Back in the Game

by Lisa Scott

  Mentally reviewing his disappointing romantic history wasn't helping the woman in front of him. She wanted the thrill of a kiss with a stranger. She wanted to know someone else could find her desirable, and he could give her that.

  Closing her eyes, she tipped up her chin and whispered, "Kiss me."

  And he wanted to. He took her face in his hands and guided her mouth to his. She let out a soft moan as he slowly parted her lips with his tongue. She gripped his shoulders.

  "Oh," she breathed, leaning into him. Her lips were soft, and in no time, she was matching the rhythm of his moves. Then she pressed harder, faster.

  He laced a hand around her waist and pulled her body against his. His fingers curled around her hip as their tongues lashed together. His heart pounded. He hadn't expected to react like this. He pulled away.

  "So that's out of the way." He smiled at her.

  She ran the tips of her fingers over her lips. "That was ... wow." Then she popped up on her toes for another quick kiss and stepped back. She exhaled loudly and blinked a few times. "What's your name?"

  He smiled. "Jeff."

  She offered him her hand. "I'm Georgia."

  He brought her knuckles to his mouth and kissed them softly. "Nice to meet you, Georgia."

  She set her hand on his chest and asked in a low voice, "Do you want to come home with me, Jeff?"

  Feeling responsible, Jeff agrees to escort her home.

  After that kiss, Jeff takes her up on the implicit offer.

  Please turn back to the previous page and use the links to advance to the next section of this story.

  This story is not intended to be read front to back in a linear fashion. As you make choices (by clicking the links) the story will unfold for you. If you need, you can go back to the table of contents to find choices you made previously.

  You can also read this story at https://www.silkwords.com/stories/back_in_the_game in your web browser.

  Please turn forward one page and use the links to advance to the next section of this story.

  This story is not intended to be read front to back in a linear fashion. As you make choices (by clicking the links) the story will unfold for you. If you need, you can go back to the table of contents to find choices you made previously.

  You can also read this story at https://www.silkwords.com/stories/back_in_the_game in your web browser.

  Jeff took her by the hand and led her back through the bar and out the front door.

  Her heart raced. "Let me text my friends and tell them I'm going home." She fumbled with her phone as she stood in the cool night air.

  Heading home early. Talk tomorrow.

  Jeff took off his jacket and wrapped it around her, yet she still shivered.

  "Nervous?" he asked.

  She nodded.

  He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "Don't be."

  Jeff hailed a cab and held the back door open for her. When they were inside, he grabbed her hand.

  Georgia gave the cab driver her address and took a few deep breaths. This is like jumping in a pool, she thought. The dating pool. Take the plunge. Easier than tiptoeing in.

  They said little during the fifteen-minute ride to her house.

  "I live about ten minutes from here," Jeff said. "We're practically neighbors." He hopped out of the car and opened the door for her, then paid the driver.

  The driver pulled away, leaving Georgia alone on her porch with Jeff. Should she have Googled him before bringing him home? Is that what women did these days to make sure they weren't bringing home a psychopath? She didn't even know his last name. What was she doing?

  Her fingers shook as she fished her keys out of her purse. Jeff grabbed her hand. "Georgia, you don't have to do this. I can tell this isn't what you want."

  She let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. "That obvious?"

  "It's like you showed up to splash in the kiddie pool tonight and now you're trying a high dive in the deep end."

  Now he was reading her thoughts. "I did think it was best just to jump in," she admitted. Georgia frowned. Her first attempt to lure a man home wasn't going so well.

  "How about this. Let's go out as friends. No pressure. We'll go to the movies, to dinner. Think of me as your dating coach. I'll help you get your feet wet." He smiled irresistibly.

  "Why would you do that for me? I'm just the crazy woman who cornered you in a closet at a bar."

  He shrugged. "I've been accused of having a white knight complex. But I'm not looking for a relationship right now, so it'd be nice to go out just as friends."

  It was hard not to sigh at the word "friends." Jeff seemed nice. But she wasn't looking for a relationship either. "All right, let's give it a try."

