Full Court Press

by J Akridge

“I’m good.” He runs a hand through his hair awkwardly before releasing a deep breath. He takes a step closer to me and drops his voice so he isn’t overheard. “Listen, can we talk about that morning?”

  I glance to where my son is occupied by Jen and Cal, making sure he won’t be able to overhear this conversation.

  “I don’t think there is really much to talk about.” I shift so my body blocks his. Well, blocks what it can of him, anyways.

  “I didn’t mean to come off so rude that morning, I was just frustrated because I heard you on the phone with your boyfriend, or whatever, and I thought you were just using me to have a quick fuck with an NBA player.”

  “Wait, what?” My jaw falls open and my brows shoot clear up to my hairline. “My boyfriend?”

  He nods, as if I’m supposed to know who this mysterious boyfriend is he’s talking about. I think back to that night, unsure of where he got the idea that I had a boyfriend. I came to the game with my sister and two friends, went to the after-party with the same ones, ran into Kyle, but surely that isn’t who he thinks is the boyfriend since I left him standing on the dance floor and walked to the VIP section with Landon.

  I think about how we fell asleep late that night and I woke up to my phone ringing.

  Wait. My phone. That’s it. Carson called that morning asking when I’d be home.

  “Are you talking about the phone call I got that morning? The one from Carson?” I turn, tossing my hand out toward my son, who is still oblivious to the conversation we’re having. Thankfully.

  “Carson? You were on the phone with Carson? Why didn’t you just tell me that?” He holds his arms out between us.

  “I barely knew you. I still barely know you, why would I bring up the topic of my five-year-old son with someone I had just had a one-night stand with? Besides, you were quick to the point throwing me out that morning.”

  He thinks about what I’ve said for a second and I can see when realization sets in.

  “Damn. No boyfriend?” he asks, staring at me for confirmation.

  “No boyfriend.” His face slowly breaks into a smile. A smile that makes my heart stop because it’s so damn perfect.

  “Then, let me formally apologize for the way I acted that morning. I’m sorry for kicking you out on your ass to do the walk of shame. I was a dick.”

  “Yeah, you were a dick.” He raises a brow at my statement and lets out a low chuckle.

  “Let me take you out, make it up to you.”

  “I’m not so sure that’s a good idea, Landon. Things are complicated.” I shuffle my feet, nervous at rejecting him, but I know this is the right decision. For both Carson and me. We can’t get attached, and Landon is an easy person to get attached too. The morning we shared together proved that I’m in no way, shape, or form prepared to be in any type of relationship.

  “What’s not a good idea about it?”

  “Well, for starters.” I glance behind me. “I have a five-year-old that demands a lot of my attention and I rarely leave him with a sitter, you have a very grueling schedule with practice and games, I work full time, and it would just be too difficult and complicated and –”

  “Bring him with us,” he cuts me off. His eyes are serious, and his body has shifted slightly toward me, in a pleading way. “We can do something fun, the three of us. No pressure. We can go to the park, go to the skate park, hell we can even go to Disney.” My eyes bug out of my head at that one. I’ve never been to Disney and neither has Carson, it’s expensive and it’s hard for me to get a handle on a decent amount of savings to even consider taking the two of us to Disney.

  “Listen, Landon, your money isn’t important to me. Throwing around trips like Disney isn’t going to impress me. We’ve never been, and we’re okay with that. I’m not sure if I’m ready for Carson to be around anyone, not in a serious way.”

  “You’re right, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for it to sound like I was trying to bribe you into going out on a date with me, that’s not what I meant. I just meant we could do anything you wanted, anything he wanted. We can go anywhere he wants.”

  “Anywhere I want?” Carson steps up beside me, clearly hearing the last part of his sentence. “What do you mean?”

  Landon looks from Carson to me, unsure how to approach the topic.

  “Nothing, baby. Landon was just saying how he wanted to hang out with the two of us sometime.”

  “Oh, that’d be fun, huh, Momma?”

