Kyle dropped Michael and his hamburgers—plural—at his place with his mom and left them alone for what Kyle knew was very rare private time. There was much in the boy that Kyle could relate to, but not the desire to share things with the one parent who’d stuck around.
Grateful for time alone with Julia, he slid an arm across the back of the passenger seat and glanced her way. “You’ve been quiet.”
“I think Michael did enough talking for all of us,” she said, laughing.
“What about you? Did you have fun today?” She was a great sport, being at the game as Michael’s chaperone if needed, but essentially she’d been alone most of the day.
“The box was nice. And I met Lisa Banks, your first baseman’s wife. We hit it off.”
“I’m glad. Frank’s a great guy. I like his wife, too.”
“There were other women in the box with us,” she said.
From the tone of her voice, he knew exactly which women she meant. The rookies must’ve wrangled tickets from Macy, he thought in disgust.
“Who were they?” he asked, in case he was wrong.
“The type of women we passed on the way into the stadium. Big hair, bigger chests, painted-on jeans.”
“The rookies’ bimbos,” he muttered.
“Is that what you call them?” she asked lightly. “Must be nice for you guys to have such easy access all the time.”
He burst out laughing. “Is that what you call it?” He pulled into an empty space near her building and cut the engine.
“Come on, Kyle. It’s not a bad life if you can get it.” She turned to meet his gaze straight on.
The last thing he wanted was for Julia to believe he’d ever be interested in that kind of woman.
“What makes you think I want it?”
She cocked an eyebrow. “Um, you’re a man?”
He placed his hand over his heart. “I’m insulted.”
“You’re telling me those women don’t interest you?”
“Not anymore.” He trailed his fingers along her shoulder. “In fact, not for a very long time. And definitely not right now.”
Her eyes opened wide. “You’re serious.”
“Dead serious.”
A slow, dare he say sensual, smile tilted her lips. “In that case, do you want to come inside?”
Only an idiot would say no, but he had one question. “As long as you tell me what changed your mind. Just yesterday, you weren’t ready.”
“Yesterday I was overthinking. Today I’m not.”
He didn’t know what to make of that. But he also knew the only way back to each other was to jump in with both feet and other willing body parts.
“Then let’s go upstairs—and not think.” He helped her out of the car and let her lead the way to her apartment, his heart pounding in his chest as if it was his first time.
She hadn’t been his first, but he’d been hers, and he’d really thought she’d be his last. Talk about young and stupid.
She unlocked the door and walked inside, flipping on a light. “This is it,” she said, spreading her arm, gesturing around.
He meant to look at where she lived. Instead, he only saw her—his first love, her face flushed, her gaze intent on his. She drew her tongue over her lower lip and that was all the invitation he needed.
He pulled her into his arms and lowered his lips to hers. Things moved quickly after that, kisses turning frantic, the heat exploding between them into an inferno.
Her top went flying, his shirt came next.
He barely had a moment to take in her womanly body before she reached for the waistband of his pants and all rational thought fled. “Julia, I think—”
“You said we wouldn’t think,” she reminded him, peppering his neck with soft, nuzzling kisses.
“Not thinking, just suggesting we might want to move it to the bedroom?” The hard wall and floor would be fun, but not what he wanted for their first time in ten years.
She grinned. “Okay, that kind of thinking is allowed.”
He lifted her into his arms and followed her directions to the bedroom. And from the time he lowered her onto the bed and they stripped off the rest of their clothes, neither one of them thought at all.
Kyle woke up at six as he always did, no alarm, just his internal clock. The warm female body snuggling against him told him immediately something was different—in a very good way. Unlike him, Julia had never been a morning person, often making it to school just as the bell rang.
“Hey, sleepyhead.” He kissed her cheek.
She didn’t stir.
He grinned, liking that some things hadn’t changed. Not that he’d ever woken up beside her before. But she was still not a morning person.
And she still rocked his world. Completely. Unlike any woman ever had. Or would. They had a connection that went beyond years, beyond the physical.
Kyle showered and dressed before waking her to say goodbye. He eased down on the edge of the bed and kissed her awake.
“Mmm. This could potentially make me a morning person,” she murmured against his lips.
He sat up and grinned. “Glad to hear it.”
