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  Chapter 22

  Jake

  “Dani! Please! Slow down, let’s talk about this!”

  I’m pleading with her but she just keeps shaking her head, tears now streaming down her face.

  “NO! I can’t. Let me go, Jake!”

  I reach out for her, my fingers failing to grasp her arm as I start to fall….

  The nightmare jolts me awake, short of breath and in a daze as I search around the room and realize the woman who ran away from me is right next to me in my bed.

  I let out a sigh of relief, reminding myself it’s just a dream. But the reality is it’s quickly becoming my worst nightmare, especially after the night we just spent together.

  I’m falling for this girl. Fast. I felt myself wanting to utter words to her I’ve never felt before. She’s infiltrated my mind and my life and is quickly becoming a permanent fixture in my eyes.

  I run to the bathroom to brush my teeth quickly, returning to the bed as I roll over and pull her close to me, pressing my chest against her back and breathing her in deeply. Even when she’s sleeping, she’s gorgeous. I prop myself up on my elbow to memorize her delicate features---her cute little button nose, the smatter of freckles on her cheeks, her long dark lashes that frame her eyes that when they look at me---I feel like I’m worth more than anything money can buy.

  I watch her lips curve up into a smile as she peaks up at me with one eye.

  “It’s not nice to watch people while they sleep,” she teases in a raspy voice I know she only has in the morning.

  I kiss her forehead and then her cheek before finding her lips and smashing my lips to hers.

  “Morning breath,” she whispers as she covers her mouth quickly, making me laugh at her expense.

  “You aren’t much of a morning person, are you?”

  She shakes her head no. “At least let me brush my teeth, and then I’ll let you do whatever you want to me.”

  I raise my eyebrows in surprise. “Anything?” I start to tickle her ribs as she pulls away from me and jumps out of bed, baring her beautifully naked body to me.

  “Anything, Jake Calhoun,” she states confidently and completely naked before she turns and struts to the bathroom.

  And…. My dick is hard. This woman will be the death of me, I just know it. And if she is how I go down, then sign me up.

  I take it she finds the extra toothbrush I had in my drawer when she emerges a few minutes later, her hair now controlled from the crazy bedhead she was sporting before (which I still found sexy), and still gloriously naked as she climbs back in my bed and straddles me.

  “All ready to start the day off right, Mr. Calhoun?” She teases while reaching behind her and gripping my shaft, stroking me gently and making me painfully harder than last night.

  We went at it under the sheets until well past midnight, but I guess my woman hasn’t had enough yet. And I sure as hell am not complaining.

  I sheath myself with a condom and lift her up, guiding her over my cock and straight down, so she can ride me into oblivion.

  We take our time, working each other both up into a sweaty and furious mess until she explodes above me, screaming my name as I clutch her to my chest and ride out my own release.

  “Good morning,” she smiles after we both come down from our high.

  “A good morning it is indeed,” I grin back at her, lifting her off of me and strolling into the bathroom.

  “Care to join me in the shower?” I offer as she watches me in her birthday suit, admiring my own. I love that we’re so comfortable with each other, we can already be in the nude and it’s not awkward.

  “Absolutely,” she says as I turn on the water and we step inside my shower that’s just big enough for the both of us.

  I take my time washing her body, lathering shampoo in her hair, and memorizing the feel of all of her wet curves under my fingers. She returns the favor, soaping me up and all over, which leads to a blowjob I’m sure to never forget.

  Once we’re sated and satisfied (I returned the favor to her, of course), I get dressed just in time to leave for the stadium.

  “I’ll call you later, babe,” I say as I kiss her goodbye.

  “Have a good day, Jake. And thanks again for last night, and this morning too,” she winks as I pull her in for one more kiss. I grab her ass for good measure, her curves decked out in spandex as she heads for the gym to go to work out and then go to work.

  “No, thank you, Dani.”

  She waves at me from behind the wheel of her car as I drive past her, bee-lining for the stadium before I end up being late.

