The Problem with Sports

by M. E. Clayton

  My chest felt like it’d just been kicked in. “You’re still in love with him, aren’t you?”

  She smiled as she shook her head. “No,” she chuckled. “I am not in love with him anymore. But I value what we have. There are too many separated families out there that don’t get along and are damaging their children because of it. I am grateful that Grant’s parents care enough about him and each other not to force him to live in a toxic environment.”

  I immediately thought of my sister-in-law and her ex-husband, and her words painted a clearer picture of what she was trying to convey. She didn’t need or particularly care if she had her ex-husband’s permission to date me, but it’s be nice if she had it. For everyone’s sake.

  “Talk to him, then let me know what day works for you,” I relented.

  She arched a brow. “That confident, are you?”

  Fuck it.

  I stepped to her, slid my hands into her sun-kissed locks, and brought my lips down on hers. Andie let out a surprised squeal, but all that did was give me access into her sweet, hot mouth. My tongue found its way in, and when I felt her hands grab at the fabric of my shirt, I deepened the kiss and there was no way I was letting her ex-husband stop whatever this could become.

  Andie Miller tasted fucking divine.

  I couldn’t say how long the kiss lasted, but when I finally pulled back, she looked dazed and her lips were swollen with use.

  I bet she looked fucking magnificent when she came undone.

  “So,” I said, releasing her hair, “talk with Steven, and then let me know what day works best for you.”

  While Andie might look wrecked, her mind was still sharp as ever. “I think you’re going to be more trouble than you’re worth, Nathan Hayes,” she mumbled.

  I grinned down at her. “I think you might be right.”

  Chapter 13

  Andrea~

  I was a grown ass woman. I shouldn’t be this nervous.

  But I was.

  When Steven had dropped Grant off on Sunday, everything had been perfect. Grant had run inside to tell me all about how Steven had gotten us tickets to the season opener of the Raiders versus the Chargers. He told me all about how, together, he and Steven had picked which hotel we’d be staying at, and how they had made sure to get adjoining suites, so Grant could go back and forth between rooms during the weekend. I’d never seen him so excited, and I had felt guilty for keeping the experience from him for so long.

  After he had rambled on about anything and everything to do with the game, he had gone to his room to get ready for his bath, and that had left me and Steven to talk. I had offered to pay for half of everything, but Steven had insisted that it was his treat. I was thinking he probably felt guiltier about our decision to not let Grant go to live games than I did.

  When all the details had been hashed out, I had wanted to talk to him about Nathan asking me out, but I had chickened out, not wanting to ruin the good vibe we had going on Sunday. And it wasn’t that I needed Steven’s permission to date, but I didn’t want to fight with him over it either.

  I stared at my phone in my hand. Right now, Grant and Nathan were sitting out on the balcony, visiting with Nathan’s former teammate and friend, Sergio Hernandez. I could hear muffled laughs and surprised cries through the sliding glass door, but that was about it. After making Nathan swear on all that was holy that he wouldn’t swear or tell grownup tales, I pretended not to hover, and let them have some guy time.

  Grant had been ecstatic.

  I let out a deep breath and sent the text.

  Me: R u busy?

  Steven: Just going thru some listings. Everything ok?

  Me: Do u have a second 2 talk?

  The phone rang in my hand, and I quickly answered it. My nerves were clearly messing with me, but that kiss had been knee-weakening, and I wanted to do it again. “Hello?”

  “Hey,” Steven replied. “Everything okay?”

  “Yeah,” I grumbled because I really did feel stupid. “I…” I took a deep breath. “Nathan asked me out on a date last week. And…and I want to say yes.”

  He was quiet for so long, I wondered if he was going to say anything at all. Finally, he asked, “You don’t think that might make things complicated for Grant if it…doesn’t work out?”

  I didn’t want to bring up old hurts, but as I spoke with Steven, something became painfully clear. “Steven, Grant aside, nothing in the world can hurt me worse than our divorce,” I told him truthfully.

  “Andie-”

  “No, just listen,” I said, interrupting. “Our divorce was extremely painful for the both of us, Steven. I’m not placing blame or taking blame or anything like that. But if we can still be cordial and civil and care for one another, for the sake of our son, I can be cordial and civil with my neighbor for Grant’s sake, if he ends up using me and dumping me.”

  “Andie,” he growled, “don’t talk about yourself like that.”

  “The point is,” I stressed, “even if it doesn’t work out, it won’t be as painful as getting over what I’ve already had to with our divorce.”

  “He’s a professional baseball player, Andie,” Steven groaned.

  “I know.” And I did. I understood Steven’s concerns because I’d had them myself. “But it’s just a date. It could lead to something, or absolutely nothing, but I want to find out.”

  He was quiet for a few seconds before saying, “Okay.” I smiled. “Just be careful, Andie,” he added. “I know this sounds stupid coming from the one man who has hurt you the most, but I don’t want to see you get hurt.” My heart lurched. I wished all divorced parents could care for each other the way Steven and I still did.

  “I know, Steven,” I replied. “Neither do I. But what does it get me to play it safe?”

  I could hear him sighing over the phone. “Okay. Just keep it separate from his friendship with Nathan until you’re absolutely sure about where it’s going.”