She blinked, still sleepy, and pushed herself up against the headboard. Realizing she was still naked, she pulled the covers over her. The show of modesty was a little late as well as unnecessary, but he let it go.
“I’ve got to go home and pick up my things. Team has to be at the stadium for a meeting, then we leave for a ten-game road trip.” One he hated taking right now, when they’d just gotten started. That was the main reason he’d decided to wake her and not let her think he’d just walked out.
At the reminder of his trip, her eyes grew shuttered. “Good luck.” Her smile was forced.
He decided to just push past her resistance by ignoring it. “Thanks. I’ll be fine. I’ve got you as my good-luck charm.” He winked and leaned in for another kiss.
She wasn’t as soft and giving this time.
His gut tensed, but he had to go. “I’ll call you from the road.”
“Safe trip,” she said and snuggled back under the covers.
He bit the inside of his cheek and rose to leave. They might have a long separation ahead of them, but they had a lot to discuss when he returned.
Julia rose and made herself a cup of her favorite herbal tea, soothing in smell and taste, but not the least bit healing. She spent the day cleaning her apartment and doing errands she normally accomplished on the weekends when she wasn’t at work. Then she met a friend for dinner at her favorite sushi place, and though grilled mercilessly, Julia refused to admit anything was bothering her.
Why tell a single living soul she’d allowed Kyle Hansen back into her bed…or her heart? For all his talk about her being his good-luck charm and calling her from the road, she refused to believe it meant anything more than an easy way to get out the morning after. He wasn’t just on the road, he was gone from her life.
Monday morning, Julia headed to work, and by the time Michael arrived after school, the entire hospital knew about the teen’s experience at Suns Stadium. The buzz about Kyle Hansen grew louder. As loud as the smack, smack, smack of Michael’s ball in the mitt. A sound that struck her now as one of joy, not frustration, and Julia wondered if her imagination had gone wild.
Monday night she climbed into her bed, a place that held memories of Kyle. His scent lingered on her pillow and she sensed his presence on the other side of the mattress, making her wish she’d slept with him at his place and not hers.
Annoyed with herself, she fluffed her pillow and turned off the lamp, when the telephone rang. She fumbled in the darkness and finally answered on the third ring.
“Hello?” she snapped, her foul mood finally coming out.
“Is that any way to greet a man who’s only at the beginning of a long trip?”
“Kyle?” She sat upright in bed, surprised to hear his voice. Surprised and extremely happy.
“Is there another guy in your life I don’t know about?” he asked, his tone suddenly wary.
“No! It’s just…I didn’t expect you to call.” She gripped the phone harder.
“You’re kidding, right?” He expelled a harsh breath. And probably a curse she couldn’t hear. “Never mind, don’t answer that. You really had so little faith in me?”
“It wasn’t about faith. It was about reality.”
“And in your reality I’d make love to you and not call?” His voice rose, his disappointment traveling through the telephone lines. “Well, thanks for the vote of confidence,” he muttered.
Julia winced. Put like that, he had every right to be hurt. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize for your feelings.”
Silence descended.
She swallowed hard. “How was the flight?”
“Long, and we have a game tonight. It’s always rough playing on West Coast time.” He spoke, but she could tell she’d offended him and he wouldn’t quickly forget it.
“Well, good luck,” she said softly.
“Thanks.”
When he didn’t say any more, she took the hint. “Bye,” she said, disconnecting the call and letting the phone slip to the floor.
“Way to go, Julia.” He said he’d made love to her, but how could she let herself believe that was anything more than a nice choice of words?
What did he expect her to think? That after all this time apart, superstar Kyle Hansen suddenly wanted his old high school girlfriend back in his life?
That she belonged there?
Kyle’s bad mood permeated every phase of the team’s West Coast trip. The Suns went on a losing streak and Kyle blamed himself. It might be a team effort, but his lack of enthusiasm affected the mood in the dugout and all the guys reacted accordingly. He tried to pull it together, but he couldn’t get over the simple fact that Julia hadn’t thought he’d call her.
She’d really been so badly scarred by her past that she believed he’d use her for sex and not contact her after. Even when he’d said he would.
If he thought it would help, he’d call her every day, but he knew better. She needed to see him in person to gauge his sincerity. And that wouldn’t be happening for five more long and very frustrating days.