Fair Catch

by Ruddick, Jessica

  Jake shoved his hands in his pockets, suddenly self-conscious. “Most people don’t get to walk on the field until graduation. I thought you might like to see it.”

  The way he looked at me gave me the impression he was seeking my approval. I gladly gave it to him in the form of a kiss. “This is awesome. The stadium looks so much bigger from down here. Do you get nervous when you play?” Although Jake hadn’t played much this past season, he’d played his sophomore year.

  “The first time, I was nervous as hell. But after a few snaps, I settled in. Now I don’t even notice the crowd. Some players, like Carson, feed off the energy of the fans, but not me. I focus on the game.” He took my hand again. “Let’s go to the fifty-yard line.”

  Now I understood why he’d brought flip-flops for me to wear. I gestured to them. “How did you know my size?”

  “Ashley did some recon for me. She worried you wouldn’t wear shoes good for walking in grass.”

  I gasped in mock astonishment. “Jake Truitt, did you use the children as your own personal spies?”

  “Nope, just one child.” He tapped the bag on his shoulder. “But Emily was in on it too.”

  Jake seemed to know exactly where the fifty-yard line was even though the lines weren’t painted. He pulled a blanket out of the bag and spread it out. I sat, putting my arms behind me to brace myself, and stretched my legs. Jake passed me a plastic container that I recognized as one I’d selected during our kitchen shopping spree.

  I opened the lid to find misshapen cookies.

  “Emily made them,” Jake explained. “All by herself.”

  “Aww, that’s so sweet. If I had known, I wouldn’t have had dessert at the restaurant.”

  “Well, I’m not sure how good they are. She improvised on the recipe. This might be one of those ‘it’s the thought that counts’ moments.”

  Laughing, I passed him a cookie. “I’ll let you do the honors of being first.”

  He took a small bite and grimaced. “It’s… edible.”

  “Poor Emily. I bet she tried really hard too.”

  “She did. She spent hours in the kitchen this afternoon.”

  “It’s too bad Danielle isn’t in town for the summer. I can get by in the kitchen, but that girl is magic when it comes to baking.”

  Jake tucked the cookie back into the container and lay on his back next to me. He put his hands behind his head, closed his eyes, and inhaled deeply.

  I lay back and folded my arms on my stomach. “You miss it, don’t you?”

  “Yeah. I didn’t realize how much until recently.”

  I found his hand, laced my fingers with his, and squeezed. “You’ll be back on the field soon.”

  “Some days, I agree with you. Other days, I’m not so sure.”

  “I don’t know a lot about football, and I don’t know Wyatt well, but I know him well enough to know he wouldn’t waste time with you if he didn’t think you were the best player to take over for Freddie.”

  He was silent for a few moments. “How do you always know what to say? To me, to Emily, to Ashley… hell, even to Ben.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I sputtered.

  He propped himself up on one elbow. “I don’t know what you said to Ben, but he hasn’t complained about doing his homework once since you talked to him about it.”

  “Really?” I was shocked. I hadn’t said anything extraordinary. At least I didn’t think I had. I couldn’t remember exactly what the hell I’d said.

  “Yeah. My sisters adore you.” His gaze roamed my face and landed on my mouth. “Hell, I adore you too.”

  I raised my hand to his cheek. “Jake…”

  “I’m sorry if I’m moving too fast for you. But I of all people know that tomorrow is not guaranteed, and I don’t want to waste time fucking around. This feels right to me.” He eyes searched mine, voicing an unspoken question.

  “It feels right to me too,” I whispered.

  Then his mouth was on mine, kissing me with an urgency, like he wouldn’t get another chance. His hand raked up the side of my body, over the thin material of my dress. My skin burned to feel his touch with nothing between us.

  I wrapped my arms around him and rocked my body toward his. I lost myself in the moment, in the feeling of Jake. Everything about this feels right.

  When he abruptly pulled away and cursed, my body, which had just been full of heat, went cold.

