Sweeping the Series

by Kate Stewart

  I was feeling pretty confident until I grabbed my phone from the nightstand and looked down and saw a text from Ren.

  12:00 a.m.

  Ren: I’m sitting in front of your room. We need to talk.

  1:00 a.m.

  Ren: Pick up the phone.

  3:15 a.m.

  Ren: Damn it, Erica!

  I scrolled up to see the whole conversation. Bile rose in my throat as I saw that it had all started with me.

  10:01 p.m.

  Me: Unnecessary? I’m unnecessary. Isn’t that what you said? When we were together, you didn’t find these unnecessary.

  And what followed was a perfect shot of my tits in a bathroom stall.

  “OH GOD, NO!” I yelled as Rowe shot up from beside me.

  “What, what’s wrong?”

  I just groaned as I read Ren’s answering texts.

  10:03 p.m.

  Ren: What in the hell are you doing? I’m in a meeting!

  10:06 p.m.

  Ren: Jesus Christ, Erica, are you drunk?

  10:08 p.m.

  Ren: Where are you?!

  10:16 p.m.

  Ren: What are you trying to do to me?

  “What time is it,” Rowe croaked from the floor.”

  “Six thirty,” I said, horrified as I stared at the picture.

  “I’m going to miss my flight!” Rowe shot up from the floor and quickly began packing. I got out of bed to help her as she started to shove her things into her carry on.

  “I sent Ren a picture,” I said, mortified. “Of my tits.”

  Rowe paused and then looked at me blankly before she threw her head back and laughed. “That explains why you were in the bathroom for half an hour. You must have been looking for the right lighting.”

  “Got any room in that bag for me?” I asked.

  “You’ve got beautiful boobs, girl. Own that shit.”

  I hung my head in shame as a firm knock landed on the door. Rowe and I looked at each other with wide eyes.

  “Oh, God. I can’t face him.”

  “Oh, but you must,” she said with a chuckle as she started packing her purse. “Don’t back down.”

  “Shut the door!” Alice screamed to April in the bathroom, seconds before I heard it close.

  We were all scrambling as I gathered myself together as much as possible, pushing everything back into my dress, and then opened the door. Three very pissed off and very beautiful baseball players stood on the other side.

  Ren’s eyes seared into me as I took a step back and opened it for them to walk in.

  “Where in the hell have you been?” Ren snapped first. “We’ve been calling you for hours!”

  “Alice.” Rafe knocked on the bathroom door with Andy on his heels, who barked out a curt “April, open up.” Both men looked ready for war, as the door slowly opened.

  “Hi,” April said in a shitty attempt to hide her misery. “I was just about to call you two.”

  Rafe charged past her, and I heard Alice yelp. Seconds later, she was walked out of the hotel room in a fireman’s hold over Rafe’s shoulder. “My shoes, baby, my shoes!”

  “Fuck your shoes,” he growled.

  Alice groaned before she caught sight of me and waved. “I had fun. Love you, guys! Thanks for the drinks, Ren!”

  I winced at her parting words. I was a dead woman.

  Rafe’s hand landed firmly on her ass as she yelped out again. “Hey, that’s sore, Hembrey!”

  “It’s about to get a hell of a lot worse,” he promised as the door clicked shut behind them.

  Andy stood in the doorway of the bathroom as his wife washed her face.

  “Don’t even start,” she said as I caught the side of her glare in the mirror. “I don’t say shit when you make a new brew and invite the team over for half the night.”

  “I’m not saying a word. But I did want to tell you that your son just cut another tooth,” he said with a smirk.

  “Get out,” April ordered as Andy stepped into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. I heard a shriek and then light laughter. I smiled at the door and then connected eyes with a man who looked like he was planning my burial.

  Rowe chose that moment to speak up. “I’m all set. I’ve got to go.” I stood and gave her a hug. “Call me when you get back. Love you,” I said as she moved toward the door.

  “Sorry we didn’t get a chance to meet, Ren, maybe some other time. Take care of my girl, okay?”

