by Linda Wright
Did you make it home safely?
He waited, almost holding his breath as the debate about whether texting her the same night that he got the number seemed desperate or not.
I just walked in the door, actually. I had to stop for ice cream.
Larry smiled. She’d answered, that was good, right? He hit the reply button and rattled off something about it being odd to stop for ice cream in the middle of the night. She responded that she had actually wanted this ice cream for the past week, and she’d finally broken down on her way home and gotten some. She said that she was eating it with a wine accompaniment, and didn’t even feel bad, which had made Larry laugh. He hit reply and responded again, grinning when his phone chimed with her response. What the hell, he didn’t have to be up in the morning. Staying up all night talking to her seemed like a lot more fun than sleeping anyway.
Chapter 4
Larry had asked Willow to meet him for lunch. He wanted to do something different, and everyone did dinner. Instead, he was going to have a good lunch, walk around in the shopping district for a bit, and once twilight hit, they were going to venture into the arboretum, for an event called A Night Under The Stars. There was a live swing band, henna tattooing, and a wide variety of food. It seemed like something that she’d like, and it was totally different than anything he’d ever done before. He was looking forward to it, believe it or not.
“Have you been waiting long?” Willow’s voice purred as she slipped into the seat across from him. She looked different, more casual than she did on the nights where she was singing. It was nice.
“No, I just got here myself,” Larry said, smiling across the table at her.
“So what’s good here? I’ve never tried this place before,” she said, picking up the menu and looking over it.
“Just about everything is, I’m pretty sure I’ve tried it all over the course of the time that I’ve been coming here,” he said.
“What’s your favorite?” she asked. That was easy.
“For lunch, the tuna salad. Good amount of protein, but it’s not heavy so I don’t feel like I’m lugging it around for the rest of the day,” he said. Willow gave him an impressed look and nodded.
“Good reasoning. I think I’ll try that, then,” she said, closing the menu and placing it onto the table.
Lunch was pleasant for both of them. They talked about their families, friends and hobbies. Larry learned about how Willow started singing with the band and what she did for a day job, and Willow learned as much as Larry would tell her about what it was like to play in the NFL. She laughed when he talking about the first time he took a good, solid hit and how the world had spun around him as he moved to his place on the field. The guy was the only one that he’d come across that hit hard enough to make him lose his bearings, but he’d retired now. That had always disappointed Larry a bit, as if he wasn’t really left with a challenge anymore.
They finished their lunch and took a stroll through this shop and that boutique. It was nice, getting to see what kinds of things that Willow liked, as far as Larry was concerned. He thought of it as recognizance, for if he ever decided that he wanted to get her something. A birthday or an event like that.
The Night Under The Stars turned out to be perfect, with clear skies, bright stars and an even brighter moon, and not too big of a crowd. That mean not too much chatter, plenty of food and drinks and room on the dance floor to move. That was where Willow and Larry spent most of their night after they’d eaten. He twirled her around the dance floor expertly, and she followed like this was old hat to her as they laughed together and talked. Eventually, they peeled off from the other part goers and began to stroll the gardens by moonlight.
“It’s kind of spooky out here,” she said. Larry laughed.
“Most people would think that it’s romantic, not spooky,” he said.
“I guess I’m not most people,” Willow responded with a smirk.
“I’m glad that you aren’t,” he said. They walked in silence for a bit together, and Larry gently slipped his hand around Willows. She didn’t pull back, didn’t give any inclination that she’d even noticed that he’d done it other than the fact that she allowed her fingers to close warmly around his.
“So I guess this evening ends when we leave here,” Larry said, part of him hoping that maybe she’d changed her mind about spending the night with him, although he was pretty sure that she hadn’t.
“Yeah, it does,” she said softly. Larry sighed softly.
“I’m not sure I’m ready for it to end yet,” he said. He was genuinely enjoying being around her, and that was something that he’d been able to say about a lot of people. She made him want to think about someone other than himself.
“It’s not like I said that we have to go now,” she said, smiling. Larry laughed softly.
“Good point,” he said.
Chapter 5
Three weeks later, Willow and Larry had been out several time together. Every time he saw her, spent time with her, talked to her, he found something else to like about her. There was also something especially intriguing about the fact that she hadn’t slept with him yet. He hadn’t just come out and asked her if she would, and she hadn’t just told him that she wouldn’t, but she wouldn’t. She’d made that clear. Their time together consisted of talking and getting to know each other, things he’d never bother with before. It was different, and it made not partying and going out as much a lot easier. His agent was thrilled with the change in her client, though she wasn’t really sure what it was about, and the team seemed to be taking a renewed interest in him, albeit a slight one, since it had only been a few months since his behavior had been forced to change.
“So, what do you want to do tonight, Brain?” Willow said. Larry snickered at the cartoon reference as they sat together on one of the plush couches around the dance floor at the jazz club.
