“We have to stop seeing each other—at least for now.”
Jaye followed him. “No. Let me handle Stan. I’ve been playing this good-ole-boy’s game for a long time. I know what to do.”
Matt squeezed her arms. “It’s best, mi amor.”
Jaye stepped back, shocked. “What are you saying?”
“I am not willing to risk you losing everything for me.”
“Isn’t that my choice?”
“Jaye—”
“No. This is my career.”
“But you are my heart—my life.”
“And you’re mine,” she countered, trying to think as a pragmatist rather than a romantic. “But I’m a modern woman, and I want it all.”
“And if you have to make a choice between love and career—”
“It won’t come to that,” she insisted. “Do you have faith in me?”
“In you, yes. Always.”
“Then that’s everything I need from you, now and always.”
Matt smiled. He put his arms around her waist and drew her in close. “The wonder of a strong woman. It’s that simple and that difficult.”
“But never boring,” she said, her arms around his neck. “Are you in?”
He pressed his hips to hers so she could feel him through jeans that must be painfully tight. “I so want to be in,” he said. “Wait.” He leaned back. “Did you just say you love me?”
“Didn’t you just say you loved me?” Jaye countered.
“Jaye,” he kissed her—a light kiss that didn’t come close to satisfying her need for him. “I’ve waited so long. Say the words.”
“I love you, Matteo.”
He kissed her. “I love you, too,” he said, then lifted her and carried her into the bedroom.
14
“How much longer?”
Jaye stared at the image of Matt on her computer screen. He was in bed, shirtless, and rumpled. He looked so good she ached. Instead of answering his question, she said, “I have to tell you something.”
He propped another pillow behind his head. “I don’t like the sound of that.”
She touched the St. Anthony’s medal on the necklace he’d insisted that she wear while they were apart. “I didn’t want to do it like this, but I also don’t want you finding out from someone else.”
“Just say it,” he said, that muscle ticking in his jaw.
“The Washington Nationals have offered me a job—Vice President for Player Development and Assistant General Manager.”
His Adam’s apple bobbed before he spoke. “You’re taking it.”
It wasn’t a question. “Don’t you think I should?”
He ran his hand over the two or three days of dark scruff shadowing his face. “It’s the job you wanted with the Marlins. Damn, Stan.” He found another pillow on the bed and threw it across the room. Something crashed to the floor.
“I’d see you when you’re in town for games. And D.C. is close to other major league clubs like Baltimore.”
“American League,” Matt mumbled.
“There’s interleague play. And Philadelphia is a short train ride. I could fly to New York or Miami for other games.”
“You won’t be able to get away whenever I’m close by or even every weekend for that matter. Baseball season is six months long. Six months of only seeing you when you can steal away. It sounds miserable.” He picked up his laptop and brought it closer. “If you were in Miami, we’d be together more.”
“But I’m not going to be in Miami,” she said softly, tracing the line of his lips on her computer screen.
“You should be,” he insisted.
“I’ll never be there as long as Stan is at the helm.”
“He’s a damn fool.”
The heat in Matt’s voice made Jaye smile. “I can’t disagree.”
“I miss you,” he said, touching his screen.
“I miss you, too.” She hesitated then added, “You had a rough night last night.” He’d blown a two-run lead by giving up a homerun on an ill-placed fastball in the low nineties.
“I miss you,” he repeated.
“You have to maintain your focus, mi amor,” she said.
“I need you, mi corazón.”
His heart . . . Jaye sighed. “We’ll be together this weekend.”
Ignoring that, he said, “When will you leave Jacksonville to go to D.C.?”
“We’re still working out details, but soon.”
Matt hit his laptop. His image cut out then came back into focus. The pain in his beautiful eyes had her wishing she was that girl—the one who would give up everything for her man. “Should I stay in Jacksonville?”
“I can’t ask you to do that,” he said immediately. He picked up the computer and held it close again. “I want you to be happy. And if you are happy, that is what matters most to me.”
