Here for You (33 page)

I step back out of the box in case they all turn. Quinn steps through the doorway less than thirty seconds later. She smiles when she sees me and that alone is a relief. A person walking by recognizes me, and she starts to tell her friends. I ignore them.

“I need to talk to her. Can you clear everyone else out of the box? I can’t talk to her out here.”

“Of course. Hold on.”

Less than two minutes later the group is strolling out, and I dart in quietly, closing the door behind me. I make my way across the suite toward the front seats where she’s sitting. When she finally turns around, our eyes lock and the feeling that rushes through me is almost enough to bring me to my knees.

I have missed her so much, and the way I feel being this close to her again is so intense it hurts. She stands up quickly, and although I want her to run to me and throw her arms around my neck, I know that’s not going to happen.

“Cam, I can’t do this.”

She looks away from me. Even though her words hurt, I have to push through if I want to ever have her in my arms again.

“Ash.” My tone is stronger than I feel, and she snaps her eyes back to me. “There are too many things I need to say and even more things I need to apologize for. But I don’t have time to say them all right now.”

Her shoulders fall slightly. “I understand you have to get back to the field.”

I shake my head. “That’s not the issue. My problem is that I love you and if I can’t touch you right now, I honestly don’t know if I can go on. I’ve missed you so much. I can’t begin to tell you how sorry I am for everything. But I can promise you that I will spend the rest of our lives making it up to you. I never wanted to hurt you. Ever.”

“I know.” Her voice is a whisper. She still hasn’t moved, and I’m afraid I’m not going to get another chance with her.

“What you did for me tonight is more than anyone has ever done for me. I’ve always thought you were my angel from Jacob, and you proved it again tonight. He would have loved you so much. I can’t thank you enough for making tonight about him. You were right to know that was the only other thing that could get me out on that mound.”

She nods her head and I see the tears in her eyes.

“The reason I brought her back wasn’t just about Jacob. I never told you that Crystal had a miscarriage only a few days before Jacob’s death. I was on the road and couldn’t be with her.”

Ashley’s mouth drops open and tears stream down her face. “I’m sorry, Cam.”

I hold up my hand. “It turns out she made it up. She lied about being pregnant, so I wouldn’t leave her. The night she told me it was all a lie is the night I kicked her out. I wasn’t choosing her over you for my future, but I felt I was responsible for getting her to a better place. I thought we were going to have a child together, and the guilt I felt for not being there with her during such an awful time was killing me. I didn’t tell you about the miscarriage because I didn’t want to put any more of my pain on you, Ash.” I drop my eyes for a moment before making eye contact with her again. “I was also being selfish.”

She furrows her brow. “How is that selfish?”

I let out a long breath. “I was afraid that if I told you about it, you never would have given me a chance. I knew you would see through it all and understand the guilt I felt and the enormous grief Crystal and I shared. Well, a grief I thought we shared. Although it was unplanned, finding out I was going to be a father was one of the greatest moments of my life. When that was taken away from me, from us, I was devastated. To have her take that moment away from me again was even more painful than the first time.” Ashley shakes her head, but doesn’t say anything. “I never touched her, Ash. I never did a thing with her. I promise.”

At those words she finally walks toward me. I pick her up and her legs go around my waist. I close my eyes and allow a few tears to fall. This evening and the last couple of weeks have been too much. I can feel her body shaking, and I hold her even tighter.

I lean my head back so I can look her in the eyes. “I love you, Ash. I will always love you.”

She nods. “I love you too. I love you so much.” Her voice hitches, and although I wish I had never caused her this pain, I can only try to make it better going forward.

My lips capture hers and she moans into my mouth while wrapping her arms around my neck. Her legs squeeze tighter, and my tongue slides into her mouth. I have missed her smell, her touch and her taste so much that I will never get enough right now. “Will you come back home tonight?”

She cocks her head at me. “Home?”

“Yeah. I need you there. You belong there, baby.”

Her lips curl up. “Oh, really?”

I groan, knowing she’s playing with me. “Yes. I’m not asking. I’m telling you.”

“Hmm?”

“Ash. You know we’re perfect together.”

“Yeah, I do. But do you?”

I shake my head. “Fair enough.” I start walking toward the exit of the suite.

“Where are you going?”

“Do you think I’m going to let go of you for a second?” I shake my head. “Hell no. You are with me for the rest of the game and night.”

“I’ll be here when you’re done. You don’t have to take me with you.”

“Uh-uh. I’m not taking a chance. I messed up once. I’m not about to do it again. You can walk on your own if you want, but that’s the only choice I’m giving you.”

“Fine. Put me down.” I kiss her again to be sure she’s real. When her tongue dips into my mouth, I press her up against the wall.

“You’re playing with fire. You know I can lock that door.”

I hear her nervous laugh. “No. I believe you. I’ll be good.”

I put her back on her feet and take her hand in mine. I need to feel her touch at all times until I know for sure she’s mine. I can’t lose her again because I will not survive it. That’s a fact.

When I open the door, everyone outside is pretending to be talking about something of interest. I know they were just waiting to see if we would come out together, and I’m glad to see they’re all smiling. I look down at Ashley. “Thanks for calling my parents.”