  “Of course,” I immediately agreed. That was a given with or without Steven mentioning it.

  “Thank you for talking to me about this first, Andie,” he said softly.

  “It’s no more than you deserve for giving me the same courtesy last year,” I replied.

  “I’ll talk to you later, okay?”

  “Okay.” I hung up, and a sudden rush of emotion hit me.

  Even though it was over between me and Steven, dating someone new was just another step towards walking away from the life I once believed I’d always have. The arguing had been the first step. Steven sleeping in the spare bedroom had been the second step. Steven moving out of our house had been the third step. Me filing for legal separation had been the fourth step. Me filing for divorce had been the fifth step. Moving into new homes, leaving our old one behind, had been the sixth step. Steven going out on his first date had been the seventh step. And now, I was taking the final step by going out on my first date.

  Well, I suppose that wasn’t exactly true.

  The final step will be if Steven or I ever get married again. Now, granted, I wasn’t looking to get married ever again, but I wasn’t going to put restrictions on my heart, my love, or my life’s possibilities.

  Getting my sentimentality under control, I headed towards the kitchen and peeked out the sliding glass door. Grant, Nathan, and Sergio were laughing at something, a joke probably, and they all looked happy.

  Grant looked happy.

  I walked through the kitchen and slid the door open. All three male heads turned my way. I smiled. “Having fun?”

  “I’m being ganged up on,” Nathan retorted, and Sergio and Grant laughed.

  “He’s got a point, Nate,” Sergio chuckled. “It’s hard to argue logic and facts.” Sergio put his hand out to fist bump Grant. Grant’s smile was a mile wide as he fist bumped a professional baseball player.

  “Yeah, well, the kid still likes football better than baseball, so he can’t be all that smart,” Nathan grumbled.

  “Hockey and base
ball are pretty neck and neck right now,” Grant announced, and Nathan looked pained while Sergio barked out another laugh.

  “You’re killing me, kid,” Nathan breathed out. “Absolutely killing me.”

  I smiled. “Lunch will be ready in a few,” I told them before winking at my son. “Go easy on them, kiddo.”

  Grant smiled his father’s smile. “I’ll try.”

  I went back inside and got to making some lunch. Lunch was always easy with fruit platters or sandwiches. Then I chuckled as I realized I was putting together a simple lunch for freakin’ professional baseball players.

  Jesus.

  A few minutes later, I was placing all the ingredients on the counter when I heard the sliding glass door slide open. I looked up and Nathan was walking towards me, a huge grin on his face. “Hey.”

  “Hey,” I said, smiling back.

  “Does Friday night work for you?” he asked, not pussy footing around.

  “Careful, Nathan,” I said softly. “You’re sounding a bit cocky.”

  Nathan smirked, and it looked good on him. “Confident,” he corrected.

  I decided to put the man out of his misery. “Friday night is fine.”

  “Where would you like to go?”

  While his question was perfectly normal, it gave me pause. If I was going to take baby steps and keep Grant protected from what could possibly become a disaster, I couldn’t very well go out in public with Nathan. Even being back in his hometown, cozy and quiet, people would see us and might take pictures or whatever. I wasn’t ready for that kind of publicity yet, if ever.

  “How about I cook dinner?” I suggested. “Photographers-”

  “I’ll cook dinner at my place,” he offered. “And I get it, Andie.”

  I gave him a small nod. “Dinner at your place, then.”

  “Dinner at my place,” he repeated before heading back out onto the balcony.

  Chapter 14

  Nathan~

  I was a grown ass man. I shouldn’t be this nervous.

  But I was.

  Maybe it was because this wasn’t some woman following me up to my hotel room after a win and taking it for what it was. This wasn’t a fan tossing every compliment out there in an attempt to lure me with flattery. Christ, Andie had no idea who I was when we first met, and she’s hardly been impressed since finding out.

  I’ve never dated before. I’ve slept with my fair share of women, but I’ve never dating anyone past my junior year in college when the MLB had become a real possibility. I hadn’t wanted to divide my attention between proving my talents to my team and proving my faithfulness to a girlfriend back home. I wanted to be worth the money I was being paid, and I wanted to deserve the adoration of the fans.

  Now, had I been madly in love at the time I had made that decision, that decision might not have been made, but I hadn’t been. And I’d seen too much cheating in my playing years to know that I would have lost my concentration of the game had I been seriously involved with someone. I would have spent all my spare time convincing my girl or wife that I was being faithful. And not because she’d be the insecure one, but because I would be. The last thing I’d ever want my wife to fear was my faithfulness.

  So, Andie was the first woman I’ve ever asked on a date, and she was the first woman who came without an underlining understanding that she was expected to leave before the sun came up the next morning. Not that sex was on the table for tonight, because I knew it wasn’t.

  I knocked on Andie’s door, and waited as patiently as I could until she answered the door. All day I’d been promising myself that I’d act the perfect gentleman tonight, but that kiss has been haunting me since the second I had walked out of her condo after kissing her. Her reaction hadn’t been fake or overexaggerated to spare my fragile professional baseball player’s ego. She hadn’t sworn it was the best kiss of her life, which, admittedly, the best kiss of her life should be the one she shared with Steven on their wedding day, but I didn’t want to think about that. His loss, my gain, and all that jazz.

