“Is it, son? You’ve hardly spoken to me in months and then I have to hear from Dennis Tillman you joined the team. Do you know how foolish that made me look? Made me feel?”
Sighing, I resigned myself to my fate. I wished moving out was an option. An image of Kittie’s worried face flitted across my mind. I couldn’t leave. Not yet.
“Yeah, Dad. It’s always about you.” Skirting around him, I started toward the house.
Dad moved quickly, blocking my path, but he kept his hands to himself. He was learning. “That’s not what I meant. I love you.” He shook his head, letting it hang, his eyes downcast. “Drew, you have no idea how proud I am of you. You’re a better player than I ever thought of being. If you would only-”
“If I would only what, Dad? Let you manage my life? My future? Tell me what to do? Then everything would be fine?” My fingernails dug into my palms from clenching my fists so tightly.
“No.” Dad shook his head again, pain radiating from his eyes, blue just like mine. “No, I know that’s not what you need, Drew. But I would love to support you. To be there for you. I know I screwed things up. I know I hurt you-”
“What about Mom, Dad? You hurt her, too.”
Dad straightened to his full height, which was just enough below mine he had to look up a bit to meet my eyes. I fleetingly wondered if that bugged him.
“That’s between your mother and me-”
“It kind of became my problem when I found you banging your secretary, Dad.”
“Drew-”
“Have you told her yet? Is there someone new here in Indy, Dad?” I’d been tempted to use the guilt money he threw at me to hire a private investigator for proof.
Dad stood in silence, his shoulders drooping. “You don’t understand, son. Your mother, the drinking-”
“Are you kidding me? You know what? I don’t care.” I stepped around him. “Look, come to the games or don’t. But there will not be a repeat of Colorado. I’m doing this my way, this time.”
Dad nodded. “Fine. We’ll do things your way-”
“I will do things my way,” I interrupted him.
He stared at me, his expression bleak. “Okay, if that’s how you want it-”
“It is. We done here?” My jaw hurt from clenching it against the words I wanted to hurl in his direction. Words about how he’d ruined our family.
He nodded.
I started for the door again.
“For what it’s worth, Drew, I did tell your mother and she’s forgiven me. We’ve been going to counseling. We both want things to be better, for all of us.”
I wanted to believe him, but the hope his words stirred just made me angry at myself. So, I walked away. This time he let me.
“Drew, honey?” Mom called out when I closed the door letting myself in.
I closed my eyes. Double whammy. What kind of hell was this? I wanted to love her still, and I did, but she didn’t make it easy. I remembered the Mom she used to be before the money got to her. She hadn’t grown up with it like Dad had. It was a slow progression, the change in her and when we were small, well, back then we were her priority, us and Dad. Then other things took our place. Mornings at the country club. Afternoon cocktails. Drama. Alcohol. Appearances. I hated everything about it and it only got worse when basketball became our focus. I became a pawn in their popularity game.
It made me sick.
“Yeah, mom?” I dropped my workout clothes in the laundry room off the kitchen.
“Dad said you’re playing.” She stood in the doorway, tentative, hopeful.
“Don’t do this, Mom,” I sighed, forget exhausted, I was decimated. Could I sneak into Piper’s room and sleep? I wondered if she’d let me. I was so tired.
“But Drew, this is what we’ve wanted. For you to play. To just live up to your potential. You have no idea what your life could be like. You could get drafted right out of high school-”
“Mom!”
She jumped, her eyes filling with tears.
“I just want what’s best for you, honey, that’s all.” Her lip trembled and I felt like a jerk.
“I know, Mom. I know.” I relented and gave her a hug. She felt small and fragile and for once didn’t smell like wine.
“I love you, Drew,” she sobbed into my shirt.
Ugh.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry for everything,” she whimpered. I believed she was, but I knew she hadn’t changed. I hoped she would someday, but they were both still entrenched in that life, the life that had torn ours apart.
“I know that, too.” I cleared my throat and wondered if things would ever be like they used to be. “I love you, Mom.”