  "Great. Shall I pick you up at six for dinner tomorrow night?"

  "As long as I'm not still hungover."

  He pulled out a business card and handed it to her. "Call me if you are. We'll reschedule."

  She took the card and folded it in her hand. "Thanks, Jeff. How are you going to get home?"

  He smiled. "I told the cabbie to drive around the block then come back and get me."

  She looked at her feet, wondering if she was blushing. "Thanks again," she said.

  He squeezed her hand, then kissed her cheek.

  Inside, with his card still in her hand, she flopped on the couch and fell asleep.

  * * *

  The doorbell woke her the next morning. Her head pounded, and the sunlight streaming through the window didn't help. "Hang on," she called out hoarsely. Her mouth tasted like a ditch. Then she winced as her sore feet hit the floor.

  Kyra and Marly stood at the door. "What happened to you?" Kyra asked.

  "Something scandalous, I hope," Marly said, walking in.

  "Was there a guy?" Kyra asked.

  "Kind of," Georgia said, rubbing her eyes.

  "That doesn't sound promising," Marly said.

  Georgia sat back on the couch and groaned. "Sleeping in shapewear is painful. I think my organs may have permanently shifted."

  Marly frowned. "If you've still got that stuff on, definitely nothing interesting happened."

  "Go get changed and tell us everything," Kyra said.

  Georgia peeled off her clothes and slipped on yoga pants and a T-shirt. A shower would have to wait. She got herself a big glass of water and sat on the couch, wondering how to explain to her friends she'd agreed to let a man be her dating coach.

  "So you met someone?" Kyra asked.

  Georgia nodded. "I was looking for a place to hide ..."

  Marly rolled her eyes.

  "... and he was hiding too. I kissed him."

  "Oooh," Kyra and Marly said at the same time.

  "Then I asked him to come home with me."

  Both women gasped.

  "Did he?" Marly asked.

  Georgia's shoulders slumped. "Yes, but he left me at the doorstep and said it was clear I was too nervous to hook up, so he promised to be my dating coach instead. He just wants to be friends."

  "A dating coach. I didn't know that was a thing," Kyra said. "Is he charging you?"

  "Good question." Georgia spotted his business card on the floor and picked it up. "Looks like he's a financial planner. I think I'm just a charity case."

  "What's his name?" Marly asked.

  Georgia had to read the card to remember. "Jeff Brown."

  "That sounds familiar," Kyra said.

  "Let me see," Marly said. She tapped a finger against the card then screamed. "You almost hooked up with JJ Brown?"

  "No, this guy's name was Jeff."

  "Yeah, Jeffrey James Brown. He played for the Warriors for years."

  Georgia frowned. "He didn't look like a football player."

  "He was the field goal kicker. They don't have to be as big."

  Georgia groaned. "I may have said some unflattering things about football players. I can't remember." She shrugged. "Good thing I didn't hook up with him. You know that's not t
he kind of guy I'm looking for."

  "Sounds like he was a nice guy. He didn't take advantage of you," Kyra said.

  "And that was his party last night! He founded Athletes for Kids," Marly explained.

  Georgia sighed. "I told him the party was lame."

  "At what point of the evening did you take your foot out of your mouth?" Marly asked.

  Georgia rolled her eyes. "We're still going to dinner tonight."

  Marly and Kyra high-fived.

  Georgia held up a hand. "It's not a date. It's a lesson."

  * * *

  The fact that it wasn't a date-date didn't do anything to soothe Georgia's nerves as she got ready. She didn't go as fancy as the night before, and she let her hair cascade over her shoulders. She hoped it would work for wherever he was taking her. Maybe he won't even come, she thought.

  But he appeared at the door at six, handsomer than she remembered.

  She stood there, unsure what to do - invite him in? Get in his car? "Okay," she said, "lesson begins right now. Do I ask you to come in? Do we leave?"

  "Your choice. You don't know me well, so if you don't feel comfortable asking me in, we can just head to the restaurant."

