He makes a lot of sense. Maybe I can talk Gabby into hiring some help and she and Sam can join me during most of the season.
Because the thought of living without them leaves an ache in me that the thought of losing baseball never did.
“You’ve never been one to shy away from hard work, Rhys.”
I scowl. “Fuck no. You know hard work doesn’t scare me.”
“Good because if you thought baseball was hard, just wait until you start working on a relationship. Is she worth it?”
A slow smile spreads over my face as I think of Gabby, with her long dark hair and hazel eyes. How she makes me laugh, and simply makes me feel damn good.
“Yeah, she’s worth it.”
“I look forward to meeting her and her son.” Coach grins and claps me on my uninjured shoulder. “Maybe I’ll bring the missus down there after the season is over to check out her inn. My wife is insanely patient during the season. She deserves a trip.”
“You should. It’s great.”
“You know, if you ever have questions about bringing a family along for this ride, or if Gabby ever needs anything, you can call my wife, or any of the other married players. We stick together, and no one wants you to fail.”
“Thank you.” I nod, feeling even more comfortable, relieved, and convinced that this is going to work. “I may take you up on it.”
“Wouldn’t offer if I didn’t expect you to.” He claps my shoulder again and then backs away toward his own car. “Safe travels back, son.”
I wave and settle in the car, but before I drive toward the hotel, I check my phone again.
Nothing.
It’s late evening now. I spent all day in tests and meetings, consultations and hours and hours with my publicist, discussing all of the endorsement opportunities that she has lined up for me.
I’ll be damned if I’ll plug athletes’ foot cream. Fuck that.
I also spent part of the day in meetings with lawyers going over contracts, financial advisors.
The whole gamut.
I check my phone and frown when there is no response from Gabby. I try to call her again, but it goes to voice mail.
Where the fuck is she? What if something happened to her?
I chew on my lip and tap my fingers on the steering wheel. I’m supposed to head back down there tomorrow morning, but I can’t reach Gabby.
Fuck it.
I dial Melanie’s number.
“Did we forget something?” she asks with a smile in her voice.
“I want to go back to New Orleans tonight instead of tomorrow.”
There’s a pause. “I can try to switch your flight, but at this hour, there probably isn’t anything until morning anyway.”
“Charter a flight.”
Another pause. “Are you okay, Rhys?”
“I’m fine. I need to get to New Orleans tonight. I can afford the damn plane, Mel.”
“Okay. Consider it done. I’ll call you when I have the details.”
“Thanks.”
I click off and head for the hotel to get my bag and check out. I’m sure she’s fine. I’m sure I’m overreacting, but damn it, I need to see her.
I need her.
***
It’s late when I arrive at the inn. Or, early I guess, since it’s about four o’clock in the morning. The inn is dark, aside from the foyer light that Gabby always leaves on, and I’m thankful that I still have my room key so I can get inside without having to wake her.
It’s quiet, and yet, it already feels more like home than the house in Denver that Kate and I shared ever did.
I walk back to Gabby and Sam’s private quarters. It’s simple back here, just two bedrooms, a bathroom and a little sitting area with a TV and comfortable couch for Sam to play and watch his shows.
I check on Sam first. He’s sleeping hard with his puppy curled up beside him. Neither of them even flutter an eyelash when I kiss Sam’s forehead and rub the pup’s ears.
I close the door the way Sam likes, leaving it cracked so the hall light shines in just a bit, then quietly let myself into Gabby’s room. It’s dark, and just as quiet as the rest of the house, and when my eyes adjust, I can see that she’s curled up in the center of the bed.
She’s so fucking tiny. I can lift her like she’s nothing. But fuck me, what she lacks in size she makes up for in spirit.
The woman has a big personality. I love it.
I undress and slip between the sheets, pulling Gabby gently into my arms. She startles and gasps.
“Rhys?”
“I’d better be the only one crawling in bed with you, baby.”
“What are you doing here?” She checks the time and sees how early it is. “Is something wrong?”
“Yes. I couldn’t reach you.” I cup her face in my hand and look into her eyes, thanks to the glow of the full moon coming through her wide window. “I tried to call and text all day, and I couldn’t get you to respond.”
“I’m not sure where I put my phone,” she replies softly, and I realize she’s on the verge of tears. “I had a really shitty day.”
I drag my fingertips down her cheek, then brush her hair back over her shoulder. Fuck, it feels so damn good to have her here in my arms. To know that she’s okay.
“What happened?”
“I lost my iPad, which means that I can’t schedule bookings, or even see which rooms are supposed to have which guests. It completely threw me off for the day. The dishwasher broke again, flooding my kitchen.”
“That thing needs to be replaced,” I murmur and kiss her forehead.
“The puppy pooped on my kitchen floor, before he jumped in the water, getting himself and Sam completely drenched,” she continues and burrows closer to me, burying her face in my chest and wrapping her arms around me for dear life. God, has anything ever felt like this in my life? If it did, I don’t remember it. “And then, to cap it all off, Sam broke another damn window.”
Her voice catches, and then she sniffs and begins to cry. “Beau and Van came and let me go to bed early while they finished up the nighttime chores for the inn.”
She’s so fucking exhausted. That’s what the tears are for, because any of those events by themselves wouldn’t have phased her. But all of it in one day is a lot to handle, and I wasn’t here to help her.
Fuck.
I just hold her, caressing her, rubbing her, crooning to her, and let her cry it all out. And when she’s finally done, when the sniffles slow down, I feel my lips twitch.
“The puppy was splashing in the water?”
She nods.
“And there was poop on the floor?”
She nods again and then grumbles, “Thankfully, he didn’t poop in the water.”
I chuckle, and then bite my lip, because it’s not funny. It made her cry.
“And then Sam went outside and broke a window?”
“I told him to take the demon puppy outside so I could clean up the huge mess in the kitchen, and then crash. Broke the window in your room.”
“This is my room,” I reply without thinking. And then I can’t help it. The laughter just comes.
“It’s not funny,” she says and leans back to scowl at me.
“Sorry.” I clear my throat and try to sober my face, but it’s no use. A slow, shy, sleepy smile spreads over her beautiful face.
“Okay, it’s kind of funny.”
And then here, in the cool darkness of this bedroom, we laugh in each other’s arms, until finally we just lie here, smiling, staring into each other’s eyes.
“Fuck me, you’re beautiful.”
She tries to look shyly down, but I catch her chin in my finger. “No, don’t look away from me. You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. There are seven billion smiles in this world, and yours is my favorite.”
Her smile widens. “Thank you. That makes me feel…special.”
“You are special.” I kiss her forehead, then her nose. “You are beautiful.”
“You are charming.”
I smile against her skin. Always back to this. She has to get up in about an hour, and although I thought I was exhausted when I got here, I suddenly have some extra energy to expel.
Of course, I can’t stop fucking touching her. I’m drawn to her in ways I never saw coming.
I push her onto her back and kiss her neck slowly. Gently. I’m going to take this very slow.