Piper
“You are such a cheater,” Drew laughed, stealing the basketball from me and dribbling to the opposite goal.
“Cheater? What are you talking about?” I reached around and fouled him to steal the ball. We were playing on the neighborhood court. It was dark already. Practice had ended about an hour ago and Drew wanted to drive me home, which was code for flirt on the basketball court.
“Foul!” he shouted, coming after me.
“Baby,” I taunted, shooting a three. “Boo-yah! Nothing but net.” I turned to find him stalking me, not even pretending to go for the ball which was rolling toward the grass behind the basket.
“You know, your jump shot is pretty sexy,” he growled, coming closer.
I raised a brow. “Really? Is that why you jumped me that first night, because you liked my jump shot?”
“It was the dunk that earned you that kiss, if I remember right.” He reached for me.
I spun away, I wasn’t going to let him off that easy. “That was a kiss? Seemed a bit more like a mauling to me.” I picked up the ball and dribbled.
“Oh, yeah? Maybe we should try it again. To refresh our memories.” He was immediately back on his game, defending the basket with his arms held wide.
I loved playing against him.
“Hmmm. Let me think about it.” I dribbled between my legs and pivoted, turning my back to him.
“Ooh, nice move.” He moved closer, the heat of his body burning through the light fleece jacket I wore.
“I hope you don’t play like this in the game tomorrow,” I teased him when his hand gripped my hip pulling me into him.
“None of those guys are as beautiful as you, so I don’t think you need to worry.” He was done playing. With a deft move, he stripped the ball from me and batted it away. Just like that I was in his arms, his lips crushed against mine.
His lips were warm and soft and they moved over mine like a man drowning. His arms snaked around my back, his hands reaching up to bury themselves in my hair. His hoodie was unzipped exposing his t-shirt clad chest. I couldn’t resist running my hands over his firm muscles. He smiled against my lips.
“You like that, huh?” he asked between kisses.
“It’s okay.” I shrugged, letting my hands lower to the hem of his shirt and tucking them against the skin at his back.
He shivered.
“Your hands are freezing,” he said against my lips.
“I think you just like me touching your skin.” I reached up higher on his back.
He groaned. “You might be right.”
Our kisses grew more passionate.
“Piper-”
Kiss.
“Yeah?”
Kiss.
“We should talk.”
Kiss.
“That doesn’t sound good.”
Laugh from him.
“I’m ready, Pipe.”
That got my attention. I pulled back, feeling like a just-been-kissed mess with swollen lips and flushed cheeks.
“Ready for what?” I asked, terrified and hopeful at the same time.
“We spend every spare minute together.” He stopped.
I nodded. “We do.”
“And we hold hands at school in front of everyone.”
“That’s true.”
�
�And sometimes we kiss.” His gaze held mine.
“I like that part.”
He grinned. “Me, too. A lot.”
I wiped fake sweat from my forehead. “Whew.”
He laughed. “So, I figured since we had all that stuff going for us, maybe we should, you know-”
“No,” I shook my head. “I don’t know. You’re probably going to have spell it out for me.”
“You don’t play fair.” He leaned in to nuzzle my neck.
“I’m the one who doesn’t play fair?” Gosh, that felt good. Relationship talks were a bit overrated. But this kissing business…
“Remember when I said I wasn’t in the market for a relationship?” he asked.
“I remember.” Vividly. The ache still weighed on my heart.
“I was thinking maybe I’d been a little rash with that whole thing.” He abandoned my neck and met my eyes.
“Are you sure about that? Because I’m not sure I could deal with it if you weren’t-”
He interrupted me with the best kiss yet and we’d shared some doozies.
“Mhhm,” I tried to say around his lips.
“Are you almost done talking?” He kissed me again. I gripped his face and pulled him back so I could see his eyes.
“Yes.”
His brow furrowed. “Yes, you’re done talking? Or yes, you’re officially my girlfriend and I can piss Luke off whenever I want by kissing you in front of him?”
I giggled. “Both.”
