Can't Fight the Feeling

by Sandy James

  Squatting, Russ readied for the pitch.

  Josie looked determined as she focused hard on the batter. Then she wound up and took a long stride as she launched her pitch.

  The clang of metal echoed as the bouncer got a solid piece of the ball—a line drive toward the shortstop—Marc. He had no time to react as the ball caught him right in the face, and he went down hard.

  Russ tried to keep track of the runners, but Josie sprinting toward Marc distracted him. When it dawned on him that Marc wasn’t getting up, Russ forgot all about the game and hurried out to see what could be done to help.

  She fallen to her knees and cast aside her mitt. “Marc? Can you hear me?”

  Thankfully, Marc groaned in response. As he attempted to sit up, she held his head still.

  “Don’t move,” she cautioned. “Let me see how badly you’re hurt.”

  Russ grimaced as he noticed that Marc’s eyes were already starting to swell. Blood trickled from both nostrils, which meant the poor guy probably had a broken nose. “What do you need, Josie?”

  “Call 911. We need to get him to the hospital.”

  * * *

  Joslynn was finally able to take a moment and talk to the people who’d followed Marc to the emergency room. Leslie remained at her brother’s side, but both siblings wanted Joslynn to head out to the lobby and ease all the worried minds.

  Everyone from the Words & Music team was there, as were several from the Black Stallion team. She did notice, however, that neither Robert nor the brute who had hit the line drive had bothered to show up.

  As the teams gathered around, Joslynn offered them a smile. She was quite accustomed to explaining things to patients and their families, but she’d never faced such a large group. “Marc is going to be fine. He told me to let y’all know that he has a broken nose and a concussion. We’re going to keep him here tonight just to be on the safe side.” She directed her gaze to Russ and Brad, both of whom looked extremely relieved by the news, as did Savannah. “He’s probably earned himself a few days off to recover.”

  “Absolutely,” Russ said, coming over to take Joslynn’s hand. “Whatever he needs.”

  Her first instinct was to jerk her hand back. She still wasn’t used to public displays of affection, but to so brazenly declare they were a couple in front of the ER staff?

  To hell with it!

  Not only did she hold his hand, but she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. Turning back the large gathering, she said, “I know some of you would like to see him, but it’s probably best if you allow him to get some rest. Leslie said she’ll post on social media when he’s ready to have visitors.”

  As the softball players turned to leave the lobby, Joslynn turned to Russ. “Leslie was hoping you and Brad could take Marc’s car back to his place.”

  “Sure,” Brad replied. “Russ and I will take care of it.”

  “Think you can bring my Kia here while you’re at it?” she asked.

  “Why don’t you come with us now?” Russ asked. “After Brad and I get Marc’s car home, I’ll follow you to your place.”

  “I should stay with Marc.”

  His brows knit. “Why? You’re not on the clock now.”

  “I’m the one who brought him in. I should stay until I hand him over to the plastic surgeon.”

  “Plastic surgeon?”

  She nodded. “He’s going to have to get that nose put back together unless he wants it to be crooked from now on.”

  “My nose has been broken twice—that I know of. Could be more. I never needed a plastic surgeon.”

  Brad cuffed him on the shoulder. “A broken nose gives a face character.”

  “A broken nose,” Joslynn countered, “can cause all sorts of problems if it’s not corrected.”

  With a scoff, Russ said, “Last time I broke my nose, coach had the trainer snap it back into place on the bench and then sent me in the next play.”

  “Then your coach was an idiot of the highest order.” When she saw Francie waving to her, Joslynn knew the plastic surgeon was on his way for the consult. “I should go. The surgeon’s coming, and I should explain a few things to Marc and Leslie before he gets here.”

  Russ nodded. “Want me to come back and get you later? You could text me.”

  Josie shook her head. “If you and Brad could please bring my car here, I can go home after I make sure Marc’s settled.”

  “Can do,” he replied. “After that I’m heading to see Mom and Dad. Want me to head to your place after?”

  “Up to you, but I’m due about twelve hours of sleep. Expect to see nothing but my closed eyes.” She brushed a kiss over his lips. “I’ll go get my keys.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Russ and Brad had driven back to the softball field to get Josie’s car and took it back to the hospital. Then Russ made sure Brad got home. Russ was every bit as tired as Josie had claimed to be. After a quick visit with his mother and father, he planned to head home, take a hot shower, drink a cold beer, and get a good night’s sleep.

  He hadn’t heard from his mother today, which hopefully meant Baron had enjoyed a good day. At least there were still plenty of them, thank God.

  But the bad days were sometimes really bad.

  What kind of future was Russ offering Josie?

  He thought again about getting the genetic test his father’s doctor had offered. The stronger his feelings for Josie grew, the more he wondered if getting the blood draw was the right thing to do, to find out if he potentially faced disaster.

  How would she react if he had the gene?

  How would I react?

  For the first time since they’d discussed it, he wondered if her inability to have children might be a good thing. While he loved her and would enjoy raising a family with her, Russ knew that if he could pass along the early-onset Alzheimer’s gene, it would be reckless and cruel to have kids.

  But what if he didn’t have the gene? And what if Josie discovered that her leukemia hadn’t left her sterile?