  She stepped back. "Why don't you come in?"

  He followed her inside and they sat on her couch. "I'm sorry I was such a drunken sob fest last night. Now you know why I've resisted going out for so long."

  He smiled. "It wasn't so bad. I'm here today, aren't I?"

  She held up a finger. "And I need to apologize for any football player cracks. And remarks about your charity's party. I didn't realize who you were. My friends tell me you used to play football."

  He laughed. "I enjoyed it much more than if you'd fallen all over me because you did know who I was."

  They chatted for a while about his job and her work as a jewelry designer.

  "I own a jewelry store and used to sell some of my things there, but I haven't felt the desire to make anything in a while."

  "Since your husband died?"

  She nodded. "Since he got sick. Most of my life's been on hold since then." It was true. She hadn't bought new clothes since he'd gotten ill, or kept up with her highlights. Someone else had filled in for her at the store until a month ago, when she felt she was ready to go back to work. She'd been in limbo. She took a deep breath and stood up. "Shall we go?"

  He opened the front door for her and led her to his car, a very nice Mercedes convertible. On the way to the restaurant, they continued chatting, and her nervousness faded. Jeff was so easy to talk to, maybe because it wasn't a date. The pressure was off.

  He took her to a fantastic Italian restaurant she'd always wanted to try. They sat in a private booth in back, and she felt relaxed as they sipped wine and shared stories. Jeff had been a quarterback through high school, but shifted to kicker when he went to college and was surrounded by players who outsized him.

  "Also, the kicker doesn't get tackled as often as the quarterback, so that was a plus," he joked.

  It was delicious to share a laugh and watch the sun setting in orange and pink hues. Her meal was divine. It felt like all her senses were coming back to life.

  "You enjoying yourself?" Jeff asked.

  "I really am, thank you." When dessert came, she asked, "How many times do you have to go out before you can steal a taste of your date's tiramisu?"

  He laughed. "I don't know, three?" He pushed his plate toward her. "But you can take a taste of mine tonight."

  She felt the blush rise to her cheeks at the unintentional (intentional?) innuendo. Either way, she was going for a bite of his dessert.

  When the bill came, she went for her purse, but he reached across the table and squeezed her hand. "The rule still stands; if a guy asks a woman out, he pays. If not, I say you run."

  She laughed. "Thank you."

  As they walked to the car, she asked, "So, now the hard part. What next?"

  "If you don't want the evening to end, you and your date could go to a bar or catch a movie."

  "Why don't we take a walk along the waterfront?" she suggested.

  "Nice improvisation."

  * * *

  Jeff felt uneasy about his growing attraction to this woman. She was unlike anyone he'd ever dated. She was beautiful, for sure, but so much more grounded and kind than many of the women he'd known. She wasn't a party girl looking for a good time. It was a nice change.

  "So how is it that you've never been married?" she asked him.

  "That's a question I ask myself often." And one he felt more distressed about as time went on. "I spent too much time having fun, then too much time trying to find the right girl. I didn't want someone who only wanted me because I was JJ Brown." He shrugged. "And now, for a number of reasons, I'm not looking to be in a relationship. So this is great, getting to hang out with you as friends." Because despite the feelings of longing she had triggered, he had to remember she was still a vulnerable widow. Friendship was in both their interests.

  "Being friends is fine for me, too. I don't know what I want. All I know is that a year has passed since Matt died, and I don't feel like I've been really living. It's just nice to be out."

  They walked some more, sharing stories of their families and interests. She was a good storyteller and made him laugh like he hadn't in a long time. He was intrigued by her jewelry making and surprised she was going to be a grandmother.

  "You'll be the hottest grandma in town," he told her as he drove her home.

  "I'm still in denial about it," she laughed.

  It made him happy that the smile didn't leave her face as they drove along. He thought about reaching for her hand, but they'd both agreed to keep things in the friend zone, so he gripped the steering wheel instead.

