Page 66 of Knox
“Morning,” he rasped. “Why are you up so early?”
I smiled. “Just felt like watching you.”
He pushed up on his elbow. “You know, from anyone else, that would sound creepy as hell.”
“Yeah.” I leaned over and gave his stubbled chin a quick peck. “But you love it when I check you out, so I know you won’t complain.”
“True.” He scooted closer and slipped an arm around me.
I let myself sink into him. “I missed waking up with you and starting the day together.”
He trailed his fingers up and down my side. “Me too. Being sidelined because of an injury sucks, but being away from you is a hundred times worse.”
It no longer sounded like he was trying to convince me of my place with him; rather, he was simply being honest about his feelings. The night before, I had needed the reassurances, but this morning, I focused on the way he was holding me, stroking my side, and the warmth of our bodies pressed together. Those simple actions left me with no doubt of where I belonged.
I turned my head and pressed another kiss to his shoulder, then nudged him. “Come on, let’s make breakfast before we go see Grady. I’ve got a shit ton of chocolate in my bag for all of you.”
“We should probably take Grady out for a bit if you’re going to give him candy when we see him.”
I laughed. “Mallory’s probably still not up for dealing with a sugared-up kid, huh?”
“She might ban you from the house,” he teased, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. “Which wouldn’t work well for me since I like having you around.”
“Aww, look at you being sweet again.” I followed him out of bed.
“You’re the only one who gets to see that side of me.” He winked.
We moved through our morning as usual, making coffee, whipping up some scrambled eggs and bacon, and stealing kisses as we moved around the kitchen.
After we ate, Crew leaned against the counter and held up his phone. “Do you think we should post something to The Loop? It’s been over a week.”
“Let’s give the people what they want.” I stood and walked over to him.
We recorded a small recap of ourboringmorning. And maybe boring was exactly what we needed in that moment.
We spentsome time with Grady before heading to the stadium. Just as we had before the games prior to the road trip, I headed for the clubhouse, while Crew went to see Reynolds in the training room.
As good as it felt to be with my boyfriend, I couldn’t wait until he got cleared and was behind the plate again where he belonged.
After batting practice, I changed into my uniform and then headed back to the field. When I stepped into the dugout, the grounds crew was finishing chalking the lines, and the fans were filling up the seats quickly. The energy that came from playing in front of a home crowd was unlike anything else.
Crew came up a minute later, trailing behind Reynolds. He used his good hand to offer fist bumps to some of our teammates before dropping onto the bench a few feet down from Parker. His gaze landed on me, and he offered me a flirty grin. I blew him a kiss in return.
“You two need to get a room,” Pearson cracked from behind me.
“You jealous?” I asked without turning around.
“Of you and your boyfriend? Fuck no. I’m not one to be tied down. See those two blondes over there?” He pointed to a groupright behind home plate. “I’ve got plans with both of them after the game. Bet you can’t remember the last time you enjoyed a celebratory threesome.”
“Are you talking about the one trying to take a selfie with her hot dog, and the other flirting with the cameraman?” I shook my head. “Dude, your taste in hook ups is even worse than your batting average when we were in Albuquerque.”
He gasped, playfully. “Words hurt, Singleton.”
“Not as much as watching you go oh for three,” I tossed back as Matthewson told us to get our asses lined up for the national anthem.
Pearson flipped me off with a smile before jogging onto the grass.
It was game time.