  “A blast.” I give my biggest fake smile to Landon and he laughs. That sound could easily become a favorite of mine.

  I have to protect myself from the possibility of heartbreak. For the both of us.

  Chapter Eight

  “How are you feeling?” my mom asks from the phone. I’m finishing getting ready so she is on speaker phone.

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, about this date that you so clearly didn’t want to go on.” Chrissy. I should have known my sister would tell her my plans; we can’t keep any secrets from this woman. And we all know Chrissy has the biggest mouth in the south.

  “I’m going to have to stop telling Chrissy things.” I roll my eyes as I pick up the curling iron and curl a piece of my thin, blonde hair.

  “Stop trying to change the subject.” She sighs. “What’s so bad about going out here and there, Kelsi?”

  “I just think it’s unnecessary, Mom. My focus should be on Carson and only Carson right now. He’s so young and he only has one parent that gives a damn. I can’t spend all my time going on dates that I know will lead to nothing.” I set the straightener down on my vanity and click it off. I glance in the mirror and stare at myself. Sure, I’m pretty. I’ve always been told that. I have bright-blue eyes and the perfect shade of blonde hair. I’m curvy where it counts but thin in other places. But, even with all of that, what does someone like Landon Prince want with me? He dates supermodels, daily probably. I’m just an elementary school teacher who is a single mom of a five-year-old boy.

  “Nothing is unnecessary, my dear. Everything that happens in life, happens for a reason.” She’s been saying this for as long as I can remember, and I often agree with her, but this is one aspect I just can’t seem to budge on in my life.

  “How can you say that though? What about Kyle? How can you justify his actions?” I grab the phone from the vanity and walk into my room to find something to wear. I have a decent-size closet and it’s filled with clothes that I hardly ever wear. I typically dress casual for school. Being an elementary teacher means I’m constantly moving with the kids, and sitting outside during a hot recess means I would rather be dressed comfortable than in fancy dress clothes and thankfully our principle agrees.

  “Kyle was an ass, honey.” I giggle at her use of ass. This woman never uses curse words so when she finally does spit one out, it’s always a shock. “But, have you ever thought that maybe Kyle would be a shitty father and so he was removed in order to give Carson a better life?”

  I stop myself in my closet as her words sink in. I’ve never thought about it, not really. I always wondered what type of father he would have been, but I was always so caught up on the fact that he abandoned us to even think that far ahead. Hearing it from her mouth brings it to my attention and she’s right. I’ve always known. He would have been an awful parent and probably bothered by a crying baby any time a basketball game was on. I would have ended up doing all the work just like I did with Carson anyways.

  “Kyle would have been a shitty father to him, and you know it. He treated you horribly and didn’t even care enough to show up to the hospital when you gave birth and never bothered contacting you after. That isn’t a father,” my mother continues.

  “I know you’re right. But, it’s still just hard to think of dating. Ever. To allow myself to get put back into that situation again.”

  “Well, of course it is. You were screwed over by someone you thought you loved.” Her voice drops to a mumble. “Although, I have no idea what you saw in that ja
ckass.” This causes me to laugh and she joins in.

  “Thanks, Mom.”

  “Seriously though. You are a catch and you deserve to live your life the way you were meant too. Carson needs to see you smile and be happy.” I start to cut her off but she shushes me before I can. “I know you’re happy in your little bubble with him, but, honey, there are greater things out there and they’re coming for you. Mark my word.”

  “I love you, Momma.” I grin into the phone. If I have ever had one constant in my life, it’s my family, and I wouldn’t have survived these years without them.

  “I know you do, now tell me where he is taking you?”

  “Actually, he’s taking me and Carson out tonight.” We spend the next half hour discussing how he is including Carson in order to be able to go on this date tonight and I have no idea where he plans to take us.

  Chapter Nine

  The doorbell rings, and without looking I know who it is. He’s right on time.

