The Screw Ball (Indianapolis Lightning Book 3) Read online

  “We do.” She smiles at me.

  “I’ll take that with some honey, if you have any.”

  “We should,” she confirms. “And for you, Mr. Black?” she asks Lucas.

  “Just a water, please,” he asks politely.

  “Right away,” she says, heading back for her prep area. She returns a few minutes later with a large cup with piping hot water in it, along with a small basket of assorted teas and the tiniest little bottle of honey that I’ve ever seen. It is so little and cute; I can’t get enough of it. It reminds me of getting the mini ketchup bottles when you order room service at a fancy hotel.

  “Do you get to travel with the team often?” Lucas asks once we’re in the air.

  “Playoffs are usually the only time I go, unless we’ve got a special event going on over a road trip. Otherwise, I just do my job from the office,” I tell him.

  “What made you want to work for an MLB team?” he inquires.

  “I interned for the Lightning when I was still in college. I loved the atmosphere, and all that came with working for a professional sports team, that when they offered me a job after I graduated, I jumped at the opportunity. I’ve been with them for the last six years already and was promoted to my current position about a year and a half ago, when the former manager left for another company.”

  “So, like me, your hard work paid off,” he muses.

  “I guess you could look at it like that. Those first few weeks as an intern were brutal. I didn’t know anything—anything—about baseball. I’d probably been to two, maybe three games in my entire life before getting the job, so I had a large learning curve when it came to the game, and hell, I still don’t know everything there is to know about the sport.”

  “That’s pretty funny, the girl that knows nothing about the sport gets an important job within a sports organization.”

  “My friends and family were all a little shocked. My brother, although not a huge baseball fan, is still a bit jealous, if I’m being honest,” I tell him. I don’t know why it all of a sudden feels natural to open up and talk to Lucas. Maybe because he’s the one that initiated this conversation and has opened up to me some already.

  “What does he do?” he asks.

  “He’s in the Army, has been for around twelve years already. Went in straight out of high school.”

  “Cool, do you have other siblings?”

  “Nope, just my bother. He’s married to his high school sweetheart, Heather, and they have my nephew, Simon. What about you, you’ve got any siblings?”

  “I do, my sister, Tiffany, is basically my best friend. She’s married to my brother-in-law, Brad, and they also have a little boy, Milo, who is about three.”

  “Oh, that sounds like a fun age. My nephew is about nine months old, so still is a little on the innocent side.”

  “Milo is a fun little kid. He’s an uncle’s boy, that’s for sure. If I’m around, he won’t listen to anyone but me. It drives my sister and brother-in-law crazy. He’ll sometimes cry for me, which breaks my heart when it happens and we aren’t in town or I can’t go to him.”

  “Oh, they live in Indianapolis?” I ask, a little shocked that he has local family. “I didn’t think you were from around here,” I tell him.

  “I’m not but it’s been fate, I guess. Brad was offered a job in Indianapolis shortly after he graduated with his MBA, so they packed up and moved here. Then, when I was drafted, it felt like fate was at it again, and again when I was called up to actually play for the big team and not in the minors.”

  “Definitely sounds like a lot of fate working in your favor.”

  “It really was.”

  “Does your sister work, or does she get to stay home with Milo?”

  “She’s home with Milo,” he tells me, but the way he says it, I can tell he’s holding something back.

  “That’s great! Have they made it to any of the games?”

  “A couple, but the evening ones make it a late night for Milo, and they are a bit long for his attention span.”

  “I can understand that.” I chuckle. “They’re sometimes long for me.”

  “Blasphemy,” he says dramatically. “So, what do you like to do outside of work?”

  “I sometimes forget what it’s like to have a life outside of work. When I’m not putting out fires from Friday night shenanigans,” I tell him, giving him a pointed look, “I like to start my weekend off with some yoga. Other than that, the normal things, reading, hanging out with friends and family, traveling.”

  “What is number one on your wish list of places to visit next?” he asks.

