“Zeke filled us in on the situation with your mom. I would like you to know the team’s resources are available to you for anything you need.”
“I appreciate that. I needed to play closer to home. Thank you for making the offer to make it happen.”
“You made that happen on your own. The grit and drive you possess is one we’re always interested in.” He clapped a hand on my shoulder. “Want to take a tour of your new home?”
I grinned and looked over my shoulder. “Hey, Tuck. Want to check out the field?”
His eyes widened and he slowly stood, pressing his hands down on the purple tablecloth in front of him. “I can go down to the field?”
“I thought we could do some batting practice, test out how well we swing in the stadium.”
“Hell yeah!” he shouted.
“Tuck,” Delilah hissed and her cheeks turned red.
Mr. Owings and I laughed as Tuck scrambled around the table and ran straight to me, crashing into my legs and calling over his shoulder, “Sorry, Mom!”
Delilah and Tuck walked to the outfield on bare feet, laughing with each other. Mom stayed by my side as I strolled behind them, unable to take my eyes away. I’d imagined a lot of moments in my life happening inside a baseball stadium; everything I’d ever dreamed of was baseball-centric.
I’d never been in a place in my life to imagine a wife and a son, but as my eyes stayed glued to the pair in front of me, I wanted them. I wanted them as mine, sitting in the stands cheering my name. There for every great game and there after every bad one.
I wanted them next to me on the field when I held a World Series trophy above my head.
I wanted to teach Tuck more baseball skills on a Major League field, something not many kids had the opportunity to do. Everything that mattered in my life was in the empty stadium, standing on bright green, freshly cut grass.
“You love her,” Mom said. It wasn’t a question, just a simple truth. A simple matter of observation. If anyone knew me at all, it would only take one look to know what that woman meant to me. My life had been ruled by a 5.25-ounce white ball with 108 red stitches until Delilah Moreland won me over with nothing more than a plate of French toast.
“I do. Tuck too,” I said. “I don’t…I don’t know when it happened.”
“I’m not sure we ever know the moment we fall in love. It’s little things that add into big things that become all-consuming until it’s impossible to deny it. You don’t need to know the exact moment it happened, you’ll just have to fight like hell to hold on to the flame.”
I’d battled fire before. It had left me scarred. The fire burning inside Delilah, the one that called to me, only gave warmth and left me craving more.
Just as if she’d heard my thoughts about loving her, Delilah looked over her shoulder, making eye contact with me, and every nerve ending in my body flared to life as she smiled the smile that was reserved just for me, like we had a secret that was exclusively ours. She’d wrapped herself up in my soul, clinging to my heart, and was as vital as marrow, blood, oxygen, and baseball. She was a part of me and I’d never let her go.
Chapter 32
Delilah
Austin’s skyline glittered in the late-night sky. The elevator to the penthouse suite at the hotel was made of glass and faced the city. Gunner stood behind me, pressed against me, and kissed up the column of my neck. I tilted my head and brushed my hair to one side to give him easier access. The elevator was soundproof, and as we slowly rose to the top of the hotel, it was just us two in all of the world.
It had been the perfect day. An all-consuming pride and lust had fueled me as I watched Gunner give his press conference and then show Tucker around every square inch of the stadium. They took batting practice on the field and played catch as Jenna and I sat in the dugout.
Gunner surprised us with an early fancy dinner, and then he surprised me with a night out on the town for just the two of us. I felt alive. More so than ever before.
“You looked stunning tonight,” Gunner murmured against my sensitive skin. “Have I mentioned that?”
I felt his lips curve into a smile, and I matched his with one of my own. “Once or twice.”
His hand ran up the outside of my thigh, tracing the slit in my forest-green dress, which made my eyes an even lighter amber color. The gold jewelry I’d paired with it brought out the amber and moss green undertones. The way his eyes had watched me throughout the night and his hands had roamed, I’d never felt more beautiful.
I hadn’t been able to take my hands off him either. He was dressed in all black, looking devilishly handsome. His thighs and ass filled out every inch of his pants, and I loved feeling the muscles beneath his shirt.
The elevator beeped, letting us off at our floor. I took one last glance at the city lights and followed Gunner to the even better view from our suite. It was quiet and dark. Jenna and Tucker had probably been in bed for hours.
“Think you can stay quiet?” Gunner whispered in my ear, running his hands up my sides to cup my breasts, plucking my nipples through the thin fabric.
“Yes,” I moaned in a quiet whisper. Gunner led us to the master bedroom of the suite while continuing to play with my body. He spun me before we reached the bed, and we toppled over together. We burst into laughter.
Gunner cupped my cheeks, bringing my lips just a breath away from his own as he stared into my eyes. His thumb caressed my cheek, and my hands ran up his chest. I wound one leg over his hip, bringing us closer together.
“I love you, Delilah.” His voice was a hoarse whisper as he brushed his lips over my own, but he never took his eyes away from mine, which swelled with tears. “I love you so damn much. I always thought any woman would come second to baseball, but everything in this world comes second to you and Tuck. I know you’re a package deal, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I love you, Delilah,” he whispered again.
In the quiet space between one heartbeat and the next, I fell for him. He’d become as essential to my life as the next heartbeat. “I love you too, Gunner.”
We collided in a frenzy of lips, hands, and love. His tongue glided against mine and I tasted him. All Gunner. He’d become my favorite flavor and the only flavor I’d never share, the one I’d keep all to myself.
He rolled me onto my back, getting on top of me without breaking the kiss, and pulled down the front of my dress, baring my breasts to him. I slipped the straps from my shoulders and down my arms, freeing myself of them, as my dress pooled at my hips. Gunner dipped his head, bringing a peaked nipple into his mouth, sucking and running his tongue over the tip. I arched and grabbed his head, urging him impossibly closer. My clit throbbed with each suck and begged for pressure. I canted my hips searching for it.
He lifted his head, sending me a salacious grin. “I’m using every minute until sunrise to taste your body.”
“I need you in me. I need you, Gunner,” I panted as he trailed kisses achingly slowly down my body.
“Not yet, baby.”
He pulled my dress off inch by inch and kissed and licked his way down. My nerves were in a frenzy, and I’d never been so wet.
I sat up, reaching for him, and pushed his jacket off his shoulders and unbuttoned his shirt. With a breathless laugh, he planted a kiss against my lips. “I fucking love you,” he whispered.