I spent my days at the apartment with Jackson while Lance spent his at work. Jackson loved his room and being around Lance. He played while I cleaned. Then we made dinner together. I'd given up any side jobs to work solely on the project. Getting the job would make everything better. Lance said I needed to put all of my spare time into it, and I agreed with him. Dinner was ready each night when Lance walked through the door. He commented a few times on how spoiled he was getting. He'd even said he didn't know how he was going to go back to frozen foods after I hit the big time and left.
We'd let Jackson play or watch television while we worked. Then we'd do something together, the three of us. Lance was helping way more than I ever thought he would with Jackson. I told him constantly that I could do it, but he wasn't having it. There were nights that Jackson asked him to do things instead of me. I tried not to let it hurt my feelings, and it felt good to see Jackson talking and spending time with Lance. I was still very worried about them bonding too much. When it was time to go, I didn't want it to be too hard on my boy.
We'd get Jackson into bed before going back into the office and working some more. I was more excited and passionate about the project than I thought possible. Lance seemed to be right there with me. It was so nice having someone to throw ideas around with, and it was even better being able to do it in person. We both had stuff spread out across the desks. He'd gotten me my own desk too. It was great.
When our work was done, we'd make our way into the bedroom and be all over each other until we finally fell asleep in a tangled mess of limbs. I hadn't been with another man since I'd first been with Lance, so I still wasn't sure it was being with him that made everything so powerful and perfect. Each time was better than the last. I wasn't sure if he felt the same way, but he never seemed to complain. It was so strange seeing so many different sides of him. He was so sweet and loving at times but so passionate and demanding the second the bedroom door closed. There was definitely not a boring moment when it came to being around him.
On the weekends, Lance's mom would call and ask if Jackson could come over for a few hours. She knew how hard we were working, and I was so thankful for that. It was a huge help. Jackson even called to see if he could sleep over a couple of times. Lance's parents were amazing. I don't know what I would have done without any of them.
Lance's mom called a couple of times a week while Lance was at work and she was off. I'd take Jackson over for lunch, or we'd go out to eat. Sammie even came and brought Jillian a few times. She was so round and big. It was adorable. I'd met a couple of the current Pirates one day. Sammie invited us to come hang out and see her working with the kids. I will never forget that first day. There were kids there from all walks of life, kids that normally wouldn't be together. When they were there, baseball was all that mattered. It didn't matter if someone was their friend or not, they put it all aside when they were in her building. It was awesome to see professional players spending their time teaching the kids. I was star struck, but the kids didn't care. To them, they were just regular guys. To me, it was the craziest thing ever. I'd get all tongue tied and Sammie would burst into laughter.
“You're so funny,” she said.
“I can't help it,” I said. “I still can't believe all of you.”
“They're just regular guys,” she said.
“You're crazy,” I said. “You're just saying that because you married one of them.”
“We'd been best friends since we were babies,” she said. “He just happened to make a living playing ball. They all have lives and some have families. Forget that you can watch them on television. They are regular guys.”
Once I put their fame aside, they were just regular guys. We ended up laughing and messing with them. It was pretty great. Jackson loved it. He listened to everything they said. Once he picked up a ball and mitt, I knew I was in trouble. He asked me every day if we could go back. Some days I caved, but others we stayed home and played together. Lance even threw the ball around with us from time to time.
I was sitting in the office working when Lance came in and sat down at his desk. He never even looked at me, he didn't have to. Something was going on. I could see right through him. We'd been working so well together, and everything was in place. We were ready to report back. I thought for a few minutes before I spoke. He had his elbows on his desk and his head in his hands. I felt like he was about to drop a huge bomb on me, but I couldn't figure out why. Was he done with me? Was it time for me to go? Had he been waiting for me to finish before giving me the boot? I could hear him sigh from across the room. What the hell was going on? I played back every moment I could remember. I'd made sure to keep the apartment clean, I'd cooked, and I'd taken care of Jackson as much as he'd let me by myself. I hadn't asked for a single thing from Lance. What had I done wrong? Maybe my mom was right. “Nobody will ever love you now.” Who was I kidding? I knew it wasn't like that with Lance. I knew it wasn't love, not from him anyway. Wait! What? Nothing. I knew I was going to be on my way eventually, I just thought I'd at least have gotten the job first.
“Lauren,” his voice broke through my thoughts.
He was still turned away from me. I hadn't realized tears were slipping down my cheeks. This is it, I thought. Here it comes.
“Yes,” I whispered.
“We need to talk.”
And there it was. It was time to go. I was going to be the one to move first. His ass wasn't kicking me out. I wasn't letting that happen again. It was me and my boy, and I was going to make sure I took my pride with me.
