“That’s not a problem. I’ll run home myself and change into something a little more comfortable.”
“Sounds like a plan. Did you have any specific place in mind?” I ask.
“Does sushi sound appealing to you?”
“Absolutely. Does the Sushi Bar work for you?”
“That’s my favorite place,” Laura states.
“Perfect, let’s plan to meet there in, say, forty-five minutes? Does that give you enough time to get home and then to the restaurant?” I ask.
“That will work just fine. See you soon!” she says as she ducks into her car.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Madison
My dinner with Laura last night was nice. We got to know each other a little more and have started a nice little friendship. Growing up, I was always such a tomboy that I didn’t have many girlfriends, so having my new little tribe of friends—Becca, Kinley, Laura, and Bridget—has been really refreshing and something that I’m learning to love. Their friendship these past days since we found out about my dad’s cancer has been one of the things keeping me upright. That, and having Richard by my side.
I picked up some takeout from our favorite Mexican restaurant and took it over to Becca. She had a better night last night, with Kinley sticking around and tending to Michael, so she could get a full night’s rest.
While Becca ate, I tended to Michael, getting in my baby snuggles and playing with him, doing my best to keep him awake so that he’d hopefully sleep tonight for Becca. After spending the evening with the two of them, I made my way home and attempted to get a good night’s sleep in preparation for tomorrow.
Dad’s first radiation treatment is this morning and after tossing and turning all night last night, I finally gave up and got out of bed around five this morning. I wasn’t getting any sleep anyway, so I dragged myself out to the living room and cuddled with Max on the couch, getting lost in a book.
I wait until around eight to send Richard a text. Even with today being a travel day for him, I don’t want to wake him up any earlier than he needs to be, especially with the three-hour time difference between us. But I also just need to hear his voice. I need it to calm me down, remind me that everything is going to be okay.
Madison: Call me when you’re up. Just missing you and wanted to talk this morning before I go pick up Dad.
I put my phone down and turn back to my kindle. I’ve only read a few sentences when my phone chimes, alerting me to an incoming FaceTime request from Richard.
“Hi,” I state, once the video connects.
“Morning, beautiful. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” I say, wiping at a tear that escapes down my cheek.
“Don’t hide from me, Mads. What’s wrong, babe?”
“I’m just nervous,” I tell him. “I didn’t sleep well last night. I kept tossing and turning all night. I think if I got three hours total, it was a lot. I finally gave up around five, and came out to the couch to read and cuddle with Max.”
“I’m sorry, babe. I wish I was there today to be with you.”
“Me too,” I say on a shaky breath.
“What time are you headed over to your dad’s again?”
“I need to be there around nine, so that I can have him to the hospital by 9:30.”
“When we get off the phone, why don’t you go take a nice hot shower. It will help you relax.”
“I planned on it, I just wanted to talk to you and hear your voice. I waited until eight to message you, so that I didn’t wake you up too early.”
“Oh, Mads. You should have called me earlier. Fuck, babe. That kills me that you needed me and didn’t reach out to me. I’m here for you, no matter what time it is. You should know that by now.”
The tears stream down my face a little faster at his words. I knew that he wouldn’t have cared if I woke him up, but I didn’t want to be an inconvenience to him.
“I know, but you need your rest on such a long road trip. I didn’t want to be the reason you didn’t get it and end up playing crappy.”
“I’m a big boy, Mads. If you need me in the middle of the night, then call me. I can deal with the lack of sleep, got it?”
“Okay,” I whisper.
“Now, cheer up. I don’t like seeing the tears. Everything today is going to be just fine. Your dad is going to rock this radiation treatment like a boss, and it will all be over and done with next week,” he tells me. “I’ll be home pretty late Sunday night, but as soon as I am, I’ll be all up in your business, so be ready for me.” He winks at me, which makes me laugh.
“That’s what I like to see and hear,” he states.
“I love you, thanks for cheering me up a bit this morning,” I tell him, looking straight at the camera.
“Anytime, babe. Now, go take that shower and get your dad to his appointment. Call me when it’s over and tell me all about how he rocked his treatment. We’re flying to Vegas in a few hours, so that will be the only time I’ve got my phone off today. Otherwise, call me whenever you need me.”
“Okay, have a good flight. I love you.”
“Love you, too, Madison,” he says, before disconnecting the call.
“Right this way, Mr. O’Neal,” the radiation technician tells my dad as we’re led back to the radiation area, then directs her attention to me. “Now, Miss, you can come see where his treatment will be and what the machine looks like, but you’ll have to wait in the waiting room during his treatments.”
“No problem. Thank you for letting me see everything before he starts.”
“Not a problem at all. Family is usually very curious as to what it all looks like and will be like for the patients. We encourage them to come see it for themselves before a treatment.”
The technician explains everything to the both of us and shows us how the system reads the scans that were uploaded from his CT last week. Once she’s done, I have to leave so that they can get him into position and start his first treatment.
I make it out to the waiting room and send a quick text to Richard.
