The Perfect Pitch (Indianapolis Lightning Book 1)

by Samantha Lind

  “What did we just do?” I whisper against his skin and he chuckles at me.

  “We just came in our pants like two horny teenagers,” he says, and it’s then I realize I can feel a lot of wetness between my legs.

  “You…you came?” I squeak, popping up to look at him.

  “Like a fucking fifteen-year-old the first time he sees a pair of tits.” He laughs. “It’s what happens when it’s been so long since I’ve touched you. My hand only provides so much relief.”

  “Y-your hand?” I question. I never worried Derek would cheat on me when we were together, but I never expected him to become celibate after we divorced. I know he could have his choice of any woman—hell, last night was proof of that—but I’m blown away he hasn’t been with anyone at all.

  “There’s been no one?” I question.

  “Nope,” he affirms, popping the P for emphasis. “I told you that I’d be coming for you. Why would I fuck that opportunity up by fucking some random chick? I only have eyes for you, Jillian.” He pushes a lock of my hair from my face and behind my ear before cupping my cheek.

  “I-I don’t know. I just… I don’t know what I thought. I just never expected you to be a saint. It wouldn’t have been cheating.”

  “Have you been with someone else?” he questions, and I can tell it pains him to do so.

  “No! God, no.” Derek was my first, and the thought of just sleeping with a random person “just because” isn’t high on my list of things I want to do right now.

  “Then we’re on the same page. You need some sexual release, you come to me. If I need some sexual release, I’ll come to you or fall back on the ole hand.”

  “It’s not that simple, Derek.”

  “But it can be. You know we’re good together. I’ve already expressed my intentions going forward. Go on a date with me.”

  “A date?” I question.

  “Yes. You. Me. Let me show you that I’ve changed. Let me show you that it can be like it was in the beginning.”

  I blow out a large breath, mulling over his suggestion. “Okay,” I tell him, and his face lights up.

  “You won’t regret it,” he says before dropping a chaste kiss to my lips. He shifts so I’m no longer pinned and lowers me to the floor. We both look down at the mess we made from our tryst against the wall, and he smirks. “I’m going to go get cleaned up.”

  “Sorry about that.”

  “I’m not. I’ll gladly do it again.” He bounces his eyebrows at me, and I fall into a fit of giggles. “Goodnight, Jillian,” he says a moment later as he walks toward his room.

  I stay standing in the spot he left me, biting my lip, wondering what in the hell just happened. What did I just get myself into by agreeing to go on a date with him?

  I hear the water in his bathroom turn on. Oh no, I can’t think of him naked and under the water for too long, or I might lose all control and join him in the shower. So, I force my feet to move and head toward my own room. I change my sleep shorts and panties, since we made a mess of the ones I have on.

  I slip into bed, sated as he said I would be, and maybe just a tad bit excited about the date he’s going to take me on in the near future.

  Fifteen

  Derek

  Since the moment Jillian said yes to a date, to another chance at us, my mind has been reeling on what I can plan for said date. I don’t really want to wait until we get home, so I set into place some elaborate plans, but ones I hope pay off in the end.

  The next few days fly by, between rides and princess appointments and more character meetings than I can count. Today is a down day and we’re just spending it at the pool. What Jillian and the girls don’t know is that my parents are flying in to join us for the last few days of our vacation. I decided the date couldn’t wait until we got home. I needed to go big, and this will hopefully make Jillian realize I’m all-in.

  “Daddy!” Penny calls from the side of the pool. “Catch me!” she adds before jumping in, and I do as she asks. The girl has zero fear when it comes to the pool. Thankfully, for three years old, she’s a pretty good swimmer due to all the lessons Jillian has had the girls in since they were infants.

  “How about we go down the slide?” I suggest to both of them.

  “Yay!” they cheer as they cling to me. I walk us out of the pool, thanks to the zero-entry end, and around to the entrance to the slide. I grab a tube for all of us to ride on and we climb the stairs to the top.

  “Mommy!” Addison calls down to Jillian. “Watch us!” she shouts, and Jillian gives us a thumbs up. It’s finally our turn and I get the girls situated on the tube, then wait for the signal we can go down. My ears are filled with the giggles from both of them as we zoom down the slide. This particular one dumps us into a lazy river, so once we make it to the end, we relax as we make our way around.

  “Are you girls ready for some lunch?” I ask as we approach the exit to the river.

  “Yep!” they both tell me at the same time.

  “Good, because Daddy is starving!” I tell them, moving in to pretend to eat their bellies.

  I pull away when it’s time for me to steer us to the exit. With the girls out of the water, I toss the tube into the corral and we take off to find Jillian. She’s still kicked back in her lounge chair, a fruity drink next to her and her kindle out.

  “Hey, Momma. We’re ready for some lunch, what do you say?”

  “Sounds good to me,” she says. “We can flag down our server and order.”

  We rented a cabana for the day to give us a tiny bit of privacy, and to give us a place to have some shade when needed. Besides the first night at the restaurant, we haven’t had any other issues with fans bothering us. I’ve signed a few things for some kids who recognized me, and taken a handful of pictures, but nothing too bothersome.