“Are you? Happy?” He didn’t look happy.
“Do you love me?”
“Yes,” she said. “So very much.”
“Then I am the happiest and luckiest man in the world.” He touched the screen again. “It’s just that,” he took a deep breath and continued, “I must learn to share you.”
“As I have to share you.” She smiled. “With your fans and all those women throwing panties at you with their numbers written on them.”
He grimaced and looked away. “You heard?”
Jaye laughed. “As long as you don’t keep them.”
He reached to his right, and then brought into view a pair of pink lace panties dangling from his finger. They were the ones she’d worn that night to the hotel when he’d first come to Jacksonville. “Those better be mine,” she teased.
He brought them to his lips, and she shivered. “Of course they are yours.”
“That’s not fair,” Jaye complained. “I don’t have a pair or your underwear to keep as a souvenir.” She did, however, have one of his t-shirts, and she wore it every night. But she’d worn it so much that it had lost his scent. She’d considered picking up a bottle of his cologne, but it wasn’t the same. God, she was pathetic.
“Next time,” he promised, his voice low and seductive.
“I’d rather you show up without underwear the next time I see you. It would save us some time,” she said.
“If you’ll wear that little coral skirt again without your panties, it’s a deal.”
Jaye smiled. “It’s a date.” She touched her fingertips to her lips then touched the screen. “I have a meeting. See you Friday.”
“I love you.” Matt didn’t bother with kissing his fingertips. He leaned into the laptop screen and gave it a comical-looking wet kiss.
Jaye laughed. “I love you, too.”
He leaned back, smiling. “Until Friday.”
“Get me a save,” Jaye added.
“Blow me a kiss,” he said just before she signed off. Jaye did as he asked. He caught the kiss and pressed it to his heart, then the screen went blank.
That night Jaye watched Matt on television. As he took the mound, he held his hand against his heart and looked up at the sky. He played well. In fact, he was great. After he’d gotten her that save she’d asked for, he gave his catcher a high-five and then a handshake. As the camera zoomed in on them, she could see Matt had written initials at the base of his thumb. Could they be hers? He looked up at the sky again pressing his hand to his heart, the smile on his face spectacular.
Friday couldn’t come soon enough.
* * *
On Friday, Jaye had tried to get to Miami early so she could meet with Stan to give him her resignation. Her flight had arrived on time, but traffic had been a nightmare. Stan had agreed to meet with her even though she’d been late. He’d made a half-hearted effort to get her to stay in Jacksonville, but of course she’d declined. Just to tweak him, she’d told him she’d be happy to entertain a similar offer with the Marlins if Stan would like to give her the job he’d promised her. He, too, declined.
And that was that.<
br />
Her late meeting with Stan had meant she hadn’t gotten to see Matt before the game. Sitting alone in the owner’s private box, the game dragged. She wished she had binoculars so she could just stare at Matt. She looked at the scoreboard. Only the second inning.
She got a beer from the refrigerator in the middle of the inning, and the owner and his wife surprised Jaye when they walked into the box. “Mr. and Mrs. Ford. I didn’t know you were coming to the game tonight.”
“Jaye! I hoped you’d still be here.” Mr. Ford shook her hand. “I’m glad I caught you.” He turned to his wife, a beautiful, petite woman with stunning gray hair and dark brown eyes. “This is my wife, Janet.”
Jaye shook the woman’s hand and couldn’t help noticing the enormous diamond she wore on her left hand surrounded by more diamonds in her wedding band. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, ma’am.”
“Oh, please. Call me Janet. No need for formalities. Chip tells me such nice things about you.”
Jaye looked at Mr. Ford, then back to his wife. “Does he?”
“He does indeed. Sit, sit.”
After they’d taken their seats, Mr. Ford positioned himself so he could face Jaye. “You’re a star, Jaye Baxter. The Marlins are damn lucky to have you in our organization.”