  “Sure,” Ren said dryly as the door shut behind her.

  I rolled my eyes. “Nice.”

  “What is Alice thanking me for?” he asked with an icy tone.

  I clamped my lips together and glanced at his credit card on the nightstand.

  “Are you fucking serious?”

  Throat parched, I put together a decent sentence. “I’m sorry. It’s not enough but it’s the truth. That was highly unprofessional, not to mention . . . that picture. Look, clearly this isn’t going to work out. I get it. I’ll call Zellner, and I’ll be gone by noon.”

  Ren’s eyes drifted from my foot up the length of my legs to my skirt.

  “You’re not going anywhere.”

  “Ren,” I treaded carefully. “I don’t want to fight. I know you don’t think I’m capable of being sincere but—”

  “Shut up, Erica. I need you to shut up.”

  Livid. That was all I could see in his posture.

  “I’m so goddamn tempted to brave your breath, lift that skirt, and fuck you until you cry, even with those two in the bathroom. So, I need you to stop talking.”

  “We’re out of here,” Andy announced as they stepped out of the bathroom and saw Ren and me in a stand-off. April grabbed her bag and gave me a wink, which I returned with a smile. And then we were alone again.

  Ren stood. “You’re staying because you said you would, and for once, when it comes to me, you’re going to keep your word.”

  “Is that all?” I asked sourly as I stood and walked toward the bathroom to grab my toothbrush.

  “What exactly were you hoping for, Erica, when you sent me that picture?”

  I closed my eyes, and when I opened them, he was at the door of the bathroom. “Erase it.”

  “Not a fucking chance.”

  “Fine, whatever,” I said, shoving a brush full of paste in my mouth before I spoke around it. “Probaby haven’t seeb a weal paiw in yebs anyway.”

  “What?”

  I spit out the toothpaste without washing it down the drain. I could see Ren cringe at the sight of it. I held in my laughter.

  “I said, you probably haven’t seen a real pair of tits in years anyway. That picture was educational.” I shoved the toothbrush back in my mouth while rinsing the sink to put him out of his misery.

  Ren studied me as I brushed, his eyes blazing.

  I gave him wide eyes of my own. “What?”

  “What is going on with you? You aren’t this irresponsible.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I got drunk. Made a bad decision. It happens, and I can honestly say, at twenty-five, that was my worst. You know anyone else around here who might do stupid shit when they’ve had too much to drink? POT!”

  I winced at the ache in my head as the kettle pressed his lips together.

  “And don’t give me that double standard crap, Ren. I needed to have some fun. You’re quite the moody diva to deal with. By the way, we’ve got an appearance at the ball camp today, and you look like you could use a few hours of sleep.”

  “I’ve got shit to do,” he said as he stared at the slit in my dress that revealed the side of my breast.

  I gave him a seedy smile through a mouthful of foam before he turned on his heel and slammed the door.

  I pounded on Ren’s hotel door for five minutes before he opened it, a fresh towel wrapped around his glistening body, his angry blue gaze darkened by wet lashes. He was etched perfection, and my mouth went dry as I averted my eyes.

  “I’ve been messaging you for two hours. We ne
ed to be there in twenty minutes!”

  “I told you I had shit to do,” he barked, leaving the door open for me.

  I walked in, and my heart leaped to my throat.

  “Davis!”

  I ran to the English Bulldog perched in the corner and knelt down beside him. “Oh my God, you got so fat!”

  “He’s healthy,” Ren said over his shoulder.

  I glanced his way just as he covered his abs with a T-shirt.

  “He’s fat,” I said as I hugged him to me. “God, do you remember the day I brought him home to you? I’d never seen you so excited.”

  “Best Christmas present I ever got,” Ren said with a small, lopsided smile as he stared on at the two of us. It was the first smile we’d shared since I got to Arizona.

  I scratched Davis’s sides and belly. “How you doing, boy? Have you missed me?”

  “He probably doesn’t remember you,” Ren muttered, closing the bathroom door behind him.

