False start play, p.7
False Start Play, page 7
He picks me up again, and his eyes tighten almost imperceptibly. But I saw it, pain.
“You might be a damsel, but in distress? No way. You’re more like a damsel of determination.”
“Determination? Really? Maybe you’re right. I am absolutely determined to figure you out.” I lean back in his arms and try to match his playful smile with one of my own. “I’m not sure what’s stronger—my curiosity about you or my attraction to you.”
The embarrassment of my boldness, the truth of my revelation, makes me bury my face in his chest. He squeezes me tight in return, and I feel him kiss my hair before he slides those sweet-talking lips so close that I could kiss them if I tilted my head.
“You kidding me, sugar? Clearly it’s the attraction. You just haven’t given it full rein. Yet. But don’t you worry, we’ve got all the time in the world for that. And I reckon it’ll be quite the ride.”
As we munch on our makeshift picnic, I can’t help but think about what Dr. Nguyen said at the rehab center—that Jerry had skipped out on physical therapy and further treatment. The question has been circling in my brain all day, and there won’t be a better time to ask.
“Hey,” I begin hesitantly. “Can I ask you a question?”
“You can ask me anything.”
“You winced just a little when you picked me up, and I couldn’t help but overhear Dr. Nguyen talking to Josh at the rehab center, saying you skipped out on physical therapy. Are you okay? Because I feel like I’ve walked you into the ground today.”
Jerry’s easy going expression falters, and he looks away, his fingers absentmindedly picking at the crust of the sourdough bread. “You heard that, huh? I take it you heard her talking about surgery, then?”
I nod, not wanting to interrupt.
“Well, it won’t be the first surgery. Last year, in the middle of the season, I broke my ankle…surgery, healing, and two months of grueling rehab. But I was a machine…Talk about determination, nothing was going to stand between me and my goal of going pro. I was the first one in and the last one out every damn day at rehab center. And by winter break, Dr. Nguyen cleared me for playing.”
“That’s great.”
“Sure. It was great. But what did I do? I pushed. And pushed. Acted like I was invincible, like a damn fool. I just had to catch one last wave. And what happens? I blow out the same ankle. Just destroyed it, like I poured gasoline all over my hard work and threw the match. I sat out the entire last season and lost my place on the team. I have never been more disappointed in myself.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“Ah, you know. I did it to myself. The weird thing is, nothing matters more to me than sports. I’ve always been competitive—finish first place, number one, best in class.” He pauses and takes a long pull from his water bottle. “I don’t really know who I am if I’m not on a field or a court. This injury...it’s got me feeling lost, you know?”
I reach out to touch his arm, “You don’t have to talk about it if it’s too personal. I didn’t mean to pry.”
He shakes his head. “No, it’s actually great to get it out in the open. I haven’t really talked about it—not even with my brother or my best friend. Everyone knows me as the winner, and I don’t want them to see me as washed up or broken. Faulty.”
“Maybe it’s time to trust them,” I suggest gently. “To let other people in more.”
He takes a deep breath, nodding slowly. “Maybe so.”
“Maybe so?” I say, smiling. “I mean, you let me in just now. Don’t tell me you’re already having regrets?”
“Regretting you would be like turning away from a winning hand.”
“You’d better ante in then. I’m ready for our next adventure.”
Jerry grins and stands up, holding out his hand to help me up. “Come on, let’s find out.”
TEN
HUNTER
“You are gonna love this,” I tell Laine as we arrive at Pier Thirty-Nine. “It’s touristy, but trust me, it’s worth it.”
“What’s that stench?” She eyes me with a hint of suspicion, so I pull her to the railing where a raucous chorus of barks and grunts greets us. Her eyes light up as she spots the sea lions lounging on the docks below.
“Wow,” she breathes, leaning against the railing. “They’re incredible! There are so many of them, but they’re kind of stinky. Wait. Jerry, look at that guy, he’s huge. What’s he doing?”