“Yes!” he shouted, lifting me off the ground and spinning me around and around. When he finally slowed, he kissed me again fast and sweet. “I’m not going to take it easy on you on the court just because you’re my girlfriend, you know.”
“Oh, really?” I pushed myself out of his arms and picked up the basketball at our feet. “We’ll just see who needs who to take it easy!”
Chapter 27
Drew
It wasn’t like things had gone from awful to perfect for Piper at school. Not everyone knew the details of the incident with the football players and some who did know, just didn’t care. And while I wanted our relationship to protect her, in some ways it had made things worse.
“Hey, Drew.”
Ugh. Not this again.
“Hey, Miranda.” Nothing more. Just ‘hi’.
I ducked my head and kept walking, hoping she’d get the hint for once. She was a pretty girl in a plastic kind of way. I preferred Piper’s jeans and t-shirt to Miranda’s mini-skirts and knee-high boots with stiletto heels. I mean, I appreciated Miranda’s look, I wasn’t dead. But I knew what she was looking for and it wasn’t really me. Not Drew Thompson. What she was looking for was Charles Thompson’s son, potential NBA star and the guy with the hot car and more money than he knew what to do with. I was familiar with her type. Intimately.
“I wanted to wish you good luck in the game tonight.” She flipped her long brown hair so it slid down my arm.
Why didn’t I wear long sleeves? It gave me the creeps; the way girls threw themselves at me. They didn’t even know me. I could be mean. I could take advantage of them and then drop them like hot cakes. Some guys were complete assholes. Take Jack Fawcett, for example. Or this dude back in Colorado that liked to slip drugs in girls’ drinks and take what he wanted from them. Guys were jerks, but some girls were stupid.
“Uh, thanks.” Where was Piper? We were supposed to meet to walk to lunch together.
“Are you going to the party after? At Landon’s?”
Landon Renfrow was a senior and apparently, he was holding the first basketball party of the season after our first game tonight. Noah had been telling me the truth- during football season, the football players had parties and now it was basketball’s turn. I hadn’t been to any parties either way.
My shoulders sagged with relief when I spotted Piper walking toward me, her eyes firmly on mine, a smile on her beautiful lips.
“Hey, babe,” she said, slipping under my arm.
I responded with a light kiss on those lips that tempted me. “Hey.” I kissed her again and Miranda huffed at my side, reminding me she was still there. “Thanks for the invite, Miranda, but I don’t think we’re into parties.”
“Definitely not into parties,” Piper agreed as I pulled her closer.
“I don’t think you were invited, Sasquatch.” Miranda’s spiteful tone cut through my Piper haze and I turned on her so fast she didn’t know what happened.
“Excuse me? What did you just say to my girlfriend?” Mr. Polite was long gone.
Miranda sputtered under my angry gaze. “I- um- I didn’t mean-”
“Come on, Drew. Let’s get some lunch.” Piper tugged on my arm.
“Don’t ever speak to me again. I’ve tolerated you all semester and I don’t even like you.” Miranda gasped, her eyes darting around the hall, probably curious as to who was witnessing the dressing down I was giving her. People were heading to lunch so the hall was crowded and everyone noticed.
“Piper is my girlfriend and neither of us appreciate you throwing yourself at me every day-”
“I don’t throw myself-” her face was red as a tomato.
“Honey, we both know you do. Now, apologize to my girlfriend,” I demanded towering over her with all of my six-six body.
“I’m- I’m sorry, P-Piper.” The poor girl could barely breathe.
“If I hear anybody calling Piper anything but beautiful or mine, that person will answer to me.” I pinned several guilty looking people standing around with a ferocious glare before turning to Piper with a smile.
“Are you ready, gorgeous,” I asked, kissing her stunned lips.
Piper nodded, her eyes wide.
“Then, let’s go.”
Piper
Drew led me into the cafeteria and it was a good thing his strong arm was still around me because my legs were shaking. I was mortified. I was grateful. Amazed. And completely in love.