  Retracting my arms, I opened my eyes to find Jake frowning down at me. “What?” I suddenly felt self-conscious. Then I saw what he had obviously seen—the lights blinked.

  “That’s our cue to leave,” Jake said.

  My cheeks burned. I’d totally forgotten there was a crew working on the stadium.

  With shuttered eyes, Jake chuckled. “You’re cute when you’re embarrassed.”

  His comment only made me blush harder.

  He stood, letting me sit up, then offered me a hand. “Come on. As much as I’d rather lie here with you all night, we should go.”

  ***

  Jake

  I HAD BEEN patting myself on the back for the great idea of going to the stadium, but now I was cursing myself. Shitty timing. I’d thought we would have much more time.

  Time, time, time… Whether it was finding time to study for my classes, fit in an extra training session, or spend time kicking the soccer ball in the yard with Emily, there simply wasn’t enough of it. And there was never enough time to spend with Rachel, especially just the two of us.

  She centered me and made me believe I was strong enough to do what was right for everyone in my family, including me. She was what was right for me. Stolen moments weren’t enough. I wanted more. But I wasn’t sure how the hell I could manage it without dropping one of the balls I was juggling.

  Reluctantly, I walked Rachel up to her apartment.

  She fished her keys out of her purse. “Should I invite you in? I want to, but I know you probably need to get home.”

  My fist lightly pounded against the wall. “You’d better not.”

  The disappointment that she quickly masked killed me. “I understand.”

  “I wish I could. You know that, right? But I—”

  She put her finger to my lips. “I understand,” she repeated. “You don’t need to explain.”

  Comments like that reminded me of why she was so perfect—she understood and accepted that I had a responsibility to my siblings. I didn’t resent them, but times like this sure as hell made me wish my circumstances were different.

  I yanked Rachel against me, wanting to show her how much I wanted to stay. Holding the back of her head with my hand, I explored her mouth with my tongue. The moan that escaped her made me fight to not say fuck my responsibilities and seize the moment. The night had been nearly perfect, except it was ending too soon.

  It should be ending with Rachel writhing underneath me while I drove her wild again and again.

  She pulled away, breathing deeply. “Don’t start something you can’t finish.”

  This girl was killing me. No. This situation is killing me. There wasn’t anything wrong with Rachel, and under other circumstances—

  Dangerous ground, Truitt. There was no point going down that road. It would only bring misery.

  “Want to come over tomorrow and hang at the house?” It wasn’t the “morning after” I would have liked to give her, but I would take whatever time I could get with her.

  “Sure.”

  I shoved my hands in my pockets so I wouldn’t be tempted to pull her against me again. “Good night.”

  She leaned in to kiss me one last time before she went into her apartment and shut the door. I waited until I heard the deadbolt turn before trotting back to my truck.

  I thought of nothing but Rachel as I drove home, but as I approached my house, all thoughts of her vanished. When I pulled up to my driveway, my spot was taken by a minivan. What the fuck? As soon as I saw the bumper sticker that read, Nurses Call the Shots
, I immediately knew who the vehicle belonged to—Aunt Christy. Again, what the fuck? I knew she hadn’t planned a visit because I’d barely heard from her. She’d stolen my move of showing up unannounced. Now that I was on the receiving end of it, I realized what a dick move it was. But damn, it was nearly midnight. What the hell is she doing here this late?

  I opened the door to silence and dimmed lights. For a moment, I felt like a guilty teenager coming home after curfew. Fuck that. I was an adult, and this was my damn house. Besides, even when I’d been a teen living under my parents’ roof, I’d never had to sneak around.

  Aunt Christy sat on the couch, flipping through a magazine. “Hello, Jake.” The way she said it gave me the feeling she was an adversary. What the hell is up with that? Even when I’d confronted her about her husband and requested custody of the kids, I’d still considered us on the same side.

  I leaned against the doorframe. “Hello, Aunt Christy. This is a surprise.”

  She put her magazine aside. “Where have you been?”

  “On a date. Though I don’t see how that’s any of your business.”