The sea lion who caught Laine’s eye is ten times louder than the others, and he’s lifting his body up and flopping it down on his platform, stealing the limelight from his more laid-back companions. As Laine leans in closer for a better look, the show-off lets out a massive sneeze, sending a spray of sea lion snot-water in our direction.
“Yikes!” she yelps, dodging back just in time to avoid getting soaked. We both burst into laughter, sounding a lot like the sea lions.
“I think he might have done that on purpose, Laine. Look, he’s just the cut up of the pinniped world.” I point back to our sausage of a sea lion, who’s bouncing from one flipper to another, shaking them in the air like he’s doing jazz hands.
“Alright, he’s pretty funny when he’s not spraying me with disgust,” she admits, as she grabs my arm and wipes her face with the sleeve of my shirt. “Pinnipeds, huh? Aren’t you fancy. How do you know so much about San Francisco anyway? College student by day, sexy city tour guide by night?”
“Thanks, I was hoping you would use my shirt as a towel for your filthy face. And no, my sexy city tour guide schtick is for you alone. But to answer your question, my oldest sister bucked family tradition and went to school out here. My mama cried for days and days. To make her happy, my dad took as all west for every family vacation until my sister graduated.”
“Does she still live in California?”
“My sister? Nah. As soon as she graduated, she left for Maryland. Medical school. She’s the smart one in the family.”
“You’re pretty smart.”
“Me? Nope, I’m the good-looking one.” I give her a wink.
“And the modest one too?” she chuckles.
“Oh no, that’s my other sister. But enough about them. Let’s talk about me some more.”
“Mmm. You…” I watch as she rolls her lips as she pauses. They come back shiny and kissable, and I want nothing more than to seize that tempting mouth and never stop. But another part of me wants to hear what she’s thinking.
“You’re stalling.”
“I am stalling.”
“Okay, well, while you’re thinking, why don’t you put this on,” I reach an arm behind me and pull my sweatshirt out of my backpack. I hold it out. “It’s clean.”
She takes it from me and tilts her head. “Yeah, but why do I need it?”
“I don’t want you to get cold during the sunset cruise.”
“Sunset cruise? Jerry, you have spent a ton of money on me today. We can’t do a sunset cruise.”
“As your sexy city tour guide, we can’t not take a sunset cruise. It’s the only way to conclude a sexy city tour. Now try that on for size.”
She treats me to a bright smile and unfurls the rolled up hoodie, pulling it over her head. It’s like the world’s bulkiest mini dress on her. She turns in a circle. “Perfect fit. You sure I’m your only sexy tour customer? You’re so well-prepared.”
“First and only.” It comes out more seriously than I had meant it to, so I reach back into my backpack and fish out the other thing. “This is for you too.”
She takes the piece of paper and carefully unfolds it, revealing the photo tucked inside. “Oh my holy cuteness. Did you adopt a seal?”
“Well if you read the form, technically you adopted a seal. That’s Bilbo. He’s an elephant seal pup who got pretty banged up by a shark. Almost lost a flipper. You seem to gravitate to hard luck cases with limb issues, so I thought he seemed like a good match for you.”
I watch her as she reads through the certificate of adoption, lost in the dimples on either side of her sweet lips that I somehow missed all day long. “This is too touching. It appears that Bilbo took his surgery like a man-seal and after a month of tender loving care and much rehab, resumed his life as a healthy and vibrant member of the San Simeon elephant seal tribe. Such a brave seal pup. I bet all the girl seals try to swim beside Bilbo.”
She folds the photo carefully inside the paper, reaches up and tucks it back into my pack. “You see how I did that?”
“You’re so subtle, I almost missed it, but were you suggesting that like Bilbo, I should put my flipper in the capable hands of the Marine Mammal Center?”
“Oh shoot, not so smart. I guess you are just the good-looking one.”
“Shot through the heart,” I clutch at my chest like I’m fatally wounded.
“And we both know who’s to blame. Just remember Bilbo, Jerry. Brave little Bilbo. And thank you, by the way. I will treasure his sweet little whiskered photo forever. And this hoodie. No take backs.”