“I can’t believe you just did that,” I breathed, not even able to muster a smidgen of sympathy for Miranda. She’d been a wench to me for years.
Drew stopped short. “Piper, if I haven’t already proved I will do anything to protect you, I don’t know what else you need to believe me.”
He seemed a little put out. In fact, I was surprised there wasn’t steam rolling out of his ears.
“No, that’s not what I meant.”
“What did you mean, then?” He was still upset.
“I meant, thank you,” I said with as much sincerity as I could and hoped he understood.
The tension blew out of him like air out of a balloon as his expression softened. “You’re welcome.”
I smiled. “Let’s eat.”
Six hours later, I was in my element. The high school gym was filled to capacity and the band was thumping out the Star Wars theme song.
“Piper!” Coach yelled to be heard over the crowd and the band.
“Yes, Coach?”
“Box out. Stay under the basket. We need rebounds. Make the sure shot. We can’t afford to lose this one. Team on three. One. Two. Three. Team!”
The buzzer sounded and we made our way back onto the court. It was the beginning of the fourth quarter and we were up by five. It was still anybody’s ball game. There were high expectations for us this year and I knew if I wanted my shot to play Division 1 ball, we had to win them all.
“Trin! One-one!” Bailey Tucker, our point guard, called out to Trinity Bell, our power forward. Everyone switched positions and Bailey dribbled the ball back almost to mid-court. Trinity zipped under the basket, leaving her defender scrambling. Bailey passed her the ball and she shot. I watched the ball arc through the air and bounce off the rim. Jumping, I snagged the ball out of the air and tossed it in for an easy bank shot off the backboard.
“That’s it, Piper!” I smiled to myself as I heard Drew’s voice cheering for me above the crowd. The boys’ team was huddled near the doors to their locker room where they would wait until our game was over bef
ore they could begin their warm-up. I was almost as excited for their game as I was to play in ours.
Fifteen minutes later, the buzzer sounded again. This time announcing the end of the girls’ game. We won! 65-52. Our season had officially begun with a 1-0 record. It felt good.
After meeting the other team at mid-court for high fives and good games, I jogged in the direction of the girls’ locker room. The boys were already shooting around. Drew looked a little green when I caught his eye. I raised one brow, questioning. He just shook his head. I smiled. He winked. And all I could do was hope he was ready for this.
Chapter 28
Drew
Gearing myself up for practice was nothing like the talk I’d had to give myself to force my feet in the direction of the court tonight. I’d had a blast watching Piper dominate in the girls’ game, but even that hadn’t been enough to distract me from what I was about to do.
My parents were in the stands with Kittie. I’d watched my dad make his way down to the bench to shake hands with Coach Tillman. Even from the court, I could see the speculative looks he’d gotten as he threaded through the crowd and I wondered how long it would take.
The timer wound down and the buzzer sounded. We made our way to the bench for the National Anthem and introduction of the starters. Palms sweating, I took a deep breath as the familiar strains of the Star-Spangled Banner played by the band filled the gym. I wanted to throw up.
The lights dimmed and music blared through the sound system.
“And now, for your Eastridge Heights Men’s Basketball starters! At Guard, number 10, Senior, Nooo-ah Jacobs!”
The crowd cheered and Noah jogged down the tunnel created by the guys who would sit on the bench to start the game. He shook hands with the officials and the opposing team’s coaches before making his way to stand at center court.
“Also at Guard, number 11, Junior, Jared Caaa-stle!”
Jared jogged the same path until he ended next to Noah.
“And now for our Bulldogs starting Foward, a Senior, number 4, Mateo Wats-ooon”
My heart was about to beat out of my chest. I’d told Coach Tillman my two conditions for playing on his team. One, I played Forward, not Center. And two, he was forbidden from announcing my credentials. One word from the announcer about my basketball prowess in Colorado, and I’d throw my jersey in his face and walk off the court. He didn’t like it, but he’d agreed to it.
Dating: One on One: Eastridge Heights Basketball Book 1 Page 17