Seriously, no amount of purple or green concealer will cover those.” He turned onto the last street in the neighborhood and drove a few houses down before pulling into the driveway of a colonial-style home with white siding.
I looked at the house, then to Esme, and again back at the house. “This is not what I expected when you told me you’d bought a house.”
“Chloe loves the backyard. There’s a pond out back. I’ll be lucky to get her inside on nice days.” He looked up at the gray sky. “Days like today, she’ll be curled up with Stank in front of the fireplace in my bedroom.”
My mouth hung open. “Your bedroom has a fireplace?”
“Yep. It was just inspected too, so I know it works and is safe to use.”
I gave a dreamy sigh. It sounded like the perfect place to be on a day like today. Maybe after I got my calls made, I could find out.
“Come on. I think I know what you need.” There was a hesitancy in his voice not normally there and when I looked over at him, I could see nervousness pinching the corners of his lips and eyes. I didn’t know what he was nervous about. Unless he was going to lock me in a kinky sex dungeon, I wasn’t worried.
Hell, a kinky sex dungeon had its merits… but I needed sleep first.