  Rocky greets me in the parking lot just as I pull up and park.

  “Morning, rookie,” he yells across the few parking spaces between us. His dark hair looks like it’s just been cut and he obviously hasn’t shaved in a few days, judging from the scruff on his jaw.

  “A good morning it is my friend,” I reply, realizing I sound like Mr. Rodgers. Shit, I need to keep my cool or else Rocky’s going to realize…

  “Ah, you nailed the girl last night, didn’t you?”

  Fuck.

  I shake my head. “Not that it’s any of your business,” I lower my voice as we close the distance between us, “But yeah. And holy shit, man. I think I’m in love.”

  The words I uttered come back and slap me with a dose of reality. Did I really just say that? Those words came out of my mouth way too easily. Can I really love her after the short time we’ve known each other? I know what I feel for her, but is it, love?

  I don’t want to be without her. I miss her when I’m away. I spend every minute I can talking to her or being with her. And I can’t wait until I get to see her or talk to her again when we’re apart. I want to wake up next to her again and again and fall asleep getting lost in each other every night. She makes me laugh and feel like I can conquer the world.

  Fuck, I think I’m in love.

  “Is it love or is your dick just overused and ridiculously happy right now?” Rocky interrupts my momentary freak out, ribbing me as we walk in the clubhouse.

  “Keep your voice down, man,” I scold as we drop our bags on the bench and fetch our workout gear.

  “All I know is that I can’t get enough of her, and even if I did, I’d want more.”

  “Damn, you’ve got it bad. So when do I get to meet her?”

  Rocky has a good point. I’ve yet to introduce her to my team, an encounter that would need to happen eventually anyway.

  “Maybe tomorrow night after the game I can bring her to Sully’s?” I suggest as Rocky and I lace up our shoes.

  “Sounds like a plan, bro. Can’t wait to meet her.” He smiles over at me as we make our way into the gym.

  After a grueling workout and training session with our batting coach, the boys and I shower and change and start to leave the stadium, just as I’m bombarded with reporters.

  “Who is she, Jake? Is she the future Mrs. Calhoun?”

  “When’s the wedding?”

  “Have you met her parents?”

  “Where will you take your honeymoon?”

  The questions are being fired at me at lightning speed, microphones and cameras being shoved in my face, my head turning so quickly in multiple directions I start to get dizzy.

  “Hey, back up!” Rocky and Brandon shout as they flank me and we make our way through the gate to the parking lot where the press doesn’t have access.

  “Fuck!” I shout as we make our way out of earshot and beyond their line of sight.

  “Dude, that’s just the tip of the iceberg, man,” Rocky offers in an attempt to console me.

  “This is why I don’t date any one person,” Brandon chimes in.

  “Shit. I wonder what it’s going to be like for her everywhere she goes now?” I’m more than concerned as I realize she doesn’t have anyone to protect her like my teammates did for me. This is nuts. I’m just a baseball player, not an A-class celebrity. Why do they care so much about who I date?

  �
��You could hire her a bodyguard,” Brandon declares as I unlock my truck and throw my shit inside.

  “She’s not going to want that. She’s concerned about media attention as it is… her walking around with someone all the time could only make matters worse.”

  “You definitely need to talk to her about it and make sure you agree upon how to handle the media, Jake,” Rocky adds.

  “Yeah, I know.”

  “I can’t wait to meet her tomorrow night though. If she’s worth all the trouble you say she is, she’s got to be one hell of a girl.”

  “Wait, when are we going to meet her?” Brandon eyes both of us.

  “I was thinking about taking her to Sully’s after the game.”

  “Shit. This is really serious, isn’t it?” He looks bewildered as I nod my head. Brandon doesn’t do relationships, so his tiny brain can’t comprehend the idea of me wanting to be with only one woman.

  “I’m gonna head home, guys. See ya tomorrow.”

  I drive home and wait until later to call Danielle and see how her day went.

