Play Dirty (Make the Play #4) (14 page)

After tonight, I finally believe that he does.

It was worth it.

Besides, it all went exactly like I thought it would.

Secure a date with Talia: check.

Get my ass reamed out by Coach: check.

Get an earful from my teammates: check.

Endure dirty looks from the crowd: check.

End up winning the game just like I thought we would, since the team we played royally sucked: check.

Getting a superhot kiss from the girl of my dreams afterward: check and double check.

Well, okay, the last one didn’t exactly happen yet, but it will. Right now.

With the bat bag slung over my shoulder, I swagger in Talia’s direction. She’s sitting sweetly on the bleachers, her hair shining under the bright lights of the field, her lips shimmering and her cheeks rosy. She looks like something out of a painting. I almost don’t want to disturb her. Oh, who am I kidding? I really want to disturb her. And by disturb her, I mean get her lip-gloss all over my face. The rest of the bleachers have cleared out. It appears that even my mom has left. Coach kept me for awhile after the game to remind about the rules of the game and “appropriate behavior on the field.” I kind of wondered if Talia would even still be here. I’m glad she is.

“Thanks for waiting,” I say, dropping my bag into the grass with a thud.

Her head snaps up, and she smiles. “Of course. It was the least I could do since it was sort of my fault you were in trouble.” Standing, a lock of hair falls in her face.

Reaching out, I gently brush it back. “Hey, that wasn’t your fault. Besides, I told you it was worth it.” She bites her lip, and I step closer.

“Were your teammates pretty mad?”

I nod. “Yeah, and also confused. They couldn’t understand why I asked you out when we were already together. Nolan was the only one who knew what I planned to do.”

“You two are pretty tight, huh?”

I nod. “Always have been. We’ve been friends since we were kids. He’s actually more like a brother.”

Her face scrunches up in confusion. “Then why wasn’t he at the wedding?”

“He had a family reunion out of town that weekend. His family had it planned long before my dad planned his wedding.” Even though I try to keep the sour tone out of my voice when saying the word “wedding” it’s a losing battle. “He offered to try to get out of it, but I told him to go. I already had someone coming with me.”

Talia smiles at this, pink staining her cheeks. “So then what did you tell the other guys about us?”

I hate that we’re still talking. I want to get to the kissing, but I know better than to push it. I’m working on showing her I’ve changed. The old Josh would tell her he didn’t feel like talking, but the new Josh will indulge her. “I just told them that you were having second thoughts about staying with me, and I wanted to show you how serious I am about us.”

“Josh,” she starts, her tone apologetic.

But I don’t let her speak. I put my hand out to stop her. “Talia, I’m not asking you to make a commitment to me tonight. It’s one date. That’s all I’m asking. I just want you to keep an open mind about me.” I run my hands up her arms. “I want us to get to know each other without gimmicks or plans or games. Who knows? Maybe once I get to know you, I won’t like you at all.”

She giggles at my joke. “Or maybe I won’t like you.”

“No.” I shake my head. “You’ll definitely like me. I’m very likeable. Ask my mom.”

“She is definitely your biggest fan.”

“And yet you’re the only one who’s still here,” I point out.

Biting her lower lip, her face grows serious again.
Uh oh.
“Josh, what you did tonight was amazing. It made me feel so special. But before I can move forward with you, I need to know that it was genuine. That it didn’t have anything to do with Ashley or our plan or anyone else.”

I slide my hands up her neck and frame her face. “You have to believe. I promise I don’t have any feelings for Ashley anymore. I only want to be with you. There’s no way I would’ve done all that for our plan. It never would’ve been worth messing up in the game like that. There’s only one person I would do that for, and it’s you.”

“I want to believe you, Josh. I do. But I’m scared. You’re kinda known for breaking girls’ hearts, and I don’t want to be next.”

“I’m not planning on breaking your heart. This isn’t a game for me. This is real,” I say firmly. “Do you think you can trust me enough to give us a try?” After a moment of silence, she finally nods her head up and down very slowly. I release the breath I’d been holding, and I’m about to go in for the kiss when something strikes me. “What about you, Tals? You still hung up on Hayes?”

When she hesitates, her gaze dropping to her feet, my heart plummets. “I’m not sure I was ever really hung up on him. I feel like maybe it always had more to do with Ashley than Hayes.”

I nod, understanding. I’m not sure what happened between Ashley and Talia. Perhaps it wasn’t one thing in particular. Maybe it was something that built over the years. But clearly there is a lot of animosity there. Not to mention a lot of competition.

