Page 93 of Make My Heart Malt

She strolls into the room and takes a seat on the edge of the bed. “For what?”

“I’m not entirely sure, but he wouldn’t call if it wasn’t serious.” I grab a pair of jeans from the shelf and pull them on. “I’ll be back in an hour or so. Will you be alright?”

“Yeah. Don’t worry about me.”

Bending down, I place a kiss on her lips. In the foyer, I pluck my hoodie from the bench, slide my feet into my shoes, and I’m out the door.

When I reach Skip’s office, I knock on the door frame before poking my head through the doorway. “You wanted to see me?”

He lifts his head. “Garrett. Come in. Close the door behind you.”

My palms sweat as I shut the door with a click. He motions for me to take a seat in the leather armchair in front of his desk. Once I’m seated, he clasps his hands in front of him. His hard steely gaze meets mine. “I’m going to cut to the chase. You know it’s against club policy for any players or staff members to be associated with any gambling involving the sport?”

I’m clueless as to why he’s asking me this. My heart is one beat away from busting through my chest. “Yes.”

“There are rumors along with an anonymous tip that crossed my desk involving a G. Dawson placing bets against the Seattle Warblers. With the possibility of you throwing last year’s game.”

“That’s bullshit!” What the fuck? Bets? “I didn’t place any bets! And I certainly didn’t purposely sabotage the game.” I shove the chair away and rise to my feet. “It wasn’t me! You’re just going to believe some fucking rumors?”

“Garrett.” His voice is stern. He nods at the chair. “Take a seat.”

“Then tell me what’s happening.” I hook my foot around the chair leg, pulling it closer before I sit.

“The club investigated these rumors because players can’t place bets on baseball.”

“I know.” I can’t keep the bite out of my tone. My irritation grows stronger every second he doesn’t tell me what this is about.

His hard gaze meets mine. “After the investigation, the name was traced back to a Georgia Dawson. Is that name familiar to you?”

My blood boils. Fucking Tony. This has his name plastered all over it. I pinch my lips together. “Yeah. That’s my brother’s wife—or ex-wife.”

“It seems like he has some animosity toward you. At this time, he hasn’t done anything illegal against the club, so there isn’t anything for us to do, but if you need anything, let me know.”

I nod before dropping my head in my hands. I’m done with Tony and his shit. This needs to stop. I rake my fingers through my hair, then meet his gaze. “Thanks, Skip.”

On the drive back to my condo, I white-knuckle the steering wheel wishing it was Tony’s neck instead. He’s gone too far this time. Trying to jeopardize my career and involving innocent people while he does it. He has zero regard for anyone but himself.

I shift my SUV into park in the underground parking garage at my condo. Before stepping out, I unlock my phone and pull up Tony’s number. I don’t know if he got my previous message because he never responded, but I hope he gets this one. And that it’s loud and fucking clear. My jaw clenches as the phone rings several times. Hisvoicemail picks up. I steady my breathing before it beeps. “I don’t know what the fuck your agenda is, but it’s not going to fucking work. Leave me alone. For good. I’m done putting up with your shit. As for Dessa, you better not touch her. Better yet, don’t even go near her,” I seethe. “It won’t end like you want it to. It’s time to move on.” I end the call. I’m not sure if he’ll stop, but I hope so.

When I push open the door to my condo, Dessa, who’s now fully dressed with her hair pulled into a ponytail, races to meet me in the foyer.

“What happened?” Concern laces her voice.

“Tony. Tony happened.”

“What do you mean?”

I intertwine our fingers and lead her into the living room, taking a seat on the couch. She sits cross-legged next to me as I fill her in on the whole story. For the rest of the afternoon we shove anything to do with Tony behind us. Dessa assures me we’re strong together, and he can never break what we have. Never again.

Later in the evening, we exit my condo and head to the parking garage. Buildings zoom past us as we make our way across the city. Her face is glued to the window taking in all the sights, especially when the Puget Sound comes into view. I pull into an alleyway that opens to a small parking lot behind a large steel building.

She turns to me. “What is this place? Some sort of indoor batting practice to embarrass me?”

I laugh. “No, but we can do that next time. This is something more for your benefit than mine.” Her legs press together as she squirms in her seat. “Are you okay over there? You’re doing a lot of wiggling.”

“When you said it would be more for my benefit, I imagined you taking me to a sex club and offering me multiple orgasms over and over again.”

The corners of my lips tip up into a smile. “I can offer you the orgasms, but I don’t need a sex club to do it.” A pink blush covers her cheeks. “All the orgasms will have to wait because we’re here.”

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