Page 28 of The Battery
Leo rotated on a slow pivot to level a gaze at me.Damn it.
“Please. Go on.”
I cleared my throat and found some gym shorts to wear as pajama bottoms. “Nothing. I just… um, had afriend. In Providence.”
He sat at the edge of his bed and pushed his suitcase back. Folded his arms. “Spill.”
“Oh, hell no,” I said. I had a thing going with one of the pitching coaches. Nothing serious. We did wine and dine together sometimes. No strings attached fun that amicably ended halfway through the season.
I closed my suitcase and gave him a pointed look. “Unless you want to shareyourprevious exploits?”
I could see the disappointment in his eyes. He just genuinely wanted to hear about my past. A curious look into someone he cared about? Or in need of salacious details?
Leo stood, got what he needed from his suitcase, and put it back on the floor. “Fair enough.”
I made quick work of changing right there in front of him. The unceremonious display of semi-nudity wasn’t even remotely sexual. We had already showered at the stadium. Now, an overabundance of fatigue negated any amount of libido that tried to assert itself. I just wanted to crawl into bed. Bone weary.
“Got some highlight reels,” Leo said and wagged a tablet at me. “Wanna watch?”
Daaaaaamn it, I thought. “Sure.”
He pushed his way onto his bed, then scooted to one side, an innocent invitation to which I ascribed a deeper meaning.
Just a review. Like we do all the time. Right before Blow Job O’Clock.
Our bare toes knocked together as I sat sidelong next to him. His left side. Along his tattooed leg. My hands had gripped those thighs plenty of times in the past several weeks. Visceral, in need. Urging him to finish as quickly as possible, as a matter of pride. I created a competition with myself. How enthusiastically could I fall to my knees for him? How quickly could I get him to finish because I was that good?
And now, our legs next to each other, shoulders pressed, I wanted time to stretch from minutes to hours. Despite the showers in the guest clubhouse, I could still smell his cologne. What’s more, I had come to learnhisscent, which remained deeper, beyond the surface of his perfume. His quiet calm, the projected ease. I felt my heart hammer in my chest.
All just by sitting next to him?
Get it together, Cody.
Leo moved deftly through the menus on his tablet. In seconds he had a string of highlight reels queued up. “The sinker. Your third throw here. I want you to watch your shoulder.”
“Okay.”
He placed the tablet so it rested on his thigh but angled his body partially so he could face me. That damned Spartan beard of his tickled my face as he pointed. “There. See that twitch right before you throw?”
His presence vanished, replaced now by my awareness of a lesson. “Oh. The hell? I didn’t even know I did that.”
“Yeah, I noticed tonight. Okay, now watch when you’re ready to throw a changeup…”
We spent only twenty minutes going through the highlights. Leo’s voice remained strong and informative while mine waned, punctuated by lion-like yawns every other sentence. Half-lidded eyes and weary muscles caused me to lean deeper into Leo, as if he were a pillow. I fought the slow push toward him. He was not a man with whom one cuddled. But the way he softened the gruff bass of his voice, almost a whisper, his mouth just inches away from my ear… And the way our long, bare legs lined up, as if our upper bodies could be bare as well.
When the last reel played, and after Leo’s last suggestion, I thanked him and slunk away from his bed. I thought I felt the phantom of his fingers against the small of my back as I turned away, but who knows for sure? I crawled into my own bed, now separated by the dual lamps on the nightstands between us.
“I can barely keep my eyes open,” I confessed to him as I dropped my phone onto its charging cradle.
“We should keep reviewing,” he said, his voice strong. Energized.
My eyes drooped closed as I pulled the sheets up to partially conceal my face. Leo had set the AC nice and low when we got in. “Should, yeah. But I’m tired, Leo. You can keep reviewing.”
I spun and put my back to him and his bed. Yes, I wanted to continue reviewing with him. Yes, I wanted to re-create our fun by the pool in this little hotel room. But no, I had to draw a line somewhere. Besides—I truly was tired.
I’d have to sleep tonight without my white noise. I wasn’t sure how Leo liked to sleep. I contemplated getting out my headphones, but my weariness was deep enough to not need the bedtime usuals.
Thoughts spiraled. Sleep, blissfully mere seconds away…
