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She’s what I’ve been missing.
I grew up with a single mom who always talked about me growing up and falling in love. I didn’t quite understand it since she’s still single herself. That didn’t stop her from telling me that love is one of the greatest joys in life and that I should embrace it when I find it. It wasn’t until I was older that I asked her how she could be so “pro-love” when her heart was clearly still broken. I will never in my life forget what she told me. “I lost the love of my life, but that doesn’t mean I don’t still love him. Love is different for all of us, Cameron, but I would rather have loved and lost than to never have loved at all.”
“Yo! Taylor, you coming?” Henderson calls out as we’re walking into the hotel.
“Nah. I’m calling room service,” I call back.
“Where’s your girl?” Miller asks.
“She’s coming.”
“My man.” Henderson throws his fists in the air and rocks his hips. I can’t help but laugh at his stupid ass. He looks ridiculous.
“I don’t know, Taylor. If these are your friends and the company you keep, I may need to rethink this whole boyfriend thing.” I hear her voice from beside me.
Tossing my arm over her shoulders, I pull her close. “Not a chance, baby. You’re stuck with me.” I lead us to the elevators, and she doesn’t hesitate to lean into me as we ride to her floor.
“Good game,” she tells me as she scans for her room and pushes open the door.
“Thanks, babe.”
“Are you as tired as I am?” she asks. “Wait, don’t answer that. You’re playing out on that field when all I’m doing is watching. Of course, you’re exhausted.”
“I’m tired. The schedule is grueling.”
“Yeah. I mean, I knew what it was like from Dad playing all those years, but we didn’t really live it with him. We did travel with him when we could, but not every time, so this is definitely an adjustment.”
“Everything going okay with your position?” I ask.
“Oh, yeah, that’s fine. I love my job. It’s just adjusting to the schedule. And I came in toward the end of the season. I can only imagine what next season will be like.”
“I can’t say, and I’m not sure if I’ll be here next season.” I voice the words that have been playing in the back of my mind. My game is on point, but rumors of Hastings getting better and coming back to the field are swirling, and that could mean that I go back to the Outlaws.
It would suck since playing for the majors has always been my dream. What would suck even worse than that? Not seeing Paisley every day like I do now. I’m addicted. She’s my calm and my driving force. I don’t know how I would handle being away from her. I keep telling myself that this is too fast, but my heart just can’t seem to accept that memo.
“What are you talking about?”
“Rumors are going around that Hastings is better and may be coming back.”
“He’s not,” she assures me. “I worked with him yesterday. He’s still in a lot of pain, and he’s not there yet.”
I nod. “You’re not breaking some kind of rule by telling me that, right?” I ask her.
“No. It’s team knowledge. There were other players in the room when he and I were discussing his prognosis along with Dr. Thomas.”
“There are what? Six weeks left in the season?” I try to calculate the date in my head, but when you work this schedule, it all starts to run together.
“Yes. And I don’t know that he’s going to be ready by then. Have you heard anything from the front office?”
“No.” That’s something else that has me thinking that this is only temporary. My only saving grace is that I’ll go back to the Outlaws, which means I stay close in Tennessee. Sure it’s about two hours from here, but at least Paisley and I will be in the same state.
“Hey.” She rubs her thumb over what I’m assuming is the frown line on my forehead. “We’ll cross that bridge if we ever get to it,” she says softly. “Right now, we’re here together, and you’re playing the hell out of the game. Enjoy it.”
“You know what I want to enjoy?” I ask, wrapping my arms around her waist.
“Room service?” She smiles up at me.
“You.” My lips find hers, and just like the first time, and every time since then, it’s like a jolt of lightning. She gasps when I nip at her bottom lip, and I take the opportunity to stroke her tongue with mine.