  “I’ll get it, Momma.” Carson barrels down the hallway as fast as he can and I’m hot on his heels.

  “Carson Andrew, don’t you dare open that door without knowing who is on the other side of it.” I stop behind him with my hands on my hips.

  “But, Momma? We know it’s Landon.” He crosses his arms across his chest.

  “We don’t know that for sure. It could be anyone.” I step around him and look through the peephole. It’s Landon, of course, but Carson still needs to know the dangers of opening doors without knowing who stands on the other side. I crack the door and allow it to swing open wide. Landon stands on my front porch dressed in denim jeans and a plain white T-shirt. He has a baseball cap turned backward and he looks so damn sexy I can’t even control my thoughts. My mind wanders to the night at his place, the feel of his hands on my body and the same smirk he’s wearing now. Until my five-year-old speaks.

  “See, told ya it was Landon.” My son steps up and holds his fist out for Landon. Landon takes a step in then squats so he is eye level with him.

  “Bud, your momma is right. Answering the door can be dangerous, you never know who could be standing there.” Carson drops his head in defeat. Landon looks up to me and says, “Heard the two of you through the door.”

  “I’m sorry, Momma.” He steps up to me and wraps his arms around my waist. I run my hand along his back.

  “It’s fine, baby. You just have to be more careful.”

  “Are you two ready for a fun afternoon?” Landon stands to his full height and towers over me.

  “As ready as we’ll ever be.” I follow both Landon and Carson out the door. We walk up to the side of Landon’s jeep. It’s the hunter green one I saw in his garage bay when I was at his house last.

  “Let me grab his booster seat out of my car really quick.” Landon nods and then helps Carson climb into the backseat. He takes the seat from me when I step up and I watch as he easily secures it before buckling Carson in like he’s done this a million times.

  When he’s finished, he turns and catches me watching.

  “What?” He raises a brow at me and does that damn smirk.

  “Nothing, just looked like you knew what you were doing.” I shrug and start to walk around the back of his jeep. He follows, opening the door for me. His hand goes to the small of my back as I take a step and climb in, then drifts from my back down to my ass and lands on my thigh. He waits as I secure the seat belt around me before shutting my door and making his way to the driver’s seat.

  As he’s backing out of my driveway, I ask, “Where are we going?”

  “It’s a surprise.” He winks at me before pulling away and exiting our neighborhood.

  Carson is watching trees out the window as we drive and I’m curious as to what is going through his little mind at this entire experience. The only man he has ever been around is my dad and the occasional men Jennifer or Chrissy bring around.

  “How much longer?” Carson asks as he leans sideways in his booster seat to see out the front window.

  “Not too much longer, bud.” Landon flips his blinker on and turns into the parking lot of the newest go-kart and laser tag place.

  “No way!” Carson squeals from the back seat. “We’re going here?”

  “Yeah, dude. That okay with you?” Landon shuts off the jeep and pockets his keys. I watch as he grabs a ball hat from his dash and places it on his head. I make a strange face, one because I've never seen him wear a ball hat before and noticed it when I opened the door earlier and second, because I for some reason only associate ball hats with baseball players. “What?” He asks, chuckling slightly at the look on my face.

  “What’s with the hat?” I point to where it sits on his head.

  “It’s my disguise.” He turns to look at Carson, who is beaming with excitement. The thought never crossed my mind that he’d need a disguise for times like this. His focus falls back on me. His eyes roam my face before focusing on my lips. “How about you? This okay with you?” he asks and I don’t miss the hidden meaning; he knows how I feel about letting someone into Carson’s life.

  “Yeah, I’m okay.” And maybe I am.

  Chapter Ten

  After nearly four hours of go-karts, laser tag, putt putt golf, and pizza, Carson is passed out in the backseat and we are heading back to my house.

  “I have never seen him play so hard,” I say as I look over my shoulder at a sleeping Carson. His head keeps falling forward in his booster seat. “Thank you for bringing us.” I turn my attention back to Landon.