  It was stupid to keep questioning the future when he didn’t have any answers.

  He pulled into his parents’ driveway still debating with himself. A glance to their porch found his father and mother sitting on the swing, Baron’s arm around Yvonne’s shoulders.

  The picture of contentment.

  Out of his SUV, Russ joined them on the porch, taking a seat on one of the Adirondack chairs. “How are you two?”

  “Five by five,” his father replied. “Did you win the game?”

  At least Baron’s memory was trusty today since he remembered the softball game. Russ shook his head.

  Baron shot him a glare. “Why not?”

  “A guy got injured before it ended,” Russ replied. “Had to hang it up to get him to the hospital.”

  With a concerned frown, Yvonne said, “What happened?”

  “Line drive to the face,” Russ said.

  His mother’s frown intensified.

  “It was Leslie’s—our chef’s—brother,” he explained. “Josie rode with him to her hospital and was taking care of him when I left.”

  “I hope you know that girl’s the best thing that ever happened to you, Russell,” Baron said.

  “I know, Dad.”

  “So when are you going to propose?” Yvonne asked.

  Since Russ asked himself the same question at least ten times a day, he smiled at his parents’ enthusiasm. “It’s kinda early in the game.”

  Baron shook his head. “Nonsense. The moment I met your mom, I knew.”

  “She’s been mighty good to us,” his mother added. “Comes around or calls pretty much every day to see how we’re doin’.”

  That frequency was news to Russ, although he wasn’t truly surprised. Once Josie made a commitment, she gave it her all.

  “Well?” There was a sharp demand in Baron’s voice.

  “Well, what, Dad?”

  “When are you gonna stop fightin’ what you feel for her?”


  “I don’t fight it,” Russ replied. “She does.”

  “Then it’s up to you to make her realize how great the two of you are together.”

  * * *

  Joslynn sat behind the wheel of her car and started the engine. She was so damn tired. Seemed she felt a little less energy every day, and she hoped once she got her days and nights straightened out, her fatigue would improve.

  Despite being tired, she found herself hoping Russ was there when she got home. There was just something right about sleeping at his side, something she would be able to do more often with her new schedule.

  As she opened the door, she could hear the strains of a guitar—not a recording, but Russ playing an actual guitar he must’ve brought from his house. Putting her keys on the hook, she kicked off her shoes as she listened to him play. She hadn’t realized how talented he was.

  He glanced up and smiled at her, one of those heart-stopping smiles. “Hi, sweetheart.”

  Sitting down next to him on the sofa, Joslynn gave him a quick kiss. “I’m happy you’re playing for me.”

  “I am, you know. Playing for you, I mean.”

  “No, I don’t know what you mean,” she admitted.

  “Just listen for a minute, okay?”

  She nodded.

  He began a song. It was unfamiliar to her, but Joslynn was quickly captured by the haunting melody—so clean, so clear, yet stuffed full of emotion. But it ended rather abruptly.

  “Is that one of Brad’s new songs?” she asked. “Savannah told me he’s working on a new album for her. I’d like to hear the rest.”

  His lopsided smile raced through her like an electrical charge. “I can’t play the rest.”

  “Why not?”

  “I haven’t written it yet.”

  Surely she’d heard him wrong. “Wait…you wrote that song?”

  He nodded and set the guitar aside. “I started writing one for shits and giggles. It didn’t really go anywhere. Then I started this song. There are lyrics.” He shrugged. “They’re not ready to share yet.”

  “You wrote a song.”

  “I wrote a song for you.”

  Joslynn was having a hard time wrapping her mind around what he’d told her. How could she possibly inspire a man to compose such a beautiful piece of music?

  Because he loves you.

  For the first time, she believed it—she believed that Russ loved her.

  And you’re falling in love with him.

  In the past, her realization would’ve been a reason to put as much distance between the two of them as she could. Not this time. This time she wanted to put her arms around him and never, ever let go.

  Standing, she took his hand and pulled him to his feet. Although he gave her a puzzled tilt of his head, he didn’t say a word as she led him to her bed.

  What was there to say? She understood now—understood his jealousy. If another woman approached Russ, Joslynn would be inclined to attack. Russ was hers.

  He belongs to me!

  Oh yes, now she understood.

  And she needed to feel him deep inside her body.

  As though he’d caught her desire, he kissed her while their hands scrambled to remove clothing. Finally naked, he stared down at her, pulling the tie from her hair to let it spill around her shoulders.

  She tried to take charge, but he wouldn’t allow it. Instead, he backed her up to the mattress so that she sat on the edge. He pushed her to lie down with her knees hanging over the side.

  Russ knelt as he draped her legs over his shoulders. She let out a surprised gasp as he pressed a kiss to her core. He licked between her folds, and she surrendered to the passion. When he gently sucked on her sensitive bud, she almost came off the bed.

  “Easy there, Josie,” he said.

  She hadn’t realized that she’d been squeezing her legs together so tightly. Relaxing her muscles, she stroked his head as he went right back to bringing her closer and closer to climax. When her release raced through her, she called to him to join her. Instead, he sent her flying a second time.

