Home Run Baby: A Sports Romance (71 page)

He tilts his head. “My
what
?”

“The
Junior-mobile.
” I point at it over my shoulder. “Let me borrow it. You can use my car.”

“Tonight?”

“Yeah, tonight.”

“For what?”

I blink. “It’s a sex van.”

“Fair enough,” he shrugs.

Grant struts into the entryway, drawn towards our voices. “Oh, hello there, Johnny,” he says, joining Ty in the doorway. “What brings you here on this glorious Sunday afternoon?”

Ty smirks. “He wants to borrow the van.”

I cringe as Grant’s eyes grow wide like a toddler trapped in a room with a giant cake.

“Who’s the lucky lady?” he asks me.

“I can’t say,” I answer.

“You don’t know?” Ty asks.

“No, I do… It’s just a secret.”

They both squint at each other before their lips curl.

I shake my head. “It’s not a guy.”

“Uh-huh…” Ty hums.

Grant nudges his ribs. “Now, now. Let’s cut Johnny some slack. He’s having an
identity crisis
.”

“I’m not—”
I drop it. “May I please borrow the van?”

Ty reaches for the hook by the door and slips the keys free. “The rules are simple. Fill up the tank and clean the sheets before returning it.”

“Thank you.”

He nods, flashing a wink at me as he drops the keys into my open palm and I hand my keys to him in exchange. “Be
safe
, Johnny.”

“Yeah,” Grant adds. “
Arrive
alive.”

I glance between the two of them before taking a step back and retreating off the porch.

***

“Hey, Jo—”

Rose stops mid-name and her brow crooks upward as she sees the black blindfold in my hands.

“I’m gonna need you to put this on,” I tell her, standing in her hallway.

“Why?”

“It’s all part of the surprise.”

She glares at me with amused curiosity hiding behind her thick eyelashes. “Seriously?”

“Yes,” I laugh. “Don’t you trust me?”

She says nothing.

“Don’t answer that.” I look her up and down, admiring her outfit, and I suddenly realize that I’ve never actually seen her in jeans before. “You look nice,” I say.

“Thank you,” she says, stepping backward into her apartment. She reaches into her closet for a jacket. “I figured
casual
meant I could hang up the skirts for the night.”

I nod, watching the light dance on her face.
Casual
must also mean a slightly darker shade of lipstick. Not that I’m complaining.

She stops in front of me and eyes the blindfold again. “Okay… do I need to put it on now or…?”

“Now.” I step behind her and place it over her eyes, tying it off so it’s snug but still soft. “You won’t have to wear it for very long. Can you see anything?”

“No,” she answers.

I wave my hand in front of her face. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. You
are
going to help me down the stairs, right?” she chuckles.

I walk back around to face her. “Sure.”

I bend at the waist and force her forward, raising her over my shoulder like a firefighter and she instantly squeals in my arms.

“John!”

“Relax,”
I laugh. “I won’t drop you.”

“I meant… you know, tell me when to step down and stuff.”

“But
this
is way more fun.” I spank her once and she lets out another scream, laughing with me as I carry her out into the hall.

“Wait—” she says, slapping the door frame. “Lock the door, please…”

I fish into her jacket pocket for her keys and secure the door behind us. “Okay, hold on.”

Rose grunts playfully with each step, feigning discomfort as I pretend to almost drop her. The ruckus forces at least one of her neighbors to inspect what’s happening and I do my best to explain in passing that I am
not
kidnapping her. Not that they’d believe I was anyway, considering how hard Rose is laughing the entire way to the ground floor.

I reach the van and I set her down next to the passenger’s side. “All right,” I say, opening the door. “Hop in.”

“Can I take the blindfold off yet?”

“No,” I answer, helping her step up. “Leave it alone. Watch your hands.”

“But blindfold.”

“Hands in lap.”

She lays them on her knees. “So
bossy.
Wait, is this a van—?”

I close her door and rush around the van to enter the driver’s seat.

***

We ride passed the city limits after six, just like I planned but I push on the gas to speed up a little.

My heart thumps a little faster. Each mile brings me a little closer to kickoff, so to speak. I’m not much of a perfectionist but I want to get this right.