“I wanted you to have a souvenir of our first date.”
“First date?”
“Fine, let’s consider this pre-date zero until I wine and dine you properly.” I give her a roguish grin. “But that kiss felt pretty date-worthy to me…”
I move closer and gently tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear, letting my fingers trail down her cheek. “I know I should’ve asked you out on a proper date. But when you mentioned saying yes to trying new things this weekend, I couldn’t resist seizing the opportunity to spend the day with you… getting a little lost together.”
She takes my hand and turns it in hers, kisses my palm softly before letting go. “You’re much sweeter than I would have guessed. I thought you were just another arrogant jock-type, but you have this whole wounded but still winning thing going on that is—”
“Whoa. Hold it there. I’m definitely that arrogant jock-type. It’s part of my DNA. I think you secretly like it. In fact, I don’t think you’d be standing in front of me now looking all bold and beautiful if I were some Yoda quoting, Dungeons and Dragons playing, poetry writing Jerry.”
“That’s not true,” she laughs. “I love Yoda.”
“Deceitful you are, yes. A desire for arrogant athletes, I sense in you.” I give her a gentle poke in the arm, and leave the Yoda voice behind. “You go for athletic bad boys just like me, admit it. If a sensitive, Star Wars quoting boy I was, stand before me now, you would not.”
No sooner are the words out of my mouth, than I realize I’m accusing her of being deceitful, when I’ve been hiding my real identity from her all day. The irony is not lost on me. I have to come clean.
“Laine, listen—”
The minute I speak, a woman in aviator shades and a black beanie cap comes up and greets us. “Ahoy there. Ready to board? We set sail as soon as everyone’s settled in.”
We board the boat and claim a spot at the railing. Laine’s face lights up with delight at the sight of the sun dipping below the horizon, casting a warm glow over the water as the city lights up behind us.
She leans her head back against my chest, chin tilted up so I can see her lips. “This is so beautiful.”
Unable to resist, I lean in close. “Not as beautiful as you.”
Laine turns to face me, eyes sparkling with amusement and something more. Our laughter fades into the sounds of the waves and wind. Suddenly, I’m hyper-aware of her body just inches from mine. My heart pounds and I have to remind myself to take deeper breaths.
I step closer, backing her against the railing. Place my hands on either of her hips.
“Can I kiss you again?” she asks softly.
“I thought you’d never ask.”
She hesitates just a moment, eyes locked with mine. Slowly I lean in, lips meeting hers in a kiss both soft and searing. It deepens, leaving me dizzy. her hands find my shoulders, and I have to remind myself to breathe. Again.
I force myself to pull back. “I’m sorry if that was too much,” my voice comes out too fast and too thick. “You just ended things, and I’m pushing it, been pushing you all day.”
“No, it wasn’t too much. And if you’ve been pushing me, I’ve been pulling you.” Laine shakes her head, her eyes bright. “My heart broke up with Penn long before I had the courage to end the relationship. I never really loved him like I thought I did. And I’m not sorry for any of this. For the first time in forever, I feel like someone is seeing me...really seeing me.
“Not many people do,” Laine continues softly. “But you noticed things, like my favorite flower, and that I can’t stand sticky stuff on my fingers. Made me feel so valued, appreciated. Like I’m the only thing that matters.”
“Of course you matter,” I murmur, holding her close.
“On the surface, I know my life looks pretty good with the sorority and all the parties, and I have a lot of friends. But I’ve been searching for something real. Like what I feel here with you... honestly, I’ve felt so lonely. For months.”
I tenderly tuck a lock of windswept hair behind her ear, wanted to memorize everything about this moment. But the pit in my stomach only grows heavier. Laine is so honest and open. Here she is telling me about being lonely, and how her heart moved on from Penn Mitchell long ago…and she has no idea of my connection to him.