  “I agreed to let the children live with you. That doesn’t mean I don’t care about their welfare.”

  “So you’re checking up on me?”

  “Yes, as a matter of fact. Is that so wrong?” She lifted her chin, daring me to disagree with her. I wanted to out of principle, but I couldn’t because I’d done the same damn thing to her. Then again, I’d had reason to believe she was screwing up. I’d done nothing to warrant suspicion.

  I shrugged. “That’s your prerogative.”

  “That’s right. It is.” She almost seemed disappointed that I wasn’t arguing with her, like she’d been prepping for a fight. “And I’m not so sure it’s a good idea for you to be out until midnight.”

  Screw being civil. If she wanted a fight, I would give her one.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me. I’ve been gone a few hours. Ben was here. He’ll be fifteen next month, which is definitely old enough to babysit.”

  “They’ve only just moved here and—”

  “Don’t you dare give me that shit.” I was done being cordial. “I’m entitled to have a life, which means leaving Ben in charge for a few hours. My parents did the same exact thing.”

  Her eyes hardened. “Yes, but—”

  “No, there is no but in this situation. I’ve rearranged my entire life to make a home for them, to give them what they need. You do not get to judge me.”

  “You’re only twenty-one.”

  “That’s right. And at twenty-one, I’m the head of the Truitt family. I’m going to do right by them. Did you know that under your watch, Ashley was sneaking out with high school kids and drinking?”

  Aunt Christy paled and put a hand to her throat. “What?”

  “Yeah, and Ben dealt with it. He called me because he didn’t trust you and Uncle Brian.”

  She recoiled as if I’d slapped her. I hadn’t planned to use that situation as ammo against her, but when it came to the welfare of my siblings, I wasn’t playing nice. An apology was on the tip of my tongue, but I held it in. I wouldn’t apologize for doing what was best for my family.

  She gathered her purse and magazine. “I’m going to my hotel. I’ll come back in the morning after we’ve both gotten some sleep.”

  I walked her to the front door. “Drive safely.” And don’t let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.

  CHAPTER 17

  Rachel

  I DREAMED OF Jake, and in my dream, we stayed on the football field way past our welcome. The dream was delicious. It was so realistic that when I woke, I felt like I needed to make sure I didn’t have turf in places it didn’t belong.

  I stretched and pointed my toes, surprised when they touched something fluffy. I propped myself up on my elbows. “Princess Buttercup! What are you doing here? You always sleep in Katie’s room. Maybe you aren’t such a traitor after all.” Grinning, I reached for her, but she jumped off the bed and twitched her tail. I could practically hear her little kitty brain saying as if.

  Whatever. My temperamental cat was going to have to try a lot harder than that to ruin my mood. My date with Jake had been perfect up until he’d had to say goodnight. I hadn’t wanted it to end. In fact, I’d wanted to invite him in so we could continue what we’d started on the field. I understood why he’d had to go, and I respected it, but I would have been lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed. Very disappointed.

  But I would get over it. Jake was the best thing to happen in my life in a long time. So what if things weren’t perfect? Nothing was.

  I rolled onto my side and grabbed my phone off my nightstand. Jake and I hadn’t set a time for me to come over, so I wanted to see if he was awake. His name on an incoming text message brought a smile to my lips.

  Jake: Something came up today. I’ll see you Monday.

  My smile quickly turned into a frown.

  Rachel: Is everything okay?

  Even though he’d sent his text half an hour ago, I stared at my phone, waiting for his reply. With every moment I didn’t receive one, my worry grew. I wondered what could have possibly come up in the last ten hours.

  To kill time while I waited to hear from Jake, I took a quick shower. When I got out, there was still nothing. I threw on some yoga pants and a T-shirt, tucked my phone into my waistband, and padded into the kitchen. Caffeine. Caffeine will help. I’d just turned on the Keurig when Katie and Wyatt wandered into the kitchen. I’d been so distracted, I hadn’t even realized he was in the apartment.

