Pinky Promise
Page 19
“Time for dinner,” Miss Tami announces.
Rowe whines when they’re at the end of the block. I’m thankful Miss Tami is taking the lead role of fun cop tonight. We end up at a local pizza parlor. Shocker, I know! State orders for us girls and even pays. I was ready for a full-blown wrestling match between him and Miss Tami. He’s lucky he caught her on a night she’s exhausted.
State has Rowe on his hip while they pile their salad plates high.
“You feeling okay?” I ask Miss Tami.
“I’ve just been so exhausted lately.”
“Doctor,” I ordered.
“Yes, mother.” She rolls her eyes. “I have an appointment Monday.”
“Good little girl.” I pat her hand and laugh.
“It’s just old age, you know?”
“Or a man keeping you up late at night.”
“No, Tom has been away on a business trip the last month.”
I stick my fingers in my ears and chant. “La, la, la, la, la, la.”
“What’s going on?” State sets Rowe in the booth and slides his mask over his neck.
“Nothing,” I fire off a bit too quickly while getting up to get my salad.
State doesn’t just stop after pizza. He orders him and Rowe an Oreo dessert pizza. I’m stuffed and can barely watch them eat. Something catches my attention and when I turn I nearly lose my dinner and grounding.
I come eye to eye with Dylan Burnett. I look around quickly to make sure his family isn’t with him. I don’t see any of them and more importantly his younger brother. State reaches over the table and grabs my hand. When I look up at him, I see the question all over his face. It only takes a quick nod for him to catch on.
State is up and out of the booth. Rowe bounds out, but I catch her before she follows him.
“He’s using the restroom, honey.” I brush her bangs back and stand up. “Sit between us for a bit.”
I track State, trying not to alert the rest of the table to the new patron of the pizza place. State walks right up to Dylan, grabs his collar, and drags him right out of the restaurant. There are a few hushed murmurs that float around for a few beats. It takes everything I have to stay in my seat.
My heart thuds with fear. State will kill him. I struggle to keep up with Rowe’s conversation as I wait for State to return. It feels like endless hours before he strides back to us. I can tell he’s putting on a face for us.
“Did you pee outside?” Rowe asks.
“Uh?”
“I told her you went to the restroom,” I offer.
“No, honey, just went and checked on our candy stash.”
“Is it okay?”
“Everything is just fine, princess.”
Once we’re at the pumpkin patch there’s enough distraction to corner State.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah, I think he got the point.”
I grab his face and force him to look down at me. “Don’t let him ruin this. We’re safe with you in our lives.”
“I’ll try.”
“No, you will just leave it alone.”
“They hurt her.”
“I know. We have her. Don’t let it ruin us.”
He nods. “Okay, I’ll try, but I will be tracking the fucker.”
“Of course you will, and that’s why I love you.” I kiss him on the lips.
“I won’t feel comfortable until he’s gone to California.”
“State,” Rowe squeals and points. “I want this one.”
Of course, she’d pick the biggest and brightest pumpkin in the whole damn patch. He strides over to it, snaps it from the plant, and hoists it on his shoulder. I pick a fat, round one for me and a tall, skinny one for State.
Rowe and I pull the two pumpkins in a little red wagon behind us, while Shrek packs his up to the stand to pay. We sit on the straw bales and let Miss Tami snap a few pictures. As exhilarating as State’s football games are, it has nothing on this moment. I sneak in a quick kiss on State’s cheek while him and Rowe smile brightly for the camera.
We spend hours gutting the pumpkins and carving them. Rowe sets her LED lit candle in the pumpkin before being tucked in bed. I perform our ritual as State sits on the other side of Rowe. She snuggles down in her blankets clutching her Rapunzel doll to her side.
Through sleepy eyes, she says, “I love you guys so much.”
“We love you, too, Rowe,” State whispers. “You’re so beautiful, smart, and brave. Thank you for the best day of my life.”
She stares him down. “Don’t you dare eat my Snickers.”
He wraps his pinky in hers. “I promise.”
“Will you wait until I fall asleep?” She asks.
He lies down next to her with his feet hanging over the bottom of the bed. I pull another string of pumpkin innards from my hair.
“I’m going to shower,” I whisper.
He winks up at me. “Take your time, Queen.”
I take my time cleaning the remnants of the Halloween make-up from my face while the shower heats up, then strip off my clothes. I turn slightly so I can see the top of my back in the mirror. It’s so bare. State owns all of me, yet I’m bare.
The hot water feels good after a long day of running around on fumes. Even though I wore my comfiest pair of Nikes the pads of my feet ache. I lather up my hair and let the sudsy water flow down the drain.
I shave my legs while I allow the conditioner to soak in my long locks. I feel a whoosh of cold air and look up to State stepping in the shower.
“Good girl.”
I wrap my arms around his chest and let the water relax both of us. Our worries and stress all sink down the drain. State has a Monday night game. It’s some celebration and is being televised on national television. The only bad news is it’s on the west coast. It will be another long two weeks not seeing him.
“Hey.” I look up at him and pat his chest. “No packages this time. You spoil us too much.”
“Okay.”