No clue about the web of deceit underpinning this entire day. She’s this amazing woman, and I’m feeling things I’ve never felt about anyone before. But I haven’t been honest about who I really am.
I’m feeling like a filthy liar. But the thought of losing what we’re building strangles the confession in my throat. I hold her tighter, like if I squeeze hard enough, I can keep her from disappearing in a frosty puff of disappointment and distaste.
ELEVEN
HUNTER
“Man, my luck might actually be changing.”
It falls straight from my mouth, a big old blurt. I hear a series of low snickers roll from the back of Laine’s throat, and immediately feel stupid.
Her eyes twinkle with mischief. “You didn’t mean to say that aloud, did you?”
“No ma’am. That was an internal thought that I couldn’t keep to myself, apparently. But…it’s true. You’re the luckiest thing that’s happened to me in forever and a day.”
“Okay. Be honest when you answer this. This morning, when you tried to palm your phone number off on me along with my tennis ball…what did you think would happen? Did you ever in a million years imagine that we would be walking past a park, holding hands? This evening? Together?” Laine asks, her eyes bright and full of bliss.
A minute goes by as I consider, taking it all in—the scent of freshly cut grass, the twinkle lights on trees lining the street, combined with the sound of her quiet laughter floating on the air makes me feel like we’re walking through a movie scene. I can’t help but smile at the thought. And at her.
“Truthfully?” I grin. “No. Not for a second. I had you pegged as particularly unimpressed with me. Especially at the rehab center, when you looked at me and bolted out of your hydrotherapy pool. But if I’m being honest here, I was shipping us. Hard. Just like I always hoped Hermione would go with Ron instead of Harry. And now? I feel like fate decided to throw us together twice in one day. Gotta be a reason for that, so I’m not taking even a second of the time I’ve gotten to spend with you for granted.”
“Me too,” Laine looks at me, her eyes sparkling. “It’s funny how life can change so quickly. You think the day, or life in general, is heading in one direction, and then it takes a quick turn. And I was so rude to you. You are so much sweeter and more considerate than I would have ever guessed, and I dismissed you as just another full of himself college athlete. I’m so sorry. I really misjudged you and didn’t even give you a chance this morning.”
She lowers her gaze, and all the sparkle is gone. She’s frowning deeply, like she’s guilty of a vast injustice. I know she’s kicking herself for judging me so harshly, and that’s the last thing I want her to feel. I stop and pull her into my arms, not in an embrace, but in a dance. I place my hand on the small of her back and hold her close enough that I can feel the heat of her. Slowly we move about, tracing a circle on the sidewalk, as I hum an old jazz standard, “La Vie en rose,” in her ear.
“Jerry, I feel bad that I—”
“Hush. There’s no time for that.” I drown out her protest by humming a little louder as I lead her through a slow dance. She relaxes against me, and it feels so right that I start singing ever so quietly when I get around to the chorus.
Tilting her head back, Laine smiles up at me, and it hits me like a flash—I could live here forever. Freeze this moment in time, with her looking at me like that, all warm and soft in my arms…it could be enough. Forever.
My memory fails me, or maybe it’s that I can’t think with her this close. Or maybe it’s the realization that it will never be better than this, no one will be better than this. Ever. Her hair smells amazing and the feel of her is torturous. I’ve never wanted anyone or anything more in all my days. I press a kiss against her hair and spin us around in a full circle, resorting to humming the words I can’t remember.
“I’ve always loved that song, but now I think it might be my favorite,” she whispers against my chest before leaning her head back and looking into my eyes.
I watch the corners of her mouth pull back, and the dimples come out. She licks her lips, but before I kiss her, she pulls back completely. “You know what? Because I rudely tossed it back at you, I don’t even have your phone number.”
Slowly, reluctantly, I let her hand fall from mine. She needs a little space between us. She fishes her phone out of her bag, and as I watch her searching, I wonder, for not the first time, what I did to deserve to meet someone as sensational as Laine Summers.
“Ready.”
I take her left hand and tap eight times against the back of it.