  “I have a surprise for the three of you,” I tell my girls after we’ve finished our lunch. Jillian’s eyebrows raise in question at me.

  “Tell us!” the girls both chime in. This week has been chock-full of nothing but surprises for them each day with the events Jillian has planned for this trip.

  “It will be arriving at the hotel later this afternoon, probably about four o’clock.”

  “And what is it that’s being delivered?” Jillian asks.

  “You’ll find that out later,” I tell her, and she rolls her eyes at me.

  “So, you’re just going to drop that little tease on us and not give us anything else?” she quips.

  I smirk. “Yep.”

  “Daddy, that’s not nice,” Addison says, her little hands going to her hips as she gives me a look that could kill. I can’t help it, but I bust out laughing at her little sassy attitude. She’s going to be one hell of a handful in ten years.

  “That’s right. You tell him, Addison,” Jill tells her.

  “Okay, one hint. Someone is coming to spend the rest of our vacation with us,” I reply. “But that’s all you get until they arrive.”

  Jill gives me a shocked look, one that tells me she’s on to my scheming ways.

  After lunch, we all take a rest on the lounge chairs in our cabana. The girls veg out with the iPad and a Disney movie while Jillian dives back into reading her book. I kick back with my phone in hand, perusing social media and such, when my phone pings with a text message from one of my best friends and teammates.

  Justin: What’s up? You back in town yet?

  Derek: Nope. Sitting in a cabana at the moment. What are you up to?

  Justin: Just chilling. Was going to go hit up TopGolf and wanted to see if you wanted to meet me there, but that isn’t going to happen.

  Derek: Not today, but I’ll hit you up when we get back. My parents are on their way to spend the next few days with us here. I’ve worn Jillian down and she agreed to a date, so that’s happening.

  Justin: Tell me how is it that you’re still pussy whipped when you’re not even tapping it?

  Derek: Just a matter of time, man. Patience is key and I�
��ve got the patience of a fucking saint. That, and I had her coming on my dick the other night. Not exactly how I’d wanted her coming as there was three layers of fabric between us, but at least she let me touch her.

  Justin: Damn dude. Well, I hope it pans out for you. You know I’ve always liked Jillian. She’s a cool chick. Has to be to put up with your moody ass.

  Derek: You’ll find the right woman one of these days and you’ll realize that she’s worth moving mountains for. And I’ll have a blast watching you fall, my man.

  Justin: I’m good with the single life. No need to tie myself down.

  Derek: I’ll remind you of this conversation when the inevitable happens.

  Justin: Later fucker.

  Derek: Later.

  We’ve waited long enough to safely return to the pool since eating, so I grab both girls and we take off for the water once again. They jump off the side of the pool and ride the slides so many times I lose count. We’re all finally exhausted from the time in the water and sun, so we call it an afternoon and head back up to our room. My parents will be here soon, so I jump in the shower to wash off the chlorine and sunscreen from the day, then head down to the lobby to meet them and bring them up. I was able to secure the suite next to ours for them, so it makes it easy and convenient.

  “I’ve got your surprise!” I call out a short while later as I open the suite door, getting their attention. I hold the door open for my parents to walk through and the girls immediately spring up when they see them.

  “Nana! Papa!” they both call out as they run to give them hugs.

  “What a surprise!” Jill says, standing to hug my parents.

  “We were thrilled when Derek called us the other day and asked if we’d like to fly down. He took care of all the arrangements. All we had to do was pack a bag and get ourselves to the airport this morning,” Mom tells Jill.

  “Well, I’m glad that you could join us. We’ve been having a great time.”

  “From the pictures you’ve posted so far, it looks like an amazing week so far,” my mom says.

  I touch my mom’s arm. “Your suite is the one right next door, so you don’t have far to go.”

  “We still need to check in,” my dad says.

  “Since I booked everything last-minute, they couldn’t send you the magic bands in the mail, but they assured me they’d have them for you guys at check-in.”

  “That’s fine. So, what’s the plan for the rest of the day?” Mom asks, mainly to Jill.

  “Today was a down day for us. We spent most of it at the pool. We actually just came back up about forty-five minutes ago. We’ll probably be ready to head to dinner in about an hour, so if you guys want to go get all checked in and unpacked, we can go once you’re done.”

  “Sounds perfect,” Mom tells her.

  “I’ll head down with you guys to make sure there’s no issues with the check-in process,” I say, then lead the way.

  “Did you get your parents all settled?” Jillian asks after I return to the room.

  “I did. The front desk had everything ready and waiting for them. They were going to unpack and freshen up before coming over so we can head for dinner soon.”

  “Oh, good. I’m starving!”

  “Yeah, me too. All that time in the pool really did me in today. I’m just as tired as I’ve been from walking around in the parks all day,” I state.

  “That’s why I planned for a down day. I knew we’d be exhausted from all the long days.”

  “Smart idea, for sure. Are we just planning on heading down to the restaurant in the hotel tonight?”

  “Either that, or we can order in something if you don’t want to go out.”

