Fumbled (The Girls of Beachmont #1) (17 page)

He wrapped his arms
around me from behind while I finished getting things together, and kissed my
cheek.

“I wanted to make sure
everyone ate before you take them to the airport.”

“T had to get a driver
again,” Abbi said, walking into the room and grabbing a piece of bacon.

“You’re not taking
them?”

“I have to get some
things done before we go to Wilson’s place.”

The Hunters were
gathered in the kitchen, filling their plates and talking in nonstop chatter. I
wasn’t hungry because I had the next hurdle coming up—meeting the
friends.

I walked over to Tabor,
wrapped my arms around his waist, and looked up at him. “I’ll see you in a
little bit.”

“Okay, babe, I’ll walk
you out.”

Marta pulled me into a
hug and squeezed me gently. “It was so wonderful meeting you, Dani.”

“You too, Mrs. Hunter.”

“Marta. Please.” She
smiled sweetly. “And I look forward to seeing you again.”

Abbi walked over and
wrapped an arm around my shoulder. “See you later,
babe
.”

We started laughing and
she tugged me close for a beat before letting me go.

Tabor escorted me to the
front door and kissed me goodbye. He watched until I was in my car and the
engine was started before closing the door.

“I’m going to marry that
man,” I said aloud and snapped my mouth shut.

Talk about putting the cart before the horse.

D A N I

“Your mom and Abbi get
to the airport okay?” I asked as he walked into my condo.

“Yes, and they asked me
to give you this,” he said, pulling me into his arms and pressing his lips to
mine in a heated kiss.

When we parted I cocked
my head to the side and bit my lip. “Your mom and your sister wanted you to
give me a kiss?”

“No, I added that,” he
confessed.

Tabor walked into the
living room and sat down on the couch while I grabbed two water bottles from
the kitchen.

“What time do we need to
leave to get to Wilson’s house?”

“You remembered his
name? I only mentioned it once,” Tabor stated, impressed.

“I’m a teacher,” I said.
“It’s in my DNA.”

Tabor took the water
bottles from my hands and pulled me onto his lap.

“What you thinking
about?” I asked him, wishing I could read his thoughts.

“My mom and Abbi really
liked you,” he said. “I don’t think they’ve ever taken to someone like they did
you.”

“I’m glad, because I
like them, too.”

He was lost in thought,
so I lifted his face to look at me, pressing a chaste kiss to his lips.

“Are you okay?”

“Dani, I’ve told you how
I feel, but this is all so new to me,” he said quietly, and I felt the pang of
rejection around the corner. I tried to slip off his lap to give me some sort
of reprieve, but his hands tightened, holding me in place.

“I understand,” I lied.
“Really.”

Tabor shook his head,
uncompromising as he placed his hand to my neck. “I don’t think you do. Last
night, when Mom and Abbi brought up Jenny, I hadn’t thought about her in a long
time.”

“Are you really talking
to me about your ex-girlfriend?” I asked, masking my jealousy…or maybe anger.

“Let me explain,” he
said and I nodded. He looked adoringly into my eyes before sliding me off his
lap and standing up while he paced the living room.

“With Jenny, she saw me
in dollar signs and future deals. We met my freshman year and Mom wasn’t lying
when she said it was an on-and-off relationship. I loved her, I did. I guess
that’s why I was always willing to give it another shot.”

I winced at his
admission, though I wasn’t angry. I had loved Philip—before he became a
monster. Tabor must have seen my reaction because he was on his knees in front
of me with his palms against my thighs.

“Keep going,” I said,
meeting his eyes and giving him a coaxing smile.

“It was always drama and
tantrums, but I tried so hard to be what she wanted. I was never going to be
good enough. Then I got signed to the Quakes and she showed up out of nowhere,
telling me how much she missed me and loved me. She fucked with my head so many
times that I wasn’t sure if she was the crazy one or if I was.”

“Did you give her
another chance?”

“I was going to,” he
admitted. “For some reason I felt
I
owed
her
. Can you believe that? She’s
the one who bailed on me, but she made me feel like I did something wrong.”

“But you didn’t.”

