by Hope Ford
If I Say yes
An Alpha Man, Curvy Woman Romance
HOPE FORD
If I Say Yes © 2019 by Hope Ford.
Editor: Kasi Alexander
All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author.
Cover designed by Hope Ford
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Hope Ford
Visit my website at www.authorhopeford.com
CONTENTS
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Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Epilogue
About the author
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Chapter 1
Chelsey
It’s the bottom of the ninth inning and we’re ahead by one run. We have two outs and bases loaded. They’ve brought in Jason Blake to pitch. He’s total eye candy and even though I want us to win, I really want him to win it for us. Not only is he handsome, he also seems to be a good guy. You don’t hear a lot about him getting into trouble or anything. Most of the time, I read about a fundraiser or some volunteer work he’s doing. And they just released news that he’s being moved up into the majors.
I love baseball. I used to come and watch it all the time with my dad. But now that he’s gone, I either come alone or force one of my friends to come with me.
There’s a hush in the stadium when all of a sudden my friend, Emily, jumps to her feet. “Strike him out, Jason! You got this.” She’s waving her arms around like a lunatic and I stand up next to her, trying to push her back down to her seat.
Jason, who was about to throw his first pitch since coming in to close the game, steps off the mound and looks toward us. My face is fifty shades of red I’m sure, but I can’t stop myself or turn away from his stare. He stands there for seconds, or is it minutes, I don’t know, because I swear his look is trained on me. When he doesn’t look away, the catcher calls time and walks toward the mound. They say something and the catcher looks up into the stands at me, then pats Jason on the back before he walks back to home plate and gets into position.
I finally get Emily seated, and she’s staring at me with her mouth wide open and her eyes huge. “He was staring at you, Chels!”
I look at her hopefully before turning back to the game.
He’s back on the mound. He throws one pitch. Strike, the umpire calls out. The catcher throws the ball back and Jason grips it in his hand, rolling his shoulders. He doesn’t look back at me, and I wonder if I imagined it all.
Strike. Another fast ball lands in the catcher’s mitt with a resounding thud.
When Jason gets the ball back, he takes his hat off and wipes his forehead with the back of his hand before putting it back on his head. He eyes over to the runner on third, then takes the mound.
Fans from the other team are heckling him, but he seems unfazed. He brings his arm back, lifts his front leg high off the ground and throws his body forward, releasing the ball in front of him. The batter reaches out to swing and misses it. Strike! the umpire calls and the crowd goes wild. I’m standing up with my hands up under my chin, like I’ve been praying. Heck, maybe I was.
The Tennessee Timberwolves win their regional game. We stand there and watch as the team all runs together, hugging and slapping each other on the back. Jason walks out of the crowd of his teammates and jogs over toward us.
His hands on the fence, he looks up the few rows where we’re standing. “Hey, what’s your name?”
I can’t help it. I look behind me and then turn back to him, pointing to myself. “Me?”
He smiles and nods his head. “Yes, you.”
Someone from the stands congratulates him and he thanks them before turning back to me.
I lick my lower lip. “Chelsey.”
“Chelsey.” He says my name and the way it rolls off his tongue I swear I can feel my body tingle. “Can you give me thirty minutes and meet me by the entrance?”
When I don’t respond quick enough, Emily jumps in. “She’ll meet you.”
He smiles at Emily and then trains his eyes back on me. “Is she right, Chelsey? Will you wait on me?”
I nod at him and when I do, his smile gets even bigger and he slaps his hand against the fence and walks backward toward his teammates, his eyes on me the whole way.
I’m still watching him as he walks into the dugout when Emily grabs my arm, squealing, jumping up and down. “Oh my God, Chelsey, you’re about to meet Jason Blake!”
I cover my ears she’s screaming so loud. The people around us are all laughing as they gather their stuff. One woman pats me on the shoulder, saying, “You go, girl!” and I smile at her.
Damn. How is this my life?
Jason
Rushing through my shower, I get dressed quickly and head for the door. The press is here wanting to talk about the game and also about me being picked up for the majors, but I only give him a little time, thanking my family, teammates and fans before I’m out the door and heading toward Chelsey.
The crowd has thinned out, but there’s still people along the way, congratulating me and wanting my signature. I sign quickly and keep moving. Once Chelsey comes into view, I don’t stop anymore. I stride toward her until I’m standing right in front of her.
I put my hand on her shoulder, just because I want to touch her. “Hi. Thanks for waiting for me.”
She tilts her head back and smiles. We are staring at each other until I hear, “Well, Chels, if you’re okay I’m going to head out of here.”
I notice for the first time, her friend is standing next to her. Chelsey pulls away from me. “I’m sorry. I rode here with Emily, so I have to go too.”
I reach out and grab her hand, not ready to let her go. “Will you let me take you home? I have to go to a party, just make a quick appearance, then we can go.”
