Spring Training

by KB Winters

  I tilted my head in confusion. “What are you talking about?”

  Blake smiled. “Do you have your video up so you can see yourself?”

  Did I have my video up? “Why do I need to look at my—” My words slammed to a stop when I looked down at myself and realized I was sitting in my underwear. “Oh fuck.” I jumped out of my chair and attempted to cover myself with my hands. “I completely forgot. One—fuck!” The sound of Blake’s rich laughter was contagious, and I found myself grinning even as I hurriedly threw on a blouse and jeans. Without any makeup to hide behind, I knew my face was probably bright red. “That is not how I normally greet someone.”

  Blake put his hands up, but the smile on his face was still wide. “Far be it for me to tell you how to live your life. I was not offended in the least.”

  “I’m sure you weren’t,” I joked and gave him a wry smile. Though I’d been caught totally unaware, I couldn’t help but feel a bit smug when I remembered how his eyes had caressed my body. “How is your day going so far?”

  “Well, I got a free show from a beautiful woman and the temperature is above freezing so I’d say it’s going mighty fine.” Blake’s voice was deep and baritone and it struck me how similar his real voice was to the voice from my dream. At the memory of my nighttime fantasy, I could feel my face grow even more inflamed. “Something going on over there that you’d like to share with the class?”

  I looked up sharply and tried to will my cheeks to cool. “No, nothing. Just curious about where exactly you live and what it’s like there in Alaska.” Blake scratched the scruff of his chin and again my fingers twitched with the desire to touch, but I held myself still and waited for his reply.

  “Well, depends on where you are I guess.”

  “And where are you?”

  He smiled. “Kenai. It’s a little town in the south central part. My uncle owns a few lodges in the small town of King Salmon so I spend a lot of time there helping him out with the tourists. There’s lots of fishing and grizzly bear watching there since it’s more rural.”

  “Bears?” I exclaimed. “Aren’t you worried about coming across one or being attacked?” In my head when I thought about Alaska, I thought about cozy ski lodges with hot chocolate and the occasional snow ball fight. Running into a bear never factored into my ideas.

  “Not really. You just have to be careful and carry a gun for protection. My dogs are pretty good at letting me know when it’s time to skedaddle somewhere else and other than far off sightings, I’ve never been bothered by them. But like I said, I only go there to help out my uncle. Most months I’m in Kenai or occasionally in Anchorage.”

  “Oh.”

  “Yeah. Don’t worry though, you’re more likely to freeze to death than get mauled by a bear. I’d worry more about the moose to be honest.”

  It sounded terrifying and slightly exciting all at the same time. “Well, what do you do for fun there?”

  Blake sat back in his chair, and I was able to see a little more of his surroundings. The room he was in looked like an office and it had an entire wall filled with books. “Fly-fishing and lots of reading mostly. I do have satellite so I get TV and internet out here. Kenai is a small town, only has about eight thousand people, but there are a few restaurants and parks.”

  “Don’t you work?”

  Blake’s laughter made me sit up a little taller. I hadn’t realized it, but my body had been steadily leaning towards the computer as if drawn to the man through the screen.

  “In many ways.”

  “Like?” I prompted him.

  He crossed his arms across his chest and smiled. “Guess you’ll just have to wait and see.”

  “That sounds slightly ominous. Are you a serial killer or something? Maybe a personal hit man?”

  His chuckle was rich with amusement and I found myself smiling as well. “No and no. I’d much rather observe people than kill them.”

  I thought about his words and wondered if maybe his time as a SEAL had made him want to live a more calm and peaceful life. “Well, that’s good to hear I suppose. I don’t really have a death wish.”

  “No? You look like you might enjoy a little excitement.” Blake shifted reaching back to cup his hands around the back of his head.

  “Are you trying to show off your body?” I asked with a smile. He did have a truly mouth-watering physique. The move made his arm muscles bulge slightly and the bottom of his shirt rose up just enough for me to see the beginning of a very happy trail leading south. I almost wished he were standing up so I could see if he had any other bulges of similar—

  “Well, you did show off yours to me, so I figured a little reciprocity was in order,” he replied ducking his head down slightly. He looked up at me from beneath surprisingly long eyelashes. For someone so ruggedly manly, his eyes were breathtakingly beautiful. I felt like I could get lost in them easily if I let myself. “Do you like what you see?”

  I hummed in affirmation. “I do indeed, though I’d like it even better if you weren’t wearing that shirt.” It was thrillingly easy to flirt with him—completely unlike the backhanded flirting I was used to. When dealing with men in my circle—flirting was less fun and more work. I had always had to work at not revealing too much and being more demure and quiet than I truly was. “And perhaps you should take those pants off as well.

  Blake’s eyebrows rose in surprise as if he weren’t expecting me to be so forward.

  “What?” I asked with a smirk. “Did you expect me to be some blushing trembling belle who would swoon at the sight of your…manliness?”

  “I don’t believe I had any expectations coming into this, though if I had, you would have surely burst through them already considering what I saw a little while ago.”