  “Well, that depends on what the trip is for. If I’m looking for an exploration type trip, I’d love to go down to Peru and hike my way around for a week or two, or maybe down to Africa and go out on a safari or go to one of the giraffe sanctuaries. If it’s a relaxation trip, maybe with a lover, then somewhere that we can just lay out on the beach and be in the water. Book a bungalow that’s out over the water, like in Bora Bora. I’d also love to make it up to Alaska at some point and spend a few weeks just exploring.”

  “I take it you don’t get to travel as much as you’d like to?” he asks, breaking into my thoughts.

  “No, I don’t like to take time off during the season, as that is when I’m busiest. That leaves the off season, and well, that doesn’t leave me with all that much time, and some of the places I’d like to visit need to be visited during the summertime. So, until I either decide that it is okay to take off time during the season, or move on to a different job, I’ll stick to traveling during the off season.”

  “I can see how that would be limiting.”

  We fall into a bit of comfortable silence, long enough that I open my laptop back up and take care of a handful of emails. Most are simple things I’m able to easily answer.

  I sneak a few peeks at Lucas while I work. He’s slipped in his AirPods and has closed his eyes as he leans back in his seat. The man sitting next to me is nothing like the one that showed up a few months ago. He’s like an onion. Has multiple layers and once you peel them back, you realize that he’s not so bad.

  Eleven

  Lucas

  I sit in the hotel bar, the feeling a little déjà vu-ish, however, this time, I’m not worried about getting a call that someone has dropped a bomb and used my name in the mix. The biggest difference, this time, is the fact that Carmen is sitting right next to me. Because we’re in a large booth, her leg is next to my own and as people move about, we occasionally touch. The control it is taking to keep from reaching down and caressing her leg is strong right now.

  I watch her as best as I can from the corner of my eye, and use talking to JJ, who’s on the other side of her, as a good excuse to almost always be looking that direction. I watch as she takes sips of her glass of wine. It isn’t lost on me that she’s been nursing the same glass the entire time we’ve been down here.

  “You don’t have to hoard your wine, I’m sure they can bring you another glass,” I tease her as she takes yet another small sip.

  “Aren’t you just full of jokes.” She smirks at me. “I’ve limited myself to just one glass, I don’t need to wake up with a wine headache tomorrow, plus, I’d like to make it back to my room in one piece.”

  “I’ll make sure you make it back in one piece,” I tell her as my eyes scan the parts of her body that I can easily see with the table in my way. I press my knee against her and don’t miss the way her breath hiccups and her skin turns that fucking shade of red I love so much at my touch.

  My dick presses against the zipper of my slacks the rest of the time we’re in this damn booth. Carmen doesn’t move her knee from pressing against mine, so I don’t move, either. If anything, we move closer to one another. She’s like a magnetic force and I’m drawn to her.

  As some of the other guys start heading toward their rooms for the night, Carmen takes the opportunity to slip from the booth, as well, so I follow her out. “Thanks for letti
ng me crash your evening, boys, but it’s time for me to turn in before I turn into a pumpkin,” she jokes.

  “Of course, you’re welcome to join us whenever,” Matt O’Riley tells her.

  “I’ll walk you back to your room,” I say only loud enough that Carmen can hear me. “This hotel might have tight security because we’re staying here, but that won’t stop some creep from following you.”

  “Thank you,” she says, biting at her bottom lip. I didn’t think that it was possible, but my cock swells a little more. At this point, I’m sure I’ll have an imprint of my zipper for days to come.

  I drop a hand to Carmen’s lower back as we walk through the lobby of the hotel and onto a waiting elevator. The entire team is on the twenty-second floor, which requires a key card to get to. Carmen slides her card into the slit before hitting the button. I don’t know if she realizes, but she leans back into my touch. The press of her against me has me wishing I could feel a whole lot more of her body pressed against my own, preferably with less clothing between us.