“Okay?” I ask.
“Yeah, okay.”
“You never give up that easy.”
“I already hid them around the house and will text you clues.”
“Of course, you did.”
“You’ll never find them without my clues.”
“Won’t stop me from trying.”
He smiles widely before lowering his lips to mine. We move slowly working our mouths around each other. His hands roam down to my ass and then he hoists me up to him. My ankles lock right above his ass. I trace my name on his back even though I can’t see it. I let my fingerprints soak into his ink, connecting us forever. State pulls back, kissing along my jawline until he’s sucking on my neck and then down to my collarbone. My back is pressed up against the wall of the shower.
The water continues to massage our skin pouring down on us. I widen my legs around him being careful not to slip from his hold. I feel his hard cock bobbing between us and need to devour it, but he has me pinned.
“Please, baby,” I whine.
I flex back my hips and he follows my plea for him. His tip rubs up and down my folds. I seal our lips together to stifle my moans. It feels so good, sending greedy need through me. I want him inside me, controlling my every move, but what he’s doing now is so delicious I can’t find my voice to beg for more.
I’m wound tight, ready to fall over, so I move my hips as much as I can until I see stars. I moan loudly into his lips riding out the waves of the feeling. He enters me without warning. I up his game and let go of my grip on his back, so I sink all the way down on him.
I’m the only fool because it sends me straight into another orgasm. State begins pumping into me slow at first and then quick with punishing desire. He has me all worked up in a matter of no time.
“Go, State, go. Jesus, fall with me.”
He works himself faster in me until I feel his whole body tense right before he melts into me. His large frame folds into me, but never eases his grip from me. I’m on my
Thirty
“Holy FUUUUUCCCCKKKKK.” I clench the bench I’m face down on.
Shayne’s cackles fill the tattoo parlor.
“It’s not fucking funny.” I grit my teeth. “Are you almost done?”
“With the S,” the badass tatted guy replies.
“Hold my hand. Sing to me. Fuck, fuck, fuck.”
“He’s not even done with the S,” Shayne says between her laughter.
“Fuck,” Trick huffs out. “I need a smoke break.”
“Me, too.” I carefully stand up.
“You smoke?” Shayne asks.
“No, but I’m about to take it up.”
She doubles over in laugher with her cellphone clutched in her hands.
“Asshole, are you recording this?”
“No, not me.” She raises her hands up cellphone in tow.
“I’ll dice you.” I grab it from her hand. “Dude, it fucking hurts.”
“I couldn’t tell,” Shayne replies. “Here.”
I look up to her. She has her hand outstretched with two white pills in it. “Take these. It will chill you the fuck out. Will make the video footage dull, but I kind of feel bad.”
“What are they?”
“Valium.”
“Where did you get these, Shayne?” I raise an eyebrow.
“Chill the hell out. They are my mom’s. She uses them during football season.”
“Will they kill me?”
“Jesus, for a kid raised on the streets you’d think you’d have more cred. Take them, Pollyanna.”
“If I die…”
She interrupts me. “State would crush my spine and kill me. I’m thinking I like my body more than that. They will chill you out.”
I drop the pills in my mouth and wash them down with the bottle of water. “Are you a pill popper?”
I blame the blatant question on the pain and fear of the fucking needle about to attack my back again.
“Jesus, no. I stole them from mom. I had a feeling you wouldn’t be able to handle it.”
The inked devil waltzes back in. The sheer sight of him put the ever-loving fear in me. I swear to God I’ll never ever, as long as I live, get another damn tattoo. I was a real badass when this idea drifted in, but now I feel dumb as hell.
I lie back down on the table and have Shayne readjust my shirt. My head soon swims. Panic begins to set in until everything dissolves. I hear the singing of the tattoo gun, but feel nothing. I close my eyes and float away. Shayne must find the scene quite boring as she finally sits down in a chair next to me.
Before I know it, badass tattoo guy stands up and taps me on the shoulder.
“All done. Take a look.”
I stand up and expect my legs to feel like rubber, but they don’t. My entire body is relaxed with no worries in the world. I grab the hand-held mirror and peer into it. I gasp out loud when the five simple letters come into view. It’s my future and worth every single bit of pain.
I’m sent out of the tattoo parlor with strict instructions and feeling fulfilled. I’m no longer a blank canvas. I’m Baylor Jones who is madly in love and ready to face the future.
Thirty-One
I glance into the rearview mirror. “It’s going to be super loud, Rowe.”
“I know.” She rolls her eyes.
“State has a job to do on the field. You’re not going to be able to talk to him much after the game.”
“I know.” She rolls her eyes again. “He promised he’d do the princess play and that’s why I’m going.”
Miss Tami places her hand on top of my leg. “She’ll be okay. Quit worrying.”
I chew on my bottom lip, worried about her reaction to attending a game.
“You know I wouldn’t let her go if she’d freak out. I always push you girls for more, but would never force you into something that would scare you.”
Her words ease me a bit, but I’m terrified for Rowe. There’s no way I can prepare her for how loud this stadium will be or how everything bleeds football. I glance back to her one more time through the rearview mirror. Rowe is in her number seven jersey twirling her blue and orange hearing protection in her fingers. She has her matching bracelet on, completed with a poofy neon orange tutu.