  The door swung open, and I almost swallowed my tongue.

  Jesus fucking Christ.

  Andie’s golden hair was loose around her shoulders, and the goddamn strands looked like they were shimmering. Her makeup was minimal, but effective. Her brown eyes seemed darker, her cheeks looked pinker, and her lips seemed thicker.

  Looking my fill, the woman was dressed in a simple light green blouse with a dark black skirt and black heels. However, the blouse wasn’t gaping, the skirt wasn’t tight, and the heels weren’t hooker-inch. The outfit was perfectly respectable and there was nothing provocative about it.

  Well, except for the woman wearing it.

  Andie looked beautiful, alluring, and seductive, and the woman wasn’t even trying. We were having dinner at my house, and while she put in the effort to look nice, she hadn’t gone overboard. Andie got ready for a dinner date with Nate, not a dinner date with Nathan Hayes.

  Pretty sure I was standing in Andie’s doorway falling a little bit in love with the woman.

  “You look beautiful,” I told her truthfully. “Absolutely beautiful.”

  She cocked her head to the side a bit and gave me a small smile. “Thank you, Nathan,” she replied. “You look very nice, also.”

  Then something occurred to me. “You know, you can call me Nate if you want to.” I couldn’t believe I hadn’t given her that leeway after she had said it was okay for me to call her Andie. Especially, since her son has been calling me Nate for the past few days now.

  “Nate,” she muttered softly, as if trying to see how the name tasted on her lips. Then she smiled wide. “Which do you prefer?”

  “I’ll answer to both, but Nathan Hayes is for the public. Nate is what my family and friends call me,” I told her.

  “Can I go with what just feels right in the moment?” she asked, and I liked that question.

  “Absolutely.”

  Andie smiled. “Let me grab my purse,” she said quickly, and I stepped just inside the doorway as she walked back towards the bedrooms to get her purse.

  When she emerged from the hallway, I asked, “Ready?”

  She nodded. “Yep.”

  I escorted her towards the elevators, and even though it was only one flight up, all kinds or sordid thoughts popped into my mind about just her and me in the elevator.

  Aaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnd my dick was starting to get hard.

  I did my best to tamp down my raging hormones and followed Andie into the elevator. Inserting my key into the penthouse lock, I pressed the button. Riding up the one floor in complete silence, I wondered, for the first time, if my wealth was going to be a mark against me with a woman. Andie wasn’t the type of woman who was impressed with flash, and I hoped she didn’t view my penthouse as flashy, rather than just my home.

  The elevator doors opened, and I placed my hand on the small of her back, guiding her into an open foyer. There were a pair of cushioned benches arched on either side of the foyer with a huge fake plotted plant in the middle.

  Andie glanced around. “Are those for…guests?”

  I shook my head as I led her towards the front door. “No. They’re for decorative purposes,” I answered her. “Although, I’ve never had any guests here, so I dunno.”

  Andie stopped. “What do you mean?”

  “I’ve only been living here about three months,” I told her, pushing open the front door and guiding her in. “The only people who have been here are my parents, my bothers, and Sergio, whenever he’s in town.”

  “Is it weird that you’ve been here three months and I’ve never seen you?”

  “Not really,” I said, shutting the door behind us. “The penthouse comes with its own elevator that goes directly to the condominium garage, so that’s the one I use as I come and go. Also, until recently, I spent a lot of time at my parents making up for all my traveling.” Andie grinned at me, and it surprised me. She wasn’t checking out my place like most people would.
She was looking at me as if learning about me was more important than guesstimating how much the penthouse was worth.

  “Your mom missed you a lot, I take it?”

  “You have no idea,” I chuckled.

  “I have a son,” she laughed. “I have a pretty good idea.”

  After hanging up her purse on one of the coat hooks near the door, I smiled at her and grabbed her hand. We made our way through the sitting room, and then the living room. “I hope you like Italian,” I said, then looked down at her. “I guess I should have asked beforehand.”

  Andie grinned up at me. “I love Italian,” she replied, opting not to make me suffer.

  We reached the kitchen and I pulled out a chair for her. “Have a seat while I get the food.” I had already placed out the plates and silverware and wine glasses, all we needed was the food.

  “So, you’ve only been here three months?”

  “Yeah,” I answered as I delivered the food to the table. “Even though I had made the decision to retire at the end of last season, I hadn’t been quite ready to walk away completely.”

  “I bet,” she said. “Walking away from the life you had into a completely new one can be intimidating.”

  “It was,” I agreed. “Kind of still is, if I’m being honest.”

  “So, why this place?”

  “It’s more than I need, for sure,” I admitted. “But I wanted privacy while I figured out my next move. Buying a house where neighbors went out and did their yards and waved to each other at their mailboxes was too wild a concept for me at the time. I’m still winding down, I suppose.”

  “I can understand that,” she replied. “Sometimes quiet is the only thing you need.”

  I turned to face her, two bottles of wine in my hands. “Red or white?”