Making a Comeback

by Kristina Mathews

  By the time he arrived home from Oceanside, Cooper noticed all the lights in Annabelle’s house were off. The Ferrari was still in the driveway and it killed him to think of another man in her house. He couldn’t let his mind wander in the direction of her bed. Was she alone? Missing him? Or was she… Nope. Couldn’t do it. Couldn’t picture her with another man. Even if that man was her husband.

  Chapter 26

  “I talked to my attorney.” Annabelle had gone to her lawyer’s office after taking the girls to the bus stop and she felt a little empty not having Cooper by her side. She hadn’t seen him since Clayton had shown up unannounced on her doorstep. “He told me that in order to restructure the settlement, it would delay the divorce proceedings. So, I’m just going to write you a check.” Or she could transfer the money electronically. “You’re sure you can hold off your creditors for a couple more months?”

  “Yes. I’m sure.” The once proud man didn’t bat an eye at being bought off like that. She’d pay off his debts in exchange for an unimpeded divorce. When the decree was finalized, he’d receive an additional sum, if he needed it, to get started in his next, hopefully completely legitimate, endeavor.

  “Thank you.” She’d also spent the morning shopping for a gown to wear for the anniversary party. She needed the dress, but more than that, she’d needed a few hours away from her ex. She couldn’t wait for this visit to come to an end. It had been a trying couple of days. “I hope we’ll be able to remain cordial to each other. For Sophie and Olivia’s sake. And, well, for all of our sakes.”

  “You hope we can remain friends?” He was loading his suitcase into his car.

  “No. I know that’s too much to ask.” Annabelle felt the last, freeing heartstrings come loose. “I know we’ll never be one of those couples who can act like the best of friends for the sake of the children, but I’m glad we’re able to rise above being so busy trying to hurt each other that we don’t notice the damage we cause to everyone around us.”

  “I never wanted to hurt you, Annabelle.”

  “I know. And I never wanted to hurt you.” She leaned over and gave him a hug. Right there in the driveway. As she pulled away, she noticed movement in the window of Cooper’s house. Well, in a few more hours, she’d be able to talk to him, and let him know that her divorce was still on track and they wouldn’t have to worry about Clayton making things difficult.

  “So you don’t mind if I wait until the girls get home from school before I take off?”

  “They need to say goodbye to their father.” She wrapped her arms around herself. “They’ll always need their father.”

  “So about the custody arrangements…” He shoved his hands in his suit pockets. “I don’t know where I’m going to be living, and I really don’t know how you do what you do.”

  “We’ll keep it simple, like we agreed on. A week during Christmas break. Two weeks in the summer, and visitations when both parties can agree. That part of it won’t be set in stone. As circumstances change, so will the arrangements. We’ll be flexible, right?”

  “What if you remarry?”

  “You’re their father. You will always have a place in their lives.”

  “Wow.” He smiled and reached out to touch her shoulder. “When did you become so steady? So strong?”

  “When I almost died.” She brushed his hand away. “I guess I realized what’s really important in life. And how quickly it could be taken from me.”

  She shuddered to think of what would have happened to her girls if she hadn’t survived. Or if Cooper hadn’t been there for them.

  A smile crept across her face. She’d missed him. Missed him terribly, but tonight he would be back in her arms. Back in her bed. She just had to get through the next two hours with Clayton in her house.

  “You don’t mind if I take care of a few things? I’ve got some laundry to catch up on.” She’d planned on washing her sheets, putting on some makeup, and showing Cooper just how much she’d missed him these last few days.

  Clayton parked himself on her couch, while she cleaned the house, put the clothes away, and did her yoga. He’d spent a lot of that time on the phone, calling or e-mailing what she hoped were business contacts.

  She wasn’t that worried about Clayton. He’d bounce back. Guys like him always did. He wouldn’t survive living anything less than the high life. He wasn’t going to trade his Ferrari for a Ford. He wouldn’t be satisfied in a modest two-bedroom bungalow; he needed the penthouse. Yes, Clayton Barry would find his way back.

