Chapter 15
Another win under our belts. Jacobs pitched a stellar game, bringing us one step closer to the playoffs. Tomorrow would be my turn to get the job done. Throughout the entire game, I kept glancing at the stands to try to find Sommer. At one point, I thought I did, but it turned out to be another brunette. I knew she was there because she had sent me a text earlier in the day. But considering I didn’t bring a phone into the dugout, I couldn’t exactly check for any updates.
The sun hung low in the sky. I made my way to the bus that would take us to the hotel. And that was when I spotted her. Sommer was wearing jeans, a generic Hawks jersey with a double zero and no name on the back. I wondered if she’d consider wearing mine. Deep down, I knew that answer would be no, but maybe I could talk her into it and call it a PR move. Then again, this was Sommer I was talking about. That would be a definite N-O.
When I got closer, I noticed she was talking to a guy wearing a light-blue polo and gray pants. He laughed at something she said, but he mainly just stared at her. My strides gained speed as I headed in her direction and away from the bus.
“Hall, we’re this way,” Remington called out. Without turning, I lifted my hand in the air with my pointer finger extended.
Sommer must have heard my name because she turned around and smiled at me. Whatever thought I had about the guy vanished until I got closer and saw how good-looking he was. Yes, I’m a man confident enough in himself to admit when another guy is good-looking.
“Hi, Jimmy. Congrats on the win.”
Instinct had me wanting to lean forward and kiss her. She must have sensed it because her eyes grew wide. “Hi, Sommer. Who’s your friend?”
The guy extended his hand. “Max McKinnon. I’m the scout for the Yellow Jackets, the Indiana Red Wings’ farm team.”
“Jimmy Hall,” I said with a firm grip.
“No intro needed. You’re a phenomenal pitcher. I’m also a huge fan of your father’s.”
“Thank you, I appreciate that.”
“Max and I went to college together.”
He brought his attention back to Sommer. “It was great seeing you again. Call me if you want to grab coffee while you’re in town. We can catch up. You know I love picking your brain.”
Her giggle sent my pulse rocketing to my eardrums. “I’m not sure I have time, and you know I’m not going to give you any secrets.”
“Always were tight-lipped.”
Okay, I’d had about enough. God, when did I become the jealous type? The shrill of a whistle caught my attention. Shit. Sommer looked at me, and I may have cracked one of my back molars, grinding them together.
“I need to get going. Sommer, I’ll talk to you back at the hotel.”
She smiled sweetly, but her eyes didn’t look jovial. Instead, they narrowed a bit. “Okay, I won’t be far behind.”
“Great.” Trying to not look like a jackass, I nodded to Max. “Good meeting you.”
“Yeah, you too.”
Looking once more at Sommer, I said, “Catch you later.”
The buses’ fumes filled the air before I stepped on. Coach looked up at me. “You ready now?”
“Yes, sorry. Needed to take care of something.”
He nodded, and I made my way toward the back of the bus, where Remington sat with an open seat next to him. I stuck my duffel at my feet and plopped down.
“Everything okay?”
“Yes, it’s fine.”
I hadn’t told him about me and Sommer yet. We haven’t really had time alone, and I couldn’t very well tell him now despite ninety percent of the players having earphones on. Someone would hear it, and Sommer would have my balls in a sling. Worse than that, she’d end things between us before they even got off the ground.
That still didn’t mean I didn’t want to punch myself for feeling jealous. I couldn’t help but wonder whether Max knew her ex. Or whether he had ever asked her out. And what did he want to pick her brain about? There was zero chance she’d ever tell him whom she might want for the Hawks. Not that she was a scout, but Sommer definitely had the ear of upper management ... since that was where she wanted to be.
“Dude, what is wrong with you? If your knee keeps bouncing like that, you might strain a muscle.”
I placed my hand on my leg and let out a deep breath. “Sorry, got a lot on my mind.”
“Nothing happened that would put you in Sommer’s bad graces, would it? I mean, I haven’t seen you with anyone, but she looked a bit annoyed.”
“No, it’s nothing like that. I think I just have that effect on her.”
He chuckled. “I figured you two would be over it already. I mean, even Meg said she noticed you’ve turned into a Boy Scout. She was never a huge fan of seeing a harem around you.”
I raked my fingers through my hair. I’d been an idiot for not telling him about me and Sommer before now. Hoping that he could read between the lines, I said loud enough for only him to hear, “I’m a one-woman man now.”
Rem looked at me with furrowed brows. Then that proverbial light bulb went off, and his brows shot up. “Do you mean?” He nervously glanced around. “Are we talking about the same person who came over when you were watching Ariel?”
Letting out a breath full of relief as though I just spilled my guts out in a confessional, I nodded. “One and the same.”
“How the hell did you pull that off? I mean, I know you have some weird magnet that women go for, but I never thought she’d be one of them.”
“She isn’t. It took a bit of convincing, which I’ve got to tell you was hot as fuck. I’ll explain more later. It’s complicated.”
A stupid grin spread across his face. “Ahh, I get it now. You didn’t like that she was talking to that guy.” Remington chuckled. “I never thought I’d see the day. You were jealous.”