I turn onto a dirt road and we ride up the pathway through the woods.

“Okay, seriously,” Rose says. “Where are you taking me?”

“We’re almost there,” I laugh.

The road ends after a few short miles at the edge of the hilltop and I crank the parking brake on. Rose’s neck twists around as if she’s scoping the place and I wave my hand in front of her face again.

She leans back, sensing it. “What are you doing?”

“Just making sure you’re still blind.”

“Oh, I am,” she says. “I definitely am.”

“Good.” I step out into the grass and walk around the van, stopping in the back to pop the rear door open.

Rose once again cranes back, listening closely as the door slides upward. “I
knew
this felt like a van. When did you get a van?”

I don’t answer. Instead, I walk over to her door and pull it open. “Hand, please.”

She hesitates for a moment before extending hers and I take it to help her out. “Okay… smells like woods. Sounds like woods.” She stomps her feet. “Feels like woods.”

“We’re in the woods,” I confirm.

“Why are we in the woods?”

“Shush.” I lead her through the grass and stop just after the back of the van. “Okay, stand here. Don’t move. You don’t want to fall.”

She stiffens. “Fall?”

“I’m going to remove your blindfold now…”

“What do you mean
fall
?”

I pull the knot loose. “Rose…”

“John…”

“Open your eyes.”

The cloth drops from her face and she gasps.

I stand beside her and stare out across the world.

It’s just before sunset, so most of the city’s lights are shining below us in the valley. At the center of it all sits the football stadium with the brightest lights of all, surrounded on all sides by passing cars and street lamps.

“Holy crap…” she says, taking a step back as she looks down the rather steep hill below her feet. “Where the hell are we?”

“A few miles outside of town,” I say. “I grew up around here, so I used to do a lot of camping and hiking in these woods.”

“This is beautiful, John…” Her eyes gaze straight ahead at the setting sun and she smiles.

“I thought you’d like it.”

She turns around to look at me but her eyes instantly snap towards the van. “Okay —
hold on
. Is this…?” Her mouth drops again. “Is this the
Junior-mobile
?”

“Yep,” I nod, grinning at her.

“
I’ve always wanted to see the inside of this thing!” she says, staring in and admiring the string of blue lights lining the ceiling. “I crack up every time I see it on campus.”

“Well…” I sit down on the back, sinking into the oddly comfortable mattress. “It’s ours for the night.”

“No way…”

I nod again, laughing with her as her smile slices her face a little more. “You wanted
private
. It doesn’t get more private than this…”

Rose pauses, her eyes gliding between the van and me and the view in a repetitive loop. “Damn, John…”

“What?”

“Just…” she sighs.
“Damn.”

I chuckle and hold out my hand. “Come on.”

She reaches out to me and climbs inside to sit beside me.

We slide back to lay down with our heads propped up by our elbows and I watch her as her gaze constantly shifts between the landscape outside and the van’s interior.

“So,” she says, “this is…”

“Magical?” I suggest. “Romantic?”

“I was going to say
nice
…” she smiles, “but we can break out the three syllable words, if that’s what you’re into.”

“Excellent.” I lean forward to kiss her brow.

“Is that what you were going for here?” she asks. “Romantic magic?”

I think about it for less than a second, a little stunned by the complete lack of uncertainty surrounding the idea. “A little, yeah.”

She stares into me, her eyes shining, even in the soft lighting. “This isn’t just a casual fling anymore, is it?”

I lick my lips, just barely shaking my head. “No,” I answer, my heart pounding. “Not for me.”

Her chest rises, filling with air and it escapes twice as slowly through her nose. “Okay…”

“You don’t have to say anything, Rose,” I say, pushing a bit of hair back from her eyes. “I’m not expecting things between us to change if you don’t want them to, but I wanted to take just one night and show you what you mean to me. I want you to know that when I look at you, I really see you; when you speak, I hear you.” I smile. “When you breathe, my heart beats.”

Her eyes grow a little wider. “Uhh…”

“Like I said,” I chuckle softly, “you don’t have to say anything—”

“Good,” she says. “Because I literally
can’t
.”