  I looked around Ren’s room. It was immaculate. Not a single thing out of place. His suitcase was still packed, and everything was folded as if he’d just arrived. I walked over to the nightstand and took a whiff of his cologne: Dolce and Gabbana Light Blue—heavenly.

  Then I made my way to his closet. I bit my lip and glanced at the bathroom door before I rearranged a few of his hangers, ruining his carefully crafted rainbow of color. I heard the fan shut off and rushed over to pet Davis as Ren emerged from the bathroom, grabbing his keys and wallet from his dresser.

  I paused my hands in Davis’s thick rolled fur and pressed my nose to his wet one. “You remember me, don’t you? How could you not? I was the one stuck potty training you.”

  “Some job you did. He took a shit in my glove an hour ago,” Ren said as he leaned down and clipped a leash on him.

  “Let’s go, boy.” He all but jerked the dog out of my arms, and I stood.

  “So, this camp is exactly the type of thing that would be good for your image.”

  “I’ve been doing this for two years now with Rafe, so there’s no need for you to go. I can handle this myself,” Ren said, opening the door in an attempt to usher me out.

  Blood boiled through my veins as Ren gave me a smug smirk.

  “I’m still coming, Ren. Hate to ruin your plans, but this is my job.”

  “Suit yourself,” he said as he closed the door behind us.

  We rode the elevator to the parking garage in silence as the memory of the day I got Davis flashed through my head. Like I could ever forget it.

  We had spent every moment since the season ended together, mostly in my shitty one-bedroom apartment in Atlanta. I’d come home that Christmas Eve to find her wearing nothing but a thin tee that barely covered her midriff, panties that were decorated with large, old-school Christmas bulbs, and the Ugg boots I had ordered for her that she’d opened early.

  She was perched on my stepstool, decorating a small tree that she’d paid for and dragged home herself. Christmas music was playing, and the smell of burned sugar cookies lingered in the air.

  When she turned to me, so proud of her handiwork on that little Charlie Brown tree, I damn near hit my knees right that moment and asked her to be my wife. I didn’t, but that was the moment I’d decided to marry her. To make her my home. The home I never had.

  After giving my neighbors the twelve-foot tree I had brought home, and washing down the burned cookies with egg nog, she insisted we watch a marathon of Transformer movies. We only made it through the first fifteen minutes of the first one before I had her coming with my name on her lips.

  When the doorbell rang on Christmas morning—and she shot out of bed like her ass was on fire, her hair a tangled mess while she shoved her feet into her Uggs—I was determined to seal the deal.

  And a minute after that, when she walked into my bedroom with our puppy, she made my dreams come true and gave me the family I never had.

  Two months later, she took it all away.

  It was only when we got to the parking garage that I realized I was at his mercy.

  “I, uh . . . haven’t had time to get a rental.”

  Ren kept walking, and I heard the chirp of the cherry red Aston Martin directly ahead of us.

  “Really, Ren?”

  “Figures you’d have something to say,” Ren said, ushering Davis in and closing his driver’s side door.

  My heels clicked along the garage floor as I briefly admired the view of Ren in the driver’s seat. I had to admit it was a hot car.

  As soon as I clicked my seatbelt, I had a forty-pound English Bulldog placed in my lap. Ren looked over to me and lifted a perfectly arched brow.

  “Technically, that’s his seat, so you’re going to have to get over it.”

  “God, you’re enjoying this,” I snapped.

  “To the fullest,” he replied, flashing his teeth.

  My retort was muffled by the roar of the engine, and then we were off like a shot. I clutched Davis to me for dear life as Ren expertly navigated the streets of Scottsdale.

  “I bet you bought yourself a house full of toys,” I said, sliding my fingers along the leather. “I’m so happy for you, Ren. You deserve it.”

  Ren’s jaw ticked as he waited for the light to change.

  “I remember you kept your beat-up pickup truck because you were too afraid to spend any money that first year.”