She looks down at herself in jeans and her Tennessee Timberwolves T-shirt and then back up at me. “I’m not really dressed for a party.”
“You look beautiful.” I eye her appreciatively. Her T-shirt is stretched across her large breasts and she has on tight blue jeans. Her wide thighs make my mouth water and I can’t stop myself from gripping onto her hip. “Please. I want you with me,” I plead with her honestly.
Her sudden intake of breath tells me that she feels it too. She nods and turns to Emily, giving her a quick hug and I wave bye to her as well. When Chelsey turns back to me, I can see the doubt in her eyes. “Are you sure about this?”
I can’t resist her. Not even if I wanted to try. I lean down and grip her cheek in my hand, stroking her soft skin with my thumb. “I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”
When I saw her in the stands, embarrassed and trying to contain her friend, I knew right then that I had to meet her. Up close, she’s even more beautiful.
I grab on to her hand and start walking to the exit. When a fan stops me asking for an autograph, I lift my hand that is laced with Chelsey’s and swap it to my other hand, not wanting to let her go even for a minute.
She laughs at me and I can see the confusion on her face, but she just walks to the other side of me while I sign the baseball the little boy is holding out to me. After a pat on his head, I continue walking to my car.
When I open the door for her, she slides into the car and I lean in to buckle her up. Her scent hits my nose and I swear it makes me want to lean in and taste her.
I walk around to the driver’s side and get in. Her sweet voice has me gripping the steering wheel tightly. “Uh, I feel like I should tell you, I uh, don’t normally do this?”
I grab her hand that is sitting on her lap. “Do what?”
“Go home with strange men.” Her face flushes and she tries to pull her hand from mine. “I don’t mean I’m going home with you. Or that you’re strange.” She takes her other hand and covers her face. “Oh my God, I’m shutting up now.”
I laugh at how sweet she is. Damn, she’s nothing like any woman I’ve ever met.
Chapter 2
Chelsey
Shaking my head, I still can’t believe I said that. He pulls my hand toward him and rests it on his thigh and then covers my hand with his.
“Honey, I didn’t think you are that type of girl. But I’m glad you came with me. And well, I would love to take you home with me, but we can wait until I’m not so strange to you.”
I smile at him, sort of relieved that there’s no pressure from him.
He squeezes my hand before he grips the gear shift and puts it into drive. “But just so you know, I don’t normally do this either.”
I scrunch my nose up. “Do what?”
He puts his hand back on mine. “Pick up women from the ball game. And I definitely have never taken one home with me.”
I’m stunned at his admission. I’ve seen the women throw themselves at him and although I want to believe him, I’m not so sure yet.
He asks me around twenty questions on the way to the party. I tell him about how I created my lifestyle blog a few years ago and he seems really interested in that.
“So tell me about your family?” he asks me, and I have trouble paying attention to him because he’s now stroking my hand with his finger.
“Uh, it’s just my mom and me. My dad passed away a few years ago.” I shake my head, trying to get away from the memories. “How about you? Tell me about your family.”
He smiles widely. “Well, I have a twin brother and also a younger brother. Our mom and dad are still married, after around forty years together, and they live in Florida.”
“Were they at the game tonight?”
He shakes his head. “No. My twin works on an oil rig and my younger brother’s college graduation was tonight. I didn’t want the folks to miss that.”
When he pulls up to a huge mansion, he parks the car and I put my hand on the door to open it.
“Wait. Stay right there.”
I watch him walk around the car and admire the tattoos on his muscular forearms and his tight pecs that flex as he walks. His black T-shirt and tight blue jeans show off his fit physique and I can’t help but feel a little frumpy as he opens the door and I climb out of the car.
I stand next to the car door and lean back against it. “I don’t know about this, Jason.”
He looks at me for a minute like he’s trying to read me, then takes a step toward me, his body touching mine. “What’s wrong?”
I tilt my head back and look up at him. I can’t think straight with him this close to me. I stand up and put my hands at his waist, pushing him back a little. I stand a little taller.
“What am I walking into here?” I look at him with suspicion.
The skin between his eyes crinkles. “What do you mean?”
My hands drop from his waist and fall to my sides. “I mean, look at us. This doesn’t make sense. I’ve seen the women you date. I don’t look like one of them.”
“Thank God,” he mutters before leaning down to grip on to my hips. His face is right in front of mine and the feel of his fingers digging into my skin about makes me moan. “I haven’t dated anyone in a long time. And I don’t want women like that. I want you. I knew when I saw you in the stands that I had to have you… next to me, underneath me, on top of me… hell, any way you’ll have me.”
The sincerity on his face is shining through and I pull my shoulders back, nodding at him. “Okay.” I take a deep breath and release it. “Let’s go.”