“I didn’t. Because of my
mom. She told me that I would get the love that I deserved. And if I stayed
with Jenny, I would be getting the love I settled for. And I didn’t want to
settle.”

He looked so boyish and
innocent, a far cry from the gladiator people in the city were used to seeing.
I felt special that I had a piece of him that others would never know. Tabor
was sweet, attentive, gentle, and selfless—all things I’d come to love
about him.

“It was almost six
months before I told Jenny I loved her, and even then I only said it because I
was supposed to. And with you, it’s easy. It’s almost too easy. Is this how
it’s supposed to be?” he asked. “I love you, Dani, unlike anyone I’ve loved
before, and that scares me more than anything, more than getting hurt on the
field, because you have the power to break me.”

“The feeling is mutual,
Tabor,” I admitted nervously. “I know, when my story is written, you are my
happily ever after. How’s that for scary?”

“Well, I don’t I want a
future without you,” he answered. I felt as if the air was leaving my lungs. I
half expected him to bolt when I told him what I was feeling, but he was in the
same boat. That tidbit might have been most terrifying of all. I was
envisioning forevers with Tabor after just over a month of being
together—that couldn’t be normal.

“So where does this
leave us?” I asked, leaning forward so I was inches away.

“Here. Now. Together.
Does that work for you?” he asked.

“It does,” I said,
closing my eyes as my stomach flipped. “I just want you. I don’t need all the
extras, Tabor. Just you.”

***

“We’re going to be
late,” I said, frazzled as I adjusted my shirt and fixed my hair.

“Worth it,” he said,
putting on his shoes.

“Do we need to bring
anything to Wilson’s?”

“Well, I’m bringing
you…so you can bring whatever you want,” he teased, brushing my hair aside and
kissing my neck.

I swatted his hand away
playfully and turned to face him.

“You wanna go again?” he
challenged, but I shook my head.

“We need to go. There’s
fashionably late and then there’s just rude,” I informed him. “Let’s go.”

We pulled up to a house
that was something I would have expected to see on the
Real Housewives of Fill-in-the-Blank
. Cars that cost more than my
condo were lined in the driveway and I felt ill-prepared.

I took for granted how
down to earth Tabor was, and didn’t consider that his teammates might not be
so. Sensing my apprehension, Tabor gripped my hand a little tighter and kissed
my temple.

“You look beautiful,” he
complimented, eyeing me.

My mind instantly
flitted to our earlier impromptu make-out session and when my eyes met his, I
knew he was thinking the same thing.

“JT,” a massively built
and attractive man called out from the front door. “Get your ass in here. And
bring your lady.”

“Wilson?” I asked,
nodding at the man.

“Yep.”

“Damn,” I whispered to
Tabor, who leaned in to hear me. “He looks like Idris Elba.”

“Who?” he asked, but we
were too close for me to repeat the name.

“J…T!” he called out as
we walked up the steps. “’Bout damn time.”

“Sorry,” I said,
straight-faced. “It was his fault. He tried on like a dozen outfits before we
got here.”

“I like her,” he said,
eyeing Tabor and moving toward me. “You must be the Dani I’ve heard so much
about. I thought you either didn’t really exist, or you were a dude.”

“I exist,” I laughed,
“and I am, in fact, a woman.”

“So I see.” He smiled.
“C’mon in and meet everyone. Might as well get it over with.”

“That sounds totally
intimidating,” I remarked with a smile.

Tabor gave me a wink and
dropped his hand to the small of my back as he trailed me inside. The warmth of
his hand disappeared quickly as he began greeting everyone who congregated in
the enormous kitchen.

I thought Tabor’s
kitchen was big, this one looked like it belonged in a five-star restaurant.

“Everyone,
this
is Dani, JT’s girl,” Wilson
announced.

I laughed at the people
and their comments, unsure who was saying what.

“She exists?”

“Damn, J, how’d you land
her?”

“Tell us what you see in
him.”

Tabor walked over and
wrapped his arm at my waist. “You’re gonna scare her off.”

“She needs to know what
she’s getting into,” a woman’s voice said as she walked over to me.

She was stunning.

Her dark hair was pulled
back with a headband and her curly ringlets bobbed easily with her steps. Her
skin was a creamy cocoa, but it was her light brown eyes that drew attention to
her face.