  I laughed, feeling lighter and sexier than I ever had before. “Trust me Alaska, what you saw was nothing compared to how I really get.” I flipped my hair over my shoulder and shot him a heated look. I hoped it would translate well over the computer and if the look of surprise on his face was anything to go by, it had.

  Blake brought one arm down and rested his hand on his stomach. He scratched a little pulling his shirt up just enough for me to see more tanned and muscled skin. The sight of his rock hard abs was enough to make me lick my lips, and I wondered what it would feel like if I could touch him. I wanted to, more than I’d ever wanted anything.

  “I want to touch you too, princess.”

  I jerked my eyes up to his face completely unaware that I’d said that last part out loud. The sight of his skin so teasingly displayed was killing my thought process. I’d never been to a male strip club before, but I’d imagine that Blake would probably be one of the favorites.

  “Are you a stripper?”

  Blake’s loud laughter broke through the sexual tension that had been brewing, and I covered my face with my hands. What in the hell had made me ask that?

  “No princess, I’m definitely not a stripper.” He looked at me the smile still firmly on his face. “What the hell gave you that idea?”

  I groaned into my hands before peeking out between my fingers. “I have no idea. Sometimes my mouth decides to say something before my brain can veto it. Sorry.”

  “Oh no, don’t apologize. It’s been a while since I’ve had a laugh like that.” Blake shook his head still chuckling about my little word vomit episode. “You are definitely not what I was expe—”

  “What in the devil is going on in here?”

  I whirled around at the sound of my mother’s voice. The door to my bedroom slammed against the wall making me jump.

  “Mother? Oh my god! Don’t you knock?” I stood up from my stool and turned to fully face her.

  She took a few steps into my room and stopped. “Why should I knock to enter a room in my own house? Do I need to remind you again whose name is on the mortgage?”

  “No, but maybe I should remind you to have manners.”

  “You impertinent, ungrateful little brat. I allow you to live he
re rent free and yet all you ever do is sass me and disobey my wishes.” She leaned to the side and I realized what she was doing just in time to lean with her.

  “Fine, whatever mother. What do you want?” I took a step back leaning against the computer desk in hopes of hiding the screen from her.

  “What are you doing? Who are you talking to?” She leaned the other way as if trying to see around me.

  “Neither of those answers are any of your business. Did you need anything else?” I shifted again hoping that I was doing a good job at keeping the screen covered. “I really am busy.”

  “Busy with what, Taylor?” She stood up and crossed her arms over her chest. The expression on her face was livid and if not for the circumstances, I would’ve laughed about it.

  “Again with it being none of your business. If that is all, please leave and close the door behind you. I guess I’ll have to invest in a really strong lock for that door.” I waved my hand in a dismissive gesture before turning to face my computer screen. I caught sight of part of Blake’s face when I heard my mother gasp. I glanced over my shoulder and winced when I saw that she’d moved closer and could clearly see the screen. I put my hand over it and turned quickly back around.

  “Who the hell is that man, Taylor,” she hissed at me. “That does not look like Davis.”

  “How do you even know that guy’s name?” I asked incredulously. The only reason I remembered his name was because I’d glanced at his message again a few times, while feeling guilty that I hadn’t at least responded back.

  “How could I forget? Unlike you, I understand what needs to happen in order to fix what you’ve done.”

  “Unlike me?” I asked. I looked at her as if she’d lost her mind. “How could I forget anything with you breathing down my neck like a psycho every five minutes? I’ve barely gotten a break from you in weeks thanks to your incessant complaining.”

  “Well you’ve apparently been having more of a break than you think if you have time to talk to some hick lumberjack,” she said wildly gesturing at the screen behind me. I glanced down at Blake internally wincing at the hard look on his face.

  ‘I’m sorry.’ I mouthed to him hoping he could read my lips. I turned back to look at her. “Look, like I said before Mother, who I talk to is none of your business. I said I would message Davis back and I will…for you. Right now I’m busy, so I’d appreciate it if you woul—”

  “Busy doing what? Sexting on camera with some hillbilly man who probably couldn’t afford to even fly to meet you—let alone support you. And what about what our company needs? Are you going to throw that all away again for some ass?”

  “The company is not mine and has nothing to do with me,” I exclaimed. Why couldn’t she get it through her head that I just didn’t care?

  “The company had plenty to do with you when you asked your father, bless his heart, to take in your bastard of an ex. The company had plenty to do with you every month when you got a nice lump sum of money deposited to your bank account.”

  I clenched my jaw, but remained quiet. It was true what she was saying no matter how badly I wanted to deny it.

  “I see I have your attention now.” Her smug look was enough to make me sick, but I didn’t say anything in response. “We have less than six months to save our family’s company and to do that we need money or connections. You need to email Davis back and flaunt yourself, or whatever you do to attract these losers and get him to agree to marriage, otherwise we’ll lose everything. Do you understand me. Your father had always turned the other way when it came to your youthful indiscretions and in the end, it was his undoing. I will not have you shaming this family any longer.”

  I glared at her. I wanted so badly to fight back and yell and scream. I wanted to tell her to fuck off and leave me alone, but I did none of those things. “Fine. I’ll get off and email Davis.”