  The elevator ride is quick, and before I know it, we’re exiting and heading down the long hall. She comes to a stop outside room twenty-two-twenty-two. “This is me, thanks for making sure I got back safely.”

  I take a step closer, reaching out and tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. My fingers caress her soft skin, and that feeling from a few minutes ago is back and stronger than ever. I watch her eyes as my fingers caress her skin, she isn’t pushing me away, which I’m taking as a win. I take another step closer, she’s now backed up against her door and I’m mere inches from her. “I’m going to kiss you now, unless you tell me not to,” I whisper, giving her a few seconds to process my words. When she doesn’t protest, my lips cover hers as I pull her in until we’re flush against one another.

  My senses are on overload. I can feel her hardened nipples through the thin T-shirt she’s wearing. She not only lets me deepen the kiss, but she also pushes up onto her toes, giving me better access to her mouth.

  I break the kiss; we are in the hallway, after all, and could get busted at any moment. I rest my forehead against hers and love the shade of red she’s turned for me.

  “Red.” I smirk and trace the pad of my pointer finger from her cheek to the V between her breasts that are on display. She doesn’t slap me away, so that’s a positive.

  “Did you want to come in?” she asks. Her question catches me off guard as it was the last thing I expected to come from her lips. To be honest, I was half expecting another slap across the face once she came to her senses and realized that we just made out in the hallway of a hotel.

  “Lead the way,” I tell her, my voice a little grittier than it usually is. She turns around, sliding the key along the sensor until we hear the lock disengage. She turns the handle, opening the door into her suite. She shocks me once again when she reaches out, grabbing me by the belt and pulling me along after her. The door slams shut behind me and my resolve snaps right along with the click of the door. I grab her, pulling her into me as I reach down and pick her up off the floor. My hands cup her ass cheeks as she wraps her legs around my torso. Her ass in my hands has me almost coming in my jeans.

  I press her against the wall, our lips finding one another, yet again, as we both start to tear at each another’s clothes in a race to find skin-on-skin contact. I pull back, breaking our kiss, but only long enough to pull her shirt off over her head. Her tits are the most perfect set I’ve laid my eyes and hands on, and that’s saying something. I cup them, rubbing my thumbs over her nipples. The friction the lace of her bra adds causes them to pucker even more under my touch.

  I lift her a little higher and drop my mouth to her breasts, and I kiss across the full mounds that spill from the tops of the cups of her bra. I dip my tongue beneath the lace, flicking her nipple with the tip. I can feel the moan that falls from her lips as it starts deep inside her core. I move to her other breast, repeating my movements yet again. I love the scrape of her nails as she runs her fingers through my hair, holding on as I worship her body.

  Lowering her down my body slightly, I grind my hard cock into her center as I take her lips once again. I swallow her moans as she grinds against me, searching for her own release.

  “That’s it, baby,” I whisper against her lips.

  “More,” she moans, then sucks my bottom lip between her teeth.

  I wrap my arms around her again, anchoring her to me as I pull away from the wall. I look over her shoulder and into the suite to find the bed. I need her naked and now. I walk deeper into the room and through a door, finding the king-size bed in the center. I close the distance, setting her down on the edge.

  “Tell me now if this isn’t what you want,” I state, giving her an out before we get any farther. My balls might kill me if I have to walk out of this room right now, but I’d do it.

  Instead of words, Carmen looks up at me, desire practically dripping from her eyes as she reaches once again for my belt. She unbuckles it, never breaking eye contact as she does. The slide of my zipper moving down and allowing my cock a little extra room now that it’s not pressed up against the metal. Before I even realize what’s happening, Carmen has my jeans and boxer briefs off my hips and halfway down my thighs. She’s wrapped her hand around my hard shaft and is stroking it. I can’t take my eyes off my cock in her hand and watch as she wraps her lips around my crown.

  “Fuuuuck,” I groan as she takes me deeper into her mouth. I hold back the urge to thrust my hips and deep throat her. I let her set the pace as I gather her hair in my hand, fisting it at the back of her head so that it’s out of the way.

