Off the Field: Bad Boy Sports Romance (22 page)

I set my fork down. “Are you saying I come home drunk all the time?”

“Not all the time, but I’ve noticed a few times. I’m glad you brought the topic up, actually. I’ve been meaning to talk to you about it.”

“Oh, have you?”

“Yeah. Like I said, communication is key. I was reading this website…”

“Fuck, Thurston! I don’t want to hear about another website, okay?”

“You don’t complain when I come to you with a new sex move I found on a website.”

“Yes, the sex is great. I’m not saying it isn’t, but…” I sighed, exasperated.

“But what?”

“You’re fucking boring,” I blurted out, instantly regretting it. “I’m sorry. That came out wrong.”

“No, it’s okay. I’ve been called worse.”

“I doubt it,” I mumbled.

“You’re in a real mood tonight, aren’t you?”

“Can we just drop it, please? I don’t want to talk about it right now.”

We went back to eating. Damn, this chicken is good. He stared over at me every minute or so, making eye contact for a moment before looking away. He was very passive-aggressive, which irritated the hell out of me. With Steven, Xander, and the other men in my life, I was always aware of where I stood with them. When it came to Thurston, I could never read him right.

Does he even have a bad side? I wondered as I glanced at him a few times. He was handsome, had good hygiene and listened really well, but the more time I spent with him, the more I realized we weren’t a perfect match. Even if no such thing existed, I wanted to be closer with the person who would be with me for the rest of my life.

“I can try drinking if it’s so important to you,” he said.

“Look, I don’t want you to do something just because I want you to do it. Does that make sense?”

“Yeah, but I’ve been thinking about it a while. I mean, I should try it at only before I die. I’ve just never thought of it as a priority before. From what I’ve read, I’m going to like pot better than alcohol most likely.”

I laughed. “You think so?”

He nodded. “Can you get some?”

“I was thinking about that earlier tonight. It might take a night or two out on the town, but I’m sure I can find someone who can hook us up.”

“It’s settled. Let’s do it.”

“Please don’t add ‘drug date with Nikki’ to your schedule or to do list, okay?”

“Shit. I was totally going to tweet you.”

“Very funny, smart ass.”

We went back to eating. The idea of drinking and smoking with Thurston excited me. As usual, I couldn’t tell what he was thinking – not exactly. Where the hell am I going to find some pot in Fort Wayne? I wondered. Is Indiana going to live up to its reputation?

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

A week later, everything was set for our Friday night of fun. It had only taken me one night at a local head shop to find a connection. With my looks and age, they didn’t even think twice about me being a cop or DEA agent. I wanted to be careful so I didn’t turn Thurston into a lush or a pothead, but I looked forward to being able to share an altered mind state with him.

This is so going to help our relationship, I thought as I put the fifth of Jägermeister on the kitchen counter. Thurston was at the grocery picking up munchies. I’d told him twice that didn’t mean carrot sticks and celery, but I wasn’t sure if he understood me. As I waited for him to get back, I sat at the kitchen table and broke off a piece of the quarter ounce I’d bought.

We weren’t going to smoke it all in one night, but I figured it would be nice to have some around the house for those super stressful days. After I had three nice sized joints rolled, I brought them and the bottle of Jägermeister to the living room along with a few glasses. I lit two candles on the coffee table. Just as I sat down on the couch, Thurston opened the front door and walked in carrying a paper grocery bag in his arms.

“Hey, baby, how are you?”

“Not bad. Take those in the kitchen and come back in here with me.”

“Sure, boss,” he mocked.

I poured us each a shot of the Jägermeister. The aroma of the red liquid brought back many memories for me. When he got back to the living room and sat down next to me on the couch, I passed him one of the shot glasses. He held it in front of him awkwardly. At twenty-five years old, I couldn’t believe he’d never had alcohol or pot before.

“You sure you want to do this?” I asked one more time.

He nodded. “I’m psyched.”

“Well, don’t go too crazy your first time drinking, okay? It’s going to sneak up on you.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ve read the websites.” He held his shot glass in the air. “To us.”

“To us,” I toasted, clinking my tiny glass against his.

We both downed the fiery liquid. As soon as I was done, I looked over at him. His face looked a bit strange at first, but a smile quickly spread across it a moment later. He held out the shot glass.

“Hit me.”

“No, seriously, Thurston, you gotta take it slow.”

“Okay, just one more shot and then we can smoke some pot.”

Am I doing something wrong getting him to try alcohol and pot the first time? If it wasn’t me, it would be someone else who might not have the best of intentions…

I poured him a second shot, leaving mine empty. While he lifted the glass and poured it in his mouth, I picked up one of the joints and lit it. To my surprise, he reached out for it right after I took a hit.

“You sure about this?”

“I’m not a baby, Nikki. Give it to me.”

He grabbed the joint from my hand and put it to his mouth. After sucking in some smoke, he coughed loudly almost immediately.

“You have to hold the smoke in, silly,” I said, giggling.

His face flashed anger, which I’d never really seen on him before. It scared me a little bit at first, but I marked it up to it being his first time getting drunk. After his third shot, I tried to stop him from drinking anymore, but he grabbed the bottle and stumbled across the room.

“Fuck you, Nikki. You want me drunking. I’m gonna drink it down.”

“You’re not even making any sense, Thurston,” I pleaded from the couch.

What kind of monster have I created? I quickly learned Thurston didn’t handle his alcohol very well. He was a loud, boisterous and belligerent drunk – the opposite of what he acted like when he was sober. I attempted to take the bottle from him twice, but he snapped at me and ran into the kitchen. He sat at the table taking swigs from the bottle.