“I don’t know if I’d go that far.” He knew me well enough to know I’d just lied through my teeth. “Yeah, I didn’t like it. This is all new to me.”
“Hearts are going to break all over. Jimmy Hall is off the market. Who would have ever thought that? Wait until the guys hear.”
“They can’t.”
I went on to explain that no one could know. The only person I agreed he could tell was Meg because I’d never ask him to keep a secret from his wife.
The bus came to a stop, and I couldn’t wait to get off it and talk to Sommer. Remington wasn’t the only one who never thought he’d see the day that I was jealous. I was, and all I knew was that I needed to get myself into check before I talked to her, or she’d end us before we even got off the ground. And no way would I let that happen.
* * *
I paced back and forth in my room, waiting for Sommer to arrive. I’d sent her a text with my room number on it about twenty minutes ago, but she hadn’t replied or showed up yet. Could I have screwed this up already? Shit.
Just as I was about to put my shoes on and go find her, there was a knock on my door. When I pulled it open, Sommer stood there with her tablet in her hand, wearing the same clothes she had on at the game, except her hair was now pulled back. Damn, she was sexy as fuck.
“Hi.”
“Hey, come in.” She stepped inside, I closed the door, and she looked at me before setting her tablet down on the desk. “I’m sorry.”
“For?” she asked in a soft voice.
“Being a jerk.”
She took a step toward me, then another. “Oh, you mean when I was talking to Max? You were a jerk? I hadn’t noticed.”
“Well, I felt that way. Hopefully, he didn’t catch on. Then again, he couldn’t stop staring at you.”
“Jimmy Hall ...” She shook her head, sending her ponytail swinging. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were jealous.”
“Did I have a reason to be?”
“No.” Sommer now stood directly in front of me. She placed her hands on my chest and tilted her head back. “Max and I are friends. He actually dated my roommate’s brother.”
All I could do was blink. Sommer bit her bottom lip. “He’s gay?” Her giggle was in stark contrast to my soft grunt. “You made me think?—”
“I didn’t do anything—that was all you. Although it was kind of hot.”
“Oh, yeah? How hot?”
She rolled up on her toes, snaked her arms around my neck while mine looped around her torso, and smiled. “This hot ...” Sommer’s lips met mine, and I groaned into her mouth.
I lifted her off the ground, her legs wrapped around my waist, and my instant erection strained against my zipper. It was clear when it came to Sommer I lacked all control of my dick. Like in her office, her kiss was intoxicating, making me crave more with every breath I took. I shifted us until her back was against the wall, losing myself in the taste of full lips that had starred in my most recent dreams.
Heat bloomed on the back of my neck and under my T-shirt. Supporting her weight between my body and the door, I moved my hand from under her ass to the hem of her jersey. I broke apart long enough to say, “This should have my number on it.”
“I can’t. People will know.”
“You’re my PR person,” I said, kissing her neck. “Make up an excuse.”
“Okay,” she agreed, shocking the shit out of me. I wasn’t sure her acquiescence was because of the intensity growing between us or because she would actually do it ... but right then and there, I didn’t care. I took it as a win and got back to devouring her.
Shocking me, her hands went under my shirt. With each of her caresses, my body grew hotter. Needing more space, I moved us to the bed, and rather than lay her down, I sat and put her in control.
Thankfully, she kept her legs wrapped around me and didn’t decide to stop what had me fired up like a race car’s engine. Then she floored the hell out of me by lifting up my shirt. When she pulled it over my head, my skin prickled with anticipation.
Still, in my head, I kept telling myself to take it slow, but then she leaned back and raked her eyes up and down my body before her fingers found my bare skin.
“Fuck, Sommer. You’re killing me.”
“I had to touch you. Is that okay?”
“Yes, but?—”
“I know what you’re thinking—this is unlike me and contradicts everything I’ve said since we met.” My lips continued to ravish her neck, jaw, that spot behind her ear, and her smooth, soft décolletage as I inhaled her sweet scent. “But ever since that day I saw you in that towel, I couldn’t stop wondering about your body.”
For the first time in my adult life, I didn’t know what to do. Usually, when I was with a woman, we knew the score, and as cold as it sounded, it was just sex. My heart never raced the way it did when I was around Sommer.
“What exactly piqued your curiosity?”
Her fingers skated over my pecs and stopped just above my abdomen. “You’re like a sculpture but soft.” I inhaled, wanting to tell her I was anything but soft, but who was I to stop her exploration? Sommer placed a kiss on my shoulder as her hands slid up to my arms.
Once again, we were face to face. I heard myself swallow and wondered whether she could hear it too.
“Tell me what you want, Sommer. How far do you want to go here? Because as much as I love hearing you talk about my body, I’m dying to touch yours. I won’t if you’re not ready. I’m more than happy to sit still and let you have your way with me, but tell me so I can tell my men to stand down.”
She laughed, and my dick jumped in my pants.
“Your men?”
“Figure of speech.”
“I think I’d like it if you touched me.” She blushed and glanced down.
“Talk to me, Sommer. What are you thinking?”