Madison: He’s all checked in and back for his first treatment. I’ll call you once I’m home and tell you all about it.
* * *
Richard: I’m glad things are going well so far. Keep me posted. Love you.
I put my phone in my purse and turn to my kindle, where I get lost in my newest Rom-Com. Before I know it, my dad is being shown back out to the waiting room.
“How are you feeling?” I ask, jumping up from my seat to stand in front of him.
“No different than I did when we got here,” he tells me.
“How was it?”
“Easy. I just laid still on the bed. They put a wedge pillow thing under my legs and positioned the machine over me. The technician went into the room next door and watched through the window that was in the room. She could talk to me through a microphone and asked me periodically how I was doing. They even turned on music for me, to help drown out the silence and noises from the machine. Before I knew it, she was coming back in to move the machine out of the way. I had to be observed for about fifteen minutes once it was finished, to make sure I didn’t have any reactions to the radiation.”
“Sounds easy enough. Are you ready to get out of here?” I ask.
“Sure am. I’m ready for some lunch and maybe a nap this afternoon.”
I take my dad home and make him some lunch before leaving him to take a nap. I head home, stopping first at the store to pick up a few things. Once I make it home, I grab Max’s leash, and we head out to the dog park. It’s so nice out today, but the dog park is fairly empty, since it’s the middle of the afternoon and most people are still at work.
We hang out at the park for a while. Max enjoys running around freely for a bit before I pull out his ball to throw for him. He’s content the entire time, fetching it and bringing it back for me to throw again. We probably repeat this a hundred or more times, until my arm is too tired to continue. He’s such a good do
g that he doesn’t fight me at all when I slip the leash back onto his collar and we make our way back to the path, in the direction of the house. As we leisurely walk, I simply enjoy the sunshine on my face and the fresh air. The stress of getting through my dad’s first treatment is behind us, and he made it through it just fine without any complications. I can only hope that the remainder of the treatments go the same and no complications arise.
Once back at the house, I pour myself a glass of lemonade and head for the patio to soak up some more sun. I bring my cell and iPad with me so that I can read and possibly FaceTime with Richard.
He should be to Vegas by now, so I pull up the FaceTime app and press his contact. Moments later, the video connects.
“Hey, babe. How’d things go today?” he asks.
“It went good; really good, actually. Where are you?” I ask.
“A bunch of us came over to Topgolf for the afternoon,” he says, flipping the camera to show me everything.
“Cool, it looks fun there.”
“It is. We’ve only been here for about a half hour, so we’re still just getting started.”
“Do you want to just call me once you’re back to the hotel?”
“If you don’t mind. It’s kind of noisy here, and I’ll be up soon.”
“Just call me when you’re free. I’m home for the evening, just enjoying the sunshine on the patio.”
“Sounds good, babe. I’ll call you back in a few hours. I think we’re going to go to dinner once we leave here, so it might be kind of late before I’m back to my room. I’ll text you before I call to make sure you’re still awake.”
“Sounds good. Have fun,” I tell him before disconnecting the call.
I rest my phone and iPad on the table next to me and close my eyes as I lay back on the lounge chair. With the lack of sleep I got last night, I doze off for a bit in the warmth of the sun. I’m not sure how long I sleep, but when I wake up to the nudge of Max’s nose against my hand, the sun has started to set and I’m starving.
I wipe the sleep from my eyes and rub Max on the head.
“Okay, boy. I’ll get you some dinner,” I tell him, as I stand and stretch before heading inside. I feed Max before digging through the fridge for something for me to eat. I heat up some leftovers in the microwave before relaxing on the couch with my plate of food and a glass of wine.
I get lost in watching a marathon of a baking show featuring kids. I’m always super impressed with what these kids can come up with, and in such a short amount of time. I’m lucky if I can make cookies from scratch following the recipe on the back of the chocolate chip bag and have them turn out edible. I don’t know how they do it from memory like they do.
My nap this afternoon gave me some much-needed energy, so I’m still wide awake when the text message from Richard comes in.
Richard: I’m finally back in my room, are you still awake?
Rather than text him back, I just pull out my iPad and FaceTime him.
“Hey, babe. I take it you’re still awake,” he says on a laugh.
“Yep. After I talked to you earlier, I fell asleep outside. Slept for a while before Max woke me up, ready for some dinner, so now I’m wide awake.”
“I’m sure you needed it after not getting much sleep last night.”
“Yeah. How was the rest of your afternoon and then dinner?”
“It was good. We all had a great time at Topgolf, and then enjoyed a nice dinner at one of the restaurants here at the hotel.”
“Do you guys have an early morning skate tomorrow?”
“Normal ten a.m. time, since it’s a game day.”
“Are you ready to face Vegas?”
“I think so. They are going to be hard to beat, so we’re going to need to be on the top of our game tomorrow night. So how did today go?”
“It went really well. When they took him back, they let me come back and see the machine, and explained everything to the both of us. I had to leave then, as no one but the patient can be in the room when they are administering the radiation, just like if it was an x-ray or any other test that uses radiation. He came out a little over an hour later, feeling no different than he did when he was taken back. Said it was painless and easy, just had to lay still while the machine did its thing.”