Chapter 20
Lance
For weeks we fixed up the project together, months actually. It was solid. That was what she thought anyway. In the back of my mind, I knew it wasn't. There was still another way to get through. I'd gone back and forth with myself. I wasn't sure what to do. If she sent it to them the way it was and someone broke through, she'd be done. On the other hand, if I pointed it out, she'd think I was a dick. Why? Well, she'd either be pissed that I'd figured it out and hadn't said anything, or she'd be pissed that I'd gotten through before her. I could play it off that I didn't, but then she'd want to know how I got through while we were working together and not said anything. No matter how you looked at it, Lauren was going to be pissed. She thought it was ready to take to them, but it wasn't. It was going to take longer to fix, but if we spent all of our spare time on it, we could make it happen quick. I could even work on it while she spent time with Jackson, but I wasn't sure how she was going to feel about that. We'd already talked about her calling them, so I knew I couldn't wait another second.
Jackson had just gone to bed, and Lauren was in the office giving everything one last look. As much as I didn't want to tell her, I knew I couldn't let her turn it in to them the way it was. I walked into the office, dreading what I was about to tell her and ready for the gigantic explosion I knew was coming. I sat down at my desk with my head in my hands. She didn't say a word, which only made it harder. I couldn't take it anymore. I had to get it out there. I hadn't slept in days, and it was driving me crazy.
“Lauren,” I said.
I knew I needed to turn to her, but I couldn't do it. She was looking right at me, I could feel it.
“Yes,” she whispered.
I knew that wasn't going to last long.
“We need to talk,” I said.
“Don't bother,” she said.
“What?” I asked, as I quickly turned to face her.
“I said don't bother,” she said, as she got to her feet. “We'll be gone by the end of the week.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” I asked, as I stood as well.
“I knew I couldn't stay here forever. I just thought you'd at least give me time to get the job. I get it. I should have been more prepared for this.”
“Stop,” I said.
“No, Lance,” she said, as she stood up. “I will be fine. Don't feel bad or try to make it sound like something it's not.”
; “I said stop,” I growled out from deep in my chest.
Her eyes widened, and she froze.
“I'm not asking you to leave,” I said. “It's about the project.”
A confused look crossed her face.
“What?” she asked.
“Sit your ass down and don't say another word,” I said, as I took steps forward, while she matched them by moving back, until the backs of her knees were at her chair. She sat down and looked up at me. “There's another way through.”
“How?” she asked. “We've been working on it for over two months and we haven't found anything.”
“Well,” I said, but quickly stopped. When I turned around, she was on her feet with her hand on my arm.
“Lance,” she said. “There can't be.”
“There is,” I said.
“We've been sitting here together,” she said. “Neither of us found anything.”
“Just take my word for it. You have to fix it. Let me show you,” I said, as I pulled my arm away from her and sat down at my desk. “Pull your chair over here.”
She quietly did as I asked. I took her step by step through what I found and how to get through.
“I don't get it,” she said from behind me. “We've been working hard on this, Lance. We've been together. Neither of us found that.”
Then I heard her stand up and push her chair back.
“Hold on,” she snapped, and I knew what was coming. She was about to unleash the evil side of Lauren. “You found it and didn't tell me. Shit! You were going to go to them and make me look like an idiot. You were going to save the day and take it all away from me.”
“Lauren,” I said, as I stood and walked toward her. “It's not what you think.”
“You were going to screw me over,” she said, as she shook her head. “I thought I belonged here, but I didn't. You were going to throw me under the bus. I let you get close to Jackson. What the fuck was I thinking?”
“No,” I said, as I shook my head.
“Yes,” she said, as she nodded. “What made you change your mind, Lance? What was it? Why did you suddenly feel bad enough to tell me? I can't believe this. How could I let this happen?”
She turned around and walked to the door.
“I'll be out tomorrow,” she said.
“No,” I said. “Lauren.”
“No, Lance,” she said. “I can't believe I was this stupid.”
“It's not what you think,” I said. “I wasn't going to screw you over. I wasn't going to take the credit or save the day.”
“What was it then?” she asked, as she quickly turned and looked right into my eyes. “Tell me.”
“I got through before you,” I said, as I fell back onto my chair.
“What?” she asked. “You couldn't have. I called you the moment I got through. We talked for hours. You hadn't made any progress yet.”
“I never said that,” I said in my own defense.
“You let me rattle on for hours about how I'd just gotten through,” she said. “You even told me to call them first thing the following morning. If you would've gotten through first, you would have told me. You would have been dying to rub it in my face. Shit! You would have already called them.”
“Not true,” I said. “I wanted to fix it up before I told them.”
“No,” she said, as she shook her finger at me.
If she wasn't so cute all pissed off, I would have snatched that damn finger out of my face.
“You told me to call them,” she said. “You wouldn't have done that. You would have wanted to call them first.”
I shook my head no without a word.
“Why?” she asked. “Why did you tell me to call them? You could have jumped at the chance the second you hung up with me. Why did you leave it for me to do? You want this just as much as I do, Lance. It doesn't make sense. Why did you let me take the credit if you had already gotten through? Tell me right now.”
“I don't know,” I said, as I stood up and got nose to nose with her. “I really don't know. When you called, you were so excited. You were talking a million words a minute. It was the middle of the night, and you were up working. What was I supposed to do? How could I take that moment away from you? I couldn't do it, okay. I just couldn't fucking do it. I'm taking the couch tonight.”
