Bases Loaded (Mustangs Baseball) (25 page)

“But…she’s—”

“Watch yourself,”
Antonio warned.

“She’s Doyle
Walker’s niece!” Cruella fell back on her last barb.

A familiar voice
joined the conversation. “She’s my favorite niece.”

Clare turned and
smiled at her uncle. “I’m your only niece,” she countered.

“And my most beautiful
niece.” He extended a hand to Antonio “I understand congratulations are in
order.”

“Thank you, sir.”
Antonio shook Doyle’s hand. “We were just sharing the good news with Ms. Roach.
And I think you’ve met our friends….”

Doyle inclined his
head in greeting. “Ms. Roach, pleased to meet you.” Then to the players,
“Gentlemen. I see Clare has bewitched you also.”

She watched
Jessica’s power over her slide away, one smile, one handshake at a time. The
casual conversation exchanged between the men, though veiled, made it clear her
uncle understood the nature of their relationship, and approved. With a kiss to
her cheek, her uncle excused himself.

Jessica clutched
her stuffed dog hard enough it was a wonder stuffing didn’t ooze from the
seams. “This will ruin you, every one of you,” she hissed.

“No, it won’t,”
Antonio said. “You see it’s our word against yours. We’re all prepared to lie
through our teeth, in a court of law, if necessary. The club you think exists
is nothing more than a rumor.”

“I have proof.”
She raised her chin defiantly.

Antonio arched one
eyebrow. “A piece of jewelry? Feel free to show that to the world, if you so
choose. I’m sure the press would love to have a photo, but before you go that
far, you should know there isn’t a man on the planet who will admit to helping
you earn that particular piece.”

“Club? What club?”
Mike said.

“I don’t know what
they’re talking about,” Keith said.

“Would someone
fill me in on what’s going on,” Conner added in a convincingly confused tone.

“Leave my fiancé
alone, Ms. Roach. Clare is the Queen of Diamonds, in every possible way, and
you? Well, you are nothing compared to her.”

Was that steam
coming from Jessica’s ears? No, just a coil of fake smoke from the e-cig
trembling in her hand. With one last hate-filled gaze around their group, she
turned and stalked off into the crowd.

“Well, that went
better than I expected,” Keith said.

“She’s a piece of
work.” Remarked Conner.

“I don’t think
she’ll be giving you any more trouble, Clare.” Mike placed a reassuring hand on
her shoulder.

“It’s not me I’m
worried about. She can’t hurt me now. I’ve out-done her in every possible way,
and she knows it. But she could turn her venom on the club.”

“What club?”
Antonio said with a laugh. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Suddenly, Clare
was overwhelmed, and moisture filled her eyes. Her knights formed a protective
barrier around her, offering their lace cuffs as handkerchiefs and begging her
to tell them what to do to make the tears go away.

“I’m fine,
really.” She wiped moisture from her cheeks with her fingers. “I guess it just
hit me. All of it. I’m done with Jessica. I ran the bases. I’m going to marry
Antonio. And it’s been two weeks….”

As one, her
protectors muttered their understanding.

“What do you want
to do?” Antonio asked. “Your wish is our command.”

“I want to go
home. I want….”

Her fiancé’s eyes
twinkled. “I know what you want.” He took her hand. “Gentlemen, our Queen needs
me.”

A few minutes
later, Clare slid into the back of the limo and Antonio joined her. Her
champions stood on the curb, waving as the car pulled away from the hotel. When
they were out of sight, she turned and found Antonio kneeling on the
floorboard. He grabbed the hem of her dress.

“Let me see.”

She shivered as he
inched her voluminous skirt up to her waist, revealing her pierced hood to his
gaze. She could barely see the top of his head over the bunched fabric. Then
his head disappeared. His tongue flicked the gold charm, and her legs and mouth
fell open at the same time.

“Antonio,” she
breathed.

“My Queen,” he
said. “Let me tend to your needs.”

His tongue swept
over all it could reach, and Clare’s heart sprinted toward first base.