“Tonight when I saw him,” she continues, “I didn’t feel anything.”

Hope unfurls in my chest at her words. If she’s over Hayes, then that means I have a real shot here. “I guess there’s only two questions left then.”

“Two, huh?”

“Yep. First, do you still hate when I call you Tals? Because it’s kinda become habit for me and it’s hard to stop.”

Her lips curve upward, a slight chuckle escaping through her lips. “It’s fine. I actually sorta like it now.” My heart soars. Not just because of her answer, but also because now we can get to the good stuff.  “What’s the second question?”

“Can I kiss you?” It’s the moment I’ve been waiting for all night. My lips tingle with anticipation. She barely has a chance to nod before I move in, crashing my lips into hers.

Josh and I have been out tons of times, but this will be our first real date. For some reason that makes me incredibly nervous. I’ve already tried on several outfits and played around with numerous different hairstyles. He’s going to be here any minute, and I’m not even close to ready.

Groaning, I reach for the little black dress hanging in my closet. Ashley used to say, “When in doubt, go with the black dress. It will never steer you wrong.” I’m hoping she was right. Shrugging off my robe, I pull my black dress over my head. My phone buzzes from where it sits on my dresser. After pulling my arms through my dress, I hurry toward it. As I snatch it up, I pray it isn’t Josh backing out. Ever since that night at his game I’ve been waiting for the other shoe to drop. This all seems too good to be true, and part of me wonders if it is.

With shaky fingers, I hold the phone in my palm and read the text lighting up the screen.

Heather: Hey girl! Getting ready for your big date?

I smile. She’s been going on and on about this. Once word spread about Josh’s big declaration on the baseball field, the entire school has been buzzing about it. All the guys are razzing Josh, and all the girls are envying me. Pretty much every girl at our school has dreamt of snagging Josh. And not just as a hookup, but as a steady girlfriend. One that he would actually stick his neck out for. And after his display, everyone believes that’s finally happened.

Honestly, I hope they’re right.

Quickly, I type back.

Me: Yep. And I need to get back to it.

As much as I’d love to sit here and text with Heather, my hair and makeup still needs some serious attention.

Heather: Have fun. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.

That leaves my night pretty open.

Me: I won’t.

Dropping my phone back down on the dresser, I stand in front of my full-length mirror and take in my reflection. Once I’ve spun around a few times, I’m satisfied that the black dress is the way to go. Then again, I don’t know why I’m surprised. Ashley’s always been good at this kind of thing. She knows fashion. In fact, if we were still friends, she’d be over here right now helping me get ready. A stab of longing jabs me, catching me off guard. It seems to be happening more and more often lately. If only I hadn’t screwed up so badly. If only I hadn’t done such a good job of hurting her and pushing her away. Now I’m pretty sure it’s too late to make it right.

Slipping out of the room, I head across the hallway to the bathroom. My hair is a frizzy mess. There’s no way I’ll get it smooth and straight, so I click on the curling iron. While waiting for it to heat, I put on my makeup. Originally I had planned to do some smoky eyes and neutral lips, but when I practiced earlier I looked like something out of a horror movie. So I opt to go with what I’m used to – peachy, neutral tones all over. It’s not exciting, but once I’m done, I surmise that at least I look like me.

Scooping up my curling iron, I grab my first strand and start curling. I’ve only finished two curls when I hear a knock on the door. My heart kick starts, my body heating up.
Crap. He’s right on time.
Normally I don’t hope for a guy to be late, but today I had been.

“I’ll get it,” Dad’s voice rings out, and I can hear the giddiness in it. He’s loving this. Now he can torment Josh all he wants because I’m not down there to stop it.

Stomach tightening, I race to get the remainder of my hair curled. Male voices travel down the hallway, but I can’t make out what they’re saying. In my haste, I clumsily burn my fingertip. Sticking my finger under the cold faucet, I feel instant relief.

“Josh is here.” Anna appears in the doorway.

“Yeah, I know.” I turn off the faucet and wipe my hand on the towel hanging nearby.

“He and Dad are having a little chat,” she says with a mischievous smile.

I freeze. “Is it going bad?”

She shakes her head. “Really good, actually. Mom and Dad really like him.”

My heart lifts. Feeling less nervous, I return my attention to the mirror and resume curling my hair.

“You made the right decision,” Anna says.

Keeping my gaze trained on the mirror to ensure I don’t burn my hair, I say, “It’s just one date. That’s all I’ve agreed to.”

“If you say so.” She chuckles.

“What does that mean?” Laying the curling iron down on the counter, I run my fingers through my hair to separate the curls.