  “Sooooo.” I could hear the grin in Katie’s words as she came up behind me. “How did it go?” When I spun around and she saw my face, her grin turned into a scowl. “I’m going to kill him.”

  “No, no,” I assured her. “The date was fine. Better than fine, actually. But we were supposed to get together today, and he texted me this morning telling me something came up and he’d see me tomorrow.” I turned to Wyatt. “You’re not training with him today, are you?”

  Wyatt shook his head.

  I forced a smile. “I’m sure it’s nothing. I just worry. That’s all.”

  Katie didn’t look convinced. “I like Jake. Don’t get me wrong. But if it turns out he’s jerking you around, he’s going to have to deal with me. I won’t sit by and let some guy mistreat you again.”

  I turned back to the Keurig and inserted my coffee pod. Jake and Adam were leagues apart, but I didn’t have the energy to get into that debate. Plus, I was starting to feel embarrassed for how long I’d let things go on with Adam. That wasn’t something I wanted to discuss in front of Wyatt, even if he was already aware of my past with the jerk.

  “If it turns out you do have to kill him,” Wyatt said blandly, “can it wait until after football season? He’s the best wide receiver I have.”

  A surge of excitement cut through the worry. I hoped Jake knew Wyatt thought so highly of him. He’d been working his ass off to be ready to take Freddie’s place.

  Instead of moping around the apartment, I decided to make use of my free day and get my annual car inspection done. That event was always fraught with stress because I never knew if Greta would need a ten-dollar light bulb or a twelve-hundred-dollar repair. Before I took her to the auto shop, I swung by the auto parts store so the guys could look the car over. While they weren’t mechanics, they would be able to tell me if there were any obvious issues that would cause the inspection to fail.

  Both Bill and Manny were working. “Hi, guys!” I said.

  Manny’s wrinkled face stretched into a smile. “Senorita Raquel!”

  Bill’s ever-present sour expression got even more sour. “Is Greta acting up again?”

  The two men’s temperaments were as different as could be. Manny wore his heart on his sleeve, while Bill’s was hidden deep behind his grizzled exterior. But they were both sweethearts.

  “She isn’t, actually,” I said. “But I’m taking her to be inspected.”
>
  “Stay here,” Bill said gruffly. “I’ll take a look.”

  “Thanks, Bill!”

  Manny stepped away to help another customer, so I checked my phone for the seventeenth time since receiving Jake’s text. Still nothing. If I didn’t hear back from him soon, I would text again. I didn’t want to be a nag, but we’d had a misunderstanding before because of a missed text. I would feel foolish if that were the case again.

  Bill came back inside about ten minutes later. “You need new windshield wipers. You can get those here much cheaper than they’ll charge you at the shop.”

  “Perfect,” I said. “Point me in the right direction.”

  Bill helped me select the right size and install them, and then I was on my way to the auto shop. In Virginia, getting a yearly inspection was kind of a pain in the ass because I couldn’t make an appointment. I lucked out, though, and there wasn’t a wait. That was one of the benefits of summer in Bleaksburg—there was rarely a wait anywhere I went.

  I texted Jake again, and that time, his reply was immediate.

  Jake: Sorry. My aunt showed up unexpectedly.

  While I was relieved to finally hear from him, he still hadn’t answered my original question.

  Rachel: Is everything okay?

  Jake: I think so, but I’m going to meet with a lawyer to cover my ass. We talked to hers before, and I realize now that I should have my own.

  The fact that he felt like he needed to talk to a lawyer didn’t sound like everything was okay, but I didn’t want to pry. As much as I cared about the kids, they were his siblings, not mine. Technically, none of it was my business.

  Rachel: That’s probably a good idea. Just in case.

  Just in case of what, though, I had no idea. I knew even less about custody stuff than he did.

  Jake: What are you doing?

  Rachel: Getting Greta inspected. Pray for her.

  Jake: Want me to pick you up so you don’t have to wait?

  Rachel: Thanks, but fingers crossed it won’t take long.

  Jake: Let me know if you change your mind.

  Then a few seconds later, he texted again.