He holds my hand and it instantly calms me. When we walk in the door, there is definitely a party going on. All of his teammates are here. There’s also half naked women everywhere.
People are hollering out Jason’s name and he’s fist bumping and shaking hands with people. But the whole time he keeps me pressed to his side. I look in the corner, and I swear there is a couple about to have sex out in the open for everyone to see. I can feel my face flush and I look away quickly.
Jason’s arm tightens on my shoulder. “C’mon, let’s go in the kitchen.”
It’s quieter and calmer in here and I can actually hear people talking. Jason introduces me to a few people and I meet one of the players’ wives. She’s really nice and talks to me about the game and Jason.
Jason leaves me for a minute and walks over to the table and a man raises up and he’s even bigger than Jason. They put their hands around each other and hug and before I know it, he’s pulling him over to where I’m standing.
“Chelsey, this is Dane. The catcher from tonight.”
I smile at him. “Hi, Dane. It’s nice to meet you. You did great tonight.”
“You too,” he tells me and then turns to Jason. “This is the girl from the stands tonight?”
Jason only nods his head. “I told you.”
Dane laughs and slaps him on the back.
I ask, eyeing Jason, “Told him what?” I look between the two of them and they seem pretty proud of themselves.
When neither of them answer me, I ask Dane, “So in the bottom of the last inning when you called time out, what did you and Jason talk about? Or is there some kind of bro code that says you can’t tell me?”
Dane smiles widely at me, then looks over at his friend and teammate. Jason nods at him, as if giving him permission.
Dane puffs his chest out and then leans in, like he’s about to give away state secrets or something. I can’t help it. I lean in. “He said he’s going to marry you.”
The gasp leaves my mouth before I can stop it. My eyes fly up to Jason’s, thinking it’s definitely a mistake… a joke, but he’s smiling at me.
I put my palms on his chest, to touch him or to steady myself, I’m not sure why, but when I do, he covers my hands with his. “I’m going to kiss you now.”
I nod my head and his lips touch mine.
Chapter 3
Three Months Later
Chelsey
I can barely see to drive. Tears are pouring down my face and my body is shaking as I sob uncontrollably. Pulling to the edge of the road, I lay my head down on the steering wheel and try to get a hold of myself. Vehicles are flying by me and the car shakes because they are so close to me. The white tulle of my wedding dress is bunched into my lap and I bring a piece of it up to wipe off my cheeks. I look down at the black stain smeared across the stark white material and it brings fresh tears to my eyes.
Leaning back, I lay my head on the headrest and take a few deep breaths. A plan, that’s what I need. My phone in the passenger seat hasn’t stopped dinging since I walked out of the church, walked out on my wedding, and drove away in Jason’s SUV.
I look in the rearview mirror and see our suitcases in the very back. At the incessant dinging and ringing, I turn my phone to silent and send my mom a text. I’m fine. I’ll explain everything later. I’m sorry. I just can’t do this.
I stuff it down into my purse and with a plan in place, I drive to the airport. Pulling into the parking spot, I jump out of the car, pulling my dress off myself as I go. Opening the back, I step out of my dress, wad it up and throw it into the third row of seat
s. I’m sure there are people staring at me, but I can’t seem to make myself care. My whole world just flipped upside down.
I pull some clothes out of the suitcase and dress quickly, then run to the check-in counter, dragging the suitcase behind me.
I hand my ticket and driver’s license across the counter. “I need to change my ticket to the first available plane you can get me on to Miami.” I’m sort of glad now that we had to postpone our trip to Hawaii and take a shorter trip to Miami for now. With spring training coming up for Jason, we weren’t able to make that trip this time.
She smiles at me, and I can tell she notices my splotchy face and red rimmed eyes. “This ticket is for tomorrow morning.”
Nodding my head, I put my hand on the counter between us and tell her desperately, “I know. If I can’t trade it, I’ll just buy a new ticket.”
She stares at me for a minute and I fight to keep in the tear that I can feel building in the corner of my eye. I know if I blink, it will roll down my cheek. I stare at her, my eyes wide open and when I think she’s about to look away, I blink and catch the tear rolling down my face. She sees me out of the corner of her eye. “Let me see what I can do.”
I sniffle. “Thank you.”
Not even an hour later, I’m on a plane headed to my ‘honeymoon.’
Jason
“What do you mean she left?” I ask Chelsey’s mother.
She shrugs her shoulders and looks at me sympathetically. “I don’t know. She drove away in your car. I’ve tried calling her, but she wouldn’t answer me. She did send a text though.”
Impatiently, I hold my hand out to her. “What did it say?”
She opens her mouth to answer and then closes it. She opens the messaging app on her phone and puts it in my open palm. I scan it quickly. I’m fine. I’ll explain everything later. I’m sorry. I just can’t do this.
Pain hits my chest, my knees about buckle and I clutch the phone in my hand.