  Just like she’d found her way back. She’d had a long conversation with her agent. He loved, loved the idea of her taking the stage and making a plea against texting and driving. He’d suggested she find a knockout dress, one that demanded attention.

  Between Cooper’s unwavering support and Victor’s unbridled enthusiasm, she was convinced that she could actually do this. She could show her face, scars and all, and use her misfortune to help others. And if she could do that, she could do anything. College? Why not? Or maybe she could find work for a charitable organization. Even if she had to start out as a volunteer, she would like to do something that gave back.

  “Did you want to come with me to meet the girls at the bus stop?” Annabelle asked after she’d changed the sheets on not just her bed, but the guest room and the twins’ beds too. The house was spotless, fresh flowers brightened the kitchen, and she’d placed scented candles by her bedside. She just needed Clayton to say good bye to Sophie and Olivia and hit the road.

  “Yeah, that would be great.” He pocketed his phone and stood to follow her down the street.

  “Daddy!” Sophie bounded off the bus. “Guess what! I lost a tooth. And I got to put my name on the lost tooth chart next to the calendar!”

  She grinned to show off the gap on her lower jaw.

  “Wow, that’s exciting.” Clayton looked so pleased to be there for at least one of her milestones. “I’m happy for you.”

  “Yeah, and I think I have a loose tooth too.” Olivia opened her mouth and put her finger on her bottom tooth. “See?”

  “Oh, I think I saw it move.” He bent down and peered into her mouth to inspect the so-called loose tooth. “Yeah, I definitely saw it move.”

  “Will you come play with us?” Olivia asked. “We could build sandcastles on the beach.”

  “Yeah, okay. I can stay for a little while.”

  “Yay!” Both girls raced to the house to drop off their backpacks and grab their sand toys.

  They ran down to the beach, laughter ringing out loud and clear.

  “You don’t mind if I stay a little longer?” Clayton asked hopefully. “I don’t know when I’ll get another chance to build a sandcastle with my girls.”

  “Sure.” She just hoped he’d be gone by bedtime. She needed a lullaby in the worst way.

  “Thank you. For everything.”

  * * * *

  He should have started his run sooner. Or later. Or not at all. But his internal clock had been set to be coming home in time to meet the school bus at three-fifteen. So, without even trying, he came up on Annabelle and Sophie and Olivia. With their father. Just one big happy family.

  They were building sandcastles on the beach. The girls looked so happy. Annabelle sat back, radiant, watching them play. She didn’t even see him as he jogged around them. Clayton Barry had his designer suit pants and shirtsleeves rolled up while he frolicked with his children.

  His children. Not Cooper’s.

  He picked up the pace and ran down the beach. But he could still hear the girls’ laughter. It was a sound he would carry in his heart for the rest of his life.

  When he’d gotten far enough away, he stopped to catch his breath.

  So Annabelle had moved on. He needed to do the same.

  He pulled out his phone and called his agent.

  “Stan, the man. Tell me more about Japan.” Like that would be far enough away to get over her. But since
they didn’t need a left-handed reliever on Uranus, it was the best he could do. “I’m interested.”

  “The team is in Nishinomiya, the Hanshin Tigers. They want a three year deal, but it’s negotiable.”

  “I can’t do three years.” His hopes started to fade. That would put him past his prime. Make it that much harder to return. “I want to get back to the majors. I know I can still pitch, I don’t want to waste my best years overseas. I can do one year. Maybe with some kind of option for the second year, if we both agree.”

  “I’ll see what I can do.” Stan sounded optimistic. But then, that was his job.

  “Keep me posted.” Cooper wasn’t sure if this was the right move. He wasn’t sure of anything except for the fact that he couldn’t just stand by and watch his career go down the drain. And he couldn’t stand in the way of Annabelle’s chance of keeping her family together. He loved them enough to let them go.