  “I had fun. I really enjoyed it, and I enjoy Carson. That kid is hilarious, you’ve done a really good job with him, Kels.” Kels. The butterflies flutter in my stomach at the shortened version of my name.

  “Thank you. I’m sorry about the other day, Landon. I’m just nervous about all of this. I haven’t been with anyone since his father; well, except that night that you and I…” I trail off. I feel my face flood with heated embarrassment.

  “Don’t be embarrassed. I don’t regret a single bit of it, except for the way I treated you the next morning. I just heard you on the phone and jumped to the wrong conclusions, I’m sorry.” He reaches for my hand and squeezes. I don’t pull away, loving the feel of my hand in his.

  “I just need to go slow, this scares me and the last thing I want is for Carson to get attached to you and us fall apart and break his heart.”

  “Hey, I totally understand that, and honestly I’d be bothered if you weren’t being this protective of your son. You’re a damn good mom, Kels. I can tell that just by being around you this little bit.” He pulls his jeep into my driveway and shuts his engine off.

  “I guess I better wake him up, he’s getting too big to carry,” I say as I reach for the handle of the door.

  “Let me.” Landon hops out and scoops Carson up into his arms like he weighs nothing at all. I reach past him and grab the booster seat and walk up the sidewalk to my front porch. I fish my key out of my pocket, unlocking the front door and holding it wide for him to step inside.

  “His room is the first door on the right.” I gesture to the hallway as I set Carson’s booster by the back door.

  When I get to Carson’s room, I can hear his little voice. “Thanks for such a fun day Landon, my momma needed it.” My heart jerks. “She never has fun but she did today.” I glance around the corner and see Landon unlacing Carson’s tennis shoes and slowly setting them down beside his bed as he pulls the covers up over my son.

  “No need to thank me. Anytime you want to go, just say the word.”

  “What’s the word?” Landon giggles at my son’s innocence.

  “It’s a figure of speech, you just tell me when you want to go and we will plan something, okay?” Landon fist bumps him and stands from his bed. Carson has already curled into a little ball and fallen back asleep.

  I’m back in the kitchen when Landon makes his way from Carson’s room.

  “I’m glad you came today, Kels. I had a really good time.” He stops ri
ght before he reaches me and shoves his hands in his pocket. He looks nervous. “I would really like to continue seeing you both.” I jerk my head in his direction at the mention of both of us.

  “Both of us?” I ask, unsure if I heard correctly.

  “Both of you.” He nods, taking a step closer to me.

  “But why? Why me, Landon?”

  “You’re the one that I can’t seem to get out of my head. You’re laid back and cool and not about the bullshit of the fame and fortune that surround my life. You’re a damn good mom, and I just want to see where this goes.” He’s taken a few more steps toward me now.

  “And what if this doesn’t work out? What do I tell Carson?” I lean my back against the kitchen counter, facing him.

  “You tell him the truth, that I will always be a friend of his, regardless of what happens between you and I.” I look him in the eye. His eyes are focused on my lips and before I can think about my actions or the situation unfolding before us, I reach up on my tiptoes and place my lips against his.

  “That won’t work, Landon. He is a little boy that wears his heart on his sleeve. He will get his hopes up and he will attach himself to you. He’s already thrilled to have you around and we haven’t even gone anywhere yet.” I sigh and place my palm against my forehead. “I’m not sure about any of this.”

  “That’s okay. We don’t have to rush, we can just get to know each other and let me make it up to you for being a dick when we first met.”

  I look him in the eyes, searching for something to tell me not to do this, but I couldn’t find any reasons. The sex that night was amazing, but the caring man standing before me is someone I wasn’t prepared for. And saying no to Landon Prince is just too difficult.

  “Fine,” I mutter, a small smile playing at my lips.

  Landon steps forward so we are directly in front of each other. His crooked grin causes me to smile bigger. His knuckles run across my cheek as he leans in, gently placing his lips against mine.