She winks at me. “You’re welcome, Cammy.”

I groan. “She did not call me that.” My mom called me that when I was younger, and I think I finally convinced her to stop when I was drafted into the Majors. Otherwise, I swear she would still be calling me that to this day.

Her smile grows even wider. “Yep. She most certainly did.”

He pulls his hat off and throws it to the side. When he runs his hand through his caramel locks, they stick up in the back from having his hat on. He finishes half his glass of champagne and looks at me over the top of it. “I couldn’t have done it without you, baby.”

“You could have, but I’m glad I was able to share this moment with you.”

The guys won the World Series last night and the celebration went into the early hours of the morning. We slept in and drove to the beach house arriving about an hour ago.

The last week since they started the Series has been stressful. Not only did I struggle to get through the games, but I was also negotiating the finer points of my contract with Larry. Although we have a long way to go before everything starts moving forward, Larry and I are on the same page and we have signed the deal. Cam doesn’t know this yet because I didn’t want anything to take his focus away from the games.

He downs the rest of his champagne and shifts to set his glass on the deck. He reaches for mine, and I take a long drink before I hand it over. He sets my glass next to his and when he turns back, I can see the desire in his eyes. “I want to make love to you all night. Right here.”

“Wait.” I smile at him as he reaches for me, slipping his hand under my blanket.

He shakes his head at me. “I can’t wait one more second to taste to you.”

When his hand slides under my shirt, brushing my bare skin, it takes all of my concentration to focus on my words. “But I have something to share with you.”

He shifts us so that I’m on my back and half his body is covering me. His head moves toward mine and his lips are inches from my mouth. “Unless you are going to tell me you found a way to get Charlie locked up for life, nothing is going to matter to me right now. I want to treasure your beautiful body.”

His lips move slowly down my neck and the sensation causes me to shiver in anticipation. “Please, wait,” I practically pant. He smiles up at me and then continues the descent down my body. I swallow as I feel every part of me begin to heat with desire. “I finalized the deal with Larry!” I blurt it out because I can’t wait another second for him to touch me in ways that will drive me crazy. When his hands and lips stop moving, I groan in protest. “Don’t you dare stop what you’re doing!”

His head has moved back in front of mine, his eyes boring into me. “When did that happen?”

“Yesterday before the game.”

“Ash, why did you wait to tell me?”

“You’re kidding, right? You were pitching last night. Now please can you finish what you started?”

“No way. Not until you fill me in.”

Shit. This is not fair. All I want is that multi-million-dollar hand touching me just the right way. “Can we please talk about it later? You’re killing me here.”

“Oh, yeah?” His eyes are sparkling with amusement, and I pout in response. Well, I try to pout, but he just starts laughing. “Normally that would work, but right now I think you should suffer a little.”

Oh, game on. Two can play this game. I just have to get him in a moment of weakness. “Fine. But can you get off of me so I can focus then?”

He rolls over so he is on his back. He tucks one hand behind his head as he gazes over at me expectantly. He looks so gorgeous lying there that I can’t help myself. I whip my shirt over my head and unclasp my bra before he even has time to realize what’s happening. I straddle him and look down into those eyes. “Are you sure you still want to talk about business?”

His eyes go wide and his mouth is open in awe. “Um. Yeah. But that’s not fair, Ash.”

“What’s not fair? Me doing this?” I rotate my hips over him and he groans. “Or me sitting here half-naked on you?”

“Both, but more the second one.”

“The deal is that it will take a few months to get everything in place but the second it is to the point where I can step away for a few days, you and I are going somewhere. Anywhere that we can be alone and just enjoy each other.”

He voice rumbles in the back of his throat. “I like the sound of that.”

“Like?”

His hand drifts up to my breast, and the moment he makes contact I arch into him and he sucks in his breath. “Fine. I love the idea.”

“That’s better, Mr. Williams. Now we are on the same page.”

He laughs. “You play dirty. You know that?”

“What can I say? I’ve learned from some of the best.”

“It better only be one from now on.”

“Of course. I think you’re more than I can handle anyhow, so don’t worry about that.” I lean down and brush his lips. He pulls me down to him, and I snuggle into his hold.

“What about Amber?”

I roll my eyes. “She will get her share of the sale, and I’m guessing that’s the last that I will hear from her. It’s really too bad. I would love to make up for lost time, and sometimes I even think we could repair our relationship, but I’m just not sure. I wish I had family that I was close to. Nothing hurts more than not having that.”

His hands run up and down my back. “My family, including the team, loves you.”

“I know, but I just wish I even knew some of my family.”

“Maybe you can try to reach out for them now that your father is gone and you’re leaving the company behind.”

“Maybe. I don’t know.” He shifts us so I’m on my back again and his face is hovering over mine. “Right now I just want to focus on us and enjoy you.”

“Sounds like a perfect plan to me.” He kisses me and then pulls back slightly. “I love you, Ash. So freaking much. I will never let you go again. You’re mine forever now, baby.”

I smile at him. “There’s nothing I would rather be.”