  “Hi, babe,” she greets me cheerfully when she answers, relieving some worry I felt earlier.

  “Hey. How was your day?” I ask as I settle into my couch, wishing she were here next to me. She was adamant about spending the night with her brother and grandpa tonight, which I respect entirely, especially since I wanted her to stay with me tomorrow night before I leave for a week, the week when I’ll be missing her college graduation.

  “Well, I had some unpleasant visitors at the gym this morning,” she says annoyingly.

  “Reporters?” I ask, knowing full well that’s the answer.

  “Yeah. They were crazy, Jake. Asking me all kinds of ridiculous questions and taking my picture. Luckily, one of our trainers was heading in at the same time and ushered me in while protecting me.”

  Fuck. It should be me who’s protecting her, not some guy I don’t know.

  “Fuck, I’m sorry, babe. I wish I could do something about them. Unfortunately, as long as they’re on public property, their untouchable. Do you want me to hire you a bodyguard or something?”

  She lets out a long sigh. “No, Jake. I don’t want that. I’ll be fine.”

  “Are you sure? I just don’t get why they’re so focused on us right now. I don’t recall other players having this much trouble with reporters and relationship speculations.” I feel helpless right now and want nothing more than to make something better about this.

  “Yeah. That’s sweet of you though. Hopefully, it will pass sooner rather than later,” she trails off, and then playfully continues. “So, not to change the subject completely, but I can’t stop thinking about last night…” The velvet sound of her voice wakes up my dick in my shorts.

  “Yeah, me too, baby. It was incredible. And this morning, too.”

  “Definitely my new favorite way to wake up,” she chuckles.

  “Mine too. I wish you were here right now so I could show you more of my skills.”

  “Oh, the assessment I performed on you last night and this morning determined you have definitely passed in the skills department, Mr. Calhoun. A++!”

  I laugh at her through the phone, imagining her playful grin while she declares I passed her test.

  “Good to know I’ve got the grades. You were pretty amazing yourself, Danielle Peters,” I whisper as I use her full name for the first time. She told me her last name weeks ago, but I never felt the need to use it until now.

  “Thank you. I think we were pretty explosive together,” she states, and I couldn’t agree more.

  “So tomorrow after the game, the team and I are going to head to Sully’s. I was wondering if you would be up for meeting them?”

  I can hear her pipe up through the phone. “You want to me to meet the entire team? Are you sure?”

  “Absolutely.” And I mean it. I want everyone to know that she’s mine, and I want to show her off proudly.

  “Okay. Can I bring Lochlin?”

  “Of course. The more the merrier, and that way, you’ll have a friend there in case I get pulled away.”

  “Oh, my gosh! This is so exciting, Jake!” She sounds like a giddy schoolgirl.

  “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you are more excited to see my team than me,” I joke with her, knowing that can’t be the case.

  “Oh no. I was definitely more excited to meet you. But you have to understand… I’ve lived here my whole life and have watched the OC Rays’ games for years. Meeting the team is like a dream come true!”

  I laugh at her again. “Well, maybe some other time I can introduce Gramps and Conner too?”

  “They would love that Jake. I can’t wait to see you tomorrow,” she trails off, a sudden sadness fills her voice.

  “Me too, baby. I miss you a lot right now.”

  “I miss you too. I can’t wait to show you how much tomorrow night.”

  “Fuck, Dani. Now I’m hard.”

  She chuckles. “Go take care of yourself, but be ready for tomorrow night, stud.”

  “You’d better be ready, Dani. Goodnight, beautiful.”

  “Goodnight, Jake.”

  She ends the call as I stand and head for the shower, rubbing one out and falling asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow. Last night and today wore me out. I need some serious rest to keep up with my even more demanding physical schedule now. But I guess there are worse things.

  Chapter 23

  Dani

  “I can’t believe we are about to meet the entire team!”