  “Let’s do that. Then everyone can be comfortable, and no crowds,” I reply. “Do we have a menu we can order from?”

  “I think so, let me check.” Jillian walks over to the desk in the room. She opens a binder and flips through the pages. “Here it is. Pretty much anything we could potentially want,” she says, handing it over to me. I send my mom a quick text.

  Derek: Jillian and I were just talking about dinner and think we’d all just stay in and order. Do you guys want to look at the menu and let me know what you want so we can order it.

  M+D: Sounds good to us. I’ll pull it out and take a look. Dad is in the shower, so it will be a few minutes before he can look it over.

  Derek: No problem.

  M+D: I’ll take the Caesar Salad with grilled shrimp, as well as an extra order of grilled shrimp, please. I’ll either report back with Dad’s or he can just give it to you once we’re over there after he’s done showering.

  Derek: Got it down.

  “Mom already gave me her order. Dad’s will be along shortly,” I tell Jillian. I jot down on a sheet of paper Mom’s order, as well as my own and hand it over, so she can put her own down, as well as what she thinks the girls will want.

  “Move over,” I tell Addison as I attempt to squeeze myself between my girls. “Daddy wants to snuggle.”

  They allow me to squeeze in, then quickly plaster themselves to my sides as they snuggle up. There’s nothing like being pinned down by two little girls. Nothing compares to this, and I wouldn’t change it for anything.

  Sixteen

  Jillian

  “I might have had ulterior motives when I invited my parents to join us,” Derek tells me as we sit out on the balcony, a glass of wine in my hand and a beer in his.

  I look over at him, raising my eyebrows in question. “And that would be what?”

  A smirk tugs at the corner of his lips. Those damn kissable lips I’ve had to keep myself from kissing whenever I want.

  “That date that you agreed to go on with me. I didn’t want to wait until we got back home, so tomorrow night, the girls will hang out with my parents while we go out.”

  I set my wine glass down on the little table between us, a little flabbergasted he’d bring his parents all the way to Florida just so we can go out on a date. “Are you serious?”

  “As a heart attack,” he says, pinning me with his eyes.

  “I-I just don’t know what to say. The fact that you brought your parents here last-minute, were able to secure the suite next to us, everything that goes into being here for multiple days.” I suck in a deep breath, allowing myself a few moments to let what he’s just said sink in. “All so, what, we can go on a date?”

  “Pretty much,” he states, matter-of-factly. “I didn’t want to give you the chance to back out, or for us to get home and things to get busy, and it not happen. So, I pulled some strings, and made things happen. I figured this was a good use of my celebrity status and bank account balance.” He laughs lightly.

  “I guess so.”

  “So, Jillian, will you do me the honors of going out with me tomorrow night?”

  “Yes, I’ll go out with you on a date,” I agree, and the butterflies start their dancing in my belly, just as they did all those years ago when I finally gave in to his request for a date in college.

  “You look beautiful. Has Derek told you where he’s taking you yet?” my former mother-in-law, Elizabeth, asks me after I exit the bathroom, where I was applying some makeup and fixing my hair.

  “Nope. He’s kept it a secret. Did he tell you?”

  “Nope. That boy of mine has been tight-lipped.”

  “He’s up to something, that’s for sure.”

  “All for a good cause,” she says, a hopeful hint to her voice and facial expression.

  I’ve always gotten along great with his family. They welcomed me in with open arms the first time we met, after Derek and I had been dating for a few months. They’ve always been that perfect extended family, supportive when we needed it, yet allowing us to make our own path in life.

  “Are you ready to go?” Derek asks. I look over my shoulder to see him leaning against the doorway, and do my best to give him a cheeky reply, but it falls flat as his appearance jumbles my thoughts. The bastard knows damn well what it does t
o me when he wears a pair of slacks and button-down with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. The sinewy muscles of his forearms make my ovaries scream. I’m liable to turn into a pile of drool if I’m not careful.

  “Yes,” I finally push out, more breathily than I’d hoped to answer him.

  “Let’s go then.” He holds out a hand for me to grab, and I’m not sure if he’s offering it to me in support because he knows I’ll be on shaky legs after seeing him dressed this way, or if it’s because he wants to touch me. Either way is perfectly fine with me, at the moment. He could toss me over his shoulder and take me directly to his bed and I wouldn’t complain right now.

  “Have fun, you two!” Elizabeth calls out. “We won’t wait up for you, and we’ll get up with the girls in the morning, so enjoy your night.”

  “Thanks, Mom,” Derek calls over his shoulder as he opens our suite door, escorting me out.

  “So, where are you taking me?” I ask as we ride the elevator down to the first floor.

  “Dinner, then a stroll through the different countries as we sample wine from each of them.”

  “That sounds perfect,” I tell him as I allow him to link his fingers with mine. We exit the main doors and one of the bellmen greets us by name.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Smyth, your ride is right this way.” We follow behind him and I gasp when I see the Cinderella-like carriage waiting for us to climb up into.

  Once we’re settled, the driver gives instructions to the horses pulling us and we take off for the restaurant.