With that, I was gone. I walked right by her. She called out to me twice, but I kept going. I didn't even grab blankets or a pillow. Instead, I turned out the lights, let my body fall onto the couch, and closed my eyes. There was no way sleep was coming to me, but I wasn't about to talk to her. There were so many thoughts swirling around in my head, and I wasn't ready to confront any of them.
I woke up when I felt Jackson crawl up onto my back, but I didn't move. There was a pillow under my head and a blanket covering me. When had she done that, I wondered? I heard his little giggle as he settled in. His head was on my shoulder, and his body went all the way to the back of my knees. The television was on quietly with morning cartoons. Before I knew it, I heard tiny snores coming from behind me. He'd fallen back to sleep. There was no way I was moving a muscle. Instead, I thought about how amazing he was. My parents loved him, and so did Jillian. Whenever she was over, she followed him around from room to room. He'd roll his eyes and look up at me. It was the cutest sight. Little did he know, the girls would always be a pain-in-the-ass. I wasn't going to break it to him yet. He still had the fun years ahead of him.
“Shit,” I heard her whisper from above us.
When she leaned down to grab him, I reached out and grabbed her arm.
“Don't,” I said. “Leave him there. It was so damn cute. He was laughing when he crawled up there. I tried not to let him know I was awake. How did you get so lucky?”
“Me,” she said. “You're the lucky one, Lance. You have more family than I could imagine, and they truly love you. I would have given anything to have that growing up.”
She looked at Jackson and smiled.
“Maybe you're right,” she said. “He's worth more than all of that.”
“You're right,” I said. “I am the lucky one. I have all of them and him.”
She stood up quickly. There was a huge shift in the air.
“Let me put him in his bed,” she said. “That way you can get up.”
I knew something was up with her, but I wasn't about to ask. It had something to do with my comment about Jackson.
“Okay,” I said.
By the time she got him back into bed, I'd made two cups of coffee.
“Did you sleep?” I asked her, as I handed her a cup.
“No,” she said. “I was working.”
“What did you come up with?” I asked.
“I can't believe I missed it,” she said. “I would have looked like a total ass.”
“I missed what you'd found too,” I said with a shrug. “That doesn't matter. You'll get it fixed. Then you'll look like a total rock star.”
I grabbed my cup from the counter and walked by her and into the office. She walked in behind me, but she didn't say a word. I sat down at my desk and got to work. After a minute or so of her standing behind me, I knew shit was stirring in her head, and I wasn't ready for it.
“Lance,” she whispered.
“You feel like going over it, or you want some sleep?” I asked, cutting her off.
“Can I show you what I've got?” she asked.
“Sure,” I said, and that was it.
We dove right back in as if the night before hadn't happened. By the time Jackson came into the room, we'd made huge progress and were going back and forth with smiles on our faces. She pulled Jackson onto her lap and hugged him tight. I could see her eyes barely staying open and felt bad that she'd stayed up all night. I closed my laptop, stood up, picked Jackson up, and looked down at her.
“I'll get some breakfast for my man here,” I said. “Why don't you go take a nap?”
“I really need to get this done,” she said, and I narrowed my eyes at her
. “You can be such a pain, do you know that? I'll take a damn nap.”
I let out a laugh and turned to walk out of the room.
“Lance,” she called out.
I stopped and looked back at her from over my shoulder.
“Thank you for telling me,” she said.
I gave her a small nod and walked away.
After about four hours, I walked into the bedroom and stopped dead in my tracks. Lauren was on my side of the bed with her arms wrapped around my pillow. Her hair fanned out behind her. The sheet was around her waist and there was no missing her nipples pointing out from my t-shirt. Her eyes opened and I was busted. Then a smile covered her face. She was so damn beautiful. If only I could keep her cocky mouth shut. I did have a few good ways of keeping it closed or full I mean. Either way, it kept her quiet for the most part. I didn't mind the moans she let out from around my cock at those times or any other. When her eyes went wide, I knew my damn shorts were tenting out. I couldn't help it. That woman drove my dick crazy.
“I came to tell you lunch is ready,” I said, as I made sure to stretch the word came out a little longer than the rest.
My hand went down and wrapped around my cock through my shorts.
“If you don't stop staring at it, it won't stop trying to get to you,” I said.
“I wasn't staring at it,” she said with an innocent look on her face.
She's wasn't fooling me. The woman was anything but innocent.
“Are you going to try and tell me that you were over there having pure thoughts?” I asked, and she nodded. “If that's true, explain those hard, little nipples poking out of my t-shirt. That shit was going on before I even walked into the room.”
She sucked her bottom lip into her mouth, and her cheeks turned pink. Damn! I wanted so badly to flip her ass over and make her other cheeks just as pink, but I didn't. Instead, I took a step back.
“Get your ass out of that bed and come eat with us,” I said. “You will be getting none of this right now, so please try and control yourself. If you're good, I'll let you wrap those sexy lips around it later.”
Hacked by Love, Part 3 Page 10