“I hope that’s a good thing.”

“Oh, it is.” She swallows. “You, uh… you word very good.”

Relief passes through me but my pulse maintains its quick thump against my ribs.
“Excellent.”

“John…”

I brace myself. “What?”

She peers back at me with soft eyes. “Can we skip to the kissing part?”

“Yeah,” I grin.

I take her into my arms, gently easing her closer until our lips finally touch. She melts against me, her fingers slowly gripping my shirt and I feel her pulse increase to match mine.

My
Rose.

Finally.

She rolls onto her back, taking me with her and I tower above her on both arms.

“Rose,” I whisper as she slides my belt open. “We have all night…”

She slips her little fingers into my zipper, instantly latching around my growing cock. “I know,” she smiles. “And assuming there are no peepers out in the bushes, we’re also completely
alone
. We’re not constantly looking over our shoulders or keeping our ears open in case someone tries to walk in…”

I exhale hard as she squeezes a little tighter. “You make an excellent point.”

“And that…” she whispers, “
really
turns me on.”

“Me, too.”

I crush my mouth on hers and draw her bottom lip between my teeth. She moans softly and continues to stroke me as I shift onto one arm. I feel down her body, all the way to her jeans and she gasps as I tug her button free with one quick flick of my fingers. Her taut belly quivers as I slide my hand in, softly caressing over her bare mound to feel her wet lips waiting for me.

Rose twitches as I find her clit and I bite down on her lip until she moans. Her hips roll, rubbing herself against my fingers as they cradle her throbbing bud, and I fuck that sweet fist of hers as she strokes me faster.

“Rose…” I say. “Don’t you dare come.”

She laughs as her thighs shake against me.

“Rose.”

I slow down my rub and she loosens her grip on my shaft. She teases me as I tease her, both staring into each other’s eyes as we fight the laughter building inside of us.

She withdraws her hand from my jeans and pushes me onto my back. I move my hands to her hips as she straddles me, lightly grinding herself on me as she slides her jacket off and tosses it aside.

I move with her, rubbing my hard cock against her, letting her lead and she smiles down at me with lust in her eyes. She flicks the buttons free on her blouse and slides it down her arms while I crawl my fingers up her body, sinfully enjoying the minor striptease.

“Rose Hawthorne, you are one dirty girl…”

“I wasn’t always,” she says.

I bite my lip as she lowers the bra straps down her shoulders. “Yeah, my bad.”

She leans down, still rocking her hips on my throbbing cock, and kisses me. Her tongue massages mine with a slow motion that sends fireworks down my spine.

I fall back onto the pillows. “Goddamn, Rose…” I hold her against me, grunting with that amazing grind of hers until I crash against the edge and force her to stop so I don’t ruin my boxers.
“Fuck…”

She chuckles as she slips off of me. “Don’t you dare come…” she teases.

I reach up to take hold of her and I let out a growl as I lay her down onto her back. Her laughter continues as I kiss down her neck and lick her flavorful skin all the way down to her navel. She combs her fingers through my hair, enjoying the attention I give her until I descend down to her knees and grip her jeans. I slowly pulling them to her ankles with her panties and she gazes up at me beneath the sparkling, blue lights.

I pull my shirt over my head, performing a quick striptease for her, and she laughs even harder. She spreads her knees for me and I get even harder at the very sight of her glistening pussy.

She sits up and reaches for my jeans, sliding them down below my ass to free my stiff cock. I tremble as she purses her lips and lays a few kisses along the shaft. She looks up at me with those big eyes and I nearly blow it all over her face.

“Rose…” I reach into my back pocket and pull out a condom.
“Lie back.”

She obeys, instantly lying down and spreading her knees even wider as I tear the package open and roll the condom on.

I grab her hips and pull her closer, digging my fingertips into that soft skin as I line up my cock with her dripping slit.

Rose reaches down and takes hold of me, controlling where she wants it and I let her do as she pleases. She lays the tip against her clit and rubs, instantly arching her back as she feels the pleasure of it. I groan with her, feeling her fingers stroking me with each firm rub she gives herself and I bite my lip to hold it all together.