People kept saying that, and yet, she’d just resigned. He must not have heard yet. Of course he hadn’t. How could he have? “Mr. Ford,” she began, but he kept talking as if she hadn’t spoken.
“I tasked Stan Reid with one thing: to look after you. I made it clear to him I wanted you here in Miami.”
“You—um—I’m sorry?” Stunned, Jaye had trouble getting her words out.
“I told you we couldn’t trust him,” Mrs. Ford commented.
“Too true, love. I should have kept closer tabs on him, but I thought with our grandnephew working as his assistant, we’d be in the know. But that snake was slippery.”
“Ethan is your grandnephew?” Jaye felt like she’d stumbled into a play about her life, but she didn’t have the script. “I don’t understand.”
“Let me catch you up,” Mr. Ford said. “I’ve just been downstairs having a conversation with Stan about your resignation, which to my great surprise, he accepted. I understand you gave him the chance to offer you a promotion, which he chose not to do?”
“Yes, sir. That’s right.”
“A promotion you’d been promised. Is that right as well?”
“Yes.”
“Well, you’re no longer dealing with Stan, Jaye. You’re dealing with me,” Mr. Ford pointed at himself with his thumb. “Now, what’s it gonna take to get you to Miami?” Jaye didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t possibly work with Stan under these circumstances. While Jaye was trying to form a reply, Mr. Ford said, “Would you like to be our general manager? Because I just fired that sonofabitch.”
“You fired Stan?” Jaye managed.
“Well of course he did, dear,” Mrs. Ford said. “I’m shocked that man used such sexist tactics with you. We will not now, nor will we ever, tolerate such treatment of any woman in our employ.”
Jaye raised her eyebrows. “So, you know about my relationship with Matt Ruiz?”
“Of course we do,” they said together.
“And you still want to hire me? As your general manager?”
“Look, Jaye,” Mr. Ford said, “We decided you were the person to replace Stan something like a year ago. In fact, we’ve had our eye on you for quite some time. I always thought highly of your father,” Mr. Ford added. “We played ball together back in the day. Best pitcher to ever play the game, in my opinion.”
“But don’t think that has anything to do with this offer to be our general manager,” Mrs. Ford said. “You’ve earned this on your own merit. You’ve more than paid your dues, and it would be our honor to make history with you.”
“Damn straight,” Mr. Ford said. “What you’ve done in Jacksonville is impressive. Everyone in the league is talking about you, and I’m not about to let you get away.” He held out his hand. “So, what do you say? Shall we let the lawyers hammer out a deal?”
Jaye shook Mr. Ford’s hand. “I’d like that very much, sir.”
“Call me, Chip.”
“Thank you,” she said, swallowing hard around the lump in her throat, refusing to do the unprofessional thing and cry. Her dream was coming true. She felt like her body was floating.
“Don’t thank me, yet,” Mr. Ford said. “Turning this club into the kind of operation you’re going to want will be damn hard work.”
“I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Jaye said.
“Chip, get us some champagne,” Mrs. Ford said. “This calls for a toast, don’t you think?”
“It does indeed!” He stood and added, “If you ladies will excuse me, I’ll be right back with the bubbly.”
After he’d left, Mrs. Ford turned to Jaye and said, “You know, Chip and I were a baseball couple, too.”
“Were you?” Jaye said, surprised.
Mrs. Ford nodded, a sweet smile on her lips. “I was an attorney at the law firm affiliated with the agency that represented Chip when he played ball. He asked to have me assigned to his contracts.” Mrs. Ford laughed. “I was a real estate and corporate attorney. I didn’t know the first thing about sports law, but I learned because I wanted to get to know Chip.” She leaned closer to Jaye and added, “I know I don’t have to tell you what those tight baseball pants do for handsome men like ours?”
“No you do not,” Jaye said, laughing. “And you and Mr. Ford have been together ever since?”
“Yes.” Her features softened beautifully when she spoke of her husband. “He’s the love of my life. And baseball was a mutual love.”