  “I will.” But Stan paused. “So are you willing to look at similar offers stateside? Or would you only be interested in long-term deals from Major League clubs?”

  “At this point, I just want to get some work.” He hoped that statement didn’t make him sound desperate. But he needed something, anything to keep him from giving up on baseball. “Look, I know I missed some chances. I turned down opportunities that were more than I deserved.”

  “Hey, I didn’t exactly stress the importance of any of those deals.” His agent tried to put the blame on himself.

  “It was one deal. I passed. My fault. I thought I’d have more choices.” And he would have, if he hadn’t been so stupid. “I won’t make the same mistake.”

  “But you don’t want to rush into anything either.” How much of a pay cut would he be taking for his agent to start hesitating now?

  “When do you need a decision?”

  “Take a week. Let me know by next Monday.”

  “I’ll be in touch.”

  Cooper pocketed his phone and headed toward home. He wondered how much longer he was going to have to look out his window and stare at that damned Ferrari. The longer it sat in Annabelle’s driveway, the more convinced he became that they were working things out.

  By the time he got home, he was afraid to look. He just marched past her house and was halfway up his porch when he heard his name.

  “Cooper!” He turned to see Sophie bouncing up and down. She was covered in sand and hair was slipping out of its ponytail. “We missed you.”

  She raced up to him and threw her arms around his legs, nearly knocking him down.

  “I missed you, too, squirt.” He reached down to untangle her arms.

  “Guess what?” She looked up at him and grinned, proudly showing off a missing tooth.

  “You lost a tooth.”

  “I did.” She stuck her tongue in the gap. “Sthee?”

  “I do see.” He ruffled her messy ponytail.

  “I have a loose tooth too.” Olivia was right behind her. She put her finger in her mouth and pressed on her bottom teeth. “It was there before.”

  “I’m sure you’ll lose a tooth soon,” he reassured her.

  “And when I do, I get to put my name on the chart,” Olivia explained.

  “I see you heard the news.” Annabelle had followed the girls over. “The tooth fairy will be in the neighborhood tonight.”

  She looked good. Too good. Her blonde hair fell in soft waves around her shoulders. Her blue eyes twinkled in the late afternoon sunshine. And her smile… Her smile was enough to bring him to his knees.

  “I’ll be sure to keep an eye out.” For the first time, he dared look in the direction of her driveway. Only her Mercedes stood in the driveway.

  “We’ve missed you the last couple of days.” Annabelle brushed her hair off her face, tucking it behind her left ear.

  “You had company.”

  “Yes, well, he’s moved on.” He couldn’t tell by the tone of her voice how she’d felt about her husband being there.

  “Did you girls have a nice visit with your dad?” He turned to Olivia and Sophie.

  “Yeah,” Sophie said.

  “Uh-huh.” Olivia nodded in agreement.

  “Good. I’m glad.”

  “It’s too bad you didn’t get to meet Daddy.” Olivia said innocently.

  “Maybe next time.” That was his way of asking when he’d be coming back.

  “I don’t know if he’ll be back before summer.” Annabelle put one hand on each girl’s shoulder. “Or they may go visit him when he gets settled in his new house. Wherever that may be.”

  She’d answered his question before he could ask it.

  “Why don’t you girls run on in and get started on your homework.” Annabelle shooed Sophie and Olivia toward her house. “I’ll be right there.”

  “We’d like to have you join us for dinner.” Annabelle gave him an irresistible smile. “We’ve missed you. I missed you.”

  She emphasized the last three words, and it went straight to his groin.

  “What can I bring?”

  “I’d tell you to bring your guitar, but you left it at my house.”

  “And what did your ex say about that?”

  “He never saw it.” She gave him a sly smile. “He didn’t step foot in my bedroom. Hasn’t in years.”

  “Are you sure there’s no chance for the two of you to make things work?”

