“I got traded.” The sound of his voice melted through my every pore like butter, instantly sending me back in time.
“They traded you?” I managed to ask through my surprise.
“Well, technically,” he said, his trademark dimples flashing, “I asked.”
“You asked what?”
“I asked to be traded to the Mets.” He looked down at his feet.
I rapped my knuckles against the manager’s glass door. He looked up from his computer. “Come in.” He motioned with his hand before glaring at me. “What’s up, Carter?”
“Well, um, I know this is really unorthodox but I was wondering if I could get traded, sir,” I asked him nervously. My agents were going to kill me when they heard what I was attempting to do.
“Why the hell do you want to go and do that?” he snapped as the irritation spread across his face.
“It’s just that I love this sport and I want to play. But there’s a girl I love too. And the only way I can have both is if I move.”
I sound like a total pussy.
He is going to ream me for this.
He dug out a pencil from the mess on his desk and twirled it around in his fingers while he thought a moment, before he used it to point at me. “So you’re telling me that you want me to put you up for the eligible trade options because you need to be closer to some girl?”
“She’s not just some girl, sir. And I know it sounds bad, but I need this. If it’s possible, I need this. And if it’s not, just tell me. I won’t ask you again. But I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t at least ask.”
“Son, you realize that you can live with this girl during the off-season, right? That’s three, sometimes four months.”
“That’s not enough time,” I responded respectfully.
“Where’s this special girl live?” He tapped the pencil against his desk in an irritated rat-a-tat.
“New York.”
“Hell! We’re in New York a couple times a season. And Florida and Boston aren’t far!” He stopped and glared at me. “And you’re telling me you’d like me to trade you to New York? You know after your contract expires, they won’t have the budget to pay you like we have?” He threw the pencil down on his desk before he stood up to face me with his hands on his hips.
“With all due respect, sir, it’s not about the money.”
“So you live here now?” My eyes widened.
“Just got in. Can I come in?”
“Of course. Yes.” I stumbled as I moved aside, and gestured for him to come in.
“These are for you.” He pushed the roses toward me.
“Thank you. They’re beautiful,” I replied, sniffing at them before moving to put them on the counter in the kitchen.
He looked around my apartment, taking in the details, then focused on the pile of things he had sent.
“I see you got my gifts.” He motioned toward the couch.
“Mm-hmmm,” I mumbled, still in shock that he was actually here.
“Cassie.” He moved his body close to mine and ran his fingers through my hair, tucking pieces behind my ear. I scanned the scruff on his face, the black of his hair, the chocolate color of his eyes, before reaching out to touch him.
“Do you still love me?” he asked, his eyes unsure.
“I never stopped,” I admitted breathlessly.
“Me either.” He grabbed the back of my neck and pulled his mouth to mine. His tongue caressed mine with slow, deliberate movements, and if I could have turned to liquid and dissolved into his arms, I would have.
He pulled away, his hand still caressing my neck. “I’m sorry for lying to you that morning. I’m sorry for cheating on you that night. I’m sorry for not being the person you knew I could be.” He leaned in, his mouth sucking lightly on my bottom lip before kissing me again. “And I don’t know if you can ever forgive me, but I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t at least ask you to try.
“And I’m sorry it took me so long to get here. She was fighting the annulment and it took months to get it processed and finalized. I refused to come fight for you while I was still carrying that baggage. But it took a lot longer than I had expected. I should have called you. And I’m sorry I didn’t.”
“I thought you hated me,” I whispered. Unable to look at him, I dropped my gaze to his chest.
He reached for my chin before tilting my head up, forcing me to meet his eyes. “I could never hate you. I thought I was going to have to come before the annulment was complete when I’d heard about you and the guy from your work.”