  The way her tongue teases me as it runs up and down with each bob of her head has me almost coming down her throat. I tap her cheek, warning her that I’m close to coming, but she doesn’t stop. If anything, she doubles down, reaching between my legs and fondling my balls and rubbing a finger against the sensitive skin between my ass and ball sac. Between all the sensations, I can’t hold back my orgasm any longer and come down her throat.

  I’d never have guessed, even a day ago, that Carmen was a swallower, but she is. Every last fucking drop I give her, she takes. With my cock still twitching, I pull from her mouth, then push her back on the bed. “My turn.” I give her a devilish look, one that I’m sure tells her just how hungry I am to taste her. She shimmies back on the mattress until she’s splayed out in the center of it. I reach up and do as she did to me, unbuttoning and removing her jeans and panties from her body. I slip a hand behind her back, unclipping her bra and tossing that into the same pile her jeans and panties are in.

  I look down at the gorgeous woman splayed out and on display for my viewing pleasure only. I could get used to looking at her and only her. “So beautiful,” I murmur as I hover over her. I bring my lips to her neck, sucking and kissing as I slowly make my way down her body. I do my best to cover every inch I can reach as I slide down her body until my mouth is level with her pussy. I place a kiss against her mound and run two fingers through her folds. I find them swollen, wet and ready for me.

  Carmen’s inner thighs quiver as I place a kiss to each of them before my mouth devours her clit. I flick it with the tip of my tongue before sucking it hard into my mouth. Her body trembles, back arching as I slip two fingers inside her wet pussy. I quickly find her most tender spots and follow the clues her body is giving me with every flick of my fingertips and tongue. It doesn’t take long and her thighs are clenching tightly around my head, as her screams of pleasure tumble from her lips as she falls over the edge of ecstasy.

  Once her body has stopped pulsing around my fingers, I pull them from her and lap one last time at her very sensitive clit. Her body trembles when my tongue makes contact, and I can’t help but chuckle against her skin. “So responsive,” I murmur.

  Pushing up the bed, I lay down next to her. We’re both relaxed and sated after our mutual orgasms. I let her bask in the hormones that are no doubt coursing through her veins right now, gi
ving her a little bit before I press on to anything else that might transpire tonight. I just had the most gorgeous woman’s clit in my mouth, her taste still prominent on my tongue. There’s no way I want to rush her, at this point, and ruin my chances of actually sinking balls deep inside of her body. Letting her ruin me for good.

  “Come here,” I say, my words coming out just above a whisper. I lift up my arm, giving her the perfect place to curl her body into. I can’t stop the smile from filling my face when she rolls into my side, tucking her body against my own. She finally settles once her head is resting on my chest, a leg placed overtop my own and her hand resting on my abs.

  “This okay?” she asks. I can’t tell if she’s tired or if that is worry in her voice that I’m not okay with this.

  “It’s perfect,” I tell her, wrapping my arm around her body, loving the feel of her skin against mine.

  We lay here in silence. I can’t see her face, so I’m not sure if she’s fallen asleep. I know I could easily fall asleep like this with Carmen in my arms. I realize she isn’t sleeping when her fingers start tracing the ink I have along my ribs. A large compass, always leading me back home when I need it the most. When I start to make bad decisions and need that pull to get my head on straight.

  “You okay?” I finally break the silence to ask.

  “Perfect,” she whispers into my skin. I feel her lips brush against my chest as she turns her head slightly. My cock stirs at the contact of her lips and any spot on my body. I roll us until she’s under me and I can hover over her once again.

  “I can show you perfect,” I say as my lips find the soft skin just below her ear. She shifts, allowing our bodies to be a little better aligned, and I can feel her wetness as I slide my once again hard cock through her folds and along her clit.

  “Mhmmm,” she moans as I nip at her skin, soothing the sting with a lap of my tongue.

  “Can I fuck you?” I ask, not wanting to just assume.