“That boy down there talking to Dad is not interested in just one date. You should hear him. No one would suck up to Dad like that for one date.”

My lips curve upward at the corners as Anna shoves off the doorframe and ambles down the hallway. I remember how adamant Josh was a couple of months ago when I asked him to meet my parents. He made it clear that he doesn’t do family dinners, and he doesn’t kiss up to parents. But clearly he does now.

After switching off the curling iron, I head out of the bathroom and hurry into my room. I grab my purse and fling it over my shoulder. As I make my way down the hallway, I pick up pieces of Dad and Josh’s conversation. They’re talking baseball. No surprise there. But what is surprising is how engaged Josh sounds. Anna’s right. That is not the tone of someone who doesn’t give a crap. That’s the tone of someone trying really hard to impress a girl’s dad.

Not just any girl.
Me.

I never thought any girl could reform Josh Easton. Is it possible that I did?

Pulse quickening, I round the corner into the family room. Josh sits on the couch next to Dad, and they are deep in conversation. But when he spots me, his eyebrows raise and he pushes up off the couch. Dad whirls around, a smile on his face.

“You look gorgeous,” Josh says as he walks in my direction, gaze roaming my entire body. My body heats up in every place I catch him looking. I’m all warm and tingly by the time he reaches me. I can tell that he wants to touch or kiss me, but he doesn’t. Instead, he turns to my dad and says, “Don’t worry, Mr. Smith. I’ll have her home by curfew.”

“I know you will, son.” Dad’s grin tells me he doesn’t doubt Josh at all.

I remember Ashley complaining all the time about how uninterested Josh seemed in her family. Still, her mom liked him, but that was because of his social status. Ashley’s mom is weird that way.

“Ready?” Josh asks, placing his hand on the small of my back.

I nod, afraid to speak. I’m still taking all this in.

“Have fun, you two,” Dad calls after us as we walk outside, making this night even more bizarre. Dad liked Palmer and Hayes, but he never seemed this excited when I went on a date with one of them. With them he was a good balance of friendly and scary. With Josh he seemed to simply be friendly.

Josh drives into town and pulls into the parking lot of the only Chinese restaurant we have. I don’t even know how to pronounce the name because we always call it “The Chinese Restaurant.” I start to unbuckle my seat belt when Josh places a hand on my arm.

“No. Wait here.”

Perplexed, I still my hand. He hops out of the car and races inside.
What is going on?

A few minutes later, Josh emerges from the restaurant, a to-go bag in his hand.
We’re getting takeout? That’s odd.

The scent of fried food and Chinese spices smack me in the face as Josh re-enters the car. He sets the food down in the back seat and pulls out. I want to ask what we’re doing, but at this point I’m a little scared to. Staring out the window, I watch as we pass through town and start heading toward the high school.
This night is getting weirder and weirder.

When Josh parks in front of our school, I can’t keep my mouth shut any longer. “What are we doing here?”

“You’ll see.” Wearing the smile of someone harboring a huge surprise, he grabs the bag of food along with a grocery bag I hadn’t noticed until now. Then he gets out of the car.

I exit the vehicle and catch up to him. He walks swiftly, still appearing giddy. His excitement is contagious, and I find myself getting anxious too, even though I have no idea why. Chinese food and my high school isn’t exactly my idea of the perfect date. Josh guides me toward the baseball field. My sandals sink into the grass as we step onto it.

“Here we are.” Josh drops my hand and sweeps out his arm.

I furrow my brows. “The baseball field?”

“Yeah. Don’t knock it yet. C’mere.” He walks swiftly out onto the field, then stops abruptly. Setting down the two bags, he dips his hand inside the mystery one. Then he pulls out a blanket and spreads it out over the field. It’s navy blue with baseballs all over it, and it reminds me of something a child would use.

“Is that yours?” I ask, pointing to it.

He nods. “My mom got it for me when I was little. It was my favorite.” Plunking down on it, he pats the area next to him. “Sit.”

Curious, I do as I’m told.

Josh lines up the boxes of Chinese food and then holds up chopsticks and plastic forks. “I wasn’t sure what you preferred.”

Laughing, I snatch up the fork.

“Ah, so not a chopsticks kind of girl?”

“Not unless you want food all over your blanket.”

“No, not the blanket,” he teases me, as I dip my fork into the box with orange chicken.

“So, is this where you take all of your first dates?” I ask before biting into the chicken. It’s moist and sweet on my tongue. A breeze whisks over my body, carrying with it the scent of freshly mowed grass.

“No,” he says. “Only you.”