“Sounds easy enough.”
“Yep, and since this was the first treatment, they had to observe him for about fifteen minutes before they’d let him leave. With no symptoms arising during that time, they let him go. I took him home and got him some lunch, then left him so he could nap.”
“That’s great, babe. Have you talked to him tonight to see if he’s still doing good?”
“Yep, I called him earlier and checked in on him. He was still doing fine. I’ll see him tomorrow when I take him to his appointment with Dr. Raymond. She wanted to see him after his first treatment.”
“Good. What do you have planned for tomorrow besides his appointment, then?”
“I’ll go into work once I take him home, since I didn’t go in at all today. I only got a few emails today, so it was a quiet day in the office. Or, if anything came up, someone else took care of it and didn’t even try to call me about it,” I tell him. “God, I wish this week was already over and you were back home. I miss you.” There’s a hint of a whine in my tone.
“Me too, babe, but we’re already past the halfway point of this road trip, and it’s the last long one we have for the season. The next ones will be during the playoffs and will only be a couple days at a time.”
We continue our conversation for a while, just catching up and enjoying seeing each other, even if it is through a video feed. Our conversation takes a turn to the sexy side before we end our call, and I fall into bed sated and happy, even if Richard isn’t here to hold me himself tonight.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Richard
The remainder of our road trip trickles by. We won our games against everyone except Vegas. Who would have ever thought such a new team would be so hot, but damn, if they haven’t surprised everyone with how good of a team they are.
I’m on the plane, just waiting for everyone to get settled before we take off. Thankfully, the flight down to Indianapolis isn’t super long from Chicago, only about an hour. At this rate, I’ll be sliding into bed next to Madison within the next two hours, if I’m lucky. I texted with her after the game and told her not to worry about waiting up for me, as it will probably be after one a.m. before I’m home.
I arrive home to a mostly dark and quiet house. Madison left the entryway light on for me, so that I didn’t have to walk into a dark house. Max must have heard me open the garage because he’s waiting quietly by the door when I come in. I drop my bag on the floor and give him a good scratch to the top of his head.
“Hey, buddy. You take good care of Madison for me while I was gone? You’re such a good boy, aren’t you?” I tell him, still scratching his head for a few more moments.
I stand and walk over to the jar that holds his treats and pull one out for him. He immediately takes it from me and goes over to his dog bed in the living room, where he plops down to munch on it. I look around, the light from the entryway bright enough to see, and I notice a few items of Madison’s. The feeling I get seeing her stuff intermixed with my own just brings a calming sensation over me. She’s really mine. We’re doing this, together.
I shut off the lights and grab my bag. I quietly make my way down the hall and into the bedroom. Using the light on my cell phone, I gently set my suitcase down by the closet. I can deal with the contents tomorrow. I strip out of my suit, down to my boxer briefs, and after using the bathroom, I slide into bed next to Madison. I pull her into my arms, placing a kiss on her lips and then on her neck, just below her ear.
“I’m home, beautiful,” I tell her, not really wanting to wake her up.
“Hi,” she says to me in her sleep as she curls in tighter to my side.
I lay there, her in my arms, and just breathe her in.
This feeling of completeness, like I’ve found my forever, fills me. Madison is my end game; I’ve known it for a long time. I never wanted to admit it but I’m sure glad I did.
I finally slip off to sleep, Madison tucked tightly in my embrace, sleeping soundly herself. I wake hours later when Madison’s alarm goes off, and she stirs to life in my arms.
“Good morning,” she says, her voice filled with the sound of sleep. “What time did you make it home?”
“Mornin’,” I reply, placing a kiss against her neck just below her ear, where I know she loves it. “A little after one.”
“You should have woken me up,” she says, rolling closer and laying her head on my chest, where she places a kiss.
“You were so peacefully sleeping. I did tell you I was home, and you only said hi, then rolled closer to me and that was it.”
“Oh, sorry. I must have been tired because I don’t remember any of that.”
“It’s okay, I was tired myself. I missed sleeping next to you and I missed this bed. All those hotel room beds were getting old.”
“Ah, poor baby. Sleeping in a different five-star hotel every night,” she teases me as her hand slips down my abs, toward my hardening cock.
I quickly flip her so she’s beneath me, bracketing her in between my arms as I hover just over her body. Her hands rake up and down my torso, tracking the contours of my abs and other muscles as they twitch under her fingertips. My cock presses against her leg, thick and ready to slide into her.
“Tell me, this is what you wanted this morning?” I whisper against her lips before sealing them with my own.
I swallow her moans and press my body against hers. We still have the barrier of her sleep tank and panties and my briefs between us, so I can’t just slide inside her yet. I kiss her deeply, giving her everything that’s been pent up inside of me for the last eleven days, since I last saw her in person, last touched, kissed, tasted, made love to.
Playing For Keeps Page 16