Page 90 of Playing the Field
“Oh, Tink. I was trying to get into something, but it wasn’t that.”
Her face goes a deeper shade of scarlet, and I pull her toward me. Her body hits my chest, and I wrap her in my arms. Right now, I don’t give a shit who else is in the store or what they feel like putting on social media. If the world sees me kissing the woman I love, all the better.
I kiss her softly, but that’s never enough when I get started with her. Never will be. Within seconds, my hands cup her face, and I deepen the kiss. Probably too much PDA for normal circumstances, but we’re in a romance bookstore for fuck’s sake. Anyone in here gets what it means to fall so hard for a woman that the outside world falls away.
It’s the fairy tale. The happily ever after. Only I’m lucky enough to be living it.
Well, except for one thing, but our evening isn’t over yet.
Gracie pulls away and smiles up at me. “Let’s do some shopping. When your house is done, that bedside table is going to need some new books.”
I follow her around the store, grabbing a book every time I see her look longingly at a cover. “You really want to read that one?” She raises an eyebrow when I pick up something about being romanced by a regal.
I shrug. “Maybe I’ll have you read me the good stuff.”
She laughs. “If it inspires you, I’ll read whatever you want.”
We spend a few more minutes shopping until I’m weighted down with a stack of books, a few of which I actually intend to read. The rest are for her. We drop them off in the trunk of my car, and I run through a visual map of places I noticed in the area for dinner ideas. I’m still determined to have the date I want with her tonight.
Then I have a different idea. “Trust me?” I ask, opening the passenger door and taking her hand to guide her into the car.
“More than I trust anyone.”
I freeze.
My therapist has taught me that certain trigger words evoke feelings, but this is next level. Knowing she trusts me hollows out a space in my chest that lets my heart swell with so much love that it hurts. My breath catches in my throat, and I feel leveled in a way that no blow on a soccer field could ever match.
Looking at Gracie sitting in my passenger seat, I’ve never felt more certain that everything in my life was somehow perfectly synchronized to bring me to this moment.
Every penalty that led to me almost getting fired. Every mistake and emotional miscue that made me finally get my shit together so I can be the man she deserves.
I’m the sum of all my failings, only now they look like successes.
“I love you, Gracie Albright. That’s it. That’s all I’ve got.”
I kiss her hand before closing the car door and going around to my side.
“It’s everything,” she says, and it’s true.
She tilts her seat back a few inches and rolls down the window. The light breeze immediately has its way with her tangle of wavy hair, but it doesn’t stop me from seeing the contented smile on her face.
CHAPTER 47
Gracie
The city slipsby in a blur outside the car, but for once, I don’t find myself clocking all the details of my surroundings or wondering where we’re going. It doesn’t matter.
I meant it when I said I trust Hunter. Everywhere he’s taken me so far has been better than I could have imagined, and it feels good to open my heart and trust that wherever we’re headed now will be good.
Things at work have been a little awkward as word has passed around the office about Hunter and me. Once Ashley finished giving me a hard time for keeping it from her, she told me she was impressed that I’d kept things under wraps and not let anything slip, even the night of the game when he grabbed me in the hallway and I played it off like I was as surprised as anyone. “If the computer science doesn’t work out, you should be a spy,” she told me. “And remember, I’m your friend. I’d have kept your secret and even given you good advice. You can trust me.”
One more person urging me to let my walls down. One more reminder that there are good people out there worth trusting.
Hunter drives west, and the sun shines bright through the windshield. He pops on a pair of sunglasses and smooths a hand through his hair. The wind from the open windows blows it back from his face, and I marvel at how beautiful he looks as the sun kisses his skin. Without taking his eyes from the road, he brings his hand to my knee and softly pushes up the fabric of my dress until his hand is on bare skin.
I put my hand on his and lean back against the headrest. “I wouldn’t even care if we don’t have a destination. We could do this for a while,” I say.
“Agreed. But I have a destination in mind. Are you hungry?”