“I don’t know, sitting here with you is kind of nice,” Larry said, putting his arm around her and pulling her close. Willow snuggled up to the side of him and rested her arm on top of his thigh.
“True, it is,” she said. They sat there in silence for a few moments before she turned in his arms and kissed him. He’d kissed her before then, but this was the first time that she’d simply outright kissed him without any warning or prompting.
“What was that for?” Larry asked with a wide smile on his lips.
“We could go back to your place, and spend some time there,” she said. Larry watched her for a heartbeat, checking for any signs that she was kidding, or uncertain. Then, he scrambled to his feet with her still in his arms and the two of them made their way to the club exit, Willow laughing beside him the entire time.
Willow watched the world go past as she followed Larry into his complex. She hadn’t wanted to leave her car at the club, especially since they’d had a few break ins and she didn’t want to be the next one. She looked around at all of the large, well lit homes in this expensive and exclusive complex and felt special that she was actually being escorted inside. Larry turned into a large driveway in front of her and she followed suit. She saw two garage doors open, there were a total of four, and he motioned for her to park through one before he parked through the other.
“This is quite a house,” she said, getting out of her car and slinging her purse over her shoulder.
“It’s nice, but I travel so much that half of the time, I don’t get to see it. I have a cleaning service when I’m out of town to keep the dust at bay since I have dust allergies, but that’s about it. They see my home more than I do,” he said with a laugh.
“That’s kind of sad,” she said, taking the arm that he was offering as he lead her through the door from the garage to the house.
“On one hand, yeah, it is. But on the other hand, I’m traveling to play football. I love what I do for a living, and I get paid really well to do it. Most people can’t say that, so I try not to complain about things like not being able to see my house sometimes
,” he said. The two of them walked through the house as he turned on this light and that until they reached the kitchen. Larry pulled down a bottle of wine and two glasses, and then motioned for Willow to follow him out on to the patio.
“I love sitting out here, no music or television, just me and the sky,” he said, popping the cork and pouring two glasses as Willow sat in one of the loungers.
“It’s an amazing view, both up and down, isn’t it?” she said, looking out over the city view that came from his house being on a bit of an incline.
“It’s one of the reasons I picked this lot,” he said, handing her one of the glasses.
They sat there together in complete silence, simply watching the world around them for almost twenty minutes together. It felt like one of the most intimate things that Larry had ever done with a women, for him. Sitting out there and appreciating the world wasn’t something that fit his image, so it was also something that very few people knew that he liked to do. He wasn’t really sure why he’d told Willow without worrying about what she’d think about him. Maybe because he trusted her to simply just accept him for who he was. That was a freeing thing to trust someone for.
“Why don’t you give me a tour of this fantastic home, hm?” Willow asked as she drained the last of her glass. Larry smiled and stood, holding a hand out to help her from her seat.
“Sure,” he said.
Willow grinned and nodded, ooo’d and ahh’d as they walked through the house and he showed her this room and that. Larry wasn’t sure about taking her through his bedroom, because he didn’t want to give her the wrong idea as to why he’d brought her out there, so he stalled until absolute last.
“Your bedroom is very tastefully done,” she said, looking around.
“I bought the whole room of furniture together. I’m not really good at putting things together on my own, I don’t think. Everything in here was made to match the other pieces,” he said with a grin. Willow turned to him with a grin.
“It’s nice,” she said, placing her hands in the middle of his chest and pushing him roughly so that he had no choice but to fall backwards onto the bed behind him.
“Willow?” he said, so surprised that he wasn’t really sure what to do other than simply flop back. Willow smirked and jumped on top of him, straddling his midsection as she leaned in close to his ear.
“You’ve waited long enough, don’t you think?” she whispered. Larry felt his eyes widen, and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tightly against him as he rolled himself on top of her. She laughed and squealed, and he reached over and turned out the lights.
Chapter 6
“You know, it’s alright if you don’t want to do this,” Larry said. Willow was in the shower, he blurry silhouette visible in the mirror as he talked to her while she bathed.
“I don’t mind. Just because I’m not always in some loud, banging club doesn’t mean that I don’t like to go to one from time to time. Plus, what your agent said makes sense, this will help your image since you spent the last few years being a royal prick,” she said. Larry shot a look through the mirror towards the shower as if she could see it.
“I wasn’t trying to be a royal prick,” he mumbled.
“Yes you were. You just see it now,” she said, hearing him over the sound of the water running.
“Does that mean that I’m maturing or something, the fact that I’m getting better?” he asked. Willow giggled.
“Perhaps. Then again, you are still the man that laughs at every fart joke you’ve ever come across,” she said. Larry smirked.
“Hey, fart jokes are a lost art,” he said.
“Uh huh, sure,” she said. Larry grinned.
“I’m going to go put on my clothes, since you’re being all mean,” he said.
“Wuss,” she said in return.
“Love you too!” he said on his way out of the bathroom.