“That’s so wonderful,” Jaye said. She searched the bullpen and found Matt, understanding how Mrs. Ford felt.
“You and Matt met through work as well?” Mrs. Ford prompted.
Jaye smiled. “Actually, I didn’t know he was a baseball player when we met.”
“Really?”
Nodding, Jaye said, “When I found out he was a player I was scouting, well, that threw us both a curve, if you’ll pardon the pun.”
Mrs. Ford laughed. “I will indeed. I’m so sorry Stan gave you difficulty when you told him about your relationship. I wish we’d known sooner.”
“Matt trusted me to do what was best,” Jaye said.
“Of course he did. You’re brilliant and he’s lucky to have you.” She set her purse beside her on the chair. “I do hope your first priority when you take over as general manager will be to have human resources update our outdated employee manual.”
“Consider it done,” Jaye said.
Mrs. Ford touched Jaye’s arm. “Please tell me you haven’t yet signed a contract with the Nationals.”
“No. Not yet. This is so hard to believe,” Jaye said shaking her head. “I came here today to quit my job, and I’m leaving with the job I’ve dreamed of my whole life and the man of my dreams? It seems an embarrassment of riches.”
“We are the winners, Jaye.”
“We certainly are,” Mr. Ford said as he came in with a bottle of Cristal and three champagne flutes. As he poured, he said, “I hope you and Matt will be our guests for dinner tomorrow night after the game. We want to get to know you both better.” He handed Jaye a glass, then poured another for his wife. “The two of you are about to become baseball royalty.”
“The contract isn’t signed yet, dear,” Mrs. Ford said gently to her husband.
“Technicalities,” he said.
“We’d be happy to join you for dinner,” Jaye said, hoping Matt wouldn’t mind.
“To a long, successful relationship,” Mr. Ford said, holding up his glass. “Between you and the Marlins and you and Ruiz.” They touched glasses and drank. All Jaye could think was that Matt was not going to believe this.
15
After the game, Jaye walked down the long hallway towards the locker room, but didn’t go ins
ide. Instead, she waited outside for Matt. He must have showered and changed in record time, because she didn’t have to wait long. He lifted her off her feet and hugged her tight, and then kissed her before letting her feet touch the floor again.
But his green eyes turned serious when he asked, “You meeting me here, outside the locker room, does this mean you told Stan you took the job with the Nationals.”
Jaye just smiled and nodded.
“Then we have something to celebrate,” Matt said, doing his best to look happy for her.
“But,” she said, “I’m not going.”
Matt took her hand and got them moving towards the exit. “What do you mean?”
“I’m not going to D.C.”
Matt stopped just outside the stadium in the parking lot. A few waiting fans rushed up to get his autograph. He set down his bag and obliged, posing for a few selfies. Security stood nearby, making sure everything went smoothly. Thankfully, there was no press. Matt took her hand again and led her to his car. After he’d opened her door, helped her in, and stowed his bag in the trunk, he got in as well.
Instead of starting the engine, he turned to her. “What do you mean you’re not going to D.C.?”
“I’m staying in Miami.”
“I don’t understand. Stan—”
“Chip Ford fired Stan.” Matt tilted his head and tried to form his next question, but before he could ask it, Jaye added, “The Fords offered me Stan’s job, and I accepted.” She threw her arms around Matt and said, “I’m going to be a major league general manager.”
Matt held her for a second, but then moved back a bit so he could ask, “What about us?”
“The Fords were upset that Stan had given me a hard time about our relationship. When they heard I’d resigned, they were furious with him. They said they’d decided some time ago that they wanted me to replace Stan. I guess this gave them a reason to make a move.”
“Have you been drinking?” Matt asked. “You’re very not yourself.”
“We had a little champagne, and I’m excited. Aren’t you excited?”
“Of course. It’s just so much to take in.” He took her hands and kissed them both. “Let me understand. You have the job of your dreams, and there is no longer anything standing in our way. We can be together?”
Played: Scandalous Moves Series Page 10