Deacon and I decided to go to Central Park. We took a quick train ride, and then walked the rest of the way. On our walk, Deacon stopped in front of a store. He took me by the hand and led me inside. On the shelf was a football with I Love New York emblazoned on it.
He spun it over his finger. “Would you want to toss this around with me?”
Deacon hadn’t touched a football since college. This was monumental.
“Of course I would. I’m thrilled you want to try.”
He smiled and kissed my forehead. “It’s time.”
“This will be my first time throwing a football,” I announced.
His eyebrows lifted. “Yeah?”
“I’m a complete newbie when it comes to handling any balls but yours,” I teased.
“Maybe we should keep it that way.” He winked.
When we got to the park, Deacon demonstrated everything I’d need to do, standing at my back and holding me close as he reached his arm around me. He tried to teach me the proper way to hold the ball.
“Put your middle finger right there at the top of the lacing.” He spread my fingers apart. Then he stopped to kiss my neck.
“I thought this was a football lesson.”
“Mmm. I can’t help it. Anytime I’m close to you, I need to touch you—making up for all those months I held back, I guess. Now I’m addicted to you.”
I smiled. My body was constantly aware of him, craving his touch every second we were together, so I was no less addicted. I’d never been in a relationship that was as sexually gratifying as it was emotionally satisfying. I’d thought I was in love with Charles before he burned me. But I’d never experienced anything remotely close to what I felt for Deacon. If this didn’t work out, it would be my biggest heartbreak.
Deacon took the football from me and began to demonstrate. “When you throw the ball, it’s going to roll off your fingers like this, so you get a spinning motion.”
The few times I tried to replicate his technique were a disaster.
“Come here,” he said. “Let me show you how to position yourself to throw.” He stood behind me again, the closeness of his body warming mine. He pushed his hand between my legs from behind to separate them. The heat of his touch made my body ache for more. “You’re gonna place your feet about shoulder-width apart, like this.” His hand landed on my ass as he pushed down on me. “Bend your knees a little.” Then his hands slid to just above my hips. “Don’t move your legs, but move your torso from side to side and rotate your shoulders.” He wrapped his hands around me and used them to gently twist my body. “See that? That’s how you’re gonna move when you throw the ball.”
“Except your erection won’t be pressing against my ass, like it is now?” I laughed.
“If you want, we can make that work, too.” He kissed the back of my neck. “I didn’t get to fuck you today, so I’m especially worked up. Don’t mind me.”
“Oh, I don’t mind at all.”
Deacon eventually pulled himself away from me. We tossed the ball back and forth, and my heart burst with joy to see the smile on his face as he threw to me. Whenever I caught the ball, he cheered.
Finally, he tackled me to the ground and kissed my neck as we lay on the grass; that marked the end of our game. If people gave us looks, I was oblivious.
“You look especially beautiful today,” he said. “Maybe because you seemed so happy when we were playing, and it brought out your natural beauty.”
I cupped his gorgeous face. “Happiness is beautiful, isn’t it?”
“You have so much on your plate that I sometimes forget how young you are. Today you’re that young, carefree girl.”
“I’m so happy we did this.”
“Baby steps, right?” He grinned. “I would never have considered touching a football if you weren’t with me. I always tell you this, but I will say it again… You inspire me, motivate me to want to be stronger. I feel like that more than ever now, like I need to be strong for you—and for Sunny.”
Was he warming to the idea of being a father to my daughter? He’d told me he didn’t want kids. I refused to get my hopes up, instead vowing to enjoy each day as it came. But I was curious about something else.
“Have you told your family about me?”
He blinked a few times, seeming surprised by my question. “My mother knows about you. I’m sure she filled my father in, although I haven’t told him directly.”
“Did you tell her about Sunny, that I have a child?” I braced for the answer.
“Yes. Of course. I wouldn’t hide that.”
As much as his assurance made me feel better, there was an air of discomfort to this conversation. “How did your mother feel about you dating someone with a child?”
“She just wants me happy. That’s all she’s ever wanted. My father is more of a critical person in general, and I’m sure he’d find some reason to second-guess any decision I make. He’s a contrarian by nature. That’s why I don’t open up to him.”
“What about your brother? Do you talk to him much?”
“My relationship with Alex is better now than it used to be. I was unfairly resentful toward him for many years. When I graduated from college, he was just starting his college football career, and as proud of him as I was, I wasn’t in a mental place that I could be a part of his life—it meant having to face that world I’d lost. I handled it poorly.”
“What’s he doing now?”
“He works for a financial advisory firm in Minneapolis. We talk on the phone from time to time, but I haven’t spoken to him since you and I got together. I messed up that relationship, so it’s my job to mend it. I know that’s something I need to work on.”
“When will you get to see your family again?”
“I’m supposed to go home for Christmas.”
“Oh.” That meant he wouldn’t be here with us for the holidays.
“But those plans were made before we got together,” he clarified. “I’d like to spend Christmas with you.”
I smiled. “I’m sure your family will want to see you, but I’d love to spend the holidays with you, too.”
“Maybe I’ll go home for a few days and come back on Christmas Eve or something. We can work it out.” Deacon turned the tables. “What about your family? You don’t talk much about your mom or brother. You don’t see them over the holidays?”
“My mother comes to the city about every other year. I haven’t seen her since last Christmas. This year, she’s going to the Caribbean with her boyfriend for the holidays. My brother, Aaron, is a photographer for a travel blog. He’s in Prague right now, and I don’t think he has plans to come back to the States this year. And that’s it. That’s the extent of my family. I love them, but we don’t see each other nearly as often as I wish we would.”
“I’m surprised your mother doesn’t want to see her granddaughter more.”
I shrugged. I couldn’t disagree. “My mother’s always been a little distant. It’s just the way she is. She visited when Sunny was born and then last Christmas, but hasn’t come to see us since.”