  She looked at me a moment longer. “Good. When you finish, copy the message and print it out for me to read. We have much to do to get you ready for what is to come.” She turned away and walked to my bedroom door. She paused at the threshold. “And make sure you let that unkempt fisherman know that you have no time for games and that you are no longer available for his correspondence. We don’t want anyone finding out that you are even entertaining someone like him.”

  When she closed the door behind her, I rushed over and locked it for good measure. I leaned my forehead against the cool wood with a sigh. Some days, it seemed that I’d never be free of her demands. Was this what my life was really meant to be like? My father hadn’t been the easiest man to live with, but he would never have thought to bargain me off just for money.

  “I’m sorry about that Blake,” I said turning away from the door. I walked back over to my computer. “My mother has this idea in her head that…” My words trailed off as I looked at the dark screen where Blake’s face had been. “Oh no.” I flopped down into my chair and put my face in my hands. Had he heard everything? Did I not hit mute when I realized my mom was behind me?

  “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I muttered as I quickly closed out Skype and pulled up the marriage website. I clicked on my message folder and the one sent by him. My hands were shaking, no doubt affected by the fact that the man I felt such a strong connection to had probably heard my less than stellar conversation with Mommy Dearest. More than ever, I told myself that moving out would probably be the best thing for me.

  I pulled up a blank message and took a moment to breathe. How much had Blake heard? I could only assume that he’d heard everything, so I needed to send him a message explaining what was going on. I wanted him to keep talking to me whether he was rich or not. I didn’t care about the money—I just cared about whether or not I’d just been sabotaged by my mother in finding love—or at least someone I could possibly fall in love with.

  ‘Blake,

  I’m not sure how much of that conversation you heard, but I’m sorry. The woman I was arguing with was my mother.’

  ‘No shit woman.’ I thought to myself. Of course if he’d heard us talking, then he had no doubt heard me refer to her as my mom. I deleted the message and started again.

  ‘Blake,

  Let me apologize first. I didn’t know that my mom was listening, and I definitely wasn’t expecting her to walk in on us. I just want you to know that I don’t feel the way she does about you. I don’t care about money, and I really don’t want to message any other guy but you. I’m not actually planning to message that other guy. I promise. Can you and I still talk? I still really want to get to know you.

  Sorry again.

  Taylor’

  I tapped the cursor over the send box and watched the ‘message sent’ icon pop up on the screen. The webpage refreshed bringing me back to the home screen. There was nothing more I could do. I didn’t know anything about Blake other than what I learned from our brief conversations, but it was enough to make me ache at the thought of not talking to him again. I checked his profile and saw that he was online, but as much as I wanted to send him another message, I held off. I knew what he’d heard had to have been a complete shock. Of course men went on this website to find wealthy women to marry, but that didn’t mean that they wanted to hear that they were only wanted for a certain dollar amount. I sighed and inwardly cursed my mother for her shitty timing and gold-digging need to pimp me out for her own comfort.

  Blake was a catch—a gorgeous, seemingly humble and charming catch. All I could do was hope my message was good enough to convince him to talk to me again.

  Chapter Five

  I sighed as I logged into my dating account for the umpteenth time that day. It had been nearly two weeks since my mother had barged into my bedroom and seen me on Skype with Blake and despite the three emails I’d sent apologizing to him, he had yet to respond.

  It was all the more frustrating when I could see that he’d logged into the website the day after I’d sent him the first email. I had no idea if he’d even read the other two, but the fact that
he’d never sent back an email saying something was more than a little discouraging. It didn’t help that my mother had been breathing down my neck since then. The woman had even sat beside me as I sent Davis a reply email complete with an apology for taking so long to get back to him. The man had been a perfect gentleman telling me it was okay and that he was glad I hadn’t jumped on it, over-eager like some of the other women from the site.

  If I wasn’t so intrigued by Blake and the attraction and chemistry that were there, I might actually contemplate dating Davis for real. He was everything my mother and the society women continuously said I should want. He was from a wealthy family and had gone to Harvard, graduating with a near perfect GPA. He had a more than steady job and was objectively very attractive as well as seemingly a nice person going by the number of pictures of him volunteering or attending charity functions. Davis was a perfect candidate to save my family’s business…and he seemed perfectly boring for me.

  “Taylor.”

  “Oh my fucking gawd,” I muttered to myself. Since the incident, I’d barely been able to get away from my mother and even my own room was more like a prison than a refuge. If not for the fact that our money was almost gone, I wouldn’t have been surprised if the woman had hired investigators to follow me around and keep an eye out on me. Even trying to go to the gym or dinner with friends warranted a Spanish style inquisition, and I was never really sure if she didn’t call up the places I mentioned going to just to make sure I was really there. It was akin to torture.

  I stood up from my chair. I knew if I didn’t answer my mother, she’d barge into my room once again spouting off demands and accusations that would ruin what little good mood I had left. My slippers were silent as I padded down the long hallway and down the wooden stairs. The further I got from my room, the more I felt the weight of my family’s future and my mother’s demands pushing me down. When I stepped into the lounge, I wasn’t surprised to see her seated in the loveseat with a glass of wine in her hand. Daytime drinking was quickly becoming a daily occurrence for her.