  Joslynn tried to catch her breath as he grabbed a condom from the nightstand and tossed it by the pillows.

  Russ crawled up on the mattress as she backpedaled to get to the middle.

  Rising to her knees, she clutched his shoulders and turned him until he was flat on his back. “My turn.” After brushing her lips against his neck, she worked her way down to his chest. She swirled her tongue around each nipple. A couple of kisses to those ripped abs, and then she grabbed his cock and licked him from root to tip. His hissing breath made her smile.

  He laced his fingers through her hair as she stroked him with her tongue. “Josie…”

  The way he said her name made a thrill race through her, and she took as much of him as she could into her mouth.

  * * *

  Russ wanted the feelings Josie sent pounding through him to last forever. The heat of her mouth on his cock. The silkiness of her long hair brushing against his skin. The sweet taste of her still on his lips.

  Before he could tell her he was insane to get inside her, she rose over him. After rolling on the condom, she straddled his hips and guided him home.

  He couldn’t hold back, thrusting into her tightness again and again, showing her with his body everything he felt in his heart. The moment he felt her clench around him, he surrendered to his orgasm, letting the fire rush through him as he poured himself into her. Through choppy breaths, he told her how much he loved her.

  With what little strength remained, he rolled away and managed a quick cleanup. Josie ran into the bathroom when he was done and came back out in one of the oversized shirts she liked to sleep in.

  “Are you staying the night?”

  Russ loved how her voice was full of hope. “I’d like to if you don’t mind.”

  “I’d love for you to stay.” As he held up the sheet, she slid back into bed beside him before snuggling up to his side and draping her leg over his thighs. “That was amazing.”

  He kissed her nose. “It was more than amazing. I’m not sure there’s even a word that can describe how good that was.”

  A lusty yawn made her whole body shake. “I’m done.”

  “I imagine you are. Get some sleep.”

  Holding her close, Russ tried not to be disappointed when she fell asleep almost as soon as she closed her eyes. After what they’d just shared, he’d hoped she might admit that she loved him too.

  Josie did love him.

  She had to love him.

  Because he would be utterly lost without her.

  Chapter Twenty

  Three days later, Russ came back from the grocery store to find Josie’s car parked in his driveway. He eased his SUV beside the blue car, watching as the garage door opened to reveal an organized space.

  The mess was gone, replaced by large plastic containers that had been labeled with a thick black marker. The floor had been swept, and hanging from one of the beams in the middle of the ceiling was a brown punching bag.

  “What the hell?” he said more to himself than to her. She must have spent hours making sense of the crap he’d accumulated and, having nowhere else to store it, shoved into that garage.

  Josie, dressed in a red tank top, black spandex shorts, and sporting fingerless workout gloves, took a couple of punches at the bag before glancing up to smile at him. Her hair was pulled into a tight ponytail, and she had the same intense expression on her face she always had before she ran his ass into the ground at the park. “Hi, baby.”

  Baby?

  He raised his eyebrows at the endearment.

  “Would you prefer ‘honey’?”

  “Nah. Baby’s fine with me.” Russ watched her take a few more swings at the punching bag. “What’s up with the new equipment?”

  She stopped hopping around like a boxer and shook her hands out as though they stung. “I figured out something important.”

  After accepting a welcoming kiss from her before she dance
d away and hit at the bag again, he took a seat on a wooden stool he didn’t realize he owned. Heaven only knew what other treasures she’d found when she’d organized his garage. “What did you figure out?”

  “That yoga just isn’t going to work for you.”

  He threw his hands in the air and let out a cheer. “Thank you, God!”

  Joslynn laughed. “Yeah, I was a little slow on the uptake with that one. Sorry. I was hoping you’d learn to love it.”

  “Since we have some of our best sex after you drag me to yoga, I shouldn’t complain.” He waggled his eyebrows at her.

  When she got close enough, he tugged her into his arms and gave her a proper kiss, loving how she sagged against him and let out a telling sigh when he ended the kiss.

  “So why the punching bag?” he asked.

  Heading back to land a solid hit on the bag, she smiled. “Since you can’t run or stretch away your stress—”

  “I love running with you,” Russ protested.

  “I’m glad.” Josie grabbed the bag to stop it from swaying. “I hoped that if you work your frustration out on this, maybe the jerks you need to toss out of the bar won’t make you so…hostile.”

  “It was one guy, Josie. One drunken asshole who grabbed a waitress’s ass.”

  “And it was enough to give you an anxiety attack.”

  * * *

  Aware that his temper was rising, Joslynn didn’t press the point. Ethan had painted a little more descriptive picture of what had happened at Words & Music, but she focused on why she’d gone to so much trouble to clean up his disaster of a garage and hang the punching bag.

  “This,” she said, shoving the bag to set it swinging, “will help you channel your anger.” She retrieved a pair of gloves she’d bought for him and handed them over. “Go change your clothes, put these on, and we’ll give it a go.”

  He didn’t take long donning his gray running shorts and a black T-shirt with the sleeves torn off. As he pulled on the gloves, she went over to him and brushed a kiss on his cheek. Then she went behind the bag and took hold of it with both hands. “Let’s party, baby.”