Half an hour and one joint later, I crept into the kitchen to check on him. His head was in his arms on the table in front of him. I rushed over, thinking he’d drank the whole bottle, but only about a third of it was gone. Still, that’s a fucking lot for someone who’s never smoked before. I checked his breathing, which was normal as far as I could tell.

He was much too big for me to move to the bedroom or couch, so I left him at the table to sleep it off. When he woke up, I was going to give him hell and tell him no more getting drunk for him. I wished he’d taken it slower on the alcohol and smoked out with me, but it wasn’t meant to be. As he slept in the kitchen, I turned on the stereo and sat back down on the couch to chill.

Just as my ass hit the cushion, my phone rang. I glanced at the number, surprised to see Steven’s name. I hadn’t heard from him since I left Maine months earlier. What the fuck does he want? I thought about not answering, but I picked up my cell and slid my finger across the screen.

“Hello?”

“Nikki? Is that you?”

“Hey, Steven. How are you?”

“I’ve been better. I need to see you. Can you come downstairs?”

“Where do you think I am? I’m not in Maine anymore.”

“I know. There’s a limo waiting outside your place in Fort Wayne.”

“How the hell do you know where I live?”

“I’m a billionaire, dear. It’s not hard to find someone when you have money.”

Why is he calling me dear? Why am I not disconnecting the call?

“What do you want? There’s a reason I left.”

“I know, I know. I feel terrible about what happened. I made a horrible mistake.”

Damn straight you did. All my feelings and emotions for Steven came rushing back to the front of my mind as I stared at the yellow light on the stereo across the room.

“Are you there?” he asked.

“Yeah, I’m here. I’m thinking.”

“I’m here. In town. I want to see you. The limo will bring you to my room. It’ll be outside and down the street a few houses all night. I missed you. I’m waiting. Bye.”

I frowned and sighed as I set my phone down on the coffee table. After a few seconds, his picture disappeared as the screensaver came on. I got ninety-nine problems and a billionaire is one, I thought to myself. It could be worse. Before I decided whether or not I would go to see Steven, I went back into the kitchen.

Thurston looked different to me in some way. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but he had changed. Or maybe I had grown as a person. Whatever had happened, I decided I needed to see Steven. It had been too long since we’d talked. Had he changed as well? Or would I see him differently? Questions assaulted my mind as I went back into the living room to write Thurston a note.

Part of me thought it was a bit tacky and wrong to leave him passed out drunk after talking him into drinking in the first place, but I had to go. When a billionaire called you it was usually a good idea to listen to them – especially after what had happened between Steven and I back in Maine. I missed his children too. Memories washed over my brain as I scribbled a quick note.

“Went out with old friend. Back later. Take an aspirin and hydrate, you big lush! – Love, Nikki”

Would he understand the lack “xoxo” on the note? Could he tell I was growing apart from him? He was so sweet, but I had to act in my own self=interest. If I wasn’t happy, I couldn’t make him happy, I reasoned with myself as I left the apartment. Outside, I saw the limo a few houses down just as Steven had said on the phone. His word was golden.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

At the hotel, I hurried to his room on the third floor. He let me in after I knocked on the door. Inside, I wasn’t impressed. The room was horribly ordinary. For a billionaire, I’d never seen him be too extravagant with his wealth, something I’d been bothered by in the past. We made eye contact immediately, and all my feelings for him came rushing back.

The mechanic, Xander, and Thurston all disappeared, nothing more than dreams and memories, as I thought about what to say to him. Both of us still hadn’t said anything to each other when we sat down on the edge of the bed next to each other, but the silence was comfortable. Were we really that close to each other?

“I’ve missed you. And the kids miss you.”

I frowned. “I hated to leave them, but…”

“It’s okay. I understand. Things got a little weird. I wanted to give you some space.”

“And now? Why are you here now?”

He put his powerful hand on the small of my back. “I needed to see you. Maryanne meant nothing to me. She just wanted my money. You’re different.”

Damn straight, I’m different, I thought.

“You surprised me tonight,” I said.

“I hope I didn’t interrupt anything.”

“No,” I lied, not wanting to ruin the moment.

Thurston was technically my boyfriend, but that was just because I hadn’t had a chance to break up with him yet. As soon as he sobered up, I planned on having the talk with him. Hopefully, he would understand and not make the break-up worse than it had to be. I stared into Steven’s hazel eyes and pushed Thurston and the rest of my past out of my mind.

“I’ve missed you too.”

“Really?” His hand ran up my back a little.

“Really. I don’t know why you find that so hard to believe.”

“You’re like a free bird, Nikki. I don’t think you want a relationship with anyone.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Well, you’re in a relationship now, aren’t you?”

“How did you know that?”

“It doesn’t matter. Am I right?”

“It does matter.”

“I paid someone to ask around about you, that’s all. I was worried.”

“Why didn’t you call me and ask like a normal person rather than hiring stalkers like a crazy guy?”

“Fair enough. I’m a billionaire. I forget about boundaries sometimes.”

“Yeah, you do.”

Part of me was upset, but I didn’t really know why because I was also happy he had come all the way to Indiana to find me.

“Is something wrong? Why the urgency all of a sudden?” I asked.

“I’m not a young man anymore, and I don’t want to wait. Over the last two years, you’re the person I’ve thought about the most, the one who’s made me and my family the happiest.”

“So why did you do all that stuff with Maryanne behind my back.”

“I told you already. You were working for me. If it wasn’t for that, I would’ve been with you. But if you hadn’t worked for me, we wouldn’t have gotten so close to each other and built a solid friendship.”