  “It’s not remarkable you remember the details from only a few years ago,” he said as he raced through the streets until we were stopped by another light.

  Still, I refused to let his asshole-ish remarks deter me.

  “You took me to eat Italian the first night and then it was McDonald’s every night after. I thought you were the cheapest bastard alive for the first month we dated.”

  “Well, you didn’t know how to cook. One of us had to take charge.”

  “I had no issue eating McNuggets while you sat on a small fortune, that should be easy for you to remember.”

  “I was saving it in case my knees wore out, or I got injured,” he said defensively.

  “I can see that fear has subsided a bit.” My head flew back as he floored the car and clutched the steering wheel.

  I smiled as I looked around the sleek, luxurious sports car and back at Ren. “It’s kind of surreal seeing you like this. And, God, I prayed you’d get here. I hope you know that.”

  Ren took a sudden turn, so I pulled up my phone for directions, assuming he’d forgotten them.

  “Ren, you’re about to pass the park. REN!”

  He drove on like a bat out of hell as I watched Scottsdale pass by in a blur. Within a few minutes, we were in no-man’s-land.

  “Ren, what the hell are you doing?”

  He skidded the car to a stop and Davis barked at him, feeling the aggression coming from him. Ren got out of the car, and I followed, leaving Davis securely inside and away from his insane master.

  “What in the hell are you doing?”

  “What am I doing? What in the hell are you doing?” Ren turned to me, his eyes furious. “I’m trying to keep my shit together, and you’re talking about us like you didn’t rip my goddamn heart out.”

  “I didn’t—”

  “Save it,” he said, walking toward me, pinning the back of my knees to his hood. “You want us to get along? Then don’t remind me of what a goddamn idiot I was.”

  “Idiot? I don’t know about then, but I sure as hell know you’re acting like one now.”

  “I don’t want to hear how happy you are for me, Erica.”

  We were shouting at this point. Davis barked inside the car, unhappy with our behavior.

  “You did exactly what you set out to do. Hey, Ren, I’m happy for you!”

  Our breath mingled as the sun beat down on both of us.

  “I don’t need you to be happy for me. I don’t need a stroll down memory lane with you. I don’t need your approval on my car or the way I feed my dog.”

  “Davis is fat! This is a hot car. It’s su
re to draw penis envy, and that’s a good thing because it’s owner is a DICK!”

  “You’re some piece of work, you know that? The queen of mixed signals. I have no idea how I navigated my way with you in the first fucking place.”

  “Oh, yeah!? Here’s a signal for you!” I stuck my middle finger in the inch between our faces, directly on his nose. “You can kiss my ass, Makavoy!”

  Glacier eyes blazed as I scanned his face and watched a drop of sweat slide down his neck, past his pulse point. That was all I saw before I was flipped on my stomach.

  “Your wish is my command, baby.”

  Before I had a chance to speak, my skirt was lifted, my panties were snapped away, and Ren’s face was buried between my legs.

  “Ren!”

  My whole body seized at the intrusion until his tongue swept a path from top to bottom and remained there with lightning-fast licks of his tongue. I had nothing to hold onto as he gripped me firmly. I gasped and attempted to draw more air as he slid his fingers in and twisted them, so I was clawing at the hood. I was soaked, and he was starving.

  The noises coming from us both spurred him on as I started to coil. He fucked me roughly with his tongue, pushing as far in as he could before replacing it with his fingers and sucking on my clit. I was almost there when he flipped me back over, his mouth crashing into mine.

  Our tongues tangled and dueled angrily as we both gave way into the sensation. I was lost in his kiss, his hold, his absolute power over my body. I wanted him with every inch of me.

  When he pulled away, I could see in his eyes the request for permission. Frantic for more, I gripped his erection firmly in my hand and got a groan.

  “You’re coming on my cock,” he ordered as he hastily slid the strap of my dress down, freeing my breast and sucking my nipple until I was putty in his hands. My whole body trembled as I held his head in my hands, his beautiful dark brows twisted in concentration, while groans of need rumbled out of his throat.