“These guys are
ridiculous. You should come outside with me so I can save you the headache.”
She smiled before giving Tabor a hug and leading me outside.

There were five other
women outside by the pool, drinking wine and laughing. It made me miss the
times I spent with my roommates, and I made a mental note to call them later.

“Steph, Tawnie, Ericka,
and Lisa,” she pointed as she said their names, “this is Dani, JT’s
girlfriend.”

“Hi.” I waved lamely and
looked back at the hostess. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”

The other ladies laughed
and I felt foolish, but the woman smiled. “I heard that you’re not a football
fan…I figured that was a joke, but you’re serious.”

“Afraid so.”

“I’m Deloris Wilson, but
everyone calls me Dee,” she said, shaking my hand.

Her name echoed in my
head for a moment when it dawned on me.

“Dee Wilson, former
model and spokesperson for Elemental?” I asked, closing my eyes when I realized
I was right. She was one of the top models who’d decided to retire and focus on
her family when she got married.

“It’s okay, honey. I
like that you’re new to this world—makes it a little more interesting
around here,” she teased. “So tell us about you. JT said that you’re a
teacher?”

“Yeah, I teach history
at River Valley.”

“Tough school,” she
said. “How do you like it there?”

“It’s really not as bad
as everyone makes it out to be,” I said, hoping I didn’t come off as too
defensive. “We have some amazing kids and great teachers. Unfortunately, our
campus has become the last chance school for a lot of these kids. But what
people don’t realize is that our graduation rate has increased over the years,
with more of our students going on to finish college.”

Dee’s eyes were wide and
she looked impressed with my information. The other women kept their eyes on
Dee, who I assumed was their leader, of sorts. They were waiting for her
reaction, and I realized they were little more than lemmings.

“But you don’t love your
job or anything,” she said with a wink and a smile.

I returned the smile and
shook my head. “I really do love what I do. My after-school program has been my
biggest passion.”

“Until JT,” she
interjected and I laughed.

“Until Ta…JT,” I agreed.

“Are you going to the
shoot with him tomorrow?”

“He asked me to, but I
didn’t plan on it.”

She offered me a glass
of wine and invited me to sit among the other women. Dee didn’t say anything,
but I could see she was thinking. Steph, Tawnie, Ericka, and Lisa were talking
about some new boutique that had opened up, but I couldn’t muster the interest
to engage in the conversation.

Fortunately, Dee turned
to me and began talking.

“Look, Dani, you seem
really sweet and I can see JT is happy with you.”

“Thanks,” I remarked,
leery of accepting the compliment. “But?”

“You need to go to that
shoot. You are dating
the
star player
of the Quakes—and if you tell my husband I said that, I will
lie—but you can’t just let him wander free. There are women climbing over
themselves, probably sacrificing babies, for a chance with JT.”

I began laughing, but
she gave me a narrowed glance and I realized that she was being honest.

“Wilson and JT joined
the team together, so I’ve known him a while. I’ve seen how desperate these
women are to get a piece of him. It’s crazy.”

“But we really haven’t
told people that we’re together—my decision, not his—so my being
there wouldn’t really serve a purpose anyway.”

“Trust me when I tell
you, you
want
to be there. If for no
other reason than to see for yourself what comes his way when he’s out there.”

I took a big sip of my
wine and tried to hide the panic and fear that I was certain she could see in
my eyes. This was what I’d been afraid of all along. How was I supposed to
compete with these women who threw themselves at Tabor?

Dee placed her hand over
mine and patted it gently. When I looked at her, she was giving me a defeated
smile, and I knew that it was something she knew all too well.

“This is the life we are
exposed to, Dani. If you want to be with these men, it goes with the territory.
But JT is worth the trouble. He’s one of the good ones,” she said.

I looked over my
shoulder and saw him inside talking with his buddies. Tabor’s smile was wide
when he saw me and lifted his head to check on me, and I simply waved.

“Yeah, he is,” I agreed
when I looked at Dee. “Thanks for the heads-up.”

“We look out for our
own,” she said. “And if JT says you’re good people, that’s enough for us.”