  When he pulled into her driveway, they sat in silence for a moment. "So what would a woman do these days? Would asking you in automatically suggest an invitation for sex?"

  He smiled. "No, but it would suggest you want some alone time with the guy, and he'd be wondering if it would lead to more."

  She nodded. "And if I just said goodbye, would he assume I didn't like him?"

  "You'd have to give him some sort of encouragement if you did - a kiss, a suggestion to go out again." He shifted in his seat. There was no doubt he was attracted to Georgia, and it was killing him not to act on it.

  "So, do you want to come in and not kiss?"

  He laughed. "Tempting, but I've got an early golf outing tomorrow." Plus, it's too risky.

  "Well, thanks, Jeff. You've helped me a lot. Maybe we can do this again sometime."

  He paused, uncertain if he should make plans to see her again. Well, he had offered to help her get out there. "What about next Saturday? I've got to go to a charity event, and I'd love to bring you. I can introduce you to some nice guys." That sounded like a good plan. Hook her up with someone else before he fell for her.

  "Sure, that sounds fun," she said, before she walked to her door and left him alone in the night.

  * * *

  Try as he might, Jeff couldn't stop thinking about Georgia all week. Was it just because he'd decided not to pursue her? He thought about bringing her flowers when he picked her up Friday night, but surely that would be sending the wrong message. So he drove to her house empty-handed, and was thankful for it. She looked so breathtaking, he probably would've dropped anything he'd brought.

  "Does this look all right? Marly and Kyra went shopping with me. I'm not so sure I can always trust them." She frowned, and even that was beautiful.

  He marveled at the way the silky aqua-colored gown hugged her curves and made her skin glow. What a gorgeous color for a redhead, he thought. "They did good this time. Very good." He held out his arm. "Shall we?"

  She looped her arm through his and he led her to his car.

  "I usually go to these things alone," he told her.

  "Why's that?"

  "It's just easier. Don't want to give the impression I'm looking for more than a date. It's nice t
hat you and I know where we stand."

  She smiled. "It does take off a lot of pressure."

  He drove to the country club, and heads turned as they walked in. It wasn't long before a few of his buddies found him and turned their attention to Georgia.

  "Hey, Jeff, I don't believe I've met your date," said Charlie Windham.

  "Charlie, this is my friend, Georgia Tucker. Georgia, Charlie Windham is one of my clients. He beats me at golf every time. I'd like to say he cheats, but he's really that good."

  Georgia shook his hand. "Nice to meet you. I haven't golfed in years, but I did get a hole in one at a course in Florida a few years back. They gave me a plaque."

  Charlie whistled. "You might have to come out with me and teach me a thing or two. I've never landed a hole in one."

  "That would be nice," she said.

  Jeff gritted his teeth. Charlie was too much of a player for Georgia. He had to be more careful who he introduced her to. "If you'll excuse us, Charlie, we're going to get a drink."

  "Hope to see you later," Charlie told Georgia.

  "Thanks, you too."

  Jeff tugged her away and whispered, "Trust me, he's no good."

  "Okay. If you say so. I trust you." She smiled at him and he caught his breath. He wanted nothing more than to kiss her. He swallowed hard, remembering the kiss at the bar that night, her soft lips, the way her uncertainty had given way to hot-as-hell desire.

  Soon, a few of his former teammates had tracked him down to meet Georgia, and without realizing it, he'd wrapped his arm around her waist while they tried chatting her up.

  "I'm assuming you're not interested, right?" he whispered to her. "Former football players."

  "Shh!" she said, holding back a laugh. "But yes, you're right. They don't seem to be my type."

  He was stupidly pleased she hadn't shown an interest in anyone; he'd brought her here to meet men, after all. He had to keep reminding himself that Georgia was the last kind of woman he needed. Anne had been lovely and demure and tentative too, and look where that had gotten him. But later, returning with drinks from the bar, jealousy gripped his heart when he found her talking to Brad Ayken, a local businessman who always donated generously to Jeff's foundation. He was considered one of the biggest catches in Clarksville.