This gives me pause. “Why?” I still can’t figure out what we’re doing here. And, honestly, I wish he’d warned me. I certainly wouldn’t have worn a dress if I’d known we’d be sitting on the ground. I adjust the hem over my legs so I’m not flashing him. As I do, I wonder if that was actually his plan.

“Because I wanted to be with you alone,” he starts, and my stomach sours.
So this really is about sex for him, not about getting closer to me. I should have known.
“Our fake relationship was all about show. It was all about being together when everyone could see. So I thought our real relationship should start in private, where it’s clear that it’s only about you and me.”

I feel a little guilty for my earlier thought. “Okay. That makes sense,” I concede. “But why here?”

“Because not only did I want this to be private, but I wanted you to get to know me. The real me. The one few people know.” He glances around. “And the baseball field felt like the perfect place to do it.”

“But everyone knows you like baseball.” Grabbing another box, I spear my fork into a piece of broccoli while Josh is picking up a wad of chow mein noodles with his chopsticks. I’m impressed with the ease in which he uses them.

It takes him a minute to answer because he’s chewing his noodles. After swallowing, he says, “True, but not everyone knows why.”

“I can’t wait to hear,” I answer honestly.

“My mom’s the one who put me in baseball. She had tried me in every other sport imaginable, and I wasn’t the best. But baseball was something I liked. It was the first time I played a sport for myself, not for my mom.”

“You and your mom have always been really close, huh?”

He nods. “Yeah, she was always easy to be close to. My dad was a little harder to get to know. And that’s why it meant so much to me when we would spend time together, which is eventually what happened with baseball. It gave us something to do together. Go outside and throw the ball around or attend professional baseball games.” After swallowing down my last bite, I clutch my fork in my hand and listen intently. It’s the most vulnerable and real I’ve ever seen Josh, and I’m afraid to even move a muscle. “But then when Dad started fixating on Olivia again, he just sort of stopped being involved with my baseball stuff. And it happened long before he actually left my mom.”

“I’m sorry.” Lifting my free hand, I cover his fingers with my palm.

“I know everyone thinks I’m a jerk, especially the girls. And they’re right. I have been. But it’s just because I’m scared. I’m scared that if I let someone in they’ll leave me like my dad did.” Embarrassment splashes over his features, and he lets out a stilted laugh. “I cannot believe I just told you that.”

“No, I’m glad you did.” I squeeze his fingers. Abandoning my fork on the blanket, I scoot forward until our knees our touching. Then I reach up and cup his face with my hand. My palm curves around his cheek speckled with prickly hair. As I rub it with the edges of my fingertips, he leans into my hand. “I know what it’s like to be scared. I’ve felt the same way. But not because I was ever neglected by my parents. Actually, it’s because they’re so perfect that I’ve always felt like I don’t measure up, you know? Like I’ll never have what they have. It’s a lot of pressure. And then, of course, Ashley’s been my best friend since we were little, and I’ve never felt like I could measure up to her either. Even Anna kind of intimidates me with how smart and pretty she is.” I clamp my mouth shut, stunned with my long, rambling confession. I’ve never told anyone that before.

“You’re smart and pretty, Tals. A lot more than you think you are,” Josh says gently. Then he drops his chopsticks near his thigh and brings his face closer to mine. I drop my hand from his face. It slides down his chest and rests at his waist. His eyes smolder, desire dancing in his irises like flames over a fire. “You should never feel like you don’t measure up. Trust me, you’re the most amazing girl I’ve ever met.” Tilting his head, his lips hover mine. Reaching up, he cradles the back of my head with his hand while his gaze travels down to my lips. Curling his other hand around my waist, he tugs me forward until I’m practically in his lap. Then he presses his lips to mine. We start off slowly, our lips lightly touching, opening and closing in tandem. Every once in awhile he draws back as if to control himself. It’s the first time he’s done this. Usually our kisses are fast, manic. This time he’s taking his time. When his lips find mine again they are gentle, moving deftly over mine. His tongue juts out, causing my lips to part. Then his tongue sweeps into my mouth, tasting of Chinese food and faintly of mint gum. I lift my other arm, my fingers playing with the belt loops on his jeans, hooking them in to steady myself. As if in response to my touch, he kisses me even more firmly, causing a satisfied sound to erupt from my throat. Growling, he rubs his hand over my neck and tightens his hold on my waist. His lips grind against mine, his tongue exploring my mouth with vigor. When our lips part, he drops his forehead to mine and our labored breaths mingle. “I’ve been wanting to do that for so long,” he breathes.