  “Not a chance.” She leaned closer, speaking in almost a whisper.

  “You’re sure?”

  “Absolutely.” She closed the space between them, wrapping her arms around him.

  He breathed her in. God, he’d missed her. Missed her so much.

  After dinner, Cooper helped clean up and then sang to the girls. He followed Annabelle into her bedroom and set his guitar down on the side chair, but she shook her head.

  “Sing me a lullaby.” She gave him a sly smile and pushed him into the chair.

  “Sure, what would you like me to play?” He plucked out a few notes.

  She walked over to the window and looked out toward his house. “I used to listen to you play at night. My favorites were the love songs, like ‘Every Breath You Take,’ and that song that goes ‘you crush me…’”

  “Dave Matthews Band.” He smiled and started to play. “‘Crush,’ one of my favorites.”

  “Yeah, that’s the one.” She sighed. “You have no idea what that song did to me.”

  “Oh yeah?” His fingers slipped on the next note. “Don’t tell me you used my music the way you accused me of using your magazine.”

  She blushed, telling him more than he needed to know.

  “Oh really?” He wasn’t going to be able to balance his guitar on his lap as he pictured her alone in her room, listening to him play, and touching herself.

  “I used to wish you were stroking me instead of that guitar.”

  “Show me.” His voice cracked a little, like he had a bad mic.

  “I couldn’t…” Her blush deepened.

  “Show me.” He began to play the song with as much emotion as he could express without being naked. “I want to know how I pleased you even before you knew me.”

  Annabelle leaned against the wall next to her window. She closed her eyes and began to sway to the music. As he continued to play, she hummed along, running her fingers through her hair.

  “Touch yourself, Annabelle.” He continued with just the music. “I want to see how you’d touch yourself.”

  She stopped, looking embarrassed she shook her head.

  “Take off your jeans.” he insisted. “Take them off and lie on the bed.”

  After what felt like the worlds’ longest missed beat, she complied with his request. She stripped down to her bra and panties and arranged herself on her bed.

  “Play it again.” She leaned back against the pillows and let her hand fall to her hip. As he continued to stroke the strings on his guitar, she moved her hand down her thigh. She sp
read her legs and began to inch her way closer to her sweet spot.

  He almost dropped his guitar when she slipped her delicate finger beneath the elastic of her panties. A soft moan escaped her lips and that was more than he could take. He let his guitar fall to the ground and his own jeans followed.

  “Annabelle,” he croaked as he lowered himself to the bed.

  He covered her mouth with his, crushing her beneath him. But he couldn’t help it. He couldn’t stand to see anyone else touching his Annabelle. Not even her.

  He yanked her panties out of the way and slid his hand into the spot she was gently playing for him. He wanted to play her, to make her sing out in ecstasy so he played her with his fingers, his mouth, and when he finally slid inside her, her cries of ecstasy were the sweetest song he’d ever heard.

  His body still humming like a perfectly played note, Cooper pulled Annabelle into his arms.

  “Wow.” She sighed, snuggling closer to him. “That was incredible.”

  “Yeah. It was.” He couldn’t agree more.

  Annabelle closed her eyes, and made satisfied little noises as she settled in for the night. Or at least until dawn when he’d have to slip away.

  “There’s something I feel like I should tell you.” Yeah, that sounded like a man who knew what he wanted. “I talked to my agent today.”

  “Oh, that’s great!” She lifted her head, a huge smile spread across her face. “Does that mean you have a team interested in signing you?”

  “Yeah.”

  “So why don’t you sound very excited?” She looked at him, worry taking the place of her happiness.

  “It’s in Japan.”

  “No.” She sat straight up. “You told him ‘no,’ didn’t you?”

  He shook his head.

  “Japan? But it’s…” She slid off the bed, reaching for her robe. “It’s on the other side of the Pacific. How will we— Oh.”

  She wrapped the robe around herself, tying the belt into a knot. “I see. We won’t.”