  Lochlin squeals next to me as we walk into Sully’s behind the group of players they just let through. She and I drove over together in her car after the game.

  Jake told me to follow the vans to the bar and wait for the team to be brought in before we walked in the doors. He drove himself though so we could leave together later. Once they arrived and got settled in, he assured me he’d come out from the VIP area to fetch us and bring us back.

  We were mobbed outside of the stadium as soon as we exited, making it a challenge just to get to my car. And it didn’t stop there. As soon as we arrived at Sully’s, reporters were ready with questions and cameras as we made our way inside.

  Once we walked through the doors, I felt a surge of relief come over me, but this inkling I had in the back of my head didn’t go away completely. Jake and I haven’t been seen together since our first date, and the attention was already extreme. I can’t imagine how much worse it will get once we start going places together.

  “Hey, beautiful.” I turn to find my man, delectable in a black shirt and jeans, with a Rays cap on his head. He pulls me into him and seals our reunion with a heated kiss.

  “Damn, get a room,” Lochlin interrupts us, making Jake and I both laugh, ceasing our moment.

  “Hey, Lochlin. I’m Jake,” he says as he extends his hand out to my best friend and I rest my head on his chest.

  “It’s about time we finally meet, Jake. It seems my best friend here is quite smitten with you.”

  “Well, the feeling is mutual. I assure you. And I guess a thank you is in order as well,” he states, wrapping his arm around my waist possessively, which I love.

  “Is that so? A thank you for what exactly?” Lochlin is being coy because she knows it’s because of her that we’re even in this predicament.

  “For being the ball buster that you are and giving me your friend’s number when she was too chicken to do it herself,” he says sarcastically, which makes Lochlin grin from ear to ear.

  “Hey! I would have worked up the courage eventually,” I add defensively.

  “Ok, sure, Dani,” Lochlin rolls her eyes at me, then turns back to Jake. “You’re welcome, Jake. Glad to know someone appreciates my determination,” she says while flipping her hair over her shoulder. The tips are back to purple this week.

  “I told you thank you!” I suddenly feel like I’m being ganged up on by my best friend and boyfriend, and I don’t care for it at all.
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br />   I start to pout, which catches Jake’s attention. “Oh, babe… it’s okay. If Lochlin hadn’t initiated the contact, I know it wouldn’t have taken much longer for me to resist you. Once we locked eyes, I knew I had to know you,” he opens up to me, seducing me with his voice and those deep blue eyes before planting a kiss on my nose. “And now I get to call you my girlfriend… seems I won in the end.”

  I give in easier than I normally would, but he’s right. Regardless of how it happened, I know eventually we would be right here, together. We’re on the path we were destined for.

  “This is just too cute!” Lochlin squeals before Jake ushers us to the back of the bar towards the VIP section.

  “What can I get for you ladies?” He offers as we take a seat at one of the high top tables.

  “I’ll take a light beer.”

  “Me too,” Lochlin adds.

  “Coming right up,” he winks, giving me a kiss on the cheek before he walks away.

  “Oh my God, Dani. He is better looking in person and totally taken with you! And he called you his girlfriend!”

  I let out the breath I was holding. “Yeah, well, I feel the same. I’m feeling things I never knew were possible, Loch. I think I’m falling in love with him…”

  “Seriously?” She whispers, the shock registering on her face and in her voice.

  “Yeah. It’s real between us. Natural. And the sex…”

  “Oh God, how is his peener?!” She says a little too loudly.

  “Shhhhh! Jesus, Loch. What the fuck is a peener?”

  She rolls her eyes at me. “You know, his penis… or wiener… his peener!”

  I burst out in laughter and choke on the sip of beer I just took. Only my best friend could come up with a word like that.

  “Holy shit, Loch. That’s hilarious!” I manage to choke out, noticing that Jake is headed back to our table.

  “But to answer your question… it’s magnificent. A perfect TEN, if you know what I’m saying,” I wink over at her as her jaw drops.