He and Willow were going out with the rest of the team that night to a club for a bit of drinking and bonding. She’d come out to the house a few hours before with a change of clothes, and opted to get ready there, so she had less time in the clothes to mess up her outfit. The logic made perfect sense to Larry, plus that meant that there was time for them to fool around a bit before they left the house. That was always a plus, since she was a stellar lover. They were six months into spending time together, and both of them were more open and less guarded with each other. That was why she was meeting the team. They’d all wanted to know what had caused the change in their teammate, so tonight, he had promised to show them.
He peeked into her overnight bag and smirked at the dress she’d brought to wear. It was one that made her the center of attention wherever she went, because she looked fantastic in it.
“That’s my girl,” he said, laying it out flat on the bed to wait for her to finish up in the bathroom.
The club for the night was called the Bass Drop, and the guys had pitched in and rented out the VIP section. It was easier when they all went out to do that, otherwise they were mobbed by people. That wasn’t something that anyone wanted, especially the ones that were attached and planned to bring said significant others to the club that night.
The club had allowed the guys to come in through a side entrance and head straight up to the VIP, to avoid starting a riot. This was going to be Larry and Willow’s first official outing together as a couple, which was huge since Larry was never tied to anyone. Larry made sure that he’d had a sedan service for the night, in case either of them was a little too drunk to drive, or simply didn’t feel like it. Willow was ready just as the car pulled up into the driveway.
They drive downtown talking about the guys on the team. Willow hadn’t really started following football until she’d started seriously seeing Larry, so there was still a lot that she didn’t understand and a lot of faces that she didn’t know. Larry had tried to get her to recognize some of the more forward ones, the ones that would come up and intJohnuce themselves, and she had gotten most of them on site. The others he could feed to her before they went up to them.
“Oh, and Jacobs is a bit handsy when he’s been drinking. He won’t like, grab your ass or something, but he might hug and hold on a bit longer, or brush past something that he shouldn’t. He doesn’t mean to, trust me, he’s just drunk. One of the guys thought he had smacked him in the ass the first time we all went out, it turns out that he’d just turned around rather quickly and let his arm flap around him,” Larry said laughing. Willow giggled.
“Watch Jones when he gets liquored up, got it,” she said.
“There are going to be a lot of cameras here, someone at the club leaked that we’re going to be there. But I am so glad that I’ll bet there with you, you look amazing,” he said. Willow smiled.
“I’m supposed to look amazing, we’ve got to keep your rep up,” she said. Larry leaned in and kissed her gently.
“I don’t care about that. You look amazing for me, and that’s enough,” he said.
“You really have matured, haven’t you?” she said, smiling and resting a hand on Larry’s thigh.
“Somewhat. I still want to peel that dress off of you on the way to the club,” he said, licking his lips. Willow grinned, and playfully swatted his leg.
“We’re almost there, pervert,” she said.
“I can be quick,” he replied.
“Yeah you can,” Willow said with an eye roll.
“Hey, wait a minute…” Larry said, frowning as Willow laughed out loud.
*~*~*
The bass was so deep that you could feel it in your chest when you walked inside of the club, but Willow smiled and began dancing as they made their way down the hallway towards the entrance to the VIP section.
“There he is, the man of the hour!” someone announced as the two of them walked through the door. Henry almost bowled Larry over with the hug as he clapped him soundly on the back.
“Why am I the man of the hour?” Larry asked.
“Don’t
mind him, Lance has already had too much to drink,” Paulie said. Larry nodded his understanding.
“Paulie, this is Willow,” he said, turning and intJohnucing her. Willow smiled and held out her hand for a shake.
“It’s a pleasure,” he said.
“Likewise,” she responded.
“You’ve become something of a legend in the locker room, you know,” Paulie said. Larry rolled his eyes.
“Oh Lord, here we go,” he said.
“Have I?” Willow asked, suddenly very interested in what Paulie was saying.
“Oh yeah, most of the guys have been wondering what the hell was up with the pompous Larry ass that we’d all come to know and love for a while, and then one day, he finally let it slip that what happened was a woman named Willow,” he explained.
“Interesting, what else did he say about me?” Willow asked. Paulie grinned.
“That’s the thing. He wouldn’t say another word. He said he didn’t want us to jinx it or something.” He said. Larry grinned and shook his head.
“Why do you think I was scared to bring her tonight? You all might convince her that I’m not worth her time, and I would be completely destroyed,” he said. Willow cuddled up against Larry’s side and smiled, winking up at him.
“Don’t worry, I’ve seen you at your Larry assiest, I’m pretty sure that if I haven’t walked away by now, I’m not going to,” she said. Larry grinned and kissed her again.
“Hey now, none of that shit. Some of us are here alone, you know,” a rather slurred voice said. That was Ian, and he had apparently pregamed pretty hard from the look of it.
“Are you already drunk, Ian? Damn, you work fast,” Larry said as he and Willow began to move farther inside.
“That’s what she said,” Ian laughed.
“Dude, if that’s what she said, that’s not positive,” Larry said.