State reserved us four seats near where I’d sit in every other home game. They’re just a row down and four seats over. He made sure Shayne had one, too. I pull into his parking spot, make sure everything is safely stowed in our tote bag, and begin to weave through the maze of the stadium.
Shayne is waving from our seats. When Rowe spots her, she squeals, and begins to dart down the stairs. I’m able to snatch the corn dog from her grip before she dashes down. She leaps into Shayne’s arms.
I let Miss Tami go before me, making sure she makes it down all the way. She’s persistent that she’s healthy as a horse and that I’m over reacting. Once all nestled in, I sink into my seat, already exhausted. Miss Tami is right; she’s never shoved me into a situation that would hurt me. Of course, she’s pressed me to test the limits and has allowed me to grow comfortable in those boundaries.
My damn back itches like the mother of Satan, but like all other times I try to ignore it. The crowd filtering into the stadium erupts in cheers when the home team takes the field to do their warm-ups. Rowe stands on her feet jumping up and down. Her scratchy orange tutu rubs against my face only making the need to itch more intense.
“State,” Rowe shrieks.
I look up to see number seven jogging our way. He waves her down. I’m surprised when she leaps over the stadium seats to get down to him. In one quick lift, he pulls her over the guardrail.
“Sit.” Miss Tami pushes me down into my seat. “Let her fly.”
We watch from the stands as Rowe mimics every one of his stretches. When he goes back for passes, State sets her on the bench and hands her a white board. Rowe’s little hand flies over the whiteboard with her black marker. I notice a giant of a man standing at her side, and I know for certain he’s standing guard for State’s princess.
State finally jogs over to the bench, takes a knee and nods while Rowe schools him on the play. He finally waves over Coach Pete who also takes a knee and studies whatever is on the whiteboard.
Once Rowe is satisfied her message has been received, State hands her a ball, and picks her up. He bends over, whispering something into her ear. State takes the field once again with her in his arms, and begins jogging towards an end zone. He jukes imaginary players. A player from the opposing team jumps in front of them playing along with their game. He falls down on his back when State rushes past him.
The whole stadium erupts in cheers. I look up to see everyone on their feet cheering the duo on. Shayne punches me in the arm and points to the jumbotron. A huge image of State and Rowe’s smiling faces fills the screen. I join the crowd cheering them on.
Their feet land in the end zone and he sets her down to perform her own victory dance. The rest of the starting team surrounds them in a victory dance. Rowe finishes her moves and leaps right back up into State’s arm. He’s saved her, just like he saved me.
Unashamed tears roll down my face. I thought I’d experienced joy until now. It’s all too surreal to experience. State trots right back over to us and I stay put, letting Rowe walk back up to us on her own two feet. She’s experienced terror and has now looked it in the eye and won.
Everyone below us helps her leap up the rows over the back of the chairs. She could’ve taken the aisle steps, but in true Rowe fashion she blazes her own trial. Rowe stands on her chair, places her hands on her hips, and talks.
“We’ve got this. We just ran the winning play.”
Everyone around us erupts in cheers, gifting her with high fives. I look back down to the guardrail to see my number seven smiling back at me. He mouths, I love you before jogging back out onto the field.
Rowe eats her corndog while waiting for the home team to come back out to their official introduction. Her personalized blue and orange headphones lie under her seat while she cheers with the rest of the crowd. Our offense takes the field first. She claps along with the rest of the fans.
It’s a different story when State takes the field. Rowe hops back up onto her seat giddy with excitement. I have to fight the need to comfort and warn her about what’s about to take place. Our gentle giant is about to abuse his body on the field.
I keep my hands poised in front of me. The center hikes the ball to the quarterback and State sprints from his line. It’s like magic as he realizes what the play is going to be before the ball leaves the quarterback’s hands. He gets through the line and is about three steps away from taking down the quarterback.
“Oh no, Shrek,” Rowe yells.
I look up at her standing on her chair. I wait for her reaction. Her face twists in pain and I can only imagine State has just crushed the quarterback. A glorious smile appears on her face and she begins clapping then immediately covers her ears.
Bending down, I grab her hearing protection. I don’t offer them to her when the stadium erupts in cheers. She grabs them from my hands and places them on her head. I smile up proudly at her.
Rowe proudly cheers on her State the rest of the game with her hearing protection on. She offers up high fives to the surrounding crowd and nearly leaps out of her seat when State finally completes the princess play. I truly have no idea or can even being to pinpoint the play. It’s their secret and she beams with pride.
I’m not the first one scooped into his arms outside the locker-room. It’s his princess and it feels even sweeter than I could even imagine. State introduces Rowe and Miss Tami to his father. His mother is nowhere to be found, and I don’t ask any questions. Rowe orders her meal with vigor right along State. It’s nice to have her as a distraction.
On the drive home, Miss Tami and Rowe are both asleep in the backseat. State keeps my hand in his own on the console.
“You made her day.”
“No, Queen, she made my day.”
Thirty-Two
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